S01.E02: The Descent Into Hell Isn't Easy

[Kromm]

With the knowledge that Valentine is alive and on the hunt for The Mortal Cup, the Institute is on high alert. Not wasting any time, Jace jumps into action and figures Clary's memories are the key to finding Jocelyn and The Mortal Cup. Unfortunately, Clary's memories were wiped leaving her without any recollection of this other life that could help her and the team. With only one other option remaining, Jace, Isabelle and a very reluctant Alec take Clary to the City of Bones to face the powerful Silent Brothers.

 

Broadcast on the 19th, but available a week earlier on Freeform's website.

Edited January 13, 2016 by AmandaPanda
added episode summary

[Pixel]

So, I've read all the books and watched the first two episodes. It has potential, but I really hope the acting gets better. It's pretty stilted and there's not really anyone in the cast that's doing a great job of not looking and sounding like they are reading lines.

[galax-arena]

I think Simon's acting is decent, but I find his character irritating. So, kind of a trade-off? On the plus side, he isn't being a total Nice Guy the way he was in the books, but it's only been two episodes...

 

But Clary's actress is horrible. I was cringing during her "I'll do whatever it takes... I have to find my mom!" speech. 

 

Also, I feel like if I hadn't read the books, I'd have a hard time following what's going on. Of course, they did change a lot from the books, but since I know the basics it's pretty easy to figure out. 

[Primetimer]

And more not-so-burning questions from the second episode of Freeform's new YA adaptation.

Read the story

[Pixel]

Ha! I liked the recap. I've read the entire series so it was amusing and interesting to see it recapped from the perspective of someone who doesn't already know these characters.

Edited January 20, 2016 by Pixel

[Kromm]

This episode brings The Stupid far harder than the Pilot. My eyes were rolling so hard during this one they were sore by the end.

[AmeliaBedelia]

As a fan of the books and the movie, Shadowhunters has been disappointing thus far. The second ep did not hold my attention at all.

 

My biggest complaint is that KM is terrible as Clary. I couldn't tell if Clary was distressed over her mother's kidnapping or if she just had a stomachache. Plus, the bright orange hair looks ridiculous.

 

I see potential with Jace. I wish the actor was allowed to use his British accent.

 

Hate Isabelle. They made her too overtly sexual. Less is more show.

 

I like looking at Alec and HS as Magnus is way better than the movie version.

 

I wish we could skip ahead to events that take place in City of Ashes since that hasn't been done in a visual format yet.

[GaT]

Yeah, I'm giving this one more episode & if there isn't an improvement, I'm done. The acting is really bad & carrot head is way too distracting.

[Glory]

I think Clary is probably the weakest actor on the show. But the guy who plays Alec is actually cracking me up with some of his line delivery. The "I can't even" hand gesture when Simon started talking just about killed me. 

 

I liked the books, so I like seeing these folks on my tv. I hope it sticks around for a while. Also - more Magnus Chang stat! 

[Chicken Wing]

If they could fuse this Clary with Lily Collins's Clary together into one person, that'd be perfect. But as is, Lily's Clary did nothing for me, and Katherine's Clary, O She Of The Cheeto-Colored Hair, just annoys me. The guy who plays Jace is all right, but the writers aren't doing the character any favors by withholding his trademark sarcasm. That is Jace. Without it, he's just a blank slate of Teen Fangirl Swoonworthiness. Not very interesting, and the chemistry between him and Clary so far is nonexistent.

[Texasmom1970]

Watching this episode it dawned on me why they gave her that awful Chester the Cheetah colored hair. They are trying to distract us from the lack of acting chops.

I think they figure between her hair and the half dressed actors we would be distracted like some are by shiny objects!

[justcris]

I find myself liking this show, despite all the obvious faults (looks cheap, actors are mostly meh). It actually kind of makes me want to read the books. I think I'll stick with it and hope it improves.

[Bec]

The serious one (Alec?) made me laugh when he said Simon is "not that funny" after Simon called himself "the funny best friend". The recap is right though, when Simon took his shirt off last episode, I was like "Daaamn" at his six-pack. But it doesn't make up for how annoying he is.

 

It was slightly amusing when Simon was immediately distracted away from Clary by Isabelle's hotness. And it's a bit of good news if Isabelle was telling the truth about how Jace is like a brother to her. Maybe Isabelle and Simon can be a thing because I would really appreciate it if the show can kill the love triangles/polygons already.

 

Did this show get ahold of some of Buffy the Vampire Slayer's old props and sets? I could have sworn I've seen those robed guys with their eyes and mouths sewn shut on Buffy before. It was creepy then and it's still creepy now, but been there seen that.

