#mal x alina concept

[ell0ra-br3kk3r-writes]

The Phoenix and the Crow

part twelve

pairing: (hinted) kaz brekker x fem!reader

genre: "action" i guess still netural

el's thoughts: this took wayy too long, i'm sorry haha but it's here! quick thank you to @jahayla-parker for helping me edit! i hope y'all like it! please remember to reblog and comment :)

masterlist

a/n: previously on the phoenix and the crow

She hummed, “We all do things for reasons only we know.” Twisting her fingers around each other, she sighed. “There are plenty of things I’ve done that if I had taken the time to actually think it through… I wouldn’t have made those choices, but in the end I’m standing here today and I wouldn’t be if I hadn’t made thoes choices. So, I wouldn’t change anything.”

“I wouldn’t-” Kaz was interrupted by Toyla shouting that they made it. Inej, Nina and Zoya all walked to one side, waiting for Y/N. 

The inferni gave Kaz a tight smile, “Well, I’m off.” She pulled her shoulders back as she walked to where the other girls stood waiting. 

Kaz watched in astonishment as the girl with whom he had just carried an intimate conversation with slipped back into the formal behavior that came with being a soldier. It was as if she had put back on a stoic and formal front, slipping back into her all too familiar mask. It was as if Y/N had only allowed herself a short break from such a pretense for those few private moments with him.

~*~

Each step was taken cautiously as the group of six walked through the Fold. Growls could be heard around them causing Y/N to check their surroundings every minute despite Alina encircling them in a shield of light.

“This is it. The heart of the Fold. Where Kirigan first damned this country into darkness.” Alina spoke as she stood beside Mal, a set of stone steps behind them like ruins of an old building. “I think this is where we stand a chance of bringing it down.” Mal shifted closer to her, ready to draw his knife. She placed her hands over his and refused. “No. We can do this.” Alina lifted* her right hand and motioned for Mal to hold it. 

Bewilderment washed over Y/N all at once when she saw the bright red light flow through the sun summoner’s veins. “He’s the firebird.”

Flares of blue and red light seeped out of Alina in powerful waves. The red spiraled around the couple and flew all over the place encompassing them like a forest fire. 

The other four women stood to the side and watched in awe. “It’s beautiful.” Nina’s breath caught in her throat as she spoke. Zoya and Y/N reached for the heartrender’s hands as Inej said her prayers of worship in silence. The inferni’s amazement* was cut short when she felt another presence. She felt as if all the air had left her lungs as she turned to Zoya. “He’s here.”

“How touching.” The Darkling strode through Alina and Mal’s shield of light with his hands clasped and extended outwards before him. The black scars on his face were impossible to miss as Y/N stared him down from where she stood while holding her ground. 

Alina let go of Mal, the red light instantly fading away. 

“I almost feel bad for what I have to do now.” Kirigan said as he walked closer. “He is family after all.” He spat his words as if they were the vilest concept. The summoner threw a glance at the tracker before diverting her attention back to the Darkling. 

“Get down!” Mal shouted. 

Y/N’s attention was pulled toward where Mal stood with his gun drawn. She ducked down just in time to dodge the bullet meant for the nichovoya. 

The Darkling drew his hands together, summoning the Cut. Alina quickly copied, both summoners aiming for the other. Their slices hit one another with such force they nearly canceled out each other’s power. Fortunately, Alina had used slightly more force and a piece struck Aleksander’s side. He flew back and landed hard on his back with a groan. Alina grinned with pride as she watched Kirigan squirm in pain.

“I’m hit.” His voice was strained while he spoke. 

“Mal.” The sun summoner rushed to his side and in a flurry of panic, the light shield fell leaving everyone vulnerable to the monsters that are local to the Fold. Right before the four girls could run to Alina and Mal, Nina was snatched by the nichovoya.

“Nina.” Dread formed in Y/N’s bones despite the roaring rage in her chest. “Nina!” Inej and Zoya turned and looked around desperately for the heartrender. The three of them moved to stand back to back, circling each other protectively. 

“Stay with me.” Alina’s voice cried out over the rushing of blood in their ears. “Stay with me!”

With a glance thrown quickly to Zoya, Y/N ran over to where Alina was bent over Mal’s body. She fell to her knees next to them as Mal drew his knife and handed it to the crying girl. 

“I can’t.” Alina cried. 

“Make them redraw all the maps.”

Y/N looked away from the couple while she felt her emotions bubble over. 

The Darkling was once again adding another theft to his long list of stolen lives and other cherished belongings of the innocent girls he’d tormented. Genya, Zoya, Y/N, and Alina. Just another thing he got to ruin with his blood-stained hands. Convincing each girl of his feelings and intentions while he utilizes them as if they were pawns in a chess game. Sacrificing each of them for more power. 

“I love you.” Alina said, her voice cracking from her tears.

“You know where to find me.”

Alina nodded, taking a deep breath before she plunged the knife through Mal’s chest. Instant regret and pain washed over her as she threw her head back and screamed. Her arm flew up over her head, as she channeled every last ounce of her power towards the sky, towards destroying the Fold. 

Y/N watched the scene unfold with wide eyes before standing and running towards the two suli girls as the Fold vanished*. The now blue sky above them felt like a breath of fresh air, before they noticed the nichovoya spawning around them. They all shared a look and nodded. 

Zoya twisted the wind between her hands, shoving the shadow monsters forward so Inej could use the Neshyenyer through the shadows. Y/N helped herd them with small flames. The squaller was thrown to the side by a long hand of shadow while Inej kept fighting the shadow monsters. 

Alina’s voice could be heard calling Nina while she still leaned over Mal. 

Once Inej sliced through the last shadow monster* all three grisha women rushed to the sun summoner’s side. Nina instantly started her attempts to revive the tracker.

Y/N rose to her feet when she noticed Kirgian standing. 

“Now… You know sacrifice.”

The inferni scoffed, “Beyond anything you’ve ever known.” She spoke on behalf of the grieving summoner. “And look what it did.” She gestured around them.

“Indeed.” The Darkling nodded, “Look what it did.” He tore his eyes away from her to the lifeless body on the stone steps. 

A fresh wave of tears washed over Alina as she stood slightly behind the inferni, “Mal and I changed the world. We tore down your Shadow Fold.”

“You have my sympathies for what comes next. When you realize that what you’ve done solves nothing. The world doesn’t need a Saint to protect it, Alina.” He took a step forward, “It needs a monster. And while I remain-” His words fell off into a coughing fit, his breath more labored. “Let me be your monster.” 

Y/N stepped forward but Alina held her back. “You think that after everything, I’ll still stand by you?”

“There is no light without darkness. Without me, you have no counter, no balance. Let me carry the hatred of this world.”

“Hatred.” Alina scoffed*, “Because of the choices you made.”

“Choices you too will make… in time.”

“I will never walk your path.” 

“I know you believe that now…” He groaned as he stepped forward again, “But look at Y/N.” The inferni stiffed at the mention of her name. “She’s already had to make some choices. Haven’t you?” She looked away as shame crept up on her. 

“Soon the both of you will have no equal. The years spent alone will grind you down, they will harden you. And who will be there to shield you from it? Who will be there to save you?” Kirigan reached his hand to Alina’s face but she reacted quicker. Grabbing his wrist first, “I will save myself. Your legacy is already written. There is no redemption.” She shoved his hand away from her causing him to fall to his knees. 

A loud gasp escaped his lips as his shadows shifted and formed. The sun summoner backed up as the shadow monster walked towards her. Y/N shoved Alina out of the way when she saw the claw-like hand reach for her. The monster grasped the inferni by her neck, lifting her off her feet into the air. Kirigan tried to lunge forward, “Leave her alone! No!” He was quickly shoved to the ground. 

“Y/N!” Inej shouted and threw the Neshyenyer right under the grisha’s arm embedding itself within the monster causing it to go up in flames. 

The Darkling rose to his feet while Y/N gasped for air. “You can’t control them, can you? You can’t control any of it.” 

He extended his hand to her, “I thought I could control it all once. Find peace. And for a moment, I swear I did.” He closed his eyes as if he was taken back to his memories.

Y/N rose* to her feet with the blade in hand and took a deep breath through her nose. She raised the sword and plunged it into the Darkling, just below his ribs. His eyes shot wide open, “Without me, know they will come for you.”

“I’m… I’m a monster.” Y/N shuddered at the thought while she stared down at her hands. Kirigan came up behind her and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Possibly, but as long as I’m around they will never know.”

The inferni gritted her teeth, “Let them come.” She pulled the sword out and let his body fall to the sand beneath them. 

Alina walked to stand above him, blocking the sun from his eyes. 

“Alina… you make sure there is nothing left of me. Please.” He choked on his breath, “Please.”

Y/N turned around and walked to where Nina knelt beside Mal’s body. Y/N turned briefly and made eye contact with Zoya, only exchanging a silent nod. 

After no response from Mal’s body a dark look flashed in Alina’s eyes. Y/N noticed and spoke, “Think through your actions, Alina. Once done, you can’t reverse them.” The sun summoner ignored all caution and proceeded anyway, bringing Mal back to life with a loud gasp.

Y/N walked away to stand next to Zoya. 

“What do we do with him?” The squaller asked.

