#maddie and viktor can understand him

[adashulaz]

Steb and Viktor meeting but Viktor can understand Steb's trilling. Steb is very much surprised by this and Viktor just continues on like it's normal. After all, Steb doesn't speak a dead language, sure the average person might not understand him but Viktor is a scientist so he has to know all sorts of languages. Steb is very much happy about this, he won't have to rely on sign for someone to understand him, however there is one slight problem. That problem being the fact that Steb just doesn't talk often, whether it's with his hands or his voice. Steb just doesn't use his words, he keeps to himself and doesn't feel the need to talk because Maddie does the talking for the both of them.

So Viktor knowing Stebs language doesn't really matter because Steb just doesn't talk. Which quickly becomes an issue because Viktor is used to having a response to his words, even if it was just a simple reaction, that was how Jayce was. Steb, however, doesn't respond in a way that Viktor is used to. Steb just stares, watching and waiting without giving any form of a response. To Viktor, it seems like Steb doesn't interact with the world around him much, at least that's how Viktor sees it for the longest time.

Viktor slowly starts to notice how Stebs ears will wiggle/twich whenever he's trying to figure something out or he's surprised by something, if something doesn't make a noise that only he could hear. Viktor also notices how Steb will give short and easy to miss facial reactions, they're barely noticeable at times and Viktor only noticed them because he was staring at Steb when Vi suddenly slipped. Viktor is used to larger reactions, not small ones, Jayce gave large reactions that were hard to miss while Steb gave small reactions that were easy to miss.

Steb can easily read Viktor because Steb is always watching and waiting. So it was much easier for Steb to understand Viktor and see his reactions and responses compared to Viktor with Steb. But luckily for them both, Viktor is a scientist and small reactions are part of his job. While their friendship is odd to outsiders, it works for them.

[astral-herald]

arcane's depiction vs. endorsement and why it flopped

~ i think i'm finally ready to complain ~

My general opinion of season 2 is potential squandered. My recent post about Viktor's storyline as an intentional tragedy lets ya'll know that I did, for the most part, enjoy his arc (hot take, I know, and I know lots of people disagree with me, and I fully understand). If he'd gotten the screen time necessary to pull it off, it would have been legendary in my book. But the lack of screen time, even in the case of the season's eventual BBEG, speaks to my greatest issue with Arcane: no commitment.

(Critical) Discussion of Jinx, Ekko, Sevika, Vi, and Viktor below!

Arcane, as a tragedy (I've said this word too many times to count smh), asks the plot, "what is the worst thing that could possibly happen to this character?" and answers in kind. This is why we get Viktor's lost agency until the very end (and like I've said in the past, I completely understand and hold space for those who dislike this route).

If we ask this same question of the following characters, the scope of loss and despair innate to Arcane's final narrative is made very clear:

Sevika: a revolutionary forever devoted to the cause, not the individual, is nominated as an individual to represent the masses in a governmental body that has no interest in her class-conscious ideal.

Ekko: the people's hero in every sense of the word who never sees the fruits of his labor/sacrifice and who goes without the acknowledgement he deserves (more than any other Arcane character).

Vi: the ultimate victim of Piltover police brutality coerced, through grief, trauma, and loss, into working for the system that oppressed her. Even Caitlyn, for all her good intentions, seems incapable of ever understanding this.

Viktor: a genius hellbent on ending the same suffering he endured at the hands of Piltover's oppression has his agency revoked, driving him to inflict the same choicelessness he endured on Zaunite innocents.

On paper, these arcs are devastatingly sensical. And we don't always need happy endings in our stories (I'd sure like them, more often than not, of course). We can and should witness the harsh realities of class oppression if we don't experience them ourselves. The writing team painstakingly crafted and foreshadowed these worst-case scenarios throughout season 1. For example, in 1x07, Ekko being immediately shot at by Marcus at the bridge confirms our suspicions that Piltover Enforcers are a lost cause, not just full of bad apples but internally broken beyond repair. It felt that, despite all the hope, this struggle was doomed, and we were careening toward something dark - "In the pursuit of great, we failed to do good."

Had these arcs been successful, audiences would be confronted with the systemic issues we see today that implicate the physical and mental health of downtrodden individuals on account of lazy, prejudiced leadership. This actively happens. It is actively happening, sans the fantasy of it all. This is where Arcane should have shined: they depict the tragedy of these characters, but DO NOT endorse it.

But Arcane chickens out and the entire thing fails. Here are the Flop Era Spark Notes:

Maddie is the egregious bad apple stereotype that absolves all other agents of the regime. She clearly is not a stand-in for Enforcers at large because, all of a sudden, they're capable of coordinated artillery strikes that are necessary to the defense of Piltover, which the viewer must suddenly and abundantly care about. So glad she died. Also, Arcane, you cannot introduce abject warfare in the last 30 minutes of your show successfully.

Jinx's "revolutionary" plot was a red herring, and Sevika humbly vying for the spot was never delivered upon. They pay lip service to the Undercity organizing, but the scene is interrupted for larger (messier) plot concerns almost immediately. No commitment. No depiction to even refrain from endorsing.

Ekko and the Firelight Tree. Clearly this was set up as a means of showing how Piltover's mistakes were physically seeping into the only sanctuary left in Zaun. Yet this is just...never resolved? If someone has some insights into this, please let me know. No depiction. No discussion about endorsement.

What could Vi specifically gain by aligning with the Enforcers/Piltover? Human connection with Cait, sure, but why return to them in 2x06? Vi's character begged all season for development, but she kept returning to her nonsensical error of her ways (looking backwards) until the very end, and this is basically what "kills" Jinx. This is a nod to her lonesomeness post 1x03, sure, but to what end? Again, why the Enforcers?!? Oh, because now that Cait has been redeemed and Sevika is in Piltover to save the day, there are no systemic issues left to fix? Sure, Riot.

WHY DEVELOP VIKTOR'S ENTIRE HEXCORE ARC OFF SCREEN?I'M ADMITTEDLY BIASED ABOUT THIS, BUT THE AMOUNT OF DISCUSSIONS I'VE HAD WITH VIKTOR NATION ABOUT THE DEGREE TO WHICH HE WAS INFLUENCED/MANIPULATED BY THE HEXCORE (now that we know Sky was a manifestation of his humanity, not her Actual Self) IS DESPICABLE. HIS COMPROMISED AGENCY NEEDS TO BE FRONT AND CENTER AND OBVIOUS, OR ELSE IT SURE SEEMS LIKE RIOT IS ENDORSING THE LACK OF AGENCY IN VIKTOR'S STORY. I shouldn't have to make 1k word posts to explain this. I'll do it because I love him with my whole heart, but still.

I begged and pleaded for months for BBEG Viktor (I'm really proud of my predictions from October), but by introducing a villain/conflict beyond the Piltover/Zaun dichotomy, Riot severed all threads of class conflict that were so rife and exciting in season 1. The proletariat and the bourgeoise will never coalesce like they did by the end of 2x09 without systemic revolution. Sevika is just one individual. Ekko's people need him. Jinx and Viktor are gone. Vi is downtrodden, and we have SO LITTLE to show for it.

In summary, we just didn't get enough explicit explanation of any character development to make Arcane-As-Tragedy successful. They did not stick the landing. The finale leaves us all with various bad tastes in our mouth. Instead of lamenting the harsh reality of oppression, I'm confused about what Riot prioritizes and agrees with, what they aim to criticize, and what they condemn.

