#and he commented on the post positively

[infinitelystrangemachinex]

Jayce and the fallacy of the butterfly effect in Arcane's narrative

If Jayce's symbol is the butterfly, then my theory is that we're going into a full "butterfly effect" narrative in Act 2. Either we'll watch it happen, or we'll only see Jayce come out the other side of it changed by the experience, knowing - or more importantly, THINKING he knows - what to do to change the future. Literally, to "defend tomorrow."

tl;dr: Jayce will encounter the butterfly effect in season 2. Viktor and Mel both foreshadowed this in season 1. I think Jayce will fixate on Viktor and will believe that stopping or changing Viktor either in the past or the present - most likely the present - will mean he can save the future. I believe this will lead to an even worse tragedy and may have the same effect as a self-fulfilling prophecy. Ekko's approach to changing the future by sticking closer to the present - considering only tiny increments of time to alter more immediate future outcomes - will be the superior approach. I also think that Jayce attempting to change the future will create the conditions that push Viktor to become the Machine Herald.

One of the most common reactions even the casual viewer had to Arcane season 1 was this: "If [character] had just done this one small thing a little differently, [tragic event] wouldn't have happened!"

Arcane has been called a Greek tragedy for the main reason that because of how well built up the characters' personalities and reasonings are, there's no other way season 1 could have gone. There was no stopping the multiple tragedies that occurred, because with one event leading to another, the chain of seemingly inevitable events goes too far back to identify what one singular event caused everything, what one character made what one decision to put our characters on the terrible paths they walked.

Arcane is about to investigate this idea in its own narrative, and I think that Jayce will be the character to stumble into the flawed idea that you can change one event, or stop one character, and change the future for the better. This is because Jayce struggles with a few very interesting character flaws, one of them being that he believes himself to be the main character, and it is therefore his responsibility to intervene, be a hero, and fix things.

Viktor and Mel both foreshadow Jayce's future encounter with the butterfly effect.

Recall that Viktor said: "There is always a choice."

Jayce sees choices in black and white, believes that he has no other options but to go along with what he's persuaded and pushed into, and acts too boldly with too much power multiple times.

Recall that Mel said: "We can't change what fate has in store for us, but we don't have to face it alone."

Jayce tries to solve big problems on his own, and though he delegates to Enforcers and the like, Jayce relies on his reasoning and his alone to make important decisions if he doesn't simply become persuaded - usually through strong emotions like fear - by other characters. In addition, since Mel is specifically talking about Viktor's plight here, it's worth mentioning that while Jayce did say that he would help Viktor in acts 2 and 3 of season 1, Jayce does wind up leaving Viktor to face his fate alone. When Jayce tries to change that fate in s2 ep1, ep2 shows that only tragedy can come of this as well.

Viktor and Mel's statements here are not contradictory. Viktor makes the point that you can always make a choice. In context, he's literally referring to the classic "secret third option," because given a choice between aggression and passivity, war and surrender, Viktor chooses to defuse the bomb instead. Mel, interestingly, seems to believe that destiny is fixed in a broad sense, and she operates as a politician and diplomat and investor who navigates that line of destiny in the most optimal way possible. In reality, in context, she is referring to the fact that Viktor can't change the way he was born and so he has no way to change his fate and therefore must face it, which is true - she's only missing the information that Viktor actually does have the means to change his illness and his body. Her wisdom still applies however, because he'll have to accept the hand that fate deals him after he makes that choice. Will he face it alone, or not?

There is always a choice, there's even secret third options, because having a fate doesn't mean that you are doomed to make only one possible series of choices. What it does mean is that each choice comes with a hand that fate deals you. It is impossible to know what all of these branching choices and consequences are in advance, and it is just as impossible in hindsight - the branches are too complex and the end outcomes are all equally meaningful, just different. If Arcane season 2 is to be a tragedy, it may show us that each possible outcome is still tragic if you fall for the fallacy of the butterfly effect.

Jayce is counseled by some of the wisest, cleverest characters with the deepest life experiences in Arcane, but he hardly ever takes that counsel to heart. If he does, he still acts on that counsel in flawed ways that have unintended consequences. This will come to a head in season 2.

Viktor and Jayce both have a butterfly following them around in season 1. The butterfly effect refers to one small seemingly insignificant event changing the course of history, and changing that event therefore changes history. Viktor bled over the railing of a Hexgate in season 1:

And Heimerdinger sees what we can only assume is Viktor's blood contaminating (?) the Hexgate in s2 ep3:

This might be the seemingly unimportant "inciting incident" that Jayce (and Heimerdinger and Ekko) settle on as something that should be avoided or erased by changing the past (if they time-travel with Ekko, for example).

