#this honestly might be my favorite inej

[jccatstudios]

crow profiles

[genuineformality]

Some SoC Kanej recs for @tlonista because I kept hitting the comment character limit on the post where we were talking about this and am now just putting them into a single place. (This also would have gone faster if I hadn't stopped to read every time I grabbed a link out of my bookmarks and lost the comment on the small internet.)

Incredible Prose, set in more or less canonverse:

a tall ship, and a star to steer her by, by @whatanybodygets (whitherward on ao3): Gorgeous prose and complicated emotions. Inej goes to sea and it's everything she wants and nothing like she expects.

roomy, and drenched in sunlight, also by @whatanybodygets. Inej and Kaz have a baby, but this isn't your niece's babyfic. Complicated, ugly, beautiful, these two fucking morons cannot talk to each other to save their lives.

Stories About Crows, by @marycontraire: A series that is by turns fun, touching, silly, heartbreaking, and realistic. Mary understands the importance of water rights and has a brilliant mind for looking at the shit that Leigh Bardugo made up and taking it to its logical conclusion. Top notch worldbuilding, fab writing.

Service Work, by @linearao3: LinearA's filthy (affectionate), kinky, and gorgeous series, in which she tricks her readers into caring deeply about her beautifully researched fake linguistics. Come for the porn, stay for the fake linguistics and gorgeous prose.

Alternate Universes: I don't know why I find these characters so compelling in AUs, which are not typically my thing, but in looking over my bookmarks, I have a ton of them saved.

save the undone years, by @whatanybodygets (again): Look, just read everything whitherward's written. But this is a WWI battlefield hospital AU and it just hits. It's honestly one of the best things I've read in the fandom.

Murder Ballad and Child Ballad, @linearao3: LinearA's filthy and touching a/b/o series, in which she looked at all of the most interesting parts of a/b/o dynamics, stuck it in the Grishaverse, and world-built like her life depended on it. Want to know what the economics of Ketterdam might look like in between the breeding kink? She's got you covered.

Latte Art, by @pyrrhlc: A coffee shop AU with teeth and one of the few written by someone with barista experience (Kaz spends a shocking, but realistic amount of time doing inventory). The whole series is fun, surprisingly high stakes in places, and one of my favorite modern AUs.

The Four Seasons, by @totchipanda: Slooooooow burn fake dating modern AU done well. Unfinished, but I happen to know that Totchi is still actively working on it. It's by turns a fun romp and an interesting take on modern AUs.

all these hours between us, by CoralAcacia: A college hacker AU, single chapter, but I return to this embarrassingly often. It's well written and nicely poignant in the insane pining.

@capinejghafa is also doing an author rec series here on tumblr where she's making gifs of faves along with posts, and honestly, what a delight that is.

[linearao3]

Hey friend,

I know we talked about some of it already (8) but maybe it would be interesting for other readers as well. As for the other asks: I‘m just noisy, feel free to ignore them if they’re too much.

(P.S.: Inej with glasses will forever be my favourite modern take ❤️)

8. Are the locations in your fic based on the real world? How accurate are they? Have you added your own locations? (e.g. town, street, building, etc)

9. What is your favourite line/interaction in your fic?

13. Is there a transition in your fic you're proud of?

Obviously, where there is canon on the geography, I try to stick to it -- the quad, the four libraries, the Speaker's Bridge and the Scholar's Fountain. But also I assume both that the university has a lot more buildings than just that that they've added some more buildings over the years, and for those I draw on both pictures of Leiden and Utrecht Universities in the Netherlands and also my own alma mater, which is a mix of "earthquake safe version of a beautiful European building" and "modernist concrete block," with a side of "we've been underfunded since Reagan so we can't fix the windows, sorry."

So I imagine UoK brochures are like, “Look at us! So peaceful, so quaintly antique!”

“Look at our dignified law school! Our glamorous renovated business school!”

And meanwhile Inej has an office in a brick block that’s 70 years old, never had good heating, and seems deliberately designed to avoid getting natural light.

But the courtyards are still probably pretty nice.

I’ve also assumed that the commuter rail runs on elevated tracks over a lot of the old canals, and that Ketterdam has undergone the process of expansion and gentrification that a lot of cities have. (Inej and Nina's apartment is in the old warehouse district.)

My favorite line -- well, because I think I'm very funny it might be Inej saying "you could say the reading was... justified by the sext" because she didn’t include the 😃😃😃 emojis but you know she thinks that's funny too, or possibly Matthias in the first chapter saying "Why are we letting Brekker lead a seminar?" as a parallel to "You are all horrible people."

I’m honestly a little unclear on what counts as a transition but I do like the scene change and accompanying rapid mood change of Inej leaving the school for the train, getting her father’s text on the train, getting to her apartment, and getting Kaz’s drunk angry-sad bastard texts.

And I’m so happy you like Inej in glasses!

[rockyteriyaki]

fic writer interview

tagged by the lovely @ctimenefic to do this little questionnaire!! i’ll be including some unposted fics in this because y’all…i only have three fics on ao3 😭🫠 i'll tag @adimouze and @newbromantics to grace us with your interviews as well, if you feel so inclined :^)

this might raise more questions than it answers ultimately, but here we go!

What’s your total word count?

on ao3, 18k! so over half of it is Slacken, Tense lolll

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Razor Sharp White Teeth is my top by a good margin, and then Slacken, Tense, and then a little bandom fic i wrote on anon over the pandemic. i really only got into posting fic because of the talented folks in the f1rpf tag, so even though i have a lot of stuff written for other fandoms, none of it is on the internet

Do you respond to comments? Why/why not?

yes i do! i think it’s such a great way to spread positivity and i love when people respond to MY comments, so i always try to at least say thank you whenever I can :)

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

both RSWT and Slacken, Tense have sort of ambiguous endings that i guess could be angsty?? moreso RSWT, i think i could see max and daniel’s relationship being sort of strained after the events of that fic. i also have a little snippet written from ausgp that involves max and scotty getting into a literal, physical fight, which (despite it being very silly in the actual fic) is still way more intense than i usually go so i’d consider that angst, kinda!

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

again, not a lot of endings to draw from, but i think the end of this galex tumblr fic was quite sweet :)

Do you write crossovers?

i haven’t yet, and i’m not sure if i would for f1 (unless someone infects me with the motogp virus perhaps?) but if i ever get back into bandom, definitely. crossovers are just about all they do over there.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

if i have, i’ve never seen it 🫣

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

i do! both of my f1 fics are rated e and are M/M, although i’ve written F/M/M (roy/jamie/keeley from ted lasso) and F/M (kaz/inej from six of crows, and roman/gerri from succession) before as well. but overwhelmingly it’s slash i suppose

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not to my knowledge! although honestly, unless it was word for word, i don’t think i would ever accuse someone of stealing a concept 😭 maybe i’m too non-confrontational but i genuinely think i would convince myself out of the idea before i would ever say or do anything about it

Have you ever had a fic translated?

someone offered to translate RSWT but they deleted their comment and i couldn’t track them down :’) anon if you see this please feel free, but i was honored that they even wanted to!

