''Shadow and Bone'' is an American

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

streaming television Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as TV shows, as streaming media delivered over the Internet. Streaming television stands in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air aer ...

series developed by

Eric Heisserer Eric Andrew Heisserer (born 1970) is an American filmmaker, comic book writer, television writer, and television producer. His screenplay for the film ''Arrival'' earned him a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination at the 89th Academy Awards in 201 ...

for

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

. It is based on two series of books in the Grishaverse by

Leigh Bardugo Leigh Bardugo ( he, לי ברדוגו) is an Israeli-American fantasy author. She is best known for her young adult Grishaverse novels, which include the ''Shadow and Bone'' trilogy, the ''Six of Crows'' duology, and the '' King of Scars'' duolo ...

, the ''Shadow and Bone'' trilogy and the ''Six of Crows'' duology. All eight episodes of the first season premiered on April 23, 2021. In June 2021, the series was renewed for a second season, also consisting of eight episodes which is scheduled to premiere on March 16, 2023. The maturity rating will also shift from

TV-14 The TV Parental Guidelines are a television content rating system in the United States that was first proposed on December 19, 1996, by the United States Congress, the television industry and the federal communication commission (FCC), and went ...

TV-MA The TV Parental Guidelines are a television content rating system in the United States that was first proposed on December 19, 1996, by the United States Congress, the television industry and the Federal Communications Commission, federal commun ...

. The series adapts the story of young Alina Starkov, an orphan and cartographer of the Ravka nation's First Army, as she discovers she is a Grisha, one with special gifts, and one long awaited to address a dire need in the universe. The first season adapts ''

Shadow and Bone ''Shadow and Bone'' is a young adult fantasy adventure and debut novel written by Israeli-American author Leigh Bardugo. It was published by Macmillan Publishers on June 5, 2012. The novel is narrated by Alina Starkov, a teenage orphan who grows ...

'' (2013), and adds an original storyline featuring the Crows, a criminal gang for which the eponymous duology is named. The second season will adapt ''Siege and Storm'' (2013), and another original storyline featuring the Crows.

Premise and world

The Grisha universe consists of the nations of Ravka, Fjerda, Shu Han, Kerch, Novyi Zem, and the Wandering Isle. Each adapts elements of language, culture and tradition from countries of the real world (drawn from different real time periods). Grisha are a people who have been described as "magic-users" but in their words, they are practitioners of "The Small Science" which reflects an individual gift each holds to manipulate matter at its smallest level, the "molecular level". Ravka is home to most of the Grisha as they are "usually discovered as children by traveling Grisha testers and brought to... rain in that nation'sSecond Army". It is one of few places they can live safely and when training for the Second Army, they are divided into three orders. Etherealki summon natural elements such as wind, water and fire, Materialki control materials such as metal and glass and Corporalki manipulate people's bodies. Ravka's Second Army is led by General Kirigan, also known as the Darkling, who has spent his life searching for a Grisha who can summon light, the only person who could destroy the Shadow Fold (or "the Fold")—a region of engulfing darkness, created hundreds of years ago and divides Ravka in two, the east from the west. Since then, Ravka has been at war and is now on the brink of splitting in two as the west seeks independence. Alina Starkov turns out to be such a Grisha, and word spreads that a Sun Summoner has been found. In the Kerch capital and trading city of Ketterdam, Kaz Brekker, leader of a gang called the Crows, is hired to kidnap her; Fjerdan witch hunters are sent to kill her; the people of Ravka venerate her as a Saint. Alina must come to terms with who she is and decide whom she can truly trust as she searches for the power that will allow her to destroy the Fold and save Ravka.

