‘Six of Crows’ Series Writer Shares Scrapped Plot Details

The Big Picture

• Shadow and Bone spinoff Six of Crows also cancelled, disappointing fans who were looking forward to more of the fantasy series.
• Writer Christina Strain reveals a cut storyline involving Wylan and Matthias in the spinoff, causing jealousy and intrigue among fans.
• Fans of the main character Alina Starkov were disappointed as the focus shifted to the Crows.

Last month, it was announced that Shadow and Bone, the series which had caused quite the splash when it launched on Netflix in 2021, had been cancelled by the streamer. Based on the fantasy series written by Leigh Bardugo, the show’s initial success had resulted in the comissioning of a spinoff series, entitled Six of Crows. However, when Shadow and Bone was canned, Six of Crows went with it.

Now, series writer Christina Strain has taken to social media to enlighten fans as to one of the story arcs for an episode that won’t see the light of day, particularly for Wylan Hendricks (Jack Wolfe), who was introduced to the series in the second season. Strain revealed that Matthias Helvar (Calahan Skagmar), a witch-hunter, bonded with Wylan in their spin-off after the pair initially had a disagreement over a drawing of the Ice Court, which caused Kit Young‘s Jesper Fahey to become jealous as a result, much to the despair of fans.

One character fans were curious about as well, was Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li). Alina is the de facto main character of the series, as well as the most popular character for many fans. With the focus shifting to the Crows, that unfortunately meant for fans of the Sun Summoner that she would be taking a backseat in future stories — or at least in the next outing of the Grishaverse. That said, many of the plot details dropped by Strain are sure to both enthrall fans, and sadden them that they’ll never get to see it on-screen.

‘Six of Crows’ Writer Doesn’t Care for “Darklina”

However, on a negative note, while entertaining some questions from eager fans curious to learn more about their favorite characters’ fate, Strain decided to show another side to herself, much to the disappointment of her followers. A young fan named Merel — a self-anointed ‘Darklina’ stan — inquired as to unfulfilled plans for Alina in the third season of Shadow and Bone, on which Strain was also a writer.

‘Darklina’ is a contentious pairing, whose fans believe that the Darkling is the only one to see Alina’s power and potential, and they want to see a story where a strong female character with power is emphasized and pushed, rather than demonized by those watching, or writing, the stories. Across the two seasons, the pair have shared a number of romantic interludes, with Barnes and Li’s chemistry building to what had the potential to be a compelling enemies-to-lovers arc.

Strain revealed that there was never a writers’ room in place for the third season, as the focus was on breaking ground for Six of Crows. When Merel’s question remained unanswered, she lamented the fact that no writers’ room was permitted for a show approaching its third season in favour of one which “didn’t exist”, and probed for further details, at which point, Strain turned on her, stating that she “saw you’re a Darklina fan, and now I understand what’s going on,” before adding it was a “shame” and dismissing her out of hand.

Fandom exists in all shapes, sizes and forms. How one chooses to enjoy their own fandom is up to that individual, and once the characters are out in the world, they are there to be embraced. The characters are not out in the world for the writers and creators to claim ownership over them, and it’s a shame for someone in a position of privilege to look down at a teenager who just happened to imagine a different fate for her favourite character than that of the character’s creator.

Shadow and Bone is available to stream now on Netflix.

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