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

not properly, but my irl bestie redscarez has let me do some heavy cheerleading on their fics So Real and Favorite Son which are both EXCELLENT and i loved being in the Gdocs for both of them.

What's your all-time favourite ship?

gosh that is HARD. maxiel and galex honestly probably make the all-time leaderboard, recency bias nonwithstanding, but there are a few others that stick out for sure. pete/patrick, in fall out boy rpf. draco/harry was sort of my intro to fandom/subject of my OG exploits on ff.net, so i feel a bit indebted to them as a pairing (not a point of pride, considering you-know-who went off her nut, but oh well). kirk/spock. weirdly, johnny/daniel from the original karate kid have my heart. there are a lot, i think i just love fandom hahahaha

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

so many. so, so many. in particular though i have this abo au where max is a stubborn alpha who doesn’t take suppressants, and daniel is a specialist brought in to regulate his hormones when he’s NOT in rut so that he won’t be as thrown off when he is. it’s basically medically necessary JOI, and in my head it’s so long i get intimidated just looking at the start of it 🫠

What are your writing strengths?

i’d like to think it would be word choice! i have some metaphors (“like a drugged dolphin” from RSWT, for example) that still pop up in my head every once in awhile. in general i just like to throw fun words and phrases at the wall when i’m writing :) i also do enjoy editing and all those boring bits which i’m grateful for hahaha

What are your writing weaknesses?

i’m sooo slowwww! i worked on Slacken, Tense for MONTHS and i still didn’t finish it until the night before the third round deadline. i just have zero writing stamina 🤧

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

i am fully fluent in spanish, so i'm definitely tempted (mostly when i’m writing carlos) to add little phrases and whatnot, but i’m always worried it’ll come across as forced or hard to understand 😞 i never want it to be jarring or tokenizing in that way, so i usually refrain, but as kitty said i do think there’s a huge intimacy aspect that can be achieved with language-switching and i admire when people can pull that off smoothly.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

also harry potter 🫣🥂

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

i chatficced a NORTRELL fic a few days ago which sort of came out of nowhere?? but there are some absolute scholars in that tag, and since lando and i don’t always get along IRL i’ve actually been really liking it as a vehicle for characterizing him in the super-duper specific way that i have in my head. in my head it’s more of a testing ground but who knows, maybe i’ll sit down one day and actually write something out!

What's your favourite fic you've written?

i suppose it would be Razor Sharp White Teeth! i was just so blown away by the love on it and (not to be corny) it made me so appreciative of how lovely the f1rpf space is :’) engagement isn’t everything, but as someone who mostly writes for nobody’s eyes but my own, it was extremely motivating to see the kind reception and i still go back and read some of the comments on it :')))

[hamliet]

Like Calls to Like Kanej Scene

I'm only like, halfway through Shadow & Bone season 2 right now. I'll post a full review when I'm done, but since I'm traveling this week it might be a bit until then. My thoughts thus far can be summed up with the same thoughts as season 1: crows: yay; the rest: are you okay.

Anyways, I wanted to post some of what I've been noting so far, because I loved the Kaz-Inej scene in episode 3, "Like Calls to Like."

It is honestly one of my favorite romantic symbolism scenes of all time, and was pretty expertly directed.

(It is also one of my favorite "metaphorical sex" scenes of all time. Disclaimer: Metaphorical sex is not saying the characters are literally having sex; it's a narrative technique to show intimacy between characters, to show maturation, and to show characters arriving at a new stage in a relationship. I realize that given Kaz and Inej's particular hangups around physical intimacy, some people really might not want to read this analysis, so I'll post a warning before discussing the actual sex metaphor. First I'll talk symbolism that isn't sexual, so stop reading after that part if you don't wanna read that.)

The scene frames Inej in light, Kaz in shadows. But it's clearly not a one-sided, Girl Fix Boy situation. Kaz stands in front of an open door, while Inej looks away from it. Kaz of course bought Inej's freedom, and through him she might find even more freedom from her demons and trauma. Inej doesn't offer "goodness" to Kaz so much as a light to guide himself; her morals and her faith don't preach to him, don't expose him, but give him a light to move forward through his trauma.

It's way more genuine than the Darkling/Alina and Mal/Alina--

Inej strips physically (at least somewhat), while Kaz strips emotionally (at least somewhat) As soon as Inej starts removing her bandage, Kaz finally tells her what the origin of his grudge with Pekka Rollins is. Instead of lecturing him, Inej supports him and validates his emotional pain: "then, we'll destroy him." Kaz then validates Inej's physical pain, by approaching and trying to help with the bandage even though he hates touching others.

Now the sex part.

The scene has a lot of close-ups and gasping breaths, none louder than when Kaz actually does touch Inej's wounded arm, which of course, has blood that gets on Kaz's glove/fingertip. Blood in such scenes relates to, well, imagery of losing virginity. Again, this is all metaphorical.

And then Nina interrupts them and it's awkward for everyone.

Especially since Kanej very possibly won't have an actual sex scene on screen, this kind of scene is very important for establishing growth and impact of each character on the other, and it's very well done.

[takaraphoenix]

Ok so I just finished watching Shadow and Bone for the first time and I knew you had watched it before so I came to see what your opinions on some of it was. Didn't really see anything for what what is probably my favorite ship is but I don't really care about that right now. I think I'm more interested in knowing what you're Top 5 favorite ships are (Top 10 if you feel like you're having a hard time narrowing it down to just 5 but from what I saw, I don't think that would be a problem???). Also, if you feel up to it, any favorite headcanons for the various characters or ships you might want to include. Much love to you Phoe!!! Now I'm off to go consume for content because I need my pretty men... gods, why are there so many pretty men in this show 😭😭😭 a lot of pretty women too, though I'm gay so it's just aesthetically pretty on their part, lol

oooh you watched ot for the first time! I hope you liked it! And well now I'm cirious what your favorite ship was.

Since I only have exactly 10 ships in this fandom, I will give you a top 10! lol Though since these are all the ships, they actually do span the entire spectrum of "I am obsessed with this", "I've written for this" to "it's a nice sidepairing! I liked when they were on screen but don't really think about them when they're not".

Aleksander/Alina

Inej/Alina

Kaz/Jesper

Genya/Alina

Tamar/Inej

Nikolai/Mal

Nikolai/Alina

Tamar/Nadia

Jesper/Wylan

David/Genya

+ bonus: Tolya/poetry

because I definitely came out of this headcanoning Tolya as aroace and I want this softest of boys to find someone who will platonically share his love of poetry with him. Please. He deserves it.

Not a secret that Darklina is my OTP. I'm not exactly quiet about it. They make me feel all shades of unhinged. I gotta get onto writing about them, honestly, can't believe that hasn't happened yet, but I guess that s1 left me too satisfied with canon overall to want to write just yet. Currently nose-deep in fics about them.

Alina and Inej is a solid second. They didn't have much interaction but what they had was gold. The blade protecting her saint. The worship and awe. These two badasses. I love them. And, much like Alinej, both Kaz/Jesper and Genya/Alina were also ships I came out of s1 with and wrote for after that.