“Will you wait with him until we return? I don’t want any heretics to find the body and make a martyr’s relic of it.” Alina said. “We’ll burn him where he fell. We’re on the other side of this now. There’s no turning back.”

~*~*~*~

taglist:@rachelcarroll1819 @xcharlottemikaelsonx @khaleesihavilliard @simrah1012 @foulkryptonitepeanut @astridyoo15 @queenofshinigamis @peakyispunk @jahayla-parker @maliciousbrekker @brekkershadowsinger @winstonthecow22 @lee-says-things @bunneex @writingmysanity @sleepynightchild @madnessinwrighting @romanticvampire

#kaz brekker #kaz brekker x reader #kaz brekker x you #kaz brekker x y/n #six of crows #six of crows x reader #six of crows imagines #shadow and bone #shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone imagines #ellora.writes #fic: the phoenix and the crow

[greensaplinggrace]

darling for the ask game obv let's get the important one out of the way

😭 idk if this was meant to say darkling but I'm doing him anyway

how I feel about this character: I love him. he's an interesting character that usually gets misinterpreted by the majority of fandom. I like that he has so much potential as a concept, but it makes me sad that that potential is rarely actually realized canonically. all in all, he's a character I really relate to for many reasons: his isolation and loneliness, his depersonalization and dehumanization, his high levels of empathy, his relationship with oppression and repression, and his drive to help others at the cost of his future and his sanity. I also really love his complex relationship with rage and apathy at the injustices of the world, which gives fascinating insight into his existence as an immortal and as a naturally idealistic person who lost faith in others

all the people I ship romantically with this character: mostly alina and mal! I also like him and nikolai together sometimes, and I can see the appeal of luda. plus of course any poly combination of any of these.

my non-romantic OTP for this character: aleksander & ivan is a hilarious friendship tbh. also I'm so in love with the ways genya parallels him and is so similar to him that I adore seeing them together on screen or in fics or basically anywhere, even if just for the horribly tragic tension that really brings out the depth of both their characters.

my unpopular opinion about this character: I have a lot lol. he was right about most things, but I don't think alina was wrong to leave him. I think he's a good character in the book, less so in the show, but in both he suffers from such bad writing that he ends up acting ooc half the time anyway. he's clearly empathetic and caring, and he is obviously able to feel love - but this has no bearing on his morality or any justification for his actions whatsoever. tbh I have so many unpopular opinions of him that it doesn't bear repeating them all lol.

one thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: that he died better in the show (and that he was written better overall with actual real depth). that he was never resurrected in the books (or at least that his second ending wasn't what it was)

my OTP: malarklina! 💖💕

my cross over ship: none

a headcanon fact: he's still afraid of the dark to this day. he's always cold and alina's always hot. he's very good with kids. he speaks so softly because his mother is abusive garbage and his experiences with men all suck. he's demisexual and biromantic and agender. he dissociates regularly due to both trauma and regular dehumanization, and this affects the way he views his personhood as well as his gender. he always knows the time of day because he can feel the shadows around him. he operates at some level on inhuman instincts tied to the nature of shadows & light.

give me a character (x)

#shadow and bone #sab #grishaverse #aleksander morozova #the darkling #myramblings #asks and answers #ask games #eyo!! ty for the ask! <3 <3

[pikachuondrugs]

Doom Upon the World

A/N: This is a series I’ve already started and posted here. Decided to bring it here as well, maybe it’ll break my writers block? Here to hoping! Eventually all chapters available there will be brought over here once re-edited. Would love to hear any thoughts, ideas, criticisms ya’ll have!

Pairing: Aleksander x Alina

What if Baghra’s motives for separating Aleksander and Alina were far more… sinister?

I’d had plans for the Sun Summoner for hundreds of years. How to control her, to use her against our enemies, and yet… It all seemed to disappear when she finally came into my life. Alina Starkov. My Sun Summoner. My equal. My other half. I'd never truly understood the concept of soulmates until her. I hadn’t realized how much of myself was missing until she had been quiet literally dragged into my life.

Next Chapter Chapter Index

Chapter 1: His Mother

No. She must be wrong. He couldn’t have. I didn't want to believe it. I'd barely known him a few months and yet... there was something there. I was sure of it. Had been certain of it. Something that had felt so real, and so right. For once I hadn’t felt so… so alone. Could it really have all been a lie?

"You're his mother." Baghra's shadows seemed to be pressing closer, the inky blackness close enough to smother me. Fear crept down my spine, and my mind raced.

Aleksander's- her son's - shadows had never frightened me, not really. I’d always found them strangely beautiful, just as hauntingly beautiful as their master. They felt almost familiar, in the same way my light was familiar, the way he was familiar. They felt almost like an extension of him. I had wondered how they would feel on my skin. Would they be cold and malicious? Soft and comforting? Powerful and tender? I wanted to reach out and touch them, almost certain that they wouldn't hurt me. That he wouldn’t hurt me.

I knew most feared them, what child had not been afraid of the dark once upon a time? I knew I should probably fear it now, fear him. But I couldn’t make myself.

Shadows had never been kind to me, Darkness brought no comfort. Since I was a child, since my parents died, I have been alone. My days were usually filled with the orphanage, with Mal, and it was easier to forget my terrors. But at night, in the dark, there was nothing to distract me from the emptiness inside me, the fear. Children with families could hide in their mothers’ embrace when the nightmares and monsters in the dark came. What did I have? Nothing, no one but Mal. My only real friend.

But not even Mal could ease my loneliness forever. As we grew older we drifted slowly apart. We were separated when we joined the first army, me tucked away with the rest of the cartographers and him with the soldiers. Our paths crossed often enough, but never for long. I was alone again.

The dark always brought nightmares with it, shadow-filled dreams of a village- my village, something in my mind whispered -burning. Screaming, the smell of burning flesh, and those oppressive shadows dancing around the edge of my vision. My mother begging, someone, something for her daughter's life. Kneeling in front of a wall of shadow sobbing.

Please, she's just a child! She's innocent! She's done nothing! My father, in a pool of blood, slumped against the wall, unmoving.

Then Mother fell silent, a line of shadows taking her head from her body. I could do nothing but sob as she slumped to the ground, blood soaking the floor of our home. The shadows rushed toward my hiding place outside the window immediately and I ran. It was never fast enough. No matter how many times I hoped I’d outrun the snarling, angry blackness, it caught me each and every time, pushing in from all around me. Suffocating me.

More often than not, I’d wake screaming, sure the darkness would be there to finish the job.

I’d been told by Ana Kuya that my parents had likely perished crossing the Fold. But the dream felt so real that it made me wonder if it could be true.

I snapped back to the present and found Baghra's cold, calculating eyes boring into me.

"My son tried creating his own army with merzost. He didn't think about the people who lived there, what such power would do to them. Turned them into the twisted, evil things that attacked you." I heard Baghra continue, heard myself respond. But it did not feel real. No. She must be wrong. He couldn’t have. I didn't want to believe it. I'd barely known him a few months and yet... there was something there. I was sure of it. Had been certain of it. Something that had felt so real, and so right. For once I hadn’t felt so… so alone. Could it really have all been a lie? Some trick to use me?

I couldn’t help but remember the way he looked at me tonight. That almost longing, hungry look in his eyes. How his kisses felt needy, almost desperate. All that barely restrained power in his grasp, somehow still so gentle when clutching me tight to him, like he couldn’t get enough, would never get enough.

Like he needed me.

Me.

It had sparked a rush of desire, and I couldn't help but marvel at how perfectly I fit in his embrace, how perfectly we fit together. This was where I belonged. He had seemed similarly affected. The way his hands never stayed still as he kissed me, hungrily memorizing and claiming as much as he could. The tenderness in his eyes when he finally forced himself to break away, only to return a moment later to give a final, breathtaking, kiss. I'd never felt this way before. I'd never wanted anyone like this before. Had it really all been a manipulation? Could he really feel nothing for me? Could he really fake this connection between us? Why?

"He's had many names, served many kings, faked countless deaths, waiting for you... waiting to use you. To take your power for his own. You must leave now, before he makes a slave of you with that stag. While you have a choice still. The world will burn if you don’t heed me, foolish girl." I hardly heard her, stuck staring at the handsome face in the portrait in front of me. There was no mistaking it. Those deep dark eyes, beautiful, and powerful. Strong jaw, inky black hair… Aleksander's face stared back at me. It was true then. Partly at least.

He was the Black Heretic. He created the Fold. He was centuries old, had lived more lives than I could even comprehend. Did that mean it was all true? Had he been biding his time, stringing me along until he could use me for his own purposes? Was that all this was? I felt sick, tears pricking my eyes suddenly.

Then the shadows shifted around us and Baghra cursed, glaring at something behind her. I spun around quickly, foolish hope blossoming in my chest. I knew it was him. Certainly, he had some sort of an explanation. Baghra had to be lying. Had to be. It had to be a trick… Didn’t it?

Aleksander stepped out of the shadows of the tunnel, onyx eyes hard and angry, glaring at us. No. Not at us, at Baghra, at his mother. His hands were fisted at his sides, his jaw clenched, his whole body radiating tension and anger. His shadows whipped restlessly around him, a few tendrils finding their way to me, reaching for me. I found myself reaching back for them, wanting nothing more than to step towards their comforting, safe embrace. My light calling out for me to comfort his angry shadows, soothe the rage I could almost feel racing through him.