I'll die on the hill that revoking Viktor's agency has the potential to be one of the greatest tragic hero storylines I've ever seen, but it's a lonely hill because I'm fighting against the writing team's consistent flops. At least Balayage Viktor was so gorgeous.

shameless self plug for my earlier discussion about the innate political clashes in season 1 that were abandoned for flashy fantasy fights in season 2:

[xetlynn]

an artists muse- a viktor fic

three.

[two] [three] [four]

compare thee to a summer’s day.

The bell tones as you enter the cafe, you glance around the store. Hoping to see someone. Your eyes land on him. The unnamed boy from class. “Yes.” You mutter excitedly as you head to the front counter to put in your order. 

Last night was a rough night as you had some time to think due to Powder leaving your shared dorm to hang out with her boyfriend. She offered to stay, repeatedly but you told her some solitude would be good for you. It was and it wasn’t.

Maddie reentering your life only brought up the sour memories of the friendship that she caused to end. You didn’t even know the guy's name but he meant so much to you. You called him by his gamertag. 

Machine Herald. Something you made fun of because his friend had made it for him. You called him 'Ma' as a joke and then it stuck. He always told you how stupid it was. It was like you were calling him mom. After a while his complaints slowed and that lived to be his new name. 

“[Name]!” The barista cuts through your thoughts, you snatch the pastries along with your coffee on the hard surface. Thanking the worker curtly before heading over to who you were determined to be your new friend. You slide into the booth across from him.

“Hiii!” You sang, sliding over the coconut lilikoi puff to him. Taking a sip out of your straw as you do so. 

His face contorts with confusion, staring down at the pastry. “What’s this?” He asks, suspicious of the food. “A desert.” You smile, opening your own little baggy that held a cherry danish. “I know- I meant why?” His gaze finally meets with yours after you had taken a bite of the sustenance.

You hold up your index finger to give you a second. 

Swallowing it down, taking a drink to clear your throat out. “I want to be friends.” You declare with a straight face, not able to hold it long because you begin to grin right away. “Friends? You sure this isn’t some sort of decoy so that you can copy off of me later in the semester?” He accuses you of such an abominable thing, your hand squeezes at your chest. 

“Oh my gosh! You think I’m dumb!?” Your eyes were wide and his face heats up. “No, no. I- I just- this seems like a bribe.” He explains his thinking process and you giggle. “It’s okay, I know I’m not dumb. I genuinely just want to be your friend!” You take another bite of your sweet. 

He purses out his lips, observing the pastry before him. How did you know his favorite was this? What a lucky guess. He doesn’t respond to you, only taking a bite of the puff. You beam at this, you were begging that you were right about what he would enjoy. And you were. 

The relief washes over your face. “I’m [Name] by the way.” You wipe your dirtied hand on your pants before thrusting it over the table towards him. His hand smacked against yours as he grabbed it. Awarding you a microscopic shake before taking it back to his side. 

“Viktor.” He voices, proceeding to another bite of his food. “And thank you, this is lovely.” He acknowledges his gratitude. “Of course! You seemed like a coconut lover.” You tell him with a close-eyed grin. He didn’t know how to respond to that. 

“So, chemistry. We have that today. How fun!” You announce something he clearly already knows but amongst this he hums out a ‘yes’ to it anyway. “Do you like science?” You ask him, eyes locked on him. He averts your stare by focusing on his pastry or his phone that was face down. “Yeah, do you?” 

“Mm, it’s alright. I’m more into like English. Or art. I’m a Fine Arts Major. Sculpting, painting, all the fun stuff.” You ramble. Viktor didn’t understand how you had this much energy at 8 o'clock in the morning. “That’s cool.”

It’s sincere though. He wasn’t just saying that. 

“What’s your major?” You finish your danish, crumpling the paper baggy. “Biochemistry.” He answers, you gasp. “Chemistry makes sense for you then, huh?” You snicker, standing up from your spot after you see the time. 

He grabs his cane, slowly gliding himself out of the booth. You grab his trash, skipping over to the bin and throwing it away. Viktor figures you’re leaving now but instead you are opening the door, standing there patiently as he makes his way towards it.

 “Let’s walk together, yeah?” You let him walk through the door before following after him. “If you want to.” He curtly nods his head, surprisingly he didn’t mind your presence. Or your rambles as you would ask him a question, listen to him and wait for him to return the query to you so you could chatter once more. 

“It’s nice to see the doors open when I’m coming to class.” You sweat, recalling how you were late to a few of your classes already. Viktor chuckles lowly. Your heart pings at the sound, this was the first time he laughed the entire conversation. You stood up straighter, proud. 

For the next two hours of the lecture you tried to focus on the professor but your mind kept going back to Viktor’s laugh you had suppressed out of him. You needed to make it happen again. 

“Alright, choose your partners. This project will need to be done by October 14th. That gives you a month from now.” The professor speaks, writing the date down on the chalkboard. You immediately look to Viktor.

“Partners?” Your legs were practically jumping up and down. His lips twitch upwards. “Partners.” He agrees and you let out a small squeal.

“We’re so getting first place.” 

“It’s not a contest?” He breathily snickers, another laugh.

Another win for you. 

“Everything’s a contest if you make it one.” You shrug your shoulders, standing up from your seat. “Will you be at the cafe tomorrow?” You tilt your head to the side. 

“I’ll be there.” He says. “See you then, Vikkie!” You wave goodbye, walking out of the classroom. 

————————————————

love.[name]3 12 337 127 ↗️ …

Posts followers following

[name] [last name] she/her

☾˙❀‿❀˙☽

Piltover uni!!! 2028🎓

@ whowhathuh

@ [name]artsie

————————————————

Viktor scrolls on your account, seeing that you mainly have photos of you with your friends up. The occasional selfie. Your highlights separated and organized.

He goes through each one, observing every picture in perfect detail. Curious about the type of persona you put out on the internet. It was pretty much identical to who you actually were. Your energy was bright, shining on others. 

He looks at your bio, seeing that you have your art and spam linked in it.

Your spam was private but your art account was luckily public like your main. It had 5,607 followers. 

——————————————

[name]artsie 27 5607 27 ↗️ …

posts followers following

bozo she/her

doing this to be as famous as those turtles…

<3

Followed by: caitlynnnk, violentvi, melmedarda, and m.herald2077

——————————————————

He gawked at the first three posts, you did say you were a fine arts major but he didn’t think you were going to be this amazing! You recreated smaller versions of sculptures you’re incredibly fond of.

Your paintings were of crowds of people. Different places each time though. 

He then sees that Violet, Mel and Caitlyn followed the account. Along with another that he hadn’t seen in a long time. He clicked on the name. M.Herald2077. 

——————————————

Vik.tor_e 0 137 120 ↗️ …

posts followers following

Viktor E. he/him

2027🎓

followed by: caitlynnnk, and violentvi

——————————————

He had a following of 137, no posts except for highlights. You bite the inside of your mouth before clicking on the first highlight, labeled: “friends.”

He was never in the pictures, just blurry photos of his friends having a fun time. A lot of them were at a park at night time. A few others of the group drinking on someone’s porch.

You click to the next highlight, this one just having a moon emoji as its label. It was pictures of random views but again, only at nighttime.

It was beautiful nonetheless. 

And the last highlight was labeled ‘ma.’ Your heart ached at the familiar name.

It was pictures of himself, his face covered. They were either mirror pictures with his phone covering his features, or someone taking his photo and he was looking the other way. 

Ma… What a coincidence. 

You then boldly press the follow button, swiping away from his account.

You listen to the song playing in your airpod as you go to your spam account, wanting to vent on your private story. Humming the music.

