#isha can’t be dead

[thesecondhandwoman]

The way Isha was so content with her sacrifice, closing her eyes and smiling in her final moments, actually hurts me. And she is only like that because she was thinking about Jinx: how she saved her, how she took her in when she was left for the streets of the undercity, how she was able to constantly follow her around and get inspired, how she was able to fulfill the loss of her inner child, and finally how she was able to save her and the other people (Vi) she loved from dying.

That, my friends, makes this really heart wrenching, and what hurts even more is that she was a child. She was particularly Jinx’s child, and we can see that in the way Jinx looked the most frightened when Isha was captured, or the way she saw how she grabbed her gun, stuffed it with hextech, and pulled the trigger (all while being held back by her sister despite her tries in running to Isha, crying and screaming).

[amastarxoxo]

my wife is dead and gone. i should have never picked up arcane again.

[finn-ickymentalstability]

Okay but like- where did Sevika go? She was there to save Isha before when Jinx was with Warwick, but then she just sorta disappeared? Nope. We need Sevika to somehow be here randomly and save Isha again.

[littledeathdove]

I got to talk about this before I sleep because I can’t anymore,

I’m actually going to cry about Isha dying in this damned act especially since it was to protect Jinx. That little girl had powder written all over her personality and it’s killing me knowing that the last person who has loved Jinx is now also dead

Like I said before, ain’t shit sweet anymore with this kid dead so don’t even be acting happy around me 😔

(HER LAST MOMENTS UGH I HATE THIS SHOW I SWEAR 😭😭)

[sandraharissa]

I think one of the many things wrong with Jinx this season is how like, half of her personality was cut off and thrown out.

Like her reaction to grief. We see her suicidal after Silco’s death and she’ll be again very suicidal after Isha’s death. Makes sense. Don’t have notes on that part. However I have so much notes on her rage. In s1 we see Powder sometimes responding to bad situation by being shy and sad, but sometimes she reacts in a more adversarial way, like complaining they should try fighting Piltover or trying to stand up to Mylo. But we also get these moments like when she’s left behind and has an absolute meltdown and starts wrecking shit but more importantly her reaction to Silco. He says they’ll show them all and she throws the audience the most rage fueled look you’ve ever seen. When really pushed beyond her limits this is Powder’s emotional reaction to tragedy/being wronged. We see that all throughout acts II and III and we see it when she blows up the council after Silco dies. And that’s the problem cos that’s the part that’s missing from s2. They cut her personality in half and only kept one half. Anger as part of her personality and reaction to grief was discarded when writing her in s2. Even tho she goes through a lot of grieving in s2.

Another example is Isha. Jinx prioritizing family and just chilling? Wanting affectionate interactions with family? Having an easier relationship with a younger family member cos there aren’t any expectations or need to prove anything or gain anyone’s attention? No fear of abandonment/betrayal? She just has this kid who hero worships her and follows her around like a puppy so no stress? No notes. However I have a lot of notes about Jinx’s paranoia and how not normal and possessive and toxic she is about relationships. And I have notes on the generational trauma. Where did all that go? That’s not how ppl work. Living in a messed up society and Silco’s parenting won’t just evaporate like that cos Isha is just so overwhelmingly cute. It’s more likely that Jinx would corrupt the kid. (which you could argue on paper she does cos the kid in the end thought that suicide was dope but why did the narrative frame it as this beautiful thing lol)

And on the topic of fighting Piltover where did “we beat the enforcers with just the four of us imagine what the whole Lanes could do” go? Jinx definitely prioritized family more but she wasn’t neutral or indifferent on the Piltover matter. The enforcers wrong her/hurt her/threaten her family yet again, they kidnapped Isha, and she just acts panicked and sad, but also jokes and quips while on the mission. Where’s the rage and hatred and desire for revenge on the ppl who wronged her? Sometimes it’s just ppl around her being mean or lying or smth, anyone could be her enemy, like Sevika, Silco or Vi, but a lot of the time it’s Piltover, they killed her parents, they were her fathers’ enemies and drove them to hate each other, they chased them as kids and tried to arrest them, they kidnapped and abused Vi in prison all her adolescence, they would have killed Vi so she blew up the whole blockade, Council tried to turn Silco against her and now he’s dead so she bombs them, all her life she can see that the quality of their life is bad bcos of Piltover, she’s in Jayce’s apartment and immediately goes for the sandwich. Jinx doesn’t come off as a very politically/ideologically motivated character but what happened to all her personal beef with Piltover?

