The Witcher Season 2 was a perfect elevation of what was set up in the first season, and it expanded the established Witcher universe with more quirky stories, lore moments, and interesting characters.
Having said all that, the show definitely did itself a disservice with some of its ancillary story lines and expositions that felt more like wastes of time. Not so much because they were underdeveloped; they honestly felt like side quests from the game that weren't needed, but still enhance the world. Those stories weren't uninteresting, but some of them didn't serve the main quest as much as I'd like.
Our main protagonist, of course, is fantastic throughout, but the highs I felt after the show have vaporized a little bit now that the future of the show is in question. Or at least, the future of our protagonist, Geralt, played so convincingly by Henry Cavill. Recently, Cavill announced he was leaving the show, presumably because his involvement in the DCEU was ramping up. It does seem that James Gunn, the new Kevin Feige of DC, is moving on without Cavill, so I'm curious to see if Cavill will still reprise the role of Geralt (it's impossible to see anyone else playing the character at this point).
It's incredibly important to watch the first season of Witcher before watching Season 2. The ramifications of the big battle that capped off that season reverberate quite strongly right from the opening, which I appreciate. I was dying to see what would become of Ciri after discovering her destiny at the end of Season 1, and I've got to say, her growth this season was incredibly compelling to watch. Her struggles and training made where she ended up feel so rewarding and earned. I especially loved the gauntlet episode (I'm a sucker for puzzly death traps - they feel "video-gamey"), which brought the firey side out of her and the Jedi-esque mentor role out of Geralt. Later in the season, it was interesting watching Ciri handle herself among that entire clan of Geralt's Brotherhood friends. She's no longer the helpless princess-like character. She's strong; it's nice when a female character is made to feel strong and independent without needing to dump on the male characters around her.
Yennefer's story went a little all over the place, which resulted in meeting some weird characters (including a bard!) and getting into some sticky situations (the underground stuff was fun). But much like Season 1, I cared about Yennefer's story less than most people. I will say, she definitely earned more of her keep this season, but I still couldn't care quite as much for some reason.
The action scenes were good, though I wish there were a few more sprinkled throughout the season. The finale had a nice action scene, and the weird battle in the brotherhood's fortress had some interesting tricks to it. Those scenes just left longing for a better balance between grandiose action and long, drawn-out exposition scenes about the past or magic or whatever else was a little more even.
All in all, it was a fine season, and I'm excited to see more, though not having Cavill will drastically decrease my interest.