Shadow and Bone

Our Sun Summoner Alina had a lot on her plate this season, forced to protect Ravka from further chaos by attempting to bring down the Fold and Kirigan's reign ...

"Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova’s amplifiers. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives. "The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne. Now that would be epic. Shadow and Bone season 3 plot: What will the third season be about? (With some new allies in tow, of course.)

In "Shadow and Bone," which is now on Netflix, Barnes plays the baddest of villains. He told Polygon that he just wants to be in a rom-com.

"Who you are as a person will always seep through in the tiniest ways," Barnes said. [Barnes as the Darkling,](https://www.insider.com/shadow-and-bone-creator-explain-darkling-kirigin-fold-backstory-scene-2021-4) a morally-gray man who is willing to destroy the world in order to protect his people. "I keep asking my agents, 'I just want to do a rom-com,'" the 41-year-old actor said. Barnes agreed, saying: "A nice rom-com in a nice cardie." or just kind of douchey characters." Even if they're not the one you're rooting for."

After not hearing from Mal, Alina falls for General Aleksander Kirigan (Ben Barnes), the leader of the Grisha army and a shadow summoner himself. In episode ...

The sun and shadow summoners are also in this group. However, the entire time Nina has been keeping the secret that she is a spy for the Ravkan army. On the ship, she meets Matthias and the two butt heads. It is worth noting that many people see Alina as a saint since she was prophesied, meaning it may be hard to travel the world without being recognized. In the books, they are created using merzost magic and can reform after attacks from swords and guns. Kirigan then manages to find a way to control Alina using the Stag's antlers. Alina is then taken in by the Grisha and separated from Mal. The Morozovas were the only family able to shadow summon and, in fact, Kirigan's grandfather created creatures, such as the Stag, as amplifiers for all Grisha out of his own bones. But he then reveals his true plan: expanding the Fold to attack West Ravka, whose people have been fighting for its independence from the rest of Ravka. [It is prophesied that only the sun summoner](https://www.insider.com/tv-series-that-are-similar-to-shadow-and-bone), who can summon light, can destroy the darkness called the Shadow Fold. [In season two of the Netflix series](https://www.insider.com/shadow-and-bone-author-leigh-bardugo-interview-2021-4), Alina is still on her mission to destroy the Fold. It was created hundreds of years ago by a Grisha, the name for wizards in this world,

Season 2 puts one particular aspect of Grisha culture at the heart of things, as Alina (Jessie Mei Li) and Mal (Archie Renaux) take on the mission of tracking ...

The creature is considered the symbol of Ravka and tied tightly to its history. According to legends, the firebird’s flight path is what drew Ravka’s original borders and the Lantsov family is even said to be descended from the creature. Though Mal gets his life back, he loses his abilities as an amplifier, and with it his tracking abilities and innate sense of his “true north.” Alina also must pay the cost of using merzost. This total slay is what earned Vasilka the title of Saint of Unwed Women. The stag played a prominent role in the first season of Shadow and Bone. But the firebird isn’t the third amplifier; Mal is. Alina gives the order to capture it alive, confident that the sea whip will choose to bestow its power on her the same way the stag did. In the books, we’re given a bit more backstory on the sea whip. However, some residue of the stag remains in Kirigan’s hand, creating a psychic link between him and Alina that persists until Baghra cuts off his hand in her dying moments in season 2. When Mal and Alina find the stag, Alina discovers she doesn’t need to kill it, since the stag chooses to share its power with her. Season 2 puts one particular aspect of Grisha culture at the heart of things, as Alina (Jessie Mei Li) and Mal (Archie Renaux) take on the mission of tracking down amplifiers in order to destroy [the Fold](https://www.polygon.com/22397995/shadow-and-bone-map-ravka-grishaverse). Hundreds of years ago, Morozova set out to create a way of increasing Grisha power to help them better protect themselves from persecution — which is the same line of faux altruism Kirigan hides his own hunt for power behind.

"Shadow and Bone" is based on Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse novels, but Season 2 of the Netflix show does a lot that will come as a surprise to book fans.

Firstly she is inside her father's workshop as it burns down, and then she enters the mental connection shared between the Darkling and Alina to face her son. The first creature she finds in Siege and Storm, but she learns the Firebird is not actually a third amplifier after discovering the creature in Ruin and Rising. Given David's body is not shown in the TV show, though, it is unclear if he is really dead. The Crows' plot to take down Pekka Rollins is part of the narrative in the second book in the Six of Crows duology, named Crooked Kingdom. During the final battle the Darkling's Grisha, and his shadow monsters, known as Nichevoya, fight against our heroes. Neyar became one after forging the blade Neshyenyer, which she used to save Shu Han by defeating an unkillable army of clockwork soldiers. At the end of the season Alina asks Genya and Zoya to work with her to help make Ravka a better country, and Zoya comments that they are a "Triumvirate." One of the Darkling's Nichevoya attacks her when it believes she is going to attack her son, and in her dying moments she severs the connection between him and Alina by cutting off his hand. Baghra's death in the TV show is similar in that she chooses to sacrifice herself to give Alina and Mal the opportunity to escape, but the circumstances are different. Kaz decides to take on Pekka Rollins (Dean Lennox Kelly), with whom he shares a tragic past. Sankta Neyar never appears in Bardugo's books. After Alina loses her powers and Mal is brought back to life at the end of the Shadow and Bone trilogy they leave to capital to live an ordinary life, they get married and re-open the orphanage that they were raised in.

