SHADOWHUNTERS (S3E17) “Heavenly Fire”: This is How You Go Out With A Bang

Phew, what an episode! If you are going to go out with a bang, this is the way that you do it. Honestly, Shadowhunters “Heavenly Fire” reminded me of the first season of The Vampire Diaries, the swiftness throughout storylines rapidly creating new ones while continuously providing answers for previous ones. It is an exhilarating and fire-driven episode, one that will set the pace for episodes still to come.

Depression

Shadowhunters has definitely had its moments thus far dealing with the human emotion, but “Heavenly Fire” gave us one of the best showcases and performances of grief and depression in the show’s history. Heartbreakingly, it is with one of the show’s favorite characters – Magnus Bane (Harry Shum Jr.). As he crumbles into Alec’s (Matthew Daddario) arms, his loss of identity overwhelming him, his fight relenting, you will find yourself crushed and immersed within his story. It is truly a showcase of a range transcending the stereotypical young adult content.

Magnus has lost his magic twice, once by season’s end last year, giving it to his father in exchange for the power to save Jace (Dominic Sherwood), and again in “Stay With Me”, Lorenzo (Javier Muñoz) taking the magic back as it was threatening Magnus’s life. Magic has been a constant identifying factored for Magnus for centuries and the loss of it is a loss of self. He does not know who he is anymore, what place he has in the universe. While not immediately apparent, Magnus’s descent is taking over him, and his means of coping are few and far between. While Alec is planning to spend the rest of his life with Magnus, looking to the future with hope and happiness, Magnus can only see a fractured future, a piece of himself missing that he may never come to terms with.

Twinning

This season, viewers have watched as Clary (Katherine McNamara) has slowly begun to succumb to her twinning ruin with Jonathan (Luke Baines). Last episode, “Stay with Me” found the gang finally putting him in captivity, allowing for time to discover a way to remove the rune. Though if “Heavenly Fire” is any indication, Clary and Jonathan’s connection goes beyond the rune. As Jonathan recalls his time in Edom with Lilith (Anna Hopkins) as a child, he relays his fairy tale story of a prince locked in a tower of hell, forced to withstand the torturous love of Hell’s Queen. As he tells of how he cried out for someone to save him, Clary begins to lose her cool exterior, terror spreading across her face.

Racing back to her room, she begins rustling through her drawings, pulling out image after image of a young man in a tower, angst, fear and pain on his face as he cries out for help. Jonathan had been calling to her since they were children, their connection existing without the rune, and transcending realms. Guilt that she is a reason Jonathan is the way he was, that she was not there to save him in time before Lilith poisoned him, Jace comforts her – she was just a child, there was nothing she could have done.

As she confronts Jonathan one last time, revealing to him they have the means of separating them once and for all, at least with regards to the rune, Jonathan’s devilish grin melts into terror. Facing loneliness and abandonment once again, viewers will find the first sliver of sympathy for Jonathan as he cries out that no one is ever going to come for him. In an episode packed with supercharged storytelling and standout performances, this portrayal of Jonathan’s childhood terror surfacing was a highlight of the evening.

Downworlders avoid Apocalypse again…

For as much as the Downworld is threatened by the the Shadowhunters, they are also saved by them. It is an interesting showcase of power and constant battle between good and evil. “Heavenly Fire” was no exception. A secret underground Clave organization has been trickling throughout the storyline this season, finally coming to a head as Isabel (Emerald Toubia) enlists Simon (Alberto Rosende) to go undercover in hopes of finding Glorious for Clary. What they didn’t expect to find was the covert nature surrounding the organization’s creation, their leader (who has displayed his own questionable behaviors in the past), and a plan to not eliminate downworlders but mortalize them.

Thankfully, Simon, Raphael (David Castro) and a young half Shadow hunter, half Seelie named Helen Blackthorn (Sydney Meyer) are able to foil these plans, saving those in NYC from transitioning without their knowledge or their consent. While it appears the Clave had no idea what was going on, it is impossible that no one knew. While this storyline seems closed and sealed, there is still potential for it to seep back out. Again, much like many storylines within this episode, it was wrapped up tightly and effectively, yet still maintains the feeling as though it had the original intent of being more drawn out.

Conclusion: Is it Monday Yet?

One thing I can say with certainty following the conclusion of “Heavenly Fire”, I can not wait for next week. This final season of Shadowhunters has found its rhythm, and dug its heels in deep, refusing to go out with a whimper. So much was resolved this episode, though not without leaving still much behind. My one question, I must ask, following the events of tonight, does that mean Raphael and Isabel still have a chance? I certainly hope so!