‘Shadowhunters’ Review: ‘Day of Wrath’ (and Weakness)

Where do we start?

Two Shadowhunter deaths, multiple demon possessions, declarations of love, trial by sword, and heartbreaking devastation.

So many unexpected, game-changing moments unfolded during “Day of Wrath.”

Shadowhunters continues to transform itself into a stronger, more compelling show with each episode. The characters have grown as the writers give them more depth (as have the actors), and the story itself provides enough twists and turns to keep the audience intrigued.

(Even those of us who have read all six books—these writers are making the material their own, and it works).

(Freeform/ Ben Mark Holzberg)

We might as well start with the big one: Jocelyn is dead. Not only is she dead, Alec killed her while possessed by a demon Valentine sent to distract the Institute.

I almost feel bad for being so harsh on her this season (I may or may not have shouted, “Luke deserves better!” during their big romantic moment in the episode). I stand by my previous assertions that Jocelyn lied too much, and should have DNA tested Jace.

But my heart shattered for Clary. After she slayed the demon, realization struck, and the grief just poured from every fiber of her being as she went into shock. Kudos to Kat McNamara on her performance here—Clary’s stunned silence hurt to watch.

It’ll be interesting to see how Valentine reacts to this news. He ordered the demon into the Institute so he could break Jace out of jail. Not only did his son refuse to join him, but now the woman he loves is dead.

And yes, I do believe Valentine loves Jocelyn—and Jace—and probably could love Clary. Not in a healthy, normal, ‘love lifts us up’ way. More like he sees his family as belonging to him. My guess is he will now blame everyone other than himself for Jocelyn’s death, and become even more determined to claim all the power.

(Freeform/ Ben Mark Holzberg)

Will Clary forgive Alec for “killing” Jocelyn? Their dynamic has always been one of my favorites. His jealousy, her need to prove herself, both of them loving Jace—they’ve got a great grumpy, begrudging vibe.

It could have grown stronger as Clary continued to prove herself as a Shadowhunter. But now she will always have that image of him killing her mother in her head. It’s not his fault and she knows that logically, but this is her mother. Maybe Alec will be the one to reach out now.

Then, we have Jace. With the soul sword in his hands, he admitted he loved Clary in a non-sisterly way (duh), and he could not bring himself to pledge unconditional loyalty to the Clave. It’s hard to blame him for that since the Clave makes questionable choices, but Aldertree planned to let him rot in jail anyway.

Jace turned around and saved his life. Even so, I was still surprised Aldertree brought Jace back to the Institute just in time for the aftermath of the demon fight. I still don’t trust Aldertree, but he could change my mind depending on how he handles things moving forward.

(Freeform/Ian Watson)

As for Jace, excuse me while I let my shipper side show, but damn it! Why didn’t he rush to Clary faster? Okay, he thinks she’s his sister and his weakness, but he let Simon push him out of the way! Come on, man.

(I love Simon, but I’m not here for the potential Simon/Clary romance).

While we’re talking about Simon, let’s get to the other big story of the episode: Magnus and Alec.

Fine, they only had one scene. But Alec admitted he felt Magnus while he was trapped, and it made a difference (told you). Someday, they’re going to get to that first date, and I will be here ready and waiting to swoon, and squeal.

In the meantime, Magnus sees Raphael as his son (see what I mean about character depth?). He assumed Aldertree tortured Raphael to get back at him for disobeying orders. Raphael wanted Magnus to find Camille, and Simon arrived with the means to do so: that box he took from the snake turned out to be Camille’s grave dirt—which he could open with his blood since it contained hers.

(Freeform/ Ben Mark Holzberg)

But this presented a new moral dilemma for Magnus. He wanted to help his son (or sons, since Simon seems to be on that tract too), except his feelings for Camille run deep. Not in the way that Alec should worry, but in the sense they’ve lived hundreds of years, and she saved him once.

Camille counted on that. I have to admit I worried a little when Magnus sent the kids away, and summoned her alone. It was a tough spot for Magnus. And Camille did her best to manipulate him with his biggest fear: loneliness. Talk about something we can all relate to, whether human or immortal warlock.

In the end, Magnus made the right call, and sent Camille through a portal to Idris. Unfortunately, I don’t know if we can trust the Clave to keep their end of the bargain, and leave Raphael and Simon alone as long as the vampires follow the law.

If the Clave do go back on their word, and hurt one of his sons again, Magnus will face another moral crisis—one which might impact his relationship with Alec.

(See? Malec is the big story after all).

Miscellaneous Musings

-Does anyone care that Hodge died? I hate to be the ‘in the books’ person, but the show failed to utilize this character to the point we felt the impact of his choices

-Thank the angel for keeping Lydia alive

-Izzy and Clary’s friendship makes me happy—as does everything else Izzy does. Interesting to have her turn on Alec while possessed by the demon. I’m curious if they explore this more.

-Poor Luke