By Sofia Lambis, News Investigations Editor
In November the hit show Arcane returned to screens with its second and final season.
A collaboration between Riot Games and animation studio Fortiche, the Netflix show is based on the popular video game League of Legends. Combining a unique animation style with a steampunk aesthetic, it focuses on characters in wealthy city of Piltover and the oppressed undercity Zaun. Arcane has always been ambitious – focusing on so many characters and storylines at once and weaving an elaborate web of interconnecting lives. Season one showed us two sisters separated after tragedy, a pair of young inventors combining magic and technology, and the political leaders who sought to weaponise it.
Taking a total of six years to make, the first season was met with critical acclaim and commercial success, scoring 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and receiving praise for its depth, storytelling and unique design. After a three-year-long wait we finally got to see these beloved characters return with season two consisting of nine episodes released in three acts.
Picking up right after the (literally) explosive finale of season one, act I delves deeper into the inequalities between Piltover and Zaun. Season one ended with Jinx firing a weapon into the Piltover council just as they approved Zaun’s independence, and season two shows the characters grappling with the consequences of this as they are forced to make difficult decisions. Jinx, who spent most of season one trapped between the Powder/Jinx identities, is thrown off by the arrival of new character Isha and by accidentally becoming a revolutionary figure. Meanwhile, Violet is caught between joining the enforcers that killed her parents or potentially allowing violence to continue and Caitlyn struggles with grief and a growing desire for vengeance.
Despite the large cast of main characters, the show's creators manage to make us invested in them all. Arcane excels at audio-visual storytelling, showing vast worldbuilding and an epic plot in a small amount of time. Blending both 2D and 3D animation alongside digitally hand-painted backgrounds as well as being chock-full of easter eggs for fans of the video game, Arcane's craftsmanship and attention to detail is like no other. Some of its more emotional scenes use charcoal illustrations and watercolour-like painting to really stick the knife in. This is all underscored by an amazing soundtrack, full of moving and energising songs like Woodkid’s ‘Ashes and Blood’ and Stromae and Pomme’s French hit ‘Ma Meilleure Ennemie.’
A prevalent theme in season one – the inevitable consequences of violence – was carried into season two. Summed up by Viktor in a powerful final speech, act II shows the messy and imperfect reality of human nature – with characters caught up in a cycle of violence and death, and almost everyone acting in some way to protect or avenge the people they love. A short time skip shows us the characters adapted to new situations, gaining or losing power and sacrificing parts of who they were before. Meanwhile, in the background, darker forces awaken, and the reality of combining magic with technology soon reveals itself.
Among all the action and tragedy the show offers brief moments of catharsis. In Act III Ekko’s transported to an alternate timeline where Hextech was never invented. Dancing with Powder and seeing the two cities coexist peacefully it’s a bittersweet insight into how things could have turned out.
There was a lot going on in act III, we were being pulled in so many directions that at times it felt difficult to balance. I felt that some elements of the plot, such as Mel’s sorcery and The Black Rose were introduced very quickly, leaving me confused as to what was going on. Especially during the last episode, where there were clearly moments where the creators had to sacrifice important character interactions to move the plot along.
So, what’s next for Arcane? While the show might be over, spin-offs expanding on the wider universe are currently in development and will hopefully be released sometime in the next few years. Until then, we’ll just have to keep re-watching Arcane.
What are your thoughts on season 2 of Arcane?
