You know, this show has an age limit I think. Maybe I would have liked it better as a teenager, but now I have seen a lot more and am quite fed up already with lots of it.
All of a sudden Clary is all tough talk/tough attitude, talking like she’s a part of them and acting like a slayer. Very bossy too, what she thinks is always right, and her powers are growing like she’s an angel herself, and she fights better than wonder-woman. Really, they show us that shadowhunters are trained from birth, educated and trained day after day for years, and yet she just became one and she can take down trained men like nothing. Who put adamantium in her bones? And I did say ‘men’, plural, because of course she can fight more than one at a time like it was nothing. They are really pushing it, huh? Still, her fighting skills that I suppose are required to make the show cool and make her look like a hero could be accepted, but she’s so bossy and so bloody arrogant, and only cares about herself, despite what she says. She listens to nobody if they go against what she wants - when she wanted to bring back her mom and she caused a major disaster and several deaths, for example. She ignored Magnus and Jace and stopped Alec’s questions, because ‘come on, it’s ok, I’ll just sign a blood oath to do whatever this dark warlock will ask of me, what can go wrong with that?’
The werewolf-transformation, when in the first season Luke changed from wolf to human, it was an instant thing, like magic, now they keep showing that when they change from human to wolf it’s a slow zombie-like process… which doesn’t go well with the story. Luke was fighting that Valentine’s woman in season 1 and he changed to kill her while they were fighting, did she wait for him to be ready?
Malec, it was very romantic at first, but am very disappointed in Alec now.
Magnus is still one of the good things of this show, though.
Let’s see what makes this season bearable:
1 Magnus is cool
2 Sebastian has a nice accent
3 the Queen is entertaining, I like her both child and teenager
… basically, that’s it. Unfortunately this show is mostly about Jace and Clary, and I don’t like them.
Let’s go with episode by episode commentary now.
1 - This guilty blood
Victor is appointed the new head of the institute. He wants Clary and Jocelyn to stay inside, but of course they escape. He declares Jace a traitor and now Jace is ‘wanted, dead or alive’.
Alec wants to find Jace and lashes out at everyone, then asks Magnus to help him ‘after everything he did for him’ which rightly pisses Magnus a lot, but then Alec apologises.
Valentine reveals that he injected demon blood in Jace while he was still inside his mother to make him stronger, tells him he will kill sooner or later, tries everything to convert him to his cause, then takes him to a vampire place to have him kill, and Jace kills a woman vampire even after she said she surrendered to the authority of the Clave, then Jocelyn uses a crossbow to shoot at him (where did the weapon come from? She couldn’t hide that big thing in her clothes…)
Valentine is hurt instead of him because he put himself in between.
Clary instead of running to Jace who was closer, she passes by him to run to her, which is silly, so Valentine and Jace go back through a portal.
2 - A door into the dark
Jace brought Valentine back to his hiding place.
Clary is angry with her mother and finally she tells her about the demon blood, and shows her a vision of a baby Jace killing a flower with his mind, and says the warlock told her he would bring destruction (and yet he let him into his house and offered to help… maybe he didn’t know who he was?). So that’s it, she wants to kill her own son? And after trying so desperately to find her, telling everyone that she was her everything and a wonderful person, suddenly Clary is all ‘I am not my mother’ and she’s all about finding ‘her brother’… Alec has harsh words for her, but as unpleasant as he is to her, it’s not like he’s wrong, from his point of view.
Simon still has to hide in werewolf territory because he made an enemy of Raphael by freeing Camille first and then by putting him in trouble with the Clave. He asks Magnus’ help in finding her. Vampire Simon is still terrified of snakes.
Jocelyn didn’t even tell Luke.
Clary goes out without her stele, to the academy of arts, conveniently empty so she can start drawing in a room all by herself… then ‘Dot’ abducts her and takes her to Valentine’s ship.
She says she didn’t die, but Magnus experimented on her.
Jocelyn asks Alec to use a stone for a ritual to find Jace through their parabatai bond, although he’s risking his life he says he can’t live without him.
Clary convinces Dot to help her. Valentine took a wolf from Luke’s pack and wants Jace to kill her. Clary has Jace run away with her instead with Dot’s help, but of course they live the wolf behind to be killed and Dot to be tortured, probably. How noble.