Although few know how many exist, the amplifiers Grisha can make and use are important in Shadow and Bone, and become even more so in season 2.

[amplifiers in Shadow and Bone](https://screenrant.com/shadow-bone-morozova-creatures-amplifiers-powers-explained/), there is some debate about which is most powerful. This is what makes the search for the Sea Whip and the Firebird so critical in Shadow and Bone season 2. Throughout Shadow and Bone season 1, the only human amplifiers in the series were Ben Barnes' General Kirigan and his mother, Baghra, played by Zoë Wanamaker. Shadow and Bone season 2 reveals a critical twist that the third of Morozova’s amplifiers, the Firebird, was not a magical creature at all, but a person. Each of these creatures is said to have been made from one of the powerful Grisha’s bones, and each can bequeath their power to one that they choose upon their death. The first sect of these is Morozova’s creatures: the Morozovan Stag, the Sea Whip Rusalye, and the fabled Firebird.

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

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

The highly anticipated “Shadow and Bone” season two premieres on Netflix on Thursday after a sizzling first season that left fans of the show yearning for ...

The Black Heretic was a special type of wizard who could summon shadows and darkness. This move eventually revealed the sun summoner as Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li). It’s set in a fantasy world where monsters and wizards exist.

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

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

Binge-friendly show spins traditional tropes into intriguing new directions that could be called “Romanov-chic”

These have made her a person of interest to the Darkling, a Ravka general and magic user. Her talents are highly sought after – especially by Six of Crows gang leader Kaz (Freddy Carter) However, she will help only if they agree to spring a loved one free from a maximum-security prison. But knowledge of books is not necessary. Their home is Ketterdam – a riff on mercantile Amsterdam, full of cutthroats, thieves and corrupt officials. Its denizens also include Nina Zelik, a magical “heartrender”, whose sorcery can flense an enemy’s internal organs and who is played by Dublin actor Danielle Galligan. The look is what might be called “Romanov-chic”, with the kingdom of Ravka explicitly modelled on Imperial Russia.

With the beautiful Ben Barnes taken off the playing field for good, Alina turns her focus back to Mal. Nina fails to bring him back, but then the Sun Summoner ...

And the worst thing of all is that's smiling as she uses it, much like the Darkling used to... We really, really need to know what happens next, and because of deviations in how this season was adapted, Leigh Bardugo's books aren't going to be particularly useful on that front unfortunately. The chemist who created it fled once he realised what he had on his hands, but the Fjerdans quickly captured him with the intent to weaponise the drug for themselves. Nikolai gives Mal his special compass before he leaves, and even dubs him the new Sturmhond, which is rather nice of him, if we do say so ourselves. So with that, he and Alina decide it's best if they separate so Mal can go off on a new path as a privateer. Alina tries to connect to the Firebird's power anyway but pesky Kirigan interrupts and brutally injures Mal with the Cut. When Nikolai looks into the mirror, a shadow monster stares back, which suggests the King of Ravka might just be turning into one himself. Nina can't heal Mal in time so he asks Alina to kill him and save everyone as he's dying anyway. He then asks Alina to join him one last time, which is kind of dumb given how brutal he's just been over Mal, so of course she refuses. Well, no, actually, because that means Mal has to die if Alina's going to fulfil her destiny and save Ravka. [Shadow and Bone](https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a36130405/shadow-and-bone-netflix-review/) really took its name to heart in that final episode of season two. [Shadow and Bone](https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a36145305/shadow-and-bone-season-2-release-date-netflix/) spoilers follow.

It turns out, Heisserer is already hard at work on a Six of Crows spinoff for the series' misfit band of thieves. Heisserer confirmed the potential spinoff in ...

During Shadow and Bone season 2, Heisserer worked with Deagan Fryklind as a co-showrunner, in part because Heisserer was also working to develop the Six of Crows spinoff, and the two hoped they could share the responsibilities of the two series going forward. For the [Netflix version of Shadow and Bone](https://www.polygon.com/23638754/shadow-bone-season-1-ending-explained), Heisserer decided to bring the Crows in as a major part of the story earlier, essentially combining elements of the Six of Crows books and the first book of the Shadow and Bone main series. [main Shadow and Bone series](https://www.polygon.com/23641219/shadow-bone-amplifiers-firebird-explained).

The Netflix Shadow and Bone series is based on the Grishaverse books by Leigh Bardugo, but how closely does Season 2 stick to the books?