They also inexplicably just ceased to write her fucking up all the time. what about her y’know, being a jinx? In s1 even in acts II and III when she is proficient in fighting and bomb-making they still constantly show her being more of a burden and fucking up in other ways. While never explained (which was good) to me it came off as a symptom of trauma and being neurodivergent, like how ADHD kids can’t escape the allegations that they’re lazy, but on a meta level it did make it feel like she was supernaturally cursed. Part of what felt so profound and empowering about s1 finale and her embracing being jinx it that it was her embracing that she’s different (and ‘wrong’ in some ways) and can never live a happy life in the society she lives in and so she lashes out. Now she just chills and nothing ever doesn’t go her way (ig until Isha died but that wasn’t even directly her fault, Isha just acted on her own choice and agency). Suddenly her mental issues don’t exist or get in the way of her socializing and being a part of society. This bigoted, violent and unfair society.

Don’t even get me started on her mannerisms. Remember how she would bite her lip? I’m not sure if she does that even once in s2. “Sister, thought I missed her”??? let Jinx rhyme sometimes and in general say weird shit, not one-liners.

So the only way for the writers to have Jinx do nothing, heal up completely and just chill with a kid in her lair (and really everything else she does (or doesn’t do) this season) is to get rid of half of her personality, the traits that would dictate she take action and feel wrath and lash out/hurt her loved ones in the process.

All of her tragic traits from s1 that made her Jinx were just erased, not changed throughout the course of an arc, absent from the get go, so that they can have her say that Jinx is dead and have it make sense in the context of s2 cos from her very first appearance is s2 this Jinx was devoid of pretty much all of her jinx-y character traits from s1.

[insomniadreamzz]

I need you

——

A Jinx x Fem!Reader short taking place where Jinx wanted to end herself with the bomb. Instead of Ekko Reader will be there (let’s go lesbians 👀🤌🏼)

TW// mentions of su!cide, depression, Angst

After the explosion and the loss of Isha and you, Jinx gave up and let the Enforcers take her to prison. She lost everyone who was dear to her. For once Jinx felt happy in her life and then everything went to shit again.

She starved herself in prison, not wanting to eat anything, being lost deep in her depression.

Jinx took the chance once Vi wanted to convince her to use her tinkering skills for good and switched places, locking Vi in and leaving with the intention to break the circle.

She cut off her long hair, wanting to get rid of it since she couldn’t braid it herself.

Back in her hideout, Jinx wanted to finally end herself, that’s what she meant by breaking the circle. Her makeup all smudged by her tears rolling down, looking at the bomb in her hands.

She was about to finally do it before she heard a familiar voice calling out for her.

„Jinx!! Here you are! I went everywhere to find you but I couldn’t I didn’t know where they took you. I am glad you’re here.“ You babbled without a point but Jinx didn’t even flinch when you run up to her and wrap your arms around her neck, not noticing the bomb in her hands.

„(Y/N)…is it really you? No…you must be just a hallucination…right? You’re not real.“ Jinx looked at you but she looked more concerned than happy.

„What are you saying?? It is me. I am real.“ You said, now noticing the bomb in her hands. „What…are you doing?“

Jinx didn’t respond, she let let go of the bomb, letting it fall down the edge where she stood and probably wanted to jump. Her hands reaching forward to touch your cheeks, wanting to feel you. Wanting to check if you were really here in front of her.

„It is you…but you…you exploded together with Isha…youre dead!…no…you’re here.“ You could see Jinx struggling to believe. Your arms pulling her closer to your body, away from the edge she wanted to jump off.

„I am not dead…I got away just in time.“ You said as your hand caressed her now short hair, running your finger so gently through it, slowly realising what Jinx wanted to do, your eyes getting teary.

„Jinx…don’t tell me you wanted to…“ You couldn’t even say these words, they were stuck in throat.

„I-I need you. Without you Jinx, I can’t live.“ You said, sobbing as you nuzzled into her hair.

„Bullshit…“ She answered as she pulled back, looking at you with her beautiful pink eyes. „You don’t. I am just a mess.“

These words made your heart sting. Even though she said that, her actions told you that she needed you too.

„I wanted to end myself because I thought I lost everyone I loved but you are here…alive…“ She confessed and you couldn’t help it and cup her cheeks, kissing her deeply.

Jinx hesitated first but then she relaxed in your touch, kissing you back deeply, her hands clinging to you as if you will poof away any second but you were still there. Jinx finally realised this was real and no hallucinations. You saved her.

