S01.E06: The Heart Is An Arrow

[paulvdb]

Quote

Furious over the Sun Summoner, Kirigan hunts for information. Alina receives a helping hand when she needs it most. Nina warms to a Grisha hunter.

 

[Zonk]

Well at least the always missing each other trope, I complained about in last episodes thread, didn't last that long. Still was a bit annoying that it took them forever to figure out that their letters were intercepted. Makes them seem stupid. And we are supposed to root for these characters, aren't we?

But I do like a good hairy chest, So show, you've won me back over with your northern withchunter-witch buddy comedy / romance.

Edited April 24, 2021 by Zonk

[Kirsty]

On 4/24/2021 at 7:45 PM, Zonk said:

So show, you've won me back over with your northern withchunter-witch buddy comedy / romance.

Yeah, I like these two. The Irish actress is playing charming and pragmatic. I don't know if she's trying to put on a different accent, but all I can hear is Irish and it's perfect for the role. The American guy is doing really well with that northern European monotone and the uptight personality. And they're two good-looking people. Keep it up, Nina and Matthias!

[tennisgurl]

Yeah the Nina and Mathias thing is working for me more than I expected it to, the actors have a lot of chemistry, they really spark in that "I like you against my better judgement" kind of way. Its like their in a roundtrip romcom but with extra kidnapping in the midst of all these high fantasy shenanigans.

Glad that Mal and Alina found each other quickly in this episode and they got the mailed thing sorted (heh) even if they really should have figured out sooner that something was up. 

Not a smart idea to insult and threaten the woman with her knife in your gut, no matter how pissed you are. I am not surprised that Inej let Alina go, she's basically her religions brand new messiah of course she doesent want to do anything to hurt her. 

Another shout out to the costuming and set design, they are doing great work. So many details, so much pretty. 

[s-k-s]

The ocean scene made me think of Titanic .... There was room for Jack on the piece of wood, Rose!

[MissL]

I’m not saying I don’t love it..because I do...but wow the whole witch /witch hunter thing is very tropey to the point of fanfic or a romance novel. Oh look we hate each other but are secretly intrigued by each other, now we are the only survivors of a shipwreck and we happen across the well decked out place with furs and a bed and we must get naked and huddle to get warm but end up cuddling in our sleep....but damn if I don’t fall for all of it anyway. They’ve got me interested.  Very curious how and when they wrap into the rest of the story eventually.

And good lord Mal and Alina just KISS already..come on this is ridiculous.

Wait. Is Jesper Gresha? That shooting is a bit too good.

And the general may be evil but he’s hot.

[ZeeEnnui]

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The ocean scene made me think of Titanic .... There was room for Jack on the piece of wood, Rose!

This! I've been saying it for years. The only reason Jack died was because Rose was a big floating plank hog.

I love how tough and pragmatic Nina is. Despite being an obvious romance story about a witch spy and a witch hunter that wants to burn her alive, I'm here for it because of the acting (and shirtless Matthias). Was I the only one getting Jon Snow and Ygritte vibes from those two?

On 4/29/2021 at 8:15 PM, MissL said:

And good lord Mal and Alina just KISS already..come on this is ridiculous.

 

YES. Seriously. We all get what you guys are saying "I'll always find you" is code for "I like totes love you forever and ever." Maybe next time you find each other, get under each other because that's clearly what you want. Also, these two are so dumb. The only people more stuck together are Siamese twins, so if you don't hear from one another, the logical conclusion is that someone is stopping the letters. SMDH.

Zoya, maybe take it down like ten notches. Her jealousy is so obvious i'm surprised her kefta didn't turn green. Honestly, she's just one of the weakest characters in the show. Her one dimensional bitch routine is pretty tired. Look, I get that when you go Black Heretic you never go back, but no one likes an insecure inferni.

Shirtless count only 2 out of 3. C'mon, show. I'm sure we could have found a way to make General Gothigan take off his shirt this episode. Give the people what they want.

I'm sorry but I call bullshit. Mal should have at least 15 (if not more) festering bullet wounds all over his body. 

