#machine Herald Viktor

[arowyn-m]

VIKTOR POSTER DROP

[vezhenart]

the Machine Herald

[n4tek]

Viktors New Hair :-)

[therealneilperry]

Okokokok we know that the Hexcore made Viktor’s body all metal, and if you watch the scene where he heals huck, you can see metal scraps flying towards them (which I think is what the healed skin of Hucks face is made of—arcane magic and metal), and when he touches his cane for the first time, the metal becomes a sort of Bio-metal like Viktor’s body.

So this leads me to believe Viktor can warp metal to his will, even if he doesn’t know it yet. Maybe he can infuse his “Bio-metal”/arcane substance thing with regular metal and then warp and control its shape! He could use it to make all kinds of machines and metal limbs and replace body parts with mechanical ones*cough* Glorious evolution *cough cough*, and I think that’d be an awesome take on the Machine Herald.

[jm-chrome]

You forget whose money made you what you are, Viktor.

[alstanfordart]

Shards

So I'm looking forward to angsty (and maybe ragey)Viktor in s2.

[e-kathryns-shadows]

confusing my mother with fandom shipper brainrot is my new favorite hobby

[edwardduncan]

TW: GORE

Noticed a certain someone was missing in the season 2 trailer for arcane. Given what happened at the end of season one... I had an idea.

[honeymilkbubbletea]

✨️WONDERFUL! BECAUSE YOU LOOK BONITA! ✨️

[bichletmepickaname]

This is how I imagine this scene

[gildedghoul]

You’ve changed, what did you do? Fan poster by meeee

[arowyn-m]

Viktor's Sequence in S2's Opening, What It Symbolizes & What it Means for the Rest of S2

So Act I dropped and it's great—Lots of plot points to go over in the future—but for now I want to deep dive into some interesting things I noticed about the intro, particularly found in Viktor's portion of it.

The opening is full of interesting symbolism and representations of Arcane's characters in their clearest, "purest" form (pure as in lacking impurities, not as in morally pure).

There's a lot of neat tidbits hidden in the opening, but I particularly want to dive into Viktor's segment because i am biased as hell his shots have some potentially incredible depth to them that I'd like to dissect.

A lot of that potential comes from what exactly the mask represents, which I'm arguing is not a symbol of Viktor's Machine Herald identity.

Hear me out.

Starting off with his first shot: we see Viktor reaching for the mask. Instantly after he makes contact we cut to a shot of Viktor holding the mask and considering it. He even turns it a little as he looks at its face, as if he's not quite sure what it is.

These shots are telling the story of S1 Viktor's experimentation with the Hexcore, particularly the research Viktor conducted AFTER his blood mixed with it...and yet, the mask does not represent the Hexcore itself, so how can it be telling that story?

I've seen a lot of theories of what exactly is the catalyst of Hextech's corruption into the Anomaly, and the most popular one at the moment seems to be that Blood + Hextech + Abuse of Magic = Anomaly/Angry Arcane. This theory seems to stem from the fact that not only did the Hexcore react to Viktor's blood, but so also did the Hexgates themselves.

Corruption found on the base floor of the Hexgates. There's a ceiling to this room, so there's very little chance that this is literally where Viktor's blood landed, but I do think his blood's presence in the Hextech-charged room triggered a chain reaction with the rest of the Hexgate. We may even see this happen in a flashback.

So, assuming these intro shots are representative of the moment when Viktor reached out and touched the Hexcore, and later when he's examining it more closely/experimenting with it, why don't these shots represent the Hexcore itself?

Because Viktor isn't making a move to put on the mask. He's just looking at it, thinking about it, considering what it is. Viktor absolutely made a move to use the Hexcore in S1—and killed his assistant in the process.

So what is he "looking" at?

I believe the mask is representative of the Arcane itself, and, by extension, its hold on Viktor's mind.

He's examined the Arcane and played with its properties—unsure of what to really make of it, but he never had the chance to take on the full potential of it. Once Sky died he realized that something was very wrong. Maybe he didn't realize how wrong, but he definitely concluded that this form of magic needed to be destroyed—thus the "Promise me" scene.

If the Blood + Hextech + Magic Overuse = the Arcane lashing out theory is true...then the moment that Viktor's blood mixes with the Hexcore is the moment it crosses the line from a mindless device to a tool of the Arcane.

