You may or may not be aware that I am a huge fan of Shadowhunters (not the show, the books). I started reading Mortal Instruments when I was in middle school, right around the time book three had come out. I picked City of Bones up on a whim and quickly discovered that it was one of the best books I had ever read. Since that point I have avidly kept up with the books (recently reading, reviewing, and loving Lady Midnight) and this year even plan to reread them all. A few years ago when the movie came out I was super excited for it, but my dreams were crushed by the film itself. While it wasn't the worst adaption I've ever seen (Vampire Academy steals that award) it is up there. Which led to me starting this show with a mix of fear and excitement.
As a show: It's not a good show. The acting was pretty bad when it started off (though all the actors did grow throughout and I'm rather fond of them each as people thanks to social media) and the special effects are absolutely atrocious (I'm sorry, but the seraph blade noise comes from the toy section of Target). The sets are all really nice, the story lines are interesting, and the world building is on point, but if I hadn't been a fan of this story ahead of time I wouldn't have even given it a shot.
As an adaptation: Better than the movie, if you ask me. They stuck to the plot more or less, but where they deviated I think they made smart decisions. Things were introduced early, but they weren't half-assed when they were introduced. The world that Cassandra Clare created in her books is this same world. I liked that while the core of the story was there I was able to be surprised by certain plot lines and my friend and I have been guessing at what next season might bring (and yes, I am rather excited for next season).
As a fan: I'm thrilled. Okay, mostly thrilled. Beyond it being a poor quality show (but it is on Freeform so it's not like they have an HBO budget) I love being able to see the characters come to life onscreen. These are characters I've been reading about since I was 13 and 14 years old! I think the casting for characters was pretty spot on and easter eggs (pretty much that whole alternate reality episode if I'm being honest) are a blast. Seeing the fandom on tumblr just explode over these books again has been really great, too.
Would I recommend this show? If you're a fan and you're willing to wade through some shit (maybe a lot of shit, depending on how much you want the show to adhere to the books) I think you'll enjoy it. I haven't met anyone who's watching the show without reading the books first, so I don't know if it's a good fit for people who aren't aware of the world. Maybe give it a shot, though?
Posts
Great TV review. I watched a few episodes of the show, but I gave up because it was too cheesy for me. I haven’t seen the movie or finished the book series.
ReplyDeleteAj @ Read All The Things!
Yah it's pretty cheesy and if you're not already a fan, it's probably for the best that you let it go. Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteI am a big Shadowhunters fan too! I was expecting so much more from the show. You're right, their acting significantly improved as the season went on but I still wanted more. They changed too many things in the show, some of them are just ridiculous. The season finale was okay though so I still have hope for the second season.
ReplyDeleteThey changed so much! I was rather surprised with some of the changes, though a few did feel right to me. I'm hoping season two goes a long way to redeem some aspects for me and I have all summer to forget how much I disliked season one.
DeleteGood review! I agree with you - it was a pretty rocky start but it improved over the course of the season, especially the guys playing Alec and Jace (wasn't he in Vampire Academy, too?). The actor playing Magnus was a hundred times better than the guy in the movie. For the most part, I liked what changes they mase - the little details from that alternate dimension episode were great. I also liked that everyone was aged up.
ReplyDeleteYah he was in Vampire Academy (he played Christian). Magnus was so great he was more or less the one thing keeping me actually interested in the show. The alternate dimension was just brilliant and I hope they return to that dimension at some point just for fun. Everyone being aged up was a really smart move and actually helped me connect with them.
Delete