With immense success come imitators. Already, when discussing new television shows, the phrase “the next Game of Thrones” has become a cliché – shorthand for anything that’s adult-orientated with fantastical elements. Yet, The Witcher Netflix series cries out for the comparison. There’s the gratuitous violence, a royal family at war and huge battles. In its first, short season, it has a lot of work to do. A whole new world must be introduced, with all its many races and the laws – both political and metaphysical – that govern it, not to mention a cast of characters with strange names and unfamiliar positions in society. But Netflix’s fantasy darling rises to this challenge, and by the end of its eight-episode run has transformed Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski’s books into a fascinating cinematic world of fearsome monsters, corrupt kings, and scheming mages. But the journey to that end point is messy, convoluted, and littered with poor performances, dialogue, and direction. It makes for a show that is equal parts entertaining and exasperating, and falling a little short of its massive potential. The Witcher is headlined by a dedicated performance from the perfectly cast Henry Cavill, taking on the role of Geralt of Rivia; a grizzled man mutated to the point of being superhuman. Shunned by society, he makes his way through life by slaughtering monsters for anyone who will pay the coin, be they prince or pauper.

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