I'll admit that as soon as I saw the trailer for Riot Games' Arcane, the first thought that ran through my mind was my days of playing Arkane Studios' Dishonored games-yeah, a different arc'ane- thanks to a similar Steampunk setting. However, Arcane proved to be more than just another video game adaptation.
Fans of the popular online multiplayer battle arena video game League of Legends would no doubt have been excited to see some of their favourite characters appear in an animated series, but this time, with a background (origin) story and more relatable personas - instead of just mere champions they have to choose in their quest for glory in the game. The Covid-19 pandemic might have played a part in the delay of the release of Arcane but as the popular saying goes "good things happen to those who are patient", as I found myself carefully cutting through all nine episodes of the series like a doctor undergoing a critical surgical procedure. If there's anything the entertainment world - especially the gaming industry - has learned from the first season of this masterful production is that the League of Legends has the potential to offer a lot more, both in new game titles and on the big screen, as well as debunking the myth that video game adaptations are almost impossible to pull off. Enough said, join me as I take deep dive into the world of Arcane.
The Good
Video game adaptations have so far proven difficult to adapt into the big-screen -movie or animations - from Assassin's Creed to Resident Evil to Tomb Raider, don't even get me started on 2016's Warcraft (it should be considered the definition of an epic failure). However, after watching the first season of Arcane, forgive me if I'm overly excited about the future video game adaptations on the big screen.
With astonishing visuals that combine the beauty of 3-Dimensional animation with 2D-shading, Arcane is as beautiful as any animation we've seen in recent times. It's hard to mention cinematography when talking about animations - because every scene is created from scratch, instead of the careful framing of human actors - however, Arcane breaks that concept, providing some of the best cinematography that would make some of Hollywood's best pay attention. The action scenes are detailed and thrilling, eliminating the cheesy concept of too many effects and drama other animations provide.
While its animation immediately steals one's attention, Arcane greatest strength comes from its plot. The first season of the series provides us with two parallel storylines involving four major characters. The undercity of Zaun - or the Nation of Zaun as they fought to be called - sees us focus on the storyline of two sisters VI (Violet) and Powder (Jinx), who lost their parents during the great battle between the city of Piltover and the undercity of Zaun. Their characters develop to become the major part of Arcane as VI becomes the protagonist we grow to sympathize with while Powder becomes Jinx, the antagonist we can't seem to get enough of - thanks to her somewhat bipolar nature and ingenious abilities.
The second major story arc of the first season of Arcane revolves around Viktor & Jayce, two brilliant scientists who initially go against the laws of Piltover by trying to infuse science with magic with the hope of helping humanity. Jayce's obsession with magic -after he and his mother were rescued by it when he was a kid- brings him in contact with Viktor and both scientists achieve great things after successfully convincing some members of Piltover's council to let them experiment with science and magic. Jayce becomes the face of progress after their experiments turn out to be a massive success but things take a different turn when he becomes a leading voice in the council and Viktor begins to fight for his life.
Arcane provides an endearing story to match with its cool action scenes and stunning visuals. And is one that's definitely worth watching, even for those that find anime and animations less exciting.
The Bad
Trying to search for the bad in the first season of Arcane is as difficult as thinking of one bad movie made by Quentin Tarantino, however, like Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - which isn't a bad movie but just fails to hit the heights of a Tarantino blockbuster - I was able to find something. While Hailee Steinfeld, the soon-to-be christened Kate Bishop, killed her role as the voice actor for Vi in season one, the same can't be said for the rest of the cast with some of the passion and excitement provided by Steinfeld or even by Bradley Cooper as "Rocket" in Guardians of the Galaxy feel missing. Riot Games and Netflix settled for a less popular cast than many expected and that gamble itself so far seems like it hasn't paid off.
This flaw goes under the radar for most viewers and does nothing to dampen what is already a great depiction of what video games would look like on the big screen if their stories were told right.
The Ugly
"All things bright and beautiful" would be the perfect phrase to depict everything visual about the first season of Arcane however, the ugly might stem from the producers of the show or Netflix. The online streaming platform has proven itself to be about the numbers -sacrificing true storytelling in favour of large viewership numbers - and this might prove to be a potentially ugly head for Arcane down the line.
Another potential problem created by the success of Arcane might be the flocking of video game studios and television producers into the animation scene -citing it as the new gemstone - rather than genuine storytelling and careful selection of the right means of telling their stories.
All in all, Arcane is a masterpiece and one that has the potential to create a massive world of events and story arcs like Star Wars and I'm more than excited to see what the future holds.
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