Shadow and Bone season 2

The series delivers the best of both worlds in an intricately crafted sophomore season that will leave audiences wanting season 3 immediately after.

It makes for a thrilling, emotional, and intense sophomore season that will leave one waiting impatiently for what comes next, and how the characters will fare and find each other again. This decision makes season 2 all the better; it considerably raises the tension and the stakes for all involved. And while the first few episodes of the season seem wildly disparate in their storytelling aims — the Crows have their own thing going on for a bit before their plot bridges with Alina’s — they’re still individually interesting, coalescing quite nicely and seamlessly. To say there is a lot going on in Shadow and Bone season 2 is an understatement; yet, the series actually flourishes despite the weight of plot expectations and character development. In eight episodes (which were provided for review), Shadow and Bone season 2 manages to do the same. Alina must contend with the connection she has with Kirigan, forged through the stag amplifier at the end of season 1, and work to find two more amplifiers — the sea whip and the firebird.

Good things come to those who wait. And in this case, the sentiment certainly rings true. Nearly two years after the premiere of the first season, ...

Alina, on the other hand, has begun to find her voice and her footing as a Grisha, and Mei Li is truly a force to be reckoned with as the Sun Summoner grows exponentially more powerful. This season finds Alina Starkov on the run, determined to bring down the Fold once and for all, while the Darkling is now more dangerous than ever. Nearly two years after the premiere of the first season, the highly anticipated second season of Shadow and Bone has finally arrived on Netflix.

Sturmhond is introduced early in Shadow and Bone season 2. He's played by Patrick Gibson, who was cast as Nikolai in the series. Who is Sturmhond, then?

He knows that Alina is the best hope for humanity, and he wants to work with her to take down the fold. It’s in the third episode that all is revealed when the group get to Ravka. When Netflix announced casting for Shadow and Bone season 2, we found out that Patrick Gibson would play Nikolai.

Based on the books by Leigh Bardugo, this is a show dense with lore that shows no mercy to non-book readers and/or those for whom April 2021 is a distant, foggy ...

There are no standalone episodes that can be enjoyed in isolation (like "The Sound of Her Wings," the excellent mid-season interlude in "The Sandman"); this is an eight-hour movie, expressly designed for binge-watching. If you generally like a blend of action, fantasy, and romance tropes, then this is one of the better options out there. Personally, I found myself wishing the show would lean into enjoyable trashiness instead of being quite so self-serious, but I won't fault "Shadow and Bone" for having loftier aspirations than that. But while "Shadow and Bone" isn't exactly committing any new sins in this regard, its various locations do lack a tangible identity of their own. "Avatar: The Last Airbender" is an example of good execution, with its Imperial Japan-inspired Fire Nation and Qing dynasty-inspired Earth Kingdom. The second followed a group of guttersnipes who had grown up to form a criminal underground gang, the Crows, who are hired to kidnap Alina and travel across the Fold to do so (with some help from an adorable goat called Milo). Instead of putting all their skill points into magic — which in the Grishaverse requires precise hand movements, and can therefore be rendered useless by a bad bout of carpal tunnel syndrome — the twins are equally adept with good old-fashioned steel weapons and hand-to-hand combat, occasionally throwing their heartrending abilities into the mix. That's not to say that Alina is a Mary Sue: in her storyline as the Sun Summoner, she faces enough struggles and setbacks to feel well-rounded and human, superpowers notwithstanding. But while this might theoretically make him the perfect boyfriend, it makes him pretty dull as a character, and therefore as a love interest. She teamed up with a sexy dark-haired bad boy (Ben Barnes, in the role he was born to play) called General Kirigan to try and destroy the Shadow Fold, a great sea of unnatural, monster-filled darkness that split the world apart centuries ago. In season 1, orphan Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li) learned that she was a Grisha with the rare power to summon light — a living saint dubbed the Sun Summoner, and hailed as the potential savior of the world. Based on the books by Leigh Bardugo, this is a show dense with lore that shows no mercy to non-book readers and/or those for whom April 2021 is a distant, foggy memory.

Season two finds protagonists Mal and Alina (Archie Renaux and Jessie Mei Li) fleeing the shores of Ravka after season one's showdown with the Darkling. Alina ...