Cast and characters

Main

Jessie Mei Li Jessica Mei Li (born 27 August 1995) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Alina Starkov in the Netflix fantasy series '' Shadow and Bone''. Early life and education Li was born in Brighton, East Sussex to an English moth ...

as Alina Starkov, an orphan and former assistant

cartographer Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an im ...

of the Royal Corps of Surveyors in the First Army. She discovers she is the Sun Summoner, a rare Grisha with the ability to control light. Alina was reimagined as half-Shu (having had one parent from Shu-Han) in the series. ** Kaylan Teague as Young Alina *

Archie Renaux Archie James Beale (born 22 November 1997), known professionally as Archie Renaux, is an English actor and model. He is known for his roles in the BBC One miniseries ''Gold Digger'' (2019) and the Netflix series ''Shadow and Bone'' (2021–). ...

as Malyen "Mal" Oretsev, an orphan tracker in the First Army and Alina's childhood best friend ** Cody Molko as Young Mal *

Freddy Carter Frederick James Carter (born 27 January 1993) is an English actor and director. He stars as Kaz Brekker in the Netflix fantasy series ''Shadow and Bone'' (2021–). He previously starred as Peter (Pin) Hawthorne in ''Free Rein'' (2017–2019), a ...

as Kaz Brekker, leader of the Crows, known as Dirtyhands and the Bastard of the Barrel *

Amita Suman Amita Suman (born 19 July 1997) is a Nepal–born British actress. She stars as Inej Ghafa in the Netflix series '' Shadow and Bone''. She had a recurring role as Naya in The CW series '' The Outpost''. Early life Suman was born in Kalikamai ...

as Inej Ghafa, member of the Crows, known as the Wraith *

Kit Young Christopher William Young (born 1994) is a British actor. He began his career in theatre, earning an Ian Charleson Award nomination. He stars as Jesper Fahey in the Netflix fantasy series ''Shadow and Bone'' (2021–). His films include ''The ...

as Jesper Fahey, member of the Crows, a skilled

sharpshooter A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with "marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" i ...

* Ben Barnes as General Aleksander Kirigan / The Darkling, general of the Second Army and the Shadow Summoner *

Zoë Wanamaker Zoë Wanamaker (born 13 May 1949) is a British-American actress who has worked extensively with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre. A nine-time Olivier Award nominee, she won for '' Once in a Lifetime'' (1979) and '' Electra ...

as Baghra, Alina's Grisha trainer *

Lewis Tan Lewis Singwah Tan (born 4 February 1987) is an English actor and martial artist best known for portraying Lu Xin Lee in Netflix's ''Wu Assassins'', Shatterstar in ''Deadpool 2'' (2018), Gaius Chau in AMC's '' Into the Badlands'' and Cole Youn ...

as Tolya Yul-Bataar (season 2) * Patrick Gibson as Nikolai Lantsov (season 2) *

Anna Leong Brophy Anna Leong Brophy is a British comedian and actor. Early life Leong Brophy grew up in Brent, London. She is of Irish, Chinese, and Kadazan descent. Career Leong Brophy presents the ''Still Legit'' podcast with her comedy partner Emily Lloyd-S ...

as Tamar Kir-Bataar (season 2) * Jack Wolfe as Wylan Hendriks (season 2) *

Daisy Head Daisy May Head (born 7 March 1991) is an English actress. She played Grace in the American drama series '' Guilt'', Amy Stevenson in BBC One's drama '' The Syndicate'', Kate Bottomley in the third season of Hulu series '' Harlots'' and Genya Sa ...

as Genya Safin (season 2; recurring season 1), the only known Grisha Tailor, who befriends Alina *

Danielle Galligan Danielle Galligan (born 1 December 1992) is an Irish actress, theatre maker, and poet. On television, she is known for her role in the Netflix series ''Shadow and Bone'' (2021–). She was nominated for an IFTA for her performance in the film '' ...

as Nina Zenik (season 2; recurring season 1), a Heartrender, who is taken captive by Fjerdans * Calahan Skogman as

Matthias Matthias is a name derived from the Greek Ματθαίος, in origin similar to Matthew. People Notable people named Matthias include the following: In religion: * Saint Matthias, chosen as an apostle in Acts 1:21–26 to replace Judas Iscariot * ...

