First look: ‘Shadow and Bone’ on Netflix

Netflix released on Thursday, January 28, the first stills from the upcoming series Shadow and Bone, based on Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse novels. 

Shadow and Bone, which premieres on April 23, is set “in a war-torn world where lowly soldier and orphan Alina Starkov has just unleashed an extraordinary power that could be the key to setting her country free.” Alina trains to be part of an elite army of magical soldiers known as Grisha. In her journey, she “ finds that allies and enemies can be one and the same and that nothing in this lavish world is what it seems.” 

The show stars Jessie Mei Li (Alina Starkov), Archie Renaux (Malyen Oretsev), Freddy Carter (Kaz Brekker), Amita Suman (Inej), Kit Young (Jesper Fahey), and Ben Barnes (General Kirigan). Author Leigh Bardugo is the show’s executive producer alongside showrunner Eric Heisserer. 

“Shadow and Bone takes place in a very different kind of fantasy world. Think Imperial Russia, not Medieval England, repeating rifles instead of broadswords. It’s a story about the people who have been told how much they don’t matter proving how much they do,” said Bardugo of the upcoming series. 

“It’s been incredible to see that story take shape on such an epic scale, the battles, the magic, but also the relationships between the characters. These photos give just a tiny hint at what’s in store — a mapmaker with an extraordinary gift, the people who want to use her, the tracker who will do anything to protect her, and the team of thugs and thieves who are about to cause some very big trouble for everyone involved,” she added. 

“We worked tirelessly to craft a lived-in feel for fictional lands like Ketterdam and Ravka, with invented languages, uniforms, currency, and artistic choices from set design to costuming. You’re immersed in the Grishaverse when you read, and it’s our hope that both new and existing fans have that same feeling when they watch the show. The series has an incredibly passionate fanbase and we can’t wait for new people to discover the magic that is Shadow and Bone,” said Heisserer. – Rappler.com