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SHADOWHUNTERS Recap & Review: “Awake, Arise, Or Be Forever Fallen”

Secrets and threats are finally coming to a head on Shadowhunters with a few interesting twists. And did we mention all the Malec?!

Things start off right where they left off: Max and Jonathan in Alec’s office, where Max soon realizes he’s in way over his head. He impales a blade into Jonathan’s torso, only to have him yank it right back out. It’s not long before Jonathan cracks open the side of Max’s head. Before he can finish the job, he hears voices in the hall, quickly hides the body, and pretends to be waiting for Alec. Before Clary can look around and form any suspicions, Alec summons both of them to the Operations Center for a meeting: The Mortal Mirror is hidden in the building–its location hidden to all but a few people– and they all know Jonathan will come for it.

Meanwhile, Magnus and Luke are having their meeting with The Seelie Queen, where Magnus shares Alec’s secret about The Soul Sword. It’s quickly clear that the queen is ready for war against Valentine and the rest of the Shadowhunters alike and she expects the Downworld to break off The Accords, the peace agreement between Shadowhunters and The Downworld. While Luke immediately says no and gets berated as a failure by the queen, Magnus is more hesitant. WTF MAGNUS. YOUR MORAL COMPASS IS BETTER THAN THIS. He’s basically considering treason! The Queen gives him a rose and tells him to make his final decision before the petals turn black.

Out on the streets, Simon and Maia are getting along swimmingly after their paddle boating date, despite Simon almost killing a few ducks. They’re just about to share a kiss under the full moon when they hear screaming nearby and stumble upon something horrific: A werewolf attacking a mundane. The wolf skedaddles as soon as he sees Maia, but she already knows who it is. We also find out who his victim was: Bartholomew “Bat” Velasquez. Bat is here, guys!

 

Things are equally bloody over at The Institute as Isabelle search for Max finds her following a trail of blood. She finds her little brother unconscious in her room, where he came looking for her in his last moments of lucidity.

Max is soon in The Institute medical center (they have one of those now!) and it’s quickly determined that he’ll need a special procedure from The Silent Brothers that few Shadowhunters survive. Jonathan walks away looking smug.

Back at his apartment, Magnus remembers the first day Alec slept at his apartment. More like passed out on his couch after drinks, actually. Their conversation is awkward but you can tell the two have a connection, even if they fight it. When Magnus comes back to reality, his rose is starting to wilt.

At Jade Wolf, Holly shows up with her girlfriend Sam to creep on Luke. Their conversation is interrupted by Maia, much to Holly’s amusement, and she tells him about Bat. They join Simon and Bat in the boathouse and quietly decide to keep him there in case he turns.

Jonathan is biding his time at The Institute. He starts his quest by capturing an elite level guard– all of whom wear pseudo-police uniforms, because being slick, leather-clad badasses is probably more expensive– and getting the location out of him. When the guard is found dead, the others know Jonathan is in the building, glamored as one of their own.

Still ruminating in his apartment, Magnus stumbles upon a memory that will make fans very happy! It’s Magnus and Alec falling into bed together on their first night together. As shirts come off, Magnus sits up sharply. He’s a little hesitant and acting strange for a second, then he shyly shows his cat eyes, his warlock mark, to Alec. Wait wait wait… Is this version of Magnus ASHAMED of his warlock mark? He’s a confident, bright, centuries old warlock who is ashamed of what makes him stand out? NOOOO THANK YOU. It’s sweet that Alec reassures Magnus that he’s beautiful, but I’m all set on Magnus being presented as totally insecure. In fact, Magnus should been showing off his cat eyes way more often– we found what the crispy!Jonathan budget should actually be going toward!

Magnus’ memory is interrupted by the present Alec at his door, begging for his help in saving Max, even though we’ve already established that warlock magic can’t save Max. Geez Alec, pay attention!

After Maia tells Luke that Russell is the wolf who scratched Bat, Luke tracks Russell down at his new lair. Russell’s got a fair amount of newly turned werewolves with him and he’s feeling cocky. He challenges Luke to a death to the death for dominance. Russell gets in a few good shots, but Luke beats him handily. Rather than kill Russell, he spares him. The wolves that betrayed Luke and worked on a campaign to turn mundanes swear fealty to Luke and are immediately forgiven, because there is no justice in the world.