3 - Parabatai lost
Magnus tries to help Alec, but his soul is lost in the bond. Clary comes back without Jace. He finds a way to call Izzy and learns about Alec, but they can’t take him out of there and Jace is so hurt he ends up in a hospital. The wolves wants him, but Jocelyn goes to get him, and since Alec has so much time, they stay and chat and then he goes on foot…
Magnus is with him, but he’s lost in memories of growing up with Jace, and falling for him since he was a kid.
Simon’s mom is out drinking, he was worried so Clary helped him find her, and she also told him that he should tell her the truth, that if she loved him before she’ll loved him still… like being a vampire and having teenage problems is the same thing. But she was with Raphael.
With Luke and Izzy’s help, Jace gets there and Alec is saved, but Victor arrests Jace and takes him to the city of bones.
4 - Day of wrath
And… still Alec and Magnus hasn’t had their first date.
Victor tortures Raphael to find Camille and he goes to Magnus who cures him. Magnus is reluctant to hand her over because she once saved his life, some three hundred years ago, but she went too far so he summons her and banishes her to Idris after sending Raphael and Simon out.
Jocelyn is sent to Idris, but Clary doesn’t want to go with her.
Valentine lets loose a demon that moves from person to person to have them kill each other so that he has free access to the city of bones where he wants to free Jace but he refuses to follow him. Victor had asked him question at his trial in front of the silent brothers, and he couldn’t lie because of the sword he had in hand (sort of a mix between the sword of Shannara and veritaserum), so he said he can’t pledge unconditional loyalty to the clave, so Victor sentenced him to life in prison, but now Jace saves his life. Valentine escapes with the sword.
Under the demon influence, Alec kills Jocelyn, then Clary slays the demon before Isabelle can kill Alec. Victor comes in with Jace, and Simon rushes in to comfort Clary.
5 - Dust and shadows
Clary wants her mom back, like she got Simon back, and makes a deal with a female warlock who agrees, after Magnus had told her that it’s dark magic who shouldn’t be done, like he didn’t when his mother died when he was a child. Now, why didn’t anyone think of that when someone died… can’t imagine why… :-/ and the stupid girl accepted a deal, to owe her a favor when she’ll be in need of a shadowhunter. Can’t she see what that might mean?
Jace tells her no, but Alec is so full of guilt he says yes and even goes with her, and when he asks questions Clary is all ‘it ill be fine, don’t worry’, after all she only has to sign a blood oath with a powerful warrior, no worries right? I almost stopped watching the whole series because of this.
She comes to her senses before the resurrection is complete, but she already signed the blood oath, and guess what, the dark warlock doesn’t need a drive to the mall before the sales are over, no, she wants to make her pregnant with a demon child to create new warlocks, and then she’ll wipe her memories, how fun huh? And now, people will have to save her, again… only this time she saves herself having a vision of a rune that she draws on her hand and then she uses it like she was Iron Man, and Jace tells her to keep it a secret…
The warlock goes away, saying she still owes her a favour.
Simon’s annoying sister throws his blood down the toilet, then he’s going crazy so he tells him mom the truth, and really thinks she might understand… I mean really? Then she sees him feeding on a rat, since it’s daytime and he can’t go outside.
Isabelle’s wound hasn’t healed because there’s demon venom involved, so Victor gives her a special cream…
He’s also upset that Jace saved his life instead of protecting the soul-sword, because now Valentine has two of the three Mortal Instruments.
6 - Iron sisters
Isabelle is all excited to go to the Iron Sisters, the warriors who create all their weapons.
Raphael wiped Simon’s mon’s memory.
Isabelle asks for more cream, she looks addicted to it, and Victor asks her to spy on Clary.
The Iron Sisters reveal that Clary has nothing demonic on her, but Isabelle does, because that cream is not a cure, but it’s made with vampire venom or something.
To make him feel better, Magnus takes Alec to a bar, they play and chat and drink, and learn how many exes they have, which doesn’t go down well because 0 against 17000 is tough, but they get past that until Jace comes in ruining the mood, asking if Magnus has a room for him. Victor told him that if he doesn’t leave, he’ll show to everyone his ‘trial’.
