#jayce does indeed care for Mel

[trashnotfound]

S2 of arcane got me really thinking about the different relationship Jayce has with Mel and Viktor

Mel Is like a nice shiny trophy, who everyone praises Jayce for getting, it’s the one he shows off the most. Its got its own designated place on his Mantle. It comes up in conversation more times then he can count, viktor is the first trophy he ever won, it’s the first time he ever got confirmation he was good at something, not just good but the best. Sure it may be smaller, and it may not looks as nice, and it may be stored to the back of the display case where no one can se., He doesn’t show it off to anyone, and it barley comes up on conversation. But if someone were to ask jayce what his favourite trophy was, he’d say viktor.

it’s the first time he ever saw something in him self, and it’s been there to remind him how far he’s come. Viktor was his stepping stone, and without him he wouldn’t anywhere

[jayktoralldaylong]

Alright, there's something I'd like to talk about, and let's come at it with an open mind. When Season one of Arcane ended I was 99% sure that Mel was not going to make it to this season. I was praying for every kind of miracle that could happen just to keep that beautiful goddess on screen but she was the first line of contact for that bomb.

Now that everything has been revealed, I want to talk about that bomb.

Ironically, Season two episode one starts with the exact same shine of gold that ended season one.

See, season one:

Season two:

And when the smoke clears we can see her leaning really close to Jayce, like she got blasted towards him.

Now, looking at the seat arrangements from Season one, I can actually see it a lot better now that I'm taking a second look. We can see that she is standing directly in the line of fire, Jayce is standing to her left and Viktor is sitting in his chair, Jayce's chair. Just about everyone sitting by her right died, Salo is sitting furthest away from the blast, opposite her. He probably saw it just a few seconds before she did.

And when she wakes up, all groggy and out of focus, her hands are on his shoulder. They been there, she did not just put them there, she already had her hands on him. Protecting him.

But what I really want to pay attention to, is the look on Mel's face when she and Jayce take in the damage.

The entire place burned down. Realistically, not a single person should have survived that, especially not unharmed.

Then the damage starts sinking in (Don't look at Jayce, look at Mel):

Look at Mel, as they look around the room of injured Councillors.

Jayce is panicking, full on panicking, he's had his nerves rattled, he's never seen anything like this (unlike Mel who, if the audience remembers, grew up in Noxus). And the sweetest thing is how she follows him around, trying to comfort him, while he's trying to shake Cassandra awake.

And she stays right there by his side, until her mother pulls her away (foreshadowing about their duties pulling them apart perhaps?)

Now, imagine you were in the middle of a disaster, a terrible disaster, and you had the power to save every single person in that room, but you did not know this because no one ever bothered once telling you that you had powers. However, in that moment, you did indeed save one person, without knowing, without even thinking. Who did Mel save?

She saved Jayce. (The craziest thing about that.....is that.... Viktor was literally right beside him. He was right beside Jayce OMG 😭😭).

Watching this scene, I cannot imagine the amount of guilt that threatened to swallow Mel whole ever0y time she saw the aftermath of what happened and a small part of her brain would nag her that she could have prevented it, that she could have protected Jayce's friend.

So why Jayce? Why ONLY Jayce?

"Because she loves him."

Obvious answer, two plus two equals four, but this is Arcane we're talking about, there is more to this simple equation and it is plain to see in their reactions in the aftermath.

Jayce is devastated. He is new to war, he does not know shit about it, it scares him to see all the people that he respects flattened like they are nothing. The Piltover Council means something to Jayce.

To Mel, they are colleagues. They are.... people with names and faces and power. They are people she would help on a normal day, but at the first sign of danger she clung to one person.

Jayce was Viktor's first friend, and he was Mel's too. He was the first person to tell her that she was not crazy. The first person to strangely believe in her dreams, to pour out affection not out of arrogance but genuine care that he was not ashamed or even hesitant to show her. He fought for peace when she began to doubt. When she felt unstable, his naivete and pure heart steadied her.

Mel loved Jayce. Loved him so much that she did not freak out when he was tweaking cause of the Arcane. So much that she fought for him when he was getting outright dominated by his ex. 💀💀 And while it is not the space shattering world changing soul bonded union of javik, I think it is beautiful that Mek loved Jayce.

I think it's ironic that the brotherly love that people keep trying to achieve with Jayce and Viktor was represented so well with Jayce and Mel. I think it's iconic that a male and female character that banged on screen can go their separate ways without a dramatic breakup and without losing the entirety of their care for one another (cause some of it was definitely damaged after their individual trauma).

What I'm trying to say is that Mel loved Jayce. The love was there. Call it romantic or platonic or whatever but she cared about him more than she cared about anyone in that room when that bomb went off.

And it just twists something in my heart....that Jayce was so loved by the two people that meant so much to him. That he gave all of his heart out and they gave everything back because of how selfless his love was. Everyone says Viktor and Mel are out of Jayce's league but they both keep putting him first. (⁠T⁠T⁠) They just cannot resist that all encompassing love of his. It saved Viktor, and it saved Mel who finally found her truth, and lost him to find it.

