‘Shadowhunters’ “Erchomai” recap: Where we left Harry Shum Jr. and the rest
Shadowhunters is back and the Shadowfam is ready for more. As with all good midseason “finales”, some things are left open to question. Nevertheless we can still get to a quick recap of where we left off to prepare ourselves for the hunt tonight!
Warning: spoilers ahead for the season three mid-season finale!
Clary is still being held by the possessed Jace, and in a scene unnervingly akin to The Handmaid’s Tale, Clary is cleaned and clothed in a bright red jumpsuit reserved for death row inmates. Of course, she’s given an example of what’s coming for her when a former Circle member is burned alive right before her eyes.
Just as Clary is about to get her comeuppance, she has a powerful deal to make with Clave: she can bring back Valentine. This buys her a little more time, and the chance to resurrect her father (begrudgingly).
Valentine hasn’t interacted with Lilith in years, but once it comes to light she was desperate for a child and Valentine needed her blood to inject into the womb, it becomes clear her real intent is to reunite with Jonathan. Once Clary admits Jonathan is dead, it all starts to come into focus.
In an intense escape, we see the real power behind Clary’s runes. Valentine is shot in the neck with an arrow which he casually pulls out, and after fighting his way through, Valentine reaches a locked door only Clary’s runes can unlock. They strike a deal: she’ll only do it if she can go with him. Clary’s all about saving her friends, and she’ll do what she needs to make that happen.
But Clary has another plan up her sleeve: she removes the rune that resurrected her father, and Valentine is gone once again. Bye bye, Alan. But before Clary can escape, she’s stopped by none other than Jace. After ripping out one of Valentine’s ribs – barehanded we might add – he lets Clary in on the final piece of Lilith’s plan: she needs Clary’s heart, and she’s going to do anything she can to get it.
Alec has been focusing on the Jace problem with Magnus. After an all-night research session, Magnus thinks he can truly free Jace this time. All he has to do is hit Jace with a blast of magic powerful enough to knock Lilith out. Unfortunately, he needs the High Warlock’s permission to pull it off – the only problem is Lorenzo Ray refuses based on the fact that he thinks Lilith isn’t a threat.
In a scene of magical magnificence, Lorenzo & Magnus battle it out physically and magically. With no leads on Lilith or Jace, no info on Clary, and no help from the Warlocks, Magnus and Alec are back at square one: left with only one alternative, Alec’s father.
Simon has got a lot going on in the family department. Heidi figures once they know the truth and are out of the picture, he can live a life that includes her. Simon tries to convince her to stab him, knowing what his Mark can actually do, but she remembers Lilith’s warning and knowing he hasn’t fed in weeks and decides to hurt him in another way. Simon’s instincts kick in and he feeds on his sister. Thanksgiving at their place is going to be really awkward this year.
Luckily, Izzy and Jordan burst in before Simon can kill Becky – but Simon’s mother is emotionally traumatized by what she just saw and threatens to kill Simon if he goes near Becky again.
Hold onto your butt – that was just the first hour.
The second hour opens on a family reunion from many years prior. A young Jonathan finds himself in Edom, meeting Lilith for the first time. After explaining to Jonathan exactly how he came to be, we cut back to present day Jonathan, still very much dead. Fortunately for him, The Owl is on his way back to Lilith with Valentine’s rib and Clary in hot pursuit.
Clary pleads to talk to the real Jace and is mocked instead, but Magnus & Alec are working on a plan: Magnus draws a pentagram under the pretense that he is summoning Asmodeus. Alec is skeptical, but Magnus reassures him. This pentagram isn’t for summoning Asmodeus, however, it’s for Magnus. And with a quick kiss goodbye, he leaves to Edom.
Asmodeus thinks Magnus is there to apologize, not ask a favor. He agrees to help him if Magnus returns to rule at Asmodeus’s side.
Luke is hellbent on saving Clary. With little to go on, his first few plans go to ruin as he is first refuted by his pack and then taken in for questioning. Thanks to Clary’s quick thinking once again, Luke & Maryse finally have something to go on. While The Owl led her back to Lilith’s penthouse, Clary left a blood trail using a shard of glass. They follow it all the way back to Lilith’s auspicious penthouse.
Luke & Maryse call for aid and Simon is reassured by Becky that she loves him and will always support him – even if she is worried about becoming a vampire. She’s taking this really, really well. With his mother Simon is forced to erase her memory.
While Lilith makes her plans for the resurrection, each is given a turn to fight The Owl. Alec puts up a good fight but is ultimately pierced in the chest with an arrow. The Owl begins to free the real Jace, allowing him to see everything that he has done – but in an explosive entrance, Magnus shows up and blasts Jace with everything he’s got.
Jace is freed, but Alec still has an arrow in his chest. Due to his deal, Magnus has no magic. Free from the spell, Jace goes to find Clary. Simon reaches Clary first and it is revealed that thanks to a mark bestowed by Lilith, Jonathan will share Clary’s life force, and that’s why she has been spared.
A battle of mythical proportions is happening downstairs. Luke & Izzy are taking on the bulk of Lilith’s disciples, while Jace races to Clary. But someone has slipped away undetected: Simon.
Clary distracts Lilith with the threat of killing herself, and by extension Jonathan. Simon moves in on Jonathan’s cradle, but at the last moment, Lilith throws Simon through the window. It’s her final act of motherly love as the Mark of Cain unleashes its fury in this bittersweet moment.
Even a Greater Demon like Lilith can’t survive the Mark of Cain and she begins to disintegrate (a la Avengers: Infinity War). Her disciples are freed and Jace finally reaches the top floor. Everyone’s gone except, in this literal cliffhanger, a single hand that survived the blast: Simon’s. Simon is convinced Clary was killed in the explosion, and Jace is devastated by the news.