Altered Carbon Season 2.
It's not so great. I really enjoyed S1. I thought it was a world that made sense within it's own rules. Obviously, and sci-fi or fantasy you have to take with a pinch of acceptance for whatever the premise is. I've not read the books so I don't know how much was written like it was versus liberties the show has taken. It might be faithful to the books, or it might not, but I didn't much care for it. I do not think I'd watch S2 again but I'll watch S1 again for sure at some point. However, I'm only through 6 of 8 episodes but it's been a slog. S1 I felt was a slow start, it took an episode or two to really establish the world but got really good.
I'll spoiler my more specific points as beyond this.
Spoiler (click to show)
Anthony Mackie. He's decent but I just see him as Falcon from the Marvel movies and find him hard to take all that seriously when he's angry. Whereas Kinnaman I thought was brilliant at playing a borderline sociopath murderer type with the good heart. I will say this, both guys did a tremendous job getting super ripped for the show. And for JK's part, I had seen him quite a bit from his House of Cards role so he still had to overcome that thing in my head where I can't see an actor as a new role very easily.
The character list. It feels like a re-tread. I was quite liking the idea that Kovacs will stay but almost everyone else would be new. Again, without reading the books so I don't know this for sure, it feels like Poe was brought back because he was a brilliant character in S1. Then we get a fair few appearances by Lizzie, Reileen and a couple by Ortega and Vern. It's just felt like a "f*ck it, let's just bring back all the popular stuff from first season" and then the new Colonel bad-dude is actually Jaeger. Not a fan. Again, this could be the books dictated this but I didn't care for it. This shrinks the universe.
It's less dark somehow, in tone I mean. I liked the idea that prostitution and sexual violence and drugs are utterly prevalent in a world where human bodies are of less value. There is a lot less of it.
I feel like 75% through S1 we had seen it go from Tak to Tak, Poe, Reileen, Ortega, Vern Eliott (and possibly his wife by that point), Lizzie and both Bancrofts who had interesting plots each. S2 is far more centric on Quell and Tak.
The score. I'm not normally big on TV/movie music compared to videogame music, but S1 had a pretty bad donkey score and choice of songs and S2 hasn't so much.
Harlan's World, Angelfire and Songspire Trees. Not really explained sufficiently well. I'm guessing that this could well come up in the last 2 episodes though. But it's just rather unclear.
Honestly though, my biggest gripe is the magnetic hands that pull guns to them thing. I don't care if it's book or not, it just feels stupid and out of place. It seems to magical whereas a body with advanced reactions and whatnot fits a lot neater. This one little factor really bugs me.
If the finale changes my opinion significantly I will update.
The Witcher.
I just recently played Witcher 2 (Xbox 360) and Witcher 3 (Xbox One). I've not read the book but I was on a Witcher kick so thought it was a good time.
It's a fun enough series. I like Cavill as Geralt, and felt most of the cast was pretty good. A few odd choices. Triss in the show does not look like Triss from the games. Admittedly, her appearance isn't vital to anything plot but to me, it wasn't Triss feeling. Plus, as a fan of busty redheads...
Plot... Well, they tried something with it. I think it was a poor choice to some degree as I think it could put people off as it's slightly more complex than just watching the thing as it goes on and everything is what it seems. More under the spoiler tags.
Battle scenes. Right, a review I read said that the big fights were of the same quality as something like Game of Thrones (Ya know, the good battles - not S8). The fights are decent, but that reviewer is not one I see many agreeing with. Even the climactic battle wasn't worthy of comparison to something like the Battle of the Bastards (although that is one of the all-time battles in any form of visual media so an unfair comparison).
World - I think they did an AWFUL job setting up the world. You don't get told where anything is. Aerdin, Cintra, Nilfgaard etc are not explained at all where they are relative to each other or how strong they really are. If not for just playing the games, I think this might actually have broken me away from the show. They don't explain Geralt or Witchers very much. They don't explain the signs etc. I just feel like this was written by someone who knew and loved the book and should have considered more that The Witcher isn't Harry Potter where 90% of folk know the broad strokes of the world.
Specific comments, with a minor spoiler of the Witcher 3 game
Spoiler (click to show)
The plot regarding timelines for each main character. You can see, come the last episode why they felt the need to have it build to that point. And when you know they want to get to that point where Gerald and Ciri meet but have 10 episodes to fill with things happening to them, you can't have it all run concurrently. I found it simple enough to follow, though I was slightly muddled in that Ep2/3 Yen is even before Ep1 Geralt. Though as independent plots at that point, it doesn't matter so much. Otherwise, I got the flow of the whole thing but can understand why it might put people off.
Geralt, Yen and the Djinn. This is the plot point that is finished in the Witcher 3 game. I just felt it didn't make sense for Geralt to wish for what he does. He's known Yen for a limited time at that point. To me, it's something that will be important later and they just had to ram it in somewhere. Maybe I missed foreshadowing or the logic but it felt rushed.
Queen Calanthe. The Hollywood types that try and force the "women are strong too" thing - like Avengers Endgame and that god awful Xmen movie***) need to take some notes. Between the actress and the writing, I absolutely bought that she'd be a strong leader who could draw a sword and fight and everything about her character. Only one bit was really about her being a woman. I really felt I could have done with more Calanthe in my show.
I'm still a little confuddled about the Bard. I thought he was Dandelion, but he isn't I don't think but then on the Witcher Wiki, they share a page... Guy has a beautiful voice though.
*** I have no problem with the strong women thing, I have a problem with the ramming it down our necks in the ways it was done in such a ludicrously one sided, simple and condescending way. Give me Calanthe, or a Buffy or a Brienne of Tarth or an Ellen Ripley over the other crap anyday.
The Witcher now sits in that odd place of shows I like but would only recommend with trepidation due to what I perceive as it's flaws and shortcomings. I haven't checked what the general consensus has been about it though, so maybe my idea of the flaws isn't shared widely. All in all, I did enjoy it.
And Toss a Coin to Your Witcher is a bad donkey song.
