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An interesting thing to note, when Ekko fights Jinx, when they do the flash back to when they were kids - Jinx takes the final shot and strikes him in the chest. But when they fight for real, she has that shot lined up already but never pulls the trigger, then shes s truck by the pipe. Secondly, right before jinx's bomb goes off, you can hear Ekko punt the bomb with his pipe. You can tell the sad smile she gives Ekko right before the bomb that it was meant for her, not for him. But Ekko saves her at the last second (he could have just fled by himself instead of punt it). Just little details that are sometimes missed that change a lot in the story :) Neither of them wanted the other to die, even if they're enemies.

Ekko is repeatedly tell VI that Powder is gone, yet at the last moment, he sees his old friend. Just one of many moments that make this show a masterpiece.

25:55 That's a good observation. I can't remember if it was the writers or if it was Ella (the actress who plays Jinx) who said in an interview that she's essentially stuck at the mental age she was when she lived through her trauma. And even at that age, she was already extremely co-dependent with deep separation anxiety because of the even earlier trauma. Another fun observation is that the Ekko-Jinx child sequence wasn't actually planned in the writers room. It was thought up by the animation studio - and the writers absolutely loved it and the story it tells. "It feels like they could be in love now!" is a direct quote from one of them. It's a pretty good example of how collaborative the effort really was. Just a bunch of really talented people, each experts in their field, bouncing ideas off each other and creating this masterpiece of a sequence.

Ekko and Silco are both fighting for the undercity, the problem is that Silco is destroying what he's supposed to save. In reality, Silco wants to take Piltover down, Ekko wants to bring Zaun up.

The visual storytelling in the series is so freaking good. Something I really like (that gets overshadowed by the later, *excellent* sequence between Jinx and Ekko) is Mylo's presence when Jinx is watching Caitlyn and Vi. Particularly the moment when Vi runs back to help and Jinx freaks out and Mylo's shadow gets *massive* and looms over her with his soft, distant snicker that's barely audible. That whole scene was her trying to tell the voices her in her head to fuck off, trying desperately to not let them compel her to do something rash. To let logic rule over her fears and insecurities, Mylo's shadow just being a creepy shadow lurking in the background. Then the voice ends up being 'right' and instead of just being a 'devil on the shoulder' Mylo becomes a full-blown demon looming overhead, now impossible to ignore or deny. It's so damn intimidating, and does such an amazing job at portraying Jinx's mental state. Also something I realized for the first time: when Jinx ambushed Silco in his office, he had just come back from dealing with the Chem Barons. ie yet another one of his 'allies' who were plotting against him. "Everyone betrays us." He was definitely feeling that very strongly at that moment.

The entire show is artistically amazing, but these last three episodes really do feel like the best progression of everything established. Like you said, those motifs and themes expressed so beautifully - it really does bring out the emotions like nothing else.

In case it hasn't been mentioned yet, they gave Jinx's model a special rig to distort her face and head to make her look more like young Powder for certain moments.

the moment viktor pauses for a second before cutting the grenade's wiring... choosing between let it all go or keep fighting, keep living his sickly life...

A non-spoiler episode 7 description based on your reactions. Actually, nothing Silco said to Jinx in that scene is a lie, He may be wrong, but he believes what he tells her. Silco doesn't have access to the complete information that you as the viewer have. (Generally 80% reactors forget this and project all the evil and evil onto Silco. But he only says what he believes.) From his perspective (and remember, Ekko thought similar), Vi just showed up one day out of the blue, with an enforcer, right after Jinx stole the crystal. Also what Violet said to Ekko: "echo she believes what she's saying okay she she's not your enemy" Likewise, Silco tells Powder what he believes to be true. He called Vi "Vander's prodigy" - Vander who collaborated with the enforcers. It fits right into his world view that Vander's prodigy would do the same. This isn't helped by the fact that to him, he's the one fighting for freedom from the oppressor and Vi bursts in saying she's going to tear it all down. Silco projects his experience with Vander onto Vi. He may draw the wrong conclusion, but between the optics of her return with an enforcer, plus his past with Vander, the conclusion that Vi is working with the Enforcers is reasonable. Silco may be wrong, but from his perspective, he isn't lying. And from his perspective, he's protecting Jinx from a bad influence (Vi). Being wrong but believing what you say is not the same as lying. Additional info: Sometimes people forget that their Silco has a damaged human. Just like Powder. In Episode 5, Silco states that he can't even trust the doctor, he can only trust his daughter Jinx. Here's what happened in this episode: Comment from person X: when Jinx ambushed Silco in his office, he had just come back from dealing with the Chem Barons. ie yet another one of his 'allies' who were plotting against him. "Everyone betrays us." He was definitely feeling that very strongly at that moment. Every single character in this series is in shades of gray, no black and white. All of them have the characteristics of real-life people. Each character is the hero of their own story from their own perspective. All of them have features that can be understood, hated and empathized. When you watch the series again, you will realize that no character is completely good, angelic or legal. Including Caitlyn, Ekko and Vander.