„I love you.“ You mumbled against her lips and Jinx felt the same for you.

„I love you too (Y/N)“

[abnormalshark]

Jinx x reader (self harm comfort!) **NOT PROOFREAD!!!*

Synopsis: After a long day, you’re taken by surprise as your girlfriend Jinx comes home earlier than usual.

TW: SH, BLOOD, BLADES, ECT

It was a cold and quiet evening. Jinx was long gone for the night. Probably off in her workspace deeply absorbed in her creations. Although you supported her wholeheartedly You really did start to dread the lonely nights.

The thoughts in your head swarm at the dead of night like moths swarming to a dirty streetlight. The goosebumps on your arms multiplying as the ice cold blade pierces your skin.

“it’s the only thing that helps!”

“no one has to know.”

“Just this last time and I’ll quit.”

Those are the thoughts that plague you. Denial and reason bickering in your mind as the warm blood drips down your arm.

You exhale shakily but relieved as the pain from the cut forcefully takes your minds attention away from all of your insecurities and worries.

You’re lost in paradise. It feels nice not to think about it. Your legs feel like jelly and your hands shaking terribly as you try to hold up the towel tightly against your arm.

It doesn’t take long for you to start up again. Your soft fingers pick up the blade and you inhale deeply. Closing your eyes and taking in the moment. The blade makes contact once more. You open your eyes as Your pupils dilate at the sight.

“Y/n? what are you doing?” A raspy voice catches you by surprise. You raise your eyes towards the mirror in front of you. It’s her. Your girlfriend. Standing ever so comfortably against the door frame.

Suddenly your body starts to move grabbing nearly everything in sight trying to hide it from her view. Tears start to dribble out of your eyes. “F-Fuck! I- listen I just- I-“ your sentences turn into words and soon enough your words turn into intolerable sounds. However, you’re immediately brought back when jinx’s cold hands touch your shoulder.

“Why didn’t you tell me? I’ve dealt with this stuff too ya know… I know how to help.” She takes your arm without warning and starts to clean it. Occasionally she’d respond with a tiny ‘ow sorry’ when you wince. “I- I don’t know I just-“ you take a deep breath to gather your words. “I know you have your own problems and I just have all these thoughts in my head that won’t stop.” Your shaky voice spews out.

“You dummy…” jinx’s eyes look yearningly at yours. “That doesn’t mean you have to face it alone.” She mumbles. She sounds as if she might cry just watching you in pain.

You can’t help but notice your girlfriend looks rather cute from this perspective. Worried and concerned yet… so calm.

“I love you” the words burst out of your mouth. You didn’t expect them to come out but you’re not upset that they did.

Jinx lets out a hearty chuckle. She kisses you ever so gently as she rubs her thumb over the bandages on your arm. “I love you too, sweetheart.”

She gets up alarmingly fast. Eyes closed as she stretches her arms up towards the ceiling. “C’mon, we better go before Isha tries to break the laws of physics and magically put her ear through the door.”

She laughs and smiles warmly at you. “By the way… I am going to bug you about your feelings later. You’re not off the hook yet, ‘Kay?”

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ ✦ . 　

! Idk I legit wrote it half asleep but hope you still enjoyed it!! Merry christmas everyone!!

[ysaona]

— Act 2, s2, arcane spoilers.

First of all WHAT THE FUCK! Isha dying was a cannon event; I’m not even going to lie, but her using three of the gems like Jinx did crushed me. Even when Jinx said, “You know, you remind me of her in some way,” referring to Isha reminding Jinx of her old self, Powder. All I could think about was Isha thinking in her head, maybe even saying in her head, “I can help them!” just like Powder did in Season 1, Act 1, Episode 3. When it came to trying to save them in the end of Act Two.

Also, rip our glorious god Viktor. I don’t think he’s dead if I’m being honest. I think the doctor is gonna be doing a number on him to bring him back.

I just can’t believe how overall perfect it was with Jinx being able to stand next to Caitlyn without Caitlyn wanting to rip that laughter out of her throat lol. I had a personal theory that Caitlyn would see all the havoc being caused and, even through all the grief she was going through, she’d turn against her people and find her way back to Vi, and I was right! (In a way.) I’m so happy. At first, I thought all second act that CaitVi was not gonna be canon, but BOY was I wrong! I just know they’re having rough Sesbian lex at the end of Act Three.