I doubt that, if this is what this crew chooses to fixate on, it will be the only event that is considered as something to change. But let's take this and run with it for the sake of discussion.

As silly as it sounds, how do you stop Viktor from allowing his blood to come into contact with the arcane? Stop Viktor's involvement with the Academy entirely? Don't invent Hextech at all? But what if someone else invents Hextech besides Jayce? What if future tragedy befalls Piltover because it didn't invent Hextech?

The possibilities and what-ifs could branch on forever. But because Jayce is who he is, and because his tragedy with Viktor is still raw and recent and frightening, I think Jayce's butterfly effect experience will have to do with Viktor.

My personal prediction is that the timeskip between s2 ep3 and ep4 will be Jayce experiencing a timeline where Viktor, taken over by the Hexcore, brings about an apocalyptic event similar to what Heimerdinger experienced in his past. Either Jayce and co. can't go into the past to change the present, or Heimerdinger and/or Ekko advise strongly against it to avoid a paradox. This will lead to them re-entering the canon Arcane timeline before this apocalypse, but still after the timeskip. Jayce, believing that destroying Viktor and his cult will save the future, and believing that resurrecting Viktor was Jayce's mistake to fix, attacks him. But the consequences don't unfold the way he hopes, because trying to change fate once the cards have already been dealt has led to tragedy before.

The butterfly is a symbol of something other than just the butterfly effect - change, evolution, and rebirth. If the butterfly symbolizes the butterfly effect for Jayce, then I think it has a different meaning for Viktor - the change and rebirth meaning.

I've always found it very interesting that we see a similar-looking butterfly on Progress Day... but made of metal.

Every time Viktor's situation changes, he adapts and evolves. If Jayce attacks him, if his cult is destroyed, if the Hexcore is causing Viktor to decay, if all of these things happen at once - he'll just evolve again, and I think the Machine Herald is the next step. And the Machine Herald will be a triumph for Viktor, but Jayce will believe that he's created something even worse. The resulting feud will be a personal nightmare for both of them.

I think this still allows Viktor to use his own agency to choose to become the Machine Herald (the MH will probably be the "secret third option" that saves Viktor, or there will be a secret third option that ends the feud) while still allowing Jayce to be offended and horrified at whatever the Machine Herald represents or is trying to do in the undercity. Introducing the element of time travel allows Arcane to explore the meta concept of tragedy and fate that season 1 was built on while showing that you can't "solve" a tragedy, because there are other terrible possibilities lurking behind alternate choices. Especially if what you're trying to change is singular people or events and not systems of power.

This is why Ekko's approach with his Z-drive will be superior to Jayce's sweeping attempt at changing the future. Ekko's goal has always been societal change. He creates his own punk society in the undercity, more progressive and successful than anything Vander or Silco ever created, and a better bastion of safety, hope, and progress than what Heimerdinger founded in Piltover. Trying to change systems by going back in time is most likely futile. But taking what Ekko has already built in the Firelights, curing his tree, and fighting for the Firelights' survival bit by bit by optimizing the present with the Z-drive shows that:

It's more worth it to focus on becoming wise (Ekko's mask is an owl) and making choices you won't regret

It's best if you don't face your fate alone (act as a collective and take care of each other)

Consider every option, not just the obvious black and white choices

Maintain and fix what you've already built instead of abandoning it once things get difficult

Adapt as needed if the choices you made lead to dark consequences, and once again, stick together and take care of each other when the bad times do come

That's my Act 2 but, ultimately, my season 2 prediction based on the butterfly symbolism we've already seen. Ekko's involvement is what will give the series the at least partial happy ending that the creators have referred to. I personally don't think that the Viktor/Jayce feud will end quite so well, but maybe, they will still survive.

[dykedvonte]

I just realized some people are confused about events in the alluded to past in Mouthwashing, particularly about how long the crew has been working together.

The only person who is truly new is Daisuke and it’s why his dynamic with the crew and role in the story is very unique and somewhat distant. Curly didn’t just get Jimmy this job on the Tulpar, he got him the job with the Pony Express. He’s been his copilot for probably a couple of years but still not as long as they’ve been friends. None of them are new with the freight industry, Anya and Swansea especially have been doing this for years, together.

