Courtesy of Netflix
Spoiler warnings for episodes 4-6.
Act II delivers on the traumatic plot twists that Arcane is so well known for. Everything seems to be on the brink of utopia, until it isn’t, and audiences witness devastating deaths, including Isha, the character who, after only a few episodes, has managed to win the hearts of Arcane’s audience.
Act II starts off a few months after Act I, which we infer from the character development that has taken place: Jinx and Isha’s almost familial relationship, Ambessa’s role as Caitlyn’s new mentor, and Viktor’s creation of a utopian community as an arcane celestial.
Act II’s story is very fleshed out and well-constructed. However, there were some plot holes that would have benefited from more screen time. Most notably, Ekko and Heimerdinger are nowhere to be seen after their disappearance into the wild Hexcore, and Jinx and Vi’s reconciliation is too sudden to feel genuine, especially after their huge fight. However, the act is still able to cover all the plot points of the story, such as Caitlyn’s purpose behind betraying Ambessa. In my opinion, the plot still remains intact and each character has dedicated scenes to back up their actions, such as Caitlyn’s betrayal being justified by Caitlyn and Ambessa’s fireside scene. One thing I believe has been popularly misinterpreted is Jayce’s madness arc, which has garnered attention as Jayce killed Viktor, causing Isha and Warwick’s deaths. It’s much more believable that the directors are simply creating apprehension towards a greater reveal of the arcane’s uglier side in Act III.
Another aspect of Act II that has prompted debate is its music videos and song choices. Personally, I was pleasantly surprised by how well “Isha’s Song” fit into the heartbreaking closing scene of Episode 6 despite the whiplash of hearing Chinese lyrics. While I do agree that the music videos did squander a bit too much screen time, I loved the song choices and how they were able to create context and backstory through the music videos. An example of this was the music video at the start of Episode 5, which portrays Vi’s mental spiraling during the time skip concisely and powerfully.
Besides Vi’s emo phase, seeing Vander, Silco and the sibling’s parents’ backstories was also not on my Act II bingo card. The backstory scene in Episode 5 and the simplistic watercolor scenes in Episode 6 were amongst my personal favorites, and beautifully captured the themes of family and love embedded within Arcane’s complex character relationships.
Overall, Act II surprised audiences by dishing out powerful heart-wrenching scenes to audiences.