I’m very nervous to see how Jinx will be, especially if Isha does die, which seems like she does. How grief will play a role in her character development. It would genuinely be for the worst. Knowing that Jinx said having Isha was like wearing glasses, and she loved and cared for her no matter what, but you could tell they were doomed from the start. Isha fell in love with how Jinx was a symbol of Zaun and how she was looked at as a hero. That’s why Isha wanted to be like Jinx so badly and looked up to Jinx.

ALSO WHERE IS MY MOMMY SEVIKA AUGHHH I MISS HER COME HOME SHE HAD LIKE NO SCREEN TIME ):

Okay, sorry how this is all over, lol. Feelings are new; I literally just finished watching it, guys. 😓 Okay, love you all so much, bye! Also, thank you all for 942 followers. I can’t believe you guys ACTUALLY LISTEN TO ME, LOL. BYE, BABIES!!!

[violent-viscera]

THEORY OF ENDING OF ARCANE

ok, so i should preface that while i guessed singed was orianna’s father p much right away after i read orianna’s lore (which im super proud of), im terrible w theories. but i just want to ramble a bit.

i feel like jinx is going to die at the end of the show (which i hope not bc she’s my favourite character and she’s suffered so much.)

but considering how much arcane loves parallels and tragedies, it makes sense to me.

i feel like the whole foundation of jinx/powder as a person is that she seeks to belong, family, love, and to feel useful.

this whole unending tragedy is bc of piltover’s oppression of zaun and the power struggle/imbalance there, of course. but that’s how a little girl—who is predisposed to mental health issues and deep laden insecurities—ends up accidentally blowing up her entire found family.

her deep sense of emotionality and compassion becomes her worst enemy; it’s the guilt and trauma left behind by her actions that propels her character into chaos and deviancy. she believes everything she does is bound to be cursed and she can never do anything good. or right. and it doesn’t help that her second father figure is cursed w the similar insecurities of inferiority, projects his trauma onto her to make it tenfold, and manipulates her so he doesn’t lose her.

so instead of facing her pain head on and accepting those parts of her, she leans into it and adopts the persona of jinx.

it’s less painful than being weak, fragile, sensitive powder who can’t do anything.

so, in season two, with all the scenes of jinx slowly finding morsels of powder still lingering in the depths as she adopts isha and reunited w vi (however fragile and tenuous it may be) and just seeing how that former little girl who just wanted family and be loved and to love…i feel like she will die.

except she will die this time as someone who didn’t fuck shit up and died for her cause (maybe she protects vi as we see she does when faced w feral warwick). she will be reunited w her family (her parents, silco, vander, and isha) in death and she’s been saying she’s been wanting to die anyway.

not only that but it could be the way to bring closure to the sisters in a way that is stereotypical of arcane where they reaffirm their love but also still is considered tragic. maybe as jinx is dying and the shimmer leaves her system, she dies w powder’s blue eyes.

it also would parallel silco’s death at the end of season 1 and we can see even through montages this season that their journey into darkness begun from just wanting to help.

and as i mentioned earlier, she also stepped in front of vi, shielding her from warwick whilst demonstrating her hope that vander was still intact inside (powder’s optimism and hope still alive) and vi acknowledging jinx doesn’t need her anymore as she’s a force on her own…feels like maybe jinx will protect vi instead of vi being the protector.

i could be so dead wrong and i would like to be bc i love jinx and her story, but right now so much feels so set up to jinx’s death.

like the amount of redemption arc they’re aiming for and how much powder is still left inside her (her capacity to love still is alive and well), it feels like informs me that she will die.

[vickillaman]

Is there anything so undoing as a sister?

Jinx is alive.

“Vi was strong because she was afraid. Her fear of losing us is what made her fight so hard”.

“You’re never gonna give up on me, are you? You don’t need to worry about me anymore. You don’t need to feel guilty about being happy. You deserve to be happy with her”.

Jinx was right there, staring at her sister,  begging her to save herself, begging her to understand that she can’t save their dad. She was staring at her sister crying and not being able to fight back as the beast attacked her, still trying to call out to his humanity, to Vander, to her dad.

And Jinx knew: Vi’s love for her family will be the end of her.

Everything has changed and Vi just can’t bring herself to accept it because she is still a kid that wants the best for her sister; a daughter that was told to protect her family; a girl that knows nothing but how to give every single piece of herself to the ones she loves just to find out that it’s never enough.

How much more can she give before there’s nothing left?

Jinx didn’t want to find out. She didn’t want her to worry about her anymore, didn’t want her to be strong and afraid all the time. Jinx wanted Vi to be happy, to put her happiness above all else and she knew that Vi won’t be able to do that as long as her little sister was around. She knew after spending months with Isha and already willing to throw herself at the hands of death to just be able to reach her, to save her that Vi will never be able to live for herself if Jinx was there with her.

