We are back! With more thoughts on season two and some great listener theories and prompts. We answer such questions as: How do we feel about the show being cancelled, and what do we hope to see next for the Grishaverse? What is up with the tether in season two? And, of course: how much rampant speculation about Grisha powers can possibly fit in one episode?? Spoilers for the Shadow and Bone trilogy, both seasons of Netflix’s Shadow and Bone show, the King of Scars duology, and the Tailor. *...

We discuss amplifiers in Season Two of the Netflix Shadow and Bone show, and come up with theories that we found surprisingly satisfying! We answer such questions as: How did that whole thing with Mal work, and do we even know if it stuck? What are some creative ways we can dispose of the Apparat? And of course: How clever was Baghra, really? (And, oops, JJ totally forgot that Yuri also means ‘farmer’ in Russian. Yuri, a true everyman.) Spoilers for the Shadow and Bone trilogy, both seasons...

We discuss Wesper, the relationship between Wylan and Jesper. We answer such questions as: How does their pre-season two history change the dynamic of the relationship between them? Was the Six of Crows duology actually meant to be read ship by ship? And of course: Who would be the best third corner of a Wesper love triangle – Kuwei, Tolya, or JJ?Our next episode will probably cover assorted topics from season two (including amplifiers, for sure, we will get to amplifiers, we really need to...

We discuss that ending of Season Two of the Netflix Shadow and Bone show! We answer such questions as: What does Alina keeping her powers mean? Does the ending of this season break even the notoriously ambiguous rules governing merzost? What is the correct murder weapon to bring down an overpowered villain? And, of course: Did we actually just hear JJ walking back some of her Mal hate?? Spoilers for the Shadow and Bone trilogy, both seasons of Netflix Shadow and Bone show, the Six of Crows...

We discuss Season Two of the Netflix Shadow and Bone show!!! We answer such questions as: How fared our hopes, predictions, and fears for this season? Who was more likely to faint – the Darkling on merzost or Anjali when she saw the Lantsov emerald? And, of course: How relieved are we that we never have to worry about pronunciation again??Spoilers for the Shadow and Bone trilogy, Netflix Shadow and Bone Season 1 AND 2!!, Six of Crows duology, and the King of Scars duology.

We discuss the ever-developing science of Tailoring. We answer such questions as: How many Tailors are there? Can we come up with something that explains the seeming disparities between Tailoring in each of the book series and the show? And, of course: Why is parem-Nina so uncreative?? (We are sorry we didn’t talk about tailoring Ruby and the Darkling in this episode. They didn’t make it into the podcast, but they remain in our hearts.) Also! This is our last episode before Shadow and Bone...

We discuss the red-haired, amber-eyed Tailor, Genya Safin. We answer such questions as: What did Genya see in David? Why did she incapacitate the Tsar that way? Whose BFF is she really? And of course: What does one have to do to get Darkling-coming-out-of-the-banya privileges around here?? If you haven’t read The Tailor yet, you can read it for free on the internet! (Read it! It’s so good.) We do not actually discuss Tailoring because we went on about Genya for too long. We’ll get to it in...

We discuss the new graphic novel of Demon in the Wood! We answer such questions as: How did seeing the story feel different than just reading the words? Whose ring is Baghra wearing? In any other universe, would this have been a story about Sylvie? And of course: Why wouldn’t amplifiers wear gloves in the snow?? Spoilers for the Shadow and Bone trilogy, Netflix Shadow and Bone season 1, Language of Thorns, and, obviously, Demon in the Wood.

We discuss Nina Zenik (aka Mila Jandersdat) in the King of Scars duology. We answer such questions as: What were we supposed to take as foreshadowing, and what are we reading too much into? Why was that one horrific plot line dropped like a sack of so many extremely unwanted potatoes? Why did it take us so long to publish this episode that the book JJ was excited about coming out “next month” has already been released? And, of course: What is the opposite of a dragon? And many thanks, as...

We discuss Nina Zenik in the Six of Crows duology, though we get a bit into the King of Scars duology, too — you’ve been warned. We answer such questions as: Why do we love Inej and Nina’s friendship so much? Why doesn’t Nina’s power work on animals? And, of course: What would Nina and Matthais’s wedding cake have looked like?Spoilers for the Six of Crows duology, the King of Scars duology, and season one of the Netflix Shadow and Bone show. Vague mentions of the Shadow and Bone trilogy.

We discuss Nikolai Lantsov – pirate, er, privateer of the True Sea, and also of our hearts. We ask such questions as: Could Nikolai and Alina have been a Thing? What was up with his first proposal either way? Do we see in the King of Scars duology that it’s Nikolai and not Zoya who is the anti-Darkling? Is Nikolai actually a good leader? And of course: How far would Anjali really go to get a glimpse of that Lantsov emerald?Spoilers for the Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Six of Crows duology,...