Before you even get to click on the button you see a notification pop up on the top of your screen. 

[Message request from: maddieee_lol] 

Your face drops, ignoring it with a quick swipe. You press the little plus button on your profile picture. 

—————————————

UGHHHH HE’S SO COOLLLLLLL

I need to be his bestest friend

trust it will happen🤞 :P

You post it on your close friends, triple checking that Maddie couldn’t see it even though you never accepted her request.

Placing your phone on the charger you walk out of your dorm room. “Omg, hey Gert!” You jog over to the girl who you used to have a class with last year. “Hey, [Name]!” She politely says in return, unlocking her dorm, about to enter it. 

“How have you been!? I can’t believe we're neighbors!” You point out, extremely giddy about seeing another good-natured person this semester. “I’m good, I know how exciting! Wanna come in?” She holds the door open and you enter after her offer. “So pretty!” You compliment. 

“Thank you, it’s nice seeing you [Name]. I was worried we wouldn’t have bumped into one another this year.” Gert pouts, you internally laugh at her words. Mylo would’ve made it happen, he found Gert to be gorgeous. Stalking her frequently since he was too much of a pussy to speak to her. 

You were going to see her one way or another this year.

“Ah, well fate said otherwise!!” You eagerly thrilled, clasping your hands together. “Hah, I’m glad. I actually entered art this year because of you.” She mentions and you perk your head up towards her. “No way! Maybe we have the same professor or same class!!” You jump over to her as she pulls out her schedule, handing it to you. You fervently snatch the paper from her, scanning it over.

“We do! We have the same class on Friday!” Your eyes were sparkling, giving the paper back. Gert wondered if you ever felt a bad emotion, always being so… electric and bright. 

You begin to ramble about how excited you were. “I need to show you this painting I’m working on! I’m painting one of my sculptures. I haven’t been very motivated or… mused? Did I use that right?” You jut out your bottom lip as you thought about it for a moment. You roll your eyes, deeming that you didn’t care. “Whatever, I’m painting this sculpture. Atropos. Goddess of fate and destiny. My favorite work done by Carstens.” You inform her, you went to grab your phone, forgetting you left it in your room on the charger. “Shoot! I’ll be right back.” 

Gert only smiles, waiting for you to get back. You rush into your dorm, plucking the device off of the mattress. Speeding back to your friend’s dorm. Slightly out of breath. “I am- hah- so out of shape.” You stuck a hand out as you hunched over pleading with yourself to breathe. 

Gert laughs at your figure, shaking her head. “Sorry, sorry. One second.” You cough, you felt slight embarrassment by the fact that you were so out of breath by just running down the hall and back. 

You fix your posture, opening your phone. You see a new notification, someone followed your main account. You click on it, forgetting all about showing Gert your painting.

[vik.tor_e is now following you].

You smile at your phone screen before snapping yourself out of it. Clearing off Instagram and going to your gallery. You had over 7000 pictures on your phone. Capturing almost every single memory you’ve ever had. You go to your art album. 

“See! It still needs more shading and I was thinking of adding vines to it!” You reveal to the girl who has almost gotten bored sitting there waiting. Her pupils dilate at the masterpiece on the screen. “[Name], you’re so talented.” She whines out. 

“Awe, so sweet!” You place your phone in your back pocket. You think back to Mylo and his weirdly obsessive crush over this girl. You understand why, she’s such a sweetheart. You then remember the karaoke night that’s in two days. “Do you like to sing?” You suddenly ask. 

��Huh?” She furrowed her eyebrows. “Do you like to sing?” You repeat. “I mean, I guess.” She shrugs her shoulders.

“Want to come to this karaoke night with my friends and I?” You propose to Gert who thinks for a moment. Pressing her lips together like this was a tough decision to make. 

“Sure.” She shortly answers in a simple manner. 

“Great! I’ll pick you up, be sure to dress pretty!!” You leave the room, twiddling your fingers before shutting the door.

You calmly walk back to your dorm, you forgot your whole reason for going out of your dorm to begin with. Until you sat down on your bed. 

“Shit, I have pee!” You cry out under your breath, standing back up. 

[loycos]

my head's a bit clearer, some thoughts about act 3

-my biggest gripe is episode 7- cool idea, love the concept of peaking into a different universe and seeing what our characters couldve been under different circumstances, but a WHOLE episode. when you only had 9 episode in this season, that already feel like theyre moving at a neck's pace. for a universe that ultimately doesn't matter to the main universe where the story takes place. the fact it had timebomb made it feel extremely fan service-y.

-no emotional resolution to a lot of characters. viktor and jayce are the only ones i can think of that felt like they got the screen time and care for an actual emotional closure.

-isha wasn't even mentioned in this act. in general she was already a martyr for jinx's character development but guys can you make it less obvious.

-it started in act 2, hence why i was so jaded on it, but it continues here: just where the fuck the political drama between 2 cities go? the conflict between zaun and piltover took a back seat since episode 4 and never came back. the resolution to it isn't bad per say, but when u got so little focus on it in the finale it just feels rushed.

-i loved the cait and jinx scene. but like, that was the resolution to it??? after act 1 thinking about it disappoints me. im not against a conversation being the climax to a story, but that is, and im not joking, the ONLY conversation these 2 have in the show one on one. in general the jinx\cait\vi arc ends with 1 conversation per duo (well caitvi got one fight and one very steamy sex scene but u won't catch me complaining). and after act 1, idk i think i wanted just a little bit more. im biased though- the jinx\vi\caitlyn dynamic is my favorite part about arcane. the teasers for s2 always had them front and center so i assumed it'll play a bigger part in the story???

-i felt like what the show was at its core, which is the conflict between the sisters and the cities, was completely sidelined this season. in general i can't really tell what the main theme of the show is anymore. but yeah look at the resolution to the jinx and vi story.did it feel like it had the emotional impact u expected? cause i felt like it was underwhelming.

-sevika?? didnt speak since episode 4???? huhh???

-maddie was pointless. why was she there?? i don't understand the point of that character. i dont understand her motives. she ended up not mattering at all to caitvi's story. the only thing i got from her inclusion is "caitlyn fucks" but is it that THAT important??? of a character trait??? to add to caitlyn of all people?? in THIS season??? this belongs in the realm of fanfiction.

-a lot here felt like fanfiction actually. every silco inclusion (except of him in the cell with jinx), the whole "nobody dies au" they threw in the middle, even the caitvi sex scene (IM NOT COMPLAINING THO). the caitvi scene at the end was dialog out of fanfiction, wtf was that.

-why did caitlyn lose her eye? im not like against the idea on a base level but losing an eye is very symbolic, and im not sure what its supposed to represent here. caitlyn is an observant person, its a big character trait for her. so youre basically saying she sees less now? that she's more laser focused? i sure hope not. wasnt her whole arc with giving up of revenge about seeing the "bigger picture"? her sacrifice didn't feel in character, because caitlyn is not really a "fight to the death" type of character like ambessa is. if she made that sacrifice for something like love, or for the betterment of other people, that would be more in line. idk, you couldve made me on board with it but im just very meh on it. also caitlyn only really emotes through her eyes, it sucks that we get even less of it now?? though i guess it doesnt matter at this point.

-what was the point of the enforcer that looked like vander?

-ambessa was so wasted in these last 2 acts its crazy. where's the "you have to be the fox and the wolf" mindset from her? she felt like she was wolfing only with no wit anymore by the 3rd act.

-mel????????????? it was. uhhh. maybe you shouldve saved it for another series, riot. but in this show, waste of time. the fight she had with caitlyn against ambessa was cool tho.