He’s transformed by the Darkling aka Kirigan in the third book of the series, Ruin and Rising, and is used by the Darkling as a weapon against Alina and her allies. This is true for the Crows as well with Inej (Amita Suman) taking off with a pirate crew to hunt slavers similar to what she ends up doing after the Six of Crows duology finishes, only the rest of the Crows are shaping up to take on the job that kicks off their story in the books in the first place. In the books, in the aftermath of the fall of the Darkling and Alina losing her powers, Alina refuses Nikolai’s proposal and she and Mal return to her hometown. With so many departures from the book but the show clearly setting up a Season 3 we can only wait to see Mathias is still in prison and the rest of the Crows are in Ketterdam, but the pieces are just slightly off from where they ought to be if we’re jumping right into the parem heist in Fjerda next season. In the books, Mal doesn’t get Baghra to lead him through the discovery of his Morozova blood. It’s a plot made up entirely for the show, seemingly just to give some characters more to do and to show us more of the world. She’s able to use her shadow powers to distract and destroy the shadows that are following their group, allowing the rest of them to escape. Not only do they change the circumstances under which Mal finds out he’s an amplifier, they change the meaning of his death as well. Everything involving Pekka Rollins and Kaz (Freddy Carter) seeking revenge comes in Crooked Kingdom as the result of him helping to double-cross them at the end of the first book. Still, in either version of the story she believes her son is beyond redemption. While Season 1 certainly made some changes, with Season 2 we pull in even more from the books written by Leigh Bardugo, spanning content from four different titles, and with it comes some major changes to the story.

After two long years, season 2 of Shadow and Bone debuted on Netflix and we finally learned where Alina Starkov, Mal Oretsev, the Crows, and the others ran ...

Shadow and Bone season 1 premiered on April 21, 2021, and was renewed in June 2021. Season 2 premiered on March 16, 2023, and although its future is unknown, it’s possible that a renewal announcement could come within the next month or two. No word on this just yet, as Netflix still needs to confirm that season 3 is happening. The show is based on not one, but *two* series by author Leigh Bardugo: the Shadow and Bone trilogy and the Six of Crows duology. All eight episodes of Shadow and Bone season 2 are now available to stream, but ofc, fans are already wondering when season 3 might drop — or if it’s even happening. I want to spend more time in their world.” Fingers crossed.

Season 2 of Shadow and Bone, Netflix's adaptation of the "Grishaverse" novels by fantasy author Leigh Bardugo, continues the quest of Alina and Mal to ...

Given that Netflix has yet to confirm a third season is happening, we're in for a long wait. Season 3 will also continue to lift plot elements from Bardugo's follow-up Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom duology, which features the gang of loveable rogues from Ketterdam. Unlike other drama series, we can actually take a pretty good guess as to what the over-arching plot of Season 3 would be, as it will be based on events in the third and final novel in Bardugo's original Grishaverse trilogy, Ruin and Rising.

In the season 1 finale, Alina wielded her newfound powers as a Sun Summoner to defeat General Kirigan, a.k.a. the Darkling, in battle in the depths of the Fold.

The second season of Shadow and Bone will see the Darkling emerge from his near-death experience in the Fold with a terrifying new power, the ability to create and control shadow monsters known as nichevo’ya using merzost, the power of creation. Meanwhile, the Crows were headed back to Ketterdam to deal with the fallout of failing to kidnap Alina and hand her over to Dreesen (Sean Gilder), the wealthy merchant who hired them to do the job. However, the final scene of the season revealed the Darkling was still alive and had managed to make his way out of the Fold accompanied by some menacing new shadow figures. The Darkling had captured Alina after killing Morozova’s stag, an ancient mythical creature whose antlers have the power to amplify Grisha abilities, and cementing a connection between himself and Alina by welding an antler collar around her neck and embedding another piece of antler in his own hand. [according to showrunners Eric Heisserer and Daegan Fryklind](https://ew.com/tv/shadow-and-bone-season-2-adapt-siege-and-storm-ruin-and-rising/). Season 2 will also once again incorporate characters and plot points from [Six of Crows](https://time.com/collection/100-best-fantasy-books/5898504/six-of-crows/), the debut entry in a subsequent duology from Bardugo set in the same world.

The showrunner of Netflix's Shadow and Bone reveals that season 2 is a potential gateway into a Six of Crows spinoff following the Crows of Ketterdam.

Season 2 has also introduced additional Six of Crows characters Matthias (Calahan Skogman) and Wylan (Jack Wolfe). [Entertainment Weekly](https://ew.com/tv/shadow-and-bone-spin-off-six-of-crows/) sat down with the show's creator and co-showrunner Eric Heisserer in the wake of [Shadow and Bone season 2's release](https://screenrant.com/shadow-bone-season-2-release-date-story-details/) on March 16. [Shadow and Bone](https://screenrant.com/tag/shadow-and-bone/) will be getting a Six of Crows spinoff sooner than later if all goes right.

With the Crows and Alina (Jessie Mei Li), Nikolai (Paddy Gibson), Mal (Archie Renaux), and all their allies fighting against General Kirigan aka The ...

The Apparat and Nikolai look shocked, and the camera closes in on Alina whose face turns from shocked to a small smile. Because a Fjerdan woman, a Heartrender, is clearly under the influence of Jurda Parem and uses her abilities to attack the king and his guests. Plagued by steamy dreams of Nina and struggling with the emotions he feels for the woman who sent him to prison, he goes to Pekka Rollins (Dean Lennox Kelly) in Hellgate and asks him to put him into a fight even though Kaz has paid to keep him out of them. Zoya (Sujaya Dasgupta) and Genya come to visit her and the three of them form a Triumvirate together. And when the Apparat leaves, we see Nikolai undress and see that when he was attacked by the nichevo'ya, and the attack left him scarred with merzost. Nikolai gives him the title of Sturmhond, knowing that Mal wants to be a privateer, and Alina encourages him to take it. In the final episode, we cut to the Fjerdans who see that the Fold is gone in Ravka. Knowing that he is about to die, Mal pleads with Alina to kill him and claim him as the third amplifier, and after a tearful and emotional goodbye, she does so. And when Alina shoves him to the ground, his shadow monster attacks Alina even when he orders it not to. When the whole group is reunited, Alina goes to speak to Mal who reveals that the feeling he had, the connection he felt toward Alina, is gone. She tells him that the world will remember that she and Mal tore down the Fold, but he warns her that what she's done has solved nothing. In the penultimate episode, we see Alina and The Darkling face off, with the two of them using the cut against each other (with Alina's made of light).