We take the chance to chat about things we forgot to mention in previous episodes, listener feedback, and scenes that have stuck with us and require discussion. We answer such important questions as: How did the three of us meet? What else are we reading these days? Which scene’s unrealized potential will JJ just not stop talking about in the group chat? And of course: Why do we defer to Anjali on all things waffle? JJ also attempts to convince Kat and Anjali that they should all write fanfic...

We discuss the magnificent General Nazyalensky, focusing on her role in the King of Scars duology (aka: Zoya’s duology). We ask such questions as: Is it possible for someone to actually be that beautiful? Does spectacular banter a good general make? Did she really move from the anti-Alina in the original trilogy to the anti-Darkling in the second duology? And, of course: Shouldn’t we be naming our children after her?Contains spoilers for the King of Scars duology, the Shadow and Bone trilogy,...

In which we discuss the (small) science of amplifiers and everything we know about them from across the entire Grishaverse. We ask such questions as: How do amplifiers — both animal and human ones — work? Where do they come from and what are their limitations and unexplored possibilities? How did the Grisha come to have and lose the knowledge about ‘true’ amplifiers? And, of course: Did Zoya even need an amplifier, or did she actually just need to let herself be loved?Contains spoilers for...

**SPOILERS FOR KING OF SCARS DUOLOGY IN DESCRIPTION**We discuss the Darkling once again, this time focusing on his role in the King of Scars duology. We ask such questions as: Was what the other characters said about him backed up by textual evidence? Did he lie all of the time in this series, or just some of the time? What does the future hold? And, of course: What was up with that reunion scene??Contains spoilers for the King of Scars duology, the Shadow and Bone trilogy, The Language of...

We discuss Baghra, the Darkling’s mother. We ask such questions as: What can we learn about amplifiers from how Alina reacts to Baghra? What’s up with her teaching style? What happened to make her change so much in the last 500-or-so years? And, of course: How did we manage to record this whole episode without even mentioning the Baghra-Baba Yaga connection??Contains spoilers for the Netflix Shadow and Bone show, the Shadow and Bone trilogy, The Demon in the Woods, The Language of Thorns, and...

We discuss Darklina, the relationship between Alina and the Darkling. We ask such questions as: Was the Darkling ever into Alina? How did Bardugo manage to fit four of Kat and JJ’s favorite tropes into one relationship? Is it because of or despite the lack of time they spend together that we became so invested? And Anjali asks: must one actually be invested in the first place? Special bonus nerd discussion of how Occam’s Razor supports or fails to support the romantic interest...

We discuss Kaz Brekker, Crow Club Member Number One. We ask such questions as: What motivates the infamous Brekker, and how does that impact his relationships with the other Crows? Would book Kaz kick show Kaz’s butt in a fight? Could we handle being inside Kaz’s head while he’s actually scheming? And, of course: is Kaz a villain?Contains spoilers for the Netflix Shadow and Bone show, the Six of Crows duology, and King of Scars duology, with the occasional Shadow and Bone trilogy reference.

We discuss Helnik, the relationship between Nina Zenik and Matthias Helvar. We interrogate such important questions as: Is one-sided growth in a relationship satisfying? How does Matthias’ faith impact their dynamic? What is Matthais’ greatest strength (hint: it’s not strength)? How is Nina such an incredible character? And we are left to wonder: does JJ like enemies to lovers relationships, or is it actually lovers to enemies? Contains spoilers for the Netflix Shadow and Bone show, the Six...

We discuss the primary villain of the series, diving into key questions like: what are the origins of shadow summoning and what is it, actually? Is the Darkling a real Grisha? And, of course: would book Darkling hook up with Zoya? Contains spoilers for the Shadow and Bone Trilogy, the Netflix Shadow and Bone show, the King of Scars duology, and The Demon in the Wood.

We discuss Inej Ghafa — differences between the books and the shows, her relationships with the Crows, religion, and general badassery. Contains spoilers for the Netflix Shadow and Bone show and the Six of Crows duology.

We discuss Alina Starkov — differences between the book and the show, her friendship with Genya, and her character arc over the trilogy. We also speculate in likely physics-incompliant ways about her power. Contains spoilers for the original Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Netflix Shadow and Bone show, Rule of Wolves, and short stories The Tailor and The Demon in the Wood.

We discuss Mal Oretsev — what’s changed and what’s stayed the same between the book and the show, and where the show could take his character from here. Contains spoilers for the original Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Netflix Shadow and Bone show, and one brief spoiler for Rule of Wolves.