Full spoilers follow for Arcane season 2 act 1 and League of Legends‘ (LoL) extensive lore.
Arcane season 2 has finally debuted on Netflix – and its first three episodes have left us with more questions than answers.
Unfortunately, season 2’s next three episodes, which make up act 2, are – at the time of writing – won’t be released for another week. Arcane‘s creative team, then, is making us wait a bit longer to find out what happens next, which means the eight biggest questions I have about Arcane season 2 won’t be answered yet.
That won’t stop me from offering my thoughts and theories on what’s going to happen. Below, I’ve tried to answer the biggest questions presented by season 2 act 1, as well as revealing when act 2 will be available. Major spoilers follow for season 2’s first three entries so, if you haven’t watched them yet, read my Arcane season 2 review first and then stream them before reading on.
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: when can I watch episode 4 on Netflix?
Arcane season 2 episode 4 will launch on Netflix on Saturday, November 16.
It won’t be the only new installment to air on that date, though. Episodes 5 and 6 will launch alongside it, so you’ll have a new trio of chapters to consume soon.
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: what happens to Vi, Jinx, and Caitlyn?
I think the question should be what doesn’t happen, really.
After they finally track down Jinx in the depths of Zaun, Vi and Caitlyn think they’ve got the former’s younger sister where they want her. However, the pair don’t realize they’ve been lured into a trap. Indeed, after a tense back-and-forth between the estranged sisters, Caitlyn thinks she spots Jinx and, with Vi’s “If you see an opening, take the shot” words still ringing in her ears, fires her Hextech rifle towards Jinx. Unfortunately for Caitlyn, she wasn’t actually aiming at Jinx – it was her reflection in a circular mirror. Hey, I told you the duo affectionately dubbed ‘CaitVi’ by Arcane fans had walked into an ambush.
Anyway, tired of playing Jinx’s game, Vi engages her sibling in what appears to be a fight to the death. Caitlyn, meanwhile, is blindsided by Sevika’s unexpected appearance; Silco’s former lieutenant now teaming up with Jinx to take on Vi and her Piltovan ally.
No fight in Arcane is straightforward, though. The duels become more complex due to Jayce-led events taking place elsewhere (more on these shortly) that curiously cause Vi, Caitlyn, and Jinx’s Hextech-based weaponry to glitch out, malfunction, and – in the case of Jinx’s Fishbones rocket launcher – explode.
In the resulting chaos, Caitlyn incapacitates Sevika and, eyeing another opening, fires at Jinx once more. This time, the Hextech-powered bullet shoots off the middle finger on Jinx’s left hand and, as a shocked Jinx tries to come to terms with what just happened, Vi pins her down using her Hextech gauntlets and prepares to end her sister’s life.
That would be the case, anyway, if a) Jinx’s seemingly final words to Vi cause her older sister to freeze and b) Isha, the young girl Jinx is now protecting, bursts from the shadows, grabs Jinx’s gun, dives on top of her hero, and holds Vi at gunpoint. Before Isha can pull the trigger, though, Caitlyn shoots the gun out of her hand. Despite Vi’s pleas not to shoot a kid, Caitlyn fires two more times – the first bullet bouncing off Vi’s gauntlets and the second being fired into the ground when Vi grabs Caitlyn’s rifle to deflect it.
Sensing an opportunity, a recovered Sevika presses a secret button to detonate a bomb, which blows out the back wall and sends a powerful air blast careering through the expansive location they’re in. The resulting gust blows ‘CaitVi’ away and causes numerous powder-colored, wind-powered blasts to erupt from Piltover’s street vents – a warning to the City of Progress’ leaders that Zaun isn’t to be trifled with.
Jinx has escaped – again – and it’s an understatement to say Caitlyn isn’t happy. Still grief-stricken over her mom’s death at Jinx’s hands and angry at Vi’s paralysis when it came to killing her sister, Caitlyn physically and verbally lashes out at Vi in a heart-breaking scene that parallels that Vi-Powder scene from season 1 episode 3. Caitlyn leaves to return to Piltover, leaving a distraught Vi alone in Zaun’s underground network of tunnels.
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: where do Jayce, Ekko, and Heimerdinger go?
