arcane, season 1

    The story of Arcane is riddled with desperate people, living on the very edge of hopelessness. This desperation drives the plot forward at an unforgiving pace, as each character is pushed to the edge with impossible choices. I find myself incredibly invested in the characters’ perseverance in light of their despair, especially those that live in the heart of the Undercity. Let’s examine the characters I hold closest to my heart, shall we?

    Viktor, born to the Undercity, is desperate to find a way to help its residents (including himself) achieve a better life. His experimentation with Hextech brings him close, but ultimately his progress is stopped by factors outside his control. As his time runs out, he struggles to persevere, and in his desperation turns to Shimmer – which artificially enhances the body’s abilities, for a short time. He sacrifices his health for the betterment of mankind, and in the process does irrevocable damage to himself and his situation.

    I’m incredibly invested in Viktor’s success, and I’m excited to see how his character evolves in the second season. I suspect things may get worse for him, before they get better. But his desperation to improve his life, and the lives of others, resonates with the part of me that seeks betterment for myself. I hope he succeeds, because somehow that means that I, too, can be successful, despite my body’s chemistry working against me.

    Jinx, formerly known as Powder, is desperate to figure out how she fits into the world. As a child, her earnest desire to help is overshadowed by her natural unluckiness; she can’t seem to catch a break, as every time she tries to help, she inevitably makes things worse. Powder was abandoned by her sister, after being told in no uncertain terms that she was a jinx, and would only ever mess things up. Fast forward a decade, and that has become her entire persona. Jinx runs rampant, having given up on doing as she’s told and embraced her ability to cause destruction. When sent on a job, and told to protect something, she goes out of her way to ensure everything is destroyed, through bombs and bullets alike. When Vi comes back around, Powder wants to resurface, but has found that she fits into the world as Jinx, and can’t give that up. In her desperation to figure out who she wants to be, her natural unluckiness returns, and causes the death of the only person who encouraged her to embrace who she was.

    Jinx’s dilemma reflects my own struggles with identity, and I can understand her desperation to belong. It will be interesting to see how Jinx changes in the next season, and I hope her choice was one she can live with. Hopefully I’ll also be able to determine who I am, and who I want to be. I just hope the resolution isn’t as heartbreaking as it was in Arcane.

    I could go on and on, but I won’t. Hopefully in the future I’ll be able to write more coherently, and structure these essays properly. This ended up being a word salad, and I deleted half of it. Oh well.