Like a gift that keeps giving, Netflix has decided to take another well-known literary world and spin it into an eight-part live-action adaptation. Based on a mix of Leigh Bardugo’s bestselling Shadow and Bone book (from the Grisha trilogy) as well as its Six of Crows duology, the series will be led by ‘Bird Box’ and ‘Arrival’ writer Eric Heisserer. But as with any adaptation, will they be able to do the original work justice? After all, there’s just so much more room for expansion in a literary world as compared to a limited series. Before it’s slated release of April 23, 2021, let’s delve into the Grishaverse.
What are the Grishaverse fantasy novels about?
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‘Shadow and Bone’ -the first of the Grisha trilogy- is narrated by Alina Starkov, a teenage orphan who grows up in the Russia-inspired land of Ravka. Alina and her friend Mal are making their way through the Unsea (also called the Shadow Fold), a perpetually dark, barren, strip of land cutting most of Ravka off from the sea. Monsters inhabit the Unsea, and during their crossing Alina unexpectedly harnesses a power (known as a ‘Grisha talent’) she never knew she had to save Mal. With this discovery, she is rushed to training, as the leader of the Grisha, recognises that her unique and valuable power would make her a target of their enemies. The Grisha are an elite army of magical soldiers, people with the ability to manipulate the elements to use as weapons, e.g. to call fire, to summon wind, to stop hearts. Alina can summon light. While training, she struggles to fit in with other Grisha and to have confidence in her own abilities. She soon finds that allies and enemies can be one and the same and that nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. There are dangerous forces at play, including a crew of charismatic criminals, and it will take more than magic to survive.
When Entertainment Weekly questioned Bardugo about her inspiration for the series, she said:
“The question became, ‘What if darkness was a place?’ What if the monsters lurking there were real and more horrible than anything you’d ever imagined beneath your bed or behind the closet door? What if you had to fight them on their own territory, blind and helpless in the dark? These ideas eventually became the Shadow Fold.”
Now the ‘Six of Crows’, on the other hand, also takes place in the same world as the Grisha books but set in a different location and time. Where Alina’s world was inspired by 1800 Russia,’ Six of Crows’ is set in a world loosely inspired by the Dutch Republic of the 17th century. And instead of having a main narrator, the plot is told from the close third-person viewpoints of five different characters, plus a first and last chapter from the point of view of two minor characters. It focuses on a group of street kids who attempt a dangerous heist. In ‘Six of Crows’, we’re introduced to Kaz Brekker (a master thief and lock pick), Inej Ghafa (a knife-wielding tightrope walker), Matthias Helvar (a former witch hunter who hates the Grisha), Nina Zenik (a powerful Grisha with the power to damage a person’s internal organs), Jesper Fahey (a sharpshooter with a gambling problem).
Who are the actors set to star in the series?
The cast of ‘Shadow and Bone’ are no less than extraordinary. Leading the pack is Chinese-English actress Jessie Mei Li who is set to play the orphan soldier Alina Starkov. The 25-year-old has previously worked on Edgar Wright’s psychological thriller ‘Last Night in Soho’. Alongside her is actor Ben Barnes, who will bring the commander of the magical military elite – General Kirigan to life. You may recognise him from ‘Westworld’, ‘The Punisher’, or for his earlier role as Prince Caspian in ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’. To complete the cast of regulars is Nepali ‘Doctor Who’ actress Amita Suman as Inej Ghafa, ‘Pennyworth’ actor Freddy Carter as Kaz Brekker, Archie Renaux (‘Voyagers’) as Malyen Oretsev and Kit Young (‘Endeavour’) as Jesper Fahey.
Watch the epic trailer here:
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