Netflix’s Shadow and Bone was set up for a thrilling second season after a magical premiere in 2021, so it is safe to say the newest installment had some hefty shoes to fill. While the series has the same fiercely lovable heart, it packs a lot into eight episodes.
As someone who is passionate about Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse books, from the original Shadow and Bone trilogy, to the Six of Crows (a personal favorite) and King of Scars duologies, Shadow and Bone Season 2 does not adapt the novels entirely accurately. The second book is shoved into one episode this time around, whereas season one in its entirety focused mostly on the first Shadow and Bone novel. Here, they jump right into events from the third novel.
Events from the last half of the sequel to Six of Crows, Crooked Kingdom are thrown into the mix of Shadow and Bone Season 2. They don’t necessarily fit, and then they move onto teasing parts of even later books, when main events that come before have not happened yet. Many slow-burn relationships are accelerated, iconic quotes from the novels are added in too quickly, and whole events are changed, including the ending for multiple characters.
Parts of this are to be expected.
First, the timelines of Shadow and Bone, the novel, and Six of Crows were melded in Season One to bring the storylines together and add in the crows — honestly to make things more exciting. This felt necessary because the crows help move the plot along and add exhilarating twists to Alina Starkov’s (Jessie Mei Li, Last Night in Soho) push and pull with the enemy, the Darkling, also known as General Kirigan (Ben Barnes, Westworld). Also, the relationships were almost guaranteed to move faster this time, since the viewers want to see romance.
As a book fan, this can be slightly disappointing. We don’t get to see many characters’ arcs developed just yet, like fan-favorites Inej (Amita Suman, The Outpost) or Nina (Danielle Galligan, Lakelands). Many events in the later novels require the build-up that comes with them to truly make a big impact. The scenes, in the way they are originally ordered in the books, feel more special when they have context and show the characters working through their struggles to reach the end. For example, Kaz’s (Freddy Carter, Free Rein) takedown of Pekka Rollins (Dean Lennox Kelly, Shameless) is undeniably epic on screen, but it is one of the later events in the Six of Crows duology, and thus many things that come before it make it the amazing moment that it is.
At the same time, being a fan of the books, it’s truly satisfying to see the world on the pages come to life. The Grishaverse is such an intensely interesting and magical universe, that any novel fan is sure to feel nostalgic and eager when seeing such iconic moments in the show. It is hard to deny the joy that comes with watching Helnik, Wesper, and Kanej’s budding romances, seeing the development of characters like Genya, or being transported to Ravka, Ketterdam, and a number of other classic locations from the series.
Where the series really succeeds is not in bringing the specifics but the spirit of the books to the small screen – with exciting lore, fun new adventures, and the same characters we love. For a casual viewer or a stranger to the novels, Shadow and Bone is enticing, entertaining, and brimming with magical stories that feel fresh. Although there may be a lot of characters, places, and names to grasp at first, the actors are charming and fall beautifully into their roles, delivering scenes that are strong and memorable. And book fans, as mentioned, will still be watching Shadow and Bone, for its homage to the novels, stellar cast, and special details that reference the books – like the ending of season two, setting up the monumental heist that we have all been waiting for.
All in all, Netflix’s Shadow and Bone Season 2 is an incredible fantasy recipe, filled with the right ingredients – from likable characters to witty dialogue to intense world-building – but the end result isn’t exactly what is expected. The second season felt like it was packed with a little more than the show can shoulder, the pacing felt rushed, and the ending left something to be desired. Still, it would be hard to turn away from such a deliciously magical series, especially when some of the most legendary and gripping plot points from the novels are yet to come.
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