Arcane Season 2 Episode 7 Review

Arcane Season 2 Episode 7 Review

As a seasoned gamer with countless hours invested in the League of Legends universe, I must say that Arcane Season 2 has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. Episode 7, “Pretend Like It’s The First Time,” was a testament to the show’s ability to juggle multiple complex storylines while maintaining a cohesive narrative.


Warning! This article contains spoilers for Season 2 of Arcane.

Key Takeaways

  • Episode 7 of Arcane delves into the multiverse, introducing time travel and alternate realities.
  • Heimerdinger makes a significant sacrifice in the episode.
  • Ekko gains a new perspective on Jinx, while Jayce experiences a dire future.

The final act of the series titled “Arcane: League of Legends” takes an unanticipated turn, as the seventh episode delivers a mix of delightful, heart-wrenching, and bittersweet experiences.

In simple terms, “Arcane” Season 2 Episode 7 is named “Pretend Like It’s The First Time”. This episode, which is typically a slow-paced standalone episode in other series, surprisingly doesn’t disrupt the fast-moving plot of “Arcane”. Instead, it serves almost as a bonus for viewers who get to see significant character advancements that they’ve grown attached to. These character developments are beautifully animated by the talented team at Fortiche.

Arcane Goes Into the Multiverse

Episode 7 starts off by explaining where Ekko has been since vanishing into the strange anomaly. In an alternate world, Ekko discovers that Hextech never existed, resulting in characters like Benzo, Silco, Mylo, Claggor, and Vander still being alive. The undercity and topside coexist peacefully here. Unfortunately, some other characters didn’t survive, such as Vi who perished in the explosion at Jayce’s Piltover apartment, a location they had raided during the very first episode of Arcane. In this version of events, Powder does not transform into Jinx and instead grows up to be a friendly and rational teenager. Upon encountering Heimerdinger, Ekko learns that his companion was also transported to this reality by the anomaly, but had arrived much earlier on.

It seems the anomaly that dislodged us from our proverbial reality also scattered us across time.

In unison, the duo devise a strategy to construct an unusual artifact for returning home. By gathering remnants of a mystical crystal shattered during Vi’s demise, they set about their task. With Powder becoming more acquainted with Ekko, he enlists her aid, and together they craft a device capable of reversing time up to four seconds (similar to the Z-Drive from League of Legends). Heimerdinger takes on refining this contraption for their homeward journey, while Ekko chooses to relish the remaining moments in this world. A captivating dance performance between Ekko and Powder is a standout moment, offering them a brief respite as playful, smitten teenagers amidst their predicament. A tender conversation follows, where Ekko and Powder express their mutual feelings, providing him with fresh optimism for reuniting with Jinx in his original reality.

Heimerdinger Makes The Ultimate Sacrifice

In this rephrased version: Upon his return, Ekko discovers that Heimerdinger has made substantial improvements to their device, now ready to send them back home. Prepared to depart together, Heimerdinger unexpectedly decides to remain behind and operate the machine. As the anomaly triggers, it successfully propels Ekko out of this dimension, seemingly leaving Heimerdinger behind. The seventh episode of Arcane skillfully introduces two intricate concepts – time travel and the multiverse – without becoming overly complex or bogged down by excessive lore. This is a testament to the series’ excellent writing, as it effectively establishes these ideas while also giving them significance within the characters’ narratives.

Jayce Goes Through Hell

In the sixth episode of Season 2, Jayce undergoes a significant transformation and this change is revealed. By the seventh episode, we learn that this metamorphosis occurred due to the devastation of Piltover by arcane energy. The animation by Fortiche portrays a stunning yet unsettling image of Piltover – a city both beautiful and terrifying in its post-apocalyptic state. After a fall that leaves him with a broken leg, Jayce’s sanity starts to falter. A chilling sequence unfolds as he struggles to construct a makeshift splint for his injury, days passing by while his countenance grows increasingly weary, the eerie humanoid figures encroach upon him, and memories of his past deeds torment him. Eventually, Jayce manages to escape the pit and navigates through the dystopian city, heading towards the remains of the Hexgate, where he discovers a person left kneeling with a hammer.

Jayce understands that the terrible future happened due to Hextech. He talks to an old friend in cloak, hoping for a way to change things. Soon, he’s sent back to his original timeline, much like the Jayce viewers see in Episode 5. Ekko’s adventure in the other world brings him optimism, but Jayce’s journey only strengthens his resolve. He now intends to destroy what he has created so far, hoping it will prevent this nightmare from happening again.

Arcane Season 2 Episode 7 Review

Arcane Deepens the World of the Game

In the seventh episode of Season 2, the show Arcane skillfully employs parallels, offering a refreshing ray of optimism in Ekko’s narrative, only to contrast it with the chilling, unsettling atmosphere of Jayce’s world. The appearance of Ekko’s Z-Drive serves as another demonstration of the series seamlessly blending its original content and creatively developing the game in a novel direction. This is yet another testament to Arcane’s impressive adaptation of its source material.

Arcane Season 2 is available to stream on Netflix.

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2024-11-24 10:14