(season 2; recurring season 1), a Fjerdan Drüskelle (witch-hunter), who takes part in Nina's capture

Recurring

* Sujaya Dasgupta as Zoya, a Squaller (wind Summoner), who is interested in Mal and who is jealous of Alina *

Simon Sears Simon Sears (born 25 January 1984) is a Danish actor. Early life and education Sears was born in Roskilde to an Italian father and Danish mother. He was raised in the town of Solrød Strand, and has two older siblings. When he was younger, Sear ...

Ivan Ivan () is a Slavic languages, Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John (given name), John) from Hebrew language, Hebrew meaning 'God is gracious'. It is associated worldwide with Slavic countries. T ...

, a Heartrender, who serves under Gen. Kirigan *

Howard Charles Howard Charles is an English actor who is best known for his portrayal of Porthos in the BBC series '' The Musketeers''. Education He studied at Kingston College in England between 2000 and 2005, earning a BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Performing Ar ...

as Arken, the Conductor, who smuggles people across the Fold * Julian Kostov as Fedyor, a Heartrender, who serves under Gen. Kirigan *

Kevin Eldon Kevin Eldon (born 2 October 1959) is an English actor and comedian. He featured in British comedy television shows of the 1990s including ''Fist of Fun'', '' This Morning with Richard Not Judy'', '' Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge' ...

as The Apparat, the spiritual advisor to the King of Ravka *

Jasmine Blackborow Jasmine Sky Blackborow (born 28 August 1991) is a British actress who began her career in theatre. She played Marie in the first season of the Netflix series ''Shadow and Bone'' and Jessica in the film ''Demon Mind''. She appeared in the main ca ...

Marie Marie may refer to: People Name * Marie (given name) * Marie (Japanese given name) * Marie (murder victim), girl who was killed in Florida after being pushed in front of a moving vehicle in 1973 * Marie (died 1759), an enslaved Cree person in Tr ...

, an Inferni (fire Summoner), who befriends Alina * Gabrielle Brooks as

Nadia Nadia is a female name. Variations include Nadja, Nadya, Nadine, Nadiya, and Nadiia. Most variations of the name are derived from Arabic, Slavic languages, or both. In Slavic, names similar to ''Nadia'' mean "hope" in many Slavic languages: Uk ...

, a Squaller, who also befriends Alina *

Luke Pasqualino Luca Giuseppe "Luke" Pasqualino (born 19 February 1990) is a British actor of Italian descent. He is best known for his portrayal of Freddie McClair in the television series '' Skins'', d'Artagnan in the television series '' The Musketeers'' a ...

as David Kostyk, a Durast, he crafts weapons and other gadgets for the Grisha

Episodes

Season 1 (2021)

Season 2

Production

Development

In January 2019, it was announced that

had given the production a series order for an eight-episode first season with

showrunner A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...

, creator, head-writer, and executive producer. The project falls under

's deal with 21 Laps Entertainment with

Shawn Levy Shawn Adam Levy (born July 23, 1968) is a Canadian film director, film producer, actor, and founder of 21 Laps Entertainment. He has worked across genres and is perhaps best known as the director of the '' Night at the Museum'' film franchise an ...

executive producing.

, Pouya Shahbazian, Dan Levine, Dan Cohen, and Josh Barry acted as the executive producers as well. On October 2, 2019,

Lee Toland Krieger Lee Toland Krieger (born January 24, 1983) is an American film director and screenwriter best known for the films ''The Vicious Kind'' (2009), '' Celeste and Jesse Forever'' (2012) and '' The Age of Adaline'' (2015). Early life Krieger was born ...

was announced as the

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

of the pilot. In June 2021, the series was renewed for an 8-episode second season. It was confirmed in January 2022 that production on the second season had begun. In December 2022, it was reported that the second season will not only cover ''Siege and Storm'', but also ''Ruin and Rising'' of Leigh Bardugo's main Grishaverse trilogy.