Simon has werewolf Maia help him look for Luke, and they get along fine, and they get there in time to save Luke from attacking a young couple camping in the woods.
Luke’s sister Cleophas, was one of the iron sisters, and at the end we see her killing another sister and going away, with a Circle on her neck.
7 - How are thou fallen
Cleophas goes straight to Valentine. She says she still believes in him and tells him about Clary.
Simon spends time with Maia, but she knows he’s in love with Clary.
Alec finally has some time with Magnus, but Jace is always in the other room with some girl, and the guy doesn’t talk to Clary anymore and is a jerk to Simon as if he was some god-sent gift… :-/
Unfortunately Simon listens to him. What’s up with this Jace guy, why are all pining for him?
Cleophas hurts herself and goes to Luke for help, and Clary despite all her previous ‘helping family’ preaching, understands now that she’s with Valentine and wants to use that to get him, I guess causing more trouble. Yep, she stuns Luke and runs away with Cleophas. Clary has her hearing the terrible sound that’s making her crazy, and she explains that is the sound of an angel on earth crying for help. She understands now that Valentine is keeping one captive. And now that she sees the truth, Clary is all ‘you’re a traitor’…
Valentine wants to use the angel to activate the soul sword and destroy everyone on earth with demon blood, or something like that. Luke got Jace, so Jace and Clary fight the men holding him captive (just look how she fights, not bad for an art student…)
They free the angel, since he can communicate with her she comes up with another rune and breaks his chains.
Isabelle is addicted but has no more cream, so she plans to get some from vampires. Alec asks her advice about Magnus and she’s all ‘go for it’ so he goes straight to him.
8 - Love is a devil
Luckily for Isabelle, Raphael arrives to help her with those vampires, but she begs him so he bites her.
Maryse is back with Max, and Alec must throw his rune ceremony party, and he asks Magnus help to show her that it’s not gonna end.
Simon finally confesses to Clary and she kisses him. They go to the party together and Clary sees him and Maia kissing…
Isabelle goes back to Raphael, basically forcing his hand.
Max tells Jace he’s not part of the family, because Maryse said so, and then she attacks Jace.
Magnus understands that they are all hallucinating. He casts a spell to help, then his spell book disappears, and it was Iris disguised as a red cat, under Valentine’s orders.
She tells him that Valentine has the child in her care, and she asks Clary to find the girl. Magnus sends her to the Clave.
Now Clary tells them everything about the soul-sword, and it turns out she might have pure angel blood in her.
After the official rune ceremony, Maryse does well towards Jace, talking to him like a mom, then it turns out she isn’t fighting with her husband because of Alec and Magnus, but because he’s cheating on her.
9 - Bound by blood
Jace stops a moment of Clary and Simon then her hand starts becoming back… because she made a blood oath and nothing can reverse it.
Jace is still a jerk towards Simon. Maia tries to kill Clary to stop her from ever touching the soul-sword, but she stops the wolf herself because she’s suddenly wonder-woman.
Luke locks her up even knowing that Maia is claustrophobic.
Valentine wants poor Dot to teach young warlock Madzie the spells from Magnus book.
Raphael and Isabelle continue their relationship.
Luke, Magnus and Raphael meet with Meliorn in a meeting, to discuss the Clary-matter, and Meliorn on behalf of the Queen propose to execute Clary on sight to save the downworld.
Magnus tells Alec about Isabelle and Raphael, and he goes to take her away, but she tells him to go.
Jace tells Valentine about the blood oath, so he can take Madzie away to Clary and she’s cured instantly, but then Madzie takes her to Valentine… Simon and Jace save her but Valentine takes Simon.
10 - By the light of dawn
Valentine and Madzie attack the institute and kill many.
Jace, Luke and Clary finally bring Dot to Magnus (and she had to call them, they checked and just now said everyone was either dead or gone… well checked really…)
Luckily they have Magnus, because our girl that knows everything and always knows that ‘there is no other explanation’ actually got the angel vision wrong. Jace is the one who can destroy the soul sword.