This idea is only strengthened by Viktor's next shot—the mask being held to his face.

Viktor himself is not holding the mask—Jayce is. This shot depicts how Jayce used the Hexcore to save Viktor's life—very much against Viktor's will on multiple fronts—replacing Viktor's identity with a false one.

Jayce is putting the mask of the Arcane onto Viktor's face, hiding his true features, his emotions, his personality. The mask wears a flat, serene expression, reflecting Viktor's forcibly suppressed emotions in this Act—as we see with how Viktor interacted with Jayce when he woke up. As cathartic as that scene may have been, Vik was acting wildly out of character, and I sincerely think that was on purpose.

It's difficult to tell in this lighting but Vik's eyes are also their typical golden-amber in this shot. That would only make sense if this is symbolic of Viktor's true character being concealed by a false identity. It would make no sense to use Vik's amber eyes in a sequence meant to symbolize his new identity being concealed by the literal Machine Herald mask.

The final shot is not much different from the last one, but really drives home this comparison and the idea that the mask represents the Arcane, not Viktor's MH arc. The same mask is worn by numerous others, all slowly fading into view.

These faceless people are the Church of the Gloriously Evolved, all represented by the same exact mask that Viktor is poised to take on.

And yet, the mask is never fully put onto Viktor's face, unlike Viktor's followers. He can still back away. He can still hesitate.

So what does this all mean for S2?

It means that this ^ is not Viktor. This is a man either heavily under the influence of (or being fully controlled by) the Arcane.

And it also means that this trancelike state is not Viktor's endgame. I sincerely doubt this husk of who Viktor used to be will end up being the calculating antihero that is the Machine Herald.

Another point for the theory that Viktor's mental humanity will come back to him is the fact that Vik's in-game MH mask has golden eyes, mirroring Viktor's real eyes, not the lifeless—albeit shifting—gray of Viktor's current irises. Assuming Riot will be keeping this iconic part of Vik's design, that signals a change back from the emotionless puppet Viktor seems to be right now.

But I suppose we'll know for certain by the finale.

[cosmicarcanist]

POV you are Naph and the Hexclaw is absolutely delighted about the dad selfie mug you gifted Viktor (he is Ambivalent)

[n4tek]

Viktor :-)

[therealneilperry]

Me n my sister were theorizing about arcane and then we got to the Hexcore in the basement of the hexgate, so here’s our theory based on trailers and what’s already happened

The “Shimmer Camp”

This is the first side shot we get, vs one from the trailer. We think maybe Viktor will fix up the place, and make it a hospitable for him and his cult to grow and thrive in, I’m also fairly confident Ambessa will end up here at one point, and try to raid the place/kill Viktor—especially if he’s causing problems for Piltover by helping jinx (we’ll get to that)

The reason I think Ambessa will raid this place specifically is this shot from the trailer

The rocks behind her look like the second picture of the “rebuilt” shimmer camp, and the direction the light is shining from also makes me think this; and to that point, I think she may have gotten the location from Singed

This is, I’ll admit, a far weaker theory, but it look like Ambessa’s armour standing behind him. I’m also sure Viktor and singed will meet again, and singed will know where Viktor is, otherwise there’d be no point in showing their connection in the previous season.

The Hex…Circle?

Our second theory is that these shots are Jayce, Himerdinger and Ekko time travelling/multiverse travelling. I don’t know which one is more likely as they’re both a tad far-fetched, and perhaps it simply teleported them down to where Viktor’s cult is, but if the HexCircle (?) is messing with time/the timeline, it’d explain why Jayce looks…like that…and why Ekko looks (in my opinion) so much younger in one of these shots.

Prolonged time in the HexCircle (?) and/or the HexCircle transporting him somewhere could also explain why his Arcane gem is now embedded in his wrist, which I think, whether my theory is correct or not, is the reason for the gem anyways, as the HexCircle is literally in front of him in this shot. (Sorry for the low quality image…)

As a side note, I think these people are apart of Viktor’s cult. And yeah that’s all for the Viktor/Hextech/Arcane theories.

[bringthekaos]

JKJKJKJK THERE HE IS THE BOIIIIIIII. That’s his staff and a modified arm ahanfjjsavavshsnahags I’m THROWING UP