From watercolors and charcoal to hand-drawn 2D and highly stylized 3D, the award-winning series’ second and final season pushed visual and storytelling boundaries while delivering a gripping and emotionally stunning finale.
Arcane: League of Legends’ first season broke the record as Netflix's highest-rated series within a week of its premiere, ranked first on the Netflix Top 10 Chart in 52 countries and was the recipient of nine Annie Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards.
And just when audiences thought Fortiche and Riot Games couldn’t go any harder with the animation, music and character development, along comes the series’ second and final season, with even more surprising twists, disturbing reveals, visceral heartbreak and, of course, badass Hextech.
Season 2 of Arcane picks up with Caitlyn Kiramman, daughter of one of the ruling houses of Piltover, set on revenge against Under City’s notorious terrorist Jinx for killing her mother and council member Cassandra Kiramman. When Vi, a former prisoner and citizen of Zaun, reluctantly agrees to aid Caitlyn in her quest against the manic terrorist as a Piltover Enforcer, Jinx is disgusted to see her sister Vi wearing the uniform of the people who killed their parents. When things come to a head, it sets off a literally explosive series of events that not only sees Vi and Jinx reuniting with old family members, but also with Caitlyn joining forces with ruthless warrior Ambessa Medarda, who seeks a power strong enough to free her from past debts.
Meanwhile, Jayce tries to find a way to subdue Viktor’s newfound Arcane-derived power, which appears miraculous on the surface but is actually a ticking time bomb that could mean the end of their world.
Having released on Netflix last month, AWN sat down with co-creator and executive producer Christian Linke to discuss the hand-drawn secrets of some of Arcane’s most challenging animated sequences, the motivation behind the season’s two silent characters, and what went into choosing the final line spoken in the season’s finale.
Victoria Davis: Well, Christian, yours and Alex Yee’s new Arcane season is just beautiful. There’s so much we could talk about with the animation and the story’s conclusion but, first, I want to jump to an odd question I had after finishing the new season.
Christian Linke: Absolutely.
VD: You have two new characters this season who never speak: Isha and the enforcer Steb. Was there meant to be a parallel between the two characters with one a silent character in the Under City and one a Top-Sider? Was it an intentional choice to have these two silent characters in opposite worlds?
CL: I think the main idea for Isha really is just that big sister and little sister dynamic. I don't know, honestly. I think it just came very organically when we had this idea that she would express herself differently and that Jinx has to “read” her, if you will. And for Steb, we always saw him as someone who's always in his head and who just doesn't speak. We were thinking of that trait actually being part of his race.
VD: I did love how, when Steb’s emotions change, you see the tiny fins on the side of his cheeks flicker. Those little ruffles were so small and creative. And there are a number of tiny little details like that that you guys have put into the new season, like when Jinx is picking her nails between points of dialogue while in prison. Honestly, out of all the brutal scenes in this show, that one might have been the most uncomfortable for me.
CL: That one was one of the toughest to watch for me, too. It’s just so…ugh.
VD: I know it's horrible. It's really cringy.
CL: It is. But then you have episodes like 207, “Pretend Like It’s the First Time,” which are just beautiful all around.
VD: That was an emotional one.
CL: And we on the team have a different kind of emotional connection to some of these characters. Like seeing Mylo and Claggor in that episode… those were some of the first characters we ever recorded. I know the voice actors and it's been so long since we recorded them, and they got another moment to voice these characters in Season 2 that was really special for all of us. A lot of people work on a project together for a year or two. We worked on Arcane for nine years together. It's just a different journey for us. And it's a delight to work again with some of these really amazing people.
VD: I can imagine. I read in another interview you gave that, understandably, it took you all quite a long time to figure out how to end this story. You went with a derivative of the Japanese proverb, “Boil and drink the dirt underneath fingernails.” What was the decision behind making the final line of the show, “I am the dirt under your nails, cupcake. Nothing’s gonna clean me out.”? It’s even the title of the episode and it’s referenced a few times.
CL: So many crazy things happen between the characters and what's so interesting is that Vi is the tough character. That’s how we introduce them in Arcane, with Caitlyn being the pampered Pilty. In this end, I feel like Caitlyn is a much tougher character than Vi is just because of the emotional toil and how they process things. Caitlyn comes out of losing her mother and the turmoil between the two cities really hardened. Vi is still pretty raw. And Caitlyn just has this question, like, “Do I still have you in my corner? Or do you need to log out because it’s been too much?” That’s the real question being asked, even if she doesn’t say it like that.
