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With the end of the second and final season of Arcane, we say farewell to our favorite Piltover and Zaun residents, who are curiously living in harmony after the grand battle. Throughout the Netflix series, the tensions between the two distinct cities have been explored in a number of ways, from the political rivalries to the more personal relationships formed between occupants. However, by the third act of Arcane Season 2, especially the finale, the sudden union between the two cities feels jarring and almost undeserved. The show took a major shift toward investigating the arcane and its influence, leaving Piltover and Zaun to the wayside. Considering how much effort was initially put into this storyline, it feels criminal that the show wouldn’t maintain this purposeful storytelling until the end.
‘Arcane’ Season 2 Shifts Its Focus to Magic
From the moment Viktor (Harry Lloyd) has his transformation in Season 2 of Arcane, the gears of the show shifted, spending more time on fleshing out the arcane and incorporating it into the storylines. The implications of the arcane primarily pervade the narratives of Viktor, Jayce (Kevin Alejandro), Ekko (Reed Lorenzo Shannon), Mel (Toks Olagundoye), and even Ambessa (Ellen Thomas) with her feud with the Black Rose. With half the characters investigating the strange properties of the arcane, this turns into a magic-driven season seeped in complex lore and mechanics.
This is especially notable in the season finale, where our eyes are accosted with kaleidoscope displays of pulsing magic, with many of the climatic scenes not even taking place in the physical realm. As enticing as the concept is, it is a shame we didn’t spend as much time on the more grounded ideas of sociopolitical conflicts between Zaun and Piltover as we did in Season 1. The magical aspect of the show overpowered the crux of the previous season, leaving limited space to resolve the cities’ disputes in an earned manner or pace.
‘Arcane’ Season 2 Neglects Piltover and Zaun’s Conflict
Arcane developed the stories and characteristics of each city thoroughly, as they exude differing values, behaviors and vibrant color palettes. The first two acts of Season 2 tapped into their stories as internal politics wracked Zaun’s leadership after Silco’s (Jason Spisak) death; Ambessa declares martial law and makes the inter-city conflict more concrete and aggressive than ever; and Jinx (Ella Purnell) inspires a blue-dyed rebellion while painting Piltover in technicolor. Jinx and Vi’s (Hailee Steinfeld) relationship is also used as a vehicle to symbolize the distinction, particularly when Vi joins the Enforcers and the two are pitted against each other numerous times.
Many of the conflicts surrounding the cities are based on the low quality of life the Zaunites endure in stark comparison with the egregiously wealthy Piltover. This class-based issue is further explored in the flashbacks of Vander (JB Blanc) and Silco working towards a brighter future for Zaun, which is also made real in the parallel dimension Ekko visits. These hopeful glimpses of a thriving community are jarring next to the reality we saw during authoritarian military rule, making the latter seem even more insurmountable. As such, it emphasizes how rushed the finale feels, where the two cities are able to overcome their disparaging differences to fight against the invaders.
Piltover and Zaun’s Union Needed More Time in ‘Arcane’
While it makes sense for Piltover and Zaun to unite for the final battle against a greater threat, Arcane needed to take more time to expand on the inter-political relationships and how they were resolved. The story they crafted so thoughtfully quickly devolves into an optimistic union of overcoming differences and arbitrary acceptance simply to make the final war more grand. Nuances of a painful shared history and lingering resentment are neglected. In fact, the only outcome of the war and out-of-character support from the Zaunites we glimpse is that Sevika (Amirah Vann) is now on the council. The scene feels more like an afterthought, discrediting the sophisticated set-up and progression of the cities’ conflict.
Considering Arcane is planned as a jumping off point for League of Legends spin-offs, we can only hope that the intracacies of this resolution will be explored in another show even if we will be visiting other parts of the world of Runeterra. Though it would have been more satisfying if they maintained the earned storytelling throughout the season, spending more time on the city and not just the arcane with more episodes or even another season. Arcane Season 2 wraps up too neatly and quickly in this regard, as the years of warring between Piltover and Zaun dissolves as magically as the season finale does.
Seasons 1 and 2 of Arcane are available to stream on Netflix.
Set in Utopian Piltover and the oppressed underground of Zaun, the story follows the origins of two iconic League Of Legends champions and the power that will tear them apart.
- Release Date
- November 6, 2021
- Seasons
- 2
- Directors
- Pascal Charrue , Arnaud Delord
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