Where “Day of Atonement” had the majority of its storylines geared toward the same thing (something I now realize I greatly under-appreciated), “A Dark Reflection” separated our characters again with several different plots, all of which received similar screen time. And while I appreciate the balancing of said screen time, those multiple plots were each demanding a lot of attention and it left the episode feeling a little chaotic.
Valentine, Jonathan, and their strained partnership were gunning for power, and with their captive Cleophas unable to restore the Soul Sword, they turned their eyes to the third Mortal Instrument, the Mortal Mirror. Clary and Jace unsuccessfully looked into leads on Jonathan, before Alec informed them the Soul Sword isn’t in the possession of the Clave like they were all led to believe. Understanding that Valentine may be after the Mirror for his own plan of raising the Angel Raziel, they also began the hunt for the Mortal Mirror. Convenient then that Dot showed up with a Tron tattoo that could lead them straight to it. And here I thought it was going to be hard.
Meanwhile, Isabelle was concerned for Max’s mission advancement. Maia, who was into Simon last week, was no longer keen on making it happen. And Luke learned through a fire message from Cleophas that Valentine has the Soul Sword, which prompted Magnus to confront Alec for being untruthful.
Isabelle and Simon (John Medland/Freeform)
If you squinted hard enough this hour (it’s very possible I’m reaching here), each character faced a mirror of themselves in some way. There was Clary’s dream and mirror vision, but there was also Jace, who finally met the monster he’d been led to believe he was. Simon saw, in Maia, another possibility of heartbreak. In Max, Isabelle saw her own uncertainty about being ready for the path ahead. Alec saw, in Magnus, his own doubts in his ability to lead. In Alec, Magnus saw everyone who had ever let him down. And Luke saw, in both Magnus and Alec, the push-pull struggle between Shadowhunter society and the Downworld that he’s probably experienced over the course of the last 18 years.
Isabelle was worrying about Max growing up and entering the dangers of the Shadowhunter world, and her and Alec were butting heads on how to handle him. Alec sees it as Max’s rite of passage: a path that will grow him from boy to man, one he’s proudly observing as Max’s big brother. But Isabelle’s had many doubts lately, mostly in herself, and they could have manifested in her immediate dismissal of Max’s advancement. Her almost maternal love for him was also clouding her ability to see it for what it is – the way of Nephilim life. I enjoy seeing Isabelle like this. She provides a great give-’em-hell presence in the show, but she’s so lush as a character when she wears her big heart on her sleeve for the sake of family.
This episode gave us some great Sizzy moments, and that, paired with Maia’s whiplash rejection, was almost enough to kind of derail that Maia/Simon train I was on last week. They’re not ready for each other yet, but the show has laid some wonderful groundwork by showing us how well Simon and Isabelle fit together. Seeing the effortless little sparklings of enjoyment they feel being in each others’ presence is really, really adorable. And Simon and Isabelle being solid, trusting friends is everything I never knew I wanted.
I still don’t get why a solid chunk of this episode was dedicated to bringing Simon and Maia closer. Again. I swear Simon gets the most relationship development on this show out of anyone, and with the multiple characters he’s substantially bonded with on-screen over the course of the series – Clary, Luke, Rebecca, Elaine, Maureen, Isabelle, Maia, even Jace and Magnus – that’s a lot. The show needs to find an easier way of pulling characters like Magnus and Luke closer into the mix because they are two of the most fascinating and under-utilized characters this show has. The way they continue to be on the outside while Simon gets screen presence for dates, and vampire hangovers, and family dinners, and performing songs is getting a little frustrating.
Poor Malec faced an impossible situation this week, which was made all the more harder by their differences. Alec is trying to be diplomatic about a sensitive political scenario and respectful of Magnus as an ally by attempting to shield him from the difficult position it would also put him in. What he fails to do is factor in the romantic relationship they have, and both the trust and emotional connection that requires. If they weren’t romantically involved, the situation wouldn’t be this heavy. Keeping the Clave’s secret was the right thing to do, though blabbing the truth of the missing Soul Sword to the Institute’s regular secret-blurter and trouble-maker, Clary, while keeping Magnus in the dark, probably wasn’t. I’m just gonna put that particular offense down to plot.
