Arcane was so brilliant, also because it broke taboos

Arcane has broken a lot of taboos – at least according to hobby demon Cortyn from MeinMMO. That was the icing on the cake that made the LoL series grand.

I have watched Arcane to the end. Now three times in total. Once in English, twice in German. It is quite rare for me to watch series multiple times, and usually, many years pass in between. No other series has moved me so much, made me feel so invested, and brought me to the brink of tears so often.

But before I start:

Spoiler warning: It concerns the content of all 9 “Arcane” episodes. Anyone who does not want to read spoilers should close this article now and urgently watch Arcane. That’s an order.

Arcane had me hooked within 3 minutes. A flashback where almost no words are spoken shows how the two main characters wander through war-ravaged streets as children and end up seeing their dead family. The emotions, the expressions in this scene, instantly captivated me, and I had to swallow for the first time right there.

I had absolutely no connection to these characters, yet Arcane managed to make me sympathize with them from the very first scene.

At first, it’s easy to roll your eyes a bit at Arcane. Children in the lead role are not for every viewer, and yes, the characters are a bit clichéd at the start.

Vi as the “strong leader” that everyone looks up to.
Powder as the clumsy and fearful girl, about whom no one really knows why she is involved.
Plus the somewhat unsympathetic chatterbox who mostly talks big, and the chubby boy who naturally shoves a pastry in his mouth within 30 seconds.

But this first impression quickly changes. What starts as “kids planning a somewhat silly break-in” is soon overshadowed by seriousness and a rather brutal fight. This is also resolved well narratively. While Piltover seems somewhat friendly and pleasant, it becomes increasingly brutal in the undercity.

This brutality is shown clearly in Arcane. Children are beaten just like adults, and in the case of Act 3, even actively killed by adults. Of course, these actions are ones that the respective characters almost immediately regret, but the fact that Arcane shows it makes the series special.

But Arcane also shows things in small details that are often not seen. In a series, when there’s a risk that someone gets a sharp object rammed into their eye, the camera usually switches at the last moment, and you only hear the scream or see the shadow of the character. This is not the case in Arcane when Silco injects his medicine. Every time the needle jabs into the eye, a shiver runs down my spine.

This greatly helps to understand: This character has to endure this again and again if he wants to survive with his illness.

But Arcane also breaks smaller and larger taboos with other details.

For example, prostitution is depicted as a means of solving problems – as Vi and Caitlyn visit the brothel. Unusual for a series that actually shows “untouchable” characters that players have known and loved for many years.

It’s similar in another instance when Mel Medarda’s mother arrives and as her first act orders the Piltover version of a love servant to her side, who is prominently featured in the scenes afterward. Not to mention that the already somewhat aged lady is shown sitting in the bathtub with her legs spread in the best Witcher manner, while her naked young man massages her.

Such a thing is rare. Naked women in such poses and depictions are as common as sand by the sea in films, but an older woman who keeps a young man for her amusement – that was new to me in this extent, somehow brave, and also damn cool.

Silco – The true main character of the story

However, Arcane has done something else – it has elevated the villain of the series to a whole new level. Therefore, I want to highlight Silco here specifically, because his character is simply damn well thought out and impressive in each and every scene.

Arcane managed to make me sympathize with nearly all characters by the end or at least understand them. At the beginning, I thought Silco deserved every cruel end, but by the end, I was crying as he bid farewell to Jinx with his last breaths. He had discarded all his plans and dreams and was fully committed to his father role. He became what he had always accused Vander of and sacrificed his former ambitions for the love of his daughter.

For me, that was perhaps the most dramatic and emotional death of a villain that felt thoroughly unsatisfactory.

Generally, Silco’s character cannot be praised enough. For where he initially seems like a shady underworld boss, he is filled with ambitions and weaknesses. Normally, the main villain is always portrayed as cold and ruthless without ever doubting. Yet Silco repeatedly has moments where you can see sheer fear in his eyes.

This is particularly evident at the end of Episode 3, where Vander must decide whether to save Vi or attack Silco. You can briefly see the panic in his eyes.

A very similar expression can be seen in the moments when the chem-barons try to execute their coup and he is not entirely sure whether his previously loyal right-hand man, Sevika, is still loyal to him or not.

In addition, hardly any other character has as many impressive scenes that make it clear he will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. Silco is coolest when he threatens and holds all the strings:

How he visits Marcus’ daughter and plays with her, while quite obviously threatening to kill her if the enforcer does not act according to his wishes.

How he treats the people in the gutter almost like animals, desperately reaching for the shimmer. As if he is the savior, giving the gaunt, shimmer-addicted people what they long for.

How he keeps the other chem-barons in check by pushing them to the brink of death with gas and only providing them with a saving mask at the end.

Silco is simply not a cliché villain who is just evil for the sake of being evil. He has clear goals that are fundamentally understandable. The establishment of his own nation where “his people” no longer have to suffer. To achieve this goal, he does use questionable and morally dubious methods, but remains true to his objectives.

At least until Jinx comes into play. After the end of Episode 3, this changes only gradually. At first, I wasn’t entirely sure whether Silco had really developed fatherly feelings for Jinx, but it became more obvious with each episode. No matter what Jinx messed up, he was never long-term angry with her.

In the end, he even had to choose between Jinx and his big dream – and stands by his daughter. He became exactly what he always criticized Vander for.

Silco’s death is the best staged of the whole series and undoubtedly the best ever in a video game adaptation.

A controversial ending that I absolutely celebrate

The last 20 minutes are among the most impressive I have ever seen in any medium of entertainment. And that, even though I am very aware of how controversial the ending is received in the community.

Some see it like our editor-in-chief Leya, who perceives the ending as an unnecessary cliffhanger that leaves people dissatisfied.

I see it differently. For me, the ending was not a cliffhanger, even if the consequences of the last act are not explicitly shown. I found it an absolutely grand finale that leaves no questions unanswered. The cut just before the explosion is wonderfully chosen. All cards are on the table, and the rocket strike has so much violence.

It is not only an attack by the oppressed people of the undercity on Piltover, but also a massive annihilation – both direct and metaphorical. The council, which at that exact moment agrees on the sought-after peace, is largely murdered. Jinx simultaneously kills the rest of Powder that must have still been within her with that shot – right after she once more killed a person who meant so much to her.

Particularly the last minutes, in which only the absolutely outstanding song “What Could Have Been” plays and Jinx aims her weapon at the council of Piltover, have burned into my memory.