I Was Rewatching LOK And Just Loving How Tophs Parents Did Everything They Could To Shove Her Into A

I was rewatching LOK and just loving how Toph’s parents did everything they could to shove her into a box and prevent her from doing what she loved--earthbending--but then Toph invented metalbending by literally escaping a box she was put in by the bounty hunters her parents sent after her, and then her kids and grandkids made the Beifong name basically synonymous with metalbending and innovation.

You know what we should normalize in YA fiction?

Love triangles that ACTUALLY CONTRIBUTE SOMETHING TO THE STORY.

Like, the hunger games gets ragged on a lot for its unnecessary love triangle, but the boys represent katniss choosing a life of war and anger or a life of peace and hope. Gale=war, Peeta=peace. The boys are their own characters, and the love triangle does get annoying at times, but it still adds to the themes of the trilogy.

I found my Keeper of the Lost Cities books, which is what got me thinking about this in the first place, and wouldn’t it have been cool if shannon messenger went that route with fitz and keefe? Like, Fitz represents Sophie’s old life, the pressures other people put on her (and that she puts on herself), etc., with Keefe representing a new life for her and freedom to discover who she is outside of being a prodigy/moonlark, etc. I just wasn’t getting that vibe reading the books. (And I’m a big supporter of forgetting that Dex ever had a crush on Sophie. Platonic Sodex for life).

Also, Sodex is a stupid ship name, I’m sorry.

Idk I usually put down a book as soon as it shows signs of love triangles, so I don’t know many others, but yeah. Screw meaningless love triangles that only exist to add “tension” to a story that can’t stand on its own, thank you. :)

“Never let anyone make you feel ordinary.”

-Evelyn Hugo, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

I watched the Greatest Showman and have been singing “rewrite the stars” for four days straight.

(but seriously, why did I not know P.T. Barnum’s actual story until like...this year??? It’s fucked up).

Shadow and bone season 2

Contains spoilers.

 Shadow and Bone was never going to be a perfect adaptation of the books; we knew that from the start, when they put together the S&B and SOC storylines/characters. LB herself has said that it’s basically high-budget fanfiction. Let’s stop expecting 100% book accuracy. Thank you.

Also, I haven’t actually read the S&B trilogy, only SOC and KOS. So I can’t speak for those characters.

Let’s start with the cons and end on a positive note.

Purely from a writing standpoint, shadow and bone season 2 was way too rushed. There’s very little time to sit with things as they are; you just have to kind of go with it. There’s no suspense, because you know you’re just going to be rushed on to the next thing. I know we were all expecting them to go with the Siege and Storm storyline, but I know they defeat Darkles at the end of RUIN AND RISING. So they just threw two books together and it’s...rushed.

As for the Crows...no.

Listen, the actors are all the literal embodiment of their characters. Freddy Carter this season? AWARD-WORTHY. BOOK!KAZ IN FULL FORCE. But these moments hit so hard in the books because of their build up! We had two books to learn about these characters, their backstories, their motivations, etc. To build up their relationships with each other, Ketterdam, the world around them, Grisha powers, their pasts, etc. We had two books of seeing why Kaz and Inej want each other, why Nina and Matthias want each other, why Jesper and Wylan want each other. Why Kaz wants revenge on Pekka Rollins. In the show, we don’t even really know who the hell Per Haskell is. Why should anybody cheer for Kaz taking the Dregs the way we did in the books? In the books, Kaz gave everything to the Dregs (for his own gain, but still), and they turned their backs on him until he showed up to take them back by force. “I recommend a cane” SLAPS partly because we’ve seen people sneer at Kaz for his disability--including members of the very gang that profits so greatly from his reputation, which includes his limp and cane. They should’ve either given them the season to build up to the Pekka Rollins stand-off, or waited for the crows’ spin-off.

Also, why is Tante Heleen dead? That revenge belongs to Inej. Wtf.

Matthias’ storyline is boring. Could’ve used less of it.

And another thing--when Nikolai is announcing his and Alina’s engagement and Alina announces that she’ll take command of the Second Army and Zoya’s like “wtf?” and everyone else’s like “SO YOU WON’T FOLLOW HER, THEN? >:( like...I wouldn’t! Alina was a MAPMAKER in the FIRST ARMY. Sure, she watched the Second Army from afar, being jealous of their grape bowls. She doesn’t know how to lead an army!