Vi will always choose her family even if it kills her. Vi will always prioritize her family over herself over and over and over again. Vi will always try to chase her monsters away.

In the end, is there really anything so undoing as a sister?

Jinx knew that in order for Vi to take a leap forward, her little sister needed to get left behind.

She left to build something new. Someone else worth building it for.

Jinx is alive. But Vi’s sister is dead.

P.S. And Caitlyn knows that Jinx is alive, too. That’s why we see her looking at the Hexgates’ plan and a part of Jinx’s bomb. And most importantly that’s why we see Caitlyn’s face, pensive and tense, exactly before we see the airship: the one that we know Powder said she would ride in, someday.

Cait just doesn’t let Vi on about her suspicions for the exact same reason she knew that if Vi got hold of the keys to free Jinx, she’ll be the one left in the cell just for Caitlyn to let her out in the end (always and for the rest of their lives now, probably).

[fulcrums501st]

Honestly I think the main thing I can’t look past in s2 is how it offers super simple solutions to incredibly complex and nuanced questions that s1 set up so intricately.

How can someone like Jinx ever become stable or well adjusted? Oh her hallucinations basically cease cuz she just becomes depressed and then before she can get over that brief period of apathy and go back to her psychotic self, she adopts a kid that basically brings Powder back. So the super crazy Jinx we expected to see after the cliffhanger of s1 never gets the chance to form! Isha serves as a plot device to avoid a complicated answer to Jinx’s mental issues and question of identity.

How can Vi and Jinx ever become sisters again after they’ve changed to much, is it even possible for them to reconcile? OH their dead dad comes back and reminds them of the good old days so we can ignore all the present and much more recent shit that has happened! And we’ll just really reaffirm that Jinx is Vander’s kid and not Silco’s after ep 4! This is the easy way out to the sister conflict, literally just reminding them that “oh yeah! We did used to be sisters!” And then Jinx can just die so we don’t need explore a complicated road to recovery that Jinx would have needed to embark on! Wow. What a cop out.

Will Zaun and Piltover ever be able to escape the cycle of violence that plagues them that is rooted in complex systemic oppression and inequality? Is violence the answers? Or will it only perpetuate more conflict? How can compromise come about with the rising extremism on both sides? How can Zaun and Piltover ever progress while acknowledging the horrors of the past, but still retaining optimism for the future? OH! Let’s actually just not even BOTHER exploring Piltover/Zaun at all!! They’ll team up to fight foreign 3rd enemy (literally foreign cuz Noxus is literally another nation interfering) and an incredibly simple exploration of forgiveness is the answer! Definitely not cliché as crap.

Complex questions, basic, uncomplicated answers. I simply wish the writers had chosen to prioritize themes and exploring interesting nuances more than big plot climatic style battle in the end. I see visions of nuance there, but they fall flat cuz of the fast pacing and what plots the story chose to prioritize, which don’t organically continue the setup from s1

[arcaneconfessions]

I hate that the memes about Vi being worse after a situationship compared to growing up in prison are somehow correct.

When I first saw it in the trailer I was like, this is clearly a cumulative thing. As she said she spent all those years starving, abused and freezing simply on the hope that Powder survived, so she has absolutely nothing left when Powder is dead and Caitlyn abandoned her, it’s just all that catching up. It’s not that she could stand all those years in prison and not last a break up.

but then they made the most idiotic choice of centring her breakdown entirely on Caitlyn- she is the only one that haunts her and nobody else when I know damn well Vi has other regrets and there’s so much more to her character. You can’t even make the argument that those other regrets are implied, because they aren’t - we are literally within her head. She’s constantly trying to drown out the noise (of Caitlyn) via drinking/fighting and it’s not working.

How about her family? Failing to fulfil Vander’s dying wish to take care of Powder? The last they saw, Jinx was trying to kill herself using Vi (“Go on”/“I’m glad it’s you”/ actively saying no and not moving off the table when Isha gets in the way of her death/“no, no this isn’t how it’s supposed to go”- in reference to her surviving) so what’s her thoughts on that and Isha?

how about some reflection on last season where she told Jayce to stfu and continue because one dead kid is more than worth putting an end to Silco?