 

[Haleth]

I am so bored with Alina and Mal.  Is it because this is YA literature that they are so vapid?  I am enjoying the Crows so much more and am now interested in Nina and Matthias.  Even though it's such a cliched story, the actors are appealing and I'm rooting for those crazy kids.  

On 5/1/2021 at 3:00 AM, ZeeEnnui said:

Was I the only one getting Jon Snow and Ygritte vibes from those two?

Ugh, Ygritte was an annoying pain in the ass.  Nina is smarter and more pragmatic.

[angora]

On 4/29/2021 at 10:15 PM, MissL said:

I’m not saying I don’t love it..because I do...but wow the whole witch /witch hunter thing is very tropey to the point of fanfic or a romance novel. Oh look we hate each other but are secretly intrigued by each other, now we are the only survivors of a shipwreck and we happen across the well decked out place with furs and a bed and we must get naked and huddle to get warm but end up cuddling in our sleep....but damn if I don’t fall for all of it anyway. They’ve got me interested.  Very curious how and when they wrap into the rest of the story eventually.

This is exactly where I am. The naked cuddling for warmth was 100% preordained by the romance-trope gods, but Nina and Matthias are still making it work for me. They have a good spark together - I love how she knows every button of his to press, while his accusations/insults against her (which, plainly, are increasingly becoming "this is what I'm supposed to believe" and not "this is what I believe") just roll off her back. Yes, all this stuff is cliche, but the cliches exist for a reason.

On 4/24/2021 at 1:45 PM, Zonk said:

Well at least the always missing each other trope, I complained about in last episodes thread, didn't last that long. Still was a bit annoying that it took them forever to figure out that their letters were intercepted. Makes them seem stupid. And we are supposed to root for these characters, aren't we?

Yeah, I wouldn't have wanted it dragged out for too long, either. That said, I'm glad that Alina didn't go straight from Kirigan to Mal, and not just because of the awesomeness of her hiding in the Crows' carriage to get away in the last episode. I appreciate getting a brief sequence in which she's on her own working to figure things out/protect herself. She's spent so much time either 1) basing her decisions more on other people than herself or 2) having her decisions manipulated or taken out of her hands, so I'm glad she was able to counteract that for a bit. Hopefully, that experience will help her keep her perspective now that she and Mal are back together.

Damn, look at those Crows go! Each one going up against a severely pissed-off Grisha and living to tell the tale.

• Inej taking on the vengeful sister of the guy she killed in episode 5. I really like that she initially DIDN'T want to kill the woman, instructing her not to pull the knife out until she got to a healer, but when the Grisha threatened those she loves (presumably Kaz and Jesper?), Inej decided not to let her go. Whereas, in the last episode, she acted in the heat of a life-or-death situation, this was a deliberate choice.
• I loved the scene of Jesper with his Grisha foe - the setting with all the hanging sheets made for such a classic "hiding/running from/confronting the bad guy" atmosphere, and even the Grisha was impressed by Jesper shooting him three times in the exact same spot from different vantage points! (Side note: it's interesting to me that, for all of Jesper's incredible marksmanship, we've mostly seen him shooting THINGS or monsters, not people, and here, he specifically chooses non-lethal shots, hitting the guy in his bulletproof kefta.)
• And oh man, Kaz facing off with Kirigan! Kaz obviously knew he wouldn't be able to fight Kirigan, just waited for his moment to escape, but I loved how cool and calm he stayed in the face of such danger. Going so far as to taunt Kirigan about Alina running away from him? The balls on this guy!

[dubbel zout]

On 5/1/2021 at 3:00 AM, ZeeEnnui said:

Look, I get that when you go Black Heretic you never go back, but no one likes an insecure inferni.

LOL. I can't blame her for her jealousy. If only that stupid virginal Sun Summoner hadn't been found, Zoya could have been neatening Alek's desk and messing up his bed for longer.

I don't mind all of the tropes in this show, except for some of the truly dumb ones, like the letters. It was really stupid Mal and Alina didn't figure that one out.