OH i meant to say this at the end, totally forgot: The one Silco nut I couldn't crack was why he never went to war during the timeskip. Anyone have any theories on that? I've heard people say he needed time to build up his forces, but I don't buy it, 6-7 years is a LONG time to do nothing (especially given the undercity's impatience we see with that scene with vander/sevika in act 1)

Everything Silco loves about Zaun, he sees in Jinx. To him, she IS Zaun. She is broken, betrayed, and neglected just like Zaun. But Silco also sees a strength in that. When that broken, betrayed person is pushed to their limit their "inner monster" as he calls it, is awakened and it is terrifying and powerful. That is everything Jinx is and becomes. She's been pushed to her limits and is chaotic, unstable, and unpredictable. Everyone fears her or will fear her. SHE becomes "what they fear." So when he's asked to give up Jinx he cannot do it, because he would be giving up the most perfect representation of Zaun that he loves.

Not exactly the same subject, but I noticed how he says "you're perfect" and not "Jinx is perfect" like how he did in the baptism scene. I think this is because he thinks she chose to be Powder over Jinx and he wanted to support that choice because he loved her. "You're perfect" as in "you, no matter who you choose to be, are perfect to me."

I've been preaching this the entire time. Jinx has always been the embodiment of his principles. If anything Jinx was who he COULDNT be. "Be what they fear." "True power comes to those who will do anything to achieve it." He found out HE was never able to FULLY be those things, and not because of Jinx, but because he wasnt truly 100% Zaun personified. Jinx was.

he adopts Powder for clearly shown reasons, when he comes across and is tackled by Powder, she says "She left me, she is NOT my sister anymore" and Silco's eyes are wide open in shock, he looks at Vanders body and sees a connection with Powder, who's also been betrayed and abandoned. That's why he takes her in.

One thing I felt you could've also pointed out: Silco is explicitly shown multiple times to have absolutely NO control of Jinx, and it's hammered home over and over again. Yet he never seemed to mind. He never stopped believing in it even if the faith made him look weak to others. He nurtured chaos but couldn't ever hope to control it and, like any revolutionary, didn't expect to be one of the first to be killed by it. What makes him stand out as one of my all time favorite villains though is the fact that he was fine with it. He loved that little embodiment of chaos, he was never once afraid of it, could never let go of it, and in the end had no regrets when it claimed him. You don't see that absolute commitment to an ideal very often, the adoration and awe at something greater than himself but with no envy and desire to bend it to his will. He only ever wanted it to be what it is, consequences be damned. A true patriot to a fault, in a way.

After having some deep thinking and rewatching, “you’re perfect” is probably more of a reassurance Silco wanted to tell jinx. Throughout her life, she’s always been seen as less than, as a problem, as someone who’s not ready. Even Vi who does care for her did not accept her for who she had become always pushing her back to who she was. Only Silco has been able to truly accept all of her flaws and embraced her for who she is. That’s how I would interpret it.

The reason why Silco adopts Jinx is because he empathise with her. Like him, she's also betrayed by someone she loved. Silco betrayed by his brother and Jinx is betrayed by her sister.

I saw some reactors mention how silco wasn’t grooming her to be a weapon, but a replacement and I agree. Phrases like “jinx will handle it” or “when jinx gets back” are just like a mob boss trying to garner faith in their successor. I suspect the see sevika fail to lead zaun in season 2 and jinx eventually replace her.

I think the reason Silco didn't give up jinx is simply that he is human, and let emotion get in the way of his goal. When Jinx said "She left me," Silco saw himself in her. As the show goes on, he realizes why Vander didn't go to war, and that he made the same "mistake" Vander did by allowing emotion for a small girl to influence his plans. I think we can see that conflict when he talks to Vander's statue towards the end of the series.

This theory makes perfect sense although I feel like it undermines that scene where he talks to Vander's statue and how like Vander he abandoned his dream for his daughter and the themes of parenthood in the show in general.

I personally interpreted the line “You’re perfect” as his confession of affection in his generally detached, careful manner. A flood of emotional words would be out of character, but he can’t just die quietly in Jinx’s arms. That would only leave her desperate and undirected. So, he tells her she’s perfect. It’s a succinct way to tell her he loves her and encourage her to get stuff done. That said, I like your analysis much better because of how much more weight it carries in the overall narrative.