The news comes just as the second season of the fantasy adaptation became available to stream on Netflix. Kit Young as Jesper Fahey and Jack Wolfe as Wylan ...

[Freddy Carter](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-kit-young-freddy-carter-interview-netflix/)), Inej Ghafa ( [Amita Suman](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-season-2-character-poster-inej/)) and Jesper Fahey ( [Kit Young](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-jesper-kit-young-stunt-training-video/)). [Leigh Bardugo](https://collider.com/leigh-bardugo-ninth-house-grishaverse-hell-bent-interview/) are a wonderful source of romance, action and mystery, and the new installment of the television series won't be an exception. [Six of Crows](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-season-2-what-to-expect/). In this new adventure, Alina and Mal ( [Archie Renaux](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-archie-renaux-interview/)) will continue their quest to upgrade their powers in order to defeat the evil Darkling ( [Ben Barnes](https://collider.com/tag/ben-barnes/)). [Netflix](https://collider.com/netflix/) has released the second season of [Shadow and Bone](https://collider.com/tag/shadow-and-bone/) has gotten even more exciting for the Grishaverse fans, as apparently the showrunners behind the fantasy adaptation have been secretly working on a Six of Crows spin-off. In the television adaptation, the Crows are represented by Kaz Brekker (

Netflix's Shadow and Bone is a hit, but showrunner Eric Heisserer has his eyes set on a different story.

[Entertainment Weekly](https://ew.com/tv/shadow-and-bone-spin-off-six-of-crows/), the show is in “early stages” and does not currently have the go-ahead from Netflix. Heisserer said that he stepped back into a co-showrunner role in season two because “I was busy with the writers’ room for Six of Crows. Although if we were being honest with ourselves, the Crows have always been a high point of the series. According to [Variety](https://variety.com/2021/tv/features/shadow-and-bone-how-they-made-it-1234969633/), he stated that having access to [those characters](https://gizmodo.com/netflix-shadow-and-bone-patrick-gibson-nikolai-sturmhon-1850223814) was absolutely essential for him to sign onto the show. [Shadow and Bone](https://gizmodo.com/shadow-and-bone-season-two-review-netflix-six-of-crows-1850229320) series, he had one condition. Netflix had to get the rights to [Six of Crows](https://gizmodo.com/shadow-and-bone-netflix-season-2-interview-six-of-crows-1850228343) for him too.

The Netflix series based on the Grishaverse series by Leigh Bardugo is back for season 2 with a vengeance and a brutal villain arc.

“But he discovers that he’s not going to be able to get her back”—although Barnes does say that Kirigan “believes in his agenda, and is willing to suffer the consequences of chasing it.” “When it comes to Alina, he feels the magnetism and connection and sees something of himself in her,” Barnes adds. In addition to losing control of his power and a lot of the masks that previously protected him, Kirigan also loses a lot of his allies. But it also this power card affords him the opportunity to just tell the truth, how he sees it and sort of really let rip and kind of go full dark on everything because he’s got nothing left to lose.” After stating that his job in season one was to “utilize his charm and manipulation” to establish the social hierarchies of the world, he said “this season, I was excited because those masks have all dropped. However, I think regardless of people’s personal feelings [toward the character](https://gizmodo.com/shadow-and-bone-netflix-season-2-interview-six-of-crows-1850228343), we can all agree: Barnes has an absolute blast chewing on the scenery—and he’s back in season two, ready to look fine as hell doing it all over again.

Leigh Bardugo's Shadow & Bone is one of the biggest and most beloved fantasy book series out there, and when a screen adaptation was finally announced to be ...

The Darkling is definitely the true name and identity of the character in books — in fact, he is not known by any other in Ravka. In the show, though, it is almost as if he is disguised to come off as more likable and approachable in the earliest episodes. While book Mal (Archie Renaux) is far from a fan favorite, many people seemed to really like him in the show. [played by Ben Barnes](http://collider.com/ben-barnes-movies-tv-shows-before-shadow-and-bones-season-2-rotten-tomatoes/)) in the show, but this is not exactly what happens in the books; instead, he catches her off-guard and kisses her first. Meanwhile, in the books, the manipulative character chooses to do so out of ambition and desire for power. The reasoning behind Alina's scar on her hand may not be the biggest difference in the show, but it is nonetheless worth mentioning. It conveys the message of this, what is a very brutal and dominating act." Seemingly, these changes were made in order to give Alina more control over the narrative and send out an important message to younger folks in the audience. In the books, the character isn't described as half Shu — an ancient nation in the south of Ravka influenced by China and Mongolia, which Ravka sees as the enemy for their inhumane treatment of Grisha. Shadow & Bone is followed by Seige & Storm and Ruin & Rising, in which neither of the characters appears. Instead, these beloved personalities are only introduced to readers in the first book of the Six of Crows duology. While the fan-favorite gang of criminals is only introduced later in the book series, they step on-screen very early during the series in what feels like a prequel that tackles the Six of Crow's origins.