Language

In a panel discussion led by Petra Mayer,

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

books editor,

disclosed to

San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is co ...

2019 that

David J. Peterson David Joshua Peterson (born January 20, 1981) is an American conlanger who has constructed languages for television series such as '' Game of Thrones'' and ''The 100'' and movies such as '' Thor: The Dark World'' and '' Dune.'' Life Peter ...

would be working on the Grishaverse's fictional languages. Christian Thalmann is also involved in this effort.

Casting

Casting began in April 2019 with calls for Alina. On October 2, 2019, it was announced that

, Ben Barnes,

, and

would be starring. Sujaya Dasgupta,

, and

would also feature. The second round of casting was announced on December 18, 2019, with Calahan Skogman,

, Julian Kostov,

, Jasmine Blackborow, and Gabrielle Brooks in the recurring cast. Bardugo, the book series' author, was scheduled to cameo as a Materalki Durast in the third episode. Prominent book characters Nikolai Lantsov and Wylan Van Eck did not appear in the first season, but will be introduced in the second. On January 13, 2022,

, Patrick Gibson,

and Jack Wolfe officially joined the cast for the second season while Daisy Head, Danielle Galligan, and Calahan Skogman were promoted to series regulars. More new cast members were confirmed in November 2022, including Tommy Rodger, Rhoda Ofori-Attah, Alistair Nwachukwu, Tumi Fani-Kayode, and Seamus O'Hara.

Filming and locations

Principal photography for the first season began on location in and around

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

and

Keszthely Keszthely (; also known by other alternative names) is a Hungarian city of 20,895 inhabitants located on the western shore of Lake Balaton. It is the second largest city by the lake and one of the more important cultural, educational and economi ...

, Hungary in October 2019 and wrapped at the end of February 2020. Additional shoots took place in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

in September 2020. ''Shadow and Bones Ketterdam set was built at Origo Studios. Other Budapest filming locations included the

Ethnographic Museum Ethnographic museums conserve, display and contextualize items relevant to the field of ethnography, the systematic study of people and cultures. Such museums include: List by country/region Albania * Ethnographic Museum of Kavajë, * Gjirokast� ...

(Grand Palace throne room);

Buda Castle Buda Castle ( hu, Budavári Palota, german: link=no, Burgpalast) is the historical castle and palace complex of the Hungarian Kings in Budapest. It was first completed in 1265, although the massive Baroque palace today occupying most of the si ...

(Royal Archives exterior) and its medieval rondella (Grisha training grounds and Os Alta gates); the old

Stock Exchange A stock exchange, securities exchange, or bourse is an exchange where stockbrokers and traders can buy and sell securities, such as shares of stock, bonds and other financial instruments. Stock exchanges may also provide facilities for th ...

(Royal Archives interior); and the main square (Novokribirsk). Outside of Budapest, the exterior, grounds, and interior of

Festetics Palace The Festetics Palace is a Baroque palace located in the town of Keszthely, Zala, Hungary. The building now houses the Helikon Palace Museum. The palace's construction, started by Kristóf Festetics in 1745, lasted more than a century. During th ...

were used to create the Little Palace, and the winter fete took place in its concert hall. Other locations included the Amadé–Bajzáth–Pappenheim Mansion (Keramzin orphanage); the town of

Szentendre Szentendre () is a riverside town in Pest County, Hungary, between the capital city Budapest and Pilis Mountains, Pilis-Visegrád Mountains. The town is known for its museums (most notably the :hu: Szentendrei Szabadtéri Néprajzi Múzeum, Open- ...

(Ryevost) and its open-air museum (Chernast); and the

Royal Palace of Gödöllő The Royal Palace of Gödöllő (german: Schloss Gödöllő, hu, Gödöllői Királyi Kastély) or Grassalkovich Castle is an imperial and royal Hungarian palace located in the municipality of Gödöllő in Pest county, central Hungary. It is ...