As someone else has said he accepted and loved Jinx unconditionally like the daughter he never had and thus selling her out was a no brainer

i really hope we get insight into what kind of father silco was to powder when she was a child in season 2, maybe through flashbacks or something. their relationship is so fascinating id love to see more

one of my favourite little details about the “rebirth by water” scene is that Silco HELPS Jinx into the water, HE’S the one lowering her into the water, he’s helping her let go of Powder. and jinx TRUSTS him, she fully makes herself vulnerable in that moment. nothing else in this show makes me cry, but this little moment, and the trust that they both show towards each other, makes me bawl every single time

Children are often the embodiment of the future in the eyes of the parents. If the parents have an ideal, they will unconsciously attempt to mold children into their ideal, or at least in that direction. To this end Silco originally was using Jinx as an agent, but he came to understand that she was more than that, hence why after the meeting with Jayce, he finally understood Vander. Protecting your children is synonymous with protecting the future. Giving up your children, while seemingly "selfless" on the surface, is very much you giving up on the future, in principle. That is the dichotomy of parenthood. It's selfish but selfless. It's you wanting to make a mark on the universe by raising another human to be greater than yourself, and by extension they will improve the future while you fade peacefully in their shadow. Silco did not understand this in the beginning, he thought Vander was selfish yet simultaneously weak in his selfishness. The deconstruction of his misconception begins when Powder hugs him. When he sees pained desperation in the wake of abandonment, he draws up empathy for such an emotional state. He sees himself. Knowing what Powder feels in that moment, he gives her what he wished he had received when he was in her position: someone who understood him. By the time we reach the scene at the fountain, Silco finally understands Vander. Protecting his children was protecting everything he believed in. When Vander said "there isn't anything I'd do for them I wouldn't do for all of you," it wasn't a bluff to keep the people in the Last Drop complacent, he truly believed in that statement. The crossroads now wasn't Silco misunderstanding Vander's perspective, but simply disagreeing with his ideology. Silco now knew that in order to protect Zaun, he had to protect Jinx, because she is the future, his ideal, his child, & the city embodied. She is perfect.

Silco loves Jinx so much that his last words are not about him but about soothing her pain. Still, he is a very egoistical character - It's not so much about choosing Zaun or Jinx, as demanding a world in which he can have both. he is simply delaying his ultimate victory, there is no reason for him to believe he can't have Zaun later on.

What makes the adoption unsurprising is bc Silco found her in the exact same position he was in, except she was like 7 or 8. He saw himself in her.

Excellent analysis :) Someone deducted something similar but about the different outfits styles :) Piltover style = symmetrical, Zaun style = asymmetric :) And Silco is wearing Piltover's style ;p

It's interesting, when you mention the accent thing, Silco's not speaking British RP, it's stereotypical "American does an English accent" English. Which, if anything, is a better support of your accent analysis (though the accent thing is always going to be weird, especially when a lot of the cast are putting on accents. From a quick skim through the voice cast, the only English actor with an English-accented chatacter was Toks as Mel. The other Brits are Katie doing Caitlyn (but she's Scottish, not English, so she's accent swapping), Ella as Jinx, JB as Vander and Harry as Viktor. I do actually wonder how much thought really went into the exact accents of the characters, since there does seem to be a significant hodgepodge of accents from people who should have relatively similar ones (like, Silco, Vander, Vi, Powder, Viktor, Sky, Sevika, Finn and other Zaunites). Of course, there is the added wrinkle that certain characters had to have certain accents due to their in-game voice lines, but that doesn't explain the original characters.

With the amount of emphasis in the show about trauma and mental health issues, my simple guess would be that he was not able to choose Zaun over Jinx, because of his abandoment issues and his resulting dependence on Jinx. Not as his main enforcer or because of her weapons expertise, but out of his own fear of feeling the pain again from being abandoned. That's why he tried so desperately to kill Vi, before Jinx got to her and why he lied to her about Vi's intension. I don't think that Silco is as complicated and nuanced as people make him out to be, it all comes down to him never really overcoming his trauma, even though he often meanders about how he "let a weak man die that day". He just tried to run from it, but it never left him.

On Silco and order and chaos, I enjoy this line of thought. Silco is organized and ordered, but does not thrive on either. If you put him in Piltover he might function, but he wouldn't be anything special. No, Silco thrives by embracing chaos and bringing order to it. He is the eye of the storm. Jinx is a personification of this. She is pure chaos. With Silco this is molded to a purpose. He doesn't control her, but in caring for her, nurturing her, he can influence that chaos and thrive with it. And you can further see this in her interactions. As wild and crazed as she is, he is almost always calm and collected with her and this in turn tends to calm her around him. And interesting to note is that the one or two times we see he is not calm with her, she is with him. She is chaos, but he has brought order to her, not by controlling her with an iron fist, but by nurturing her. Similar, he could have demanded peace in Zaun, never brought about the drug trade, made deals and rooted out all corruption, but they just would have rebelled and rejected him. Instead he nurtures this chaos to make it a strength, to make it a threat and the result is numerous advances and a city which largely bows to him, even when it could so easily destroy him.