The Shadow and Bone plot follows Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li), a Grisha (a.k.a. person who can do magic) who can summon light, also known as a "Sun Summoner." ...

[Emily Burack](https://www.emilyburack.com/) (she/her) is the news writer for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at [Hey Alma](https://www.heyalma.com/), a Jewish culture site. Thanks to Alina's powers, the ship reaches safety outside of the Fold, and Alina, Mal, Kaz, Inej, and Jasper convene in a field, where Inej swears her loyalty to Alina and Kaz promises not to reveal her identity. Nina is taken captive by Düskelle, or witch-hunters, from Fjerda, but when their ship sinks, she is abandoned with one of the Drüskelle, Matthias (Calahan Skogman). The Crows are hired to kidnap Alina, which does not happen in the books—it's a new plot that allows the Crows characters to overlap with Alina and her story. At first, she works with General Aleksander Kirigan (Ben Barnes), the general of the Second Army, which consists entirely of Grishas.

The crows are just getting started, lbr! By Leah Marilla Thomas Published: Mar 16, 2023. Save Article.

The first season dropped in April of 2021, and now we're getting the second season in March 2023. So there are plenty of ways for the story to continue. So, the first two seasons more or less cover the events of the three Shadow & Bone books. There are the two Six of Crow books. [Shadow and Bone season 2](https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/tv/a36191336/shadow-and-bone-season-2-news-date-cast-spoilers/) and eager to know if the show is returning for another season. If you're like me, Shadow and Bone is one of those shows that you absolutely tear through the second it hits Netflix.

Will there be a season 3 of Shadow and Bone? Netflix's Grishaverse series season 2 is out, and while it hasn't been renewed yet, we do know a few things ...

The Crows themselves are already fan-favorite characters, and now it seems at least some of them will be embarking with Mal on some Here’s everything we know about Shadow and Bone season 3 so far. If we’re judging by the first and second seasons, then we’re probably looking at a two-year gap between seasons. While season 2 is already packed with action and [bursting at the seams](https://www.polygon.com/e/22170223) with plot, that doesn’t mean there [isn’t room for a third season](https://www.polygon.com/e/23405828) — as long as Netflix gives it the green light, that is. [Shadow and Bone](https://www.polygon.com/22394023/shadow-and-bone-review-netflix), but that’s not particularly surprising. They’re amazing human beings, like Jessie just brings a brightness to the set every time she shows up.”

Whilst there are multiple storylines in the show, the major one follows Alina Starkov's (Jessie Mei Li) journey to defeat the Darkling (Ben Barnes) through ...

[Season 2 follows her journey to obtain the next two amplifiers](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-season-2-review/), as she finds herself on Sturmhond's (Patrick Gibson) ship on the way to the sea whip. The three Morozova amplifiers were connected to each other and yearned to be whole. Perhaps, that is why Alina was able to obtain more than one amplifier, as Morozova's amplifiers seemed to be incomplete when they were separated and have now found their rightful place together. However, the Darkling manages to kill it first and uses its antlers to form a collar around Alina's neck which painfully embeds into her skin. Baghra recalls a clay swan he had gifted her and that he had loved her sister as much as she had loved that clay swan. It was rumored that he had created three powerful amplifiers - the stag, the sea whip, and the firebird - but as we find out in Season 1 of the show, the myth was proven true. Morozova's amplifiers are key contributors to eradicating the Fold and uniting Ravka. However, it is his family tree is mainly dealt with in Season 2, and it plays an integral role in the show's most iconic plot twist. That being said, "living amplifiers" also exist and are humans (usually Grisha) that can amplify other Grisha's powers through touch and identify other Grisha the same way. Amplifiers are the bones, scales, or claws of particular animals that can increase a Grisha's power, and they are incredibly hard and rare to find. [Shadow and Bone](https://collider.com/tag/shadow-and-bone/) is officially out, delving further into the intricate Grishaverse and its complicated history. Whilst there are multiple storylines in the show, the major one follows Alina Starkov's (Jessie Mei Li) journey to defeat the Darkling ( [Ben Barnes](https://collider.com/tag/ben-barnes/)) through searching for the powerful Morozova amplifiers.

Shadow and Bone. Jessie Mei Li as Alina Starkov Archie Renaux as Malyen Oretsev in. DÁVID LUKÁCS/NETFLIX. Culture ...

“What I really like is that Alina is a woman, but her gender isn't actually that important. “In season two, we've settled into knowing her a little bit better and then watching as she grows throughout the season.” Played by Jessie Mei Li, Alina’s journey in the sophomore season is very much a continuation of a Grisha coming into her identity and power.

The second season of Netflix's Shadow and Bone packs in a ton of twists and dramatic moments. We try to break down what it all means.

