#i struggled a bit w inej but i love how she came out in the end

[ejga-ostja]

Inej!!!!

Artist notes: - Her cutie-mark is more symbolical than anything. It represents her strong sense of purpose and loyalty to herself, it's arrow-shaped bc I think that "The heart is an arrow, it demands to land true." is very representative of who she is as a person. The crow feather represents her time in the Barrel and how it shaped her, it also represents her connection to Kaz and the Crows. The red thread represents her tight-rope walking skill but also, again, her strong sense of purpose. - In my ponified AU, Inej is the only one who's still a blank flank at the start of the story. She got her cutie-mark while climbing the incinerator shaft. It made for a very happy but slightly confused reunion on the top of the prison roof lol

[shesmyplusone]

overall i really loved the show lmao obviously by my posts. here’s a bit more just to get my thoughts organized:

-loved loved loved when alina didn’t use david’s mirrors because if kaz had seen them he would have called it a trick. like i was annoyed until his conversation with inej and it makes sense they changed it

-every genya and david scene had me crying lol poor genya she’s so composed around literally everyone else but the moment this awkward little ducast shows up she can’t remember how to speak

-also she totally took alina by the library for a glance of him<3

-all i could think about when there were scenes in the darkling’s rooms/his little map room was how that’s going to be zoya’s rooms in kos/where all the planning conversations take place in kos/row and it made me a bit hysterical tbh

-the darklina was like. managable. like i didn’t like it, but i knew it would end at some point and just had to push through all those kisses lmao poor alina

-i am still offended for count kirigan’s sake that the darkling STOLE his name. like the man was effectively ridiculous in kos/row but. he didn’t deserve THAT.

-mal was perfect. no complaints from me, a noted mal stan since i read s&b in 2016<3

-every single man who the crows had to go meet/interact with that we didn’t know...i thought was going to be strumhond. like i knew leigh said no nikolai but it was like my heart wouldn’t accept it.

-i was SO angry after the third episode because of that little line about how nina had ‘no loyalty’ and i was just. SO MAD because her being a soldier was like the whole POINT of her character. but then she was just spying and i felt much better.

-i am still a little upset zoya was interacting with her/the one sent after her. but if the choice was between her going after nina and her getting to be on the fold/fixing her relationship with alina. i mean....one is more important than the other in the now, and not everyone is thinking about rule of wolves like me. so sorry zoya’s open door, you’ll have to wait</3

-freddy carter is hot. he was a good kaz. sadly he did not get to hit the darkling with his cane. But! he did escape the cut so points to kaz i love you buddy

-’we need a demo man’ JESPERRRRRR you wound me. yes, you DO need a demo man. just not yet<3

-i read some spoilers than said jesper was like ‘sterotypically written because he came onto everyone’ and he literally only flirted with that one stablehand. like....bi people are allow to flirt/sleep w one dude. like it’s fine. it’s not sterotypically anything except a bit sterotypically jesper to get distracted on a job lmao

-inej struggling with killing was SOO good. all her religious stuff was good. man she was wonderful thank you amita!!!! also i like she was worried about zoya. not enough people were worried about zoya!!!

-obvious racist zoya was bad. like, obviously. it’s awful she was racist to alina. she shouldn’t have done it. she’s canonically at this point at the story antagonistic to her. she has to make alina feel like she doesn’t belong so the darkling CAN. to build up that bond before baghara destroys it. And with the constant racism alina was getting from other directions it would have felt a bit...underwhelming if zoya had just told alina she smells. like. also zoya’s canonically suli so she was hitting alina where it hurts. obviously it’s a change from the books and i get why people don’t like it but don’t act like zoya’s not going to hit someone with every weapon she has when she feel threatened. especially a zoya at that point in her arc.

-interesting that mal DIDN’T sleep with her this time. i think that helps his character a lot, to be honest, but it’s not like he and alina were together at that point so it’s not really a hit against him in the books. it’s interesting because it (and what happened on the fold) means zoya’s arc with alina is going to change when (if, really) we get season 2. because she’s not going to be in a love triangle with a guy who isn’t interested, and alina literally has no reason to distrust her when she already knows she’s against the darkling. like....that’s her entire S&S arc gone (yes. i did re-read only her bits like two weeks ago lmao). so.....i’m thinking (god, please renew this show) that she’s going to get nikolai stuff instead, do the love triangle from that angle. like nikolai’s still going to be like ‘we should get married for political reasons’ to alina but his heart won’t be into it because he’s going to get a big fat crush on miss nazyalensky. 

-obviously by my rants i don’t like the darkling. but i think he was well done. it’s good for the audience to see him as a dude who once did have noble intentions- he wanted to keep the grisha safe! but. obviously he wants to be ~the savior~ of the grisha now and thinks only he can do it. also i refuse to call him anything but the darkling, sorry show. props to mal for saying it to his face. also loved their fight on the fold, really going to echo in the finale battle on the fold if there’s a third season 

-jessie was a great alina. i always really liked her but sometimes found her first person perspective exhausting. i loved when she was talking about what she wants :to go across the sea and travel, etc. the dacha in balacirev made me laugh thinking about kos. i personally love her ending in the book and i figure by the time her story’s done in the show she’ll be tired of traveling and that little farm mal wanted will feel much more ideal.

-loved all the political framing during the fete because zoya was literally in the middle of it. all the plotting by the west ravkans was reminding me of kos/row and putting her in the middle of it was great. also her continuingly being alone really stood out to me, especially when she walked through the crowd. similarly when the crows had each other and malina had each other in the finale. she’s missing her prince and man.....i hope we get to see them in season two (please netflix,.....i really want a season two!!!!!)

okay it’s one in the morning. maybe i’ll have more thoughts tomorrow<3