Magnus is still very vulnerable after everything he’s been through recently. His lashing out at Alec, and the physical violence he displays in front of Luke, prove he remains unable to see beyond his rattled emotions. He has reason to distrust the Clave, and Alec being one of their soldiers, and the man he loves, causes a specific kind of insecurity. He’s got a lot to lose with Alec. It’s not about his dignity and safety – things the Clave often threaten – but how much of himself he’s given over to Alec and the risk that poses. Alec doesn’t deserve the full emotional punishment Magnus is throwing at him, but Magnus has been repeatedly let down by those who were supposed to love him, and he hasn’t yet learned to view Alec through a different lens. It makes him incredibly, devastatingly human. As for Matthew Daddario and Harry Shum Jr., the way they manage to create sparks between them especially when the mood takes a turn for the worst proves just how strong their exceptional chemistry is.
Having Luke as a spectator to Magnus’ ensuing meltdown presents an opening I’ve been wanting to see for a while. We’ve all known he’s a former Shadowhunter living as a Downworlder, but getting to see him sympathize with both Magnus and Alec’s sides of the issue reaffirms how much knowledge he has. He understands Magnus’ pain because he’s living it himself, but he also understands Alec’s sense of duty because he was raised in the same world to be the same thing. Luke is uniquely qualified in that he sees and knows both sides, and is the only person who can do so without bias. I wish we could see more of this. I also hope we see more of Luke and Magnus together in a lighter setting. That relationship would be hella fun.
Clary, Sebastian, and Jace (John Medland/Freeform)
Will Tudor’s portrayal of Jonathan delights and repulses me in equal measure. I sympathize one moment, then adamantly refuse to the next. Then I sympathize perhaps when I shouldn’t. I tend to switch off in viewing shows or film when the characters I’m attached to aren’t on-screen, but the way he and Alan Van Sprang continue to push and pull at each other makes watching Valentine and Jonathan terribly exciting. The dynamic here is particularly fascinating in how Valentine expertly controls him and how Jonathan allows himself to be controlled, yet it’s clear Jonathan has the upper hand. One flash of black demon eyes and Valentine is a scared poodle.
Jonathan reacting to Clary’s heartfelt hope for him threw him into her arms, and as much as I violently revolted at that kiss, it somehow makes sense here. We never really got to know Jonathan close enough in the books to understand the obsession he had with Clary, beyond being a demon-blooded, evil guy. But here, it makes sense. He’s not just that demon-blooded, evil guy, he’s a 10-year-old boy being thrown into Hell. He’s a person who has sought acceptance and been turned down for reasons beyond his control his entire life. His father didn’t want him. His mother didn’t want him. He’s had nothing but pain and demons to connect to. The one person that doesn’t hurt to be around, who doesn’t wish him harm, is Clary, and he loves her for it. Sure, that love is cruelly warped and very, very wrong from our side of the story, but, for him, it’s everything. I don’t want it by any means, and I don’t believe it was written for that purpose. But I’m less squicked out purely for the insight it gives us into Jonathan’s cracked psyche. I didn’t think he could get more complex. Boy, was I wrong.
The Mortal Mirror doesn’t seem to be Lake Lyn, the first grand portal between worlds of which Raziel himself came through to give the Nephilim their Mortal Instruments. Now it’s the Mortal Make-up Compact, which is…convenient? There is, however, an attempt made to connect the Mirror to Lake Lyn through Clary’s vision, and I’m hoping that means the original canon remains intact.
Jeffrey Hunt’s direction didn’t have the cinematic scope of last week’s chapter, but it paced the fullness of the writing well and focussed heavily on the connections between characters, which is always appreciated. Hollie Overton’s script felt like it had a lot of thought behind it, but in trying to be clever, it came off a little unnecessarily complex. She’s a great storyteller and knowing that she’s an author makes sense, because her writing is well-suited for book-reading, where the audience can thrive on further exploration without getting its exposition through its characters. But in a 42-minute episode, characters are sometimes all you get to explain the important things and it can suck the very souls right out of them – of which Clary and Jace suffered from this week. However, I was super impressed with her writing of Malec – it’s never easy to juggle an argument when both sides are right, and the level of detail and balance the writing achieved there was wonderful. And mature. I live for mature.
“A Dark Reflection” may have made me appreciate just how finely tuned last week’s episode really was, but it wasn’t without merit. The anticipation it built progressively throughout the hour made me more than ready for the season’s final episodes. Can you believe it? Only three more to go.
Shadowhunters airs Mondays 8/7c on Freeform and Tuesdays internationally on Netflix.