(stable and chapel). The flashback in which the Darkling creates the Shadow Fold was filmed at the ruined Széchényi–Wenckheim mansion in

Békéscsaba Békéscsaba (; sk, Békešská Čaba; see also #Name, other alternative names) is a City with county rights, city with county rights in southeast Hungary, the capital of Békés County. Geography Békéscsaba is located in the Great Hungarian ...

. Filming for the second season began in early January 2022 and wrapped on June 6, 2022.

Post-production

Post-production began after the February 2020 close of shooting. Bardugo reported through Twitter in June 2020 that working remotely in light of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

had slowed post-production down, rendering the release date less certain.{{Cite tweet , first=Leigh , last=Bardugo , author-link=Leigh Bardugo , user=Leigh_Bardugo_(away_for_a_while) , number=1278002776434335745 , date=June 30, 2020 , title=No, we'll have a longer wait... , url=https://twitter.com/LBardugo/status/1278002776434335745 , access-date=January 17, 2022 , url-status= live , archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200630174952/https://twitter.com/LBardugo/status/1278002776434335745 , archive-date=June 30, 2020{{better source needed, date = January 2022 The full text of the tweet is a response to an unsupplied question, and states, "No, we'll have a longer wait for the show. I know it's frustrating, but covid has slowed down post-production and we want to keep people safe while they work. Please be patient and I hope we can share more soon... / This Tweet is from an account that no longer exists."{{better source needed, date = January 2022 Ted Rae served as VFX supervisor.

Music

{{Infobox album , name = Shadow and Bone (Music from the Netflix Series) , type = soundtrack , artist =

Joseph Trapanese Joseph Trapanese (born 1984) is an American composer, arranger, and producer. He works in the production of music for films, television, records, theater, concerts, and interactive media. Early life and education Raised in Jersey City, New Jers ...

, cover = Shadow and Bone (soundtrack).jpg , alt = , released = {{Start date, 2021, 04, 23 , recorded = , venue = , studio = , genre =

Soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

, length = 1:34:00 , label = Maisie Music Publishing , producer =

is the composer for the series. Heisserer and Bardugo appeared on a panel at

New York Comic Con The New York Comic Con is an annual New York City fan convention dedicated to Western comics, graphic novels, anime, manga, video games, cosplay, toys, movies, and television. It was first held in 2006. History The New York Comic Con is a f ...

in October 2020, during which they played some of the score. Executive producer Josh Barry reported on December 16, 2020, that the final sound mix was complete. Trapanese wrote the score over 11 months. In an interview with ''AwardsDaily.com'', he explained how he put it together in lockdown, between conducting an orchestra over

Zoom Zoom may refer to: Technology Computing * Zoom (software), videoconferencing application * Page zooming, the ability to magnify or shrink a portion of a page on a computer display * Zooming user interface, a graphical interface allowing for image ...

and incorporating solo recordings.{{Cite web , url=https://www.awardsdaily.com/2021/04/22/composer-joseph-trapanese-draws-from-russian-slavic-influences-for-netflixs-shadow-and-bone/ , title=Composer Joseph Trapanese Draws from Russian, Slavic Influences for Netflix's 'Shadow and Bone' , work= AwardsDaily.com , first=Clarence , last=Moye , date=April 22, 2021 , access-date=April 22, 2021 Russian and Slavic music provided the basis of the score's inspiration, Bardugo naming

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...

and folk songs as specific examples. In addition, elements from other musical traditions were used, such as

gamelan Gamelan () ( jv, ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, su, ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, ban, ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. T ...

