Which epic fantasy show will emerge triumphant in 2022?

The Witcher on Netflix

I’ll be honest: I didn’t like the first season of The Witcher very much. I thought the multiple timelines a terrible idea, the anachronisms distracting and the whole thing both too campy and too self-serious for its own good. But this adaptation of Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher novels caught on. Maybe it was the heavy presence of Henry Cavill. Maybe it was that “Toss a Coin to your Witcher” song, which is very catchy, I’ll admit. Or maybe it’s that there’s still a huge market for sword and sorcery, however questionably made.

In any case, this story about a monster hunter named Geralt of Rivia found an appreciative audience, and Netflix has taken notice. The streamer has already released an animated movie, Nightmare of the Wolf, and is planning more. It’s also developing a live-action prequel series called Blood Origin. And all this before the second season has even dropped. Netflix knows how hot the market for fantasy is right now, so it’s taking The Witcher from zero to franchise in just a couple of years.

The second season of The Witcher comes out this month, on December 17, and people are eager to see what happens next with Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri and the rest of their magical misfit friends. It’s possible that we could be waiting over a year for the third season, but Netflix seems intent on getting the ball rolling sooner rather than later, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it comes along in time to be a contender for the 2022 fantasy crown.