-i sound like im a hater but u have to understand. s1 of arcane was a political drama and a character study show. seeing all this discarded for magic and time travel shenanigans on like 4 different fronts was so jarring it took me out of the show multiple times.

-cant believe im saying that, but i wish they'd try to stick closer to the characters' current state in the source material (the cursed game). someof it felt out of left field and done for shock value, which isn't why we love the story or these characters to begin with.

good stuff:

-caitvi sex lmao ill take it babyyyyy

-jayce and viktor's scenes at the end were powerful.

-as usual, the visuals were phenomenal. the animation is gorgeous. fortiche u made this show what it is and youre still its saving grace.

-thank god they dropped the warwick\vander plot

-i liked the implication of the conclusion to jinx's story, even if it felt a little inconsistent with the character.

-the ending to jinx\vi\caitlyn was poetic and i did love it, even if it was rushed and didn't really hit the emotional highs i wanted it to.

[zephyr-rat]

Arcane Season 2 Act 2 Thoughts: Shockingly Cheap

The more I think about Arcane season 2, act 2, the more cracks I see in the story. To me, it's definitely the weakest of the 5 acts of Arcane we have seen. I do have my complaints with the general canon and direction, but I don't believe such criticisms are that helpful. I'll make another post concerning what canon Green Giant Saga ends up following (My Zac/Twitch fanfic series) that will have those complaints.

Instead, I'll just focus on my biggest problems with act 2

Characters Exist as Plot Devices for other Characters

There just seems to be a lot of characters that just act as props. Isha, a small non-verbal child with death flags everywhere, just exists to force Jinx to turn a new leaf. Warwick just exists to provide a potential happy ending for the Warwick/Vi/Jinx family so that the writers can take it away in emotional gut punches. Orianna (I think), a dead kid in a capsule, just exists to make Singed more sympathetic. That whole warden squad with Maddie, fish-guy, and big-guy? Maddie just exists to be Caitlyn's conscious for a scene and Big-guy just exists to show how much Vi deteriorates after the events of Act 1.

This in of itself doesn't need to be a bad thing. If you want to look at it in a very utilitarian, doylist perspective, all characters exist to tell a cohesive story with a clear theme. Not all characters will get the spotlight and must simply exist to support other characters, especially in a story with only 9 episodes, but it's getting very annoying how seemingly important these characters are to the plot when they're given little depth.

Isha and Warwick, to me, are the worse offenders. Isha who plays a significant role in redeeming Jinx, is a non-verbal kid with little backstory and interiority other than she wants Jinx to be Zaun's hero. She just exists to be so innocent and cute that even Jinx sympathizes with her, but with so little depth, she might as well just be a teddy bear. (I'd also point out that this does a disservice to Sevika who should've been more in Jinx's corner but just disappears from act 2 after episode 4... ugh..)

Warwick feels more like they revived Vander's corpse for more tragedy points. They really hammer home how much Vander wanted to take care of Jinx and Vi as kids with 2 big music video sequences. Vi even thinks about living in Viktor's cult town as a happy family, a happy scenario that exists so that the writers can gut punch us with the tragedy that's about to come. Season 1 had the sappy dad too, but what made it work for me was that it's combined with his reluctance to advocate for change in the undercity and his struggles of being a parent in grimdark capitalism as he tries to guide Vi to be a better leader. But now, with all of his rank and the context stripped down from him, he's just the sad dad character that gives the character fake hope.

So when Isha goes to blow Warwick and the attacking Noxians up with an overloaded gun, destroying the hopes of the main characters, I didn't feel emotional or sad or anything, because ultimately they just felt more like props to me instead of actual characters, and this is a big issue for act 2. If act 1 belongs to Caitlyn, then act 2 belongs to the Jinx/Vi/Warwick family and those 2 characters are extremely important to that plotline. Them being props, flattens the impact dramatically and makes it cheap.

If you felt very emotional during that scene, good for you! I'm happy you were able to be that invested. I'm just not one of you.

Less Political Intrigue

Part of what made Arcane really cool was that it highlighted the politics of Piltover-Zaun in a way that made the setting one of the main characters. You totally understand why Zaun acts the way they do and why Piltover acts the way they do and seeing the characters get entangled by that setting is deeply fascinating. It's part of the reason why Arcane is a great introduction to the Piltover-Zaun region. I'm also just a big fan of the setting and the political discussions you can have with it. (Green Giant Saga ends up doing this a lot)

And season 2 does continue that with act 1 and even episode 4. Ambessa making Caitlyn a dictator by exploiting her grief? Great! Mel trying desperately to do political damage control to avoid a war? Cool! Making Jinx a political figure to unite Zaun around even if she doesn't feel comfortable with it? Awesome!

But then with episode 5 and episode 6, the role of the setting diminishes. We start focusing more on the Warwick problem separate from the setting. Most of episode 5 takes place in a mine and most of episode 6 takes place in Viktor's cult town in the sumps, an isolated bubble away from Piltover-Zaun. Mel, the main figure leading that political aspect, got teleported away by the Black Rose. There are specs of it there like Singed agreeing to track down Warwick and make weapons for Noxus, but it doesn't play as large of a role like in previous acts, and it just can't. Not when we need to bring Warwick in since the act belongs to him. However, I already mentioned why he felt cheap, and the lack of integration with the setting, especially compared to previous acts, makes it feel all the more cheaper.

Now I will still say, Arcane season 2, act 2 is still good. It never bored me and it did keep me hooked on the screen. I just wouldn't call it great like I did the others acts of Arcane and the more I look at act 2, the more cheap it feels.

[melina-mellow]

CaitVi, Timebomb and Jayvik swap AU. Walk with me here people...

CaitVi is now "i understand now, my place is here with you" and "I just want my partner back"

Jayvik is now " Viktor's gone, there's only the Herald and he works for (insert Silco stand in) not cause he has to, but cause he wants to"

Timebomb is "oil and water.. wasn't meant to be" and "promise me you won't change..."

As for individual roles swaps it'd be:

Vi = Jayce. Caitlyn = Viktor.

Ekko = Vi, Jinx (Powder) = Caitlyn.

Jayce = Ekko, Viktor (the Herald) = Jinx.

--------------

I still wanted to keep Jinx and Vi siblings, so that's the reason Vi in this swap AU has Jayce's role (it's cause Jayce and Cait were kind of like brother and sister) and I also wanted to keep Ekko and Vi's and Jayce and Vi's bond too.

For Ekko and Viktor I can picture a found family/ adopted siblings type of role. Recently read a fic where the author explored their dynamic and I wanted more of that. In this AU Viktor becomes the "Herald" like how in canon Powder becomes Jinx. While Ekko gets taken away to Stillwater for years.

Jayce and Cait are a little bit tricky. I essentially want to keep the characters a bit true to their canon counterparts, which means I wanna keep Viktor's disability and Jinx's BPD even though this is a swap!au.

So admittedly I'm a little stuck on how to fit Cait into Viktor's role here, since his path in canon is so tied with his disability and illness.

Jayce was tricky too, but then I realized his title is literally "defender of tomorrow" so trying to force him into Ekko's role as a rebel leader who's looking to create a better tomorrow for his people wasn't too hard.

Their ages in this AU are also the same as their canon ages btw.

And I think this should be said but this isn't really a well thought out AU. Asides from our main six character swaps I don't have the exact details of the other character swaps. Like, I was debating Maddie and Sky being swapped in this AU.

But then I was left with the very weird implications of Sky being an evil spy that's banging Jinx after her situationship break up with Ekko.... which considering I want to keep their original ages was... yikes and gave up on that idea completely.

