Long before the first season of Netflix's The Witcher aired, it found itself the subject of much mockery and derision. It wasn't Henry Cavill's casting as Geralt - people had really started to come around to that. No, it was the leaked set photos that showed us what the fearsome Nilfgaardian army would look like in their battle armour.
You probably remember seeing it and assuming the budget had gone on other things. There's no other way to say it I'm afraid: It looked bad. The Nilfgaardians are supposed to be this mighty military scourge that tears across The Continent, but these photos made it look like the soldiers had wrapped themselves in old raisins.
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The internet swiftly took the piss, and even those that argued the armour would look better in the final product were swiftly silenced when it didn't. Of course, in the grand scheme of things, the armour didn't matter all that much. The Witcher's debut season was a smash hit, and everybody forgot/overlooked the cheap-looking Nilfgaardian kit.
While I'm sure most of us could forgive Netflix opting to use the same armour again, it'll probably come as some relief that the upcoming series two of The Witcher has given the Nilfgaardian forces a substantial upgrade.
As reported by the fine folk over at Redanian Intelligence, new set photos have unveiled a fresh look for the Nilfgaardians that looks much better. Gone are the strange bollock-like veins, replaced here with royal finery that looks much more in line with the Nilfgaardian armour seen in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. This was a smart and necessary move that I didn't even realise the show needed until I saw it this morning. Good on everyone involved.
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After a fairly lengthy COVID-induced break, Netflix's The Witcher finally resumed production a few weeks ago. It's not yet known when the new series is expected to arrive at this point, because attempting to make plans in 2020 is a fool's game. Our best bet is that it'll drop sometime in 2021, but who really knows anymore?
Featured Image Credit:Topics: The Witcher, CD Projekt Red