Honestly, Tamar/Nadia would rank higher if the show had dedicated more time to them, but they happened so much in the background and I'm genuinely mad about that. I had to sit through so so so much straight drama especially in this season, but the only wlw ship in this entire show and they barely got screentime. They were cute together, visually, but... I didn't get enough of what made them click, or of Nadia's personality in general to be quite honest, to be as invested as I wanted to be (because I did. I knew that Nadia was a wlw and I knew that Tamar would be introduced this season and I was looking forward to this). So, with what the show gave me? I was like "daw, cute" when they were on screen, yeah.

On the other hand, I love both Tamar and Inej, and the potential of Inej now on the ship makes me think of the potential of those two together. Now, I am a lover of poly so I would not be opposed to just mashing these two ships together either. But I'm really intrigued by Tamar/Inej primarily here.

Nikolai and Alina worked surprisingly well. Didn't think I'd end up with another guy for Alina aside from Aleksander. But I really liked their chemistry and the fake marriage plotline absolutely ended me. He could be her trophy husband, I wouldn't mind.

Jesper and Wylan were honestly a positive surprise to me! You know me, you know my track-record with canon mlm ships! I usually do not like them. So that they made the list at all is great. I'm not super invested, but I thought they were adorable.

And Genya and David were cute too. I don't get why they killed David off? From what I gather, they don't in the books, so that was weird. But I thought they were nice.

Headcanons? Mostly sexuality wise.

Ace Kaz. Ace Kaz was the first once I had. I know his touch aversion roots in trauma but I recognize a lot of my own sex-repulsion in his behavior and am projecting hard so ace Kaz. Also definitely dom Kaz, have you seen that man rule his club, or bring Pekka to his knees (not that I want Pekka to sub for him, ew, but the power Kaz radiated in that moment was *chef's kiss*).

Nikolai the pan pirate who definitely should never have been a prince, like, I would love him so much more if he had just been a pirate but thoughts on the monarchy and how that plotline was handled are too much for this post. ANYWAY yeah I think Nikolai should go back onto his ship and pirate away with his boyfriend. Also, just, can you believe the Enemies to Lovers arc Mal and Nikolai had? I mean, they literally went from "I refuse to know your name" to "take my name", like that is explicitly something that happened in canon. Wild.

Lesbian Inej, which I know, not a popular headcanon in the fandom since the fandom seems to unanimously ship her and her endgame romance. I just... don't really get romantic vibes there at all, even after season 2. I like them as friends, a lot. But I'm getting huge lesbian vibes from Inej and will be clinging onto that, even more so after how little wlw love s2 gave me.

Mal as a suppressed gay would be fun. Like, his thing with Alina was annoying. He didn't give a damn about her romantic feelings for him until she had a boyfriend and suddenly he got jealous. I don't like these types of writings. So I'd love to see that more as Mal never having been romantically interested in her at all, just friend!Mal afraid to be abandoned. The cheeky pirate is his gay awakening. All the girls - and apparently book!Mal was kind of a slut - were just him trying really hard to be straight.

Alina is just a bi queen. And queen literal. That's where the "Niko should go sail with his bf" part comes into play, because... the monarchy needs to go down. She should rule, she should have never supported the damn royal family that's been enslaving and oppressing Grisha for centuries, I just. I don't like that part. I really don't. Ship to rule beside her is optional (Aleksander, Genya, okay fine Nikolai but like she rules, he's just her trophy husband), but queen!Alina is a must. Though gotta admit for my Alinej I still love her as a part of the Crows - post s1, I wrote some where Alina and Mal just... stayed with the Crows after they left Ravka and I'm still fond of that. I still think that would be a fun take.

[betterbooksandthings]

All The Things I love About Shadow and Bone Season 2

I am here today to give you a Tumblr classic list post about my new favorite thing Shadow and Bone Season 2. You might say “but they deviated from the source material so far” and “it was rushed” and “how are they going to move on from everyone being in the wrong place” and to that, I have a series of answers. Naturally, SPOILERS are below. 

First, the season was based on books two and three of the shadow and bone series and Crooked Kingdom as well as some new stuff thrown in to make the Crows and the SOB stuff combine. I think they did a good job of exploring specific character backgrounds and trauma for the Crows (with the assumption that the aspects that were missing will be in Season 3). In my opinion, they fixed the problems I had with SOB primarily by making both Alina and Mal reasonable characters that I want to root for. My guess is they are setting up an Alina and Mal reunite plotline that will coincide with Nikolai and Zoya developing their relationship. The ending sets us up for the main plot of Six of Crows and King of Scars and so I think the pirate ship will return, but not before dropping off Inej in the barrel because she is needed for a job with the Crows. Now, I assume Matthias will die at the end of Season 3 so Nina is set up for the rest of the King of Scars plotline so we will have to prepare for that. With the early death of you know who, these things might just happen. I think the show did a great job setting us up for a new season and I support all the changes so, without further ado, here is what I loved. 

1. Jesper and Waylan are perfect. I love their new relationship timeline and the actors have such good chemistry. I think the internet agrees that Waylan is perfectly written and cast and is so good at his job. I don’t mind the absence of a slow burn there and was a big fan of the butterfly scene. Also, the costume department knows how to dress them both and to whoever made the skirt choice thank you sincerely. 

2. Matthias in prison did a great job extending the angst of being wrongly convicted that we just did not see in the books. Also, those flashbacks to Nina are golden and I cannot wait for him to be freed and meet the rest of the Crows. 

3. Kazzle Dazzle is really giving book Kaz and I love him. I really did not think they would cast a child actor to reenact his backstory because that is a lot to ask for a child to do with a level of believability but they got every detail. What a great casting choice there. Then we have a thorough examination of his trauma and vendetta against Rollins. Those fight scenes were perfect and I loved every side-eye in the show. 

4. Inej and Kaz moments were all here. We got a lot of their iconic scenes but not all of them and you bet I am waiting for season 3 to see where they develop things. So many times Kaz gave the “well obviously I’m in love with you” body language that accompanied something unhinged like firing her from the Crows to keep her safe. These actors understood the assignment. I love them and need more please and thank you. 

5. Nina is my favorite. I can’t wait for her and Matthias to get together but she is still excellent and she at least got to eat waffles in this season so that’s something. 

6. I am hoarding all the Nikolai and Zoya scenes but I do love what they got as individuals. Nikolai is a wonderful example of casting gone right. Perfect as both a second son and a chaotic pirate. Just yes.

7. Alina is so much better in the show. It needs to be acknowledged. Also, great scenes with her and Mal. Small amounts of resentment between them because of her power is unfortunately book accurate, but it was more reasonable in the show if I’m honest. I also think her ending was interesting. I know we see her smiling at the end after the murder happens but honestly I don’t think that is an immediate red flag for her being a villain. She did prevent the deaths of everyone around her and they can do whatever they want with her next season. I think they will resolve it halfway through the next season honestly.

8. Last for now, the addition of the sword heist was excellent. It did a lot to flesh out the rest of the world prior to the Six of Crows plot. I was also a big fan of the drug-based character development. Plus, it gave Waylan a chance to save the day. I like how it gave Nina and Zoya a chance to resolve their disagreements about leaving the army. It also gave us a Inej saves Kaz scene that was really important. It never existed in the books and was a great addition to the show. Big fan.

