Look folks, I love Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom.
They are excellent books, full of captivating characters, and who doesn’t love a good, impossibly complex heist? But the shows inspired by these beloved stories — and Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone trilogy — are simply not it. The actors are doing a spectacular job, but they’re doing it with dull, uninspired material whose few fine moments are snatched directly from Bardugo’s pages. Everything else — which equals out to the vast majority of the show — veers much too far from the source material, and as a result is excessively safe, overstuffed, and painfully vanilla.
Despite this fact, frantic Shadow and Bone fans are putting the work in to see the show return. It might arrive as a letdown if it ever does get the greenlight from Netflix, but fans are determined to get a season three anyway.
Their chances of success are slim — if the Warrior Nun fandom is anything to go by — but fans aren’t giving up easy. At least the Shadow and Bone campaign will help keep fantasy fans distracted from the Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom leak, which ruined several of the game’s plot points for gamers lacking in self control.
The game’s official release is only a few weeks away, so we won’t be dodging spoilers for long, but fans of Bad Cinderella may have a far harder time on the internet over the next few weeks. The musical was completely absent from the Tony’s list of 2023 nominations, a fact that very few fans seem to disagree with. Those that support the musical, however, are finding themselves disgruntled by the bad rap it’s getting online.
It’s not alone in getting negative feedback, of course, with Disney’s Peter Pan & Wendy also facing harsh criticism in the wake of its release. Plenty of people enjoyed the film just fine, of course, but it’s simply unfair to draw comparisons between it and Hook, an enduring cult classic.
Bad Cinderella earns a thorough dragging, and zero Tony nominations
A fresh attempt at the story of Cinderella isn’t doing so great in the awards sphere, but the news doesn’t seem to be disappointing many. The supposedly feminist reimagining of the timeless classic failed to secure a single nomination for the upcoming Tonys, and few people are sad to see the musical flop. Those who’ve seen it largely seem to agree that it deserves exactly zero acclaim for missing its mark by a mile, but a few people decried the decision to ignore the colorful costumes and clear talent of Evil Stepmother actress Carolee Carmello.
Tears of the Kingdom leaks two weeks ahead of its official release
Plot details for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom were leaked online earlier this week, less than half a month ahead of the game’s official release. The news sent spoiler-wary gamers into a panic, as they rushed to take avoidance measures on social media, and dodge details about the upcoming game. It did little to leech hype from the title’s official release, however, as eager Zelda fans continue to count the days until the sequel to Breath of the Wild officially comes available.
Netflix fans fight tooth and nail for a third season of Shadow and Bone
Season two of Shadow and Bone was middling at best. Don’t come for me, people, I desperately wanted to like it but… it wasn’t good. It was overstuffed, with far too many sparring storylines, and the level of commitment was hugely disappointing. If Kaz is going to get beaten, I want to see my man battered. Inej’s tiny little arm scratches? Are you kidding? And the dialogue… don’t even get me started. This is Netflix, a place where Disney-esque restrictions don’t exist, so why is this show so painfully safe? While I agree that the cast consistently crushes it — particularly characters like Jesper and Nina — they’re working with dull, tired material and even the best actor can only do so much.
Despite these and plenty more complaints, Shadow and Bone has a robust fanbase, and they want to see the show return for a third season. They’re also pushing for a Six of Crows spin-off — something I’m entirely behind, but only if the writers learn how to adapt an existing work, instead of creating low-quality fan fiction — and they’re utilizing a clever method to urge Netflix in the right direction. Rather than flood the streets with billboards or Twitter with hashtags, a la Warrior Nun’s fanbase, Shadow and Bone fans are simply gaming those viewership numbers to convince Netflix the show is worth saving.
There’s no comparing Hook and Peter Pan & Wendy
The latest Peter Pan release is largely earning praise for its sweet and stylish take on the classic story, but few viewers think the film is overly necessary. The story of Neverland and the Lost Boys has been told countless times over the years, but few iterations of the story go in quite so daring a direction as Hook. The 1991 film approaches the story from an entirely new angle, and thus any comparisons between it and Peter Pan & Wendy are simply unfair. The two films couldn’t be more different, and while Peter Pan & Wendy might be a particularly delightful take on the story, it simply doesn’t have the cult classic staying power of Hook.