Some of the most memorable moments of the Shadowhunters series are when oft-stoic Nephilim Alec Lightwood surprises us by displaying a complete and utter lack of chill – something Magnus Bane pointed out when he stated that Alec would blow up the very ground he stood on to make something right. In the first season, Alec largely repressed himself. Since then, he’s been living the way he wants, and we have been able to see who he truly is – a big brother, who is as nurturing as he is fiercely protective; a man with a heart of gold and only the best of intentions; and a born leader who isn’t afraid to challenge authority when he believes in the cause – he’s not been subtle about it either, and we’re kinda here for it in a big way. Here are our five favorite moments in which Alexander Lightwood had the most extreme lack of chill.
1. The Wedding Kiss
1×12 – “Malec”
We would be remiss not to have this one at the top of the list. No one will ever forget when Alec Lightwood descended from the altar of his own wedding to smooch the captivating warlock holding his attention in the aisle. This is still the biggest and boldest move that Alec has made yet, and one of the most personal, being that it is one of the rare times he took himself into consideration. Up until this point, Alec was prepared to take extreme measures to please others, including marrying himself off to someone “suitable,” therefore sacrificing his own future happiness. In this moment, Alec made the decision to literally reach out and grab what he wanted by the lapels and no one could stand in his way. This dramatic move, right in front of the audience of people he was trying so desperately to impress, made an inspiring statement about finding honor in being true to oneself. After all, where’s the honor in living a lie? The hashtag #AlecLightwoodIsWildAsHell was born out of this moment, and fortunately, many more opportunities to use it would follow in its wake.
2. I Die for Parabatai
2×02 – “A Door into the Dark” / 2×03 – “Parabatai Lost”
The choice to use a deadly magical stone, which could take his soul so deep from the surface of reality that he might never return, was a no-brainer for Alec if it meant the possibility of finding his brother, who was stuck in the middle of nowhere on a boat with a psychotic, evil mastermind. Even after being made fully aware of the risks involved in using the stone, Alec did it anyway because Jace needed him. He was all business when it came to doing anything and everything in his power to help his Parabatai, and not even his stubbornly protective little sister could stop him – this, of course, led to Alec fighting so hard to reach Jace that he nearly lost his life in the process. These are the literal lengths that Alec Lightwood will go to for his loved ones and we were on the edges of our seats the entire time watching this one!
3. I Love You
2×10 – “By the Light of Dawn”
Look at the bundle of nerves that is our eldest Lightwood! Alec had so little chill here, it was written all over his body language and the way in which he blurted out those three little words. Alec had been terrified that he had lost the person he had fallen in love with, and he had to let that person know how he felt right away! This was an important breakthrough moment in character development for Alec in the sense that he was able to identify his feelings, put them into words, and run with them. Letting go of the idea that emotions are a distraction and literally embracing them instead helped to make him a more compassionate human being and a stronger warrior with something worth fighting for. What better reason to lose your chill than in the name of love?
4. The Aldertree Goes Timber
2×09 – “Bound by Blood”
Everyone – even Aldertree – knew that Alec was destined to become the rightful Head of the Institute. After many detrimental flubs (whether intentional or not) committed by Aldertree during his own time as Acting Head, endangering the life of Alec’s sister was the final straw. In this moment, we saw our first glimpse of Alec as a Shadowhunter leader and how easily everyone fell in line in the face of the confidence with which he gave his orders. It wasn’t even official yet, but everyone involved in this event couldn’t refute the leadership potential positively radiating from him. Watching Aldertree finally be taken down from his pedestal by none other than Alec, who truly deserved the position, was such a glorious sight to behold (and so was that smirk).
5. The Downworlder Support Soapbox
2×13 – “Those of Demon Blood”
Just when we thought Alec had taken down one corrupt Head of the Institute, another took his place in the form of Imogen Herondale, and she was putting tracking chips in the necks of Downworlders, yeesh! Alec used his gut instinct to spur him on in letting the Inquisitor know that her guilty-until-proven-innocent mentality driving her to treat all Downworlders as suspects was just plain wrong! Here we saw the kind of leader Alec would become – one who does not stand for injustice and seeks to work peacefully with others. This was also the first step toward the beginning of a new, more inclusive and empathetic generation of Shadowhunters that he would later spearhead, and this handling of a politically dangerous situation officially earned him the title of Head of the New York Institute by the end of the episode – a position he still proudly holds to this day.
As the series stands at the precipice of a well-earned third season, we’d love to see Alec Lightwood continue to lose his chill and surprise us – in good ways, we hope. Alec’s character has taken major strides over the course of the past two seasons as he has become more comfortable with himself and his various roles as a brother, a lover, and a leader. Having no chill looks set to become his default mode and we cannot wait to see more.
Shadowhunters is available for streaming via Freeform for U.S. residents and internationally on Netflix. Shadowhunters returns with Season 3 in early 2018.