How about her becoming an enforcer? The same people that abused her and murdered her parents? Now she was one of them, using brutality that she was a victim of since she was a child, willing to use the same poison gas that arose because of Piltover’s exploitation of Zaun within the streets- again told to her by Vander. (And don’t give me bs about it not being that bad when Viktor’s terminal illness is caused by it YEARS LATER, we are shown in s1 that CHILDREN work in those factories and with chembarons, we are also shown how bad the grey is in that music video). When Jinx brought it up, all she says is that she’s done blaming herself for Jinx’s mistakes- but those aren’t Jinx’s mistakes, those are her own. Does she recognise this?

Vi in s1 had opinions about “scraping together coins whilst [Pilover] has plenty”, the Lanes being her streets, wanting respect, growing up feeling less than them and wanting that to change etc. She’s super happy to be eating Jericho’s food, parkouring and correcting Cait’s assumptions. So does she still hold these opinions in s2? What changed if she doesn’t? Her entire thing was being Vander-mini with feeling/being responsible for the lanes/her family. How about now? How does she feel about anything?

I adore Vi and seeing her reduced to “Emo lesbian can’t get over her situationship” is awful. I’m not talking about the jokes, but in canon how things she should have strong feelings about are entirely ignored for her feelings about Caitlyn. Her trauma isn’t properly explored at all, a music video where she’s only upset about Caitlyn is so unfair to her.

.

[identityflawed]

“arcane s2 was rushed they sidelined vi’s trauma and isha’s death”

please stop talking NOW. idk what you want from the writers but no, they’re not going to devote scenes solely to resolving or exposing trauma for a character whose entire internal drive is to push past their issues because there’s always something “bigger” at hand. vi is at war. her world is at war. from the get go, she has been a stagnant force and the lens through which the viewer navigated the post-s1act1 world because she was in prison and therefore knew very little about it. she remains stagnant because she has no questions about who she is, and the struggles she faces don’t actually give her an identity crisis — she has always been a big sister who protects others at the cost of herself.

trauma resolution scenes come when characters face an identity crisis from them, and are written in as a necessity to justify the choices they will make because of that event. you don’t need that with vi because she just doesn’t change. arcane won’t give you a scene that the story doesn’t need (though i think they have too much faith in their fanbase to read between the lines). vi is always that young girl who protects her sister and wants to live up to expectations. vi isn’t an incredibly self-reflective character and the narrative extends that. she’s emotionally impulsive in many ways and follows her heart before anything else with very little doubt or confusion (she owns up to her own faults and does it vocally and often to great emotional strain); that’s what makes her a great fighter and a great sister. her actions speak for her more than anything else, and she certainly doesn’t need dialogue or a full out addressing of her struggles to be a strong character. people are too hung up on their own projected dream of getting their problems solved and trauma fixed by sweet loving words to understand that in real life, and in WAR, it can’t be that simple.

and regarding isha. she’s a tragedy, but arcane fans fail to understand that loris and isha were not actual “characters” in the sense that they’ll be acknowledged and developed by the narrative. they are people in their own right, but they serve as planks for vi and jinx as surrogates who provided what they so badly wanted — an opportunity to protect and be protected when those were taken away from them at a young age. there’s a reason both these characters share resemblances with people from the sisters’ past; their deaths symbolize change. nobody talked about loris or isha’s death after it happened, because YOU DIDNT HAVE TO. it was so clear how terribly jinx was changed because of isha’s sacrifice; it was her turning point. nobody needs to say “damn it sucks that isha’s dead, i bet you’re grieving huh” in order for the viewers to get the picture. both isha and loris were war casualties who died trying to protect others while initially starting off as signifiers of moral goodness (in the innocence of a child and a compassionate enforcer who left when his job turned fascist).

all this to say that no, arcane is not a fanfic, despite what s2ep7 looks like. and it certainly isn’t over — it isn’t a clean ending because 1) that isn’t realistic and 2) there’s other regions to cover and characters to explore and reuse. you’re not gonna get everything you wanted to see, you’ll only get what you need to see. the writers didn’t sideline anyone. in fact, the reason you see them as developed enough in the first place is because of the writers understanding how to handle what they’re working with.

[chronicsyd]

Yk… I feel like people have become So used to like TikTok doom-scrolling feeding their limited attention span and having most sapphic rep be TV-Y7 shows (She-ra, TOH, TLOK, etc.) that when they’re faced with a TV-14 show where they actually have to Pay Attention to little things like facial expressions over words instead of having constant exposition shoved in their face they don’t like it.