So I loved basically everything and I for sure missed some but here is my current list. I am really banking on the Tumblr gifsets and Tiktok fan edits to see me through (free idea for someone to do an edit of any of the crows but mostly Matthias to hozier’s eat your young please). Now I am waiting for an announcement where hopefully we are given a Season 3. Nothing is guaranteed these days but I love delusionally manifesting more content for the things I am invested in. 

[intosnarkness]

I honestly can't remember why I followed you lol, it's been a bit more than 2 years I think. I have no idea who kanej is tbh but I like seeing your posts on my dash, even of we have barely if any similar interests . No idea why.

Well I don’t know why you followed me either. Timeline suggests that you saw my “feed your friends” post and stayed for the free coffee.

Kanej is my current brain disease, it’s a ship (Kaz/Inej) from Six of Crows and I have been going through Some Shit recently (my mental health is just so damaged) so I have decided that, instead of dealing with my feelings in the way a 39-year-old adult might, I will write fanfiction and spam tumblr and scream Counting Crows lyrics in the car (if she remembers she hides it whenever we meet) so buckle up I guess?

I’m glad you enjoy my constant nonsense. I aim to amuse myself, so it’s always gratifying when other people think I’m entertaining.

Also I can’t believe you would be here in the clown website for dummies without us having SOMETHING in common. Tell me your favorite dinosaur. Your celebrity crush. The one fandom you would put in the oubliette. Which of my cats is better. We’re not so different you and I.

[pandaexpress303]

episode 5 thoughts

I think this one might be my favorite so far! besides that scene in episode 3 cause wow. but this episode focused sooo much on kaz’s trauma and in my opinion it was very well done! I was worried they were kind of brushing over it a bit, but I think that throughout this episode it was made much clearer and was really made to be intense. also that scene where inej grabs him out of the crowd cause she notices how he’s panicking is so true to the books and a good rendition of the wagon scene in SOC. I loved that detail of her immediately jumping away from him after setting him down. and freddy’s acting in that scene. wow. the lip quiver, and the shaking, and all of it. also at first when kaz took his gloves off to dip his finger in the tea I thought, “this is so out of character. he only does this in front of inej in the books.” but then I remembered that in extreme circumstances, like when they have to strip to go into the prison, he does take his gloves off, he just hesitates. so actually I don't have a problem with that. also, I'm soooo anxious to see what happens next. that cliffhanger! also those flashback scenes with little kaz are so sad. I was paying more attention to the present moment I barely noticed. :( honestly im impressed with how they handled it. even though they changed it from the books, it’s kinda fun to see a new rendition. also David and genya were very sweet and im glad we got the “I know metal” speech. I feel like David wasn’t as awkward and I wish he’d said it in front of more people. but it was cute. and I love Nikolai. I kinda wish Alina ended up with him. they had some chemistry in this episode. 

[phoebebuggers]

the more i think about it, this season was honestly disappointing for me. i enjoyed watching it, and there definitely was some stuff that i did like, but overall as a fan of the books i feel kind of betrayed. i'm okay with canon non-compliance when you stay true to the characters and the feeling of the original story, but some of the things this adaptation did really rubbed me the wrong way. it felt like they were doing the absolute most for the crows to have as much screen time as possible because they know they're the fan favorites, but in turn messed with their individual arcs and just the way they were characterized a lot. i'd almost rather have had them be in the show less and kept an air of mystery (especially within the context of a possible six of crows spinoff adaptation.) there was absolutely no need to use important quotes and scenes from soc/ck this early, and as a book fan it felt glaringly out of place.

inej's character was just botched overall, not in characterization (amita did a great job) but in the acknowledgment of her trauma and her past. having nina remove her menagerie tattoo pissed me off so much, because having it be scarred and unclean is so symbolic of her trauma in the books. i also felt like they just ignored the fact that she has trauma overall, and it was never hinted at, in the scenes with kaz or ever. this is part of why her leaving ketterdam to hunt slavers holds so much weight in the books (especially with the epiphany scene she has climbing the incinerator shaft in soc) but in this scenario it felt very weakened. and don't give me any of that "saving it for later" bullshit, her trauma is not a plot point to bring up in a future season. also tante heleen dying so early and so unceremoniously didn't sit right with me, considering she's sort of meant to mirror pekka rollins for inej in a way, and the strive for revenge is so important to both of them. like FUCKKKK HER but it felt a little soon

kaz on the other hand i actually thought was fairly well done. freddy carter gave the performance of a fucking lifetime go king go (tbh all of the acting in this show was phenomenal, sucks that the writing was so shitty!! anyways.) the acknowledgment of his trauma and his haehephobia was continuous and shown really well in a lot of scenes. i saw someone say it felt like it was focused more on his survivors guilt (which is the lesser part in the books) than his haehephobia, which i wouldn't disagree with but it wasn't a glaring issue for me. the scene with the poison hallucinations, the one in the streets of shu han where inej had to comfort him, and even at the end with the "i will have you without armor" scene were all very well done. the dregs fight was way too soon and not as climactic as it needed to be but i don’t want to talk about that (im fragile)

wylan's characterization was...it was there?? it felt a little off but i can't fully articulate why?? they did a good job with showing his talent and just like value as a demolition man, with the scene where he rescued everyone in shu han and in the end with the bomb saving nikolai and the others. i'm going to use this as an opportunity to talk about wesper because they speedran them so fucking much, and i was lowkey here for it?? they weren't *my* wesper but they were entertaining?? it makes sense to have them get together in the context of the whole show, as a side plot romance to keep it engaging. they also have the least incentive to not be together i guess? like everybody else is going the fuck through it and they have their issues but i guess they have like, less stopping them? i don't love the idea that they hooked up beforehand but i can accept it tbh.

outside of wesper, jesper's characterization was pretty good, i love kit young as him sooo much omg. it might have just been me but i felt like his sarcasm and like little quips with the crows and stuff wasn't as good as it was in s1?? the hallucination scene with his mother made me cry a little even though i feel like his development with being grisha was definitely too early and rushed (as is the theme with this season apparently!) also the way his relationship with wylan happened and their interactions were fairly in character for jesper imo.

nina, no offense, where was her personality?? nina in the books is so out of pocket and iconic and i felt like we got almost none of that. they made her entire character center around matthias which was so inaccurate to who she is. like yes matthias is important to her in the books but it never felt like the sole part of her personality. we deserved more nina and inej interactions bc i love them a lot.

i honestly liked what they did with matthias even though the perks rollins crossover was kind of ???ok anyways. bro was going the fuck through it but every scene with him felt a little redundant like, we got the point. i honestly thought they were going to get him out of hellgate and i was prepared to be salty about it but i was pleasantly surprised that they kept at least one thing book accurate and in line with the set up for six of crows.

as for the plot, honestly the crows being so involved in the ending was a fanfiction crossover fever dream. i don’t even want to talk about it. i don’t have too much to say on the shadow and bone plot because i honestly don’t know those books as well and haven’t read them in over two years. overall i feel like part of the reason i’m so critical is because i know six of crows by heart and those characters are so untouchable to me, it hurts a little to see them. i’m ok with changes to s&b plot because we all know those books are not that good, but six of crows?? if it’s not broken don’t fix it guys. i loved tamar and tolya, genya was great, lowkey i loved malina even thought i like their book ending better (that might be an unpopular opinions idk.) nikolai was kind of meh, he could have been a lottttt more interesting and his personality was lacking. every scene with the darkling in it was boring. maybe that’s why they included the crows so much. did i mention i love genya??? i’ve heard people say zoya was out of character but i don’t even know what in character would be for her so i can’t comment on that. i loved the keftas and the costuming overall, i still don’t like how alina’s summoning looks (i feel like it should be more warm??), we were robbed of i am become a blade

honestly, if they do adapt six of crows i want them to start over from the beginning, ignore the show but use the show cast. but that is not going to happen and they already used so much of the dialogue and scenes from ck . so .