. {{Track listing , collapsed = yes , headline = Shadow and Bone (Music from the Netflix Series) , title1 = Ravka , length1 = 3:45 , title2 = Ask the Saints , length2 = 6:32 , title3 = Court Demonstration , length3 = 3:09 , title4 = True North , length4 = 6:21 , title5 = Royal Archives Heist , length5 = 4:09 , title6 = Face the Truth , length6 = 4:42 , title7 = Erase the Past , length7 = 2:19 , title8 = Memories , length8 = 8:30 , title9 = Hope for the Future , length9 = 2:10 , title10 = Her Name Is Alina Starkov , length10 = 2:57 , title11 = The Heretic , length11 = 5:04 , title12 = Just Ask , length12 = 5:32 , title13 = Shipwrecked , length13 = 2:32 , title14 = A Message , length14 = 5:46 , title15 = Helpful Goat , length15 = 7:24 , title16 = Fight for the Light , length16 = 5:41 , title17 = Five Markers , length17 = 4:06 , title18 = Strike Now , length18 = 6:12 , title19 = Follow , length19 = 7:29 , total_length = 1:34:00

Marketing and release

Netflix released a season one announcement teaser in December 2020 followed by promotional stills through ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' as well as main character posters in January 2021.{{Cite magazine , last=Hibberd , first=James , date=January 27, 2021 , title=Shadow and Bone exclusive: 7 photos from new Netflix fantasy series , url=https://ew.com/tv/shadow-bone-netflix-photos/ , access-date=January 27, 2021 , magazine=

Bardugo, Heisserer, and the six main cast members appeared on a panel at the

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

Fan Fest in February 2021, during which a teaser trailer was released in addition to more stills. Netflix also posted a poster featuring the Shadow Fold the day before. The official season one trailer was released on March 30, 2021, by Netflix, after having been leaked previously.{{citation needed, date = January 2022 Bardugo answered in a November 2019 interview with ''SensaCine'' that the season one series was expected to air in late 2020. The series was released on April 23, 2021, on Netflix.{{cite web , url=https://deadline.com/2021/01/shadow-and-bone-netflix-premiere-date-first-look-images-1234681532/ , title='Shadow And Bone': Netflix Sets Official Premiere Date, Unveils First-Look Images , website=

Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, with ...

Hollywood , first=Alexandra , last=Del Rosario , date=January 27, 2021 , access-date=January 27, 2021 On April 24, 2021, Netflix released an

aftershow An aftershow or after-show is a genre of television talk show whose topic is another television program. An aftershow is typically broadcast immediately after a new episode of its corresponding program to help retain the audience, and to provide ad ...

for the series on the service, titled ''Shadow and Bone – The Afterparty.'' The second season is slated to be released on March 16, 2023. The official trailer for the second season was released on February 17, 2023.

Reception

Audience viewership

revealed alongside the season 2 renewal announcement that 55{{nbspmillion households had watched the first season in its first 28 days of availability.

Critical response

''Shadow and Bone'' has received positive reviews from critics.

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

reported an approval rating of 88% based on 75 reviews, with an average rating of 7.2/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "From gorgeous costumes to impressive—if intimidating—world-building, ''Shadow and Bone'' is certainly as meticulous as its source material, but by folding in unexpected stories it expands the novel's scope to craft an exciting new adventure for fans and newcomers alike."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

gave the series a weighted average score of 68 out of 100 based on 22 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Writing for ''

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

'', Ben Travis gave the first season 3 out of 5 stars, saying, "''Shadow And Bone'' remains compelling while tasking viewers with grasping the Grisha terminology for themselves, showing rather than telling", but noted similarities between the series and ''

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...

'', ''

The Hunger Games ''The Hunger Games'' is a series of young adult dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The first three novels are part of a trilogy following teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and the fourth book is a prequel set ...

'', and ''

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin, the first ...