Nice interpretation, but there's one thing, that maybe i misunderstood, but you said that his final words gave Jinx a nudge towards her future actions. This i can't get behind, i really don't think that even in his final moments as he is dying, Silco had a master plan and knew the perfect words that would push Jinx in his desired direction. I interpret the final "you're perfect" as a complete and honest acceptence of who she is, who she's been and who she'll choose to be, that is different from a previous "Jinx is perfect" that he says, to which che doesn't have a particular strong reaction

It also brings that new meaning to that last scene. This isn’t Silco and Vi fighting for Jinx. This isn’t them trying to get a person on their side, this is them pleading to Zaun itself. Notice how Jinx is in FULL control here. They are just two individuals while Jinx is the idea, she is the mass. Like a song once stated, “I am the people, I am the storm, I am the riot, I am the swarm” this is Jinx in this moment. This is Silco and Vi in one last push for their ideals over the city. It’s like an election for the next leader. Is this city gonna turn into the little brother of Piltover that is working to be equal, or is it going to be a completely different entity with no shame in how it operates. In the end when all the dust settles, just like in real life, the martyr is more powerful than anything. Silco dies and in that moment Zaun decides, Zaun decides that it will fully embrace what Silco saw it as. It will live and push through with Silco’s dying wishes pushing it towards the chaotic, broken self that he envisioned as.

We are led to believe Silco was betrayed by Vander. It's not said why, but we can assume Vander didn't even talk things out. He was given a deal, presumably to kill Silco and call off the Rebellion. This relates deeply to his whole fixation on drowning and being born again new. In his original form, he was too weak to stop Vander, or take control. It's quite possible before the betrayal Silco was a much more light-hearted and compassionate person. We aren't given the details of who he was before the betrayal. Only that he wanted Zaun, as did the rest of the Inner circle with Vander. Even if Silco was his cruel and ruthless self pre-betrayal, he is still shown to have a lot of compassion. He never immediately kills anyone, or punishes them, but offers choices. Loaded choices, but choices none the less. His transformation during his "Death" taught him that in order to be stronger, he needs to lower himself to pick it up. You see this quote in many things. Vikings has it's own version. "Power corrupts, because you must lower yourself to pick it up." With this in mind, and with the assistance of the mad Chemist Singed, he finds his own way to have power, through Shimmer. People see him as just flooding the streets with it, but as you mention he does everything with reason. He isn't trying to destroy Zaun, and poison his inhabitants, it's just him having to lower himself, to attain that power he needs to create Zaun. The experiments, and testing of Shimmer as a super soldier serum while unfathomable, is a step in the "Right direction" of liberation. There's no way he can compete on a financial level, Presumably the industrial capactiy to create weapons isn't there, and neither is the man-power for an open war. You can't drop an Atomic bomb, with out first testing it and perfecting it. As the Allies did on numerous deserts and oceans. He mentions - as you highlight. That he only needs to scare Piltover into submission. This is a common military tactic. Artillery Barrages, Mustard Gas, Jericho Sirens on Stuka Bombers, All sorts of weapons, that while ineffective in a combat sense, provoke fear. The Schwerer Gustav (railway train that could reach London from France) was one of these terror weapons. If Piltover is afraid of the Super solders, or worse yet - Shimmer being weaponized to turn Piltover Topsiders into Shimmer monsters, they are much more likely to surrender. What more terrifying thing could there be, than a weaponized gas version of shimmer? And while this is never explored in Arcane, presumably Piltover is smart enough to be wary of even the possibility. Even if it can't be in a gas, Silco could poison the water supply. There are plenty of ways to administer the drug for poisoning a population - but he's shown to take the super-soldier route instead. Leading back to Jinx, while the theory that Silco was much more compassionate pre-betrayal may not hold water. It's safe to say that as a human, Silco does indeed need human connection with someone. He's obsessed with betrayal, because it's obviously caused him great emotional/mental damage. His trust in loyalty, and belief in it above other more material things, show that he himself is probably quite loyal -- To the right people, and probably was to Vander before he was betrayed. Thus this more human side of Silco is naturally drawn to Jinx. Somewhere underneath it all. Silco does have redeeming qualities. Very few people are ever completely devoid of humanity. He sees kinship, in those betrayed by the people they love. When Jayce offers him his peace, he's probably completely skeptical. As anyone would be. With out the things that make Piltover fear him, they are free to just invade or reneg the deal at any time. Buying themselves time for a counter attack, and while Silco too could lie, he would have to Betray someone who trusts him completely. Something he isn't willing to do. His moral conviction lies in his belief in loyalty, and while he will lower himself to pick up power, he will not lower himself to betray family. Not like Vander did to him. After all what is a kingdom worth, if it is built on nothing? A Kingdom with out loyalty is nothing. A foundation made of sand. If he were to turn in his own daughter, even for the greater good. He would have no loyalty among his own people. If he would give up his daughter, of all things, who would he not give up? He is visibly worried and surprised when Sevika kills the Chemlord and not him. Which further strengthens his theory that Loyalty is a currency worth even more than material things. It's one thing to be ruthless, and cruel, and to dish out punishment where it is due. It's entirely another to betray those who work alongside you. Something that will never be forgotten, and even if Piltover kept it's promise and gave him Zaun for Jinx, Sevika and the others would be much more willing to Scheme, and betray him, and the infighting would never stop. A room full of paranoid people with loaded guns, all plotting against each other. Making themselves weaker, while their enemies grow stronger. With War always on the horizon. While 6-7 years is a long time to prepare for war -- Perhaps the reason the Undercity was willing to bide their time, was because Silco was indeed planning another Rebellion. With Vander, it was completely off the table. He sold the Undercity out for some orphans. He keeps his family safe, but tells Vi not to rob the North side -- North being the rich part of Piltover. So presumably -- as we know the Undercity is full of Crime, Drugs, and poverty while Vander is in charge, Vander doesn't give a shit about the Undercity clawing itself apart with in-fighting. As long as it stay away from his family, friends, and his business. Vi and co are free to do jobs on other undercity residents, or outside of town. But not on the upper-piltover residents. Where as with Silco, they know, he is working in the shadows, developing weapons and serums in order to fight Piltover. He is working with the police yes, but to a much different degree. He bribes the police for information, to continue to grow his power, and get the shimmer shipments through. He is not simply protecting Piltover, for his families protection and for enforcers to stay out of his business. He is actively using the topside bribes to gain information, and power. Where as Vander is actively working with them to keep Piltover in power - so long as they leave him alone.