I think Caitlyn is a bit afraid of losing Vi because of just how tough it's been. And we wanted to feel that the original Vi is still there. And they are the last words. Those will echo in people's heads for a long time. So that’s always scary.
VD: I found it interesting when Ekko tells Powder on the alternate timeline in episode 207, where Vi has passed away, that she was the “toughest person in all of Zaun. Nothing scared her.” And then Powder replies, “No, not my sister. Vi was strong because she was afraid.” That notion of Powder’s is still very much reflected in the real world with Vi toward the end. Having to flesh out those characters in that episode, and then having it translate to the finale, was that emotional for you all on the team?
CL: Yeah. In the moment, you can never really realize it because you’re just so like, “Fuck. We have to make this good. Don’t fuck this up.” You’re just too busy building the ship. But afterwards, when you watch it, yes. Because then you get to appreciate it. But before that, when you’re doing it, your pants are just on fire.
VD: I love that analogy. I think you’ve said something similar to me when we chatted for the first season, that when you’re in the thick of it, there’s little to no time to stop and reflect.
CL: It’s all in hindsight.
VD: Well, let’s jump into the details of this animation because, like you said, your team had their hands full with so much multi-layered texturization and types of mixed animation woven together. You've got scenes like Caitlyn's mom's funeral in the very first episode of the new season with the 2D sketch backgrounds… there’s the scene where Jinx has lost Isha at the end and she's literally rolling in her grief with some neon pencil sketches. When talking about layering on 3D and 2D animation, which were some of the most challenging scenes to tackle?
CL: The funeral one was really hard because you're used to, at this point, really high fidelity, really polished, cinematic animation. To then make something really simple, is hard. And that one was all done in charcoal. it just comes down to having great artists that can figure it out.
VD: It was hand-drawn charcoal? That’s impressive.
CL: Yep. And there’s a lot of watercolors that we worked with in 206 and 208. That was done digitally, but even getting the look right so there was still the feeling of nostalgia, and everything is still always a bit scary. But you let the artists roam and do their thing.
VD: What about that scene where Vikto and Jayce are spinning around in the Arcane and the animation is going back and forth between 2D and 3D in a matter of half seconds. Is that deceptively simple or even more complicated than it already looks?
CL: That's pretty hard. There's a lot to that with the effects and everything you apply. But that’s why Fortiche is Fortiche. They know their way around these things. We talked with them about the Hex Zone where Viktor is in his head and it needed to be this ethereal, kind of idealized vision of the glorious evolution where Viktor is wearing these rose-tinted glasses and where he needs Jayce to pull him back into reality.
VD: That ethereal look you mentioned… was a similar animation and effects technique used for creating the Black Rose sorceress’ wispy form? Because the edges of her person and Viktor’s hair in the ethereal realm both have this dissipating quality.
CL: It was a bit different because the effects for the sorceress were meant to evoke the feelings of memories and something very old. With Viktor and Sky, it’s something heightened and very immaterial. So, it's slightly different. But both animation styles are still impressionistic.
VD: I’m sure we could spend hours picking apart all the different things that you guys did with the animation. And I know you said your pants were on fire for most of production. But, in the last few minutes we have, if you were to remember a moment on this season that was mostly fun, where you got to ignore the hustle and bustle stress for a bit, what would it be?
CL: The most fun tends to be music. Like the hardest thing that's like pulling teeth is story. The more fun stuff is music and sound design because I can just go, “Make the sound like this.” I don't have to do anything and that’s always fun. When you can just watch how these masters all do their thing, that’s the best part.
VD: And I imagine watching your animations hit those music beats is perfectly satisfying.
CL: It is. And it takes so long. You imagine what these episodes will look like for years and then, at some point, you get to watch them and go, “Wow, this is the final expression.” And it’s a very organic approach. Everyone does their part and sometimes, what these people do, you can’t plan for that. It’s an evolving thing.
VD: Well, you guys have made a beautiful show and – other than the fingernail picking in prison – it’s an absolute pleasure to watch over and over again. So, as painstaking as it was for you all, and as long as you had to wait, I think you’ve brought the story to a wonderful conclusion.
CL: Thank you very much. I'm glad you liked it. Now onto the next ones.
VD: That’s right. I don’t know if you're allowed to say anything about the next ones but, anything you can tell us?
CL: There's more coming.
VD: Well, we all look forward to it!
CL: Thank you, Victoria.
Victoria Davis is a full-time, freelance journalist and part-time Otaku with an affinity for all things anime. She's reported on numerous stories from activist news to entertainment. Find more about her work at victoriadavisdepiction.com.