But Baghra's hand grabbed my wrist in a bruising, almost punishing grip, keeping me in place and I hissed. Who knew the old bat was so strong? Aleksander’s rage rolled off of him in waves, and I could clearly see how others could be so afraid of him, his face was murderous. And I just wanted to comfort him, just wanted him. Stupid. Stupid. He’s a liar. I shouldn’t trust him, shouldn’t want to be anywhere near him…but I do. Fuck.

"That's quite enough, Mother." Aleksander hissed, drawing closer.

#alina x aleksander #ben barnes #ben barnes is hot disease #shadow and bone #alina starkov #aleksander morovoza #aleksander kirigan #darklina #Baghra’s A+ parenting #the darkling #darkling shadow and bone #alina x darkling

[nightlyponder]

i dont really remember Mal and Nikolai's interactions from Siege and Storm but the show has introduced me to the concept of Mal x Nikolai with that weapon-choosing scene and the way Alina was lookin at the both of them like she couldnt believe they were gettin together.

i see the vision, if only for one night of fun

#jericho watches: shadow and bone

[morrigan-sims]

What are your hottest of hot takes on some of the booktok/trending books rn?

okay, I'm going to be honest and say I didn't even know what's trending on booktok right now. I had to google.

A Court of Thornes and Roses

Bleh. I read this book, and did NOT like it. Throne of Glass was decent enough, but ACOTAR is... not good. The relationships all give me bad vibes, or are just straight up toxic, and there's more sm/ut than I'm comfortable with. Also, the ending of the second book (which was where I stopped because agian, not a fan), is almost the exact same ending that Ms. Maas used for the end of Empire of Storms (book 5 in throne of glass). It's one thing for there to be tropes, but to essentially plagiarize yourself is an interesting thing to do.

What is it with booktok and faeries?? Is there something you people find romantic about being held against your will by a supernatural creature 10x your age??? DOES NO ONE ELSE FIND THAT CREEPY??? (ALSO Faerie myths rarely end well for the humans, and they never have good intentions. Not to mention that a very common faerie myth (changelings) is very, very ableist.)

2. Red Queen

it was.... meh. Things got dragged out 10x more than they needed to, and why can't you just kill these people who are evil and be done with it?? Also, neither of the love interest options are very good people to the main character. There's so much back and forth and backstabbing that you have no idea who's on what side, which while can sometimes turn out okay, the number of times the reader's opinion about X or Y character flip flops is just rediculous. (And again, just kill the douchebag and be done with it!!)

3. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue.

This one... this one is something else. While I love the concept, in theory, I was NOT a fan of the execution. It's not nearly as good as everyone makes it out to be, and if you want to see V.E. Schwab's better writing, read the Villains series. The concept is nice, but the plot and characters leave a bit to be desired, imo.

Bonus (but tw for implied grooming and very unhealthy relationships) under the cut.

BONUS: Shadow and Bone (kind of)

While I absolutely ADORE Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom, and also loved King of Scars/Rule of Wolves, I was initially uncertain if I wanted to even read Six of Crows after reading the original trilogy. I read both *years* ago, before BookTok latched on, and I discovered that I cared 20x more about the side characters (Nikolai, Tamar, Genya, etc.) than I did about Alina and Mal. I never really cared about them or what happened to them, but I was deeply invested in the side characters stories. Hence why I'm so happy that Ms. Bardugo decided to explore them in KoS/RoW. But that's not my issue with S&B. My issue with S&B is actually a fanbase issue, not a plot issue. THE DARKALINA CREEPS. Who is their right mind thinks that the Darkling gave one rat's ass about Alina??? Who in their right mind could ship them together. Yes, you're supposed to see the Darkling as more than just an evil monolith, and that's valid. But how anyone can read those books (ESPECIALLY the tent scene near the end of book 1) and not be absolutley REPULSED by the Darkling, baffles me. Yes, you're supposed to feel emotions about him, even mourn his death, (or in my case, the death of the person he coudl have been, the person his mother wanted him to be), but dear god, he's a creep. He's also about 600 years old, and you're shipping him with a teenager. What the hell is wrong with you??? The reader is supposed to follow an arc with him, from being wary to admiring him to hating him, and maybe ending on pity. But SO many people get stuck on admiring, and it revolts me. I'm not going to lie, someone liking the Darkling or shipping Darkalina is a MASSIVE red flag, because of how blatantly abusive and manipulative the Darkling is. He's not even subtle about it, after the first 2/3 of the 1st book.

Okay, that's all. I'm so sorry for screaming at you.

#ask Morrigan #thanks for the ask! #ask #anon #anonymous #morri loves books #morri rambles #nonsims #I'm so sorry if there's any typos or weird shit in here #I cannot for the life of me be bothered to proofread this rn #if anyone wants my reccomendations for books that are Actually Good lmk #I have a list of criminally underrated books <3 #also #NONE OF THESE BOOKS ARE NEW #they're all been out for 5+ years at this point and are only now getting attention because of booktok

[hamliet]

The Crows Summon the Sun

Or, Hamliet’s review of Shadow & Bone, which gets a 4.5/5 for enjoyment and a 3.5/5 in terms of writing.

The true heroes of this story and the saviors of the show are the Crows. However, the problem is that the show then has an uneven feel, because the strength of the Crows plotline highlights the weaknesses of the trilogy storyline. But imo, overall, the strengths overshadow (#punintended) the weaknesses. 

I’ll divide the review into the narrative and the technical (show stuff, social commentary), starting with narrative.

Narrative: The Good 

It’s What The Crows Deserve

I went into the show watching it for the Crows; however, knowing that their storyline was intended to be a prequel, I wasn’t terribly optimistic. And while it is a prequel, the characters have complete and full arcs that perfectly set them up for the further development they will have in the books (which I think should be the next season?). Instead of retreading the arcs they’d have in the books, which is how prequels usually go, they had perfect set up for these arcs. It’s really excellent. 

Jesper, Inej, and Kaz are all allowed to be flawed, to have serious conflicts with one another, and yet to love each other. They feel like a found family in the best of ways. Kaz is the perfect selfish rogue; he’s a much more successfully executed Byronic hero than the Darkling, actually. Inej is heroic and her faith is not mocked, yet she too is flawed and her choices are not always entirely justified, but instead left to the audience to ponder (like killing the girl), which is a more mature writing choice that I appreciated. 

Jesper is charming, has a heart of gold despite being a murderer and on the surface fairly greedy, and MILO THE EMOTIONAL SUPPORT GOAT WAS THE BEST THING EVER. I also liked Jesper’s fling with Dima but I felt it could be better used rather than merely establishing his sexuality, like if Jesper and Dima had seen each other one more time or something had come of their tryst for the plot/themes/development of Jesper. 

Nina and Matthias’s backstory being in the first season, instead of in flashbacks, really works because it automatically erases any discomfort of the implications of Nina having falsely accused Matthias that the books start with. We know Nina, we know Matthias, we know their motivations, backgrounds, and why they feel the way we do. It’ll be easy for the audience to root for them without a lot of unnecessary hate springing from misunderstanding Nina (since she’s my favorite). Matthias’s arc was also really strongly executed and satisfyingly tragic. Their plotline was a bit unfortunately disconnected from the rest of the story, but Danielle Gallagan and Callahan Skogman have absolutely sizzling chemistry so I found myself looking forward to their scenes instead of feeling distracted. Also? It’s nice seeing a woman with Nina’s body type as a romantic and powerful character. 

Hamliet Likes Malina Now

Insofar as the trilogy storyline goes, the best change the show made was Mal. He still is the same character from the books, but much more likable. The pining was... a lot (too much in episode 4, I felt) but Malina is a ship I actually enjoyed in the show while I NOTP’d it in the books. Mal has complexity and layers to his motivations (somewhat) and a likable if awkward charm. Archie Renaux was fantastic. 

Ben Barnes is the perfect Aleksandr Kirigan, and 15 year old me, who had the biggest of big crushes on Ben Barnes (first celebrity crush over a decade ago lol), was pretty damn happy lol. He’s magnificantly acted--sympathetic and terrifying, sincerely caring and yet villainous in moments. Story-wise, I think it was smart to reveal his name earlier on than in the books, because it helps with the humanization especially in a visual medium like film. Luda was a fitting (if heartbreaking) backstory, but it is also hard for me to stomach knowing what the endgame of his character is. Like... I get the X-men fallacy thing, but I hope the show gives more kindness to his character than the books did, yet I’m afraid to hold my breath. Just saying that if you employ save the cat, if you directly say you added this part (Luda) to make the character more likable (as the director did) please do not punish the audience for feeling what you intended. 

I also liked the change that made Alina half-Shu. It adds well to her arc and fits with her character, actually giving her motivations (she kinda just wants to be ordinary in a lot of ways) a much more interesting foundation than in the books. Also it’s nice not to have another knock-off Daenerys (looking to you Celaena and book!Alina). Jessie Mei Li does a good job playing Alina’s insecurities and emotions, but... 

Narrative: The Ehhhhhhh

Alina the Lamp

Sigh. Here we go. Alina has little consistent characterization. She’s almost always passive when we see her, yet she apparently punches an officer for calling her a name and this seems to be normal for her, but it doesn’t fit at all with what we know about her thus far. Contradictions are a part of humanity, but it’s never given any focus, so it comes across as inconsistent instead of a flaw or repression. 

