Alina, Nikolai, and their crew stayed safe in the tunnels after Kirigan’s attack.
Shadow and Bone Season 2 Episode 5 saw Alina try and break the bond that still linked her and Kirigan.
Luckily, she had help from one of the most powerful amplifiers in the entire Grishaverse: Baghra.
Baghra and Genya managed to find their way to the underground tunnels to save themselves from Kirigan’s wrath.
Alina welcomed Genya with open arms, but Nikolai hesitated to trust the talented tailor.
Upon learning Genya’s name, Nikolai wanted to arrest her for the poisoning of (and attempted murder of) his father, the King.
Alina immediately stood up for Genya as she saw the horrible new scars on the girl’s face that Kirigan had left her.
Nikolai backed down and apologized, but his anger was understandable.
Genya did poison his father over a long period, but it was because he was under the manipulation and control of General Kirigan.
She also ran into a similar issue with Nikolai’s mother, Queen Tatiana, which Nikolai quickly stopped (thankfully).
Kirigan’s influence could still be felt by most of the people underground, mainly through Alina.
Alina still harbored that strange bond between herself and the Darkling, but luckily she now had Baghra to help her potentially fight the bond.
Baghra “forced” Alina to face her fears and emotions head-on. Baghra made Alina realize she was part of why the bond was still present.
Every time Alina would think about Kirigan, every time her hatred towards him boiled to the top, Alina kept the bond active.
The same went for every time Kirigan thought of her, but he potentially knew that and was doing it on purpose.
Alina tried to break the bond between the two, purposefully put herself into the bond, controlled herself throughout the projection, and manipulated Kirigan.
Sadly, her focus wavered because Mal thought she was overloading her power, which may have caused her death.
This caused the two lifelong to get into a massive argument, which they did not make up for by the end of the hour.
Nikolai and Alina planned on going their separate ways, as they had different missions that needed their undivided attention.
Speaking of different missions, Tolya and Zoya found the Crows and hired them on behalf of Nikolai and Alina.
The Crows headed to Shu Han to try and steal the blade called the Neshyenyer, which can slice through shadow.
The sword is needed for Alina and her fight against the Darkling because his new shadow monsters are a force to be reckoned with.
They cannot be affected by regular attacks, and while Alina’s Sun Summoning magic slowed them down, it didn’t stop them.
The Neshyenyer is vital to Alina and the rest of her crew’s quest to stop Kirigan, so hopefully, the Crows can escape the messy situation they find themselves in.
The Crows figured out the sword’s location within Shu Han, but things didn’t go as planned once they enacted their plan to steal it.
They got trapped inside the collector’s (the person they are stealing from) home, with potentially deadly gas pumped into the room.
Tolya seemed to have a plan, however, as he started to slow his heart rate and was the only one that didn’t pass out from the fumes.
Hopefully, he can enact a plan quickly, potentially with the help of Wylan, who remained on the outside.
Nina also got attacked when tailing the collector with Zoya, which caused her to slow her heart rate to make it seem like she passed out.
Things don’t look too good for the Crows, which mimics the romantic relationships within the crew.
Jesper and Wylan have already found something that may jeopardize their relationship.
Jesper discovered that Wylan could not read, and he made a patronizing passing comment that offended Wylan. In the process of apologizing, Wylan offended him.
Wylan brought up Jesper’s Zemeni/Grisha blood and how he shouldn’t feel ashamed for being a Grisha.
Jesper stormed off, angry that another person figured out his secret and tried to patronize him into thinking it was a gift, not a curse.
The two found their first argument! We worried about the relationship until the attacks against the Crows worried us more about their safety than any lovers’ quarrel.
Speaking of lovers’ quarrels, Inej and Kaz, aka Kinej, still fought throughout the episode. Inej joined them on their mission to Shu Han, but not for Kaz, for Alina.
The two never admitted to their feelings for each other, and while Kaz may be angry at Inej for not following his previous plan, he still harbored feelings for the Wraith.
Hopefully, once the Crows emerge from Shu Han, they will discuss their working and romantic relationship.
This episode featured a great start to a heist and some powerful emotion from Alina and her crew, but it didn’t feature as much quality as Shadow and Bone Season 2 Episode 4.
Luckily, there are still three hours to go in the thrilling second season, and we can’t wait to see how the second season ends.
What did you think of the fifth episode?
Are you excited to see the inevitable showdown between Kirigan and Alina?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! Shadow and Bone Season 2 is now streaming on Netflix.
Michael Stack is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.