9.5 questions we have for Season 3 of Shadow and Bone

This season of shadow and bone not only adapted the next book in the main trilogy – it completed Alina’s main story, and Also pulled in some storylines from the Crows books and Also from one of the accompanying short story books. It was a lot so you might be wondering Man, is there anything left for an upcoming third season?

Just kidding! You probably don’t ask yourself that, because shadow and bone Season 2 ended with a lot of loose ends that weren’t actually there in the books. And even if it doesn’t, there are two separate sequels that follow different characters and delve into the aftermath of the Ravkan Civil War. However, some of these threads are hinted at a lot more than others in Season 2 – and some might actually be addressed in a possible event Six crows spinoff instead.

[Ed. note: This post contains major spoilers for the finale of Shadow and Bone season 2, as well as the Grishaverse books.]

Image: Netflix

What’s next for the Six of Crows characters?

We finally got to the Crows books. Somehow. Technically, the Six crows

Books take place two years after the main trilogy, but the show played with the timeline quickly and loosely anyway. And technically, one of the big key moments in the books (revenge on Pekka Rollins) that happens in the final Crows book happened this season. However, a much There’s more happening in the Crows books – and this season’s final episode sets the runaway up for anything.

For one, the gang breaks Matthias out of prison, which is likely to happen sooner rather than later in the next season (or in the possible Six of Crows spinoff). They are six of crows, after all. They also infiltrate a Fjerdan military stronghold known as the Ice Court to break out a Shu scientist who has developed a drug known as you better go that increases Grischa’s powers – yes, The Drug that Kaz mentions in the last episode and the one that the Fjerdan agent uses to massacre a lot of people at Nikolai’s coronation.

So what is this drug all about?

The you better go — and the impact its armament is having on the rest of the world — becomes a driving force in the Crows books and beyond. We already saw how devastating its effects are in the final scene of season 2, so it will definitely be as central to the hypothetical future seasons or spinoffs as it is to the books. The drug not only increases a Grisha’s powers to the point of deadly effects, it is also highly addictive and weakens its user’s body. The withdrawal symptoms are devastating and only one person (spoilers) managed to survive – and their powers were completely altered afterwards.

Speaking of Matthias, what happens to him in wolf fighting hell?

Photo: David Lukacs/Netflix

Well, that’s something that doesn’t really have book precedent! As mentioned, Pekka Rollins gets his comeuppance at the end Crooked Kingdom – which means that in the book timeline, he and Matthias are never actually in prison at the same time. This could introduce some juicy obstacles to the eventual Breaking Matthias Out of Jail storyline, and pit Kaz against his nemesis once again. Hopefully Matthias survives this cliffhanger of a wolf fight.

Are Alina and Nikolai still engaged?

You know…we just don’t know. They never officially break off their engagement, and during Nikolai’s coronation she wears a large crown and stands next to Nikolai, so it seems very likely. This is definitely in contrast to the books where she officially breaks up (especially considering she faked her death and married Mal in the epilogue). But as far as we know, they still appear to be engaged, albeit completely platonic. This could scare Alina, who longs for Mal, and complicate Nikolai’s future love story.

Will Mal and Inej get a seafaring bow?

Photo: David Lukacs/Netflix

It definitely looks like this! While it’s sad that Nikolai is ditching his dual identity as a Stormhound, we can’t deny that Archie Renaux is rocking that pirate mantle. In the books, Inej does Get a boat and set sail, but only after completing all the crows’ missions. Considering that the Crows’ big exploits are only just beginning, it’s likely that Inej will return to Ketterdam, at least for a while. Mal’s bow, meanwhile, is a blank slate, so he’s free to sail into the horizon and find his true north or whatever.

Is the Darkling totally gone-gone?!

At the end of the season, Alina kills General Kirigan. They burn his body and all. He seems totally dead.

However, this isn’t the last time we see the Darkling in the books. After all, it’s hard for a sexy, almighty (and most importantly) fan-favorite shadowmancer to stay dead! In the Nikolai duology, the books last appearing in the Grishaverse timeline, some characters are tricked into performing a ritual to revive the Darkling. His soul returns and possesses the body of Yuri, one of his most devoted followers. They’ve got some kind of two-souls-in-one-body Ghost Rider thing going on. So there’s a good chance we’ll see Kirigan return…just not as we know him.

But I love Ben Barnes!

Photo: David Lukacs/Netflix

We also! I wouldn’t put it above Netflix to integrate Barnes in any way, shape or form, whether it’s through flashbacks or the physical manifestation of the voice in Yuri’s head. Or maybe Barnes is finally getting the rom-com he so deserves. We can only hope.

If David is dead, who will take third place in the Grisha triumvirate?

In the books, Alina appoints Zoya (an Etheralki), Genya (a Corporalki), and David (a Materialki) as the Grisha triumvirate, three leaders to oversee the Second Army. Each of them represents a different faction of Grisha, but the idea is to give each faction a voice and eliminate the superfluous differences between them.

But there are two big differences on the show: David is dead and Alina is not pretends to be dead. So Alina probably takes third place, with Zoya and Genya by her side. They call their new alliance a triumvirate, although it definitely lacks the Materialki presence. On the other hand, the class differences between Grisha wasn’t such a big driving point of tension in the show.

What’s up with those bees on Zoya in the Fold?

It’s a very small moment in the last episode, but something people read king of scars could latch on. As everyone gathers in the bare remains of the corral to watch Kirigan’s pyre, Zoya smacks a bee that won’t leave her alone. This might anticipate her bow king of scarswhere she and Nikolai wander into the fold and encounter three mystical saints – one of whom is associated with bees and has a whole swarm of them following her.

Is Nikolai… well?

Photo: David Lukacs/Netflix

So! He’s alive if that’s your question. But he definitely feels the effects of being attacked by one of the Darklings Nichevo’ya. While the combat isn’t as intense as in the books, where the Darkling’s Merzost transforms Nikolai into a monstrous, flesh-eating demon bird creature, judging by the eerie shadow creature Nikolai sees in the mirror, it definitely permeates him something.

If the books are anything to go by, Nikolai will spend a lot of time wrestling with his own inner demon (literally) and trying to figure out a way to tame it. So we can certainly expect more from Nikolai’s hidden darkness and flesh-eating demon transformation, while he also figures out how to repair his kingdom and advance. And maybe fall in love with Zoya in the process (Zoyalai rights). If the Crows get their own spinoff series, then that would make sense for the next season of shadow and bone to focus on the characters that are still in Ravka – most notably Nikolai and his little flesh-eating demon problem.

shadow and bone Season 2 is available now on Netflix.