And this is not me saying you can’t be an adult and watch a TV-Y7 show, but you Do have to keep in mind that the shows target demographic Is younger viewers so they have to utilize stuff like exposition so younger viewers can easily understand it. And those shows have pretty black and white morals “Horde = Bad” “Princess Alliance = Good” all that fun stuff.

But Arcane isn’t like that, it makes you think deeper about what’s actually being told to you and I’ve had to do a couple rewatches myself to pick up on stuff I hadn’t noticed the first time. And putting those same black and white morals to the characters like these really does the show a disservice.

(I also think the "oh I don't like oppressor x oppressed" complaint to be Incredibly stupid because you could slap that onto practically Anything. Heterosexual relationships/Hetero-passing relationships? that's oppressor x oppressed because of men over women. Mixed relationships involving any white person? that's Definity oppressor x oppressed. Relationships involving a cis and trans person? yup oppressor x oppressed again. Reducing characters down purely to their socioeconomic status and occupation and ignoring all the nuance, complexity and logic of them and their actions frustrate the hell out of me because they refuse to think deeper than that.)

And I'd RATHER Caitlyn Show she's remorseful and changing through her Actions rather than a sob session of "I'm sorrys'" (Also, LAST time Caitlyn merely said words to Vi ("I won't"), her actions didn't reflect those words, so why would Vi trust a simple "I'm sorry" now? Not to mention we already got that "I'm sorry" plot beat when it came to Jayce and Viktor back in S1 with Jayce doing stuff like setting the Bridge Blockade (and No one wants to bring up the "oppressor x oppressed" thing when talking about Jayvik despite it being the same dynamic...))

(Let's also address that Vi never said "I'm sorry" to Jinx for joining the Enforcers. No, the "I'm sorry" in Ep 3 wasn't for That it was an "I'm sorry for what's about to happen" because they Both know that there's a high possibility that Jinx might be dead at the end of this fight, and I know this because Vi becomes defensive in Ep 5 when Jinx brings it up. Vi doesn't say "I'm sorry" for hitting Isha either (btw if you say Vi saw Jinx care for Isha as a "I'm a bad sister" then you just lack basic media literacy all together). Jinx never says "I'm sorry" for all the fucked up shit she does like kidnapping Caitlyn and forcing Vi to kill her. Also, Vi AND Caitlyn come up with the plan to take out Silco loyalists, Shimmer and Jinx so why the hell does Caitlyn have to apologize for that? Caitlyn admits that forcing Vi to take the badge was the wrong thing to do and gives an explanation as to why she wanted Vi to join her as an Enforcer, because Caitlyn's worry of "one of us comes back in a box" IS justified)

(I also think the time jumps have fooled the audience, because they feel that Caitlyn's scene with Ambessa in ep 4 is "a complete 180" when you have to keep in mind that Caitlyn's been watching how her actions have affected those in these 6 months that we haven't really been seeing her on screen; we see bits of her during the "Paint the Town Blue" montage and Even Then you see her damn near crying in one of those still shots and looking so exhausted and over it in another. Once again part of that "Arcane wanting you to use your brain to connect those dots instead of the show doing For you but the audience refuses to do so" kinda stuff.)

Also, do people need to go through their Own trauma, grief and anger in order to understand Caitlyn's actions/motivations? because it's kinda starting to look that way. Caitlyn wasn't maliciously manipulating Vi with the kiss and the "I won't" statement because when going through emotions like this, Caitlyn doesn't have the time to reflect on those actions and see how she is changing, it's more of a hope that she isn't changing in the way that Vi doesn't want her to (you have to remember that S1 Ep4-S2 Ep3 happens within the span of like a week, maybe two at the most; Caitlyn's not being given time to stop or think about what's she's doing or what's going on, she's merely going through the motions in a sense. So by the time we pick up Ep 4 and there's been months of shit happening under her watch, she's had Time to be like "I don't want to be this, I hate this and the person I've become in all this".)

(I mean we can have Another discussion of how a lot of hate is just performative activism. One of the reasons I Like Caitlyn so much is because she shows that even with good morals, someone from privilege can easily fall down that rabbit hole. Because that's happened to myself before. Despite being lesbian and mentally disabled I still come from certain privilege, while I don't come from aristocratic wealth, I still lived a life better than most and just being a white woman that also gives me privilege and I've had to do my own reflecting on how my thoughts and actions can affect others simply from that privilege; which is what Caitlyn's able to do herself over the course of the season, which it seems that none of these haters are able to grasp)

[beaniebabyidiot]

