How did Shadow and Bone season 2 mess up its ships so badly?

Shadow and bones season 2 kicks off with a bang – or to be more accurate, with a kiss. Mal and Alina finally lock lips and pay off the sexual tension the show has built up to after a season of tracking Mal and simping for his best friend. Though it took a corny pick-up line to get the two together, I still rewinded and rewatched the moment. Finally the two found out.

I had been waiting for this moment: Season 1 established Mal and Alina’s deep friendship and loyalty to each other. And their romance, in Season 2, acts as a grounding and familiar force in contrast to the magical — and often violent — storytelling that dominates the TV adaptation of the Grishaverse. I’m also just juice for young adult and new adult romances, where emotions are heightened and characters learn about themselves through the process of falling for someone else. Set these romances against the backdrop of intense action – young people fighting for their lives and their country – and it’s a pressure cooker for entertaining drama.

But Shadow and bones season 2 promptly loses the thread in its portrayals of romance, juggling so many romantic arcs that none of them can really shine, let alone really burn. This is largely because it modifies so many source texts — Siege and Storm, Ruin and rise, plus some novella content for the Six of Crows crew. There are so many couples in it: Jesper and Wylan, Nina and Matthias, Genya and David, of course Mal and Alina (and maybe briefly Alina and Nikolai), and Kaz and Inej, though their relationship is less straightforward than the others. The adaptation makes some mind-boggling choices about how it compresses its romantic plots to fit into one television season.

[Ed. note: This story discusses romantic pairings throughout Shadow and Bone season 2, including a spoiler regarding Mal and Alina in the finale.]

The main issue is simply the amount of information going through the season. That many couples would be a generous number, even for a show that doesn’t also race through so many action-packed books. But the season moves forward, hitting plot beat after plot beat in a juggling act that makes the script feel frantic. Each of these romantic arcs is compressed to fit into smaller timelines, making each one feel rushed. Take Jesper and Wylan: The show introduces Wylan for just a few episodes before the two become romantically entwined and concoct a one-night stand backstory in an attempt to make their chemistry more believable.

When played this way, every combination is all fire but no hiss, as if we’re meant to believe a fire can roar without any kindling. Romance stories usually follow a familiar pattern: Couples meet, fall in love — whether they’re facing challenges together or just flirting — meet an obstacle, then find a way to be together again. The most climactic beats of a romance are the most memorable, such as the Pride and prejudice scene where a the drenched Mr. Darcy proclaims his love or the Mahjong scene inside Crazy rich Asians where Rachel pleads her case. But it’s ultimately the interstitial moments where stories create tension and anticipation through intimacy and flirtation that give these pivotal scenes their payoff. It is Mr. Darcy who clearly adores and shares his younger sister witty flirtation with Lizzie Bennet despite their “hate” towards each other. It’s Rachel and Nick having drinks at a bar, flying together and making loving eye contact with them friends’ over-the-top wedding.

I’m not suggesting that Shadow and bones Season 2 takes on some of the most beloved romantic movies in recent memory. But it’s worth pointing out how this season of the show spends as little time as possible building rapport between romantic couples — after all, there’s so much material to fit in — and instead paring those romantic arcs back to their most climactic moments, even though it had an entire season of TV to work with. As a result, it feels like the show’s couples are constantly going through some version of the grand fight or grand gesture. But without other scenes in between, where characters create suspense and anticipation, those big moments don’t have the same reward — making these couples’ romantic moments feel flat and perfunctory.

Image: Netflix

Genya and David suffer from this. Season 1 begins to burn slowly, with Genya watching an oblivious David. It’s totally believable that they’ve grown closer over the years in the Little Palace. But there is a huge gap between this season 1 moment and season 2 Genya sacrificing herself to the terrifying nichevo’ja to buy time for David’s escape in episode 3. The show implies that the two have a connection as they are trapped under General Kirigan’s command, but don’t actually give much screen time to the moments they work together.

When the two reunite as part of Alina’s underground rebellion, David is suddenly much more forward and open about pursuing Genya and expressing his feelings. Sometime between finding his freedom and reuniting, he realizes he has romantic feelings for her – and that her act of sacrifice clarified those feelings. But without more context, without getting into it to see their relationship blossoms (and given his horrific actions towards Alina in the first season), it’s hard to buy into. Their short-lived romance is a bright spot in an otherwise dour series of episodes, but it also ends up feeling more obligatory than compelling or believable.

This season even unravels Mal and Alina’s tenuous romance. As always, Mal stays by Alina’s side and helps her locate the amps so she becomes powerful enough to destroy the Fold. They share a few tender moments before jumping into something dangerous, or after learning crucial news. Shadow and bones keeps watching the same footage of Mal and Alina as children lying together in a meadow. Despite a few convoluted subplots – including Mal’s brief kidnapping – the two eventually move on as a couple and grow apart as the friction between Alina’s power and Mal’s desire for a normal life increases.

Image: Netflix

But the couple’s separation at the end of the season comes completely out of the blue — especially as a grand gesture, without any run-ins or smaller, contemplative plot beats in between. Apparently, Mal’s magical bloodline has destined him to meet Alina, and he wants to know if he still likes her now that his tracking impulses are gone. After almost two full seasons of constantly chasing her, he wants to leave her behind. It’s hard to bridge the gap between this Mal and the Mal who was willing to die for Alina just an episode before — especially on a show that treated this relationship as its focal point. Again, the show seems to assume that big moments work as emotional inflection points, even if they just exist in a vacuum.

Should the show be renewed for a third season, there’s still room for some of these other couples to grow. Kaz and Inej, the heart of the Crows crew, are also two who have endured trauma, for whom intimacy is a major obstacle. The sexual tension between the pair built over the course of two seasons, culminating in one of Inej’s most famous lines, “I want you without the armor, Kaz Brekker.” Or I don’t want you at all.” It poses a challenge for the third season to fulfill – hopefully the show can take the time to strip down their romances in the same way.