Aaaand again, seconds ticking, shadowhunters dead, Valentine in the institute, Alec in immediate danger, Simon’s throat cut, and what do they do? They talk, a lot. Sure, Alec talks a lot too, after all it’s not like the world is in danger right?
And Magnus takes Clary there…
Jace rescues Simon letting him feed on himself, then Simon knocks down Valentine but instead of killing, he runs out with Simon, so Valentine then gets Clary, of course he takes her. Again.
Simon stops them from touching the sword, while outside there are vampires, werewolves and Seelies ready to fight… but not doing much, other than being slayed, because then Jace touches the sword, thinking he’ll destroy it, but he actually activates it, and Valentine raises it.
Alec comes in seeing that, and is worried for Magnus.
Of course Luke and Maia waited outside, who knows why, and Luke attacks him but is easily defeated, but of course Jace is there and they fight, and now it turns out that Valentine and Jocelyn are not his parents, and Clary is not his sister.
Clary comes too, and stops Jace from killing him because ‘the cup is still out there’.
So Valentine is taken into custody. Once outside, Alec finds Magnus again.
Simon not only didn’t die because of the sword, but is now able to stay in the light.
Isabelle breaks things off with Raphael.
Someone took the sword.
11 - Mea maxima culpa
An inquisitor comes to torture Valentine for information. She doesn’t trust Jace and Clary and what do you know, the little wonder-girl says: “haven’t we proven ourselves? Valentine attacked the institute. We captured him.” She has quite the face, huh? Just because those she cares about are safe, who cares about hundreds of others. Dead because of her, let’s not forget the whole thing degenerated when she went to the warlock Iris.
Someone kills in an instant everyone present at a bar, maybe a Greater Demon, says Jace, and our wonder-heroine has another one of her pearls of wisdom: what’s the difference? Uhmmm, did she think they were taller maybe, greater height?
Azazel, one of the Princes of Hell. Isabelle was supposed to be hiding at the institute sweating out her addiction, but left alone she runs out begging Raphael to bite her, and when he refuses she goes in search of vampires, but the demon finds her. Luckily, she’s saved by Sebastian, apparently another shadowhunter.
The clever duo think of asking Valentine, and she finds out they are not brother and sister after all.
How unbearable her tough-cop attitute, argh.
To help Alec find his sister, Magus summons Azazel, but he’s stronger and can’t be contained.
Isabelle is staying with Sebastian to battle her addiction, and it’s not clear yet if he’s good or bad or a trouble mix, but I like his British accent a lot.
12 - You are not your own
Azazel switched Magnus and Valentine’s body, so Magnus is in prison now.
Alec calls Magnus on the phone and the fact that he calls him Alec should say everything already :-/ Not only that, but it’s only after Valentine traps Jace and he tells him it’s true they switched, that he stops that Herondale woman from killing him. Valentine now reveals that Jace is her grandson that she thought was dead.
I’m quite disappointed in Alec, honestly. Anyway, Valentine wants his old body too apparently, so he wants Magnus to drink a potion with him and switch again. Of course he planned to escape right away, but Sebastian helps Clary with her rune ability and she catches him back.
13 - Those of demon blood
Now that Simon is a Daylighter he wants to get his old life back, but now other vampires want to be part of ‘his’ clan.
The Herondale woman was all against Jace before, but now she’s all ‘you’re so much like your mother and father’ and makes him head of the institute.
There seems to be a revolt of the downworlders. Luke’s already been cleared and they go to all their friends to get samples to clear them all. Simon refuses because he’s jewish. Magnus gives Alec a hair then tells him to get out. Good. I love them together, but Alec… aaaargh.
Now the woman wants all downworlders to be implanted chips to be tracked.
Shadowhunters are being killed and their runes removed, that’s why, but the moment they take Max, Isabelle’s little brother, they find her and kill her.
Jace makes Alec the new Head of the institute, and he sends him to remove Maia’s chip and they hook up.
Simon sings at Maia’s bar, full of vampires, and he’s good :-)
Alec apologises to Magnus. Good.
14 - The fair falk
Alec starts what he wants to be a regular meeting with downworlders leaders, and during the first one Luke sneaks out and tries to kill Valentine with the help of an unknown person who called him on a burner phone. Sebastian warns Alec and they stop him, and now Alec thinks Valentine is not safe there.