[justanotherfanaccount]

shadow and bone s2e4 reaction

everyone's reactions to the engagement 😳

zoyas back to herself hahah

bitch ass...she is not ruined (she is ruination)

damn...openly kissing right after your engagement announcement?? 👀 yes...I see nothing going wrong

ope...guess who was right and who's brother saw that!!

what is this boy doing??? (baghras finger) God damn

they really made baghra a better (nicer) person in this version though...

"it'll give me some comfort to know you're with me" is the nicest thing kaz can say hahaha

"if the plan goes awry" ...book kaz's plans never go awry...they just turn into plan f

"kinda like your face" IS THAT THE RIP-OFF "maybe I liked your stupid face" !?!?! IT BETTER NOT BE

ok jesper guessing what kaz is gonna say was amazing top notch quality...one of my new favorite moments

...this is also crooked kingdom...(the costumes)...it SCARES ME

...ope...nina is in this plan...she might ruin it (she hasn't really been a CROW yet...she cares more about Matthias at the moment and Pekka can give her that)

anndd...that happened sooner than I expected

it took kaz almost a whole book to forgive jesper for ACCIDENTALLY telling people they were leaving town...idk how he's gonna forgive nina for PURPOSELY doing this

love alina learning the cut...get it girl

also Tamar and Nadias chemistry 👀👀 I see you (ps Tamar is so gorgeous how do I focus with her on screen 😭)

David's actor is so good! the pain in his voice when he mentions genya 🥺🥺

"I share no bond with kirigan" 😳 girl is done with him

"it's a little unsettling how you talk about him like he's someone else" get it mal! I love that line

please be a kaz plan please be a kaz plan please be a kaz plan please be a kaz plan

inej saving the people on the ship 😭😭 I love her so much

again I say...please be a kaz plan please be a kaz plan... how else does he forgive nina?

this is literally crooked kingdom...the fake plague?

YES ITS A KAZ PLAAANNN

I KNEW IT I LOVE KAZ PLANS

wylan 🥰 (it was such a short scene...I just love him)

jesper in his costume brooo

hell yeah I love crazy kaz

"you'll never find your son in time" badass shit

start begging Pekka. start begging.

honestly...not mad that they moved this plot up sooner cuz there is still a lot that happens in six of crows and crooked kingdom with van eck and the ice court...this gets Pekka out of the way

aahhhhhh freddy is an amazing kaz!!!!

right after his big Pekka throw down he looks at jesper and nina like he was ashamed he learned his secret and it just ahhhhh

tolya and his poetry hahaha loovee

damn nikolais brother whose name I forgot! rude!

Vasily...it was said

ew...don't kiss her hand vasily...nasty

his son being okay gets me though 🥺 the little boy didn't do anything wrong and kaz knows that

"you could come with me" for being so good at flirting with everyone...i love how bad he is at it with the people he actually likes

"I can't make you any promises, or predict what might happen between us. but I can tell you that, I'd like to find out." CRIES 😭😭

ok imma be honest...I got a bit of wesper in e4 spoiled for me because I opened tumblr and THERE IT WAS and was SO UPSET because I love their slow burn

it just seems like they rushed it...they barely know each other...GIVE ME MY SLOW BURN

but also this scene is really cute

BUT WHY WE MOVING SO FUCKING FAST BRO

...I went back and rewatched the scene because as I said in a previous post...I always rewatch wylan scenes and

WYLANS LITTLE TURNED AWAY SMILE AFTER JESPERS SPEECH OMGGG HES SO ADORABLE

kaz being mad at inej but just because he was worried about her 🥺

"weak link" this bitch is so bad at feelings...we all know you love her

I just know that if we could see in his head like the books he'd be yelling at himself

I love nikolai "wear it that is...not punch me"

this scene is like word for word! love!

Vasily gives me slimey vibbeess

I'm so excited for this scene

AND HERE WE GO

BRO WAS LITERALLY RIPPED IN TWO

darkling really just walked past alina like 🚶‍♂️

I love the darklina scenes thouggghh they're done so well to the book!!

is it bad to say that I expected genya to be...worse than she is??? 👀

like girl was described as missing an eye and basically looking almost non-humanlike due to the torture she endured

but now she has like some scratches on her face

"do you see him?" 👀 same alina...same

(imma just put this here in my small shameful way but...the darkling looks really hot when he's trembling with anger 😗...)

[caveatscriptor]

S.A.B. S2: Episode 4

Did they really took out Mal so there would be a reason why alina might slip and start having feelings for nik? They really had to take out my man Mal like that, otherwise it wouldn’t happen. He has been nothing but supportive and has actually valid reasons when he speaks with Alina. I like him so much 😔 “I came here for you” 🥲

Btw Vasily can choke. I had to be remembered how much we suffered with him in the books. He really had be me begging the darkling to end my suffering and he fully delivered it in the same episode 🤣 Now that’s having my prayers answered swiftly 😇

We have our Baghra and Genya combo, it honestly made me feel better that Genya had Baghra on the very least. But the whole set up with their cages in the middle of the room was so off putting to me. What the hell? Yes, let’s have the alkemi stand and you know what? Let’s put in the cages here as well for ambiance.

Alexander is really out here brining out his mother’s favorite dessert as incentive??? This has the same energy as asking mal for Alina’s favorite flower and getting it the next moment 😂

Nina brought Kaz to Pekka…. I didn’t like that. Sorry. I just… it doesn’t sit well with me. Otherwise, kaz really was the devil, making Pekka’s little kid watch as his father was arrested. That said. WHY WAS THERE NOT A FULLY FLEDGED FLASHBACK FROM BEGINNING TO END? I just hate this type of edit. Wholeheartedly. Specially because Kaz’s story was a prime source for a really good flashback. 😣😞😒 I’m just disappointed.

Wesper is the cutest. Thing is. WE WERE ROBBED!!! Where’s their first meeting? What is this? ☹️

Anyway… we had my Nikolai being so cute with Alina. Which made me feel like shit because of Mal. 😫 but nikolai 😍 ahhhhh

“I have not intention of hurting you.” Stop. Being. So. Damn. Likable. You are the villain!

“I have seen what you truly are and I’ve never turned away.” 😣

“You don’t want me to destroy the fold. Because I’ll the destroy the only thing you have left.” Well… now Alina really hit the nail on the head.

