‘Shadowhunters’ 2×12 Review: ‘You Are Not Your Own’

By Beata (Contributor)

You Are Not Your Own was everything I have come to expect from Shadowhunters season 2. It wasn’t epic, but it wasn’t terrible. There were some good character moments, some reasonably entertaining storylines. People were disguised as each other. Cool fight scenes were made weird by the addition of dance music. The dialogue was a little cringey, but not that much worse that other shows on TV. It was a pretty solid episode.

I’m not quite sure where the show is going this season, and I’m a little concerned that it’s introducing so many massive book plots right away, but I think I’m on board. We’ll see.

BODY SWAP

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The main story of this episode was, of course, the strange body swap Azazel performed on Valentine and Magnus. Forgive me for being a little bit tired of body swaps on this show, but I wasn’t too excited about this idea at the start. However, I was pleasantly surprised. The two actors did a decent job of playing each other’s characters, and it made for a pretty entertaining storyline.

I liked the Malec moments especially, and enjoyed Valentine trying to figure out how to use Magnus’ magic. I do wish there could have been more focus on Valentine’s feelings about having warlock powers, though, because I’m sure his disgust at all things related to downworlders was at war with his jealousy about all the cool powers they have that Shadowhunters have been denied. Maybe wielding magic will make Valentine realize just how much the Nephilim have been missing out on.

The most interesting thing to come out of this storyline, I think, is Magnus experiencing torture at the hands of the Clave. The warlock has pretty much seen it all at this point, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this altered his views on Shadowhunters. It was a stark reminder of how cruel they still are, and what they’re capable of subjecting him to.

I KIND OF REALLY LIKE SEBASTIAN?

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Please tell me I’m not the only person who almost wishes this version of Sebastian was actually not evil or related to Clary, and could just light up this show with his stunning good looks and his amazing personality. I kind of love him.

Here’s the thing, though: I NEVER liked Sebastian in the books. Ever. I didn’t trust him in City of Glass, and I didn’t like the version of him that appeared right before he died, because that person never actually existed. I have always hated him. Why do I like him so much right now? I don’t like this. I’m sure this will all make him seem even more disgusting and horrible when the truth comes out, though.

Also, the fact that Sebastian hits on his sister knowing who she is will never not disgust me. What a creep.

Will Tudor… I kind of like you though.

THE LOVE GEOMETRY IN THIS SHOW IS INCREDIBLE

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So… let me get this straight. Clary is dating Simon, who might have something going on with Isabelle. Izzy seems to have a thing for Sebastian, who seems interested in Clary, who is dating Simon but also has a thing for Jace. Is that it? Did I get it all?

I expressed this concern in my review of the midseason finale, but I still really hope Jace has nothing to do with Simon and Clary’s breakup. I want them to break up because they realize they just don’t belong together. Not because of Jace. Please? I find it kind of weird that the three relationships Clary gets into in the series are all happening at the same time right now. She’s dating Simon, trying to sort out her feelings for Jace, and getting hit on by Sebastian, while in the books she was only ever romantically involved with one at a time. It’ll be interesting to see how those relationships progress going forward.

Also, Sizzy got a few scenes together in this episode! Those two are one of my favourite book couples of all time, and I’ve been really happy with the way they’ve been portrayed on the show so far – at least in the little screen time they’ve gotten together.

DAYLIGHTER

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It’s not like he would have been able to keep it a secret for very long.

I’m both nervous and excited to see where this storyline goes, because it’s such an important part of Simon’s character development over the course of the series. He’s has to simultaneously feel rejected by the human and Shadowhunter worlds because he’s a vampire, and rejected by the Vampire world because he’s a daylighter. It definitely looks like that’s coming, so it’ll be cool to see him reach that point in his life. I just really want his storyline to be done justice.

JACE HERONDALE

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The big reveal was a little bit anticlimactic, but it certainly wasn’t as bad as it could have been (going off the history of this show). I’m excited to see how Jace deals with this new information. With Sebastian here too, the writers seem to be setting up some pretty good storylines for Jace, and I really hope they deliver. Please God, let them deliver.

It seems like, at this point in the story, the Herondale family is already a pretty big deal, so Jace is probably going to learn about their excellence the same way Kit does in The Dark Artifices. It’ll be interesting to see how he reacts to this, since in the books, the first Herondale he learns about is Stephen. It might take him awhile to figure out if he wants to be a Herondale, and I’m excited to see how that plays out.

THINGS THAT DO NOT MAKE SENSE, A LIST

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1. Why didn’t Simon put on more clothes to go outside?
2. Why did Simon think Raphael was at his door in the middle of the day?
3. Sebastian saying he’s used to being alone, even though he claims to be from the London Institute. Stick with your story, dude.
4. Nobody questioning that.
5. Izzy and Simon actually thinking it’s okay to threaten the one family member Raphael has left. I’m with Raphael on this one. That crossed a line, and it seemed really out of character for the two of them.
6. Isabelle switching from Spanish to English to bring Simon into the conversation with Rosa. Doesn’t Simon speak Spanish in the show? I get that they couldn’t just have the whole conversation be in Spanish, but it seemed weird to switch there.
7. Also, why has Alec literally not spoken any Spanish since the pilot? I get that Matthew Daddario doesn’t speak Spanish, but it seems strange that Isabelle speaks it so often and her brother doesn’t.
8. How did Raphael and his friends get a portal?
9. Exactly how much sunlight is too much for the Vampires? Because the restaurant was pretty well lit.
10. Since when can warlocks make projections of themselves?
11. How does Valentine have the Herondale ring on him when he’s in Magnus’s body?
12. How does Sebastian know everything?
13. I’m still so confused about the way the Clave decides on punishments.
14. I still don’t understand why, in all this time, Jace never stopped to wonder who his real parents were.

OTHER THOUGHTS AND OBSERVATIONS

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• Don’t think I missed the fact that Simon and Isabelle were in the greenhouse, Shadowhunters. Amazing stuff happens there.
• That shot Alec made with his bow was epic but the special effects were not.
• Though I do think the CGI has improved a lot lately, overall. However, there is still a lot of room for growth.
• So the Inquisitor wants to do tests on Clary and Jace because of their angel blood. What are the odds she wants to do the same to Simon now that he’s a daylighter?
• I understand the Inquisitor’s motives because I’ve read the books, but I hope the show explains them in the next few episodes. They over explain everything else – but hey, maybe they are trying something new now.
• Is the real Valentine going to be executed now? Honestly, his book death is kind of off the table now that the writers have screwed up the world building so much, so he might. But losing Alan Van Sprang would be a travesty, because we need Alan Van Sprang. This show needs all the good it has, don’t lose it.

Shadowhunters airs Mondays at 8pm on Freeform.

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