Could a spin-off be in the works that might allow more space for the stories of Kaz and his crew? Nina Zenik’s sole mission in Shadow and Bone Season 2 is to figure out a way to get her lover Matthias Helvar out of the Kerch prison known as Hellgate. And while the Season 2 finale did introduce the drug jurda parem that plays such a key role in the Six of Crows books, it does so in a way that feels as though it may be a problem that Alina and Nikolai are meant to solve. As Season 2 concludes, Alina not only prepares to stand next to Nikolai at his coronation—the two are still fake engaged—but to stay in Os Alta to help him rebuild a divided Ravka. Nina makes deals with everyone from Kaz to Nikolai in the hopes of helping the man she loves, but when she finally secures a royal pardon, it turns out to be too late. He removes his shirt to reveal shadows spreading across his back from the site of the injury, and when he looks in the mirror, he sees a nichevo’ya as his reflection. As Nikolai prepares for his coronation, it’s clear that not everything is as rosy as it appears in the newly reunited Kingdom of Ravka. Alina finally manages to perform a light-based version of the Darkling’s favorite magical attack—known as the Cut—and deal a damaging blow to her former mentor/potential love interest when he tries to kill Mal and claim his Firebird power for himself. It’s Nikolai, for clearly self-interested reasons since he is also clearly crushing on Alina himself, who offers Mal a solution—take on his former fake identity of the famous privateer Sturmhond, which will allow him to serve Ravka, see the world, and maybe get some perspective on what he wants out of his second chance at life along the way. (In Bardugo’s novels, the two retire to a quiet life of anonymity and open an orphanage together.) (Morozova resurrected the girl in the same way he did the Stag and the Sea Whip, after Baghra lost control of her powers and killed her as a child.) That bloodline, she says, has passed to Mal—it’s the reason he’s always been able to track animals so well and to always find his way back to Alina. Though the Sun Summoner tracks down and slays the Sea Whip within Season 2’s first two episodes, her search for the third creature takes much longer—or, at least it does until the Darkling’s mother Baghra informs her that the Firebird isn’t an animal so much as a bloodline, passed down through the offspring of Morozova’s children.

Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers from Season 2 of Shadow and Bone and also from the Nikolai Lanstov Duology by Leigh Bardugo.Shadow and Bone ...

We saw that when the group was fighting the shadow monsters in the chapel at the end of the season, Nikolai was attacked by one of them and his shoulder was pierced through. It seems like the show is leaving an open possibility there with The Darkling, and we will just have to wait and see if this is a hint at the future or merely an Easter egg! She is the patron saint of gardeners and was trapped in the Shadow Fold along with two other saints, Sankta Grigori and Sankta Juris. In King of Scars, Elizaveta steals the remains of The Darkling's body and preserves it in order to try and resurrect him. What was not surprising was the death of The Darkling (Ben Barnes), which occurred at the end of Ruin and Rising, the third and final book in the Shadow and Bone trilogy. The second season of Shadow and Bone ended with our heroes attending the funeral of General Kirigan aka The Darkling.

'Shadow and Bone' stars Ben Barnes and Jessie Mei Lie and showrunners Eric Heisserer and Daegan Fryklindare break down the Season 2 finale.

“It was a matter of trying to figure out what are the must have moments from that book that speak to Elena’s growth, but that also can dovetail with some of these other important characters to make sure that each of the choices they make drive the story forward and propel you into the next episode. According to Heisserer, the Netflix show’s accelerated journey through the plots of Siege and Storm (Book 2) and Ruin and Rising was an opportunity to highlight peripheral characters. Alina knows he needs to go do something else and find himself, and this is the perfect way for him to do that.” In the text, Alina didn’t learn that Mal was the fire bird until Ruin and Rising (Book 3), and lived a simple life with him after defeating the Darkling and losing all of her powers. Maybe his deathbed penance is too little too late, but that is something he’s been wrestling with the entire way through, of whether it is important for him to keep that pilot light of hope alive in himself,” Ben Barnes, who plays Kirigan, tells TVLine. In his final moments, the man formerly known as Kirigan (whose real name was Aleksander) instructed Alina to leave no trace of him behind — a heroic request that came far too late for any hope of redemption.

It's time for the Ice Court Heist, the King of Scars, and a certain someone's resurrection. Ben Barnes as The Darkling and Jessie Mei Li as Alina Starkov in ...

The King of Scars/Rule of Wolves duology covers Nikolai's time on the throne as he tries to balance the political intrigue of healing Ravka by day and transforming into a flesh-craving beast at night. Bardugo's world is brutal, beautiful, and mesmerizing enough that little needs altering from here, especially since Six of Crows is the definitive fan favorite. Shadow and Bone has Nikolai stabbed by one of the shadow monsters in Episode 7, presumably the cause of his future change, whereas Bardugo's vengeful Darkling poisons Nikolai with merzost. Nikolai seeing a nichevo'ya in the mirror in Episode 8 foreshadows his nightly transformations into a nichevo'ya-like monster with wings, claws, and an unrelenting hunger for human flesh. Many revelations about the Crows were already disclosed in Season 2, but there's plenty of material to mine thanks to [Bardugo's flawless character building](http://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-kaz-brekker-intelligence-strength/) and the Crows' interconnective relationships. After such a large divergence from the books, predicting Alina's future is something of a crap shoot. A masterfully intense thrill ride with brain-melting surprises, ruthless stakes, and immaculate characterization, the Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom duology is [widely considered the author's best work](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-books-six-of-crows-ranked/#six-of-crows) prior to her adult novels Ninth House and Hell Bent. [result in a rushed, less coherent,](https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-season-2-review/) and less effective story compared to Season 1. [Shadow and Bone](https://collider.com/tag/shadow-and-bone/) delivered a whirlwind of adventure, romance, and heartbreak, not to mention shocks aplenty. This concept forms the basis of the Six of Crows novel. Along the way they'll free Nina Zenik's (Danielle Galligan) lover Matthias Helvar (Calahan Skogman) from Hellgate prison, hence the Six of Crows title.

