Arcane Ep 3, “The Base Violence Necessary for Change” Recap and Review

 

 

“An epic showdown between old rivals results in a fateful moment for Zaun. Jayce and Viktor risk it all for their research..”

 

A beautiful opening vocalization has some voiceover from Silco, who is talking about what is like to drown as we see a younger him deep underwater. He talks of the serenity within the water, but also the body's instincts killing in to survive as we get nearly only a dozen frames of the violence within the body fighting against the drowning. We see clips of a fight as well as a familiar looking silhouette at the end of this sequence...

 

After that, we pick up from the last episode, with Vi about to face her fate. It's revealed to be Vander who makes it first. He quickly tells Vi to protect the family before locking her into the back room of Benzo's. It's clear time is running out for whoever is about to get captured and punished for the break-in at Jayce's laboratory. It's quickly clear that Vander is sacrificing himself for Vi, so the council can have “it's pound of flesh.” Grayson is reluctant about the arrest, saying that he's the lynchpin of the Undercity's peace. After the arrest, we get into the store room with Vi, who hears Grayson calling out to someone to stop, just before blood covers the window out of the store room is covered in blood and we see Grayson dead on the Undercity streets. Here, Silco and the transformed Deckard can be seen and Deckard makes quick work of Benzo. Vander tried to warn him, but to no avail. Silco gives Marco a bag of coins, which comes with some beautiful imagery of them falling into the blood on the street. Deckard is sent after Vander, and knocks him out before hauling him away after Silco.

 

We're back in the Undercity with Vi who's been locked away in the store room crying after the attack on Vander and Grayson. Ekko comes in, stunned from the death of Benzo, in just as much shock as Vi. He tells Vi he saw everything, and the two share in their losses.

 

Now we catch up with Vander and Silco. Silco starts talking about his plans and just the necessity of violence to get the topside to listen. While the pair catch up the audience on what happened between them, we see Deckard puking up the purple fluid and stumbling away. We also learn that it was the toxicity of the river that changed Silco's eye (or was a major factor in it). The two were brothers-in-arms and respected each other. Vander had never forgiven himself for what he did to Silco. Vander makes it clear what he stands for and has given up on violence. At the end of this scene, we get a brief flash of someone new who works for Silco.

 

Then it comes to Viktor and Jayce. Together, they could be on the verge of making the hextech viable. The problem is they need Jayce's equipment and crystals to conduct the test. They are, respectively, set to be destroyed tomorrow and locked within Heimerdinger's lab. Jayce sees the potential in what can happen and iconically says, “Our hextech dream.” Next we're topside in Piltover at the Academy. Viktor and Jayce are breaking into Heimerdinger's lab when Councilor Medarda makes an appearance, interrupting them. She makes it clear that she recognizes that potential as well. She strikes a bargin with the pair and interrupts the guard coming toward the lab. The pair make a quick entrance into the very secure lab with Viktor's keys.

 

Back in the Undercity, Mylo and Claggor argue over who gets the bat or the gloves with Powder huddled on her bed, petting the stuffed rabbit. Vi comes in and immediately goes for the weapon. Claggor and Mylo promise to help her go after whoever took Vander. Powder wants to join, but Vi puts her foot down, making it clear she wants Powder safe from harm.

We go to the Academy again as Jayce makes the needed adjustments and Viktor brings the magical stone over. They put the device to the test after that. Viktor's theory proves correct and they stabilize the magical gem. Putting things to the test, they cause a small explosion, blasting out a window, but the power of the gem draws the shards back in before they can disengage it. They try again, as the Enforcers and Heimerdinger try to break into the lab. Jayce thinks back to watching the mage that saved him and his mother, and mimics the movements through his controls. Just as Heimerdinger's force breaks through, Jayce manages to create the effect he was after, a stable spell. Heimerdinger is surprised to see the pair leviatating with an orb of magical energy between them.

 

Initially inter-cut with the scenes of Jayce and Viktor testing their machine, we have Powder within the Last Drop. Powder is hysterical, tearing the head off their mechanical monkey and knocking away the gems that she'd stolen during the heist. These stones start to build a charge between each other. Powder realizes the power in the gems she has and this gives her the resolve to go help her family. She rushes off to join them on the rescue. She gets there just after the group has sprung the trap. Powder starts making her way in as Vi is fighting the gang.

