Alina takes on some shocking new responsibilities. Kaz gets betrayed again. The Crows enact their new master plan.
If there’s one major complaint about Shadow and Bone, it’s that it tries to do a bit too much. There are too many characters for the series’ limited runtime to fully include everyone. It’s actually more accurate to say that there are too many good characters, but the point stands. The midpoint of season two really starts to feel the weight of its roster, but it’s still having fun.
Episodes three and four come to the screen courtesy of director Laura Belsey, who is previously well-known for her work on shows like The Walking Dead. She also has her name on seven episodes of The CW’s Arrow.
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After the last episode’s extremely unorthodox proposal, Alina is now engaged to be wed. The strategic arrangement introduces a new level of angst to her relationship with Mal. Her new fiancé Prince Nikolai Lantsov announces their arrangement to the world, complete with a planned party. Alina is of two minds about the whole thing. She’s clearly still devoted to Mal, but she needs the strategic benefits of the Prince. She’s also still dealing with her supposed connection to the Darkling she left behind. While she prepares for a ceremony and adjusts to her new role in the military, a refugee from General Kirigan’s Grisha army comes to warn her of the impending danger. Alina’s time is now divided between relationship angst, military strategy, and magic training. Her A-Plot has become a bit overstuffed, but it all still works. Depending, of course, on one’s fondness for the typical YA romantic structure.
