After three long years of waiting, Arcane is finally back with the first three episodes of its second and final season released on Netflix. The road was long for series co-creators Alex Yee and Christian Linke as they plotted out the next chapter of Vi and Jinx’s journey after an explosive finale that portended war between Piltover and Zaun. Yet, for as long and expensive as the animation process was to keep the show at its same gorgeous standard, one aspect took surprisingly long to nail down - the final line. Just how much of a time sink was it, you might ask. According to Yee, who recently spoke with GamesRadar+, he needed roughly 27 hours to figure out the words that would close out the acclaimed animated darling.
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"I spent just an insane amount of time on the last line of the show,” he said. “It was literally like 27 hours or something like that. I was just sitting there trying to be like 'What is the line? How do you end a show like this?'" The pressure is undoubtedly high to close Arcane on a high note. The League of Legends series raised the bar for what a video game adaptation could be when it premiered in late 2021, scoring four Emmys, including for Outstanding Animated Program, and sweeping the Annie Awards. It's also full of deeper messages about inequality and how it breeds an endless cycle of violence all told through sisters Vi and Jinx, who each react and evolve differently when processing their trauma.
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Finding the right line to match with the themes of Arcane and its heartwrenching conflict between the two sisters turned enemies was vital, but Yee added that both he and Linke never wanted Season 2 to "feel like a political statement." He acknowledged, though, that it's especially difficult at such a tumultuous time throughout the world. For Yee, the final line was a chance to give a more positive message that broadly spoke to the seemingly insurmountable struggles all people inevitably face, meaning he had to take time to come to terms with his own perspective. "When we talk about state of the world stuff, or the feeling where you face impossible situations or you look at impossible conflicts, I think in a lot of ways, that line for me is speaking to me own take, or my own kind of hope."
What Is 'Arcane' Season 2 All About?
It'll be a few weeks before that final line is uttered on-screen, but there will be a lot to enjoy and dissect before that moment comes. Season 2 of Arcane takes place in the direct aftermath of Season 1, with Jinx's (Ella Purnell) rocket about to hit the Piltover council and bring untold tragedy. Instead of reaching peace, the survivors will be left to pick up the pieces and ultimately escalate the war against the undercity while commencing the search for Jinx.
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This thrusts an emotionally exhausted Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) into the center of the conflict, setting up a final confrontation with her sister that will lay bare all the trauma. The stakes are higher for everyone involved as the forces of Piltover look to clean all remnants of the drug Shimmer off the streets, and the fighting will only get more intense and costly as the conflict reaches deeper into the undercity. Katie Leung, Reed Shannon, Amirah Vann, Mick Wingert, Ellen Thomas, and Brett Tucker are among the other key players heading into the final season.
The first three episodes of Arcane Season 2 are now available on Netflix. Act 2 will arrive on November 16 and Act 3 will premiere the following week, on November 23.
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Arcane
Action
Adventure
Sci-Fi
Animation
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
- Cast
- Hailee Steinfeld , Ella Purnell , Kevin Alejandro , Katie Leung , jason spisak , Toks Olagundoye , Harry Lloyd , JB Blanc , Reed Shannon , Mick Wingert
- Seasons
- 2