I have no idea what Alina wants, beside that she wants to be with Mal, which is fine except I have no idea what the basis of their bond is. Even with like, other childhood friends to lovers like Ren/Nora in RWBY or Eren/Mikasa in SnK, there’s an inciting moment, a reason, that we learn very early on in their story to show us what draws them together. Alina and Mal just don’t have that. There’s the meadow/running away thing, but they were already so close, and why?  Why, exactly? What brought them together? The term “bullies” is thrown around but it isn’t ever explored and it needed to be this season. If I have to deal with intense pining for so many episodes at least give me a foundation for their devotion. You need to put this in the beginning, in the first season. You just do.

A “lamp” character is a common metaphor to describe a bad character: essentially, you could replace the character with a lamp and nothing changes. Considering Alina’s gift is light, it’s a funnily apt metaphor, but it really does apply. Her choices just don’t... matter. She could be a special lamp everyone is fighting over and almost nothing would change. The ironic thing is that everyone treating her like a fancy lamp is exactly the conflict, but it’s never delved into. We’re never shown that Alina is more than a lamp. She never has to struggle because her choices are made for her and information is gifted to her when she needs it. Not making choices protects Alina from consequences and the story gives her little incentive to change that; in fact, things tend to turn out better when she doesn’t make choices (magic stags will arrive). 

Like... let’s look at a few occasions when Alina almost or does make choices. For example, she chooses to (it seems) sleep with Kirigan, but then there’s a convenient knock at the door and Bhagra arrives with key information that changes Alina’s mind instantly despite the fact that Bhagra’s been pretty terrible to her. If you want to write a woman realizing she’s been duped by a cruel man, show her discovering it instead of having the man’s abusive mother tell her when she had absolutely no such suspicions beforehand. There’s no emotional weight there because Alina doesn’t struggle. 

When she is actually allowed to carry out a bad choice, the consequences are handwaved away instead of built into a challenge for her. Like... Alina got her friends killed. More than once. I’m not saying she’s entirely to blame for these but could we show her reacting to it? Feeling any sort of grief? She never mentions Raisa or Alexei after they’re gone, just Mal, and I’m... okay. They were there because of you. Aren’t you feeling anything? Aren’t you sad? The only time Alina brings up her friends’ deaths is to tell Kirigan he killed her friends when they were only there because she burned the maps. She yells at Kirigan for “never” giving her a choice, but she almost never makes any, so why would he? Alina has the gall to lecture Genya about choices, but she herself almost never has to make any. 

Which brings me to another complaint in general: Alina’s lack of care for everyone around her when they’re not Mal, even if they care for her. Marie dies because of her (absolutely not her fault of course) but as far as we know she never even learns about Marie. She certainly doesn’t ever ask about her or Nadia. Alina seems apathetic at best to people, certainly not compassionate or kind. 

The frustrating thing is that there is potential here. Like, it actually makes a lot of psychological sense for an orphan who has grown up losing to be reluctant to care for people outside of her orbit and that she would struggle to believe she can have any say in her destiny (ie make choices). It’s also interesting that a girl who feels like an outsider views others outside her. But the show never offers examines Alina’s psychology with any depth; it simply tells us she’s compassionate when she is demonstrably not, it tells us she makes decisions when it takes magical intervention to do so. It’s a missed opportunity. This does not change between episodes 1 and 8, despite the episodes’ parallel structures and scenes, which unintentionally reinforces that Alina had little real development. 

Inej and ironically Jesper and Kaz embody the concept of “mercy” far better and with far more complexity than Alina does. The Crows have reactions to the loss of people who even betray them (Arken, etc), learn, and course-correct (or don’t) when they are even loosely involved in having strangers die. They’re good characters because they change and learn and have their choices matter. When they kill we see them wrestle with it and what this means even if they are accustomed to doing so. Jesper can’t kill in front of a child. Kaz wonders what his killings do to Inej’s idea of him.

Narrative: The Mixed Bag

Tropes, Themes, Telling vs. Showing

So the show’s themes in the Alina storyline are a mess, as they are in the trilogy too. Tropes are a very valuable way to show your audience what you’re trying to say. They’re utilized worldwide because they resonate with people and we know what to expect from them. The Crows' storyline shows us what it wants us to learn.

Preaching tells, and unfortunately, the trilogy relies on telling/preaching against fornicationBad Boys. It’s your right to write any trope or trample any trope you want--your story--but you should at least understand what/why you are doing so. The author clearly knows enough about Jungian shadows and dark/light yin/yang symbolism to use it in the story, but then just handwaves it away as “I don’t like this” but never does so in a narratively effective way: addressing the appeal in the first place. If you really wanna deconstruct a trope, you gotta empathize with the core of the reason these tropes appeal to people (it allays deep fears that we are ourselves unlovable, through loving another person despite how beastly they can be), and address this instead of ignoring it. Show us a better way through the Fold of your story. Don’t just go around it and ignore the issue.

The trilogy offers highly simplistic themes at best--bad boy bad and good boy good, which is fine-ish for kid lit but less fine for adult complexity, which the show (more so than the books) seems to try to push despite not actually having much of it.

Alina and Mal are intended to be good, we’re told they are, but I’m not sure why beyond just that we’re told so. Alina claims the stag chose her, but in the show it’s never explained why at all. Unlike with Kaz, Inej, Jesper, and hell even Matthias and Nina, we don’t see Alina or Mal’s complex choices and internal wrestling. 

Like, Inej’s half-episode where she almost killed the guy they needed was far more character exploration than Alina has the entire show, to say nothing of Inej’s later killing which not only makes her leaps and bounds more interesting, but ironically cements her as a far more compelling and yes, likable, heroine than Alina. We see Inej’s emotional and moral conflict. We can relate to her. We see Kaz struggling with his selfishness and regrets, with his understanding of himself through his interactions with and observations of Inej, Alina, the Darkling, Arken, and Jesper.

We don’t explore what makes Mal or Alina good and what makes them bad. We don’t know what Alina discovers about herself, what her power means for her. We are told they are good, we are told she knows her power is hers, but never shown what this means or what this costs them/her. Their opportunities to be good are handed to them (the stag, Bhagra) instead of given to them as a challenge in which they risk things, in which doing good or making a merciful choice costs them. Alina gets to preach about choices without ever making any; Inej risks going back to the Menagerie to trust Kaz. Her choices risk. They cost. They matter and direct her storyline and her arc, and those of the people around her.

Production Stuff:

The Good: 

The production overall is quite excellent. The costumes, pacing, acting, and cinematography (for example, one of the earliest scenes between the Darkling and Alina has Alina with her back to the light, face covered in his shadow, while the Darkling’s face is light up by her light even if he stands in the shadows) are top-notch. The soundtrack as well is incredible and emphasizes the scenes playing. The actors have great chemistry together, friend chemistry and romantic when necessary (Mal and Alina, the Darkling and Alina, Kaz and Inej, Nina and Matthias, David and Genya, etc.) All are perfectly cast. 

The Uncomfortable Technicalities Hamliet Wants to Bitch About:

The only characters from fantasy!Europe having any trace of an accent reminiscent of said fantasy country's real-world equivalent are antagonists like Druskelle (Scandinavia) and Pekka (Ireland). When the heroes mostly have British accents despite being from fantasy Russia and Holland, it is certainly A Choice to have the Irish accent emphasized. The actor is British by the way, so I presume he purposely put on an Irish accent. I'm sure no one even considered the potential implications of this but it is A Look nonetheless.

The Anachronisms Hamliet Has a Pet Peeve About: 

The worldbuilding is compelling, but the only blight on the worldbuilding within the story itself (ignoring context) was that there are some anachronisms that took me out of the story, particularly in the first episode where “would you like to share with the class” and “saved by the horn” are both used. Both are modern-day idioms in English that just don’t fit, especially the latter. The last episode uses “the friends we made along the way.” There are other modern idioms as well.

IT’S STARKOVA and Other Pet Peeves Around the Russian Portrayal 

Russian names are not hard, and Russian naming systems are very, very easy to learn. I could have waved “Starkov” not being “Starkova,” “Nazyalensky” not being “Nazyalenskaya,”  and “Safin” not being “Safina” as an American interpretation (since in America, the names do not femininize). However, “Mozorova” as a man is unfathomable and suggests to me the author just doesn’t understand how names work, which is a bit... uh okay considering a simple google search gets you to understand Russian names. They aren’t hard. I cannot understand why the show did not fix this. It is so simple to fix and would be a major way to help the story’s overall... caricature of Russia. 

Speaking of that... Ravka is supposedly Russian-based, but it is more accurately based on the stereotypes of what Americans think of Russia. Amerussia? Russica? Not great. 

The royals are exactly what Americans think of the Romanovs, right down to the “greasy” “spiritual advisor” who is clearly Rasputin and which ignores the Romanov history, very real tragedy, and the reason Rasputin was present in the court. The religion with all its saints is a vapid reflection of Russian Orthodoxy. The military portrayal with its lotteries and brutality and war is how the US views the Russian military. The emphasis on orphans, constant starvation, classification, and children being ripped from their homes to serve the government is a classic US understanding of USSR communism right down to the USSR having weapons of destruction the rest of the world fears (Grisha). Not trying to defend the Soviet Union here at all, but it is simplistic and reductive and probably done unconsciously but still ehhhh. 