These liberties will come as no surprise to fans of Season 1, which combined the plots of Bardugo's Shadow and Bone trilogy and her Six of Crows duology with ...

This is a show-only development for Mal, but there is precedent for a non-Nikolai Sturmhond in the books. In the show, Alina tells Zoya and Genya that the three of them can be their own Triumvirate, meaning she'll take over from David's spot in the books. Shadow and Bone once again reunites the Crows with Alina and friends, giving us a whole new plotline to enjoy. Key parts of the battle remain the same: Alina sacrifices Mal and destroys the Fold, then kills a bereaved Darkling. For the first half of Season 2, the Crows are fighting to regain their place in Ketterdam, since Pekka Rollins has taken over the old Crow Club and framed them for murder. There's a lot less actual touching and romance between the two in the show than the books, except for one show-only scene that sees Alina attempt to trick him with seduction — again, giving her more agency and power in the relationship. This way, Baghra is able to reveal that Mal is the third amplifier, a moment that hits harder in the show than in the books as it allows Mal to reckon with his ancestry and gives him the hard task of telling Alina the truth. In the show, he understands that it's important the two of them present a united front, and he ends up much friendlier with Nikolai. The books also see her reject his marriage proposal, while she accepts it in the show in an attempt to consolidate power and present a better path forward for Grisha in Ravka. The show pairs Mal and Alina with Baghra (Zoë Wanamaker) as they search for the Firebird instead of Zoya (Sujaya Dasgupta), Genya (Daisy Head), and David (Luke Pasqualino). She creates nichevo'ya creatures of her own and nearly kills herself and the Darkling in the process, but her allies help her escape before she can finish the job. In the show, Alina gains more agency by choosing to seek out the Sea Whip instead of getting kidnapped and being forced to do so on the Darkling's behalf.

Netflix phenomenon Shadow and Bone is back for season 2, and fans are already asking what's next for season 3 of this fantasy series.

[Entertainment Weekly ](https://ew.com/tv/shadow-and-bone-season-2-ending-expanded-grishaverse/)that while working on season two, he opened a separate writers’ room to develop a Six of Crows spinoff series. In the books, this is discovered towards the end of the final novel Ruin and Rising, alongside the death of the Darkling, Alina once again refuses Nikolai’s proposal and eventually returns to her hometown with Mal, where they rebuild the orphanage and school. However, when Shadow and Bone writer Christina Strain was asked about the Six of Crows’ spinoff, she, [tweeted](https://twitter.com/christinastrain/status/1571564669294477313?s=20&t=6SRloIHSWIeL2ZlJAKTMMw) “I seriously can not stress enough just how important it’ll be for people to watch Season 2 of Shadow and Bone.” Strain’s comments make sense after watching season two and seeing the arrival of Prince Nikolai (Patrick Gibson) also known as the sea captain Sturhmond, and Grisha fighters Tamar (Anna Leong Brophy) and Tolya (Lewis Tan). Each amplifier gets its own book in the series by Bardugo, as the first book focuses on the Stag, while books two and three center around the hunt for the Sea Whip and Firebird, respectively. However, it wasn’t plain sailing for the series from there, as showrunner Heisserer almost left the series when Netflix revealed they didn’t have the rights to Bardugo’s second series, Six of Crows. Heisserer got the gig as showrunner because his friend gave him a copy of Bardugo’s books and he loved them so much that he tweeted the author to tell her how much he enjoyed them. That tweet led to Netflix calling him: “it was a year later that I got a call out of the blue from Netflix and they said, ‘Hey, we know you tweeted the author a year ago.’ You know, so I got past like the Big Brother paranoia and Leigh just remembered that. The two series are part of a universe known as “the Grishaverse.” [Netflix](https://www.denofgeek.com/netflix/) show nowadays, they want to know whether the show will have another season or whether they’ll be stuck with another cliffhanger ending that will never be continued. Mapmaker and orphan Alina discovers she is one of the most powerful Grisha, a Sun Summoner, whose power has the potential to destroy the Fold and free her country. [have forgotten the premise since season one](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/shadow-and-bone-recap/), Shadow and Bone is Alina Starkov’s (Jessie Mei Li) story based on a book series of the same name by Leigh Bardugo.

"Shadow and Bone" season two is now on Netflix. The season finale teases several storylines for future seasons and a potential spinoff show.