Jimmy is the newest on the regular crew, maybe just a few assignments, but it’s not his first time working with them. I think it’s just something important because this isn’t just one bad mistake that snowballed with giving Jimmy the job. None of them thought Jimmy would do anything, no matter how off-put by him they could’ve been, since he hadn’t done a thing since being there. Generally unpleasantness isn’t a crime and he’d be aware of that.

It was a festering thing and a sort of forced trust they had to give him that he knowingly took advantage of. He was the black sheep and still a wolf under the wool. He expected when he lashed out, that he had been there long enough for it to be looked over completely. Got too comfortable in the space he inserted into and did a lot of damage with his claws when he felt he was going to get shaken out.

[wafflesrisa]

One of them says “in the heat of the moment we were disappointed with each other”

The other says “the biggest problem was involving the media”

Here’s the thing. I believe 100% that there was never any serious beef and that the two talked it out and made up on the plane.

I should really let this go, but even now it seems unfair that the one who blew it up in media gets to say “it wasn’t that deep”, meanwhile the one whose home race and career was insulted is the one who points out the problem was talking to the media in the first place. A problem that has still gone unrecognised in Charles’ comments

I said this last week but I’ll say it again. It’s not fair:

The insults were public. But the apology was only private.

[australianklaviergavin]

OTHER DESIGNS: Baby bunny Trucy, Uendo lizard, Prosecutors, Aura Blackquill, Clay Terran, Bobby Fulbright, Skye Sisters, Valant Gramarye, Iris Wilson, Datz Are'bel, Mael Stronghart, Enoch Drebber, Satoru Hosonaga

AUXILIARY POSTS: modpoppy's Uendo, okartichoke's Caracalvier, Iris 1.0

Compiled here is almost every single design sketch I've done for this... AU? It's my nonsense, take it or leave it! The tag for it is "#The Great Detective's Animal Attorney", but the prefix is mostly for filtering, I just call it "Animal Attorney".

I must disclaim that this is not meant to "compete" with any other AUs or designs! They're all real and I hope my dognix can be friends with yours.

The below post has my designs for the Gavin brothers, Maya, Fransizka, Phoenix, Athena, Sholmes, Lord van Zieks, aaand a teeny Harebrayne. Sadly, no Apollo this time, all his art is doodles and I hit image limit anyways! Him and Trucy may get their own post soon, however!

These were all done with my non-dominant hand, and Athena was done on a Magma board, if that explains the anything.

The Gavins are the first ones I really did, and they're both caracals! I've kinda wanted to go back and change Klavier a bit in regards to an insane headcanon, but caracalvier is too iconic like this, I just can't do it

Putting Maya and Fran together, cause they're both kitties! If Maya was a specific breed, then I forgot, but Fransizka (and her dad, by extension) are both oriental longhairs. If I weren't presently injured, I'd draw a scrungly Manfred, but alas your mind's eye will have to do the work.

Phoenix is a puppy dog! Very very nearly made him a hyena... But I couldn't. I couldn't reconcile it with Ryunosuke. I have a Yeenix in the back, for any interested parties

LASTLY for my main-series designs is Athena! She's a seal. I don't think I had a specific reason besides not being able to get ears to fit with that ponytail... Might change her to a sea lion, though!

AAAAND TGAA BONUSES... Aka the Barokorn Cinematic Universe

Sholmes is a lion (with his sad little low testosterone mane)! He was easily the hardest, as I went back and forth... Alot. He was a pigeon at first! I contemplated rabbit..? But I tried to steer away from the mascot designs, generally. I'm happy with the decision of lion, however, mostly cause it gives him fun symbolism with the whole Professor thing.

The van Zieks-es are unicorns, and Bunnybrain is a pony! I could go more in-depth, buuut that's kinda spoilery

Ryunosuke and Kazuma (not pictured) are both puppy dogs, and I think I settled on bunny for Susato?? To make her pops a bunny also? I also have some sketches of her as a sugar glider, but I don't really like most of their art 👎 so there's a couple gaps here

If anyone wants to (??!?!?!!) you can use these designs for pretty much anything you want (and feel free to extrapolate upon the rest of their designs, most of these are very limited), just make sure to tag me, partially for credit, but also because I'd just REAAAALLY want to see... They are my babies, my world, I think I might break down into tears (/pos) BUT ANYWAYS I LOVE YOU ALL. THANK YOU FOR STICKING WITH ME AND I HOPE THIS MAYBE MOTIVATES YOU TO DRAW SOME SILLY ANIMAL ATTORNEYS OF YOUR OWN!!

[lavenoon]

Happy to meet again (probably didn't see him for a few hours only, like a golden retriever)

@naffeclipse y'know what I'm posting this today too, have something sweet 💜

*self insert is not a girl (he/ she)

og detective au by sunnys-aesthetic!

