Support NeoGAF

[poodaddy]

I feel like I watched a different show when people praised Season 2. Absolutely garbage acting, writing, effects, set design. The whole somehow managed to feel both over produced and under budget all at once, which is an impressive feat. Bin the whole fuckin thing Netflix, ya fucked up another one.

 

[ahtlas7]

1. It’s Netflix
2. Andrzej Sapkowski, created fantastic world/characters but imo not good writing. I read the English translation of books 1-4 and partially through 5 before tossing it.
edit: The world that Sapkowski created is so rich with potential that Netflix, like CDPR, could create something amazing. There is no excuse for the mess they filmed in season 2.

 

[KiteGr]

It's actually really good, second season is more coherent and way better.

Getting back to the OP - this is probably due to executives wanting a 'fresh take' and more inclusive audience. By getting a hardcore fan you are guaranteed he will first and foremost appeal to existing fans, whereas a different writer might use the general idea of the IP and expand it = more money.

So to sum up:
1. Hardcore fan as a writer = same existing audience
2. Regular writer = same existing audience (the fans will watch just to complain, see Amazon's RoP) + new audience

Actually it's the secold season that's shit. It felt like Hercules and Xena without the kamp fun.

 

[Gamerdude123]

The show felt more like watching Aladdin than the Witcher.

Quality wise about on par with the Resi Evil Netflix show, meaning complete and utter woke garbage. Not suprising at all since literally everything Netflix produces is ultra woke and mediocre at best.

 

[ikbalCO]

This explains why i couldnt finish the second season as it turned into a dramatic mess with bad acting and no monsters.

All the cool fighting scenes of season 1 was gone for some reason.

Hope the series die quickly so this dude can work at a project that they actually like.

 

[Victor Omega]

You people never learn

 

[ikbalCO]

I feel like I watched a different show when people praised Season 2. Absolutely garbage acting, writing, effects, set design. The whole somehow managed to feel both over produced and under budget all at once, which is an impressive feat. Bin the whole fuckin thing Netflix, ya fucked up another one.

This %100

I was blown away when i saw the rt score for season two. Yes, season 1's whole three different time thing was a weird choice but OT had great combat scenes like, cool monster and nice enough production design.

Every envoirment in season 2 felt like a set or a studio rather than a real, lived place.

 

[brian0057]

Arcane and Cyberpunk: Edgerunners are the exceptions to the rule that videogame adaptations suck.
Be the exception.

 

[The Cockatrice]

Oh now we at a point where we hate the Witcher show? Its a good show. No idea wtf are ppl smoking in here. Ciri, Geralt and Triss carry the entire show to be fair.

 

[Husky]

Maybe that's why their show felt more like a soulless Marvel movie

 

[SSfox]

Watched season 1 and i though it was pretty good. Haven't watched S2 yet.

 

[Pimpbaa]

I doubt Henry Cavill would have took this job if the script wasn’t at least somewhat like the games, given the Witcher 3 super nerd that he is.

 

[Corndog]

It's Netflix. They are not known for knowing what they're doing.

There might be some woke quota in place for having writers tha dislike the original works.

I don’t want this to be a political post, but I looked up posts on twitter by all the writers. Pretty much all had similar feelings about the president of the US at the time.

 

[EDMIX]

? they don't need to like it to do the job.

I never understand this weird fanboy, gatekeeping, thoughtcrime type shit.

So you are mad they are not as big as fanboys as you? Someone can still write a story and dislike the last story and still have that story match the elements needed. Thats like fucking saying someone NEEDS TO LOVE A BIG MAC to fucking work at McDonalds (shows yellow chai......big mac jacket) =)

 

[hussar16]

Being from eastern Europe and polish this poor attempt at Witcher was just glossy game of thrones with superman with white hair.the show doesn't feel dark and brooding. Every episode should have been sad depressing with a hint of life. The Witcher is not a happy go lucky ip

 

[EDMIX]

RE welcome to raccon City Director said he is a huge fan of the games and delivered shit.

pretty much.

So I don't get why people put so much stock into someone fucking being a "fan" of something as being this massive thing to determine success. Go fucking make those games if their fandom is soooooo strong lol They make it sound like that is the only thing fucking needed. I'm more then positive anyone on here can write some Resident Evil or Witcher game, that doesn't mean it will be good, in fact it would literally be the same type of people in this VERY THREAD question that same person's fandom lol


I once asked someone what they think a great Resident Evil show would be, I then copy and pasted their response and simply stated "this is the leaked info for season 2" and the comment section tore that idea to shreds....thus, even the fucking people who are fans, would just attack OTHER FANS that posted their dumbass fanfiction. Someone liking or not liking something doesn't mean the end product will be successful or not. If that was the case, the biggest fanboys on Earth should be fucking billionaires if they know so much...

