by Alice-Ginevra Micheli, Contributing Writer
In the world of young adult fiction, there is little more popular than Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse. It’s full of the well-known tropes that helped define the genre in the 2010s when the popularity was at its peak, along with characters that people didn’t just fall in love with, but wanted to connect with entirely, with their body and soul.
So it’s no surprise that when the first season of the Netflix’s Shadow and Bone series released in 2021, it was so incredibly popular to warrant a full second season order. The fact that there was a cast that was also high in chemistry, talent, and general good looks was also a bonus that couldn’t be denied. So to say there were expectations for this season’s release would be an understatement. Especially as, theoretically, this would be the season to set up quite a daring tale of transformation for the central characters.
While technically those expectations were met, and for the most part done satisfactorily, this is a season that starts out with very high highs, but results in some deeply laid lows as well, and could end up jeopardizing the future of the series.
In Season Two, we meet Alina (Jessie Mei Li) as she finds herself on the run with Mal (Archie Renaux), following the first season’s revelations. A beacon of hope to some, and a suspected traitor to others, she’s determined to bring down the Shadow Fold and save Ravka from ruin.
This all sounds very exciting, and it is for a large part. Along the way, we also catch up with familiar characters like our lovable gang of Crows, the slightly-less-lovable world-ending villain, and the Darkling (Ben Barnes), and we’re introduced to some new characters, the most notable of which is Patrick Gibson’s Sturmhond.
Overall, the cast is very strong across the season, and it seriously delivers on the chemistry and development we came to enjoy in Season One. There are new alliances formed, new romances created, and of course seriously deep conflicts unveiled
They storyline is also mostly exciting, keeping audiences on the edge of their seat with the development of each plot line. It is a lot of what we remember from the source text and previous adaptation, for most of it anyway.
However, all of these points cannot negate its ultimately weak and confused end point. To avoid spoilers, I’ll speak about these elements in broad terms, but as a fan of the books and the previous season, the way this one comes to a close is a rude shock.
It’s true: There’s a lot of character and plot development work that happens across these eight episodes. However from about halfway through episode six, it’s clear that a decision was made by the production team which speaks more to a business mind rather than a creative one.
Storylines that were meant to be teased out over years, are resolved in a moment. On the other hand, others that you’re promised a satisfactory conclusion to, are left so open ended you can’t even see the edges anymore. Not to mention that there are some character decisions that significantly impact the future of the Shadow and Bone story in a way that just doesn’t make any sense.
I’m unclear as to whether this was done with or without the consent of the author, as these changes in theory could have worked exceptionally well. It just seems that in the execution, there was a failure to think beyond the ramifications of the immediate. I can imagine this has left many a Grishaverse fan unfulfilled, as it’s arguably one of the most intricate, and long-living YA franchises in the literature world, which has only begun to touch on the potential behind the cinematic universe.
So to throw a lot of this away in an attempt to rush the ending, while changing foundational character traits is, in a word, baffling. I honestly wouldn’t be shocked if I discovered that the creative team behind Season Two had a great idea as to how to adapt the story for six out of eight episodes, and then ran out of steam when the changes they made resulted in a a lear path for our characters.
That’s all I can really delve into without going into spoilers, and with all of that said, if you’re a massive fan of the books and series before this, then I would recommend diving in to continue your love of the Grishaverse. However, be warned — you might be really excited, then really upset, by season’s end.
It also doesn’t help that all of the VFX budget clearly went into the Sun Summoner powers, and very little was left over for much else, resulting in some significant uncanny valley happening from time to time.
Like I said, I would still recommend watching this season if you’ve been a fan and want to see the whole story adapted, and I do mean the whole story. However, it might be in your best interest to consider that last episode especially to be more head-canon than storyline.
We’ll have to see if the rumors of a companion series and/or Season Three are real, and whether the team can dig themselves out of the shadow-shaped hold they’ve found themselves in. Only time will tell.
Score: 7/10
Shadow and Bone is currently streaming on Netflix
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