The Watch (TV Series) A Near Vimes Experience (2020) User Reviews

Strange, Interesting World

[jamericanbeauty · 7/10 · 7 February 2021]

Ankh-Morpork is home to sinister goblins, trolls, a baby dragon, an ageless wrathful villain, other supernatural beings known and unknown, a police force that manages and monitors crime, instead of enforcing the law, and an enigmatic, beautiful vigilante who thinks the police force is weak and pathetic for looking the other way (I agree and so far Lady Sybil Ramkin is my favorite). I am not familiar with the source material, so my opinion is based on the the show alone. I don't like the female cop with the permanent scowl on her face - maybe it's her "affliction". I've seen other characters with that same "affliction" in Penny Dreadful and Being Human and they don't look sooooo miserable all the time. There's some agenda-pushing but the show doesn't strangle you with it. The Police Captain Sam Vimes is too drunk 24-7. No one can maintain that level of intoxication 24-7 and function, let alone be Police Captain. That aside, an investigation into mysterious criminal activities, a powerful and magical book and complex characters with interesting backstories warrants continued watching.

A Near Vimes Experience

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 5 July 2021]

Not having read the Terry Pratchett Discworld novels. I effectively went into this with no prior knowledge.

At least the first episode succeeds in being quirky and offbeat. I get a little jaded with sci fi/fantasy that tries too hard to be po faced.

There is an irreverent feel about The Watch. Especially by the performance of Richard Dormer as Captain Sam Vimes.

He is the intoxicated and jaded police captain. In flashbacks he feels responsible for the death of gang leader Carcer Dun.

It turns out Carcer Dun is alive and has not aged a day. He also seems to be sore at Vimes.

The series is inspired by the Discworld novels and not slavishly based on them. There was some grungy worldbuilding going on in the first episode which made it rather uneven.

Did they even read the books?

[otter68 · 4/10 · 4 January 2021]

If you expect this to be like the Discworld books, you'll be sorely disappoionted. I think the people behind this show found a list of characters from the Discworld series, did a very quick google search about them then decided to see how poltically correct they could make the casting and spat out a show. The characters share names with the books' characters, but little else. Cheery is not a dwarf but a transgender woman, and Lord Vetinari is now a Lady. The only character that comes close to the book is Carrot. I have no idea why the creators of this show veered so far from the characters' creator's vision.

Why adapt a Terry Pratchett title without adapting the Terry Pratchett books?

[susanhathaway · 4 January 2021]

So, if they wanted to create a series that had nothing to do with Terry Pratchett's Guards stories, why call it a Terry Pratchett adaptation? Why pretend that it has anything to do with the beloved Discworld stories and characters that are so poorly represented here? And why pretend that it's funny when it isn't?

Fantastic

[vegantoad · 10/10 · 15 January 2021]

Great start to a series. Having read all the books myself, it's nice to have a new take, as well as, updates on characters. The inclusion of minorities to show representation, that Pratchett was in support of, is wonderful. I can't wait for more.

Why? Just why?

[jamesmcconnon · 3/10 · 5 July 2021]

Because what the world needs is a dark and gritty version of some of the funniest books ever with all the jokes taken out, and the stories, and all the interesting bits of all they characters. Starring a man acting drunk as if he's never had a drink in his life, and he can't act.

Production values that would make an 80s TV kids show ashamed, the whole thing looks like it's been directed by someone on acid, but not in a good way.

Truly awful.

Different but interesting

[pauli_gomez · 9/10 · 13 August 2021]

I am surprised to say that I liked it, even when it looks quite different to the books. I mean, it is updated and several things are different but the essence of the characters seems to be there (I only watched this episode, so I don't know it fhis will be true for the whole series).

My main problem is with Cheri, because she is supposed to look like a regular fantasy dwarf (think Gimli) and that is not true here. Other than that, the episode was interesting!

Absolutely disgusted!

[quabalah69 · 2/10 · 23 February 2021]

I am utterly shocked after watching the 1st episode, who can possibly have allowed such awful, awful writing, production, casting, actually all of it, its diabolical, if Terry Pratchett does not turn in his grave I certainly will be. What a shame.....

Boring

[scarecrow72 · 1/10 · 29 December 2021]

With their accents, I couldn't understand probably 10-20% of what they were saying, and CC didn't work, so it was mostly impossible to follow what was happening.