This AU is just for fun btw. Maybe I'll expand a little bit of this in the future, maybe not. But if anyone wants to add to this or has any ideas for other characters that can be swapped please do.

And if anyone wants to write a full fic with this concept, please tag me when you do! I would love to read it!

[luckysalbum]

This is a very slippery slope but I keep seeing very conflicting views on Cait and I have an opinion.

I'm gna put facts first and then my opinion else I may go off topic.

Season 1 - Cait is very idealistic. She wants to help the undercity and despite her upbringing she's not as prejuidiced against Zaunites as other members of Piltover.

Season 1 ends with Jinx killing Caits motherand season 2 begins with the aftermath.

Episode 1-3 We still see Cait, seeing people from the undercity as people, placing the blame of the bomb on 1 person- Jinx.

Then the memorial happens and it's interfered with. Cait is appointed as head of a unit to do that whole martial law thing.

Not to mention the breakup with Vi and Jayce and Mel going missing. (Her other support systems)

Later on we find out Ambessa has been manipulating everything from behind the scenes in order to gain what she wants - power.

NOW YOU TELL ME If you are someone who is grieving and this motherly figure comes, basically handing everything you want on a silver platter, telling you that you are right to feel this way and right to want revenge. And you don't have much of a support system anymore. Would you not be more susceptible to manipulation? Did this also not happen to Jinx? Did Silco also similarly tell Jinx this stuff? But yall wna see him as a great father when he actively affirmed her abandonment issues and other issues. (I have thoughts on Silco as a parent and luckily I'm not blinded by being attracted to him)

Im not in any way justifying what Cait did with the grey, that was completely uncalled for and of her own volition. HOWEVER similar to jinx after losing silco, that girl was not in a healthy state of mind. Jayce literally used the hexcore to bring back Viktor in his grief. Even after promising not to use the Hexcore. People don't think properly when emotionally distraught this is a fact of life you can disagree with me but I've seen it.

What I'm trying to say is grief and emotional distress makes desperate people do things they wouldn't normally do. I don't agree with Caits actions. But I entirely understand how she got there and while her redemption could have been better unfortunately we aren't lucky like we were with ATLA. I do think Caits villain arc should have been a season and then her redemption take place over another season which would be the final season. Cait also does atone for her actions, she betrays Ambessa and she sets Jinx free. Call her a bad person but then you have to call Jinx and Silco and all the other characters bad people. They're all flawed and they all do things that aren't necessarily good. Vi puts on an enforcer uniform. Maddie Exists. Jinx killed firelights and Caits mother. Viktor became the #1 eugenics fan. They're all flawed hello.

[givingblood]

Arcane could have been a perfect 2 seasons.

But everything feels rushed this season because we have

- expansion on silco/vander/vis mother that isn't needed

- Mel and her link to the black rose which just conveniently takes her away from the conflict, enabling caitlyn to have no mediating voice (the one that would have slotted perfectly in to what Maddy was supposed to be)

- Maddy for no reason

- Random character introductions that serve no purpose but to waste screen time

- Skye??? Viktor did not care about Skye so why is she with him? He referred to her as "Miss Young" when she was alive.

- Isha is a character created just to die to further Jinxs character which imo didn't even need to be furthered, unhinged irredeemable Jinx is what the character deserved and it would do it justice, this is a tragedy after all.

- Warwick walking around in broad daylight just chillin when he had been teased as this foreboding terrifying creature that was hardly a man, triggered by any blood... but nope he hugs Vi and all of a sudden he's lovely and sweet and ??

- Vi had NO ROOM for development, I am so fucken angry at how shafted Vi has been, Warwick was a chance for Vi to develop, HE was her mentor, their relationship was so important to VI and then they pushed any importance of it for Vi onto Jinx.

- Caitlyn fist fighting? Why? Why do we need this, Caitlyn is the brain, the anti Jinx, she analytical and articulate. SHE PICKS UP WHAT VI LACKS Why build this physical strength? Why? The scene where her and Ambessa are fighting took me OUT like ?? What blue eye samurai garbage is this???

- mels brother introduced? ANOTHER CHARACTER WE DONT KNOW OR CARE ABOUT GIVEN THE PRECIOUS SCREEN TIME WE NEED TO WRAP THINGS UP.

- literally ekko and heimerdinger have loose ends and they aren't even AROUND!?

- Viktor was some Doctor Who type shit... like I couldn't believe what I was watching, I'm not even a big Viktor person but this was just ????

- Caitlyn captures Vi and Ambessa considers it a big deal but as far as we are all aware DID AMBESSA EVEN KNOW VI????

This is just such a mess and really wish people could take the rose coloured glasses off and really understand what they did here, I'm not saying don't enjoy it but we got CW level writing this arc, this was fanfiction and the minute Jayce Talis showed up and fucken killed Viktor I was relieved.

Jayce kept his promise to Viktor, the only thing I can say that was in character in this arc.

BUT ALL IS NOT LOST

Act 3, they can bring this back, they have Mel out of the black rose pit (???) And she's back, Jayce is back, Isha is gone, Warwick is gone and Jesus AU Viktor is gone.

We have the main cast and 3 episodes for them to pick up these pieces.

I'm coping so hard I'm coping so hard I'm coping so hard

[sinfiltrate]

Act 3 spoilers

I just wanted to voice my opinions on the entirety of act 3, I will be making another post focusing on Jayce because I am disappointed with his story specifically.

Let's start with what I'm happy with!

The display of Mel's magic was amazing. All her scenes were so powerful.

CaitVi is canon! (which was predictable for obvious reasons but i'm still happy for them)

The music choice was perfect, as well as the quality of the episodes, as expected. No matter the storyline's flaws, the art style itself is undeniably gorgeous.

Maddie dies IMMEDIATELY after betraying Piltover, so I'm happy with that. Don't get me wrong, I think the season looked rushed, but the instant karma of that scene was enjoyable. It's well executed shock value.

The Caitlyn/Mel and Ambessa fight sequence was SICK. They really emphasized Ambessa's strength and battle IQ here, and while I dislike her, it was satisfying to watch.

The JayVik ending. Now, I am very conflicted with this, but I'll focus on the positive part. THIS MOMENT WAS SO TENDER!! It revealed how much Jayce truly loved and cared for Viktor, and that Viktor thought Jayce to be the only person who could ever make him acknowledge the importance of humanity. Jayce was his last and only hope, and Jayce proved Viktor right in every timeline.

Jayce defenders, we won. We got an entire episode dedicated to what Jayce and Ekko/Heimerdinger went through, and it proved that JAYCE WAS RIGHT AND HIM AND EKKO ARE OUR SAVIORS THANK YOU 🙏

Jayce looked fine asf. That is a beautiful man and I'm expecting many more edits (pretty please).

Alright, now let's get to what I'm upset about.

Jayce's wasted potential. The way I see it, they just reduced him to a pawn in Viktor's character arc, considering that his life begins and ends with Viktor. It's sweet, yes, and can be counted as a win for JayVik shippers, but I really wanted more for Jayce. And yes, I will most definitely come back to this on my Jayce-centric post.

The lack of reaction to Jinx's and Jayce's "death". I'm honestly not sure if either of them are dead (I am also somewhat in denial). Mel lost her lover, of whom brought out a softer side of herself that she didn't even know existed, and there's no reaction? Not even a scene of her finding out? The same goes for Caitlyn, since she literally saw Jayce as an older brother. Then there's Vi, who's seen completely fine with Caitlyn, and Ekko, who's having the only appropriate reaction, but even so, it's too calm. We'd have to assume that there's been another timeskip, but it couldn't have been long since the war. ALSO XIMENA, Jayce's MOTHER, she's seen putting a paper of Jayce's name to burn and honor him after his supposed death, but her expression is blank. Just simple resignation. I don't know, the lack of reaction had me questioning why I was sad.

