Just finished watching it with my brother who didn't know anything about the Witcher. My background with it is reading a few books ages ago and completing the games numerous times.
It wasn't bad. It had great moments and some aspects they absolutely nailed. It was ultimately "satisfying" but only in the way beans-on-toast satisfies you after being promised steak. However the way they did the timeline was unnecessarily confusing that it felt contrived at times as if the writer got too carried away and lost perspective. It was ambiguous for the sake of it and paid no mind to newcomers or even veterans and seems to have been written for the pleasure of those already "in the know" in the writing room.
Also they should have called it "The Sorcerer" given it was more about Yennefer and spent WAY too much time with her supporting cast and played with new rules regarding magic that consistently contradicted itself. The Witcher himself was rarely in the spot light, which for the flagship season you'd think they'd focus a little and set a foundation. I understand Geralt's character is a vessel for exploring the world and the people he meets, but again it's as if the writer lost sight of the point of the show or just simply found Yennefer more interesting.
I thought the core casting was excellent. Cavill is brilliant as Geralt and Freya Allan who plays Ciri is absolutely perfect. The settings, costumes, environments, the action sequences and the effects are all great... if only the writing matched.
So overall I'm disappointed but mostly for the loss of potential rather than the end product. I do want a new season but I fear how many people were put off by the writing choices and simply turned it off after a few episodes.