The bridge fight was next level " show, not tell". With showing their childhood scenes they gave us everything we need to know about their former relationship. Ekko line ingame:" I had a crush on her ... until she started talking to the gun!". Remember we haven't seen any real interaction between those two before. And a nice little hidden detail: Zoom on Jinx lying on the ground at the end. You will see "Vi" written on her throat by her clothing and a second time by dirt. This show goes extra, extra, extra.... And I also adore the subtle CaitVi scenes in this one. Vi's look when Caitlyn says " This city needs healing"? And the hug on the bridge? The tiny bits of caressing? 😍 No matter how often I watch this: These scenes don't lose any of their intensity. M A S T E R P I E C E Thanks for letting us experience this again with you. Seriously: top 3 reactions of what I have seen so far. And that was a lot!! 😉

Not sure anyone mentioned it or if you have since noticed it yourself, but when Vi is shown the graffiti of everyone the Lanes had lost to Silco, there is someone currently painting an image of the girl that Jinx killed in episode 4 that looks like Vi. Another small hidden detail is the council room when Silco gases everyone. If you look in the back of the room as Silco is leaving all of the one flourishing flowers are now dead.

Jinx didn't shoot Marcus on the bridge, just another enforcer who was still breathing. Go back and watch again. The bombs landed only on metal things (weapons). If Cait hadn't traded her weapon for the cure for Vi, she'd have likely been hit with one too. It blew his ARM OFF. Totally. You can see it missing when Cait is trying to stand up. He bled out. Ekko doesn't have time powers yet, he just remembers the timing of their paintball games when they were kids, he knows her moves, her timing, and he uses the watch like a metronome to, this time, avoid getting shot. Now is a good time to watch the official video for Enemy by Imagine Dragons and JID (the theme song). It has a lot more Ekko and Jinx childhood moments and absolute hits so hard after this episode.

"She and the enforcer are back for the crystal, not you" - This was not manipulation. This is the truth as far as Silco's knowledge of events plus a healthy dose of projection from his past. Vi, the prodigy of Vander the betrayer & collaborator, suddenly returns to the Undercity with an enforcer. That enforcer was solely there to find the person that stole the crystal. Vi even led the enforcer that was looking for Jinx (to bring her to justice for her bombing and theft of the crystal) straight to Jinx. The whole scenario wreaks of Vi being disingenuous with any lip service to the contrary. Vi even tells Silco in episode 6, that bringing Silco down takes more priority than Powder. Considering he sees himself as the side of right this is more evidence that Vi is not a good person. Not to mention, Silco likely has heard for 7 years about how Vi turned her back on Powder/Jinx from Powder/Jinx, just like Vander did to him. Silco is Jinx's father, and ANY parent would want to protect their daughter from an abuser and bad influence like Vi. Silco can be a manipulative person, but never a liar. And his guard is entirely dropped around her - just watch how Jinx is the only one he trusts with his eye injections.

I love your reactions because you are so stoked for this show, seeing your excitement is the best!

So happy to see you guys still enjoying it! I love watching people fall in love with all the different layers of this show. Can't wait for you to finish it!!!

To reasure the scene, Ekko doesnt have his ability yet from the game. Its a cool way the animator find to give us a forshadowing for what's to come for him. Here Ekko just find a way to trick Jinx into playing the same game they were playing as children so he could have a fair chance into anticipating here next move/shot.

There have been very few times in anime where I have felt a hug. This season had 2. Vi and Jinx in episode 6 and Ekko and Vi in this episode. This episode is definitely an emotional rollercoaster. Ekko is my favorite character. After Vander, he is the one who did the most to take care of the lanes. That, and he has enough swag to make Mick Jagger jealous.

I know it's probably been said a thousand times, but I looove what the show did with Viktor. When he's introduced he's sort of shady, and his limp and vaguely European accent are (unfortunately) common shorthands for villainous characters. But then, even as other characters get pushed to do more and more extreme actions, he's the one that stays adamant that improving lives should be the end goal. Even his desperation to heal himself isn't only self-serving (although there wouldn't really be anything wrong about it if it was), the dude just wants more time to help people.