No proper reunion scenes besides Ekko/Jinx and Mel/Jayce?????I actually liked Ekko and Jinx's reunion, but Mel and Jayce? Not even close to what I expected or wanted.

This season was rushed; that's something everyone can agree on. I think it was very focused on action rather than the complexity of these people's relationships and minds, while the first season had a balance between both. There just wasn't enough time for that balance with all the information they had to give us.

Honestly, and this is gonna sound horrible but hear me out, I would've preferred it if they had episode 6 be the last episode instead, and used the act 2 to explore Caitlyn's dictator arc and truly emphasize how long Jayce, Ekko, and Heimerdinger had been gone. I know how this sounds, but I really wanted to see more of Caitlyn and her mindset during the whole fascism plot rather than have her throw it all away three episodes later. It would've helped others understand her more, while also acknowledging how blinded she had become with anger and sadness. Also, this would've given more time for people to grow an attachment to Isha and see how she reminds Jinx of Powder!!! Just imagine it, the season closing with Jayce "killing" Viktor, no sign of Ekko or Heimerdinger, and Isha dying would have been even MORE devastating; the ultimate cliffhanger. There's no denying people would've been angry and shocked, but it would've made us want more, just like the first season did. I would be 100% willing to wait 3 or more years for the next season than have such an underwhelming ending.

Okay, I think that's it. Might add more to this post later if I come up with any other critiques, be prepared for the Jayce post because I NEED to talk about him.

[deiastormborn]

Unpopular opinion, but people really need to stop viewing Arcane characters in such a simple, trivial way. All of this "either I hate this character or I worship them" is so tiring.

(Rant with spoilers)

Jayce is not bad, he was a young boy that tried to make the world better. He cared about the people in Piltover, he cared about Viktor, he was just too young and too naive.

Post-arcane Jayce had a reason to do what he did. He saw things. You can see him get triggered and act frantic, he SAW something bad. Just because he attacked your favorite Viktor doesn't mean he deserves hate.

Viktor is not perfect. He may have good intentions, but his methods are not it. He created a cult with a hivemind and abandoned his own beliefs.

I love him too, but you need to love his flaws as well.

Caitlyn is not a fascist. She is literally the first Piltover character we see who was caring for Zaun people. She tried this whole time to avoid violence. Ambessa manipulated her when she was at her lowest, and even then, Cait told her that "why does everything justify violence?" As soon as Vi told her about Vander, she jumped in to help. She was never evil. She was broken.

And don't get me started on Maddie thing. It's a 1 year time skip. Ambessa said Jayce and Co were missing for 1 year. She's allowed to have relationships with someone else. Stop hating Maddie for just being there.

Vi isn't perfect either. She's aggressive and self-destructive. She wasn't protecting Isha from being shot. She was hesitating to kill Jinx before she even appeared. She is acting tougher and angrier than she is. But that's the truth.

And yes, I love her too. But you can't deny her issues and say you love her.

Jinx, Mel, Silco, Vander, Ambessa, all of these characters are not meant to be 100% evil or 100% good.

Arcane does a great job of humanizing the characters. The intentions, the trauma, the response to it, the good, and the ugly.

I understand if you don't like a character. And I understand if you love some other one. But please, give everyone a fair chance and accept or reject them with their greatness and ugliness. Not a single character in Arcane deserves to be looked at and judged by the surface only.

[hutaotown]

act 1 had me tweakin out but act 2 feels bittersweet yk? like of course im sad over the possible??? character deaths, but everything felt necessary and like it was happening for a reason. viktors little speech about humanity really confirmed this. it seems like he realized that what he said to jayce earlier was right and killing him is what needed to happen. everything seemed like a dream and its only natural that it all comes crumbling down and tragic shit happens to the characters that only wanted the best.

ANYWAYS, back to my normal nonsense here are some less existential thoughts.

- sevika KILLED ME. like how did they make her hotter??? especially w that ugly ah haircut????

- im also becoming a jayce stan like viktor was hot ash w that long hair, but jayce??? ho mama im boutta BUST.

- vi punching isha??? like girl will always be a kid attacker smh. loving small parallels between jinx and isha tho super funsies.

- when cait knocked out vi and took her to ambessa i was so so scared UNTIL i realized that vi was tied up. like it just HIT ME bc caitlyn KNOWS that vi can get out of situations like that. i got so hype after that.

- it seems like isha will become more of a symbol than jinx. from how she showed up at the rally to what went down at the end of the season. its giving rue in the hunger games, how she is seen as the innocence in this horrible conflict.

- that undercity doctor ALWAYS pissed me off i dont even remember his name thats how much beef i have with this man.

- even with all this beef i still understand all sides and love the politically tension because its ALWAYS more complicated than right and wrong.

- MEL WHERE ARE UUUU GIRL JOIN ZAUN PLSSSSSS COME TO US.

- im SO excited for the chromakopia edits on tiktok they always hit

- i hope vi and jinx stayed chill for the rest of the season i CANT have them beefing again. also excited to see how caitlyn fits into this dynamic.

- I CANT BELIEVE I ALMOST FORGOT THE FELICIA VANDER SILCO FLASHBACK!!! i genuinely LOVED seeing their relationship and younger silco made me cry a bit :( he deserved better.

- last thing i swear but jinx ate vi up in their fight the way she was like girl we both psychotic stop crashing out over your girlfriend and lock innnn

- also im a maddie defender SUE ME

[soaking-wet-cat-punk]

ARCANE CHARACTERS AS BASTILLE: WILD WORLD SONGS

arcane spoilers below

part two:

1. Good Grief

absolutely Jinx and Isha. are you kidding. it’s isha’s carefree tune and jinx’s grief. there’s a little glitching in there. there’s some echoes and strange voices. it’s because they ran together painting the town. because jinx found powder in isha and vi in herself. because isha smiled when she pulled the trigger. and sevika can be there if you squint

2. The Currents

GAHHHHHH THIS ONE IS AMBESSA *shakes you aggressively* GUHHH even though she’s more represented by fire. this song is about her taking control to protect what is Hers, even if she strays away from herself in the progress. i would pay someone to make an edit of Mel and ambessa to this song but I will probably do it myself so make ur offer fast. could also be Caitlyn and Maddie in the bridge, if you think about it. and i do think. all the time constantly i am not normal about this album.

3. An Act of Kindness

Hrngh………… jinx and silco………. the way his outstretched hand shaped her life…. how he was the only one there for her…… AND NOW IT FOLLOWS ME EVERY DAY?!?!!?! ugh this HITS DIFFERENT.

option 2, for the time bomb enjoyers. this could be ekko and jinx or ekko and powder, depending on what universe. because in the end he forgave her and came back for her. because in the end she forgave him and continued on with her life. And now it follows them, every day.

4. Warmth

MEL MERDARDA RHE QUEEN THAT YOU ARE!!!!!! and Jayce 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 but i see this as Mel slowly realizing she is falling for him, through the layers of possibilities and the layers of planning and high society manipulation, even that she is doing herself. and Jayce leaning on her because she Understands, she Knows.

he’ll come back to us.

