‘Shadow and Bone’ Season 1 Review

The dystopian young adult movie phase came and went. These are mostly book adaptations that gave us some decent franchises like The Hunger Games and Maze Runner, however, we also got some forgettable entries such as the Divergent series. Shadow and Bone features many elements of these movies but elevate above it with a unique fantasy world and some good characters. 

Premise

Shadow and Bone takes place in what’s called the Grishaverse – a world divided into many factions and classes with a group known as the Grisha at the top of the food chain. The Grisha are powerful, with each member having a different type of power. The world is also divided by the Fold, a large wall of shadow filled with deadly creatures that make it almost impossible to pass through. 

Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li), an orphan mapmaker, discovers that she’s part of something greater. Once she discovers her abilities, many of the powers at play in this world fight to take advantage of what her abilities can do. 

One thing I appreciated in this show is that the factions are never really explained. I picked up what each faction is and where they lie in terms of power in this world. There’s never an exposition scene that explains how the world works which is great. The writers respect the audience enough to let them understand the world without holding their hands.

However, this does mean it can take a minute to understand what’s going on. For the first few episodes, the characters are basically speaking in nonsense words that have no meaning yet. But, it’s rewarding once you fully invest yourself into this world. 

Also, Netflix does a great job at the overall production design of this series. Each faction has its own costumes and appearance that make them visually distinct. The sets are lovely and the design often blends a steampunk look with a fantasy environment. The CGI is decent as well, especially for a Netflix series. Clearly, this series had a massive budget. 

Too many storylines

The show bounces between two main storylines. The first is with Alina and her development as a prophetic hero. The second is with a group of characters known as The Crows, who are hired to kidnap Alina for unknown purposes. Alina’s story is where most of the dramatic moments are found, making it a much more fascinating story to follow.

It does serve as the main story and drives the direction of many of the other storylines. While the story and lore being developed are interesting to follow, Aline herself is rather bland. Mei Li is good in the role, but she doesn’t have much personality. She fits the role well of a shy character who is forced to grow in her confidence as her abilities also grow. 

Shadow and Bone also focus on Mal (Archie Renaux), Alina’s childhood friend with an incredibly strong bond. While both characters are rather bland, their chemistry is great. The actors do a great job at conveying the history between the two characters and why these two feel so connected with one another. They have an almost spiritual bond that is impenetrable. 

The storyline with The Crows takes a long time to develop any purpose. For almost the first half, we watch them come up with a plan to capture Alina, but it feels so insignificant to the main story surrounding Alina. However, the Crows are my favorite characters in this show. 

They have distinct personalities, good arcs, and awesome designs. Each one has a unique talent that makes them feel essential. I especially liked Kit Young as Jesper, an overly confident, troublemaker who is often the comic relief but is also an impressive marksman. 

There is another storyline following Nina (Danielle Galligan), a Grisha who is kidnapped by the Fjerdan’s, a faction who hunts down Grisha. Nina develops a relationship with her captor and it’s essentially just a Romeo & Juliet type story of forbidden love. It’s not dreadful, but it never felt like it deserved loads of attention and it’s blatantly predictable. 

The highlight of the show is Ben Barnes as General Kirigan. His character wields a massive amount of power and Barnes performance delivers on this. He does a great job at being menacing, but also charming when he needs to be. He has a commanding presence that demands your attention whenever he’s on-screen. 

It takes a few episodes before it becomes interesting

The many storylines in this show can kill the pacing. The main story with Alina takes a while to truly get interesting as it has to go back and forth between the Crows and Mal’s journey. Plus, Nina’s story gets intertwined with this later on. 

The series early on is rather generic and comes across as a CW series with a Netflix budget. Around the fifth episode is when the big twist happens and this is when the series became more intriguing. I was invested for the last three episodes and I felt rewarded for the time I had put into watching this series. 

However, it took a while for me to feel locked in. I was never bored with this series, but the story didn’t grasp me in the beginning. Thankfully, the ending is strong and it sets up a season 2 well. 

Final verdict

Shadow and Bone is a solid first season. It’s nothing game-changing, but it does set up its own world that separates itself from other fantasy series’. While I can’t say it’s a new obsession, I am looking forward to a season 2 if it gets greenlit. It does suffer from other tropes seen in young adult fantasy franchises, but it overcomes that with great performances and a creative environment. Check it out for yourself if you are craving a new fantasy adventure.

Final score: 3.5/5