He isn't just a villain. Honestly, calling Aleksander Morozova—better known to the world as The Darkling in Shadow and Bone—a "bad guy" feels like a massive oversimplification of why Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse became a global juggernaut. People don't just watch or read this story for the magic systems or the seafaring adventures. They stay for the guy who thinks he’s saving the world while he's actually tearing it apart.
It’s been years since the books hit the shelves and the Netflix adaptation brought Ben Barnes’ shadowy charisma to our screens, yet the discourse hasn't died down. Why? Because the Darkling represents a specific brand of "morally gray" that actually challenges the reader. He isn't some mustache-twirling caricature. He’s a victim of history who decided to become the monster history told him he already was.
He’s lonely. That’s the core of it. When you’re an eternal being who can literally summon the darkness, everyone else is just a flickering candle.
The Mythology of Aleksander Morozova
To understand the Darkling in Shadow and Bone, you have to look past the black kefta and the Fold. You have to look at his grandfather, Ilya Morozova. This isn't just flavor text; it’s the foundation of his entire psychosis. Ilya was one of the first and most powerful Grisha, a man who pushed the boundaries of Small Science into the realm of merzost—magic that requires a sacrifice.
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This legacy of power came with a heavy price: isolation. Grisha were hunted for centuries. They were burned, drowned, and experimented on by the Fjerdans and the Shu Han. Imagine growing up in a world where your very existence is a death sentence. Aleksander didn't just wake up one day and decide to create a giant scar of darkness across Ravka. He spent decades—centuries, actually—watching his people get slaughtered.
The Unsea, or the Shadow Fold, was a mistake born of desperation. He tried to create a weapon to protect Grisha, but because he used merzost, it twisted. It became a buffet for the volcra. Most people forget that the volcra weren't just random monsters; they were the original inhabitants of the villages that were consumed when the Fold was created. His "saving grace" for the Grisha turned into a graveyard.
He carries that. Every single day.
Power Dynamics and the Alina Starkov Problem
The relationship between Alina and the Darkling is often labeled as a romance, especially by the "Darklina" corner of the internet. But if we’re being real, it’s a study in predatory power dynamics.
He didn't just want a girlfriend. He wanted an equal—or rather, a battery. For hundreds of years, he was the only one of his kind. Then comes Alina, the Sun Summoner, the literal opposite of his shadow. The chemistry is undeniable because they are two halves of a whole, but the Darkling’s version of love is synonymous with possession. He doesn't want Alina to be her own person; he wants her to be his queen so he never has to be alone in the dark again.
Ben Barnes played this with a sort of weary tenderness in the Netflix series that made it easy to forget he was literally putting a magical leash on her via the stag's antlers. In the books, his manipulation is even more clinical. He isolates her. He makes her feel like the rest of the world is too small for her. It’s a classic grooming tactic masked by high-fantasy stakes.
Yet, we still find ourselves rooting for him to be better. It’s the "I can fix him" trope dialed up to eleven. We want him to find redemption because his pain feels authentic, even if his actions are genocidal.
The Grisha Hierarchy
- The Etherealki: Summoners of elements (Fire, Water, Air).
- The Materialki: Fabrikators who deal with glass, metal, and chemicals.
- The Corporalki: Heartrenders and Healers who manipulate the human body.
- The Darkling: A category of one. He isn't just a summoner; he is a living amplifier.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Shadow Fold
There is a common misconception that the Darkling wanted the Fold to stay forever. In reality, his goal was control. If he could control the Fold, he could control the world’s trade, the world’s borders, and the safety of every Grisha alive.
He saw himself as a visionary. To him, the "normal" people (the otkazat'sya) were short-lived, fearful creatures who would always turn on what they didn't understand. If he had to kill a few thousand of them to ensure a thousand years of safety for Grisha, he viewed that as a fair trade. It’s the "Greater Good" argument that has fueled every tyrant in history.
The Tragedy of Immortality
One of the most nuanced aspects of the Darkling in Shadow and Bone is the toll that living forever takes on a person’s morality. When you live for hundreds of years, individual human lives start to look like blades of grass. You see them grow, you see them wither. Eventually, you stop bothering to learn their names.
This is why he struggles to connect with the Crows or even the higher-ranking Grisha in the Little Palace. They are temporary. Even Genya Safin, who he "trusted" more than most, was eventually just a pawn to be discarded or punished when she showed autonomy.
His only real peers are his mother, Baghra, and eventually Alina. Baghra is the only one who sees through his "Saint" act. She knows exactly what he is because she raised him to be that way, then spent the rest of her life regretting it. Their relationship is one of the most toxic, fascinating mother-son dynamics in YA literature. She tries to stop him not because she hates him, but because she knows the cost of his soul better than anyone.
Redemption vs. Damnation
Does the Darkling deserve a redemption arc? This is the question that keeps the fandom split down the middle.
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In the final book of the original trilogy, Ruin and Rising, we see the cracks in the armor. We see the boy who was once afraid. But Bardugo makes a very deliberate choice: she doesn't let him off the hook. He dies, and his death isn't a grand, heroic sacrifice that wipes away his sins. It’s a quiet, almost pathetic end where he begs not to be left alone.
It’s a stark contrast to how other "redeemable" villains are handled in fiction. Usually, they get a big moment of glory. The Darkling just gets the silence he feared his whole life.
Then, of course, the King of Scars duology complicates things by bringing his "spirit" or echo back into the mix. This move by Bardugo was controversial. Some felt it cheapened his ending; others felt it was the only way to truly explore the vacuum of power he left behind. Ravka without the Darkling is a safer place, but it's also a place that lost its strongest protector. That’s the irony. The monster was also the shield.
How to Engage with the Grishaverse Today
If you're just getting into the series or looking to dive deeper into the lore of the Darkling in Shadow and Bone, don't just stop at the TV show. The show is great, but it condenses a lot of the internal monologue that makes Aleksander so terrifyingly relatable.
- Read The Demon in the Wood: This is a graphic novel (originally a short story) that serves as a prequel. It shows Aleksander as a teenager, long before he became the Darkling. It’s heartbreaking. You see the moment his heart starts to harden.
- Compare the Mediums: Notice how Ben Barnes plays the role versus how he's described on the page. The show makes him more of a romantic lead initially, whereas the book introduces him with a much colder, more clinical edge.
- Explore the Saints: Look into the Lives of Saints (another companion book). It provides the religious context of Ravka. The Darkling’s desire to be seen as a Saint (Sankto) is a huge part of his ego.
- Analyze the Crows: While the Darkling doesn't interact much with Kaz Brekker and his crew in the books, the show weaves them together. Think about how the Darkling’s "calculated" evil compares to Kaz’s "pragmatic" criminality. It’s a fascinating study in shades of gray.
The Darkling remains one of the most discussed characters in modern fantasy because he represents the danger of a good intention backed by absolute power. He's a reminder that the most dangerous villains aren't the ones who want to destroy the world, but the ones who are convinced they’re the only ones who can save it.
Ravka's history is written in shadow, and at the center of that shadow is a man who just wanted someone to stay awake with him through the night. It doesn't excuse the blood on his hands, but it sure makes for a hell of a story.