 

And to continue my Buffy comparison - by the time we were two episodes into Buffy, she had already kicked all kinds of ass. When is Clary going to stop requiring ten pep-talks per episode to do next to nothing?

[justcris]

 

Did this show get ahold of some of Buffy the Vampire Slayer's old props and sets? I could have sworn I've seen those robed guys with their eyes and mouths sewn shut on Buffy before. It was creepy then and it's still creepy now, but been there seen that.

 

 

Haha not only those, but the demon Clary faced at her apartment looked straight out of Buffy too!

[Adira]

And to continue my Buffy comparison - by the time we were two episodes into Buffy, she had already kicked all kinds of ass. When is Clary going to stop requiring ten pep-talks per episode to do next to nothing?

 

In Clary's defense, she's totally new to this Shadowhunter business.  In Buffy, she had already been the slayer and done a bunch of butt-kicking before the show had started.

[that one guy]

I find myself liking this show, despite all the obvious faults (looks cheap, actors are mostly meh). It actually kind of makes me want to read the books.

 

I don't know if I like the show enough to give it another week, but it does actually make me want to read the books someday. The setup has potential. The show, though . . . Look, there's a reason Luke didn't find out Vader was his father until the second movie. Clary, as others have pointed out above, hasn't done anything yet. If she were a smart person, she wouldn't believe everything she was being fed by these people who are protecting her by basically holding her prisoner without corroborating evidence. How does she even know this Valentine guy has her mother? We do, because the show cuts away to those scenes. But Clary can't see those scenes. She should have battled Valentines forces for a least a few more weeks before finding out he was her dad. Then the reveal would carry some weight.

 

Also, Dot? Dot is very attractive, and I am interested in the character. The pilot appeared to leave her dead, but then she wasn't dead, and now the second episode appears to leave her dead again. Please go ahead and spoil me. Is she dead? Is she not dead? Is this going to be a running gag where she dies every week like Kenny on South Park?

 

Loved the recap. 

In what ways are Alec and Jace different people?

 

Oh, look. That guy has a name, it's Alec! He does seem totally extraneous as a character so far, doesn't he? The big difference is Jace has stupid hari. I forget Alec's on the show except when he reminds people how many rules they are breaking. But they don't seem to have a boss. Do they have some kind of management software that's telling them "approved," "deinied," "restricted" or whatever? I will care that they are breaking the rules when they have a boss or superior officer who shows up to yell at them. Otherwise I'm not even sure what rules they are talking about. Are Shadowhunters a clandestine government agency or something? Who to they report to? Who makes the rules?

IS HIS ALLEGIANCE TO PUTIN???

 

Oh please let this be true. Putin needs to collect three magical objects that will allow him to RULE THE WORLD or something like that. And he's really Rasputin or something. 

[GaT]

Also, Dot? Dot is very attractive, and I am interested in the character. The pilot appeared to leave her dead, but then she wasn't dead, and now the second episode appears to leave her dead again. Please go ahead and spoil me. Is she dead? Is she not dead? Is this going to be a running gag where she dies every week like Kenny on South Park?

 

Dot is not in the books (not even sure why they invented her) so the only way to find out if she's perma dead is to keep watching :-)

[Bec]

In Clary's defense, she's totally new to this Shadowhunter business.

Fair enough. I hope to see her kicking ass soon, because that's what the poster art led me to expect. So far Clary is so insipid it feels like a bait-and-switch. I don't know if the character is supposed to be like this or if it's the acting or the script? Maybe she'll grow out of that as things progress? It's still early. I really want to like her.

[wayne67]

When the Night Children smarmed about the accords, I wondered if that covered the whole kidnapping a mundane and also accord with who ?

 

I liked Simon more than most of the other characters... but since I don't like any of the other characters it's not much of a recommendation of his impact. It's just nice to see somehow freaking out and being suspicious in one of this supernatural tales since most others just have them confused for a few minutes then immediately jump on the supernatural bandwagon. 

 

I agree that these shadowhunters could do with a visible superior to undermine by going on this unapproved missions because at the moment being informed they're not supposed to be doing the things they're doing has no impact at all. 

[Sunspot2003]

As a former Vampire Diaries viewer they seem to be making Clary very Elena when she needs to be a bit more Katherine.

The silent brothers were suitably creepy though, and I am still on board for hopefully a lot more Mike Chang.

[queenanne]

Yeah, I won't stick with this.  Was willing to give it a chance as it seemed a free way to check out the work of Cassandra "Plagiarist" Clare without having to give her any royalties, but the mythology's just not that interesting to me onscreen.