The answer to this query is less clear. After chatting about wild runes (more on this in a bit), they travel to an underground Hexgate gemstone mesh failsafe to get to the *ahem* bottom of the problem that’s affecting the tree at the heart of the Firelights’ hideout.
Unfortunately, the group can’t solve the conundrum. Just minutes after arriving at their destination, the Anomaly – a giant Hexcore-like object – appears before them. Jayce’s curiosity gets the better of him and, as the Piltovan councilor-scientific genius touches the metallo-organic object, it appears to cause a rupture in the space between the material and spirit realms; two of many zones that exist in the LoL universe. It’s Jayce’s contact with the Anomaly that makes the weapons glitch out during Vi, Jinx, Caitlyn and Sevika’s fight.
But I digress. A trippy, kaleidoscopic, Doctor Strange-esque scene plays out before a fearful and hasty Jayce tries to destroy the Anomaly with his Hextech hammer. As he strikes it, Jayce, Ekko, and Heimerdinger are abruptly whisked away to an unknown location.
So, where are they? Some fans may think they’ve traveled to another dimension. Others might theorize they’ve been sent to the shimmer-addict district of Zaun, which is where Viktor, Jayce’s former scientific partner, is now operating. Unfortunately for you, due to spoilers in act 2, which I’ve already seen, I can’t confirm where they’ve been transported to in one of the best Netflix shows. Don’t worry, though, more, if not everything, will be revealed in episodes 5 and 6.
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: what are wild runes?
There’s more explaining for Arcane to do here. Essentially, though, wild runes are the naturally occurring runes Viktor hypothesized about when he and Jayce were conducting their Hextech research.
As Jayce tells Ekko in episode 3, titled ‘Finally Got The Name Right’, wild runes are “patterns that occur naturally where the border between Runeterra [the physical world that LoL is set in] and the Arcane is at its thinnest”. They don’t communicate in the traditional way other runes do, which gives them a natural or raw quality that’s more impulsive or animalistic than Hextech runes. Wild runes, as Ekko suggests, are also akin to the Arcane’s “fingerprints”, which are left across Runeterran locations where the Arcane is more active.
I suspect we’ll learn more about wild runes as season 2 progresses. For now, this is as good an explanation as we’ll get.
Arcane season 2 act ending explained: what is Viktor’s new mission?
To end Zaun’s suffering and heal its populace. Doing so, however, means humanity has to evolve – and he’s already shown how that’ll happen by curing some shimmer addicts of their illness and disfigurements, which was teased in Arcane season 2’s official trailer.
Indeed, armed with his new Hexcore-based powers – remember, the Hexcore fused with Viktor in season 2 episode 1, when Jayce used it to save his friend’s life – Arcane‘s iteration of Viktor is fully embracing his ‘glorious evolution’ ability from LoL; one he believes will help humanity realize its full potential. An idealistic and altruistic plan, sure, but one that may place him in a secondary antagonist role from this point on.
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: what is Ambessa’s end goal?
Of all of season 2’s individuals – read my Arcane season 2 cast guide for a rundown of its pre-release character list – Ambessa is arguably the most fascinating. How so? Because it’s so difficult to pin down what she wants to achieve this season.
I have two theories about her objectives. The first is simple: bring Piltover under Noxus’ rule. Ever since Ambessa unexpectedly showed up in the City of Progress in season 1 episode 7, she’s been a prominent figure within the corridors of power. Her importance to Piltover’s cause has only grown in the wake of Jinx’s attack on the nation’s council, while her manipulation of key Piltovans, including Salo and Caitlyn, suggests she’s puppeting them to help her gain full control of Zaun’s more prosperous cousin. The fact that the Noxian warlord can also acquire Hextech while adding Piltover to her expansionist home nation’s empire is an added bonus.
My other theory is a bit more complicated. Based on what we’ve learned about Ambessa, her family, and her role in Noxian high society, it seems all isn’t well for Ambessa back home. Indeed, her son is dead and the secret organization (more on them shortly) reportedly behind his demise has stripped Ambessa of what her daughter Mel’s assistant Elora describes as “most of her holdings”. Reading between the lines, that’s got to be money and/or titles.