However, I’m not Russian. I just studied Russian literature. I’ve seen very little by way of discussion of this topic online, but what I do see from Russian people has been mixed--some mind, some don’t. The reality is that I actually don’t really mind this because it’s fantasy, though I see why some do. I'm not like CANCEL THIS. So why am I talking about this beyond just having a pet peeve?

Well, because it is a valid critique, and because it doesn’t occur in a vacuum. The Grishaverse is heralded as an almost paragon for woke Young Adult literature, which underlines itself what so frustrates me about how literary circles discuss issues of diversity and culture. Such praise, while ignoring its quasi-caricature of Russia, reflects a very ethnocentric (specifically American) understanding of culture, appropriation, and representation. All stories are products of their culture to various extents, but it bothers me on principle what the lit community reacts (and overreacts sometimes?) to and what people give a pass to. The answer to what the community reacts to and what it gives a pass always pivots on how palatable the appropriation is to American understandings and sensibilities. There’s nuance here as well, though. 

I'm not cancelling the story or thinking it should be harshly attacked for this, but it is something that can be discussed and imo should be far more often--but with the nuance it begs, instead of black/white. But that’s a tall ask. 

#s&b #hamliet reviews #shadow and bone #six of crows #kanej #jesper fahey #kaz brekker #inej ghafa #alina starkov #malyen oretsev #the darkling #darklina #malina #aleksander kirigan #netflix shadow and bone #s&b review

[incorrectquotesconaisseur]

SO GUYSSSS I JUST FINISHED READING RULE OF WOLVES AND WHAT THE HELL???? I am a MESS

(so here are my thoughts that I had while reading it)

❗❗RULE OF WOLVES SPOILERS❗❗

• Lol Nikolai has a horse named Punchline, I love him so much

• Sankta Zoya Y E S

• Nina is sooo badass I love her - Brum needs to die btw

• Fjerda is a little shit

• "If not for Nina, their blessed termite eating at the heart of Fjerda’s government" - did I mention I love Nina?????

• Nikolai is a freaking mastermind and I love him

• OMG THEY HAVE AN ANTIDOTE FOR PAREM NOW???? HELL YEAH take THAT Fjerda!!!!

• Nina adopting Kaz's mindset when back at the Ice Court is what I live for

• UGH THE APPARAT

• Nikolai is soooo in love with Zoya I AM GOING CRAZY

• Zoya's "you forget that in Kerch greed is a virtue" gave me MAJOR Kaz vibes... I miss my crow babies

• Maybe it's an unpopular opinion, but I don't really like Ehri

• ZOYALAI NATION, HOW ARE WE??? ARE WE CRYING?

• I just REALLY love the found family trope and seeing everyone gathered in Zoya's rooms and Zoya curled up on the couch next to Genya I just AAAAAAAAA

• I absolutely adore the whole concept of the Darkling's prison and the CONSTANT sunlight he has to face HA - Alina vibes

• OMG "bring me Alina Starkov" WHAT THE FUCK I have literal chills ESPECIALLY after seeing the S&B trailer:)

• Nina being so confident in everything she learned from the Crows gives me so much serotonin I WANT MY BABIESSS

• Oh my god... I like prince Rasmus, he gives me major Nikolai vibes

• I draw immense satisfaction from Kaz and Zoya using "podge" as their preferred curse word :))))

• NIKOLAI CAN SEPARATE HIMSELF FROM HIS DEMON???? King behavior

• HOLY SHIT ALINA AGREED TO THE MEETING here we go again, fam

• I'm seeing Nikolai talking a lot about accepting his death and being undisturbed by the prospect of it and it feeaks me out - if he dies, I die with him

• Random, but: they need to get the thorn stuff from the Order of Sankt Feliks or whatever, right??? Maybe they have to steal it... and they would require expertise... MAYBE SOME CROWS PLS???????? (I am such a clown)

• Okay wait... so the letters that prove Nikolai is a bastard are in the druskelle sector... PLEASE TELL ME NINA HAS TO BREAK IN THE ICE COURT the fact that she is back there ALONE makes my heart clench so hard... I MISS MY CROWS

• FUCK ALINA SHOWED UP (also Oncat apparently and now I want to cry about Harshaw again)... AND MAL I can't take this I AM HYPERVENTILATING

• I AM LEGIT ON THE FLOOR Yuri is still there FINALLY understanding that the Darkling is evil AND NOW MY MAIN MAN GOT HIS POWERS BACK oh, I love the chaos

• NIKOLAI FUCKING CARRIES ZOYA'S RIBBON IN HIS POCKET nobody fucking touch me

• THE WEDDING IS FOR GENYA AND DAVID????? I AM SOOO CONFUSED what the heck

• Nikoali is the most fucking badass amazing cunning freakishly intelligent idiot I have ever seen in my entire life, my love for him is immesurable, I cannot put into words just how awesome his awesomeness is TAKE THAT MAKHI YOU BITCH

• OH HELL NO the demon is trying to escape SMACK THAT BITCH NIKOLAI BABY

• Oh wow, Rasmus is crazyyyy af he isn't anything like Nikolai my perfect boi SORRY

• OMG Nikolai's dad us a good guy??? I feel so sorry for him... SO NIKOLAI WAS RIGHT TO BE A ROMANTIC huh

• FUCKING HELL again with the nichevo’ya???? Darkling bby, what the HECK

• Nononononooo NO NOOOO NOT DAVID WHAT THE FUCK LEIGH

• "This is what love does" one of the most powerful quotes tbh

• Wait... they want to???? STEAL??? titanium from the Kerch??? .... DOES THIS MEAN.... C R O W S?????

• Okay but... the Darkling's POV? POWER MOVE I love it!!! And the fact that he uses Aleksander as his name with zero reticence now is just *chef's kiss*

• I'm sorry but... I don't like Mayu's chapters I AM SO SORRY I DON'T

• Nina is my badass queen STEP ASIDE PEASANTS

• All these SoC Easter Eggs and mentions are driving me insane

• Idk why but imagining the Darkling drinking beer is sooo funny to me

• I AM LOSING MY SHIT they are in Ketterdam KETTERDAM does that mean ....DOES THAT MEAN ....I better see my Crows or I am throwing hands

• The Zoyalai conversations in this book are KILLING me

• OH MY FUCKING GOD so Kaz took the Emerald Palace over and renamed it THE SILVER SIX???? LIKE???? I AM LEGIT CRYING???

• Ummm...Zoya, honey, WHY do you want to VOLUNTARILY stay away from Nikolai, HUH?????

• THE ONLY REASON HE AGREED TO HELP NIKOLAI WAS BECAUSE HE GUARANTEES INEJ'S PROTECTION if that's not L O V E idk what is YAAASSS KANEJ

• FUCKING SHIT JESPER!!!! IT'S JESPER!!!! WYLAN!!!! I AM FAINTING MY BABIESS

• The Crows' banter is WHAT I LIVE FOR

• Kaz is the most cold, badass and calculating motherfucker on the planet, I love him soooo much

• No NO NOO JORAN IS THE ONE WHO KILLED MATTHIAS????? HOLY SHIT I am sooo scared LEIGH WHYYYY

• Kaz's reaction to Nikolai's demon is legit the funniest shit ever

• Kaz and Nikolai are bffs - THIS IS HEADCANON LEAVE ME BE

• Queen Leyti has severely disappointed me

• I am having waayyyyy too much fun reading about the Darkling among blindly faithful monks - this is the stuff of sitcoms

• (I know the Crows only had a cameo and they won't pop up again, but I can't help desperation wanting to see Nina reunite with them and PLEASE GIVE ME INEJ!!!)

• Honestly, it's pretty cool getting to have a look in the Darkling's head - it's SUPER fucked up

• OOOOO the blight vs the Darkling = the only confrontation I want to see

• FATHER AND SON REUNION

• I don't care much for Hanne x Nina, but I have to admit that they make a very cute couple

• FUCK THEY BROKE STURMHOND'S BLOCADE FUUUUCK

• WAIT NO it was their plan all along HOLY SHIT electricity RULEZZZZ who knew physics would prove THIS useful???

• UUUGHH FUCK THE APPARAT I am so sick of this guy - Zoya was right, they should have killed him

• I am really pissed at the Darkling- YOU FUCKING ACKNOWLEDGE HOW MUCH RAVKA NEEDS YOUR HELP, YOU SEE NIKOLAI'S BRAVERY, YOU KNOW YOU CAM HELP, AND YOU DO NOTHING??? BRO WHAT THE FUCK

• HELL YEAH ZOYA IS A DRAGOOON fuck some shit up sweety Y E S

• MY SKIN IS CLEARED AND MY CROPS ARE WATERED BY THE DARKLING RAISING A MOB TO CALL ZOYA "SANKTA"

• Also... the Darkling winking at Nikolai? FLERT

• WHAT THE FUCK???? HANNE DIED??? holy shit, why???? WHY CAN'T NINA BE HAPPY???????

