What if I told you one of the best stories ever put to screen isn’t from a novel, a popular movie, or even a regular tv show- but from an animated series based on a video game. Although League of Legends is arguably one of the worst mainstream games out there, Netflix’s Arcane is an anomaly in the entertainment world. In 2021, this show came crashing down and stunned everyone, critics and fans alike. On November 9th of 2024, the second season arrived, furthering the pure obsession that began three years earlier.
Hopefully by the end of this, I’ve convinced you to watch the show, so, no spoilers ahead. For those of you who have seen it, this won’t be a review (but maybe a different day!)
Set in the steampunk world of Piltover and Zaun, Arcane explores themes of class struggle, family dynamics, war, magic, and science, all encapsulated with beautiful hand-drawn animation and perfectly built characters. Even if you’ve never touched a League game before, you can 100% appreciate the masterful storytelling. But what exactly makes it that special? Let me tell you why Arcane isn’t just good- it’s a masterpiece.
An Introduction
Arcane follows the journey of two sisters from the oppressed city of Zaun, Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) and Powder (Ella Purnell) who, across two seasons and three acts, grow up together as sisters orphaned by a catastrophic war between their city and its elitist counterpart. Relationships drive everything in this show as these two sisters experience the unjustness of their world in two completely different ways. On the other side of this bloody battle stands the gleaming “City of Progress,”- Piltover, where the show's other central pair, Jayce (Kevin Alejandro) and Victor (Harry Lloyd) are trying to change things through science, and lead Piltover to even greater heights. Through an exploration of channeling magic through technology, a very cunning slumlord, and a building tension that will make or break relationships, this plot will have you wanting more after every episode. If the way I’m explaining this seems vaguely boring- I don’t blame you. It’s hard to say much about this show without ruining the experience of watching it for the first time. That is why I will tell you all the other reasons besides the plot (yes there are many) why you should pick up Arcane.
The Visual Masterpiece
From the first frame, Arcane makes one thing very clear- this show was created by people who deeply care about making art. Everything is animated, but, “the appeal doesn’t come from the more traditional character design like viewers are used to,” says Arcane animator Alexis Wanneroy in an interview with SyncSketch. “Instead, it’s more the graphicness of the texture and design, even the background, everything is painted.”
The art in this show is one of a kind. Hand drawn by hundreds of animators, the pure attention to detail in every scene is breathtaking. The smallest reflection of light, a character’s subtle expression, graffiti on a wall- nothing is spared the carefully thought out stylization. The contrast between the glittering utopia of Piltover and the shadowed alleys of the undercity are so visually different, creating such a noticeable shift and contributing to the class injustice in the story. Colors are used with a craft in times when the artstyle sometimes changes, never boring as the animators find new ways to shock you in every episode. I’m completely convinced that you could watch this show with the volume all the way down and still be amazed. The style is something wholly unique. Barthélémy Maunoury, head of animation direction at Riot, says that “[the] idea was to find the right balance between realistic animation and cartoon animation.” Which, in my opinion, they executed perfectly. Nothing (except maybe the Spider Verse movies) has left me as visually blessed as I was after watching Arcane. Unfortunately, nothing I say in writing can do you as much justice as seeing what I’m talking about, so for the benefit of your own eyes, go find out.
Believable Characters and Relationships
At its core, Arcane is a character driven story. There is no villain who commits evil just for kicks, or a hero without their deeply rooted flaws. Every single character, from Vi’s childhood need to be the best, to Powder’s intense internal guilt, is shaped by their experiences and choices over the course of the story. Everyone follows an arc over the course of the show, a wholly believable character development that includes every trauma and experience. This makes everything exponentially more believable- and maybe even inevitable as you follow these characters through their lives. Every emotion that hits the screen is raw and so human, it’s easy to forget it’s an animation. Characters like Viktor and Mel battle with their internal conflicts of wanting to do more, as others like Vander and Silco navigate the complicated journey of parenthood while also running from their past mistakes.
Something that I find worth discussing is the way that this show does so well at giving characters attributes, but not making those attributes define them. For example, Arcane handles disability in an amazing way. Viktor has a chronic illness, but that doesn’t make him weak or helpless, it's just a driving force for his character. Same with Sevika- she has one arm, and still, (even though Jinx makes jokes about it) she is still perfectly capable. This goes for mental illness as well. Not once does someone mention Jinx’s mental health, it’s just a part of her character. It’s a motivation and not a hard outline of what her personality is.
This goes for relationships between the characters as well. Arcane’s handling of queer relationships is vastly impressive. Most of the time, if there is a queer relationship in entertainment, it becomes the whole purpose of the character, they lack other traits besides the fact that they are queer. Arcane just makes these relationships part of the character, it isn’t forcefully highlighted or used as a plot device. This makes the humanness of these designs skyrocket, because there’s no hollow part of these personalities.
Familial relations also follow this path. Both biological family and found family are central in Arcane. The sister relationship between Vi and Powder is the driving force behind everything, and all its complexities, like real siblings, makes it captivating. As the characters grow up, they also find family that is unexpected but equally important to their development. This, along with well written power dynamics, evolving relationships, and emotional complexity, is what makes these characters so amazing to watch.
Purposeful Storytelling
Beyond just moving the story forward, Arcane uses its plot to talk about heavy themes like class struggle, identity, war, and addiction, without ever feeling preachy. And, even though it touches on these things, it never gives any neat answers or resolutions to these problems- instead, it lets the conflicts unfold organically, leaving room for interpretation and the real truth that these topics aren’t tidy. The writers also pay meticulous attention to detail, with subtle foreshadowing and callbacks everywhere that make rewatching the show an entirely new experience. When Arcane breaks your heart (and trust me, it will) you’ll realize that every emotional blow was perfectly set up to do exactly that.
Speaking of blows, it’s also worth mentioning two other things before we end off. Number one is that this show is very violent. There's definitely a lot of blood and a lot of fighting, but none of it is in bad taste. Personally, I really don’t appreciate shows and movies that have fight scenes that are just pure violence and just seem like a device to fill in time. If you’re like me, trust that you won’t feel that way with Arcane. Every fight scene is a piece of ART, perfectly created and not at all a filler. Everything is detailed and dynamic and makes you want more, and not at all wanting to look away.
Number two is just the character designs. It just thought it was a good idea to point out how beautiful these characters are. There's genuinely so much diversity and charm in the people and voice acting that you just want to see them on screen even more.
Conclusion
The reason I wrote this article is because I want everyone to have the same life changing experience that I did watching this show. It genuinely connected with me on another level, and it's a series that you think about way past when the credits roll. What makes Arcane truly special is that it doesn’t cater to just one audience. I wholeheartedly believe that whether you are a gamer, an animation enthusiast, or just someone who appreciates a good story, Arcane welcomes you with open arms. It’s proof that when creators pour their whole heart into something, they can create something extraordinary. There's a reason that this show has an expansive (and very passionate) fanbase. So, if you haven’t seen Arcane yet, do yourself a favor and dive in- and you'll see why so many of us can’t stop talking about it.
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