Arcaneseason 2 officially introduced the multiverse, providing a glimpse of other timelines and hinting at the show’s true relationship withLeague of Legends. From the beginning, there’s been intense speculation about the relationship betweenArcaneand the games on which this tremendous animated show is based; isArcanea prequel, or is it something more? Most viewers had assumed the question would be resolved in comments from the creators, but instead it’s likely resolved by the simple idea of a multiverse.Arcaneis another timeline, meaning anything can happen.
Multiverses are all the rage in science-fiction and fantasy nowadays. Some multiversal adventures concern themselves purely with temporal mechanics, but the best use them as a character piece - a way of asking the question “What if?” Unsurprisingly,Arcanehas always focused on its characters, so this was a perfect choice - although it remains to be seen whether the multiverse will return now the threat of Viktor has been defeated.
Ekko’s Timeline Shows The “Happy Ending” The Show Could Never Have Had
Ekko is Arcane’s main time traveler
InLeague of Legends, Ekko’s main power is the ability to rewind time by just four seconds - which, asArcaneviewers came to realize, is a surprisingly potent ability. It makes sense, then, that Ekko would be involved with the time travel and multiversal plot, traveling to a timeline where events took a different turn. In this timeline, Vi died during the burglary of Jayce’s apartment, and events never unfolded to lead to the creation ofHextech. This, he saw, led to the happy ending the main timeline could never have had.
It is actually the relationship between Jinx and Vi that led to all this chaos.
There’s something quite chilling lurking beneath the surface of Ekko’s “Happy Ending” timeline, though. Powder chose the name Jinx because she thought she was a curse on all around her, but Ekko’s experience revealed it is actually therelationshipbetween Jinx and Vi that led to all this chaos.With Vi removed from the equation, Powder never took up the Jinx identity; she found happiness and even love with Ekko.
Jayce’s Glimpse Of The Future Saves Arcane’s World
Jayce learns the horrors Viktor would make
Jayce, however, has a very different experience; where Ekko possesses the body of an alternate self in another timeline, Jayce is physically transported to a future timeline.He experiences the world as it could be, the apocalypse that Viktor will make of it if he triumphs and absorbs all humanity in Piltover into his collective.This means he alone knows the true stakes - and, because viewers have seen it through his eyes, they understand it too. Jayce’s foreknowledge saves the world.
The experiences of Jayce and Ekko are curious and unpredictable, obeying subtly different “rules.” This isn’t an inconsistency at all; time travel is purely theoretical, and the priority lies in the characters and their journeys. The characters ofArcanenever really come to understand the rules of temporal mechanics in their world, so nothing is contradicted.
Viktor’s Salvation Lay In A Time Loop
Viktor and Jayce were bound together by his will
Arcanedoesn’t trouble itself much with temporal mechanics, simply tossing a few words and ideas around, but attentive viewers will spot a fascinating time loop created by Viktor - one that brings about his own salvation.Arcanereveals that Viktor himself was the mysterious mage who saved Jayce from a blizzard when he was a child, inspiring his quest to figure out how to control the arcane with science. What’s more, Viktor was the one who gave Jayce the rune he needed.
Everything spun out of this one act. Viktor could have chosen not to save Jayce when he was a child, instead letting him die in a blizzard; but he could not do that to his friend, andinstead chose to engineer a way out by ensuring Jayce had what he needed to save him. This was the only choice that could redeem Viktor and save Piltover from the terrifying threat he posed.
Arcane’s most important runestands as a symbol of this time loop. Viktor gave this to Jayce, and in turn Jayce would one day give it back to Viktor. That meansthis rune is, in functional terms, outside of time itself; it has no beginning and no end, simply existing in a single closed loop. This interpretation is supported by a glimpse of the Orouboros as the symbol ofArcane’s time travel, an infinity loop without beginning and without ending. This is the story as it always had to be - and it’s one of salvation and redemption.
Arcane
Cast
Arcane is an animated series set in the League of Legends universe, debuting in 2021. It explores the conflict between the affluent city of Piltover and the oppressed undercity of Zaun. Central to the story are two sisters whose allegiance to opposing sides of a technological and ideological war strains their bond.
