“The Witcher” changes face and loses some of its magic in season 4 | TV/Streaming

Netflix’s fantasy adventure “The Witcher” had a daunting challenge heading into its fourth season; It’s easy to sympathize with showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich and her team, who must juggle the increased scope of the series (as it enters its penultimate season) And the recasting of its main actor. Yes, gone are the chiseled jaw and inhuman growl of Henry Cavill, replaced by the softer, more passive features of Liam Hemsworth.

The good news is that the switcheroo isn’t as shocking as you might think. The bad news is that’s because the Butcher of Blaviken feels more and more marginalized in his own series than ever, as Season 4 continues the sprawl that made “The Witcher” feel less like fantasy slash-em-up and more like homework.

Much of this has to do with the structure of the season, which feels as scattered as our central family: Following the events of last season, Geralt (Hemsworth), his mage lover Yennefer (Anya Chalotra), and their young charge, Ciri (Freya Allen), all embark on individual journeys throughout the season that almost never intersect.

In a way, this is a strength of the season; If you don’t share a story thread, wait a few minutes and you will be able to connect with someone else. But these separate threads take forever to work their way toward each other, making it feel like you’re watching three disjointed fantasy stories rather than one larger tale. It’s a shocking adjustment from the unified front our characters had in Season 3.

Granted, that’s probably a consequence of seasons four and five being filmed back-to-back, with this season feeling like a set-up for the inevitable showdown between Geralt and new villain Vilgefortz (Mahesh Jadu), leader of the Brotherhood of Mages. He is looking for Ciri, who has chosen to reinvent herself under a false name while continuing her activities with a group of bandits called the Rats. While Geralt and the courageous bard Dandelion (Joey Batey) gather a group of friends to search for Ciri, Yennefer begins to build an army of wizards and witchers to stand up to Vilgefortz, becoming a leader in the process.

But what about Hemsworth?you may be asking. Well, it takes some getting used to him, and the series certainly does all sorts of set-up early on with a cute framing device that frames the face change as another wrinkle in the tale of Geralt’s exploits. (Shades of “The Princess Bride,” which is welcome.) We’re even treated to a quick little glimpse of Hemsworth piecing together some of Geralt’s biggest plot and action beats from the previous three seasons, just in case any new viewers are jumping on the series for the first time.

To his credit, Hemsworth handles the physical side of the role well, his slimmer frame transforming Geralt into a rogue swordsman rather than a hulking brute in the film’s decently choreographed action scenes. But he never quite gets the voice or glare right, often feeling like he’s doing a passable Cavill cosplay. (I would swear there are also times where his voice seems shifted to a lower register to be closer to the bass of the previous actor.)

Still, at least they chose a good moment in Geralt’s arc to give him a softer, more vulnerable face; “The Witcher” sees its witcher blend into the background more than ever this season, stepping back and allowing himself to accept more help than the lone wolf has ever allowed in the past. In fact, the nature of our three protagonists’ splitting from their own stories means that this season introduces, or re-introduces, more recurring characters than ever before – so many, in fact, that it becomes almost overwhelming to follow them.

This is especially true in Geralt’s part of the story, as he gathers no less than six new companions in his quest, becoming less of a leader and more of a linchpin of a larger whole. Among these misfits, however, is standout new character Regis, played with feline aplomb by the always reliable Laurence Fishburne (added, presumably, to help bolster the show’s star power in Cavill’s absence; Hemsworth may have directed some films, but he’s no Superman). Wearing a cape and wig that resembles Clarence Williams III from “Tales from the Hood” at a Ren Faire, Fishburne’s Regis becomes a new confidant for this more sensitive Geralt, even as his latent vampirism complicates his relationship with the monster hunter.

Yennefer and Ciri’s stories also deal with at least half a dozen new or recurring characters that we suddenly have to worry about, not to mention the moments we brought back to the Nilfgaardian palace plot that got so bogged down in the previous season. (James Purefoy appears as a preening vizier to the new king, although his Iago-ian intrigues don’t amount to much.) This all gets a little overwhelming when factored in at once, especially since there’s so little screen time between them that we don’t get much time with the various players. By the time we get to the fifth episode of the season (where Geralt’s crew sits astride a campfire and revisits their various traumas one by one. At “Rebel Moon Part 2”), it’s hard not to feel like the story is spinning around in circles to fit Netflix’s patented hour-long runtimes.

There’s still plenty for “Witcher” fans to enjoy, whether it’s Jaskier’s occasional barbs or the monster fights that are still peppered in from time to time to remind us of what was so appealing about the first two seasons. But it’s clear that the series is running out of steam, as its new star struggles to emerge from the towering shadow of its predecessor and the story spins an overwhelming number of plates. Perhaps it’s fitting that we just have to toss a coin to our witcher after this.

Full season projected for review. Currently streaming on Netflix.