How could you take a great IP with an already dedicated viewership base, make a prequel series about its earliest and most intriguing stories and get Michelle Yeoh on board to star, and make it an utter disappointment? Take notes from Netflix. We had earlier reported how ‘The Witcher: Blood Origin’ was so dismal that fans of the Witcher series wished it didn’t exist. And with its latest update regarding the series, Netflix may be coming to the same opinion.
‘The Witcher: Blood Origin’ is Netflix’s worst title ever in Rotten Tomatoes in terms of audience rating with a dismal 8% audience score. To make things even worse for the streamer, it can’t even hide this time under reasons like the audience didn’t get what they were trying to make because apparently even the critics didn’t or they did and didn’t like it, with the series receiving a 38% critics rating on RT. A thorough disappointment, what was Netflix really doing with the golden IP that they have?
The Witcher universe’s fate is not a good one from the likes of it. Henry Cavill leaving the show, reportedly straying away hugely from the source materials and now the debacle that is ‘Blood Origin’. This all just seems like a cruel joke on Netflix’s part. What is even more baffling is how even without the prequel series having much source material which gives the makers lots of space for imagination and expansion, the writing was so bland and the dialogues generic that it was an embarrassment to the original. Not to forget, the visual effects mainly of the dragon( or whatever that thing was supposed to be) and the final transformation of one of the protagonists were utterly so bad that it didn’t seem like a Netflix series.
There is lots of anger amongst the fanbase regarding Cavill’s exit and the recasting of Geralt of Rivia. Add to that the forced representation evident in the series as well, and you have a greater probability of alienating the audience. So, are these reasons why the audience is so critical of the series and are the reviews unfair? Many shows and movies are actually great but get low ratings on Rotten Tomatoes. ‘Blood Origin’ one is not them.
The negative response is mostly very reasonable, unfortunately. If you really want to know the origin story of the witchers and the Conjunction of the spheres, then we recommend you read a synopsis of the series on the internet. It will save you 4 hours and another 20 sleepless hours as to what Netflix saw in the series to greenlight it and later release it on the streamer, that too on Christmas.
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