Shadowhunters Season One Review

In 2013, just before I read the book series, The Mortal Instruments was adapted into the infamous City of Bones movie that ultimately flopped.  In 2015 it was announced that the series was getting another shot at success--this time an unrelated TV show with a brand new cast and set of writers.  But maybe it didn't quite succeed in the way we had hoped.

It always baffles me when adaptations of well written books somehow manage to be poorly written, and Shadowhunters is included in that.  Instead of simply pulling the witty, sarcastic quotes from the book we already know and love, the writers attempted to come up with new lines...that just come off as cheesy and awkward.  In fact, the show doesn't capture the essence of the book series very much at all. 

The show doesn't follow the book plot too closely, which is fine, except when it doesn't make sense.  There is unnecessary drama invented to catch the audience's attention and some serious plot holes.  The world building often doesn't line up and plot lines created in one episode are thrown out in the next.  It's a bit all over the place.  Instead of allowing for a slow, natural build, things happen without having any real repercussions which greatly deteriorates the value of the story and the character arcs.  

What makes the book series so beloved is the cast of characters, all of whom are complex individuals.  I for one have no issue with the actors cast for the roles of the characters, for the most part.  Alberto Rosende (Simon) and Alan Van Sprang (Valentine) are particularly fantastic.  However, the writers transformed these deep, multi-faceted characters and stripped them down to a base level that is easy to sell to an audience.  

Clary Fray, formerly stubborn and passionate, has been reduced to a damsel in distress cliche while the ever complicated Jace is now a stereotypical brooding hero.  Their romance is awkward and forced, given that it was not allowed a substantial amount of time to develop.  Other than that, quite a few of the others are given lines or plots that are extremely uncharacteristic and are robbed of their deeper personality traits.

The special effects, just like the writing, is cheesy.  This was to be expected coming from Freeform (which I still call ABC Family).  I can forgive the effects for the most part, although the knock-off light sabers that they insist on calling seraph blades are laughable.  The fight sequences are brilliant on occasion and look quite posed the rest of the time.  They could benefit from watching Daredevil for pointers.  

Shadowhunters is entertaining and I had the best time watching the episodes, despite the flaws and my criticism.  While the shots often lack creativity and are shot straight on, it is still rather visually pleasing overall and a fun experience.

The show is not exactly the second chance we all hoped for, but I am prepared to give it the benefit of the doubt and wish for the best next season.