Netflix's adaptation of Shadow and Bone was excellent. Here' the first of 13 planned
Shadow and Bone videos. Spoiler Warning for Season 1 of the show.
You look great. I mean you look healthy. Ravka is a country who has been at war for
very long, and as a result, there are a lot of orphans, such as Alina and Mal. They were
raised at an Orphanage in Keramzin. Now in their youth, Ravkan children are tested
to figure out if they are Grisha. The Grisha test does not work if the subject
is already feeling pain, so Mal could not be tested since he was injured from a fight.
Later in the story, Alina claims to not have known that she was Grisha, but that's not
true. She knew that she was Grisha, which meant, if she was tested, they they would take
her away from Mal. And Mal was her world. Her everything. Her True North, just as she was his.
So Alina secretly squeezed some broken shards
of pottery to cause an injury so that the test would not work on her. Then, Alina made
a conscious decision to repress her gift. She pushed it back to a secret dark place
inside her. Ergo, the title of this video. You can't hide forever.
Years later, Alina and Mal both became part of the First Army, which is comprised of people
born without Grisha gifts, people who are referred to as Otkazat'sya, the abandoned,
another word for orphan. Orphans as children, and once again, as adults in the First Army.
Mal was selected for a mission though through the Fold, which meant, they were going to be separated.
I'll find my way back to you.
But Alina loved Mal so much, that she finagled her way on board despite a trip through the
Fold being thought of as certain death. During the trip through the Fold, Mal was
attacked by a Volcra. He nearly died. I'll meet you in the meadow.
And Alina was attacked too, but they were all saved when her power came to light.
So as a child, Alina hid the power in a dark place inside her so that she and Mal could
be together, and this time, Alina subconsciously embraced the power so that she and Mal could
continue to be together. But back outside the Fold, Alina was unable
to access the power herself, in fact, she was still in denial about having the power
in the first place. What are you? A map maker, sir.
But the Darkling is a human amplifier, so he was able to confirm the reports that Alina
was, in fact, the Sun Summoner. Word was going to spread, which meant, Alina's
life was at risk. They didn't even allow her to speak to Mal, to tell him what was
happening. They just rushed her off to Os Alta, where she would be safe, and she could
undergo Grisha training. But Alina's first instincts were correct.
Am I a prisoner? Have you ever bathed? And what happened to your face?
At the Little Palace, her new friend, Genya,
tailored Alina to look prettier for the King, but Alina refused to let Genya erase her hand
wound because that wound reminded her of Mal. And although Alina began having dreams of
the Stag as she used to in her youth - the Stag to which she was connected - Alina continued
to repress her power. So she was only able to access that power when she was with the
Darkling or with Baghra since they're human amplifiers.
Everyone believes that you are the one. Come back when you believe it, too.
But several things began to cause Alina to change.
First off, she was embarrassed. How was your time with Baghra? It was a promising start.
She felt like an outcast.
Second, guilt. Why are you here eating figs? Hmm? You should
be training every waking moment to tear down the Fold.
Alina felt as if she wasn't just failing the Darkling or Baghra or herself, she was failing all of Ravka.
These things influenced her and they allowed
Alina to access the power, at least, a little bit. But it wasn't enough.
Not nearly enough. When Baghra and the Darkling told Alina
about possibility of creating an amplifier from Morozova's Stag in the books, Alina felt
a surge of frustration. All her emotions had finally reached a breaking point. She needed
to become a real Grisha. But she was still repressing her power. So
Baghra gave Alina a tea that caused Alina to remember the truth.
What happened on this day? I knew the testers used sudden pain to detect Grisha power. But
it wouldn t show if I was already in pain. You protected yourself by denying yourself.
Baghra then laid on the guilt. How many more Ravkan children need to be orphaned
to this war because you were afraid to face the truth?
The Darkling then laid on some guilt in his own way, and it may have been genuine.
The noose tightens and our own people are turning against Grisha just as their kin once did.
Alina began falling for the Darkling.
And she had been writing letters to Mal, over and over, just as he had been doing for her,
but they were played. Their letters were not being delivered to one another.
Where is he now? I don't know. Who are you holding back for then?
Eventually, Alina felt as if Mal had abandoned her. And in response, she abandoned him in
her heart. She moved on. Once she had given up on Mal, Alina apologized
to the power for having abandoned it, for having left it so long in the dark. Then she
called to it. And the light answered. It surrounded her, blazing with heart, more powerful and
more pure than ever before because it was all hers finally. She wanted to laugh,
to sing, to shout. At last, there was something that belonged wholly and completely to her.
Alina Starkov: the Sun Summoner Good, girl. Now the work begins.