While I think you're partially right about Silco's contempt for Vi, I think you're misjudging something : he hates her because he knows she loves Powder/Jinx as much as she does, but in an aopposite way, and she is the only person whose unconditional love for Jinx could rob him of his daughter and that perfect embodiment of Zaun. Silco's love is absolute in that he allows Jinx to do anything, and she is the only person he genuinely care about. Even Sevika isn't well-treated by him and she lost an arm protecting him from that explosion in episode 3. That's because for Silco, betrayal is at the core of what Zaun is : betrayal by the well-off of Piltover, who exploit them and doesn't care about them, who probably made promises and never kept it. And betrayal is also what alsmot killed him, when Vander let his rage loose and was about to kill him - for reasons we still didn't know mind. Vi's love in absolute in that she never relents in her idea that Jinx can be saved, that she has the capacity for good. No matter what happens, no matter what she sees her do, no matter that Jinx shoot at her (twice) or threaten her or anything like that, she still loves her sister. She still believe that Jinx can take another road, that she doesn't have to become a monster to be strong, to be whole. That's just as unconditional as Silco's love, and from the sound of it in the announcement of a Season 2 being made, I think she still does. The end scene isn't just Powder having to choose between two irreconciliable vision of what Zaun is; either a place below which needs to become "better", or closer to Piltover like Vi thinks perhaps* or a wild and deadly place where the strong rule the weak without pretense of higher morales or values, where if one can get away with what he or she does, then he or she is respected. There is a reason why the chembarons aren't the power-holders of Vander's time; that's because they were far more ruthless and lacked the morality to stay their hands. They took what they wanted, associated with Silco and ran the show. That's what Silco want, a place who will look up at Piltover and say 'you're no better than we already are!" No, it's also her having to choose between two form of loves which are absolute but can't be reconcilied. That's also probably why she cries at the end and shoot at the Council. Because they are the ones who made her lose both those loves : she killed the one who loved her as she already was, and so she had to avenge him and carry his wrath and pain forward, but doing so meant losing her sister for ever - at least in her mind. All because the Council has ruthlessly exploited Zaun, in the grand scheme of thing. At least that's how I see things. *I'd argue that Vi's vision of Piltover and Zaun isn't that clear cut, precisely because of the years she spent in prison : she didn't see Zaun change. She knew it as she left it and when she came back, it had the mark of the one person she hates more than anything all over itself - she can't love it anymore. She's like a flower which has been cut off its root. Either she's transplanted elsewhere or she'll die. I'm pretty sure Season 2 will see a suicidal Vi charging into battle with the hope of someone ending her pain, by the way.

Everyone watching arcane: "Silco is so cartoony..." Me: "You haven't observed humanity, have you?"