[corvidaequeer]

There's not really a point to this. I'm not saying Arcane is bad or you shouldn't watch it or you shouldn't like Jayce or jayvik... I'm just feeling annoyed at the way they took Jayce's character in the second season for a lot of reasons & I want to rant about it.

Starting with the whole scene of Jayce & Mel talking by comatose Viktor. Jayce says "never again" to making hextech weapons & Mel promises to protect his & Victor's dream. Then, 30 seconds later, Jayce makes Caitlyn more hextech weapons anyway! His wishy-washy promise wasn't surprising, just annoying that he'd make the same mistake AGAIN (Then a third time to defend Piltover from Ambessa's attack).

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Later, in seeing the whole story, we know that Viktor sent Jayce back to teach himself some life lesson. So why was Jayce's first reaction to kill Salo & blow a hole in Viktor's chest?? Shouldn't he have tried to reach Viktor in a less murdery way first? Try to reason with him & teach him said life lesson? It just doesn't make sense.

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After Jayce gets back to Piltover, he has this sudden resentment & distrust towards Mel. Where did that come from? Why does Jayce suddenly think Mel is an enemy?

Jayce starts accusing Mel of selecting who she protected. What would she have to gain from that? Even if Mel DID know she had powers, why would Jayce think she would willfully let the council & Viktor die? Why would he think her so cruel?

Then there's the "investments" line. Firstly, it was Alora that called Jayce an investment. Mel just said, "Indeed." Secondly, Who the fuck told him that happened anyway??

Then Jayce claims Mel was "using" them? Yes, she wanted Jayce & Viktor as allies & directed them in her favor, but thats really not "using" them. She saw a good opportunity to make some change & took it like anyone else would. The rest of the council used him for their own benefit far more than Mel did. But more importantly, Mel CARED about Jayce & Viktor. She cared about their dreams & helped them to achieve it! She was the one who supported them from the start. She was trying to get the council NOT to make hextech weapons. She wanted to protect their dream, but she's still somehow "using" Jayce & Viktor to get hextech?! Jayce is the one who keeps making hextech weapons without anyone pressuring him to do so! So what was the narrative point of having Jayce take his regrets out on Mel? What function did it serve?

That whole scene was just-

Mel: Hey, I need some emotional support from this traumatic thing that just happened to me

Jayce: Fuck you, Mel! You should have saved everyone. Also, how dare you have unconditionally supported Viktor & I & our research!!

The anger towards her just comes out of nowhere & has no evidence to back it up & it annoys me. Also, it just feels out of character, even with the more edgy way they portrayed Jayce in act 2 & 3. So, just, why?

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Then there's "my partner died in this room." Jayce saw Viktor in the future, as himself, not the machine herald. He spoke with him & promised to fix things. So clearly, Viktor's humanity wasn't dead, so why even say that? What was the point?

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Then there's Jayce's little speech. There are so many things with this.

Jayce, who had up to this point, chose violence, is suddenly all soft again & just NOW trying to reach Victor. Where was that in the last few days?? Would he not have done this first instead of blasting a hole in him?

"You always wanted to cure what you thought were weaknesses" No, bitch, he wanted to help people in poverty & didn't want to fucking die!! What are you even talking about!? Viktor was insecure ONE TIME about being up on stage, so why is Jayce diminishing Viktor's ENTIRE MOTIVATION to him being insecure about being disabled??

Then, in the same line of thinking, there's Jayce saying Viktor's disability & illness (his "imperfections") make him beautiful & he admires Viktor for that??! Cut the inspiration porn trope! Are we not passed that?!

Lastly, Jayce is supposed to show Viktor some life lesson of all that being left is "dreamless solitude" & "there is no prize to perfection" but Jayce doesn't even say any of that?? He just shows Viktor saying it. How is that something only Jayce can do?

Sure, I love the idea of Cosmic Destiny Partners. It's a great idea & a somewhat happy ending for these two. I get it, I do. But the whole path leading up to it & its execution was poor, confusing, & frankly ableist.

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In general, Jayce just felt inconsistent.

Yeah, in season 1, Jayce has a track record for flip-flopping on his morals & ideals. His character arc is that of someone being easily swayed. He makes a lot of mistakes & then corrects himself by swinging in the complete opposite direction, only to make more mistakes. It's his character flaw.

Then season 2, he becomes more resolute in the promise he mentions. You think, oh, this makes sense. He finally grew a backbone & is standing his ground. Apparently, choosing violence as his footing, but still. He keeps this aggressive demeanor up for the rest of season 2. But then suddenly, right at the last second, he turns around & says the softest & sappiest shit in the whole show?? The fluffy confession of adoration & partnership just comes out of nowhere! If you're taking Jayce in an aggressive direction, then do so. Don't come in swinging with this totally different person.

