Episode 5 of Shadow and Bone is crazy intense with a lot of plot twists! Here’s everything that happened!
*Spoilers for Episode 5 below!*
This episode opens with Mal making it back to the Ravkan camp. His bullet wound isn’t doing well, and he’s in pain.
The Crows are on their way to the palace. They can’t bring guns or knives in. The guards catch someone trying to sneak in, and when they go to take him away, Kaz slips in dressed as a guard.
Meanwhile, Marie and Nadia attempt to do Alina’s makeup and hair for the ball. Genya arrives and the pair leave, and Genya redoes everything. She implies to Alina that the queen is cruel to her and that the king preys upon her. When she asks Alina what she is going to wear, Alina decides to wear the black kefta and will not change after the demonstration. A Durast (a Grisha that works with metal) arrives and gives Alina gloves that will help her split light into two. Genya introduces him as David Kostyk, and it’s obvious she has a crush on him. Alina thanks him but declines the gloves, and proceeds to tease Genya once he leaves.
Elsewhere, Kaz struggles to walk without his cane. But he ends up stumbling onto a door that only Materialki can open, and he sees a changing room inside, as well as Marie. While Kaz is planning, Inej and Jesper are also preparing. Inej will have to perform, while Jesper scopes out getaway horses, and a cute stable hand. They also discuss whether Alina is “real.” Inej believes she is a saint, Kaz thinks she’s a fake, and Jesper doesn’t care.
We’re then back with Alina who convinces Genya to go explore the carnival. Jesper sees and overhears them as they’re escorted back inside, meaning he knows what she looks like.
Back at the army camp, where Mal is given permission to ride to the Little Palace and deliver the location of the stag, but only if someone goes with him.
We cut to the Crows who are discussing their plan. They know Alina will be in the changing room that only Grishas can use. Arken has a special stone that will let him open the door, so Arken will grab the target, and the rest of them will clear a path.
Alina brings Kirigan’s kefta to him instead of Ivan. She tells him she didn’t need the gloves, but they were a safeguard. Alina also confesses that she is nervous because she knows what the presentation of her powers represent: hope. Kirigan tries to reassure her, telling her it means a lot to him, that she means a lot. They then kiss!!
Back with the Crows, Jesper hooks up with the stable hand, while Inej performs at the entrance of the palace. We also overhear guests confirm that West Ravka wants to secede under General Zlatan, who has Fjerdan backing.
Alina, who arrives in the royal courtroom early, runs into Kirigan who was speaking to the royals. He thinks she looks beautiful, and two Inferni twins distract the audience with a dazzling show of fire. As Alina and Kirigan get set up, David and Genya share a sweet moment of stolen glances. Alina then does her demonstration, and it’s breathtaking. She not only splits the light into two, but she sends it out into the room. Everyone is extremely impressed, referring to her as Sankta Alina and some people kneel. Inej is in awe, while Kaz tries to figure out if it was faked. Meanwhile, Arken goes to hide in the dressing room.
Outside the walls, Mal and his friend make it to the Little Palace. They are allowed to enter, but with no weapons. A guard overhears and disappears to tell Baghra who is upset. She doesn’t want Kirigan getting the stag.
Inside the walls, Alina runs into the Apparat who tells her she’s becoming dangerous. People are already making alters for her, and she represents something more powerful than kings and counties: faith. Genya intervenes, taking her to get ready for dinner.
Mal and his friend are in the war room, and Kirigan walks in and sends the friend away. He knows who Mal is, and Mal roughly tells him where he saw the stag. He refuses to give an exact location until he talks to Alina. Kirigan tests Mal by asking Alina’s favorite flower and if Alina can confirm, they will be allowed to meet.
Back in the changing room, Arken goes to snatch Alina. Except he kills her instead! He’s working with General Zlatan! He shoots Genya, who is fine, and runs out of the room. Alina, who is bleeding out on the floor turns about to be Marie, who Genya tailored to look like Alina.
Elsewhere in the palace, Kaz and Inej discuss what happened. He had already deduced that Arken was working with Zlatan, and he saw that there were two black keftas in the changing room earlier. He knew there would be a double. Inej and Kaz see the real Alina and approach, telling her they would escort her to dinner. One of the Inferni twins watches as Kaz and Inej talk to Alina. Kirigan then interrupts, taking Alina with him. Kaz and Inej split up in order to throw the Inferni off their trail.
The guard who spoke to Baghra takes Mal to a cave where she tries to kill him. Mal sees that the person who rode with him is dead. She fails to kill him, and Mal kills her and escapes.
Back inside the palace, Kirigan and Alina make out in the war room. They are interrupted and Kirigan finds out Marie and Genya were stacked, but he doesn’t tell Alina. Once he leaves, Baghra arrives and takes Alina through a secret path. In a shocking twist, she tells Alina that General Kirigan is the Black Heretic! He simply hid and changed names after The Fold was created. Alina doesn’t believe her, but then Baghra manipulates shadows! She’s his mother!! She tells Alina that the Volcra are people who were stuck in The Fold. He doesn’t view Alina as a person, but as a tool, he’s been waiting for. He’s not a starry-eyed boy, he’s an eternal manipulator who is obsessed with power. With that Alina, escapes through the tunnels choosing to leave the palace instead of staying with Baghra’s allies.
Kaz is still attempting to ditch the Inferni. He hides in a chapel, and manages to break the Inferni’s hand. However, his other hand can still manipulate fire, so Inej, who has been hiding in the rafters, throws a knife at him, saving Kaz’s life. But she kills the Inferni, which troubles her.
Alina escapes to the stables, while Baghra and Kirigan argue about the future. He tells her that he will find her no matter what, which Mal overhears. Jesper, who has prepared a getaway carriage watches as a confused and scared Alina crawls into the trunk of the carriage he has ready to go. They’ve got her.
This episode was jam-packed with a lot of action. A lot of intricate planning went into the Crows plan, and it worked very well. Now that they have Alina, I’m super interested to see what happens next. Alina doesn’t interact with them in the books, so I’m super excited for what’s to come.
I also loved the moments with Genya and David. They have such a sweet dynamic that I can’t wait to see more of. It was also interesting to see Materialki this episode. They haven’t popped up a lot in the show, and I thought it was interesting that there are doors that only they can open by manipulating metal.
I will say, in the books Alina is deeply attached to the Little Palace. The decision to leave has a little more weight to it. I feel like that’s something that was missing here, mainly because there are some episodes where we don’t see too much of her life at the Little Palace. If we had spent a little more time here, I think the decision for her to leave would feel a bit more complicated and hold some more weight.
Regardless, this episode was wild! It had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. I’m excited to see how they handle Alina and the Crows in the next episode.
You can stream Shadow and Bone now on Netflix!
