As a fan of complex and convoluted story-telling, I am very disappointed in what and how they managed to show in this 1st season. But first, the good. I never thought I'd say this, but Cavill!!! He really makes a great Geralt! It's obvious he played the games and nailed the dry humor and sarcastic looks, even the voice. He really carries the whole show. The fight scenes are very good, the cinematography is excellent and the sets, costumes and music really bring the world alive in a beautiful way. However, here's the bad news: the story is chaotic, with a weird pacing and it just lacks the spark! They chose to present separate plot lines in parallel to bring them together towards the end, which is fine, but the chronological order is extremely chaotic and hard to follow even for someone who already knows the story and the universe. They don't set a basic timeline, don't say when and where the action is happening, even if it jumps back and forth 30-40 years into the past or future from one scene to another. By the end of episode 4 (half the season)none of the major character's had met each other or have done so very briefly, they hadn't explained what Witchers are, how they came to be, they through expressions like "conjunction of spheres", elder language/blood, but none of it is explained. They just somehow assume we know it already! Yes, the ones that read the books/played the games, sure. but the rest? They'd get super confused. And honestly, the whole thing lacks something to make it immersing and engaging. I know the universe is huge, there are many books and stories to choose from, but I think if they tried to cram less into 8 episodes and make everything more clear and easily digestible, it would've been much more powerful. Also, without spoiling it, the whole explanation for why sorceresses can't conceive is just stupid ans an excuse for a shocking scene. And no, I am not squimish and I don't mind the gore, just the unnecessary one. The second part of the scene, in parallel with the other fight, though, made a very powerful sequence which I liked a lot. All in all better than expected in some aspects, failed to deliver in others, but overall overwhelming in a bad way for newcomers to the universe.