http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/ShadowAndBoneEpisode3TheMakingAtTheHeartOfTheWorld
Alina begins her training in the Little Palace—with mixed success. Kaz and the Crows cross the Fold.
Tropes in this episode:
- Amplifier Artifact: An ancient Grisha called the Bonesmith created mystical animals from his own finger bones. If a Grisha slays one and incorporates them into their own body, they will gain a power boost.
- Animal Motifs: The Fjerdans wear wolf-skins and have wolves engraved on their weapons. The Conductor deducts that Nina has been kidnapped by Fjerdans after finding one of their wolf-head emblems left on the floor after the struggle.
- Armor-Piercing Question: On realizing that Matthias was among the other four men that captured her, Nina cries: "five on one?!" Even in the midst of chaining her up, there is a brief glimpse of guilt on his face over this.
- Bait-and-Switch: Kaz at least assumes that the goat Arken demands they bring along on the journey is The Bait. Once things start going wrong, Arken remarks that the craft is too heavy and Jesper starts to freak out, Arken tells him to grab the goat — not to throw it out, but to use it for comfort.
- Bathe Her and Bring Her to Me: Genya orders some servants to make Alina "presentable" for a meeting with the King, and we get a quick montage of the servants stripping Alina and getting her into a a bathtub so she can be washed. Alina finds the servants fussing over her annoying, but tolerates it.
- Bathos: While Kaz and company are crossing the Fold in the Conductor's train, the vehicle is swarmed by volcra, and then it cuts to a terrified Jesper clutching Milo, whom the Conductor then revealed that he only ordered him to take him along as an emotional support goat.
- Bilingual Backfire: The servants washing Alina murmur that she smells like a horse in Old Ravkan, assuming she can't understand it. She bitingly says that of course she smells like horse; she just rode two hundred miles on horseback.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: After Alina's demonstration of her powers, Zoya approaches her with a sweet smile and words of welcome, only to embrace her and whisper: "you stink of the orphanage, half-breed."
- Black Comedy: Alina finds the idea of a taste/poison taster assigned to her to be morbid, but the taster is ecstatic about the job.
Taster: I was so happy when the old taster died.
- Blown Across the Room: Zoya uses her wind powers to do this to Alina during a training exercise.
- Catapult Nightmare: The episode opens with Alina dreaming of a giant white stag and just as it turns around, there is a flash and Alina awakens abruptly, sitting up in the bed in a jolt.
- Cool Train: Explaining the Conductor's pseudonym, his secret way across the deadly Shadow Fold is a small train timed to cross it with extreme precision.
- Creator Cameo: Grishaverse author, Leigh Bardugo, makes an uncredited on-screen appearance, as a Grisha. She is the first Grisha to embrace Alina after Alina is presented to the king.
- Creepy Crows: This episode begins with a murder of crows flying across the screen.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Jesper puts them in danger by gambling away the money used to buy coal, forcing him to steal a lesser amount. But when they're swarmed by volcra, it's his gunslinger skills that get them through alive.
- Dramatic Unmask: Kirigan and Genya deliberately set this up for Alina, putting her in a veil and bringing her before the royal court to make it look as though the king is the first Ravkan to see her. Understandably, Alina finds the whole performance to be rather silly.
- Dreaming of Things to Come: Alina has dreams about a large white stag with elaborate antlers — her amplifier.
- Emerging from the Shadows: Both Nina and Baghra get this type of entrance.
- Exact Words: The Crows are worried when they see a sign warning about a minefield; Arken assures them he just put that up to scare people off. When people try to follow them and the mines start exploding, Kaz says he said there were no mines. Arken points out that he never said that, just that he put up the sign.
- Expecting Someone Taller: King Pyotr says this about Alina when she is introduced to the court as the Sun Summoner, though it's implied it's the fact she's half-Shu that's actually the problem. The queen's next comment dispels any doubt.
King Pyotr: I thought she'd be taller.
Queen Tatiana: I thought she was Shu. Well, I guess she’s Shu enough.
- The Gambling Addict: Despite limited funds, Jesper can't go past a gambling den without joining in the game. He ends up losing everything and having to subsequently steal the coal for the journey across the Fold.
- Hands-On Approach: In flashback, Mal teaches Alina how to throw a punch and makes the most of touching her wrists and hands.
- Healing Hands: Genya heals several small cuts and bruises on Alina's face and hands.
- Improbable Aiming Skills: An unseen Matthias manages to capture Nina with a bola, despite her being on the second floor of an inn while he's outside on the ground with no clear line of sight.
- Insistent Terminology: When Alina describes Genya's tailoring skills as "magic", General Kirigan is quick to correct her: what the Grisha do is science.
- "It" Is Dehumanizing: When Nina is imprisoned on the Druskelle ship, she lashes out at one of the men who helped capture her, saying that she thought Fjerdans respected their women. He coldly replies "You are not a woman. You are Grisha," leaving her stunned at the realisation that he doesn't even consider her to be human.
- Makeover Fairy: Genya Safin, Queen Tatiana's tailor, specializes in making people temporarily more beautiful and is tasked with making Alina more "presentable".
- Nonchalant Dodge: Zoya casually dodges Alina's punch during their sparring match, while also tripping her feet to make Alina fall.
- P.O.V. Cam: There is a brief sequence shot from Alina's point-of-view, complete with the folds of the veil obscuring the camera lens, which allows General Kirigan to appear unexpectedly next to her.
- Security Blanket: Arken demands that the Crows bring a goat for the crossing, apparently as The Bait. Turns out that the point is so that when Jesper gets scared, he can hug the goat.
- Self-Harm: Arken has numerous scars on his wrist showing each time he's crossed the Fold. He admits doing so can take a toll on your sanity.
- Shoulders-Up Nudity: When Alina is stripped naked by the servants, we only see her from the shoulders up in the bath.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: When Zoya insults Alina's heritage, the scrappy protagonist Alina challenges her to a fight, to Zoya's disbelief. There's a brief flashback to Mal teaching Alina how to throw a punch, and Alina squares up, making one think that this will be enough for her to put up a good fight against her rival. Alas, Zoya — who has been training in the Little Palace for years — has her flat on her back in seconds.
- Toplessness from the Back: When Alina is undressed to get into the bath, her bare back and buttocks are seen briefly.
- Voiceover Letter: Throughout the episode, Alina writes several letters for Malyen, which she narrates the contents of as she writes.