Alec sends Jace and Clary to meet the Seelie queen, and while there the Queen proposes an alliance to Simon alone, saying that shadowhunters always chose their own in the end, and she proves it with enchanted vines that will kill both boys until Clary gives her heart’s desire’s kiss. She kisses Simon but it doesn’t work, so she kisses Jace and they are free. Of course Simon is very hurt, and doesn’t reply to Clary’s many calls. Clary is in tears.
Maryse tells Isabelle about Robert’s infidelity, but she already knew. Isabelle then tells her about her addiction, and that she’s recovering, and they hug. Wow, no more an ice queen then?
The episode ends showing us that Sebastian has someone locked up, been some time apparently, but even if he’s not a good guy, he’s a good addition to the show, although I hope they won’t drag the mystery too long, making it boring. I like the guy, and the actor is good.
Funny how in this episode the child playing the Seelie Queen was a better actress than the adults in the same scenes…
15 - A problem of memory
Heartbroken, Simon goes out to drink and a vampire has him taste plasma, which apparently is quite strong, then took him to a place where mundanes go to get bitten, and a girl approached him and he bit her. In the morning, Luke finds out a girl died and Simon is involved, but Clary can’t believe it. She’s still trying to make things right with him, but he said that Seelie magic doesn’t lie.
Simon finds out it wasn’t him, and confronts the guy Quinn, and tells him in front of a place full of vampire, and they fight and Simon kills Quinn.
Magnus is clearly not okay, after the torture inside Valentine’s body he’s been remembering traumatising stuff of when he was still a child. After Alec insists, he tells him that after his mother committed suicide, his stepfather called him an abomination and said she hated that she gave birth to a monster, so he killed him, he burned him. Alec hugs him.
Sebastian is seen like a hero by Isabelle, but we now see that whoever he is, he is keeping the real Sebastian prisoner. Real Seb breaks free and escapes the apartment, walks as far as he can and is in sight of Isabelle and Aline, his cousin, when fake Sebastian reaches him and kills him.
While they transfer Valentine, the shadowhunters all get to Idris but the one holding him, Duncan, who instead brings him to Sebastian. Duncan asks him to free his family now, but is instead killed.
16 - Day of atonement
Jace thinks Valentine is somewhere in Idris and suddenly Clary sees a rune and opens a portal there, so they don’t need a warlock. She does it without discussing it first, impulsive, and she ends in a lake with Jace, and she drinks some of the water with hallucinogenic powers. She struggles when Jace and Isabelle try to help her, but Jace’s eyes go yellow and suddenly she’s ok.
Fake Sebastian’s real name is Jonathan. He killed a boy so Valentine kept him chained in a cabin for a year, then Valentine sent him to Edom, some kind of hell where they burned his skin level by level, but he learned how to use his demon blood. Now he wants to send him to Edom in return.
Alec’s dad reveals to him that the clave never retrieved the soul-sword, and we see that Jonathan has it, so he believes Valentine when he tells him how proud he is of him, so he takes him away instead.
Jonathan is Clary’s brother.
Maia goes with Simon to his family dinner.
17 - A dark reflection
Alec reveals the big soul-sword secret to Jace and Clary too, he already told Isabelle. Not really keeping it a secret, and yet he didn’t tell Magnus. When he finds out, he’s heartbroken.
Valentine and Jonathan are after the Mirror, and they attack a warlock because of it but he kills himself so they can’t get the truth out of him. This Elliott was a friend of Clary, Jocelyn entrusted him with this secret, and now that he’s dead, Dot is the next, and she goes to Clary and Jace together they find the mirror.
Maia and Simon decide to start dating, taking things slow.
Isabelle keeps training Max, now with Simon, but is very worried about him going on missions because he’s only 12 years old, and yet he’s the only one in there who realised that Sebastian is Jonathan.
18 - Awake, arise, or be forever fallen
Max is found badly hurt but is unconscious. Jace suspects he found Jonathan and that maybe Jonathan is inside glamoured as one of their own, and yet nobody suspects Sebastian.
