The first season aligns with the book.

Watch that, and then read the book and the sequel, The Testaments.

And ignore the rest

The first season definitely. The source material is a masterpiece. The rest of the seasons I would not bother with.

Yes.

Please be ready for them though.

I thought they were all generally good seasons but……

They’re very intense, so yeah

In short, yes, it is a show worth watching. Take it season by season, stop when it’s not worth it anymore.

As a show you can binge I expect it will be better than the ratings reflect. The weaker episodes will just be forgotten.

Luckily that’s a problem for later on as the show starts strong. Maybe by season 4/5 are where things start to fall off, but you’ll have plenty within the first three seasons that are great. Even 4/5 have their moments, it’s just that the show has shifted dramatically by then.