• Nikolai is an absolute SAVAGE in a debate

• Idk what to think abt Rasmus... he was kinda badass for standing up against Brum

• SOLDIER. SUMMONER. SAINT. slap me and call me a hoe I SCREAMED WHEN I READ THAT

• ZOYA AS QUEEN, SIGN ME THE FUCK UP

• Okay I stan the Darkling again

• ZOYALAI IS CANON I REPEAT ZOYALAI IS CANONNNNN

• OKAY WOW HANNE IS A FULL-ON BADASS yep, I stan

• I really???? LOVE??? this ending for the Darkling??? Idk but it is VERY fitting

• ALINA!!!! AT ZOYA'S!!!! CORONATION!!!! my life is complete

• FUCKING SHIT INEJ!!! INEEEEEJJJJ my queen my love AAAAAA

• The conversation at the end between Alina, Zoya and Genya DESTROYED ME

• STEALING THE HEART OF SANKT FELIKS yes please BRING THE CROWS BACK!!!!! I NEED ANOTHER CROWS SEQUEL!!!!

• I fainted, I ascended, I DIED at the last page

• NOW I NEED A SEQUEL!!!

• Leigh, you ARE goig to write what happens next, right? RIGHT? RIGHT????

#rule of wolves #row #row spoilers #rule of wolves spoilers #leigh bardugo

[him-e]

what did you think of shadow and bone? have you read the books? i only read the duology

Thoughts on Shadow and Bone, now that you've probably seen it?

I think the show is alright? It lacks a real wow factor as far as I’m concerned, but it’s enjoyable. It’s especially enjoyable in those parts I didn’t anticipate to like / didn’t even know would be there. 

Whereas the main selling points leave a lot to be desired.

The good stuff: the visuals. The aesthetic. The overall concept. Production, casting and costumes are excellent, the setting is fascinating. The worldbuilding isn’t perfect and is sometimes confusing, which is probably due to the show jumping ahead of the books and introducing elements that happen much later in the book saga, but I’m loving the vague steampunk-y vibe of it mixed with more typical fantasy stuff and slavic-inspired lore, the fact that it’s set in dystopian Russia rather than your usual ye olde England.

I find it interesting that in this ‘verse the Grisha are simultaneously superstars, privileged elite, legendary creatures and despised outcasts, according to the context and the type of magic they wield. It’s A Lot, and so far it’s all a bit underdeveloped and messy, like a patchwork of different narratives and tropes sewn together without an organic worldbuilding structure. (there are hints to a past when they were hunted, but how did they go from that to being, essentially, an institutionalized asset to the government isn’t clear yet. There’s huge narrative potential in this, and I hope future seasons will delve into those aspects)

Many of the supporting characters are surprisingly solid. I appreciated that Genya and Zoya eventually sort of traded places, subverting the audience’s assumptions about them and their own character stereotypes, despite the little screentime they were given.

Breakout characters/ships for me were Nina/Matthias, and even more so the Crows, i.e. the stuff I didn’t see coming and knew nothing about (having only read the first book). (I thought the entire Crows subplot was handled in a somewhat convoluted way, at least in the first episodes; it was hard to keep track of who wanted Alina and why, but the Crows’ chemistry is so strong it carried the whole Plot B on its shoulders).

HELNIK. As an enemies to lovers dynamic, Helnik was SUPER on the nose, I’d say bordering on clichéd with the unapologetic, straight outta fanfiction use of classic tropes like “we need to team up to survive” and “there’s only one bed and we’ll freeze to death if we don’t take our conveniently damp clothes off and keep each other warm with the heat of our naked bodies” (not that I’m complaining, but i like to pine for my ships a bit before getting to the juicy tropetown part, tyvm). And then they’re suddenly on opposite sides again because of a tragic misunderstanding - does Bardugo hate high-conflict dynamics? It certainly seems so, because between Helnik and Darklina I’m starting to see a pattern where the slow burn and blossoming mutual trust is rushed and painted in broad, stereotypical strokes to get as fast as possible to the part where they *hate each other again* and that’s... huh. Something.

^That’s probably why I’m almost more interested in Kaz x Inej, because their relationship feels a bit more nuanced, a bit more mysterious, and a bit more unpredictable. (I didn’t bother spoiling myself about them, so I really don’t know where they’re going, but it’s refreshing to see a dynamic that the narrative isn’t scrambling to define in one direction or the other as quickly as possible)

-

Now, as for Darklina VS Malina... I found exactly what I expected. 

Both are ship dynamics I’m, on principle, very much into (light heroine/dark villain, pining friends to lovers) but both are also much less interesting than they claim to be, or could have been with different narrative choices. I’ll concede that the show characters are all more fleshed out and likable than their book counterparts, and the cringe parts I vaguely remembered from the books played out differently. And, well, Ben Barnes dominates the scene, he’s hot as HELL, literally every single second he’s on screen is a fuck you to Bardugo’s attempts to make his character lame and uninteresting and I’m LOVING it, lol.

But yeah, B Barnes aside, Darklina is intrinsically, deliberately made to be unshippable. 

It makes me mad, because it’s - archetypally speaking - made of shipping dynamite: yin/yang-sun and moon, opposites attract, COMPLEMENTARY POWERS AND SO ON. And what does Bardugo do with these ingredients? A FUCKING DELIBERATE DISASTER:

^ Placing the kiss so early on (season 1, episode five) effectively kills the romantic tension that was (correctly) building up until that point, and leaves the audience very little to still hope for, in terms of emotional evolution of the dynamic. 

Bardugo lays all the good stuff down as early and quickly as possible (the bonding, the conflicted attraction, the recognizing the other as one’s equal, etc) only to turn the tables and pull the rug so y’all sick creepyshippers won’t have anything to look forward to, because THEY’VE ALREADY HOOKED UP AND THAT BELONGS TO THE PAST, IT’S OVER, THEY’RE ENEMIES. This, combined to the fact that she falls for him *without* knowing who he really is, is the opposite of what I want from a heroine/villain ship (it’s basically lovers to enemies, and while that can be valid too, I wanted to see more pining and more prolonged, tormented symbolic attraction to the Shadow/Animus on Alina’s part). 

But here’s the trick: it’s not marketed as lovers to enemies - it has all the aesthetics and trappings of an enemies to lovers (the Darkling is, from the get go, villain-presenting, starting from his name), so it genuinely feels like a trollfic, or at the very least a cautionary tale *against* shipping the heroine with the tall dark brooding young villain, and I don’t think it’s cool at all. It makes the story WAY less interesting, because it humanizes the villain early on (when it’s not yet useful or poignant to the story, because it’s unearned) but it’s a red herring. The real plot twist is that the villain shouldn’t be sympathized with, just defeated: there’s a promise of nuanced storytelling, that is quickly denied and tossed aside. So is the idea of incorporating your Shadow (a notion that Bardugo must be familiar with, otherwise she wouldn’t have structured Alina and the Darkling as polar opposites who complement each other, but that she categorically refutes)

Then we have Malina. The good ship.

Look, I’m not that biased against it. I don’t want to be biased on principle against a friends to lovers dynamic that antagonizes a heroine/villain one, because every narrative is different, and for personal reasons I can deeply relate to the idea of being (unspeakably) in love with your best friend. So there are aspects of Malina that I can definitely be into, but it troubles me that in this specific context it’s framed as a regression. It’s Alina’s comfort zone, a fading dream of happiness from an idealized childhood, to sustain which the heroine systematically stunts her growth and literally repressed her own powers, something that in the books made her sickly and weak. But the narrative weirdly romanticizes this codependency, often making her tunnel vision re: going back to Mal her primary goal and centering on him her entire backstory/motivation, to the point that when she starts acting more serious re: her powers and alleged mission to destroy the Fold, it feels inorganic and unearned. 

Mal is intrinsically extraneous to Alina’s powers, he doesn’t share them, he doesn’t understand them, he has little to offer to help her with them, and so the feeling is that he’s also extraneous to her heroine’s journey, aside from being a sort of sidekick or safe harbor to eventually come back to. People have compared him to Raoul from Phantom of the Opera, and yeah, he has the same ~magic neutralizer~ vibe, tbh.

The narrative also polarizes Mal’s normalcy and relative “safety” against Aleksander’s sexy evil, framing Alina’s quasi-platonic fixation on the former as a better and purer form of love than her (much more visible and palpable) attraction to the latter. This is exacerbated by the show almost entirely relying on scenes of them as kids to convey their bond. I’m sure there are ways to depict innocent pining for your best friend that don’t involve obsessively focusing on flashbacks of two CHILDREN running in a meadow and looking exactly like brother and sister. LIKE. I get it, they’re like soulmates in every possible way, BUT DO THEY WANT TO KISS EACH OTHER?

Which brings me to a general complain: for a young adult saga centering on a young heroine and full of so many hot people, this story is weirdly unsexy? There are a lot of shippable dynamics, but they’re done in such a careless, ineffective way that makes ZERO EFFORT to work on stuff like slow burn, pining and romantic tension, and when it does it’s so heavy handed that the viewer doesn’t feel encouraged at all to fill the blanks with their imagination and start anticipating things (which is, imo, the ESSENCE of shipping). The one dynamic that got vaguely close to this is, again, Kaz and Inej, and coincidentally it’s also the one we didn’t get confirmed as romantic YET. Other than that, where’s the slow burn? What ship am I supposed to agonize over during the hiatus to season two? Has shipping become something to feel ashamed of, like an embarrassing relative you no longer want to invite in your home?