Absolutely. Silco knows power and politics - there is no dealing with Piltover from a position of weakness, not really. The council wants him to surrender his best weapons, his best agent, betray his people (even his daughter) and trust in the goodwill of Piltover, that has abused and ignored Zaun for decades... to achieve something he basically already has. He knows Jinx is developing a hextech weapon, which would nullify the advantage that Piltover has and leave the ball in his court, with Shimmer - that Piltover doesn't have. That means Zaun has the advantage, and Piltover can't know just how much of an advantage Zaun has because there is no way that the topsiders could predict the genius of Jinx herself, specifically. So Silco approaches his negotiations with Jayce in that mindset. He essentially already has everything he needs to topple Piltover, and even accounting for all Silco's demands, a peace like they offered only benefits the upper class Pilts. If he takes the deal, he loses all credibility with his underlings, with Sevika and the rest, because they see that he's willing to "give up" on his dreams, his plans and even the people he cares most about - in exchange for only promises of fair treatment from a ruling class that never respected the lanes. His words about loyalty are shown to be meaningless the moment he gives Jinx up, even if some of his people would be glad to see her go. That's a bad deal. He'd lose his leadership in a second. But the way I see it he does finally come to a revelation about himself and Vander and fatherhood. I don't think he expected to be so rattled about being asked to give up Jinx, and he realised that he wouldn't give her up even if they'd offered him the world. In the negotiation with Jayce he *immediately* offered to go in her place, because then he's martyring himself and not asking any of his people to sacrifice themselves for a compromise with Piltover and he can keep their respect even as he goes down, but if he has to compromise on his ideals of Zaun for peace? Then he'll fight, like he always planned.

I think Silco's statue Chat line, "What is more undoing than a Daughter," changes this theory a bit.

Hextech is the reason why he didn't start a war with Piltover. Shimmer was supposed to somewhat even out the powers, just enough for them to be able to fight back and win the independence. But with hextech the Piltover left them behind in the dirt.

Though I see what you're going for, I disagree. For me the answer is a lot more simple. Silco took Powder in because of what she said: 'She left me. She's not my sister anymore' It even cuts to Vander's body as Silco glances at it, realizing that this little girl is exactly how he was when Vander tried to kill him. Betrayed and abandoned. And this is further emphasized by, like you said, how much Vi resembles Vander. As for the 'you're perfect' line at the end, sure it can be all these things mentioned here, but even if they are, they're secondary. What you don't mention here is Silco's moment at Vander's statue: 'Is there anything so undoing as a daughter?' Because Silco finally understands Vander. Why Vander was willing to die for a cause and not fight for one. For me, Silco didn't choose Jinx because she's Zaun. He chose her because, for the first time in his life, he cares more about a specific person than he does for his nation of Zaun. Your point that the deal with Jayce is a bit sus and that they were trying to weaken Zaun while having no intention of honoring it is interesting. But I think they would've honored it and Silco had every intention of taking it, up until the moment Jayce asks for Jinx. Because, above all else, Silco is a businessman. And for a businessman, trading Shimmer and the Gemstone for free trade routes, blanket amnesty, unrestricted access to the Hexgates and sovereignty is a no-brainer. He even says in episode 4 how, because of the Hexgates, Piltover is leaving Zaun more and more behind. Silco uses chaos because he's prepared to use everything in his disposal. But if he could turn Zaun into another Piltover he would without a second thought. The reason he hates Vi is because of her resemblance to Vander but mostly because he's afraid Jinx will choose Vi over him. This turned out much longer than I intended...but this is my take ^^

GOD you always knock it right out the park with these character analyses. I love how in the beginning you really point out the inconsistencies, but then you explain why it is like that and what it's meant to mean, AND you give us a fresh way of looking at the character and the story. I'm OBSESSED!

I get where this line of thinking comes from, especially from Jason's interview where he puts it out pretty clearly but I like to think that his overall affection towards Jinx was more influenced by genuine love for his daughter rather than kinship or identification of Jinx as Zaun's personification, especially towards the end. Silco's eye is the representation of the suffering Zaun suffers under Piltover. The monster that Piltover created. A sidenote on how Silco kept it out in the open while Vander hid his scars from that day under his armband. Now what's interesting here is that we see his iris become less focused following the timeskip and more importantly, injecting Shimmer seems to hurt him immensely now. That wasn't a thing in episode 1. An easy explanation is that Shimmer is healing him but I think there's more to it. It's symbolic of him slowly becoming human again due to his new found love for his daughter. His daughter being the one administering the medicine aka "healing it" by poking the iris being the cherry on the top. That, along with "Oh it all makes sense now, brother" which implies that he's finally able to understand why Vander changed his mind about revolution. I don't think that line would make sense if he continued to always see Jinx as Zaun's representation from start to finish. I'm sure he drew the parallels too but fatherly love was firmly in the driving seat at the end.