But truly, the whole “only I can help you” that the darkling is doing… well… it’s really effective, I can see why alina would sway a bit 👀

Oh. And do not talk to me on the Kaz and Inej convo… 😭 please.

[sleepless-crows]

YOUR THEME

also yes the blog title is so accurate I'm hugging him so hard such a big hug for him

do i think jesper would've asked Inej if he could hug her and voice probably wouldve broke asking that? YES

does the hug and that kiss on her head make me sob even though it ignore all trauma reactions

YES (and for that instance i might be willing to overlook it)

THANK YOU <33 honestly i'm not sure what to think about it because in the books, inej was pretty close to jesper, i don't remember if they've ever hugged though BUT EXACTLY THAT SCENE WAS SO HEARTBREAKING AND ITS PROBABLY ONE OF MY FAVORITE SCENES AND THEY JUST CUT IT

[cameliawrites]

Alright, here it goes:

10 underrated kanej fic recommendations!

Okay, so criteria-wise, I wanted to choose only fics that were canon-compliant, complete, and post-CK (just to narrow down the options).

I also only chose fics that were at least 6 months old and had less than 3.5k hits or so, which decreases the chances that people have already read them. But I absolutely loved all these fics (and they are all in my personal ao3 bookmarks), and I think they all deserve WAY more hits and comments. It sucks when older fics get buried so deep in the archive that people stop discovering and sharing them. Hence - underrated recs!

first, a few multi-chapter recs:

Council of the Tides by blacktag189

rated: M, 14k words my thoughts: Sexy, romantic look at kanej learning to be together physically in the years post-CK. There are some really gorgeous, memorable scenes and moments in this fic - each chapter could stand alone as a brilliant one shot, but as an 8-chapter short story, it's quite moving. I don't understand how this fic doesn't have hundreds of comments. author's summary: "With each tiny step forward they made, the urgency to be pulled out to sea still built. She couldn't ignore the brutal truth in that - that no matter how much he gave her here...one day everything would align just right and she would leave. But today wasn't that day."

2. Princess of Thieves by illisius

rated: T, 32k words my thoughts: This might be my favorite kanej kidfic, honestly - Kaz is raising his 16-year-old daughter out in Lij after Inej disappeared at sea. When unsavory characters from Ketterdam come knocking, their daughter has to grapple with the legacy her parents left behind - a legacy she never knew existed. The writing in this is phenomenal, and I love how it explores the consequences of Kaz & Inej's past as it would affect their child. There are also some really sweet, lovely family moments in here. author's summary: "twenty years later. a story told in three parts. kaz rietveld is raising his daughter alone. young jordan doesn’t know much of her father’s past life as he now lives out a lie of simple farmer and manages ketterdam from afar. but as old demons come out to play, kaz is forced to realize that he can take her out of ketterdam, he can hide her away in the countryside, but he can’t keep inej’s child safe. meanwhile, it seems that rumors of an infamous ship thought to be destroyed, along with its captain, may not be true, after all..."

3. Learning How to Fall by sixchampagneproblems

rated: G, 13k words my thoughts: A perfect dose of hurt/comfort, with Inej coming back from the sea to take her revenge on Heleen and stumbling a bit in her plans. The last two chapters are some top-notch kanej fluff. author's summary: "Inej returns to Ketterdam on a mission years in the making. When the job goes wrong, she gets a reminder from those she loves."

and some one-shots (sorted from longest to shortest):

and all of my ribs are quite in by persimnon

rated: T, 7k words author's summary: "Inej makes a stop back in Ketterdam after her first four months out at sea. Kaz is determined to make it count. Somehow, they find themselves dancing yet again around everything left unspoken."

2. to give her the entire sky by KiwisAndTea

rated: M, 5.5k words author's summary: "Kaz Brekker's love language is gift giving and he loves Inej most of all."

3. No, Stay by witteefool

rated: T, 4.5k words author's summary: "Kaz is injured and Inej finds a way to keep him in bed while he heals."

4. Sweet Nothing by insignificant457

rated: T, 2.7k words author's summary: "The night before Inej leaves on her maiden voyage, she gets some time alone with Kaz."

5. Tethered by engagemythrusters

rated: T, 1.4k words author's summary: "Sometimes, the world was too big, and Inej was too small. Small, and tethered to nothing but fleeting memories of vague notions of home. Even that tether itself was small: gossamer-thin and holding on just barely, just by flickering willpower alone."

6. saint & saintless by divineauthor

rated: T, 1.4k words author's summary: "Inej comes back after several long, arduous months at sea."

7. sugar, we're going down swinging by alltheworldsinmyhead

rated: G, 1k words author's summary: "Inej comes back to her old perch in Kaz's office, only to find it already occupied."

Feel free to share your own fic recs in the reblogs or replies - in fact, please do! <3 And if you do check any of these fics out, I'm sure the authors would be so grateful to receive new kudos and comments, so make sure to do that if you can! :)

I feel like, in light of the SAB show cancellation, I should do another kanej fic rec list of older/underrated fics that I love?? Because, like, just because the show ends doesn’t mean the fandom is over! The fandom lives through creators who keep making cool stuff about these stories and characters, and through the people who seek out and enjoy that content.

I think about this a lot, honestly: there’s such a recency bias in fandom, as though if a new season isn’t *imminently* coming out and people aren’t posting a million new fics *now* then the fandom must be dead—and that’s just not true! As a writer, the best thing is getting comments on months- and years-old fics. And if anything, I hope this cancellation inspires people to go back and consume the SOC fics and art and edits that they love, and to comment on them, and to talk about them with other people who might love them.

We have the power to keep fandom alive in our hands; Netflix doesn’t. It never has.

[the-and-sign-anon]

Happiness

Pairing: Kaz Brekker x reader

Word count: 1,575

Masterlist

A/N: I honestly don’t know how I wrote this much. I expected this to be kind of short, but it’s longer than I anticipated. I hope y’all enjoy it; it might be kind of ooc for Kaz, but I did my best

Kaz knew he went too far sometimes. But it could be so hard to pull back when he did. His plans to ruin Pekka Rollins and build himself an empire required him to become Dirtyhands and he’d long since made his peace with that. Inej had served, to some degree, as his impulse control before he met you.

Once you entered the picture, that changed. Kaz found himself pulling punches when you were involved. He would find nonviolent solutions to problems if he could help it and fought the urge to ask your forgiveness when he couldn’t. At some point along the way, he even started planning ways to make you happy.

When he went walking past a bookstore, he’d stop in and grab one he’d seen you eyeing before. Whenever you suggested going for waffles with the Crows, he’d push his work aside and join you. On cold evenings when you insisted on staying up so he wouldn’t be left to work all alone, he’d offer you one of his coats and pretend not to see the contented smile as you nuzzled into the soft fabric.

Kaz tried to push aside the changes you’d unknowingly brought with you. He forced himself to brush aside the desire to just sit back and read with you and instead study the blueprints for the next heist. When he got in fights on the streets, he had to drown out your voice in his head telling him he could walk away with the screams of pain coming from his enemy, whoever it was at the time.