"We did that a little bit with the prequel story for the Crows in season one," he said. Meanwhile, the "King of Scars" focuses on Nikolai and his allies after the war. In season two, Nina is working to get Matthias pardoned and out of the Ketterdam prison. Matthias refuses and instead tries to fight the guards that come in and is locked up again. [The "King of Scars" book is likely to be the main story adapted in season three](https://www.insider.com/tv-series-that-are-similar-to-shadow-and-bone). In season two, they return home and have to fight for their lives against a powerful crime boss, before going to Shu Han to retrieve a mythical sword from a powerful Grisha saint. In the season two finale, Nikolai prepares for his coronation after the war. In the book series, during the final fight with Kirigan, Alina actually gives her abilities to every normal person around her, creating a new crew of sun summoners. However, this time, Kirigan is dead and Alina seems stuck with the shadow abilities. Together, they seem to be taking down slave ships at the end of season two, Alina and Mal also discover that the third and final amplifier that Alina needs is actually her childhood friend. [his undefeatable shadow monsters, and his army of Grisha](https://www.insider.com/shadow-and-bone-season-two-leigh-bardugo-monster-child-cry-2022-10) against Alina and her underprepared and mostly human allies.

While in Season 1, the then-leader of Ravka's Grisha army was a respected and charismatic Shadow Summoner, Kirigan has done away with the facade for Season 2.

I think what I like about this show and this character is that there is a little bit of mystery left and a little bit of confusion in him. I think that we try as best we can to kind of sow that in still, but she has less conflict about him in the show. He’s forced into this position of just confronting her and literally putting his hand over her mouth and shoving her up against the wall and silencing her and saying,’It will be this way.’ I think because we built up through the first season, this lovely friendship that we have, and we played these other elements of the characters, it was nice to explore the ones that we hadn’t. But yeah, we kind of fit our roles a bit better in the first season where I’m coming at this with 20 years of experience and Jessie’s fresher to this kind of experience. I think in the first season talking about it, I felt the compulsion to be like, ‘Well, there’s a world in which this works.’ Because that’s what he believes. So we don’t really get into a lot of that in this season, because it’s thick, and we’ve got stuff to get on with. But then the results of how that conflict play out and the more he sees what she’s capable of, and what she really is when she’s in the fold and how powerful she really is — that actually maybe there’s a way that she could do this. I think there’s one thing he has going for him, which is consistency, because in the first season he talks to her about how he’s lived all these lifetimes and he’s tried it other ways. So we have a little taste of it when the monsters attack his mother, and it sort of takes him by surprise. But in this season, it’s unleashed a little bit and he doesn’t have an army to rely on. But at the same time, he has to take ownership of this sort of villainy and his toxicity at this point. How was it to be able to tap into the much darker side of Kirigan for this season?

Shadow and Bone has only just returned to Netflix for its anticipated second season, but showrunners Eric Heisserer and Daegan Fryklind are already looking to ...

We are ready to launch that as its own story," Heisserer explained. "And it's weaving their story in with the King of Scars duology that we're already in love with, and what we think is going to come alive on screen from those. [Shadow and Bone's Ben Barnes teases how his character is different in season 2](https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a43322242/shadow-and-bone-season-2-ben-barnes/) [Shadow and Bone season 2 twist ending explained](https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a43334185/shadow-and-bone-season-2-twist-ending-explained/) [Shadow and Bone](https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a36145305/shadow-and-bone-season-2-release-date-netflix/) season 2 spoilers follow. [season-two finale](https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a43334185/shadow-and-bone-season-2-twist-ending-explained/) basically ended where Leigh Bardugo's original book trilogy does, with Alina destroying the Fold and the Darkling's death.

Season two of the fantasy series is littered with them: Secret identities, secret relatives, latent powers, plot twists, surprising emotional character turns, ...

And it’s awful and tragic, and the weight of that sacrifice allows Alina to harness enough power to finally Tear! She takes Mal and Alina to his workshop to look for info on the Firebird’s location and reveals that when she was younger, she used the Cut to kill her non-Grisha sister in a fit of rage and jealousy. While that’s troubling, what’s worse is the look on her face after she does it — she gives us a tiny little smile pointing to her enjoying how that level of power feels. (He’s got a real problem with destiny over choice.) Nikolai gives him the Sturmhond coat, the Sturmhond boat, and the Sturmhond name to go off and have adventures. They realize she’s a ridiculously powerful Durast Grisha, and she is literally using the metal in their blood to try and kill them. Okay, so, technically Mal is already dying, and technically he tells her to do it, and technically he also holds the knife she plunges into his chest, but she still kills him! Alina, Mal, and Nikolai task the Crows with tracking down the Neshyenyer, an ancient sword created by a Grisha Durast named Sankta Neyar to kill an “unkillable army,” believing this sword to be the only thing that can stop the Nichevo’ya. Good thing he’s actually kind of nice and up for a little amplifier hunting to bring down the Fold instead of just, you know, turning them over to the highest bidder. This information comes in handy once Alina fails to destroy the Fold with two amplifiers and the boat/plane crashes on Ravkan soil. Also, it allows him to say a supercool line in a supercool way: “The Barrel doesn’t belong to kings, it belongs to bastards.” Indeed! It’s for a good reason: The fact that Alina isn’t just having nightmares about Kirigan expanding the Fold in Ravka, but that he’s actually doing it (1) adds some urgency to Alina figuring out how to stop him and (2) sets up the fact that Alina and Kirigan are connected somehow, which is a huge theme throughout the season. Any Crow worth their weight knows the power of a well-deployed surprise, a flashy reveal, and a I-did-not-see-that-coming twist, and Shadow and Bone knows it too.