I remember hearing once that when you help someone, it is because you pity them, or see yourself in them. I think Silco saw himself in powder. She was betrayed by her sister, like he by his brother and was all alone. He understood her, and embraced her. I have seen many comments where people say that Silco used Jinx and cotrolled her, but I think they are worng. We don't see him using her, making her do a job, or making her kill someone. Maybe he loved her as his daughter in the end? I kind of forgot what I was talking about, but I think that Silco and Jinx found a person who understand them

Cuz Sisco loves her unconditionally, she's practically his daughter in his mind and slowly but surely, became the most important thing to him. Of course, he doesn't concisely realize that until he is offered the Nation of Zaun like he always wanted, but at the price of selling out Jinx, and he immediately knows that is a trade he won't even entertain.

With the accents, atleast in the main lore, people of zuan were descendants of prisoners and poor people from all around who were sent to mine for piltover. ALOT of Zaun champs are from other nations so it makes sense that zaun wouldn’t have a single accent.

My opinion on the "you're perfect" line is that it's just what Jinx needed in that moment of vulnerability but it also shattered any chance Jinx had of redemption, after Silco said "you're perfect" Jinx embraces chaos and is doomed to a be lonely hated outcast for life.

That's your best video imo. I didn't quite see Silco literally that way but subconsciously I felt that Silco had a bigger plan than was shown in his scenes. Jinx was the embodyment of everything he wanted to achieve. Jinx is extremely intelligent, creative and capable and imo if not for the looming shadow of Vi she wouldn't have that much mental attacks and would've therefore caused less chaos and destruction for Silco and his goons which would've probably ended in him and Jinx achieving an independent Zaun. Jinx herself most likely was aware of Silco's plans and dreams and probably even agreed to them. Her problems with Vi didn't diminish the hatred she felt for Piltover as she most likely blames the city for most of her problems. Caitlin isn't just the person who took away Vi from her perspective but also a representative of Zaun and therefore an embodyment of something she truly hates. That she didn't kill her in the end is a testament for her truly caring about her sister and Jinx still not being capable of hurting her sister consciously. She hummened the same song she sung on the bridge when she witnessed her parents die so she definitly felt satisfaction when so many enforcers died in the same place where her life was ruined. Shimmer is also currently the only way for someone of Zaun to face someone with the power of those crystals. Silco bringing this drug on the black market could've also been his way of ensuring that most people of Zaun are capable of defending themselves should Piltover strike. It's also been used as medicine and as very few people of Zaun have access to normal medicine it could've also been his way of bringing healthcare to his people. Maybe after the introduction of those crystals he saw, that a war between Zaun and Piltover would be a lost cause so instead of militerising Zaun he did the things I mentioned plus slowly bringing the drugs to Piltover in order to make them dependent on financing him. With this money he could've slowly improved the living conditions for Zaun.

Something I'm gonna say Silco does absolutely love Jinx genuinly. It isnt just because Jinx is the heart of Zaun. He wouldnt have turned Jinx in regardless. Its definitely a wierd and uncanny relationship between the two but it is a genuine father daughter love.

5:53 on - “Big Comfy Pilty” is a cute formation, and it is a temptation for Vi. But she has the sense and fortitude to walk away from it. Repeatedly. It’s Jinx that keeps putting Vi back together with Cait, even as Vi is single-mindedly trying to liberate Powder from Silco. Silco’s “ordered chaos” is a fragile house of cards, as episode 6 on clearly demonstrates. Vi may smile at sampling herself some Big Comfy Pilty, but it brings her no contentment. Vi. Walks. Away. That’s her main offer to Powder at the end, too: “We can just leave.” Vi is HAPPIEST bringing Silco’s house of cards down, but is willing to leave him alive if it means she’s with her sister again. This vid also elides the foil to the dichotomy: The Firelights. The spirit of Vander and Benzo is very much alive, and Vi seems plenty happy reuniting with Ekko on very Undercity terms. But thank you again for making these vids! Very meaty food for thought.

Sorta unrelated but your conclusion that jinx is the spirit if zaun made me realize how jinx and jayce are foils to each other. Jayce is the spirit of piltover and she is the spirit of zaun. Story if opposites. I always thought they were eachothers primary foil but I didn't know how to describe them until I watched this video. They both perfectly embody there respective cities.

I know I'm a little late for the show, but I really want to speak my mind about this topic. I believe there is a really important trait which connects Silco, Jinx and even Zaun as a nation and this is being casted away. Jinx was rejected by Vi, Silco was rejected by Vander and Zaun is being rejected by upper city all the time. I think when Silco saw Jinx for the first time he connected to her on a such deep and emotional level because he knew she got casted away by her sibling just as he got. He mentioned it during their talk on a lake and Jinx reacts as if she had already heard that sentence multiple times from him. It's also what Zaun nation is in some way, not being at the bottom, but being unified at the bottom. So when Silco gets proposition to reject Jinx, he knows that he would do excatly what Vander did to him even for the same reason which is greater good of whole city (I guess that was the reason why Vander tried to kill Silco, but i'm not sure whether it was directly said in the show). After rejecting this option Silco goes to talk with statue of Vander because this whole situation reminded him so badly of his ex-brother. We can also see this fear of rejection in another character from undercity - Viktor, in his relation with Jayce, where there is literally a montage of Viktor nearly dying during his research, moment when he needs his fellow scientist-mate the most and simultaneously his friend goes all into politics and new relation by having sex with Mel. After this i thought he might even join Silcos's club of betrayed people but no, though he went to Singed and then different things happened to his character, so afterall it wasn't exactly the case. It was partly mentioned in the video, but I felt as if there was so much more to talk about, so here is this comment. I hope someone will come across this opinion on nearly 2 years old video and find something valuable or just entertaining. Have a great day reader :DDD