Anyway, back to Alina/Darkling/Mal, this is how the story reads to me:

girl suspects to be special, carefully pretends to be normal so she can stay with Good Boy

the girl’s powers eventually manifest; she’s forcibly separated from Good Boy

the girl’s powers attract Bad Boy who is her equal and opposite but is also a major asshole

girl initially falls for Bad Boy; has to learn a hard lesson that nobody that sexy will ever want her for who she is, he’s just trying to exploit her

also, no, there is no such thing as a Power Couple

girl is literally given a slave collar by Bad Boy through which he harnesses her power (a parody of the Twin Scars trope)

you know how the story initially suggested that the joint powers of Darkness and Light would defeat evil? LOL NO, Darkness is actually evil itself and the way you destroy evil is using Light to destroy Darkness, forget that whole Jungian bullshit of integrating your shadow, silly!

conclusion: girl realizes being special sucks. She was right all along! Hiding and suppressing her powers was the best choice! She goes back to the start, to the same Good Boy she was meekly pining for prior to the start of the story.

... there’s an uncomfortable overall subtext that reads a lot like a cautionary tale against - look, not just against darkships and villain/heroine pairings, but also *overpowered* heroines and, well... change? Growth?

Like, it’s certainly a Choice that Alina starts the story *already* in love with Mal. That she always knew it was him. The realization could have happened later (making the dynamic much more shippable, too), but no. 

#anon #asks #* #sab for ts #long post #darklina for ts #malina for ts #sorry it took me a while but i wanted to see the whole season first

[bobwrites]

thanks for tagging me @kurapls

Rules:

1. Post the rules

2. Answer the questions given to you by the tagger

3. Write 11 questions of your own

4. And tag 11 people

1. Do you prefer hot summers or cold winters?

Oo well i live in a tropical country so i’ve never experienced winters before but mildly cold weather? i think thats better than sweating all the time + u can get cozy and snuggly with a warm drink when its cold

2. Name one otp, one notp, and a rarepair (any fandom)

OTP: Soukoku would be my no1 otp like i just love the dynamic and the push and pull and angst and hurttttttttt (lmao do i make any sense i just IDK MAN THEYRE SO IMPERFECTLY PERFECTLY MEANT FOR EACH OTHER??)

NOTP: fucking broccoli moss bitch ruining my ship  *cough* moving on i dont rly have any notps? that i dislike,,, mmm maybe odazai (bsd) or Mal and Alina (The Grisha Trilogy) im still pissed that the darkling died ok

Rarepair: TODOBAKU. i was so sad when i learned that todobaku is considered a rarepair but goD BLESS THE FANCREATORS HONESTLY? tdbk may not have a lot of content like popular ships but each fic/art is always high quality bless

3. Are you watching any anime right now?

oh man i’ve been drowning in kdrama and exams and bts and i havent even completed bnha season 3 yet QwQ

4. Would you rather have infinite food or never have the need to eat again?

MMm i care a lot about how my appearance and physique is like so it depends? Like if i dont get the effects from the foods i eat ill gladly take infinite food hehe but never having the need to eat is also a practical choice so id take that too 

5. Fic tropes that make you the saddest.

AMNESIA(tfw u typo insomnia). IMAGINE LIKE?? UR OTP?? THE OTHER HALF DOESNT REMEMBER ANYMORE AND ITS WORSE THAN BREAKING UP AND WHATEVER BC PERSON A’S MEMORIES OF PERSON B IS FOREVER GONE AND PERSON B WILL LIVE WITH THE KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT COULDVE BEEN AND WHAT THEY DID TOGETHER AND FUCK MAN.

6. Grab an object to your right. What did you grab?

an empty glass of milk

7. Pick 1 character you want to punch and 1 character you want to adopt

*glances at entire collection of adopted characters* i would adopt dazai/chuuya/sebastian morgernstern from TMI (i cant chooose okay chuuya is #1 son material but dazai is such a morally grey character and it makes him all the more, er, endearing?) and I’d punch (i’d say an anime chara but if i do i’m going to get decked for it 00) fitzgerald since hes the guy i dislike most in bsd 

8. Could you take care of a plant or does everything you touch die?

i’ve never taken care of plants before so idk heheh

9. What was the last dream/nightmare you have?

mmh i rarely dream? and when i do i dont rly remember them...the most hilarious nightmare ive probably had was 1000 cats that looked exactly like my cat invading my house and threatening me in deep rapper voices and when i found my own cat she was getting mated on by several other male cats (dont listen to rap while hugging ur cat to fall asleep kids)

10. 1 thing on your wishlist

a scholarship to harvard :p or someth more realistic: bts’ 2017 summer package or the wings concept book qwq

11. Night showers or morning showers?

ive taken showers at 3am i love night showers bc when u go to sleep u feel more comfortable? whereas morning showers are like u standing there still bleary as fuck and the water just slaps u in the face

My questions:

1. What’s the most replayed song on your playlist?

2. How would you describe your fashion style/attire preference?

3. Favourite villain?  (from any fandom)

4. Is ice cream x french fries disgusting or delicious?

5. Favourite flower?

6. Last thing that made you laugh/smile?

7. Someone/people you want to be w/ u in an escape room/horror movie?

8. Favourite thing in a fanfic/dream fanfic plot/trope?

9. MBTI type?

10. Favourite kind of characters?

11. Last thing you ate that you enjoyed?

tags: @itsclowreedsfault @xenophonspeaks @mildlineurs @star-tear @waveswordswhispers @kiimone @solyongtherainbow @myboynagito @yulicechan @fraink5 @mostladylikeladythateverladied @unfortunatesylveon @melowmarsh @asteryya

#asks

[morozovas-legacy]

• SPOILER ALERT! This contains show spoilers, along with some major book spoilers in the ‘side note’.

❗DISCLAIMER❗ before reading what follows, I want to point out that I am not defending the darkling (even I wish I could punch him most of the time). I am aware of how toxic and manipulative he is. I am just giving my own opinion about why no one should hate someone for liking a fictional character. I do not intend to sound offensive, or disrespectful, so please let me know if I do.

• Side note: this is basically for darkling stans, but mostly book!darkling since he is more human/genuine in the show, but also because we have no idea if they will follow the books’ storyline in next seasons. That’s a little out of subject, but I wish the fandom starts separating the show from the books, since the show is incomplete (it might be different from the books, and honestly I wouldn’t be surprised if it will). All of this to say that when we argument about a character in the show, we should NOT bring his future actions in the books in our arguments. Because it technically still didn’t happen in the show. So please, don’t mix up book and show characters, because they are obviously different. For example: if you are talking about show!alina, don’t say she will lose her powers, because it didn’t happen, and we don’t know if it will. If you are talking about show!darkling, don’t say he will burn down Keramzin, because it still didn’t happen. If you are talking about show!mal, don’t say he will kiss Zoya, because, again, it still didn’t happen yet.

• Anyway, here it is:

A lot of antis say the darkling is based on an ab*ser. Even tho this is NOT true, i'll go with it. As a reader, I personally prefer to *always* separate the book from the writer. It happens a lot that I don’t like the writer or don’t agree with some of their ‘morals’, but enjoy the book nonetheless (it mostly happens when I read classics tbh). While reading, we make out our minds subjectively. Reading, in my opinion, is about subjectivity, because if everyone was objective while reading any book, there will be one common opinion in the end, no arguments, no different pov, no depth, nothing. It is about interpretation and the writer should respect that. So here is a little example: a very loved book character (that I won’t name because I will get hate if I do, sorry), reminds me of toxic ‘friends’ I had before. And yet, I will not attack people who like them because a) my experience with life, relationships, friends, etc.. is different from theirs, b) I was obviously subjective when I connected this particular character with my past, if I were to be objective, I might’ve liked them. What I want to say is that I understand everyone who doesn’t like the darkling because it reminds them of a bad person in their life (I sincerely feel you). However, I don’t agree with them hating on people who like him for the two reasons above (a & b). You can say your opinion, ofc, that is the least of your rights. You can explain why *you* can’t like his character, why *you* find him x, y… without forcing *me* (or anyone) to agree with you. You are entitled to your own pov, and I am entitled to my own. I wish we could *all* respect that (ALL, hear me well). Being mean, sending death threats, abuse threats, along with many others won’t prove your point. Antis doing that are hurting REAL people in the REAL world. How is it okay? They are always bragging about how the darkling is toxic and abusive (we know that, alright). But when they bully and attack darklinas and darkling stans, aren't they being abusive and toxic too? I hope they realize how wrong they are, and to everyone who has been attacked, ily.

Here is my own experience, where I am being a little subjective: I'm reading a psychological romance, in which BOTH protagonists are toxic, but they found an unhealthy balance - does enjoying their relationship makes me a bad person? No, no it doesn't. This is the kind of books I like to read, and I won't be ashamed of it anymore. If someone can’t understand it, it's their problem. Ofc, I have a certain limit even in fiction so I chose my books wisely. That might be the case of antis darkling, but that's not a reason to insult people who like the darkling, ship darklina or any toxic/unhealthy ship for the matter, AS LONG as they are aware of the toxicity, which is my case, so no need to worry :)

I guess it's because as a reader, or writer, you are aware of the toxicity, and you know you should avoid it in real life. Whoever ships a problematic ship, while being aware of it, will most likely try to not engage with an unhealthy person, because they know the 'symptoms'. That's what it taught *me* anyway.