Overall, it just feels like Jayce is there for shock value & relationship drama instead of being an actual character with solid motivations & and a steady narrative.

[some-pers0n]

I haven't seen anyone talk about how all of the characters turned into "puppets" in arcane season 2 that we see are disabled people or those who are addicted to shimmer... it really feels like people are just glossing over that. ESPECIALLY given almost all the disabled characters in Arcane die or are in that situation Jinx is in. What do you think?

It does feel kinda iffy I will say. The whole bit with Viktor and his whole "achieving glorious revolution" is that it's a symptom of his internalized ableism. I think it was always partially there, perhaps more as a response to how Piltover treats disabled characters and a quiet, silent longing that would only surface in darker times, but it became more noticeable as time progressed and he eventually "cured" himself of his illness AND limp by injecting shimmer into himself. That whole process was more akin to rotting himself from the inside out and that boat scene is a false victory but I digress. I wouldn't have too terribly large amount of problems with this even if it is the whole "magically healing disabled character" trope since it didn't come from a place of internalized ableism so much as his degenerative disease is killing him and he wants it gone. From there though he then starts going way downhill. He wanted to then begin curing people of their ailments and disabilities. It's a quality of his character that is also present in his LoL counterpart, where he again believes that ascending beyond human form and shedding your weak flesh is the only way to live (but now I guess Arcane Viktor is canon now). He was always kinda destined to be a disabled character who eventually becomes a villain

The thing is that Viktor does indeed only heal disabled characters. I recall a character from a scene early on who was presented in a wheelchair, only for them to be shown later as being without it and walking just fine. Shimmer addicts will go directly to him and be healed and regrouped. The vibe of it that the show gives off is that Viktor is helping and healing these people who are hurting and need to be cured which....beeughhhh...... Like the show doesn't exactly frame the commune as being iffy outside of that one scene in E5 where Vitkor is possessing Salo and then being fully bad and evil when Viktor goes off the wall and starts fully converting people to weird puppet mannequin things

The thing that bothers me is mainly that the show never really discusses nor talks about Viktor as in he's in a bad light for this only to disabled characters nor is it questioned whether or not to give those people accommodations as opposed to fully curing them. It kinda waved it off as being a product of his internalized ableism at the very end, but it's certainly not an overt theme. It's certainly giving off the vibes of "Yayayayy yayaay Viktor is helping the poor disabled people but NOOOO now he's EVILLL because he wants them to be erased of everything and become mindless puppets!!" while is more of a lame outlook for the show for me

The thing with Viktor in S1 was that his disability was thematically tied to how Zaun is oppressed by Piltover (namely in how it caused his disability by the Grey)(Grey? Gray? I never know how to spell it because I'm not American). Viktor's narrative was deeply woven in how he's managed to claw his way out of Zaun and reach the highest of Piltover, yet still manages to be seen as little more than a filthy Zaunite. This is displayed in scenes like where Mel, Jayce, and Viktor talk about turning Hextech into weaponry, something Viktor is staunchly against both as a caring man who loves life and as a Zaunite himself. When he tries to voice his complaints, Mel talks down to him. It's both a scene where Mel shows that she knows that Viktor is far less easy to manipulate, yet also thematically relevant as a metaphor for Piltover's higher class looking down on Zaun AND as political discussion for how able-bodied people dismiss disabled people immediately. They do not see them as being things to be concerned about. Making Hextech into a weapon for destruction would without a doubt lead to the suffering of Zaunites, especially those already ravenged by disability. They do not care, as they see their suffering as a means to keep to keep them silent and obedient

What I'm saying is that S1's writing with disability used to be better. Sure, some characters like Sevika namely have Magical Badass Prosthetic Arm Syndrome, where her arm (especially in S2) is mainly treated as a cool ass weapon than like...a proper prosthetic. I wish it was focused on more as an actual prosthetic outside of it being destroyed twice. It's still got the usual hallmarks of disability being used for cosmetic purposes (ex: Jinx's finger). But Viktor used to actually mean something before primarily just fucking off and turning into a husk of who he was character-wise and then becoming mega evil

If S2 was more coherently written, I think it would be called out more that Viktor is doing this as a symptom of his belief that disabled people need to be cured now as well as a result from Piltover leaving disabled Zaunites to fend for themselves. It shoves addicts to the depths of the area and leaves the disabled hurting and in pain without any accommodations. Viktor instead is only seen as bad in like a cartoon villain way where he gets carried away with his whole wanting to achieve glorious evolution and at the veerrrryyy end the show goes "btw this is about internalized ableism didn't you know?" without putting the effort or anything to actually display it

The majority of Zaun is disabled. They simply are. They're mentally or physically disabled, traumatized by the sheer horrors that Piltover has put them through. I think the problems arose when the story became less about Piltover and how it denies Zaun of everything and more took a "well both sides are bad!!" approach, ultimately making Viktor's narrative about how internalized ableism corrupts and destroyed muddled and not exactly spectacular. They needed a sensitivity reader or something for this season god