Back in the boathouse, Maia begins to see some bad signs in Bat. She restrains him and tries to keep him safe, but Bat turns violently, so Maia and Simon make a run for it. They head inside the restaurant to order Bat a bunch of food for his recovery. While they’re there, Maia finally opens up about how she was turned: She was attacked by her first real boyfriend, Jordan, on a walk home one night and she hasn’t seen him since. She associates the trauma with falling for Jordan, which is why she’s so hesitant to be in relationships. Our souls slowly wither.

Surprise! The Silent Brothers were right and Magnus can’t do anything for Max. He waits outside with the others while The Silent Brother try to revive him. As he grasps Alec’s hand for a moment, he has another REALLY GOOD memory: The morning after their first time together, when he and Alec wake up snuggled in bed. After some cute banter, Alec asks Magnus what he’s afraid of. Magnus avoids the question and you see something deeper and vulnerable under the surface. It’s a heartwarming memory and your hope for them is so high afterward!

With his newfound knowledge and a quick distraction for Jace, Jonathan storms The Mortal Mirror’s hideout, killing every guard along the way. It’s a good action sequences, but I gotta admit, Will Tudor’s “fierce yet joyful” face made me laugh out loud, which may be a little inappropriate in the context of a mass slaughter.

When he tries to calmly leave The Institute after the heist, he’s stopped by Clary. She’s figured out a way to screen for Jonathan: She’s taken a sample of electrum from Izzy’s whip and she’s making each Shadowhunter hold it, knowing that Jonathan can’t tolerate electrum. He holds it in his cupped hand, slowly drops it into Clary’s palm, and tries to walk away calmly. But Clary catches on to his lack of willingness to show his hand and flips it over. An angry, red welt awaits. The two automatically begin fighting for supremacy, but it’s hard when Jonathan is used to pain and only temporarily slowed down when stabbed. He mourns that he won’t be able to “have” Clary and we’re reminded of his baser nature (Ew.) Then Clary stabs him in the neck and steals The Mortal Mirror back. YAAAAAAAS! Unfortunately, he still runs off.

Meanwhile, in the medical center, Max has miraculously survived The Silent Brothers’ procedure. Which…. I have mixed feelings about. When Jocelyn, who was much more central to the plot, was killed off early on the show, we were constantly reminded that her death served a purpose for character development. Well, same goes for Max’s death. It’s a massive catalyst for Alec and in particular, Isabelle’s character growth and decisions moving forward. And honestly, he doesn’t add much to the story. Why keep him and kill off a character like Jocelyn? Also, for reasons I won’t spoil Max NOT dying makes the “One will die” hype pretty silly. BECAUSE REASONS.

If that isn’t enough for you, Magnus makes his way out of Max’s room and Alec follows. As Alec passionately argues for their love, Magnus gives in to his deepest fear: That he can’t have Alec and be a worthy representative of his people at the same time. He walks away from Alec, leaving ALL OF US utterly devastated.

Maia and Simon help Bat when he returns to human form and soon, the newly reassembled New York pack is meeting in Jade Wolf. Luke gives a warm welcome speech even to the people he should totally be punishing. Everything seems cool again… until we zoom in on a hidden camera in the restaurant. On the other side of the feed, Holly and Sam watch Luke as he admits that he and his followers are werewolves. Thaaaaaat’s not going to end well!

In the final scene, Alec, Isabelle, Clary, and Jace sit in Alec’s office. Clary tried to nullify The Mortal Mirror and actually destroyed it. Isabelle is blaming herself for allowing Sebastian/Jonathan into The Institute. It’s not happy times all around. While they try to figure out how The Mortal Mirror could possibly be destroyed, Clary thinks back on the visions she saw after looking in the mirror. She realized that the compact isn’t the actual Mortal Mirror, just a clue leading to the real Mortal Mirror: Lake Lyn.

And if she can figure it out, so can Valentine.

Until next time!

By Nat, the Geek Girl

Southern California native who likes movies, books (Shadowhunter Chronicles, NA, YA fantasy, Red Rising series), TV shows (The Sandman), and San Diego Comic-Con. I also like to write, but don't get to do much of that aside from on here. I fell into the BTS rabbit hole, and I refuse to leave.