AHH i can’t believe i only found your account now!! I wrote a similar essay a bit ago (which was an extension of an essay i wrote before season 2 came out) and we had almost the exact same thoughts except ur criticisms on the show were soo much more comprehensive! i didn’t even consider how the show abandoned exploring viktor’s relationship with the undercity. looking back, i totally agree with you on how the show’s abandonment of the zaun-piltover dynamic directly ties into how they chose to complete viktor’s arc (which is a further testament to how poorly that scene was handled). before, reading this, Jayce and viktor’s arc was my favorite part of season two, not that it says much since everything else wasn’t allat great. but it really goes to show that the more u think about arcane, the less it really has going for it.
also, i kept looking through ur account and i think i found the niche of substack that i was looking for when i first started my account, so im really very glad to be here 😁
complete side note: i also just read ur anime ranking list and i think it’s so silly that for my hero academia one of ur main criticisms was on its social commentary and meanwhile, mha is my idea of perfect social commentary. that said, mha is literally only the second anime i have ever watched ever, but also instantly became my favorite show ever as well so ill fs keep looking through ur account for more recs!!
(also so sorry for the poor grammar im not home rn but i saw this essay and got so excited LMAO)
Thank you for reading! You said it perfectly, the more you think about this show the worse it gets, which is a shame because on the surface level it has so much going on for it to be great. I'm going to check out your essays as soon as a I have some free time, they seem interesting.
About MHA, I have very complicated feelings because I really enjoy watching it but I think the show (and the manga) try to include certain topics like systemic discrimination, ableism and domestic violence, but the creator isn't exactly qualified to handle these themes with the necessary depth and nuance. It's a nice story for its target demographic and it has some very well written moments, but it doesn't quite get there when it comes to political commentary (at least, for me).
I hope you find more anime to love, there are so many great shows out there, and I'm glad you are here, I hope you will enjoy my content :)
I think season 2 of Arcane crammed three seasons worth of plot into one season. I can sort of accept that that was done for financial reasons, because Netflix wants spin-off shows and not extra seasons of the main narrative. I thought the writers did a decent job given this ridiculous constraint. Some of the compression and time jumps and scenes without context are problematic. But my overall impression with how it turned out is positive, given how many frankly terrible shows we get that do not have constraints that Arcane had. I'm still disappointed in the drama to the extent that season 1 just had so many more heart-wrenching scenes that were extremely well executed that just have no equivalent in season 2. Part of this is that Silco is just a thousand times better villain than Ambessa.
I see your point and I agree that the writers are not entirely at fault here, they were severely held back by Netflix. I'm more negative on the show as a whole because of the way the political conflict was handled, and I think that the writers didn't make the right choices with how they used the limited time they had. To me, Arcane has always felt like a show that wants to be political, like the writers want the story to be seen as thought provoking and deep, that's how it's sold to the audience: This is a Serious Show with Serious Topics. However, in season 2, they neglect that political aspect of the show, and it undermines all the nuanced and impactful moments of season 1. I think you are right that a big part of that is that Ambessa isn't as compelling as an antagonist as Silco, and the reason she isn't is because she's an outsider to the Piltover-Zaun conflict, which in season 1 was the thing that tied everything together. Season 2 just has too many plot lines and the writers focused on the wrong ones, in my opinion.
Thank you, I felt so out of place thinking that the writing wasn't at the same level of Season 1! Glad to see someone spell out the issues so succintctly.
I definitely get the sense that Season 2 was not meant to be the last season of Arcane. I distinctly remember seeing a lot of press for the show center around it being the end of Arcane, but not of stories set in the Runeterra universe (whatever that means). Which, for me at least, always seem to indicate that someone higher up than the writers made a business decision rather than a creative decision. It might explain why a large amount of story elements had to be cut short or forgotten, but it's still an issue nonetheless.