Regarding the repeating motif you mentioned (and Jinx being repeatedly confronted to her triggers) you can actually get back to the opening scene with it. Vi and Powder both lost their parents to enforcers that day and processed the trauma differently. Vi internalized that she was powerless, and needed to get stronger to be Powder's protector. She needs to be the one fixing the problems (handling a burglary, giving herself up, freeing Vander, fighting Silco's goons alone, etc.). Meanwhile, Powder was more scarred by the feeling of abandonment. Her parents were gone. That's why she had such a hard time handling being left behind by Vi when she went to free Vander from Silco. Then Vi "left" her (at least that's how she lived that moment). Then years later Jinx learns she was actually arrested (again, she lost someone to the enforcer), only to see Vi leave her behind with Caitlyn, *an enforcer.*

Perfect explanation by both of you. Unbelievable. Just the eyes, you see powder and later eyes of jinx. So fricking well done..a materpiece of a series!! i got very emotional many times and tears as well.

The butterfly bombs were Jinx. You can see her working on them in a previous episode.

Love your reactions sooo much I subscribed your channel for more in the future. Since your reaction from episode 6, I've been waiting for this episode, felt like forever but worth the wait! I mentioned about how I love Silco's intimidation techniques before, and in this episode he did it again in that "meeting". You mentioned about how Silco fights for the undercity, which reminds me of another reason why I love him as a villain, parallel to how magneto fights for his fellow mutants. I don't know if you caught it, but I think it's cool that red hair girl who Jinx killed in episode 4, was still being painted on that murals. Small details goes a long way. Another detail I love is the plants died in that meeting after the gas was released. And yes those explosive mechanical butterfly were Jink's weapon, you can see her working on them in episode 4, under magnifying glass. And you see them again in this episode when she was about to staple her wound.

You folks are amazing reactors. You are following and appreciating so many thing that other reactors missed. The butterfly bombs are Jinx's work. Introduced at the beginning of ep 4 at the fair Jinx is working on the in ep 4 during the "Get Jinx'ed" scene You can see them again on her table in ep 7

21:19 it's not a second gemstone, it's the same gemstone she stole from the attack. Ekko vs Jinx fight was a foreshadow of Ekko's power that he will get in the future because obviously right now he doesn't have his Z-drive yet

I already entered youtube waiting for this reaction

The sad reality of what Mel is saying in this episode about needing to build counter measures is an unfortunate reality we even see here. Every single piece of technology we have created was then used to wage war. Those that don't understand this are sadly slaughtered. Steel was used to create swords. Fireworks were used to create gun powder. And fission energy was used to create nuclear bombs. You do not need to use these instruments of destruction but you should be prepared for those that do, and that is what Mel is trying to convey. Sadly, what Viktor understands is that rarely do we create these items without then using them shortly thereafter.

in unison "it's her sister".... Jinx! - love the pun :D

One of the many interesting things that they show in the making-of miniseries is that they built Jinx's model with a subtle morph (they bring in her lower jaw a little bit so that her face is rounder and eyes proportionally larger, so she looks younger) for those moments when she is more Powder than Jinx.

1:10 Me too it also reminds me of the mask of the court of owls, glad I wasn't the only one 😊😊😊

Great to hear you appreciate the artistry on show here. Sucj a stunning show in every regard.

24:50 100%! It's a great experience and you can see how much love they put into it - art, music, writing and all! A big part of the story is the dichotomy between the choices different characters make and how they live.

Ekko is the only character living 100% in the present, working towards the future instead of dreaming of it and remembering the past with respect instead of trapped by it. Only for a crucial moment does he lose that focus and instead of having an unconscious enemy to take into custody he is now next to a grenade about to go off.

20:11 « Lets see what they do » yah lol.. They kinda exploded 😂!

Jinx popped the bomb not because she wanted to kill him, but because she wanted to go out as friends.

Another gem, and it only gets better from here.

I don't know if someone mentioned it, but Victor hesitated with grenade, because he was thinking about letting it explode, so only people(that he know off) that knew how to build hextech weapons would die, hence "There is always a choice"

I saw a reactor mention that Mel never even acknowledges Viktor is there when they're talking and now it's so noticeable to me. It's such a thing that she only acknowledges Jayce.