If Ambessa has effectively been kicked out of Noxus by the aforementioned enigmatic sect, she could be using Piltover – and Caitlyn, who Ambessa installs as Piltover’s new commander-in-chief in episode 3’s final scene – as a means to an end. That end being, acquiring Hextech and using Piltover’s armed forces to stage a coup on Noxus’ throne and eradicate those who’ve harmed her family and brought shame on her.
My guess? Elements of both theories are true, but the latter seems to have greater weight behind it, especially in light of the covert syndicate operating within Noxus and Piltover’s shadows. Speaking of which…
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: what are Amara and the Black Rose?
Where Amara is concerned, the short answer is she’s a member of the Black Rose, aka the clandestine group that pulls Noxus’ strings from the shadows.
According to LoL lore, the Black Rose is, without getting into the *ahem* weeds of Runeterra’s history, an organization led by Noxian aristocracy who conceal their identities using masks. The group is so secretive that its members don’t actually know who else is a part of it. Nevertheless, they covertly guide whoever sits on Noxus’ throne – and seemingly have done so for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.
Of course, this begs the question: will the Black Rose be revealed as Arcane‘s Big Bad? I certainly think so. I wouldn’t be surprised if Amara – who isn’t dead (in my view, anyway) after her episode 3 run-in with Ambessa – is actually revealed as the series’ primary antagonist, albeit someone who’s disguised themselves as Amara. It’s a magical theory that Arcane fans have had about the show’s real villain since its official trailer dropped, and there’s nothing to suggest they won’t be proven right.
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: what is the monster that Singed is creating?
That’ll be Warwick. Another LoL champion, albeit a monstrous one, Warwick’s backstory hasn’t been fully explored in the lore of Riot’s multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game franchise. Indeed, the only things we know about this creature are he haunts Zaun’s grey alleys, is the product of agonizing, alchemical experiments, and preys on criminals to terrorize Zaunites.
As a LoL prequel, though, Arcane appears to answer some big questions about Warwick’s origins or, at the very least, retcons aspects of his history. Season 1 episode 8 revealed Singed, the malicious chemist and creator of shimmer who worked for Silco, had commandeered Vander’s shimmer-infused corpse – remember, Vi and Powder’s surrogate dad died in last season’s third episode – and started experimenting on it.
In January, Arcane season 2’s very first clip teased Warwick would make his debut in the hit Netflix series. Five months later, a gorgeous new season 2 poster all but confirmed the fan-favorite character’s arrival – and that Singed was using Vander’s remains to create Warwick.
Thanks to season 2 act 1, we know this is 100% true. The final scene in this season’s premiere showed Singed tracking down two wolves (I actually think it was a two-headed Murk Wolf; creatures that live on Runeterra’s northern continent of Valoran and who’ve been magically altered by runic energy) in a snow-filled location and using his poison to kill them. Episode 2 revealed he was using their body parts, alongside his poison and Vander’s corpse, to create Warwick. Lastly, episode 3 contains the aforementioned clip, which shows Singed transfusing his own blood into Warwick before Singed brings his latest creation to life.
The stage is set, then, for Singed to let Warwick loose on Zaun, and I fully expect him to cross paths with Vi and Jinx at some point. Could a potential heart-breaking reunion between the pair and ‘Vander’ be the reason why Jinx voice actor Ella Purnell “cried” while recording her lines for season 2’s final episode? Don’t bet against it.
Arcane season 2 act 1 ending explained: who is Janna?
One of the least important season 2 act 1 questions, but nonetheless a fascinating one to answer.
Another of LoL‘s many champions, Janna – whose original Shurima-derived name is Jan’ahrem – is a mysterious, wind elemental-wielding spirit. According to the lore within Riot Games’ hugely popular videogame franchise, she protects dispossessed Zaunites and, as a beacon of hope for the undercity’s population, various murals of Janna can be glimpsed throughout season 2 act 1. The most notable ones are seen in episode 2, titled ‘Watch It All Burn’, as Viktor walks Zaun’s streets, and in ‘Finally Got The Name Right’ before that entry’s primary action sequence.
Given the references to Janna in act 1, can we expect to see her before Arcane ends with its second and final season? I don’t think so, but, hey, I’ve been wrong before!
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