Thanks for reading! I totally agree that this was a executive decision instead of a creative choice, and it led to all the other writing issues of the season
Great read! I've been so on the fence about how I feel about Season 2, from that initial wave of being thrilled about the gorgeous animation to feeling surprisingly blah about many of the story elements. I also really struggled with how they did Jinx in the end. It felt so... unnecessarily convenient? Inevitable but poorly executed? I'm not sure how to express it, I also don't want to drop a major spoiler here just in case, but yeah... did not like how they wrapped up her arc, not because of where it ended up, but wholly because of the way they did it.
Also agree wholeheartedly about Caitlyn. The moment I saw your subheading, I felt vindicated, ha! She just... didn't do it for me. Just out here ruining lives and getting off easy.
Thanks for reading! That's exactly how I felt with Jinx, it just doesn't feel like a natural conclusion to that storyline but simply what the plot demanded and for a cheap emotional moment between her and Vi that was not earned.
So glad that I'm not alone on the anti-Cait hate train!
Enjoyed this immensely, it's hard to even pick out favourite bits. Your commentary on Caitlyn and CaitVi is 100% correct and excellently written. 'Diversity win, the rich cop gassing you is a lesbian!' Okay?
Also the reductive handling of Viktor, he's basically the only character I cared about and this idea that he was totally in the wrong and just neurotic, and must be told this by an able-bodied Piltover giga-chad.... Imagine being in Viktor's shoes and hearing that from Jayce of all people.
Exactly, the scene between Viktor and Jayce is so patronizing! Viktor was also one of my favorite characters so it was one of the biggest disappointments of the season. I'm glad you enjoyed it :)
Be careful they're a giant timesinks, they have 4 7 hour podcast episodes talking about season 2 and how bad it is. But they're also friends/ have fans with some anti-woke people so some of their critics are just immature. Still recommend tho.
AHH i can’t believe i only found your account now!! I wrote a similar essay a bit ago (which was an extension of an essay i wrote before season 2 came out) and we had almost the exact same thoughts except ur criticisms on the show were soo much more comprehensive! i didn’t even consider how the show abandoned exploring viktor’s relationship with the undercity. looking back, i totally agree with you on how the show’s abandonment of the zaun-piltover dynamic directly ties into how they chose to complete viktor’s arc (which is a further testament to how poorly that scene was handled). before, reading this, Jayce and viktor’s arc was my favorite part of season two, not that it says much since everything else wasn’t allat great. but it really goes to show that the more u think about arcane, the less it really has going for it.
also, i kept looking through ur account and i think i found the niche of substack that i was looking for when i first started my account, so im really very glad to be here 😁
complete side note: i also just read ur anime ranking list and i think it’s so silly that for my hero academia one of ur main criticisms was on its social commentary and meanwhile, mha is my idea of perfect social commentary. that said, mha is literally only the second anime i have ever watched ever, but also instantly became my favorite show ever as well so ill fs keep looking through ur account for more recs!!
(also so sorry for the poor grammar im not home rn but i saw this essay and got so excited LMAO)
Thank you for reading! You said it perfectly, the more you think about this show the worse it gets, which is a shame because on the surface level it has so much going on for it to be great. I'm going to check out your essays as soon as a I have some free time, they seem interesting.
About MHA, I have very complicated feelings because I really enjoy watching it but I think the show (and the manga) try to include certain topics like systemic discrimination, ableism and domestic violence, but the creator isn't exactly qualified to handle these themes with the necessary depth and nuance. It's a nice story for its target demographic and it has some very well written moments, but it doesn't quite get there when it comes to political commentary (at least, for me).
