This article contains spoilers for Arcane season two.
Since I watched season two of Netflix’s Arcane, my brain chemistry has been altered. I know my friends are sick of me sending them Arcane edits on TikTok or yapping their ears off whenever we talk, but this season’s just been so amazing!
Arcane premiered on Netflix back in Nov. 2021, and it was a smash hit considering the video game it’s based on, League of Legends. I’ve never played it, but from what I’ve gathered online, the show is far better. Though, this isn’t Netflix’s first time adapting a video game property into a popular TV series. They’d done it before with the Castlevania games, giving viewers a four-season series by the same name as well as a spin-off, Castlevania: Nocturne (both of which are very good, and I recommend highly).
I want to preface, before I really get into the nitty-gritty of the show, that there’ll be spoilers for Arcane season two. So, proceed with caution if you’re still watching or you want to watch. I highly recommend going in with as little knowledge as possible because the story that unfolds is too good.
Anyway, let’s talk about season two because, oh boy, do I have some thoughts to share. I found this season enjoyable and a proper send-off to the show. While it did have moments where I thought some things could’ve been changed, I can look beyond those and appreciate what this season was about and the message it was trying to send.
Firstly, the animation was fantastic, and the show was made beautifully. Every scene of Piltover and every little movement the characters made was so masterfully done. The animators and artists who worked on Arcane truly love this show. The watercolor scene with Vander reflecting on his life was stunning, as was the dance sequence with Ekko and Powder in episode seven, animated at four frames per second to reflect how far back he can turn time. The immaculate scene between Jayce and Viktor in the last episode left me speechless. I just remember crying at how beautiful it was.
With this show, I could really tell how much the animators cared about the story and how they wanted it portrayed. That was such a highlight for me, and it shines a light on how versatile animation can be. A lot of people write it off as something for children, but so many animated shows and movies are visually stunning and a beautiful mode of storytelling that sometimes live-action can’t convey.
The character arcs this season were amazing and really sparked conversation across social media, with so many people talking about their motivations and how important their stories are to the overall theme.
Take Caitlyn’s story of losing her mother following the events of season one and dealing with her grief and trauma of that. The way she handled that grief stirred up a lot of conversation on TikTok and Twitter. I disagree with the opinion that Cait is valid in her grief but that she shouldn’t have used her mother’s work to harm the people of Zaun and then implementing martial law on them. I’ve seen so many interesting pieces on how her upbringing and social class play into how she handles these hard situations. I think characters like Caitlyn are important because they show how grief can affect people. Sometimes, you let your emotions get the better of you, which can cause lasting harm.
I’ve also seen people say that Cait never apologized for what she did in Zaun, but if you look at the subtext of some of the choices she makes after the war in Piltover, like giving up her family’s council seat to Sevika, you’ll see that it’s implied she’s trying to make up for her actions. I could get into another issue of people needing everything to be spelled out on screen, but that’s an entirely different topic.
I think how the show tackles the theme of love is so masterfully done. Every character’s actions are motivated by love, which we can see in Act Three. Mel tries to reason with her mother, Ambessa before she attacks Piltover because she loves her. She knows that if her mother goes through with this plan, she might have to kill her. Ambessa’s actions in attacking Piltover. Though misguided, they’re motivated by her love for her family and her desire to protect Mel from perceived threats.
Love is such a motivating factor, and in season two, we see all the types of love in the world. We see how love pushes people to do great or not-so-great things. It’s such a beautiful through-line that connects all the different stories being told together by one common factor.
Those are only some of my thoughts on the show. I could write essays about everything I talked about and more. I’d love to hear all of your opinions on this season and Arcane as a whole, as I can’t stop thinking about it!
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