[gothicprep]

big fan of this because tumblr didn’t exist in 2006

[mechazushi]

The thief better get this guard pregnant before I do.

[magentagalaxies]

creation of adam but it's this photo of me handing scott the martini before his buddy cole set in the KITH toronto show

[risingsunresistance]

my posts should stay nonrebloggable until everyone learns to behave

[lwjamor]

just opened instagram to see petty jorge posting two pics with marc implying a fair duel and some sort of camaraderie which is funny to me considering the 2015 question and marcnaia’s reaction

[dykedvonte]

benny was also like incredibly abusive to yes man and kept him trapped in that shitty side room. it’s no wonder yes man genuinely loves the courier regardless of if they make decisions he likes or not after being liberated from benny. courier must be an angel to him

I think incredibly abusive is a bit much.

Like Benny was not kind to Yes-Man but he was not particularly cruel. If Yea-Man was let out of the room then anyone could’ve asked him anything and outed the plan, leading to him and Benny being exiled at best or killed (permanently in Yes-Mans case) at worse. Yeah, it was Benny’s fault he was like this but it was probably the only fail safe to keep House’s systems from tapping into Yes-Man, by giving him no code to reject commands the only way to influence him would be in person. House can’t do that.

Also liberated makes it sound like you are treating Yes-Man like an equal when you’re just treating him slightly better than most would treat a personalized Mr. Handy bot. Benny isn’t nice to him, didn’t give him a real name, but he definitely loved Yes-Man, more like a science project but that was his thing y’know? Robots with personalities like him that aren’t common in the Mojave and are considered odd. Benny already did a lot more than someone who’d just mistreat his creation by allowing him to be passive-aggressive in the first place. He let Yes-Man think which a big step from most AI programs in the Mojave.

I think the issue is Yes-Man genuinely appreciates the Courier for getting the plan in motion but that wasn’t a lack of Benny. He had completely different circumstances than the Courier that didn’t allow him to be as bold. Yes-Man learns to love the Courier because they come to rule Vegas and he sees them as competent and the next logical leader now that Benny is no longer his primary overseer.

Honestly the Courier and Yes-Man are closer to a exclusive business partnership by the end of the independent route if we go by the general answers. The Courier can be as nice or as mean to Yes-Man as they want and Yes-Man does not see the Courier as flawless or an angel just the next logical step in a plan. Of course, depending on what you do or headcanon, their relationship can be much more complex than that but on a even ground between all of the options, Yes-Man and the Courier are means to an end to each other.

A popular theory before New Vegas had the current fandom it did and developer commentary was that Yes-Man was going to betray you at the end of the independent route. Lying that he’d just upgrade himself to only listen to you so you wouldn’t stop him. Some people still follow it despite it being debunked while other love the idea he genuinely only wants to listen to you.

It’s all up to interpretation my dear. I personally don’t think Benny was cruel to Yes-Man not more than he is to another Chairman. He’s a robot, of course, to Benny and that has its own connotations on how he was treated but I digress. The Courier is far from an angel or saint to anyone but I do like the idea that there’s a fondness from Yes-Man. Lee so how they can be so illogically efficient rather than what they’ve done fore him.

[baifengxis]

this is just a pran parakul is amazing and wonderful and i love him so much and always will post

[archersgoon]

the other good thing about the finnfroi fuckheadfight is that while he is very teenaged about the whole thing me & froi have the same gripes with finnikin. the sheer relief in having someone say hey mate what the fuck is wrong with you? for the same reasons i say it cannot be overstated. yet another reason he is simply the best to ever do it i fear

[hevanderson]

gleeky friday.. there are so many potential shenanigans for the hudmels to get into when body swapped its insane

[wardensantoineandevka]

This reply on this comment for Midst 2.13 is throwing me so bad:

I'm????? I feel like I'm being gaslit. Weepe??? Planning to tear down the Trust and making sacrifices for the greater good?? MOC WEEPE???

I enjoy him a lot, but that man has never done anything altruistic in his LIFE. He literally explained his motivations to Sherman, he believes the best way to survive is to win, by playing the game better than everyone else. He exploits systems to gain personal profit, whatever form that may be, and that's what he wants.

Him? Having a plan at this time to dismantle the Trust? Like, how do you even arrive at that thought?

[logicpng]

i'm in the middle of juggling a move, work, and just Living in general, of course i'm gonna doodle my new blorbo a little too much to cope

anyway here's expressions tests