I hope you find more anime to love, there are so many great shows out there, and I'm glad you are here, I hope you will enjoy my content :)
I think season 2 of Arcane crammed three seasons worth of plot into one season. I can sort of accept that that was done for financial reasons, because Netflix wants spin-off shows and not extra seasons of the main narrative. I thought the writers did a decent job given this ridiculous constraint. Some of the compression and time jumps and scenes without context are problematic. But my overall impression with how it turned out is positive, given how many frankly terrible shows we get that do not have constraints that Arcane had. I'm still disappointed in the drama to the extent that season 1 just had so many more heart-wrenching scenes that were extremely well executed that just have no equivalent in season 2. Part of this is that Silco is just a thousand times better villain than Ambessa.
I see your point and I agree that the writers are not entirely at fault here, they were severely held back by Netflix. I'm more negative on the show as a whole because of the way the political conflict was handled, and I think that the writers didn't make the right choices with how they used the limited time they had. To me, Arcane has always felt like a show that wants to be political, like the writers want the story to be seen as thought provoking and deep, that's how it's sold to the audience: This is a Serious Show with Serious Topics. However, in season 2, they neglect that political aspect of the show, and it undermines all the nuanced and impactful moments of season 1. I think you are right that a big part of that is that Ambessa isn't as compelling as an antagonist as Silco, and the reason she isn't is because she's an outsider to the Piltover-Zaun conflict, which in season 1 was the thing that tied everything together. Season 2 just has too many plot lines and the writers focused on the wrong ones, in my opinion.
Thank you, I felt so out of place thinking that the writing wasn't at the same level of Season 1! Glad to see someone spell out the issues so succintctly.
I definitely get the sense that Season 2 was not meant to be the last season of Arcane. I distinctly remember seeing a lot of press for the show center around it being the end of Arcane, but not of stories set in the Runeterra universe (whatever that means). Which, for me at least, always seem to indicate that someone higher up than the writers made a business decision rather than a creative decision. It might explain why a large amount of story elements had to be cut short or forgotten, but it's still an issue nonetheless.
Thanks for reading! I totally agree that this was a executive decision instead of a creative choice, and it led to all the other writing issues of the season
Great read! I've been so on the fence about how I feel about Season 2, from that initial wave of being thrilled about the gorgeous animation to feeling surprisingly blah about many of the story elements. I also really struggled with how they did Jinx in the end. It felt so... unnecessarily convenient? Inevitable but poorly executed? I'm not sure how to express it, I also don't want to drop a major spoiler here just in case, but yeah... did not like how they wrapped up her arc, not because of where it ended up, but wholly because of the way they did it.
Also agree wholeheartedly about Caitlyn. The moment I saw your subheading, I felt vindicated, ha! She just... didn't do it for me. Just out here ruining lives and getting off easy.
Thanks for reading! That's exactly how I felt with Jinx, it just doesn't feel like a natural conclusion to that storyline but simply what the plot demanded and for a cheap emotional moment between her and Vi that was not earned.
So glad that I'm not alone on the anti-Cait hate train!
Enjoyed this immensely, it's hard to even pick out favourite bits. Your commentary on Caitlyn and CaitVi is 100% correct and excellently written. 'Diversity win, the rich cop gassing you is a lesbian!' Okay?
Also the reductive handling of Viktor, he's basically the only character I cared about and this idea that he was totally in the wrong and just neurotic, and must be told this by an able-bodied Piltover giga-chad.... Imagine being in Viktor's shoes and hearing that from Jayce of all people.
Exactly, the scene between Viktor and Jayce is so patronizing! Viktor was also one of my favorite characters so it was one of the biggest disappointments of the season. I'm glad you enjoyed it :)
My girl is an EFAP fan (I agree tho, but harsher)
This is the first time I hear about EFAP actually 🤔 seems interesting
Be careful they're a giant timesinks, they have 4 7 hour podcast episodes talking about season 2 and how bad it is. But they're also friends/ have fans with some anti-woke people so some of their critics are just immature. Still recommend tho.
Oh I see! Thanks for the heads up, I may check their stuff out
Np! I want to write a review on the deom slayer movie after reading this article tho lol
👀 would love to see that
🤞 I am free today so what better use is there for my time