Although I agree with everything you said about Jinx being the embodiment of Zaun, I had always believed that Silco originally adopted Powder because he saw himself in her. He understood her pain of being betrayed by somebody close to her because he was ‘betrayed’ by Vander, who he considered a brother as Powder was betrayed by Vi who was her sister.

THANK YOU for not stopping the arcane vids flow. I watched it last week and i'm totally obsessed and your vids are the best in all youtube (believe me i've checked alt least a hundred)

ACTUALLY! Viktor's voice actor said hes inspiration for Viktor's accent was a "flat accent" of Czech language... i never was more proud to be Czech! xD

The idea of Jinx being Zaun personified actually makes a lot of sense. I remember reading up on Jinx after Arcane came out and I swear I read somewhere that, apparently, the people of Zaun started to believe she was a spirit of vengeance who was coming to piltover to get revenge for all the people of zaun who suffered because of Piltover. But now that I'm looking for it to quote I can't find it. If I do I'll put it in a reply to this comment.

I love how Silco is a character who understand power. Vander and Silco both had the exact opposite arc where Vander in the revolution found out that just because he had physical power himself, he thought it would be enough to bring change but the cost was too high, he's seen how using his power through violence, doesn't work and how he had to do something smarter, that didn't require sacrificing his people. Silco had the exact opposite epiphony where he gets drowned, seemingly a lack of physical power to threaten violence himself. He came to the conclusion that even though he lacked the power from birth he had to take it, even Vander wanted this entirely peaceful solution and ended up drowning his closest friend for the power over the decision of the direction of Zaun. When power is had, it will be used even by his trusted ally, to kill him and maintain itself. This is a truth he learned the hard way, no one will give up power. He finds the power in the pain and chaos of almost dying, and learns to create something from the negative, such as zaun, a world where they all feel powerless, he sells drugs that "gives power" to the powerless, unironically benefiting the people and in the long run gives him the economic power to control the underworld. He understands how to keep up appearances with his red and black suit, the colours of power/death, and uses makeup to hide his weakensses from his enemies. His character finds a way to channel the chaos represented by his scarred eye contrasting with his unaffected eye. He is able to look at both top side and bottom side and see them as 1 image. He's cast away the perception of "top-side/bottom side" More or less they are all the same, and everyone is an enemy, apart from powder who is his family. He probably adopted powder because he needs a family to root for and not even be on his side, but someone he could be on their side. He treats them all the similarly, if he doesn't have a personal relationship with them, like jinx he will keep them below him just like sevika who he keeps under him with virtue signalling and the promise for change in the underworld whereas she's just a bodyguard, she's not family but jinx is. This is why Sevika doesn't like jinx because even though she is less valuable to the "cause" silco prioritizes his family over the cause. He doesn't sell drugs to accumulate wealth for the "cause", he does it for himself and jinx who benefits the most from it. You don't get the feeling that jinx has to worry about food or shelter, as she's not really yearning for any of those things but thinks about vi a lot. You can even see this twisted dynamic between jinx and silco when she gets shouted at and scalded because she killed a few enforcers. She's care-free about it in a twisted teenage sort of way, and silco is mad like a dad. Lastly, silco doesn't even struggle to breathe in the undercity because he microdoses. The funny thing is he sells the drug so people can have super strength but he knows how to effectively does himself to get insanely less sideeffects. He never discloses this information and I have this theory that he micro-doses with jinx. He only shares his power with his family again. This is probably why they're both so pale and have ridiculous strength even though they're both so skinny. Jinx lugs around massive guns like they're toys made from plastic and silco stomps a guys face when he loses it, seemingly with a lot of force even though he's a thin for a man. Again, he breathes toxic air and supposedly doesn't cough, have you ever seen jinx look sick out in the streets apart from mentally? And when he put on the mask in the scene threatening the barons, he seems to take a breathe from the mask before handing it over but probably just did it as a "power move" or to through people off that he has tech that lets him breathe apart from a mask. Sevika also has a chemtech arm. People don't even need shimmer and he's selling it in pure form.

