This review contains spoilers.
“The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep,” an anime adaptation of Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski’s short novel “A Little Sacrifice,” went live exclusively on Netflix on Feb. 11.
Kang Hei Chul, the director of “Sirens of the Deep,” previously worked on the first film, which was also animated by Studio Mir. The studio also primarily worked on “Avatar: The Legend of Korra” as well. Netflix decided to utilize Doug Cockle, a voice actor who portrayed Geralt of Rivia in the video games, in place of Henry Cavill, who was no longer featured in the main series of The Witcher.
This is a sequel to the previous “Witcher” anime spinoff movie: “The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf.” Set between episodes five and six of the first season of The Witcher, the film follows Geralt and his bard companion Jaskier as they travel the continent.
As viewers of the first film may recall, this takes place during one of the “off” times with Vengerberg’s sorceress lover, Yennefer. Essi Daven, a young bard, is Geralt’s new romantic interest, which is crucial because he is fully in love with Yennefer. Since Geralt is essentially attempting to make sense of his feelings, their connection is the main subject of the novel, even though it is not the main plot element.
The tale was unimpressive because it lacked the depth and weight of the source material and video games. In addition, several utterly ridiculous action scenes, such as Geralt’s air acrobatics and the antagonists’ dubious, badly carried-out schemes, repeatedly worked against their motivation.
Even though it wasn’t the first time they did this, I started to despise the odd musical selections made by The Witcher. The way it resembled “The Little Mermaid” was another unjustified decision when they decided to reference Disney. Although Sapkowski’s original short story seems rooted in folklore, “Sirens of the Deep” contains numerous choices that are intended to play Disney’s adaptation of “The Little Mermaid.”
When comparing the endings, the short novel’s Jaskier wrote a song about Essi and Geralt’s courtship, indicating that she passes away from a plague many years after they first met. Based on my analysis, it’s an important poignant point in Sapkowski’s Witcher saga.
But in this movie, we watch both come to terms with the truth that they cannot be together before he and Jaskier go on. They are traveling to a remote mountain range where they have no possibility of encountering Yennefer, according to a sardonic joke that concludes the movie.
After seeing it through to the end, I understand why some fans write critical reviews accusing Netflix of destroying the series once more, while others may feel mixed feelings or positivity watching. I believe the saga name should have been removed and kept “Sirens of the Deep” instead.
While I haven’t read the books, I’m disappointed that Netflix is unable to remove “The Witcher” name after failing to address fans’ concerns about the evolving plot since its downfall. However, I will credit them for taking daring chances while still trying to be faithful to the original work.
Anyone intending to see this film may find it a hit or miss. It is mediocre to suggest rather than excellent or terrible.
