Crows! I’ve already given Jesper plenty of love, and now it’s time to talk about all three as a unit. We’re still going strictly by show continuity – I’ve started reading the series, but I haven’t gotten up to the Crows’ first appearance yet. At any rate, this is a spectacular, motley little found family of criminals, and I can’t wait for more of them (some Crow-related spoilers.)
On the mean streets of Ketterdam, Kaz is the glowering, imposing owner of the Crow Club. He runs the place with a steely gaze and an iron grip on his everpresent cane, but his establishment isn’t his only occupation. He’s also tuned into Ketterdam’s criminal underbelly, a minor player looking to rub shoulders with the big boys. While he doesn’t have the clout or connections of other gangs in the city, there are a couple important things he does have: 1) his sharp talent for orchestrating a caper, and 2) the handy skills of his fellow Crows.
Enter Inej, a woman with a “wraith-like” ability to slip in and out of anywhere unseen, to observe or tail anyone who needs surveilling. She has the nimbleness of an acrobat, she’s quiet as the night, and she can more than hold her own in a fight, having at least a dozen knives on her person at all times. She’s joined by Jesper, who isn’t as serious as either of his friends and far more prone to trouble but who can wield his twin revolvers like no one else.
Despite having very different sensibilities, all three have an eye for deception, inklings of moral scruples amid their lawless pursuits, and a scrappy determination toward survival. All logic would suggest that they shouldn’t fit together, but they do, leaning on one another’s strengths to create an impressive balancing act of crime. Between the three of them, there’s very little that they can’t do, and even though their personalities can clash at times (especially between Kaz and Jesper,) they always have each other’s backs in the end.
One thing I really love about the Crows is that they’re nigh unbeatable but nowhere close to untouchable. Their operation is formidable, but no one could call it a well-oiled machine. As they concoct a scheme to make a deadly crossing through the Fold, infiltrate the highly-fortified Little Palace, and steal the rumored long-awaited savior out from under the powerful Grisha, all kinds of things go wrong. Sometimes they make careless mistakes and sometimes they’re hit by unexpected curve balls, but no matter what, they bend and adapt to the situation, endeavoring to scrape out a win.
And that’s just so much fun. Throughout season 1, whenever the Crows appear onscreen, I know that the action and the humor are going to be kicked up a notch. It’s so entertaining to watch them improvise as their plans go to hell, and it’s endlessly impressive to watch them go up against Grisha and come out by the skin of their teeth. That’s much more compelling to see than a group who always succeeds, and it better shows off their ingenuity, each of them separately as well as in their larger collaborative unit.
I also have a lot of affection for the whole found-family thing they’ve got going on. They come from different backgrounds and have different temperaments/beliefs, but they’ve all found one another in Ketterdam and aren’t prepared to let go of that. Although Kaz and Jesper can butt heads, they respect each other’s talents and never fail to come through for each other in a pinch. Jesper and Inej have a warm friendship – they lovingly tease one another and care for each other fiercely. And Inej and Kaz are locked into a connection that both are too wary to fully articulate, but in the end, they mean the world to each other.
All my favorite scenes in season 1 are Crow-related, and they’re the biggest reason I’m excited for season 2. The first books in the series that I’ve read are well-written and really hold my attention, but until I get through the opening trilogy, Six of Crows (the Crows’ debut book) is burning a hole in my pocket waiting to be read! “No mourners, no funerals,” indeed.
No comments:
Post a Comment