So it seems that someone who hates the books and games deliveres a better experience.

I am ok with that.

Agreed.

I like the show far more then the games or even the books.

H hussar16 "The Witcher is not a happy go lucky ip" lol tell us more about Dandelion's Witcher 3 fetch quest...

 

[IAmNotFromDelaware]

Where will Cavill find the time to work on the Witcher seasons, Man of Steel 2, Highlander and I think he's got another movie as well.

 

[mhirano]

Please don't screw up One Piece, Netflix

After the horrible Death Note live action and Saint Seiya 3d adaptarions, I will NEVER touch any Netflix version of japanese source material again!

 

[hussar16]

pretty much.

So I don't get why people put so much stock into someone fucking being a "fan" of something as being this massive thing to determine success. Go fucking make those games if their fandom is soooooo strong lol They make it sound like that is the only thing fucking needed. I'm more then positive anyone on here can write some Resident Evil or Witcher game, that doesn't mean it will be good, in fact it would literally be the same type of people in this VERY THREAD question that same person's fandom lol


I once asked someone what they think a great Resident Evil show would be, I then copy and pasted their response and simply stated "this is the leaked info for season 2" and the comment section tore that idea to shreds....thus, even the fucking people who are fans, would just attack OTHER FANS that posted their dumbass fanfiction. Someone liking or not liking something doesn't mean the end product will be successful or not. If that was the case, the biggest fanboys on Earth should be fucking billionaires if they know so much...




Agreed.

I like the show far more then the games or even the books.

H hussar16 "The Witcher is not a happy go lucky ip" lol tell us more about Dandelion's Witcher 3 fetch quest...

Read source material the books not a game side quest

 

[_Idea_of_Evil_]

I don't know how the show got to S2 and there are plans for S3. I couldn't get through ep1.

People just like watching Henry Cavill doing action stuff and being stoic, while ignoring the sub-par representation of The Witcher universe. Haven't finished the books yet but I'm 1/4 way into Blood of Elves and it's wild!

 

[EDMIX]

Read source material the books not a game side quest

yet those games did just fine, sounds like they didn't read the source material either lol

 

[realcool]

? they don't need to like it to do the job.

I never understand this weird fanboy, gatekeeping, thoughtcrime type shit.

So you are mad they are not as big as fanboys as you? Someone can still write a story and dislike the last story and still have that story match the elements needed. Thats like fucking saying someone NEEDS TO LOVE A BIG MAC to fucking work at McDonalds (shows yellow chai......big mac jacket) =)

we both agree that you dont have to love big macs in order to work at mcdonalds, but if you hand me a cajun seasoned tofurkey patty on pumpernickel and say to me "here's the big mac you ordered," i think we both can agree you should be sweeping the floors instead.

 

[jakinov]

It's Netflix. They are not known for knowing what they're doing.

There might be some woke quota in place for having writers tha dislike the original works.

You know Netflix doesn't actually make the show. They don't pick the writers the same way a game publisher who hires a company to make a game doens't pick the devs and writers.

And Netflix is the only profitable streaming service and has been profitable for the almost 20 years. Whereas their competition has been bleeding hundreds of million of dollars every quarter (3 months) for the last few to several years. Their shows top the streaming charts regularly and they have the lowest churn rates in the industry. I would argue they are known for being good at what they do.

 

[March Climber]

The only problem I really had with season 2 was the ending fight scene turning into a CW hero show with it's cheesy friendship dialogue.

I'm ok with deviations as long as you can keep the illusion up that it feels like The Witcher. I felt the same way with Game of Thrones Seasons 6 and 7. Once you fully break that illusion it makes it hard to watch, because the person writing is attempting to punch way, way above their weight class in writing skill and they sadly just can't do it.

 

[Danjin44]

Please don't screw up One Piece, Netflix

That one is destined to fail, One Piece is over the top and super cartoony and the way characters talk, behave and fight only works in animation, not in live action.

 

[EDMIX]

You know Netflix doesn't actually make the show. They don't pick the writers the same way a game publisher who hires a company to make a game doens't pick the devs and writers.