5. Glory

the other side of the polycule JAYCA AND VICTOR HRGGHHHH DO I EVEN NEED TO EXPLAIN IF U JUST LISTEN ONCE YOU WILL GET IT I SWEAR ughhhhhhhhhhh im going to kill someone…… stories told to me, and stories told to you… but did you ever feel like they were ringing true??

because they searched for heaven together, then realized that there was no greater heaven than being with their Partner, the one they love, who their story can’t exist without.

6. Power

this one was hard to assign because i have Opinions Thoughts and Feelings about it in real life, but im going to give this one to Vi and Jinx both, but both about the ghost of each other that’s been hanging over their heads for years. jinx has the ghost of vi who betrayed her, who left her, and vi has the ghost of powder, who she can’t believe is gone. it’s a different tone than the song has for me in real life, which is fun!! love to see it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! anyway in the end of the show obviously they let go of old ghosts, so there’s that. there’s still hope.

7. Two Evils

this one hit me like a truck full of lead because I’m writing all of these live as i listen to the songs on a train. this is CAITLYN. this is Lady Macbeth herself. fighting corruption that bubbles up from her own throat, clawing at the crown that cuts her head, staring her mother down in the mirror. hunting the Zaunites like animals, losing herself and finding herself in the pieces below. “it pays to be the nice guy sometimes” it sure does cait GAHHHHHHGH i need everyone to listen to this album Now.

8. Send Them Off!

JAYVIK IS BACK BABY and they brought religious symbolism :D yayyyyy!!!!!!! in which viktor is the sin and the liberator, and Jayce is the sinner and the pledge. “be the power to compel me, hold me closer than anyone before, set me free” are you serious. are you for real right now. i will kill someone (affectionate)

ft. sky, during the bridge

9. Lethargy

CLOSE ENOUGH WELCOME BACK JINX AND VI! they can take turns paralleling this song. they deserve it. the helpless hope of family truly is something special. wowee im so glad british alt-rock band Bastille knows about the arcane sisters :) (this came out in 2014) anyway idk about you but i can see their journeys changing and intertwining in this song. and if you don’t see that then you are wrong. sorry.

10. Four Walls (the Ballad of Perry Smith)

jaycepilled jaycepilled Jayce when he went to superhell. Jayce when he fell to the bottom of zaun and had to pull himself up with his bare hands like viktor, Jayce when he finally understood viktor’s journey, Jayce when he saw the fate of his world that he made years ago. and of course that’s viktor speaking at the end. Just pretend his accent is there ok I don’t care that’s him. leave me alone I’m normal about this album.

My phone is running out of battery and I have hit the audio limit for this post so part two will happen later tonight or tomorrow morning I promise !!!!!!!!!

[stealerofthe2ndbraincell]

ARCANE ACT 3

LIVEBLOG TIME! 🎉🎉

(Once again, more like a reaction then a live blog but sssh)

S2 Ep8: Killing Is A Cycle

Mel in the Ebenezer Scrooge chains again (I know it was Jacob Marley that was in the chains throughout but still) :(

THIS TRANSFORMATION IS SO COOL.

Would be a bit cooler if she wasn't screaming bloody murder throughout but I get it.

They really took some of the excellent bits of her design and decided to really lean into them more for this.

I kind of wish the internet hadn't fucked over the word "empath" cause that made me giggle.

We can't see the sorceress from here but is she meant to resemble the girl from Mel's backstory?

I need to stop pausing to say this immediately before it happens.

Okay so it isn't her, duly noted. I would suck in a fight against this thing.

Did it really say "yeah you're cool but you can still be stabbed, so how powerful are you actually 🙄🙄".

Calamity and Red seem to be associated strongly cause I immediately thought of Breath of the Wild.

I'm living for this backstory.

She must be so cold.

It's all coming back :((

OH SHIT VIKTOR'S IN THE ORB NOW.

God. That's terrifying. Viktor is suddenly extremely terrifying to me.

I'm surprised Ambessa isn't remotely surprised at him mentioning Jayce. He was probably missing for months at this point.

"I will evolve all those willing" so everyone? Everyone in your cult, Viktor? Because they're a literal hivemind so I doubt he'd have much problem.

VI I MISSED YOU.

YOU DID NOT HAVE TO HAVE THAT ISHA FLASHBACK OMG:((

Why does it look like a pokeball? That's so distracting lol

God Maddie is failing across the board, it's embarrassing, girl...

This argument between Cait and Vi was so deserved to be honest.

Maddie is probably hearing all of this...

I never considered Jinx would surrender.

Is Jinx not eating?

Damn what if you just punched me in the gut wow...

Her nails bleeding HURT me so much

"no amount of good deeds can undo OUR crimes" I'm so interested in the "our" from Caitlyn....

Jayce, love ya, but I am not on your side in this argument.

Although, Mel I think calling him and Viktor a "wise investment" in this moment is probably not the move either but still

I was slightly concerned that Jayce's flashbacks (? Would that be the right term for these) would stop once Viktor was "killed". Apparently not.

I'm happy for this turnabout.

I thought in Act 2 he reminded me of S1 Jinx and I'm pushing with that idea now.

Oh nevermind. He almost shot Viktor again.

I know it is very likely one of his followers and not actually Viktor, but damn that robot waist line lmao

Poor Mel probably has very little clue what's going on right now.

I'm distracted by Jayce's design tbh. The black and red colour scheme is sooo nice on his new look.

....

...Well that caught me off guard...

He STILL wants Jayce to be his partner WHAT :'(

"My partner died in this room." OUCH

MEL, MY GIRL!!! 👏👏👏👏

I want to be more enthusiastic for her, but she looks borderline in pain whenever she uses her magic so far :((

WHY ARE YOU PURPLE, JAYCE??

WAIT SO WAS VIKTOR WAITING TO SEE IF JAYCE WOULD JOIN HIM BEFORE STARTING THE EVOLUTION?

After last episode I legitimately, for a second, thought Silco was still alive.

He's not a nice person at all obviously, but in Jinx's hallucination he seems to sound harsher to her?

I did not need to see her spit that out up close.

Wait. It actively fell from her mouth where is it?

O W

I AM SO SCARED, JINX. WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE GOING TO "BREAK THE CYCLE"

Is there a reason Mel needs to wear the cloak?

"You will never be a passenger". Listen , I was actually hoping for more from my Jayce and Mel interactions. Both scenes they feel very off-kilter and standoffish of each other. A lot more tense then before (for understandable reasons considering what they both just went through) that I was hoping would start to heal.... but has'nt. However, that line hit.

I am obsessed with the designs of these background characters.

Am I missing something? Who is that playing that random piano??

I feel bad. I don't recognise him.

This entire sequence hurts.

OH. Wait I think I get the inclusion of the piano man. I hope I do otherwise I've just completely forgotten a character lol

[kurthummeldeservesbetter]

Alternate Universes where Viktor doesn't wake up until the end of the season intrigue me because you can have:

Jayce even more reluctantly going on the boys trip w/ Ekko and Heimer, (ooo Heimer's reaction to Viktor!!!!) and accidently getting sucked up in the anomaly. Maybe he calls Mel beforehand and is like "heyyy can you watch Vik for me? I have to go check out the hexgates" and shes like...sure how are the hexgates a priority rn but okay? Which is even more interesting bc then all the stuff with the black rose and she disappears, leaving sourdough Vik defenseless

Dictator Cait being like, I know Jayce is missing, but maybe Viktor is awake now? And telling the story of the hextech projects to Ambessa, who's twink-radar is going off, she's getting excited, and then they walk into the lab to find Viktor in his hex-coma, suspended in blue goop, and no one understands Jayce's notes on the chalkboard.

