Warning: the following article contains spoilers for the Shadow and Bones book trilogy, as well as the Netflix adaptation.
Netflix’s Shadow and Bone adaptation has gathered immense attention from Grishaverse fans, who waited years to watch their favorite characters come to life. Based on Leigh Bardugo’s books, the series follows Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li), an orphaned girl who unknowingly possesses great power — the power of a Sun Summoner, the first of her kind.
By Alina’s side since childhood is Malyen Oretsev (Archie Renaux), her best friend. The two were raised in an orphanage together and avoided being tested for Grisha powers, in fear of being separated should one of them manifest them. Because of this, Alina and Mal grew up unaware of their abilities, until, of course, Alina’s manifested in the biggest way possible at the start of the show. As for Mal, things went a lot differently.
Over the course of the series, those with their eyes peeled might have noticed subtle hints pointing to Mal being more than a regular human. The foreshadowing gradually increased in season two, raising viewers’ suspicions that the character might be Grisha. In reality, he is not, but that doesn’t mean he has no special abilities.
What are Mal’s powers in Shadow and Bone?
Despite not being a Grisha, Mal has a very particular ability in this fantasy universe — he is an amplifier. The concept is simple, amplifiers increase a Grisha’s powers significantly, and are therefore very sought after. The Netflix show introduced the concept of amplifiers in season one, when the Darkling (Ben Barnes) forced the stag antlers, also known as Morozova’s collar, into Alina’s collarbones, fusing it with her body.
In the Grishaverse books, amplifiers are typically turned into accessories like bracelets or necklaces, which allows the Grisha who owns it to wear it at all times. They cannot be removed and tend to last for a Grisha’s full lifespan.
Initially, viewers might have guessed that amplifiers always have to be animal remains, but that’s not the case. Granted, regular amplifiers like bear skin, shark teeth, or dragon scales are much easier to own and use, but living ones (both human and animal) also exist, like Mal. The tracker’s powers were foreshadowed in season one, as Alina’s Grisha powers first manifested when holding her childhood friend’s hands. At the time, the event was attributed to Alina’s pain, but it’d be remiss to not consider Mal in the equation.
Seasons one and two of Shadow and Bone are now available for streaming on Netflix.
