a searing burst of fantastical brilliance: a shadow and bone review

basically, an extended cut of the shadow & bone review i partially posted on ig stories.

Shadow & Bone is the Netflix series which took the book community by (siege and) storm and spawned the brilliant new character Milo (yes, he's a goat and the best character). The series was a searing burst of fantastical brilliance, and it's easily one of the most well written book to television adaptations. And it made me actually really like Mal "I-am-become-a-blade" Orestev. Described as the next Game of Thrones (complete with GOT-esque dark colour palettes and lighting), Netflix's Shadow & Bone is the beginning of an epic fantasy with multiple intricately woven plotlines and character arcs. The first season is just scratching the surface, and I am so excited for to delve deeper into the world and characters in season two.

If you're reading this, you've probably already watched Shadow & Bone but if you somehow haven't, there's probably going to be spoilers ahead and here's a really short summary of the plot. The opening premise begins with Alina Starkov, who is an ordinary mapmaker who serves alongside her best friend Mal in a war-torn Ravka, which is currently torn in two by the mysterious shadow fold. Which is pretty much a huge wall of darkness, that actually looks very cool with the cgi. When Alina discovers something extraordinary within herself, the fabled ability to summon sunlight, she's brought to the little palace by General Kirigan, leader of the second army of magic-users called the Grisha. There, Alina must master her powers as the Sun Summoner and become the powerful Grisha who has long since been foretold to be the only one to banish the fold. And while Shadow & Bone's main plot is based on Leigh Bardugo's ya trilogy of the same name, the Netflix series also weaves in characters and settings from the Six of Crows duology.

On the surface, Shadow & Bone might seem like another case of this-is-another-young-adult-fantasy-chosen-one-situation and it kind of is but it isn't. Which makes no sense, but still. Yes, it did pretty much follow that structure and the original trilogy of books was pretty predictable. We all know it's Alina's destiny to banish the Fold, and that it's definitely going to happen at one point or another, but honestly I don't really care. Shadow & Bone's strengths don't come from shock-for-shock-value or making up incredibly innovative twists and subversions of tropes. The best moments don't even revolve around the overarching plot of Shadow & Bone, even if they do include such badass and visually interesting scenes. Shadow & Bone makes sure to include enough other subplots that enrich the story and develop the characters as complicated and flawed and interesting individuals beyond their role in the larger narrative. Shadow & Bone's strengths come from the characters, who are all so brilliantly acted and feel authentic and in some cases even improve upon to the material presented in the books. Literally everyone in Shadow & Bone from Alina Starkov herself to the even the one-or-two-episode side characters and the relationships between them are interesting and memorable.

Okay, I'm inserting this whole entire long paragraph about Alina and Mal (two idiots in love) first because I love them so much and why not. I really like how Shadow & Bone chooses to emphasize the close bond of Alina and Mal's friendship, which is not as present in the books. From the moment that the two childhood friends are shown on screen, it's clear how much they mean to each other and their banter is also enjoyable. In addition, the book trilogy only has Alina's singular first-person point of view, but the Netflix series aims to show both Alina and Mal's journeys once they're separated, and seeing Mal's side of things definitely adds layers him as a character and also to their friendship. I actually really like that Shadow & Bone repetitively the same flashback scene of Alina and Mal (the meadow scene) because it's so sweet and it actually works. Alina and Mal reaching to hold each other's hands when they're separated is so emotionally effective, and the scene establishes a key moment in their friendship. Alina and Mal are such amazing characters both inside and outside of their friendship, and I think that the Netflix series really improved upon their characters, especially in terms of giving Alina more agency and making Mal more likable in general. Jessie Mei Li and Archie Renaux are perfect for Alina and Mal, and I also really appreciated to cast Jessie as Alina and make her half Shu, a fantasy ethnicity based on China and Mongolia.