You remained at ease through it all. On his bad days, Kaz would make harsh comments he didn’t mean, so you would leave some food on his desk to remind him to eat, then go about your own business. On the good days, you’d settle by the window and make off handed observations that Kaz would hum along to. You never mentioned the things he did for you, knowing it would throw him off.

You just smiled when he left your favorite of his coats on the chair you’d claimed in his attic. You would quietly revel in the new books that appeared on your shelf and the way he made time for you when you really needed him. All the things you loved you left unspoken, for his sake and yours.

Kaz never told you, but he was kept awake at night by his dreams. Sometimes it was Jordie’s ghost taunting him. Telling him this life of crime and violence was all he could ever hope for. That he wasn’t made for an easier life than that. Other times, it was Pekka Rollins, staring him down, never even remembering the pain he’d caused. Each time he tried and failed to sleep, he depended on his memories of you to carry him through to the morning light.

But everything had to be acknowledged at some point. Neither of you were quite prepared when it did, but it happened anyway. You had been on a job. Kaz had paired you with Inej while he went with Jesper and Wylan. Things had gone fairly well and you were nearly to the rendezvous point when the stadwatch saw you. Inej went ahead to warn the others to forgo the meeting and head straight back to the Slat while you led your pursuers away.

It would have worked if that idiot Dime Lion hadn’t gotten in the way. Your reputation went beyond simply being a member of the Dregs, considering how many fights you’d picked and won, so the clearly drunk man got in your way by clotheslining you as you rounded a corner. The stadwatch came up behind you and for a second, you thought you’d have to hide some bodies tonight too. Then Kaz was there. With his cane and cold glare, the three men were down in moments. You got to your feet and nodded in thanks.

You thought that would be the end of it. You got two streets away before Kaz was at your side again.

“Am I going to need to lay low for a few days? Make sure those boys don’t get more of their friends looking for me?”

“That won’t be a problem.”

When you glanced over, you could see fresh blood on his cane and his pants.

“Tell me you only gave them concussions.”

“I thought you said you didn’t like it when I lied to you?”

You locked eyes with him as you opened the back door to the Slat.

“Kaz. That wasn’t necessary. And you know it.”

He didn’t respond until you were both back in his attic.

“I think it was necessary. You were in danger.”

You closed the door behind you as Kaz shed his coat and sat at his desk.

“I’ve spent most of my life in danger. And I’ve taken on three men at once before and won.”

“I wasn’t willing to take chances tonight. Inej was worried about you and we all wanted to get back.”

“There’s a difference between wanting to hurry back and killing someone because you can.”

Kaz sighed softly, almost imperceptibly. He knew that tone in your voice. He knew it couldn’t lead anywhere good.

“I don’t answer to you, Y/N. I saw a problem and I solved it. If I remember correctly, you’re proud of that.”

“I’m proud of the man you could be, Kaz. The man who can outwit anyone and keep his friends safe. Not the man who kills people in dark alleys just because he has the skills to do it.”

He had a feeling he’d regret this, but he said it anyway.

“That’s not why I did it.”

“Really? Killing two stadwatch wasn’t about proving that you could, that there wouldn’t be consequences for it?”

“It wasn’t. It was about protecting you.”

“I don’t need you to protect me!”

“Well, I do!”

He couldn’t have stopped the words if he wanted to. So he pushed on, forced out the words he’d never planned on saying.

“I have to protect you, even when you don’t need it. Because no one can go their whole life without losing a fight or getting hurt and I can’t stand the idea of you getting hurt without being able to even offer to help. Try to understand what I’m doing.”

You dropped back against the door and stared at the floor. Kaz never said things like that. Even when he did care about someone, when he considered a person more than an investment or a liability, he never admitted it to them.

“Then tell me what you’re doing, Kaz. I know it’s hard for you. But I can’t understand if I don’t know what I’m seeing.”

Another deep, steadying breath.

“I’m trying to find some way for you to be happy. I think I’m beyond getting that for myself by now, but I at least want it for you.”

You sighed and crossed the room to his window. Outside, the streets were still bursting with life. No one below knew how your world was changing or the incredible vulnerability of your conversation.

“No one is beyond happiness until they decide they are. Nothing else can determine that. If you want me to be happy, find something that makes you happy. The rest of the Crows have found their purpose, the grand design that gives them meaning. I have too.”

“And what is that?”

“Support. I’ve stood by the Crows when the entire city was hunting us. I helped Inej learn to sail. I protect the Dregs with everything I have. My purpose is to help. So if I can help you, I will. You just have to let me.”

Kaz wasn’t good at accepting help. He knew that. But from the day you’d met, you helped him in ways he couldn’t see without looking for it. When Inej had left, Kaz had needed someone to watch his back. When Nina and Matthias left, he needed a fighter, someone to throw the first punch and ensure it was the last. Most of all, Kaz Brekker needed someone to show him limits. Not weaknesses, not defeat. Self control. And for every need he didn’t realize he had, you were there to fill the gaps.

“I don’t make things easy, you know.”

“I’d be concerned if you started to.”

You turned back from the window and settled in your chair. Kaz was certain you never looked more at home than in that ratty old armchair.

“I’m downright rotten sometimes, especially to you.”

“I’ve had years of practice.”

Kaz dropped down in his office chair and fixed you with a tired look.

“You really think you can forgive it all?”

“I can forgive enough.”

“There’s still a long way left to go.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m in this for the long haul. I don’t know how to live my life any other way.”

Kaz nodded and let the tension ease from his shoulders. He hadn’t planned on this conversation and he certainly didn’t want to have another one like it. But he knew you understood that. Even when he turned away from you, when he couldn’t discuss something or relive a memory, you would wait for him to come back around. When he believed he wasn’t meant for anything but the violence and trickery of the Barrel, you’d show him that happiness wasn’t yet out of reach.

[hamliet]

Crows With A Side of Bone, Please

Hamliet finally wrote that review.

I'll start off by saying that everyone is a very good actor. Jessie Mei Li has essentially nothing to work with, but she does her best to sell it anyways and still makes me care about her. Ben Barnes is delightfully evil while still affording the character sympathy the narrative doesn't give him.

The Crows--oh lord, the Crows. All of them have chemistry as a group and as couples. Wylan's actor is fantastic here and feels like a natural fit with the other 5, and Nina's actress also fits perfectly with the crew. They do have a lot to work with, and they manage to fully flesh out their already 3D characters and make them alive.

Kanej, Wesper, Nina/Matthias, Genya/David

The good ships, because this season I revoke my like of Malina that season 1 introduced me to.

I wrote this about Kanej. But also more about Kanej, because OTP OTP OTP.

I loved the final scene with them in the finale, where he grabs her, and she holds his hand and tells him, bluntly, that she does not want him with armor on. The line is one of my favorites in the book, and the show did an excellent job of showing the totality of it, the wholistic nature of what Inej is asking for. Yes, she's asking for him without his cold persona, without his bravado. She's asking for his vulnerabilities.

But she's also asking for his body. For him not to see her as broken. For him not to settle for less than all of her. She is thirsty, and I honestly think this was a beautiful portrayal of someone who has been hurt and is wary, but still wants and believes in the potential for good in sex. The show made this aspect so much more forefront than I remember it being in the books, and I honestly love it.