ARCANE SEASON 2 PART 2 SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT BECAUSE I NEED TO GET MY THOUGHTS OUT

for one, i don’t think Viktor is going to stay dead, i think he will be brought back by singed and shimmer, becoming closer to who we see in LoL, a man who wants to replace everything, including emotions, with machinery

also i called Warwick is Vander since season 1 so i was VERY happy to see that true

i don’t think Vander will come back sadly, if Warwick survives Isha’s blast, i think the beast will be all that remains

btw RIP Isha i loved that little silly i will miss her forever

speaking of Isha Jinx is gonna go down a verrrryyy bad route, i hope Vi can help her, but idk if she will be able to

also i’ve seen some people saying Caitlyn changing sides came out of left field, but all of her body language and expressions were often doubtful, she was full of resentment, but was convinced to help Vi because she already had doubts about what she was doing

i miss Ekko and Heimerdinger i hope they aren’t lost in the void forever

idk what the black rose is but i guess everyone (including me) calling Mel a goddess weren’t too far off, she seems pretty powerful

i know we are all mad at Jayce, and while yes I am too, i can’t help but feel bad for him, he just seemed so tormented by some cosmic horror, and whatever it was was bad enough to make him want to destroy Viktor, his best friend

i dislike Ambessa way more than Jayce like i get she’s grieving, and yes Caitlyn is too, but Caitlyn is being manipulated by Ambessa to get the war she wants

also random side note Vi looks so much like Rhea Ripley and I LOVE IT

[aveadore]

Tumblr, hear out my Arcane thoughts. Some of it is slander, though, so don’t read if it’ll bum you out. In the end, I decided to go with one topic mostly, because I had too much to say.

Spoilers, obviously

Tw: suicide

The way the show handles suicide is SO irresponsible. Call it heroic sacrifice, if you must, but I won’t. The same song that played before, during Jinx’s attempts, played again, during her sacrifice, so the intention is clear.

Do they not realize that so many people that relate to Jinx in some ways are watching it? It’s like they are trying to say: “yes, your intrusive thoughts are right, you are better off not being there. It’s best for your loved ones, if you disappear.” So weird. And, fine, she’s probably not dead. But why hide it? Why not make her end be, openly: “sometimes, you can only heal if you cut everyone off and start anew” Fine. That would be way better. I just can’t believe that such a high profile show, in year 2024, uses suicide in such an irresponsible way. Makes it “cool” looking, gives vulnerable people a playlist, actually. Says “wait a minute, not yet”, and later LETS HER FINISH IT? Wft. Like it’s okay? Like it’s a good end for her?

Isha’s story is also part of this problem. I can’t believe her earlier end was not mentioned later. What was the point of it? Was it a good thing for a seven year old to sacrifice herself? You would think so, they way the show sidesteps the whole thing. The way Jinx is repeating what Isha had done, with no reflection on it. I also have no idea WHY Isha has done it. Was it a consequence of something someone else did, or said? Didn’t seem so. Jinx didn’t really fuck that one up, I think. I thought Isha was jinx’s foil, but it ended up not meaning anything. Was it going to show Jinx her own actions as a child, so she could find some empathy towards Vi? But Isha was not mentioned, so who knows what they were trying to say.

Summary of my other opinions, with no details as it’s too long already:

-I liked Victor and Jayce’s ending. Their relationship had enough time/buildup throughout the whole series to pull of the weight of it. It was a little bit rushed at times, but not as much as the rest of S2.

-I absolutely hated how they handled Cait, and she definitely ended up as my most disliked character.

-Mel was one of my favourites, but her story was the most rushed one is S2. I also wasn’t crazy happy that she also ended up mostly fighting at the end. I have no idea what the Black Rose lady was talking about with the whole empathy thing.

-I really liked episode 7, it was the best one from S2. Because they focused only on Ekko and Jayce, the story had time to breathe. The whiplash between their parts was crazy, but in a good way.

-The way they introduced the third faction, just so all main characters could unite was such a cop-out. The systemic problems were much too big to just be fixed by that, and the show just brushes it all under the rug. And the end is just fighting. Ugh.

-Well, it was obviously very pretty. Every frame a perfect picture and all that. Weird complaint, but some designs were “too good”. Too polished. Too much like a high-end commercial for a new skin that costs 200$. It was so distracting for me :P Especially with some Victor “outfits”

-The biggest, most pervasive problem was the time. So much stuff, so little time. It should have been three seasons. There was no time to breathe, no time to understand what’s going on. Characters running from one massive scene to next, with no build-up in between. Just so everyone can end up similar enough to their LoL variant. A bit disappointing.