Fiction, imo, is written for readers to be ‘transported’ to a new universe they cannot explore irl. Even some events in books that aren’t Fantasy are not likely to happen in our reality. The scale is pretty huge, yes, but the concept is the same. It is a way to experience/enjoy something you can’t/shouldn’t have irl.

^^^ that was my opinion, I apologize in case it disrespects yours :)

Thank you for reading this whole essay lmao. I would like to hear your opinions as well! But please, be respectful, and don’t hate on anyone, I’m begging you. Be nice❤

#the darkling #aleksander morozova #darklina

[greensaplinggrace]

Shipping ask game - Shadow and Bone edition Darklina

Malghra

Zoyalai

Darklina

I love the yin/yang dark/light symbolism so so much, especially in regards to how shadows and light actually affect each other. I find the actual physical implications of it fascinating, and the potential eldritch horror aspects of it intriguing, especially in regards to animal/inhuman instinct (them physically representing the not so physical concepts of light and shadow) vs the very real human facets of each character. I adore thinking about how dark and light symbolism ties into their characters as well as their relationship. Anyways, its just so good and has so much potential and I could go on about it for days.

I love the spiritual, existential soulmatism of their relationship. how it contrasts with the physical soulmatism of mal and alina's relationship. how the darkling complements her and brings out certain sides of her that would otherwise be hidden away.

I love how cruel they can be with each other. The passion and softness in equal measures whenever they interact. I love it when alina kisses him and then tries to kill him, I love it when he offers her a throne afterwards. I love how they react to each other like they are constantly overcorrecting, like the balance that they were supposed to represent got fucked up along the way and they're just slingshotting back and forth up and down around each other like two sides of a rubberband pulled too tight.

Malghra

okay I've been thinking a lot about the parallels between mal and baghra and it's actually kind of interesting. the way baghra champions a lack of corruption through a lack of power, the way she values herself and those she loves more than any grand goal, the way she sees the change in the one she loves and wants to bring him back to something redeemable and away from corruption. it often parallels mal's own wariness of corruption through grisha power and his value on alina's safety and his love of her, as well as his desire to bring her back to the person he knows and away from corruption. they aren't exactly the same, but I kind of like the parallels between the two characters.

if baghra cared about mal she would prioritize his safety, and mal needs all the care he can get

mal and baghra together would be objectively hilarious lmfao. crackship of the century for sure

Zoyalai

I like how Zoya's strict attitude contrasts Nikolai's more laid back one. Their interactions are always so amusing, and it often leads to very emotionally charged scenes that are just spectacular

I love the inherent angst of Nikolai's monster and his fear of hurting Zoya because of it

I like how soft Zoya allows herself to get with Nikolai, and how Nikolai can be more himself around her. I like how they bring out the best in each other

I love Nikolai's big "that's my wife!" energy alksjdfl. King of loving wholeheartedly and without shame

three things I like about this ship (x)

#shadow and bone #sab #grishaverse #myramblings #asks and answers #ask games #i can't believe you got me to talk about malghra 😭😭 #fiora-miriel #alskdjf thank you for the ask though! 😘 #darklina #malghra #zoyalai

[thesffcorner]

Unpopular Opinions Tag

This was created now over 3 years ago by the Book Archer, and I don’t know why, but I really felt like I wanted to do it. So without further ado, let’s get into the questions.

 A popular book or series that you didn’t like:

 I think the most popular of the books I haven’t liked is Dark Matter by Blake Crouch. I just found this book excruciating to read, I thought the premise was underutilized, I hated the main character and all the supporting characters and the ending was convenient in a way that really annoyed me. 

 A popular book or series you like that everyone else hated

Hate is a strong word; I think polarizing is a better descriptor for both of these, which are the Nevernight Chronicles by Jay Kristoff and the Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini. I love both of these series, but they are rather polarizing.  Nevernight is a book about a teen assassin full of violence, gore, explicit sex and murder so I guess if you don’t like any or all of these stay far far away. But it’s also a book full of humor, an interesting plot and magic system and one of the most interesting and fascinating fantasy worlds, I’ve ever read.  Inheritance is a classic fantasy dealing with dragons and words of power, written before Skyrim was a thing, which has one of the most likable protagonists I’ve ever read. I love Eragon and Safira they are an amazingly cute pair and I liked how much the series expanded after the second book, though I think that’s where most people take issue with the series in that it expands maybe too much for the scope of the first book. 

 A love triangle where you hated who the main character ended up with/ least favorite OTP:

Otherwise I’m pretty easy to please. If there is a love triangle, it’s usually pretty clear and simple to tell who will be endgame, and I tend to agree with the author.  This is an easy one: Katniss and Peeta. I always, always preferred Gale. Katniss cares for Peeta, sure but I never got the sense that she loved him romantically. And I hated how in order to get rid of Gale, Collins had to make him literary commit a war crime, that’s how far she had to go to make him unlikable, because he was nothing but supportive, caring and loving to Katniss and her family the entire series. I still get heated to this day about how much I didn’t like this ending. 

A popular book genre you rarely if ever reach for: 

Contemporary, both YA and adult. Unless it’s a thriller or deals with a very specific topic, I don’t like contemporary books. I live in the real world I don’t need more of it in my reading too. 

A popular character that you don’t like: 

Rhy Maresh. I just... He’s literary just a damsel in distress. He constantly gets kidnapped, killed, stabbed, wounded or threatened, and 90% of the time it’s so he can be a hurdle for Kell and keep him in the palace. I am halfway through the third book and I need him to develop some personality ASAP that isn’t just hot, promiscuous, drunk prince who gets put in danger near constantly and has to be rescued by Kell, because I swear, he is the most annoying trope of a character, the only difference being that he’s a dude. 

Popular author that you just can’t get into: 

Blake Crouch, and William Gibson. Blake Crouch I’m sad because I really wanted to read the Pines trilogy since I love that type of Twin Peaks, X-Files, Deadly Premonition vibe, but after Dark Matter which sucked in all the worst ways for me, I don’t think I will be.  William Gibson is basically the father of cyberpunk along with Ridley Scott and Shirow Masamune, and I love cyberpunk. But Gibson’s writing style, characters and especially way he treats and describes his female characters turned me off forever. The only other book I’d be willing to try by him is Pattern Recognition, because the premise sounds amazing, but I doubt I’d like it, just because of the way he writes. 

Popular book trope that you are just tired of: 

I have two for this and unfortunately they both seem to be more prominent wit female protagonists: the plain, unattractive protagonist who is really just a bombshell but they don’t know it; and obligatory romance if the protagonist is a girl.  Both of these tropes are present in book I really like! With the first trope, I hated it even with Katniss, and Alina, and even Mia Corvere. It’s fine for the protagonist to be insecure in their appearance, but why do you have to tell me, every 10 pages that they look plain or ordinary, or unassuming, when every character of the opposite gender they meet will fall in love with them in literary less than a page? This is especially true of Alina, who out of the three I mentioned has the most people falling in love with her despite her being supposedly actually ugly (like that’s how she’s described, not me being mean).  The other one actually annoys me even more. How many books have we read where the male protagonist doesn’t get a love interest or gets one halfway through the series? And now compare that to how many we’ve read where the love interest for the female protagonist has been introduced in literary the first 50 pages. Jace and Simon, Mal and the Darkling, Gale and Peeta, Tric, Gansey and Adam. And the protagonist has to end up with at least one of them by the end, they can never stay single. It’s not the individual books that bother me, it’s the prevalence of it.

Popular series that you have no interest in reading: 

There are a few, but I’ll mention 3: Throne of Glass, Red Queen, and Falling Kingdoms.  Red Queen is the one that has the highest chance I’d change my mind about, since it’s the one I know the least about. It has to do with the color of your blood determining magical affinity, which is a cool concept and I know it has a lot of court intrigue and a love triangle. Lots of people don’t like it, but I know people who do, so for now it’s a no, though not a firm no. Falling Kingdoms I was going to try, but then I lost interest. I don’t need a teen version of Game of Thrones; I have the ASoIaF books if I wanted to read Game of Thrones. Especially because it seems that most people like this series for the romance, which... I don’t want to read a 5 book high fantasy series for a romance.  Throne of Glass is the one I have the least desire to read and a firm no. First off there are 8 books in this series. Second of all the first 3 seem to be a completely different series than the latter books, to the point where the main character changes names and identities. If you followed an assassin just trying to survive in a world where everyone hates them, then maybe, but when she is also a faye and a lost princess and there is another love triangle.... I’ll pass thanks.   

Book or TV adaptation that you prefer more than the book: 

READY PLAYER ONE. I can’t stress enough how annoying and obnoxious the book is to me, but the movie is great. Yes it still has some of the confused world building, bland main character and the insta-love romance, but the challenges, the visuals and even Halliday himself is improves tenfold. I would rewatch that movie no questions, but I wouldn’t reread the book even if it was the only thing I had to read on a 12 h flight. 

#unpopular opinions book tag #book tag #books #reading #moni talks