Please note: the following article contains spoilers regarding the books The Mortal Instruments and the TV show Shadowhunters.
The ground has thawed! The trees bloom with green buds! Spring is in the air and the Shadowhunters are free again to leave the Institute!
Anyone else feel like they can breathe again? It’s like we spent all winter locked in a church full of cold hallways and overbearing furniture and now we can frolic through the parks, hang out at playgrounds and bridges, and even stroll through cemeteries. I didn’t realize how desperately I wanted out of the Institute. Should’ve known. I was jealous of Izzy’s time in Sebastian’s cozy apartment, longing to sip tea with him and talk about the fall of the Roman Empire.
Toronto warmed up in time to take this episode outside!
Valentine finally got a laugh out of me. Sebastian was losing his sh*t over having his cover blown and made a comment about patricide being part of his grand plans, to which Valentine said Sebastian has an issue with follow through. Ha! Not sure why I loved this moment so much, outside of Alan Van Sprang’s well delivered line needed to temper the energy surging from the TV screen from Will Tudor. Dang, he’s good.
I’m totally not sure about this Magnus in league with the Seelie Queen thing. He seems smarter than that. Maybe he is, and I’m missing some grand scheme of his. But he does have habit of being overly trusting – unlike Luke and Raphael when handed his cocktail. I loved the silent exchange between the two before they both put down the tumblers.
There were lots of comedic moments in this episode to help balance the intensity of the plot. Luke unsure if the Seelie Queen has a heart. Raphael’s comment about Magnus being his ride and now stuck. Simon and Clary oversharing about the ice cream pants debacle when they were young. Shadowhunters is at its best when balancing demon slaying with witty quips. It’s why we love the books! There’s as much comedy in Cassandra Clare’s writing as romance, drama, or action, so I really appreciate it when it is present in the show.
However, I’ve got questions. Perhaps some of you can answer.
- I get it that the Shadowhunters are glamoured as they walk down the streets of NYC, but creating a portal at a very crowded play ground? Come on, the frost just melted from the trees. Everyone is out and about in the city. Even the Shadowhunters have left the Institute for more than just the Jade Wolf! I think a portal in a play ground is just poor planning, Valentine.
- Anyone else weirded out by the slow-mo, sensual hugging?
- Aren’t the Forsaken the army created by Sebastian? I thought if a mundane got runes, they would go insane and die – not turn into zombies. Am I remembering the books wrong?
- Have we seen the end of Sebastian? (Please, no!) Or is this the first death of Sebastian, the one where he disappears down a river at the end of City of Glass? (This better not be the end of Will Tudor. I have tea and scones and history discussions to fantasize about!)
- And how cool was the fight between Jace and Sebastian on the bridge!?!? I was loving it. I hope there are more solid action scenes with less random techno pop music. Every Jace fan out there gave a squeal of delight when he said, “Care to find out who’s the best JC once and for all.”
BTW, I finished Lady Midnight this weekend. The end of chapter 23 had me in a panic. The last line of the book slayed me. Now to get my hands on Lord of Shadows!!
Watch Shadowhunters Monday nights at 8pm/7pm on Freeform, and join me each week for Shadowhunters recaps. Special thanks to TMI fan groups for their support, like Shadowhunters, Mortal Instruments Fangirl!, and Thank You Cassandra Clare on Facebook. On Twitter follow Chris @ACCooksonWriter and Rebecca @DownWorldNovel.
Like our Facebook page Novel2Screen for more updates on your favorite novel-to-screen adaptations, including weekly recaps of Shadowhunters and interviews!
Or just follow this blog.
Photos courtesy of Freeform
novel2screen 