This entire series had me emotional but nothing broke me more than the fight between Jinx and Ekko. They revert to their childhood play training, aligning with their confrontation years later on opposite sides of a war. Shows how the innocence of childhood is so easily stolen by the world.

Such a great reaction, guys! The use of the different animation styles in this episode to highlight both the flashbacks for Echo and Powder as well as Echo's way of perceiving time is so well executed. You can tell so much thought was put into every scene in this series. Can't wait for you to see how this keeps developing right to the final climactic episode!

fyi, ekko cant control time yet, it was just a memory of the game they played as kids.

Two quick things I want to say, well three I guess: first just that I'm really, really enjoying these videos. Second, I recently came across someone who like....actively hates Caitlyn lol so it was so very refreshing to watch your reaction to this episode. I love her character so much, she's such a sweetheart, and you guys clearly see that her heart's in the right place despite the blindspots she has from her privileged upbringing. And the last thing, your discussion of the animation at the end there was such a mood. Fortiche literally struck gold with the way they're able to achieve such realism with this art that also OOZES style, I don't know how they do it and I'm an artist myself! I don't think it's possible to emphasize this enough: the animation of this show is genuinely revolutionary.

Did yall get a chance to watch the enemy music video before this one? Adds so much more to the emotion of the bridge scene than what they already throw in there

Legit love your take. So many just blindly take top side as the good guys

26:12 good call

Ekko doubting in the end showed how he missed Powder.

Thanks ;) Looking forward for the next episode !

OMG we will be in Finalle soon. I must start write coment on episode 9 for call of you. Ps i like all ester eggs for all diferent regions of Runeterra like that Bat guy man and his baby daughter. He is Vastaya its race from "Human" and Magical Animal Shifting Creatures from Spitir Realm Vastayashai'rei. PS From Vastayashai'rei magic used aggainst Stone Titans came Wugu blade Masters like Master Yi and later his Vastayan student Wukong. Like Yordles but they are imortal magic edsence from Packet dimension in Spirit Realm Bandle City. = ( Hamerdinger ) May the force be with you. And may you lead the force. 🖐️

Ekkos entrance into the fight made me jump up yelling the first time I saw it lmao

The music video for “Imagine Dragon - Enemy” shows a little extra background to powder and the gang when they’re kid. I recommend watching it as it spoils nothing just adds more character to them as kids

That's not just seeing his old friend.. he loves her.. I the game he tld her he use like her until she started talking 2 her guns.. in lor he wanted 2 tell her he loves her.. but couldn't get the words out b cuz he knows it cannot wrk.

This fucking show. Its unbelievable how good it is, even after like 20+ times watching it.

I recall standing up when I watched this episode, specifically that bridge duel with Ekko and Jinx, and just shouting "YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" at my TV. Not out of denial, but because I couldn't believe the show had gone SO hard. Arcane has changed the way animation can be done. Pushed boundaries. It's so amazing.

"My dude is jacked" understatement of the century

23:44 "Let's act as if nothing dramatic was happening onscreen!" :D I know, the montage IS exhilarating.

Can’t wait to see the last episodes!

Ref "It's in the yes..... how did the animation do that?" There is a five part behind the scenes series on KZfaq which answers this. Bridging the Rift. It's well worth the watch, even reacting to.

I disagree on one point. You don't have Silco and Ekko who are looking out for the undercity. You have Silco trying to take over the power in the undercity, not caring who he hurts (aside from Jinx) in order to achieve that, and then you've got Ekko who is trying to keep the vulnerable people within the undercity safe and give them the ability to live in peace. Ekko, though, is unequivocally my favorite character in the series. With Piltover and Silco's Zaun, it isn't that you've got a heaven/hell dichotomy. If anything, it's more the way that in D&D, you've got the lawful evil devils and the chaotic evil demons, who have an eternal war with one another. We just... think that Piltover is the good faction because they are nice and clean and tidy, but all of that is on top of a rotten core of corruption, as Jayce's arc shows. If there is a "good" faction in the show (not counting Vi and Kaitlyn, since they're a team, not a faction), it's the firelights, as far as I'm concerned. At the end of the day, all that matters to him is keeping his people safe, and (unfortunately) both Piltover and Zaun want to destroy his little haven because neither of them controls it. Either way, I highly recommend Schnee's video on Ekko. It is a really great breakdown of the character. Heck, I highly recommend just about everything that Schnee has done on Arcane because he's done a lot of really good, deeply insightful analyses of the various elements of the show. Oh, also, there's a theory that because Kaitlyn traded her gun for the medicine, and Ekko only has... well, basically a good pipe as a weapon, they were both spared from Jinx's firelight bombs, because they seemed to be drawn to weapons... so by doing the selfless thing, Kaitlyn actually saved herself here. And I love the theory that the Dynasties and Dystopia's scene, where it shows Ekko and Jinx as kids is actually Ekko going through that fight over and over again to find an outcome that leaves both of them alive.