And Netflix is the only profitable streaming service and has been profitable for the almost 20 years. Whereas their competition has been bleeding hundreds of million of dollars every quarter (3 months) for the last few to several years. Their shows top the streaming charts regularly and they have the lowest churn rates in the industry. I would argue they are known for being good at what they do.

Agreed, but I don't think most people actually know this.

They seem to think that Netflix is 1 building that films all things or something, they don't even know those studios that actually film any of that. The vast majority of Netflix content is contracted, its not created within Netflix. Even shows that people make sound like "looks like Netflix", its shit that was already made and Netflix easily could have been outbid and the content ended up on Amazon or HBO etc.

 

[EDMIX]

That one is destined to fail, One Piece is over the top and super cartoony and the way characters talk, behave and fight only works in animation, not in live action.

Please don't screw up One Piece, Netflix

lol

Thats like saying "please don't screw up Sekiro Shadows Die Twice.....ACITIVSION" lol

Tomorrow Studios is doing One Piece, they did that Cowboy Bebop Live Action thing.
They got some vision of what they want in regards to theme, how they want it to look, who acts in it etc. That is no different then From Soft working on Sekiro or Elden Ring or Demon Souls etc...they work on it, THEN FIND a publisher to distribute the game for them, either Sony, Namco Bandi and yes Activision.

Their job is merely to market, distribute etc. Most of what is on Netfilx is contracted and Sekrio under Sony wouldn't be any different then what it was under Activision. Did you get a fucking dlc, mtx filled Sekrio? multiplayer with killstreaks? Would you not think it was odd if someone assumed thats what Sekrio would be merely based on Activison? So why is it hard for the gaming community to get theses deals when it comes to streaming?

I once came across someone who thought Netflix MADE The Office....but shit, do we not some times have folks who think Call Of Duty is made by one team in under 10 months every year?

 

[Danjin44]

Thats like saying "please don't screw up Sekiro Shadows Die Twice.....ACITIVSION" lol

Tomorrow Studios is doing One Piece, they did that Cowboy Bebop Live Action thing.
They got some vision of what they want in regards to theme, how they want it to look, who acts in it etc. That is no different then From Soft working on Sekiro or Elden Ring or Demon Souls etc...they work on it, THEN FIND a publisher to distribute the game for them, either Sony, Namco Bandi and yes Activision.

I’m not arguing that about if Netflix is actually making these movies or just publishing them, I personally don’t care, I’m just saying I have ZERO faith in live action One Piece would be good or even mediocre.

 

[Oddvintagechap]

So is that a good thing or a bad thing?

 

[hinch7]

I found the second season to be a slog to get through with only the last of the arc and final episode somewhat entertaining. This will explain it. Arrogant writers want to write their own story over another.

Unfortunate because the first season was somewhat promising. Maybe showrunners can learn a thing or two about respecting source material - aka Edgerunners and Arcane. Both really popular shows and fans like.

 

[EDMIX]

I’m not arguing that about if Netflix is actually making these movies or just publishing them, I personally don’t care, I’m just saying I have ZERO faith in live action One Piece would be good or even mediocre.

Oh I know, that comment was for someone else, I was merely posting that its by that studio that did Cowboy Bebop to support that.....it might not work out lol

I don't think MOST anime can work with live action and the ones that can, were fucked up too lol Death Note if anything should have been one of the best to adapt that as its concept only has a few otherworldly things going on visually like with the demon, but I felt the right studio, director etc can do a great horror live adaption of that which fits its core concept.

I felt Evan Peters of AHS fame would have done a great job as Light

 

[Yoboman]

That one is destined to fail, One Piece is over the top and super cartoony and the way characters talk, behave and fight only works in animation, not in live action.

Nah, the core elements to world building, emotional beats, characters. And just hitting the right vibe of light hearted pirate adventure. That would make a great show

Probably the best advantage they have is nobody can expect it to be as goofy as the show

But I agree there's a million things that could go wrong. As long as they don't butcher the characters like Death Note that's a start

lol

Thats like saying "please don't screw up Sekiro Shadows Die Twice.....ACITIVSION" lol

Tomorrow Studios is doing One Piece, they did that Cowboy Bebop Live Action thing.
They got some vision of what they want in regards to theme, how they want it to look, who acts in it etc. That is no different then From Soft working on Sekiro or Elden Ring or Demon Souls etc...they work on it, THEN FIND a publisher to distribute the game for them, either Sony, Namco Bandi and yes Activision.