And Cait is like. Fuck. Now I have to watch him? Jayce will kill me if his partner dies on my watch. So she basically rants about her love life to sleeping beauty instead of sleeping with Maddie.

Still have the Vander/Warwick stuff, but its just the sisters trying to tame the beast, w/o the intervention of Singed and Viktor. Also Isha lives.

When Jayce comes back he still has his scene with Mel, but it's before anything else, and its Ambessa coming in like "lovers spat huh : )" and they battle for a bit, before she peaces out to go prep, and Jayce explains everything he learned in the alternate universe, and he's like, so how is Viktor? He awake yet?

And shes like Fuck I've been gone. They rush to the lab and hes still baking, they're sighing in relief but Damn he's been like that for eight months now.

Anyways catvi reunion featuring werewolf father in law, aunt sevika and new lil sis Isha. All of them are like lets hold our personal beef until we defeat the noxians, then we can talk like civilized people. (also Ekko and Jinx reunite, just less sadly, and he's able to explain to her the other side, with that + the letter she found with Vi and having her family all together they slowly come to peace <3 )

Eventually the battle goes a lot quicker because no one is distracted by the bots, Mel defeats her mom with the Cait team up, Jayce is fighting, and then once everything is over he goes back to the lab to mope. and boom.

Viktor is awake, wondering wtf is going on, and Jayce is prepped this time, gives him the whole rundown, basically a similar confession to the one in the finale, and Viktor is like. Okay that sounds great and all, but who tf are you, and wtf am I?

Boom. S3 Arcane where everyone trying to deal with the political fall-out, Zaun's journey to independence under someone who actually cares (Sevika and Ekko) and the main plot is that political plot, while the bois have their slow burn magic love story, all while Jayce is trying to prevent the glorious evolution from happening without Viktor really knowing.

[edible-emerald]

Minute Heimerdinger

Clown Silco

Mane Sevika

Mapicc Jace

Spoke Victor

Rek Sky

Ash Mel

Wembu Vi

I will not elaborate

WAITTT ASH AS MEL MIIIGHT BE A COOK I DIDNT CONSIDER THAT… Mel and Ambessa have been some of the harder ones to figure out so I’ll think on this…

Spoke and Mane I was already considering for that I’m ngl but Mapicc as Jayce is a new idea I originally was planning Mapicc as Skye and Parrot as Jayce but I’ll think abt this too,..

Spoke being Viktor actually fits so well because he has a huge army (the players who joined in the wormhole) that was created using magic no one fully understands (wormhole) that he used to access the spirit realm (I dotn have anything for this but it’s thematically similar to his skin so I just think it’d be neat)

Clown as Silco is a new idea actually, I haven’t thought much on who Silco would be surprisingly but I hadn’t considered Clown it would actually fit well

ngl I don’t think Wemmbu fits as Vi because yes him and Kab did team for a bit but she said she hated teaming with him and I don’t think he’d fit they haven’t interacted very much in general. Also Vi is very obviously in a relationship in arcane and I want to try and preserve that relationship and Wemmbu isn’t comfortable with shipping to my knowledge, if it isn’t possible to keep the relationship romantic while respecting boundaries I’ll prioritize boundaries and Wemmbu could be a contender to be Vi but for now I don’t think it works well (Jayvik is excluded from this because they’re the only ones who aren’t explicitly in love even though it’s implied, also the creators confirmed it isn’t canon unfortunately but that’s why I’m not applying it to Jayce and Viktor)

Minute heimerdinger COULD work but my original plan was actually Derap as heimerdinger. Actually that would make Mapicc as Jayce fit a lot better too just realizing but Derap as heimerdinger would fit well imo because the main person he interacts with besides Jayce is Ekko and I’ve already said Zam is Ekko and sunkissed… makes me ILL

my original plan for Clown and Ash was actually to have CLOWN be Vi and BRANZY be Caitlyn, and for Ash and Squiddo to be Mylo and Claggor (Clagger? Claggor? Hwo is it spelled) so the fuck you found family would be the original four that were with Vander (speaking of which I cannot for the LIFE of me figure out who Vander would be) I wonder who Maddie would be then hmm

I also am considering Ash as Viktor and Squiddo as Jayce but idk if that would work let me know if you guys think it’s cool

ultimately the only locked in details of the au are that Jinx is Kab and Ekko is Zam, everything else can and may be changed in the future so GIVE ME YOUR SUGGESTIONS PLEASE!!!

[lemyondre]

Arcane Act 3 Spoilers

I would like to kill myself at this present moment.

LORIS NOOOOOOOO

Maddie yes that bitch can die oh finally.

THE SCENE. YIPPPEEEEE

We all won. CaitVi sex scene, TimeBomb canon, JayVik canon (its Canon because because because of they made the butterfly while embracing each other. Quite homosexual of them)

Also in ep7 when Vik and Jay were fighting, he should've smooched him on the forehead even though that shit would've hurt

Isha dying does make me sad... but I think Isha's death is there to remind Jinx that not everything is her fault and that sometimes you do things for the people you love.

STROMAE COMING OUT TO DROP.

The music this act hurt me what.

The way I knew that hooded man was Viktor.

So Sky isn't Viktor's guilt, she's his humanity and when she left, his humanity left too.

MEL MEDARDA THE WOMAN YOU ARE.

I'm sorry can we talk about Mel.

NOW WE KNOW LIKE WHY EVERYONE CAN BE INFLUENCED BY HER. It's the black girl magic- I mean the magic. The Solari magic.

Her new fit🔥😏😏

Ambessa's love for Mel is something that I can relate to but I also can't relate.

The way Heimerdinger died bro🫠 now the lorax is gone

Ekko in the alternate timeline is my man gng.

SILCO AND VANDER RRAAHHHHH the zaun dads

Silco gets hotter? I did state that I have the hots for silco..

BENZOO RRAAHHHHH. Zaun uncle

Poor Ekko, I can imagine how he felt literally seeing his dead father figure and uncle.

Now I don't think anyone can watch Arcane from the beginning without thinking about season 2.

JAYCE SUPPORTERS FOR THE WINN RAHHHHHH.

COUNCELOR SEVIKA AAAAAAA

Caitlyn and Violet had a scene in a Jail cell. In contrast to how they met. That is very Picasso, very Slay

I think Viktor and Jayce's relationship is beautiful and it evolved like a butterfly.

WHY DID VI DIE IN OTHER TIMELINE MY HEART.

Jinx is not dead guys😃

Everything hurts. My eyes hurt. The last time I cried this hard for a piece of media was probably Rise of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie.. OH and Good Omens s2e6

Okay, but Arcane is a piece of media that is the prime example what executives should be doing and that's giving artists time, paying them right and NOT TAKING THEIR FUCKING JOBS!!

Further.. I think I might combust. A03 fics anyone? Like any recommendations because I am off to listen to the music now which is a bad idea because when I'm done, I'm probably gonna come back here crying to tell you about how To Ashes and Blood has a bigger meaning and that the full version of Enemy is about Jinx and Ekko.

YES IT IS BECAUSE the Violins represent Jinx and her aggressive nature (they play soft then aggressive) and JID's part had ticking. LIKE A CLOCK?? HELLOOOO???

I'm gonna go be like spongebob and tweak in my room. Peace yall.

Thank you for the soul

Thanks for the tears

Thank you for the reunion

Thanks for the playfulness

Thank you [can't explain.]

Thanks for listening to us

Thank you for understanding

Sigh. Thank you.

Thank you for the memories

Thanks for searching

Thank you Alexander Seaver of Mako and Alexander Temple for everything.