 

Then we get to see the break-in that Vi, Mylo, and Claggor are on. They're at the cannery where Silco has Vander and coming in from the rooftop. They slip in and find the room that has Vander trapped inside. He's trapped to the chair we saw Deckard preparing earlier. The trio realize just as Vander is warning them of the trap they just stepped into. Silco reveals himself with a number of his gang. Vi arms herself with the Vander's weapons and steps out to start fighting. She takes down the first opponent with a single uppercut from a classic boxing stance before starting to fight through Silco's gathered gang. All of them are working together to get Vander out. As the fight turns against Silco, the mysterious woman moves to join it, but instead Silco passes more Shimmer, the purple drug, to Deckard. As Vi is fighting the goon with the warhammer, we see the full transformation of Deckard under the influence of Shimmer. He approaches as Vi knocks out the Warhammer goon. As Vi attacks Deckard, he grabs her by the neck and hurls her back toward Vander. Vi just manages to secure the door to the torture chamber with Vander before the transformed Deckard gets too close. As Deckard hammers the door, Powder uses her gems to create a bomb of the mechanical monkey from earlier. As the gang is either holding Deckard back or breaking through a wall top escape the cannery, we see Powder release her monkey to see out Deckard. The monkey manages two explosions; one that knocks back Powder and one that blasts away Deckard, Silco, and everyone else not in the torture chamber. Then the final explosion blasts into that chamber, likely killing both Mylo and Claggor. This also seems to destroy the whole of Silco's Shimmer operation.

 

In the aftermath of the explosion, Vander seems the ceiling on Claggor and Mylo as well as a steel door on top of Vi. Outside, Deckard climbs to his feet, Silco comes out a far door and the mysterious woman as the arcane energy arcing off her. Silco gives the order to kill the survivors, and a rage-filled forces his way out of the rubble for the brawl. Vander goes through the two normal gang-members with a blow apiece and shows he's on par with the amped-up Deckard. Vi sees the head of the mechanical monkey and knows who caused the explosion. Vander struggles to his feet to continue the fight just before Silco stabs him in the back, literally. We see the end of their fight from years past where Silco escaped. This time though, we witness Vander pass out from the wounds he took in this fight. Silco pushes the semi-concious Vander down into the inferno below. He struggles away, badly injured and surrounded by vials of Shimmer. He reaches for it as Silco tells Deckard to find the girl. Just after Deckard finds Vi, we see a transformed Vander grab Deckard and slam him into the edge of the doorframe. Killing Deckard, horrified by Vi seeing him transformed, he almost goes after Silco, but stops to save Vi from the exploding building.

 

Vander dies on the streets having saved Vi, simply asking her to take care of Powder. She loses her father for the second time, in as many days as well. Powder finds her just after this. The reality of what she's done starts to dawn on her, Vi asking what'd she done. Vi strikes Powder, her temper getting the better of her. The strain between the sisters is too much, Vi leaves Powder as the rains start to come down. Both girls start crying, for different reasons. Vi is just out of sight, and Silco comes up on Powder, knife drawn on the crying girl. Just as Vi moves to save her sister, Marco grabs her and chloroforms her to save her life. The episode ends with Silco embraces Powder as she says that Vi isn't her sister anymore.

The opening is amazing for this episode. We get some more of the human aspect to the largely mysterious Silco so far. We get the friendship that existed between Silco and Vander. Later in the episode it is very clear that it was Vander turning on Silco for reasons still unknown. Just hearing Vander admit he still hadn't forgiven himself for that betrayal was a big thing. We've seen that Vander is a man with a lot of integrity. He works to avoid violence. He only took up arms when there was no other choice. Then when he did, it was a quick, brutal, and amazing fight. But also with his death, and his wish for the sisters to stay together, that offered some bitter irony. Vander is going to have a lasting impact on both of them though. It is just a question of how it is going to manifest over time. He was more for peace once he had adopted the girls, Mylo, and Claggor. He presented the threat of violence rarely and counted more on the influence of the community if something stronger was needed. But it did remain, back him into a corner and he was one major brawler. Silco himself seems to have remained constant, being only himself.