Facts Alex and Christian said Jinx is Green Goblin + Joker + Gollum

24:32 That's exactly why I feel bad for people who watch this without headphones. Love your reactions!

Cool little detail; when Jinx is lighting everyone up with her minigun, you catch a glimpse of Caitlyn trying to jump between Vi and the bullets, while Vi is pushing Caitlyn out of the way of the bullets. Note to Vi; this is the third time the baby giraffe has saved your life. Don’t bloody blow it!

They say the number 1 factor that determines how much criminal activity an area will have is based off how much poverty there is. But yeah topside really just needs to create programs that help improve the quality of life for those in the undercity, funding to help remove toxic gases and chemicals from residential areas, increase wages and setup food banks etc.

@18:18 lmfao 🤣

Facts Chembaron scared in silco Silco scared in Jinx

Well, if you think Jinx is well-written, which she is, just wait till you see Jhin, cuz I think we will eventually see him in the show. I very much hope that he will appear in Season 2, cuz he visited Piltover in the "Awaken" cinematic, so it's not impossible. Now that is a psychopath if I've ever seen one. Jinx is just crazy, understandably, but Jhin is artistic about it. I really have no wish for Season 2 other than a Jhin appearance.

Hey guys, make sure (after the season) you watch the videoclip of Imagine Dragons - Enemy. It will give you a bit more insight on their youth. Especially Jinx and Ekko.

This show makes me feel drawn to Jinx, she is so lost and I feel like wanting to be there for her to help her find her way back It is so sad to know that if Vander had been there for them all things would be so very different, so it was the mistakes of the young ones that lead to all all the chaos, from both sides, with Jayce throwing away the experience and wisdom of Heimerdinger

Ekko!

To me when Jinx fired her gat on the bridge I don't think she was shooting at Vi and Kait but rather shooting between them to force them apart, hence why she shot at the ground first, to separate the two.

20:19 OOOOO

i wish you guys would watch legends of vox machina

Great reaction. Not sure if it's been written in another comment, but one of the differences between Powder and Jinx when she is on the bridge is partially in the color of her eyes. Her eyes when she is young Powder are blue, until Silco hugs her at the end of episode 3 where they turn purple. As Jinx her eyes are purple, until Echo has her pinned down and they shift back to blue. Subtle details like that are one of the very many reasons this show is top tier.

Legit took me a minute to get the "jinx" joke, but very, very well played! XD The ending is so ridiculously good, there ARE no words! I am a massive Powder fan, and after everything she has done, all the terrible things, when Ekko is beating on her, her face is like "why is this person I love hurting me", even though she was just trying to kill him. Love her character so much. So heartbreaking, after possibly the coolest fight sequence of all time! XD

👍🏾

ok cannot stay quiet anymore, Did yall not see the fore shadowing with grayson and vander He was literally looking through a mask

Everyone has their corruption, how far would you go to protect Paradise for your loved ones? As for fighting for equality, violence only brings violence and should only ever be a last resort but that doesn't mean you shouldn't fight, MLK said the biggest threat to progress is the moderate liberal because they're only aiming for the status quo and that doesn't work for the oppressed. Personally I see flaws in all sides, The art of war would say to give your enemies a golden path of retreat, I'd correct that and say you give everyone a golden path to their goal that keeps them the f out your way. When you create conditions that keep people impoverished and struggling you only create threats to your Paradise whether you intended to or not. That soundtrack though, damn.

now that you guys have seen ekko vs jinx, i recommend watching kzfaq.info/get/bejne/fJukhtKSr5-XkZc.html because it shows a bit more of their relationship in their younger years. its also super well done and doesnt spoil anything

🤯😊😍✌

Jayce: Sorry I had a lot in my plate Viktor who's literally dying:

As much as I actually like Silco as well, he does have a good reason for his motivations, but he abuses his own people in the under city with shimmer to build his empire. He is probably in reality just as abusive to the undercity as those that live above.

bro i told you. be ready to ugly cry on the internet. ep 9 has no chill.

Random fact about Ekko; they use he/they pronouns.