'' and described some elements of the series as being "overly confusing". He concluded that "''Shadow And Bone'' will draw you into the Fold with its absorbing world-building and engaging lead duo." Nicole Clark of ''

'' wrote that "the first season manages to capture much of the darker magic...while being unafraid to make smart changes to certain characters' origin stories and even the sequence of events—even if the storylines from the two series of books don't always easily mesh." Molly Freeman of ''

Screen Rant ''Screen Rant'' is an entertainment website that offers news in the fields of television, films, video games, and film theories. ''Screen Rant'' was launched by Vic Holtreman in 2003, and originally had its primary office in Ogden, Utah. ''Scr ...

'' praised it as a "thrillingly exciting fantasy drama". Writing for RogerEbert.com, Roxana Hadadi noted the series' use of

cliché A cliché ( or ) is an element of an artistic work, saying, or idea that has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even to the point of being weird or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was consi ...

s found in

young adult fiction Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is primarily targeted at adolescents, approximately half of YA readers are adults. The subject matter and genres of YA correlate ...

, adding: "Eric Heisserer's adaptation transcends this familiarity thanks to the commitment of a pitch-perfect cast, well-stylized fight sequences, and intentional character development that makes these relationships feel nuanced and history-laden". She concluded: "Altogether, 'Shadow and Bone' maintains a sense of interior place for the characters dealing with plot developments as varied as mean girl dynamics, geopolitical posturing, and body horror, and the well-balanced nature of this first season makes for a promising introduction into this franchise's fantastical universe." Writing for '' The Daily Star'', Yaameen Al-Muttaqi praised the changes made from the source material, noting that "the years added to each character's age allows the series to explore darker themes, like abuse, corruption, propaganda, manipulation, and human trafficking without breaking audience immersion or pulling punches, as is the case with too many YA adaptations." He was, however, more critical of the omissions made in world building, concluding that "a fair number of things are also left unexplained or unexplored in the series, which may leave viewers who have not read the books, confused." Writing for Tell-Tale TV, Allison Nichols also noted that viewers unfamiliar with the source material may feel isolated when the series "throw them in storylines that seemingly have nothing to do with the main storyline of the show — Alina's journey."

Awards and nominations

{, class="wikitable sortable" , - ! Year ! Award ! Category ! Nominee ! Result ! {{Abbr, Ref., References , - , rowspan="2" , 2021 ,

IFTA Film & Drama Awards The IFTA Film & Drama Awards are awards given by the Irish Film & Television Academy for Irish television and film, the awards began in 1999. The ceremonies recognise Irish creative talent working in film, drama, and television, and winners receiv ...

, Best VFX , Ed Bruce and Robert Hartigan , {{nominated , , - ,

Dragon Awards The Dragon Awards are a set of literary and media awards voted on by fandom and presented annually since 2016 by Dragon Con for excellence in various categories of science fiction, fantasy, horror novels, movies, television, and games. Hist ...

, Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series , ''Shadow and Bone'' , {{nom , {{Cite web , first=Andrew , last=Liptak , date=August 12, 2021 , title=Here Are the 2021 Dragon Award Finalists , work=

Tor.com ''Tor.com'' is an online science fiction and fantasy magazine published by Tor Books, a division of Macmillan Publishers. The magazine publishes articles, reviews, original short fiction, re-reads and commentary on speculative fiction. From 20 ...

, url=https://www.tor.com/2021/08/12/dragoncon-dragon-awards-finalists-ballot-science-fiction-fantasy/ , access-date=January 17, 2022 , quote=Here's the full list of finalists: Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series / The Expanse, Amazon / Loki, Disney+ / The Nevers, HBO / Resident Alien, SYFY / Shadow & Bone, Netflix / Star Trek: Discovery, Paramount+ / WandaVision, Disney+…

References

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External links

* {{Official * {{Netflix title * {{IMDb title {{Grishaverse {{Netflix original current series 2020s American drama television series 2020s American mystery television series 2020s American teen drama television series 2021 American television series debuts American adventure television series American fantasy drama television series Dark fantasy television series English-language Netflix original programming High fantasy television series Television about magic Television series about orphans Slavic mythology in popular culture Television series based on American novels Television shows filmed in Hungary