Their job is merely to market, distribute etc. Most of what is on Netfilx is contracted and Sekrio under Sony wouldn't be any different then what it was under Activision. Did you get a fucking dlc, mtx filled Sekrio? multiplayer with killstreaks? Would you not think it was odd if someone assumed thats what Sekrio would be merely based on Activison? So why is it hard for the gaming community to get theses deals when it comes to streaming?

I once came across someone who thought Netflix MADE The Office....but shit, do we not some times have folks who think Call Of Duty is made by one team in under 10 months every year?

I mean you can drill down to them being totally different show runners under Tomorrow Studios as well if you want, but I wasnt going into thay detail. Netflix still commissioned it at $10m an episode so regardless they need to ensure it has the right ingredients to succeed

 

[Tams]

Please don't screw up One Piece, Netflix

You saw their Cowboy Bebop right?* One Piece is screwed and it's not even out yet.

*Though if you haven't; good for you and try to keep it that way.

 

[GymWolf]

I feel like I watched a different show when people praised Season 2. Absolutely garbage acting, writing, effects, set design. The whole somehow managed to feel both over produced and under budget all at once, which is an impressive feat. Bin the whole fuckin thing Netflix, ya fucked up another one.

I couldn't even finish season 2 tbh.

 

[It's all in the wrist]

The show isn't great. Makes sense now.

 

[gaming_again]

? they don't need to like it to do the job.

I never understand this weird fanboy, gatekeeping, thoughtcrime type shit.

So you are mad they are not as big as fanboys as you? Someone can still write a story and dislike the last story and still have that story match the elements needed. Thats like fucking saying someone NEEDS TO LOVE A BIG MAC to fucking work at McDonalds (shows yellow chai......big mac jacket) =)

This is a hell of a take.

 

[TheRedRiders]

It’s not a faithful adaptation of the books or games, far from it.

Such a shame because the books, and especially the games tell a pretty epic story.

 

[BbMajor7th]

You don't need to love what you do to do it well. I work in marketing; I have to write about and understand things I don't like all the time. The answer to the question 'how do they get these jobs' is, in the case of good writers and writing, because they have necessary skills. In the majority of modern writing for TV and cinema, because they come from wealthy, metropolitan, middle-class backgrounds and that's a primary qualification for working in modern media industries.

 

[emivita]

I subscribed on Netflix this month only because I love Mike Flanagan's works, and The Midnight Club delivered. I'm also watching The Witcher S2 but really feels like a slog, I think S1 had a better pace and less boring dialogues.

 

[gaming_again]

You don't need to love what you do to do it well. I work in marketing; I have to write about and understand things I don't like all the time. The answer to the question 'how do they get these jobs' is, in the case of good writers and writing, because they have necessary skills. In the majority of modern writing for TV and cinema, because they come from wealthy, metropolitan, middle-class backgrounds and that's a primary qualification for working in modern media industries.

I write for a living, too. But you and I are doing jobs that require craft. They are supposed to be producing art.

 

[Slothbeing1209]

I think it's okay show until they showed me the dragon. Like wtf is that shit? A featherless chicken???

I think all their money put on the fight Gerald va the bandit... Don't have any good fight scene after that.

 

[Arioco]

Let them laugh, the game is an absolute masterpiece and the TV show is shit that I tried to watch twice and failed miserably because I always got so bored before reaching episode 3.

 

[Skifi28]

Certainly not as much as the Halo series writers hated Halo.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

lol

Thats like saying "please don't screw up Sekiro Shadows Die Twice.....ACITIVSION" lol

Tomorrow Studios is doing One Piece, they did that Cowboy Bebop Live Action thing.
They got some vision of what they want in regards to theme, how they want it to look, who acts in it etc. That is no different then From Soft working on Sekiro or Elden Ring or Demon Souls etc...they work on it, THEN FIND a publisher to distribute the game for them, either Sony, Namco Bandi and yes Activision.

Their job is merely to market, distribute etc. Most of what is on Netfilx is contracted and Sekrio under Sony wouldn't be any different then what it was under Activision. Did you get a fucking dlc, mtx filled Sekrio? multiplayer with killstreaks? Would you not think it was odd if someone assumed thats what Sekrio would be merely based on Activison? So why is it hard for the gaming community to get theses deals when it comes to streaming?

I once came across someone who thought Netflix MADE The Office....but shit, do we not some times have folks who think Call Of Duty is made by one team in under 10 months every year?

Arent many of these Netflix original shows funded and produced by netflix though? They would certainly mean they have input into casting and the writers. That means they are indeed responsible for a lot of the junk that appears.

