Warning! This article contains spoilers for Arcane Season 2 Act 1.
Summary
ArcaneSeason 2 Act 1 has arrived, bringing a new opening credits sequence for Netflix’s animatedLeague of Legendsseries.Arcaneis known for its symbolism and there are more than a few Easter eggs hidden in the new credits waiting to be uncovered.
The opening credits sequences in TV shows have gained renewed popularity in recent years. Given so many choose to skip the opening credits, creative teams are now often dedicatingmore time to these sequences, providing them with memorable theme music and intricate animations that encourage audiences to stay and watch.Arcaneis no different. Season 1 featured an animated montage depicting each of the main characters as statues, set to Imagine Dragons and J.I.D’s song “Enemy.” The animators at Fortiche have iterated on this idea for the opening titles ofArcaneSeason 2, which feature even more hints at what may be coming in the series.
What Arcane Season 2’s Opening Titles Reveal About Each of the Characters
Vi Has Lost Her Identity
Each ofArcane’scharacters is highlighted in the opening titles, with an abstract and artful animation sequence that hints at their journey to come. Vi is depicted in the first shot, seen wiping the “VI” tattoo on her cheek away as if it were only ink. This is likely a reference to her identity crisis in the new season.Episode 1 ofArcaneSeason 2saw Vi grapple with the decision to become an enforcer, which went against her Zaunite upbringing. By the end of the act, Vi seems set to undergo another identity shift, as her path diverges from Caitlyn’s, which might bring on the pit-fighting, darker version seen inArcane’strailers.
Jinx is Forced to Grow Up
Jinx is first shown inArcane’snew titles standing back-to-back with Vi, which is similar to how the siblings were animated in Season 1’s opening credits. This time, however, it’s notable that both characters are depicted in plain, neutral clothing and are free of their tattoos, which again could hint at their identity shifts in the new season. Jinx is also shown aiming and firing a finger gun, a pose she’s pulled many times throughout the series - but with a real pistol. The use of a finger gun in this sequence might besymbolic of Jinx’s childhood spirit, pointing to the fact she is still young and innocent at heart despite the horrors she’s both committed and endured. It suggests this season may continue her journey of growth, as she ages out of the childhood self she once knew and is forced to essentially grow up and become her own person, without a parental figure telling her what to do. Audiences get a hint of who that new self might be when another image in the titles shows Jinx waving a large blue flag, which seems to play into what trailers have revealed about her possibly becoming a symbol for the people of Zaun in Season 2.
Ekko Plays With Time
As manyLeague of Legendsplayers would know,Ekko’s champion in the gameis defined by his ability to rewind time. This is something that is yet to come to fruition inArcane, but the opening credits suggest this may be in store for Ekko this season. In one shot, Ekko’s silhouette casts two shadows, one of which keeps flickering back and forth, emulating a ticking clock. A sequence later on shows Ekko doing a backflip, only for time to reverse.
Viktor’s New Calling
Episode 2 ofArcaneSeason 2holds immense changes for the character of Viktor, whose body was fully transformed by the magic of the Hexcore, giving him mystical new powers that allow him to heal the bodies of others. The opening titles show Viktor reaching for a blank mask, which he ponders putting on while covered in a hooded cloak - a costume element that is synonymous with his character this season. Later in the titles, Viktor is shown putting on the mask. This sequence seems to representViktor’s journey of becoming a mythic figurein Season 2, but his wearing of the blank mask could also suggest this new role has erased Viktor’s emotions, removing any sense of self he had and severing ties with his old relationships.
Ambessa, Mel, and the Black Rose
Ambessa’s sequence in the opening titles is perhaps the most obvious Easter egg. The character is shown, twice, holding a black rose in her hand. In one shot Ambessa’s character is depicted with glowing red eyes, suggesting a deviousness to her character that has shown to be true in the episodes of Arcane Season 2 so far.The Black Rose was introduced in Act 1of this season and this nod to the group in the opening credits is just further confirmation that Ambessa is at the heart of the conspiracy.
On the flip side of Ambessa is her daughter, Mel, who is shown in the titles bathed in a bright orange light with shadowy hands reaching for her from all sides. Mel is then also shown sitting on a couch, the same one that Ambessa was shown lounging on in a previous shot, picking up a black rose. AsEpisode 3 of Season 2 ofArcanerevealed, the Black Rose has its sights set on Mel and these images seem to reiterate that she will be a part of their schemes.
Caitlyn Is On A Dark Path
Caitlyn can be seen in the opening titles stepping out in front of a curtain and looking up into the light, which is mirrored immediately in the next scene by Jayce, who looks away from the light. This seems to be tied to the end of Season 2 Act 1, which saw Caitlyn accept Ambessa’s offer to become Piltover’s General in the war effort against Zaun. Later in the opening titles, Caitlyn is shown on her knees, holding her face in distress, which could hint at the trauma that comes from her dedication to revenge.Caitlyn and Vi’s relationshipis also teased in the opening credits, with the two characters shown standing close together, only for them to be dragged apart, which is exactly what happened to their relationship in Act 1 of Season 2.
Jayce Has Created A Monster He Can’t Control
The last character highlighted inArcane’sopening credits is Jayce who is shown looking into a spotlight and shielding his eyes from its brightness. As Act 1 ofArcaneSeason 2 has shown, Jayce helped to incite something uncontrollable via his creation of Hextech, which has resulted ina strange arcane magic forming underneath Piltover. This bright light could be a metaphor for the arcane anomaly that Jayce has created and his reluctance to look at it could be representative of his fear to face what he has done.
Arcane Season 2’s Opening Credits Change
It’s worth noting that the opening credits inArcaneseason 2 subtly change with each episode. This is usually only noticeable by scrubbing slowly through the opening credits, butsome fans have highlightedchanges that occur in the “glitches” which seem to be tied to be representative of the animated glitches that occurred when Jayce, Ekko, and Heimerdinger entered the anomaly. One example in the first episode’s credits is that an enforcer badge is highlighted after a shot of Vi, which is tied to her journey in the first episode. In Episode 2, a shot of Jinx’s wanted poster appears in the credits, something that is relevant to that particular episode. In Episode 3, a flash of the arcane anomaly can be seen following Jayce’s sequence, which is something revealed inthatepisode. This makesArcaneSeason 2’s opening credits even more worthy of watching as the animators may pack in potential hints and clues of what’s to come in the episode.
ArcaneSeason 2 Episodes 4-6 will be released on November 16.
Arcane
Arcane is an animated series developed by Alex Yee and Christian Linke that follows a the story of Piltover and Zaun, two pivotal locations in the League of Legends universe. The first season follows the stories of Jynx and Vi, as well as Jayce and Viktor.