Magnus and Luke met the Seelie Queen and she wants his people and the werewolves on her side against the shadowhunter, so they say they have to consider it. Magnus still hurts a lot, Alec hurt him a lot but he loves him. Alec asks his help for Max and of course he goes, but there’s nothing he can do, so a Silent Brother does something to the boy that few shadowhunters can survive and the 12 year old makes it.
Russell, the bad wolf who got away after opposing Luke, turned a mundane into a werewolves, so Luke fights him and wins, but doesn’t kill him. The wolves with Russell now bow to him, and they all go back to Luke’s pack. The new guy Bat also. Luke’s cop partner planted a camera in the Chinese restaurant so she filmed him talking about wolves and pack.
Sebastian easily tricks Jace into leaving the mirror so he can easily kill all the other shadowhunters guarding it and he takes it, but when he tries to get out Clary finds him and retrieves the mirror. Jonathan escapes, and Clary realises it wasn’t the real mirror, and she was having visions sent to her by the angel, and the real mirror is actually the Lake in Idris.
Alec apologises to Magnus again, but Magnus leaves nonetheless because of his duties towards his people.
19 - Hail and farewell
Magnus accepted the Queen’s offer on behalf of the warlock, and convinces the other downworlders, and she comes in person to speak at Alec’s meeting, and refuses to help him. The downworlders will now fight on their own. Luke and Raphael both agree with Magnus because she can protect them against Valentine, but the institute can’t.
So now the downworlders are looking for Valentine and Jonathan. The warlocks put wards around the city so no shadowhunter can leave to go to the lake (so Valentine can’t portal).
… I’m making no comment on the fact that Isabelle went on to find Valentine and Jonathan with super high heels… not stiletto, ok, but still pretty high…
Jace and Isabelle fight Jonathan and win, and theoretically he should be dead now, but let’s see how it goes.
Simon talks to the Seelie Queen because Clary asks him to, and he does everything that girl asks of him, and the queen appears like a teenager because she likes him, and he understands that she wants a war and refuses to join her. So the queen took Maia.
Valentine offers the queen a mysterious deal.
20 - Beside still water
Oh what a surprise, they told everyone that Jonathan was dead but he’s alive for long enough to say ‘mother’ and his blood opens a portal and lets through demons.
Luke and Simon go to the Queen to get Maia back, and after talking to Simon they are all allowed to go free… nobody suspects anything, but we audience saw how fixated she is on him, so it’s easy to imagine why, he promised to come back to her.
Valentine gets through to Idris crossing Seelie territory, because the Queen accepted a deal with him. Luke finds out and tells everyone. Clary opens her own portal and goes there with Jace, while Alec and Isabelle stay because of the demons.
When there, they realise that Consul Malachi is a Circle member, and he tries to kill them too, but Jace powers free them. Malachi and his men die.
They waste only a little time here and there to flirt, then they get to the lake and Valentine surprises them and kills Jace. Then Valentine puts sword and cup in the lake and summons the angel Raziel. Right at the last second, before he makes his wish, she frees herself, fights him, and what do you know, she kills him. The angel is still there, waiting for the wish, so she asks to bring Jace back, and Jace is alive again, but doesn’t tell anyone how.
Alec asks Magnus help to seal the rift; he’s still hurting and can barely look at him, but accepts to save lives. Alec is supposed to cover for him while he works, but for the first time he seems to miss the shot and instead of trying again he runs back calling for Magnus until he can turn and save him, so basically Alec is barely any help at all, he simply gets rid of three little demons and Isabelle helps with the fourth.
Alec, Isabelle and Magnus get to Jace and Clary the moment they kiss after it’s all over.
Everyone is having a party now that the bad guys are supposedly dead, but Luke’s cop partner arrives to confront him on being a werewolf, and Luke is worried about how he came back, and also in pain, at the end, for some reason.
Magnus is drinking by himself and Alec goes talk to him, and they make up, just like that, all Alec has to do is say: ‘I’m sorry, I don’t think I can live without you’ and Magnus melts and they go away together.
The demons that got through reunite and a humanoid black demon comes out of it, is it Jonathan’s mom? Will she bring Jonathan back?
Who knows, this is how the season ends.
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