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

Fun story: a friend and I saw Welcome to Raccoon City in theaters opening weekend. Now, we're not diehards. We're casual RE fans, having played the games and knowing the lore, but don't really care about the series. I honestly don't care about any series. If a game is good, a game is good and I'll play it usually only once or twice. So we went in with low expectations and being hard to offend. But I digress.

We went to the film dead sober, which was probably our first mistake. 10pm, Saturday, opening weekend. 10 people there. We started making fun of how bad it was as it went, but by the half hour mark we were so fucking shocked by how bad it was that all we could mutter was "oh my god" half the time.

When would it end, I thought. Was this my purgatory? Was this what I deserved for my sins in life? But yet we finished the film. Not because we wanted our money's worth. No. But because some evil satanic force kept us from being able to stand. The panic set in.

The film ends. We are hunched over outside, mumbling about the absolute trash we had witnessed while we sucked in the outside air as if we were in a shelter underground for the last decade. As if in a daze, we stumbled across the street and got black out drunk to try and forget. A temporary solution. The hangover was extreme, and the absolute pain and agony washed over us as our brain cells kicked back in the next day.

It was the worst movie either of us have ever seen. It was torture. It was hell. And I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.

I do not exaggerate. We're both huge horror movie fans, so we've gone out of our way to watch some real straight to VHS trash before. But never have I seen something so bad.

It took at least a month to recover from that film. A mere mention brought nausea. To this day I feel a discomfort just hearing its name.

Any video game adaptation is better than that movie. Most certainly The Witcher. Granted, I don't know shit about the Witcher, but still. And before any cheeky bastard decides to mention Uwe Boll, I already have a response to that. Yes, his films are bad. But just stupidly bad. Not mind destroyingly offensive bad. I'd rather watch all of his films in a row than watch Racoon City again.

Oh God. I'm having flashbacks. I need a drink.

… you sure you’re a new member?
I loved reading posts like this on GAF… but it’s been a while.

 

[Fuz]

That was obvious.

 

[BbMajor7th]

I write for a living, too. But you and I are doing jobs that require craft. They are supposed to be producing art.

Art and craft go hand in hand. It's a mainstream television show at the end of the day - it has artistic merit, for sure, but it's still a product that's been produced for a major service platform. I don't think you need to love the source material to know what makes compelling drama and successful TV. Personally speaking, I don't think the writing team behind The Witcher had any particular skill, regardless of how they felt about the source material, but then I'm the fussy, elitist sort, so...

 

[justiceiro]

Well, not everyone love their jobs...

 

[Madflavor]

This is actually a common problem. Nepotism and narcissism is such a problem right now in many circles of the entertainment industry. People getting hired because they know the right people, and then these untalented writers who think so highly of themselves use a well known popular IP as a launchpad for their career. They don't care about the source material, they may not even like it, but they'll take it and actually believe they can do better. With The Witcher it's been obvious for a while now that the showrunner and writers don't give a fuck about the source material. It was made painfully obvious when they cut out the scene with Geralt first meeting Ciri in Brokilon, because without that scene, it takes so much weight away from when they're reunited and he takes her under his wing. I do feel bad for Henry Cavill because you can tell he really loves the character and the story, and once again (just like with Zack Snyder and his Superman role) he has a dream role that is run by someone who doesn't understand or care about the character.

Truth be told, I don't understand how anyone who read the books can be happy with the show.

 

[Dirk Benedict]

It's actually really good, second season is more coherent and way better.

Getting back to the OP - this is probably due to executives wanting a 'fresh take' and more inclusive audience. By getting a hardcore fan you are guaranteed he will first and foremost appeal to existing fans, whereas a different writer might use the general idea of the IP and expand it = more money.

So to sum up:
1. Hardcore fan as a writer = same existing audience
2. Regular writer = same existing audience (the fans will watch just to complain, see Amazon's RoP) + new audience

I don't get the point of even transfering the game to the screen, if they are not going to transfer it in an almost 1:1 manner. The original works success and in all of its performative merits are what warranted an adaptation in the first place. Sharing that same 'success' by ADAPTING it to the screen is basically doing the same thing"new audience"; It's opening up the game to people who wouldn't otherwise be assed to buy and install the game, in the first place.

This show has nothing going for it. Nothing. The casting, the story. I don't care for any of it. Why should I? The games do an already great job at cinematic storytelling and the kicker? I make the choices in these 'shows'.
The Witcher is one of the most pointless shows in recent memory. Given how the last 2 games are, I would expect nothing less than cynical Hollywood to fuck it right up, because the way games are written does not jive with modern pedowood.