His Darkling is a delight to watch: over the top evil, relentless in his pursuit of Alina, and absolutely irredeemable. As with season one, the show sometimes struggles to balance its competing plot lines – this time around, Ketterdam feels like the more exciting place to be, rather than Ravka – which leads to rather an unevenness of tone. Long story short: towards the end of season one, Alina bonded with a magical amplifier cut from the horns of a mythical stag (look, just go with it). The Darkling is alternately scheming and making ominous pronouncements, as per usual. Alina and Mal are on the run, as per usual. This makes her a Grisha (ie a magically gifted person) and, in season one, brought her to the attention of Ben Barnes’ Darkling.

The endearing Netflix show, starring Jessie Mei Li as Alina, returns with an even more sprawling ensemble. Shadow and Bone Season 2 premieres March 16.

Not only does he get to showcase that charisma and wit, but he's a major player in several of the season's best fight scenes (and there are some really great fight scenes this season), and thanks to a trip down memory lane and a major character reveal, Jesper has some poignant dramatic moments throughout the second season as well. The show is also unafraid to nudge Kaz and Inej's ( [Amita Suman](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/amita-suman/3030681271/)) relationship forward, giving it a new layer of complexity. And they are especially the best in Season 2, not just because their time in Ketterdam, and then in Shu Han is where the show seems to be having the most fun with its premise, but also because we get some much-needed illumination of Kaz Brekker's ( Yet it remains a series that's so easy to root for, thanks to its bevy of compelling main characters, a charming cast, and its willingness to go on an adventure with its premise (and source material!). I wanted to spend time with Alina and Mal (who get some juicier scenes to chew on this season) as they dealt with amplifiers and Kirigan and the Fold just as much as I wanted to spend time with the Crows in their two mini story arcs, if you will. He oozes charisma and warmth, and it seems like the creative team behind the show know it, too: Jesper (and Young) is given much more to do this season. The problem with tossing in new characters without enough room to really develop them is that they are instantly compared to the treasure trove of characters Shadow and Bone already has at its disposal. [Lewis Tan](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lewis-tan/3030233961/)) and Tamar (Anna Leong Brophy), who are a hoot. It deviates wildly from the source material, and the reason is twofold: The show is condensing and combining the plot of the two final books in the Shadow and Bone trilogy, Siege and Storm and Ruin and Rising, while still biding time until it gets to the actual Six of Crows plot. The same goes for a gaggle of "evil" Grisha brought in to battle the good guys. Last we left our favorite Grisha and non-Grisha (otkazat'sya, as they're called in the series), Sun Summoner Alina ( Honestly, that should've been obvious the moment it was announced ahead of Season 1's premiere that the Netflix series would bringing the Crows characters into the Shadow and Bone story.

For the second season, the show dispenses with filler and clichés in favor of more characters, settings, plot, danger, fighting, and horniness.

If the power dynamics explored in season one were along ethnic divides—shown through the racism Alina was frequently the target of—then season two is more focused on the power of bad men and the struggle of women to triumph in a patriarchal society. (Showrunner Eric Heisserer famously refused to come on board unless Netflix acquired the rights to Bardugo’s duology Six Of Crows in addition to the Shadow And Bone series.) For all the powers and heists and fights, at heart Shadow And Bone is about people trying to figure out what matters enough to fight for. The latter is meaningful and compelling, but in comparison to Alina’s quest, it feels a little light, and the first few episodes of season two occasionally come off as two separate shows. He’s much more in the background this time around, initially focused on trying to (again) get Alina to partner up with him so they can rule together and then, when she rejects him, turning to the incel playbook and deciding to destroy everything. It’s a vast cast, and the show sometimes struggles to juggle everyone. Our introductions to new characters are also quick, although the acting is generally so good that it’s easy to get a handle on everyone. This season is supersized: more characters, more settings, more plot, more danger, and more fighting—which is partly because it combines the second two books of Bardugo’s trilogy (Ruin And Rising and Siege And Storm). (Those scenes of young Mal and Alina in a field wore out their welcome fast.) Matthias, in particular, suffers and he’s so absent for such large swaths that it’s easy to forget he exists. Oh, and General Kirigan/The Darkling (Ben Barnes) was presumed dead—but in fact walked out of the Fold scarred and followed by some gigantic shadow monsters. Is the fight with others or with ourselves?