I also liked the choice to get Wylan and Jesper together early on. The piano scene emphasizes both of their respective gifts, and Wylan's fear over what Kaz might do to Alby clearly projects Wylan's own fears about being condemned for his father. (Wylan is actually one of my favorites in the books because his disability is, imo, good representation.)

Nina and Matthias didn't get nearly as much screentime this season (together anyways), but they made the most of every moment anyways. Even when they are apart we see the potential in how they are still affecting each other. We see Nina's determination. We see Matthias's hurt. We see the pride and humility they both carry, and how both can inhibit and also free them. There's so much potential there.

The motif of prisons, of hiding, is very strong in the Crows' arcs. Matthias uses his masculinity as a prison and chooses to fight over be free because he's scared. Wylan hides his family and disability. Jesper hides his gift. But if you want to have a complete life, you have to step out into the light. Which is a perfect way to segway into Alina, but...

Let's save the salt for later.

Also, not a ship, but I quite liked Nikolai. His character is one of the standouts in the original trilogy (because complexity). His volcra issue being rearranged timewise to be a cliffhanger I don't mind either.

David's death was, just like it is in Rule of Wolves, cruel and pointless. Just like Matthias's in Crooked Kingdom. Give Genya happiness. She earned it. So did David. Love seeing a woman who's been sexually abused and maimed find hope and healing with an autistic man who is almost NEVER a love interest in stories and then he dies for The Sads. Real inspiring. Real thoughtful. There is no narrative nor character reason for it to happen at all, and so early only made it worse honestly.

Show, Don't Tell

Mal tells Alina he has so many friends in the army that he's worried about, but we saw exactly 0 of these in the previous season. In fact, we saw Mal pulling away from the army to pursue Alina.

It was ridiculous that Alina's response to Kirigan in the climax saying people would come for her was "I will save myself," and then literally ONE SECOND LATER Inej saves her. Alina has never saved herself this entire dang series. Not in either season. The Crows save her each and every time! And that's not a bad thing--it could offer something about the power of relying on others, but to blatantly lie to your audience when you've shown us something else... bad writing yo.

I also wish they'd given us a reason to care about Ravka. They keep saying it's worth saving, worth protecting, but... why? We aren't even given the easiest narrative techniques to make us care about the common people (see, Alby making us care about Pekka even though we hate him=a good way of making us care. Give us a child who needs saving, a connection to the people, something, anything. If people deserve saving just because they are people well, that demonstrably flies in the face of what happens to Kirigan, so....)

Imprinting

It still baffles me that Alina again preaches about choice and yet even fate determined Mal's finding Alina. It was literally imprinting. That's what imprinting is. And for some reason Malina is held up as... healthy? When it's clearly extremely codependent?

It's not a huge problem that it's codependent, though, on principle. It's fiction. What does bother me is the hypocrisy of trying to tear apart every bad thing "bad boys" do while portraying Malina as healthy when it's demonstrably not. Malina would be far, far more interesting, frankly compelling, if they actually delved into this. The cliffhanger hinted they might do just this, but given other aspects, I'm not sure I quite trust them to follow up and follow though.

If you're gonna condemn what some people like and hold up what you like in comparison, at least make sure you're honest about its flaws.

Abuse is Bad Except Not if a Woman Does It. Then It's Girl Power!

Again, the themes of the Crows almost, at times, contradict Shadow & Bones' purported themes. But that's not hard, because Shadow & Bones' purported themes contradict themselves.

I've said this before, but I'll say again that there is a difference between complexity and paradoxes and portrayal the oft-contradictory reality of our world and contradicting your theme. A contradiction is much more common in a simplistic story, which S&B is.

Why is it wrong and seen as a sign of evil beyond comprehension for the Darkling to hurt his mother, who is acknowledged even by the show to have abused him, but not inherently wrong for Alina or Inej or Kaz to hurt their abusers?

Literally Bhagra said "know that i loved you and it wasn't enough." We are NEVER shown her loving him; we are shown abuse, which the show does kind of acknowledge, while also trying to vindicate Bhagra while holding the Darkling to standards it doesn't hold any other character.

Yes, there's some complexity here insofar as Inej and Kaz's relationships with abuse and revenge go. They aren't black and white, and the characters waffle in the gray. But Alina and the Darkling literally are light and darkness, and the gray is explicitly rejected. And there is actually a way to make this work!

You have to frame it as a tragedy.

Kaz, Inej, Genya et al mess up and do terrible things in revenge; they even at times (especially Kaz) walk the line between utterly losing themselves to it. But they have people around them to pull them back, to reach for them. The Darkling does not. This could be portrayed as something sad, as someone trying to reach the hurting child inside him and him continuously rejecting them (for example, Adam and Blake in RWBY), with his death framed as something to mourn rather than viewed as a moment of triumph, but no. The show doesn't offer him this (to be fair. Neither did the books.)

And to people who say Alina's not obligated to do so! Yes, yes, sure, but also Alina's inherent goodness is just assumed, when she's demonstrably kind of callous at best. I talked about this more in my review of Season 1, but yeah. Nothing's changed on that front.

The point is also that... what has the Darkling actually done to Alina? There were ways to emphasize him as an abuser, which he is clearly coded as, but the show (and the books tbh) doesn't do that. Alina supposedly mourns her parents, but we're given a handful of lines and nothing to actually show us the impact of losing them. (Again, Alina's self-centered focus is actually very much a trauma response to this... or could be, but the story doesn't want to explore it.) The impact of his lies is just not really explored on a deep level like it should be if you want to go for the "abuser" angle. See again, Blake Belladonna for how you do that.

Alina's "there is no redemption" line was baffling to me. It was framed like some sort of powerful "I. Am. Iron Man" moment, except okay, if that's your power girl, I don't think it's a good one.

Power Fantasies

This is my issue with Shadow & Bone the books as well: they aim to deconstruct "Beauty and the Beast" but fail to understand the appeal of the story in the first place is not "oh i have a dangerous boyfriend" but instead a healing power fantasy the same way fight-punch-kick can be a power fantasy. Shadow & Bone also directly tries to deconstruct Jungian symbolism of the shadow, but also doesn't like, understand what Jungian symbolism stands for. Until the ending, that is, when the writers were clearly like "Bardugo doesn't get it but we do and we're keeping it."

Again, I'll contrast this with Blake in RWBY, whose portrayal I have criticized before, but which is much better than the portrayal here. Blake is herself both beauty and beast, which emphasizes the traditional fairy tale's emphasis on accepting the worst of ourselves and recognizing both the beautiful aspects of ourselves at the same time. We tend to see ourselves as either Good or Bad, but only when we see ourselves as both do we mature and truly live. Even though Adam is ultimately "put down" in RWBY, Blake still acknowledges her flaws and doesn't see Adam as inherently bad, but he leaves her absolutely no choice. Alina facing down the Darkling offers her zero introspection and growth.

Sigh. It's a 2.5/5 for me. The Crows are everything. I want their spin off. I need it. I will take Zoya and Nikolai too.