 

Seeing how everything plays out for Silco ultimately in this episode is a treat. He's complex, and plainly charismatic. The biggest thing he has made clear is his ambition is his drive. Even with everything in ruins with Shimmer, I get the feeling that it is little more than a hiccup for him to deal with. He will recover from all this easily. He is not a man to pass up an opportunity. The perfect exploitation of Marcus for the arrest of Vander (he likely suspected it would be Vander turning himself over one way or the other). The perfect imagery of Silco throwing the bag of coins to Marcus and a few of them falling into the blood. Just a sucker for literal blood money. It might not have been what Marcus was after, but it is what happened. He also, plainly, knows when he is out-matched. He only struck when he had sure openings or out of desperation.. Seeing the transformed Vander, he immediately was looking for a way to escape. This is someone who is going to be the “bad penny” of the series, always turning up.

 

The mysterious Zaun, a nation of the Undercity, with its architects revealed. Silco and Vander had been working together to unite the whole of the Undercity. It seemed like they wanted it to break away from Piltover, politically, or outright just take it over. The details of it remain murky, but Silco may tell Powder more. It would be a good way to persuade her over to his side. Build it all up on the promise of improving things.

 

Vi's fight scene was amazing to watch. It shows how much she trained and learned the fighting style she has. However, it does also show she's best against one opponent, not quite multiple yet. Just seeing her fight smart with the gloves was amazing. Then her having to retreat and have Powder give very vital assistance was a fine touch. Giving Vi a chance to stand on her own and be the front-facing combatant for good is a big change and showing the young stepping up and out from their elder's shadows.

 

I do need to look at Powder. Her joy is just so quickly crushed with reality. Just the heart-wrenching after effects of the blasts from the monkey. The monkey did what she wanted, saving Violet. The problem was it also killed a number of the gangsters as well as Claggor and Mylo. We see Mylo's arm and some parts of Claggor, but usually his googles with blood-splattered on the lenses. Usually not a good sign. Mix in just her emotion breakdowns in this episode. First when Vi leaves her at The Last Drop for her safety, and then after Vi seems to leave her for good in the aftermath of the explosion and everything that happened at the Cannery. Finally, her seemingly being taken in Silco. This can't be anything good for the young Powder. She full well could become his personal artificer. He definitely is going to encourage her to experiment more with her machines and likely learn more about using whatever power she has.

 

The scenes with Jayce and Viktor were a pleasure to watch. The pair having just what the other needed to complete the Hextech. Getting to see Heimerdinger witness the beauty of magic with them successfully completing their experiment just as he broke into his own lab. Heimerdinger plainly continues to have reservations, but Medarda has given them the opening they need for their research. The pair are plainly optimistic about what Hextech can do. Especially Jayce seems to only be thinking about the peaceful applications and how it can help improve everyone's lives. Heimerdinger could be a powerful force against the duo for sure since he is so wary of magic and what it can do.

 

As the series goes on, more is easier to understand about is in the opening sequence of the show. More of the people in it have shown up and everything is coming together to understand it all better. Like the imagery with Silco looming over the statues of Vander as he holds Vi and Powder. Much the same can be said for Jayce, Viktor, and Heimerdinger. Moving into episode 4, things are only get to more clear to how much they've been alluding to.

 

Just with how everything ending on this episode, I feel like a montage or a time skip is coming up. The Hextech has been brought into the world, drawing out the power of the blue gems. Violet has been taken to Piltover by Marcus (forcibly). Powder has fallen in with Silco and his gang. It just feels like something major has happened. It also just doesn't seem right to keep in the present time with everyone at the present stage of life. Do know, I haven't even read the summary for the next episode when I;m writing this, so its just me blind going with my own instincts. There were plenty of twists throughout this episode with all the characters and everything that happened. Everything just seems primed for for a jump with the major shifts that happened. It creates more tension and pulls apart the sisters better than any other force in the world. They are separated and only Vi has any drive to find Powder. Everything else that could come to pass in the show just doesn't seem as interesting unless things are more focused on Vi, or Jayce and Viktor. Powder is a low-key main character, but she's too important to be left out.

 

The series is definitely building plenty of steam. The big upset to the status quo has undoubtedly brought about a permanent shift to everything. The visuals remain amazing throughout even in the smallest in-between frames. It continues to have something interesting without any need for backstory to the game. I continue to look forward to the next episode when I watch it … but it does have some competition in my viewing with the Witcher Season 2 now out...


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