She definitely should’ve talked to Zoya after the feast and been like “hey, yo, want to help me out?” Zoya was the Darkling’s, what, second-in-command, for YEARS. She’s been in charge of at least parts of the Second Army for way longer than Alina’s even known she’s a Grisha for. She’s a commander and General in KOS. She has actual military experience and knowledge of the Second Army, not to mention having actually fought and lived alongside the people within it. It would have been a great way to further utilize Zoya’s character, and provide some bonding between her and Alina. And for the shippers, we could’ve gotten some zoyalai crumbs if they ever needed to discuss strategy and shit. The point is, I would’ve had Zoya’s reaction, too, if I’d been in her shoes.

Oh, and also, why is Kaz’s trauma always what’s being focused on? I know the fandom tends to hyperfixate on it, but Jesper’s ADHD? Wylan’s dyslexia? INEJ’S PAST IS SO IMPORTANT IN THE BOOKS AND HERE IT’S JUST LIKE, “Oh, that sucked for her, anyways” LIKE GIVE THEIR STRUGGLES THE RESPECT THEY DESERVE. MATTHIAS AND NINA TRYING TO UNLEARN THE NATIONALISM THEY’VE BEEN FORCE-FED THEIR WHOLE LIVES?

AS FOR THE GOOD STUFF:

As I said before, FREDDY CARTER AS BOOK! KAZ. RENT WAS DUE. HOLY SHIT.

“Please. I’m begging you.”

“Are you?”

I HAD TO TAKE A BREAK. HOLY F*CKING SHIT.

Also, the scene with Jesper and his mom? I don’t usually cry at movies and shows, but when she called him “little rabbit,” I BAWLED.

Personally, I thought the flashbacks to Kaz’s past could’ve been done less in-your-face, let’s-talk-about-his-trauma, but the transitions were top-notch and the casting was, as usual, amazing.

ALL the casting was amazing, actually. They ARE the characters. We couldn’t have gotten anyone else. We had our reservations about Patrick Gibson, but he NAILED Nikolai. Flawless performance on everyone’s parts.

I know Wesper wasn’t for everyone, but I thought it was a nice, fanfic-y take on a more adult relationship between them. Also, they were cuties, and still seemed to have some emotional depth. Good.

“I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.” Good

Nina sneaking into Hellgate to see Matthias. Good.

Also, the part where we’re led to believe that Nina handed Kaz in to Pekka Rollins, but then we get a flashback to them plotting it out because no way in hell was Kaz Brekker going to be fooled that easily, which is what I was screaming at my scene when I thought he’d just...gotten captured like that? The man who talked himself out of being shot with a loaded gun pressed to his chest?

Yeah, that was great. Really made him feel more like the mastermind he is in the books.

I also loved that they kept Pekka’s son, and Kaz’s bluff about burying him alive, and Wylan’s “you can’t kill him for who his father is.” I LOVED IT ALL.

I also loved Jesper casually referring to Alina by her first name, and Mal casually talking about the Crows like they’re all buddies. We love to see it!

Overall, while this season did have some flaws, it was overall a fun and enjoyable watch, and I hope we do get a season 3 and a Crows spin-off, and that the writers will listen to the fans’ criticism and improve the main problems (which are honestly mostly a result of trying to cram like, 2-3 books into an 8-episode season. If they let themselves slow down the plot just a bit, I really think the quality would go up by like, 90%).

Any other thoughts?

In honor of the renaissance of my Grishaverse obsession...

1: MARCH 16th CAN’T GET HERE FAST ENOUGH! 

2: How terrified do you think Ketterdam would be of the Crows if they were all still there? (Yes, Matthias is still alive, did y’all really fall for that joke LB pulled? Lmao). Kaz Brekker, obviously, who can pick any lock and has a bone-breaking cane and very...memorable...one-liners and who is extremely violent and holds a grudge for like 10 years. Inej Ghafa (our queen) who climbs shit and you can literally NEVER see/hear her unless she wants you to. Jesper Fahey likes to shoot stuff and he’s also really good at it. Wylan is now VERY rich (I need a donation of a couple million dollars, Wylan, please--) and VERY good at blowing stuff up. Nina can raise the fucking dead and is also hotter than you. And Matthias is A) probably good at fighting cause druskelle training and B) has a girlfriend who’s hotter than you and can raise the dead.

Idk I don’t think I could tough it out in Ketterdam...my anxiety could never.