Even though I'm happy to see that Netflix is making an effort to have diverse casts by retconning Alina (who is white in the books) to be East Asian, I'm not entirely convinced that the outcome is entirely amazing. It's important for everyone to see people who look like themselves on the big screen, and if Shadow and Bone is truly going to be as big as Game of Thrones as it continues, that's going to be really impactful for a lot of viewers. The depiction of Alina as East Asian basically translates in writing to having her experience a lot of in-world racism, and that's it. She's also the only character of colour who seems to be experiencing extremely heavy racism, which feels a bit odd to me. Shadow and Bone does not make an effort to try to show anything about Shu Han itself or any bits and pieces of Alina attempting to connect to her heritage. It doesn't showcase the beauty of Shu Han (Chinese/Mongolian) culture, only the racism and prejudice directed towards these peoples. However, maybe this will change in the second season, and I'm really hoping that the writers do a better job in this front. In addition, if Shadow & Bone is planning on introducing new characters, I would love to see a Shu Han character with some personality. And, no, the martial arts trainer doesn't count because he had like 0.2 seconds of screen time. Oh, and he's also basically a walking sterotype in the books: an East Asian man who is incredibly good at martial arts and also speaks in a thick accented voice.

Okay, moving onto positives, an entire paragraph devoted to Genya Safin. What else? This is bookishlyizzy content after all. I literally wrote a lengthy review of that twenty page short story about Genya because she's the best and I need any excuse to fangirl. Daisy Head is the perfect Genya. Honestly, I think I was probably looking forward to seeing Genya on screen the most in my excitement to the show. I only wish that Genya had more screen time, but hopefully in the next season. I'm so impatient for season three just so I can hear Daisy Head say "I am not ruined, I am ruination" and then my life will be complete. Oh, and, the cgi for the tailoring powers was so cool too. And the few GenyaDavid scenes! They have my whole heart.

Shadow & Bone has a very large and lovable cast of characters, expanded by the introduction of five of the six main characters of Six of Crows: the Kaz, Inej, and Jesper trio as well as Nina and Matthias. The Crows are where the unpredictablity comes in, and they add an interesting subplot that ties into the main plot of Shadow & Bone really well. The Crows (well, 5/6 of the Crows) make a really interesting addition to Shadow & Bone, adding a whole new set of stakes and conflict. Originally, I wasn't sure how the Crows' storyline was going to fit in with Alina and Mal's, but I thought their interactions were true to character from the books and well handled. The casting of the crows was so perfect and Kit, Amita, and Freddy were able to perfectly capture the essence of Jesper, Inej, and Kaz.

And it was also so amazing to see Nina and Matthias' backstory from the duology on the screen, since the material had only been referenced in flashback before. I love them so much, and I'm already a bit sad because I know the inevitable is coming. Shadow & Bone is getting me really invested in them again, and I hate how I know how it's going to end. It's also apparent that the Crows of Shadow & Bone aren't exactly identical to their book counterparts in Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, and gives them room to develop into the characters they are in the duologu. It also definitely helps that Jesper has the best dialogue in the entire series.The setting of Ketterdam and familiar places from Six of Crows, like the Crow Club, also helped to expand the world and provide an interesting contrast to the Ravkan cities and the Little Palace.

Arguably one of the best things about translating the stories of Six of Crows and Shadow & Bone from prose into live action is how the editing and cgi of really brings the worldbuilding to life. In particular, the magical aspects of the world like the mythical creatures or the Shadow Fold, which is described as a swath of darkness, and it's perfectly depicted on screen with the smoky dark effects that make it seem large and endless. I really enjoyed seeing the architecture and interior design of the Little Palace, the contrast between clothing throughout the world including the detailed wardrobing of the Grisha keftas, and the beautiful landscapes. The displays of Grisha magic, especially Alina's, are breathtakingly spectacular and there's a uniqueness to the magic of each type of Grisha order–Materialki, Corporalki, Etherealki–instead of just plain coloured energy blasts. Shadow & Bone also does something which I rarely ever see in high fantasy by including the effect of industrialization–machine guns, trains, Materialki-made mechanics–on a world and how magic plays a role in the development of technology.

Shadow & Bone's eight-episode first season is streaming on Netflix beginning April 23, and the second season is already being teased by the show-runners. Okay, so you can probably tell how old this is because at the time I started writing Shadow & Bone had been a relatively new show. I'm pretty sure season two has been officially confirmed now haha. I'm really excited to see what is next in store for the characters of Shadow & Bone and the rest of the Grishaverse. I would highly recommend giving Shadow & Bone a try, as well as the first book of original book trilogy and Six of Crows for more insight into the universe.