Just wanted to say that I love all your Arcane videos and I hope you continue to get more recognition. I really like how you have insightful and well thought out ideas that don't come across as pretentious, it makes your content very palatable👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

If Silco didn't want the deal from Jayce to work out, then why is he so crestfallen in front of the Vander statue?

When I heard what he said I thought "that's so sweet he doesn't want her to be haunted by this nightmare too, rather he wants her to embrace herself and be proud of who she is instead of her life being filled with regret". I think it's beautiful what he told her in the end because I think that was exactly what she needed to hear to finally be okay with herself.

A lot of very interesting points in this video! But one point that I think is a bit absent from the analysis is actual empathy and love that Silco has (or at least might have) for Jinx. Not everything he does has to be perfectly rational and calculated. He’s still just a human - prone to emotion, and fear. I believe he loves Jinx not as embodiment of Zaun (or not only as such), but as a daughter. As someone who he understands and who understands him, as they both share very similar experience in being betrayed or abandoned. And that fear of being abandoned I suspect is also prevalent in his decision making.

I think we DID get an answer as to why Silco never attacked in the middle years. The answer came at the very end, in the form of Jinx sending a missle right into the heart of Piltover. Silco, during those middle years, could have attacked at any time, sure. I think it was important to Silco that Jinx be the one to start the war, to lead the battle. As others have said, I believe Silco was grooming Jinx to take over as the leader of Zuan one day, and he wanted her victory in the war against Piltover to be her crowning achievment. He was waiting for Jinx to be ready though, as we've seen he doesn't control Jinx, and doesn't even seem to want to. He was waiting for Jinx to get that final push that makes her want to join the battle. He had the resources, people, and power all ready, and a lot of his actions (convincing the underbosses to wait and not revolt, humoring Piltover law enforcement and Jace, etc) read as him biding time. And he did it all because, as we saw in at the end, Jinx was capable of taking on PIltover the whole time. The whole time, the greatest weapon Silco had was always Jinx. She had the smarts and the skills necessary to sneak in and out of the city, attack law enforcment without getting hurt, go toe-to-toe with all of the city's greatest fighters, create her own weapons and figure out and re-verse engineer other's. Silco got what he wanted, in the end, as his death gave Jinx that final push she needed to take up the battle against Piltover. Ultimately Silco won, and he always knew he was going to win. He just needed to wait for his greatest weapon to be ready.

You made an excellent point about Vi that I hadn’t thought of. I always wondered what would make her become a Piltie enforcer knowing her history with them. Wow. Thanks for the enlightenment lol.

I think I got Silco around the speech about monsters. We know he believes in this Zaun ideal and then we get this scene where he is talking about the inherit beauty and power of these monsters that no one ever notices or knows about (Undercity anyone?) while talking about how everyone has an inner monster and that power has to be seized. Then his death speech seals it, where he talks about the peace he found drowning (death) but that he had something deep inside him begin to rage (the inner monster) and that he had to make a choice of which one to embrace. I think he sees the Undercity as a place of inherent struggle and that this struggle breeds a people stronger and more capable in his eyes. This is why he chastises his seconds for losing the ability to breath the bad air, why he continues to make the Undercity a living hell, why he tries to keep up the conflict as it creates, evolves his people into a people capable of achieving his dream.

Damn ur breakdown is so crazy it's so clear I'm waiting for season 2 breakdown bruh keep going

Dammmmnnn. Hail to the breakdown, of something they genuinely like, king. 👑 I just found your channel with your arcane series videos. So I can't say about your other video topics yet. But. FR you're good at this. Like very good. Like I'm not fangirling nor wanting to blow your lid but... I usually don't go for reviews or explanations outside of master lectures. Never say never because these takes my friend... 🧑‍🍳💋

Thank you, great vid, I've heard that take before, it makes sense. I'd like to add sth: On a psychological level, Silco also sees himself personally in Powder when he first encounters her; her being abandoned and "betrayed" mirrors his own trauma with Vander; it's then & there he starts seeing her as an extention of himself and actively works to shape her in his image. Second, people forget that he was hellbent on finding Vi when he knelt down to Powder; before, during the fight scene on the bridge, between Vi & the large tattooed goon, we see several reaction shots of Silco, when he realizes how gifted Vi is as a fighter; at that moment, he decides to take her for himself imo, somehow utilize her as a weapon, while psychologically sticking it to Vander in the process; insetad, he gets Powder, the "lesser child". He refers to this in the stand-off with Vi in the slums: Everybody thought Vi was Vander's trophy, but Powder "turned out to be so much more", he marvels in awe at the great use he got out of her, against all expectations. At least, that's how I see it. I don't think he would have kept her if she hand't proven herself useful and succeptive, and I very much doubt Jinx would have come about in the way she did without his influence. Jinx said that Vi made Jinx, but Jinx hasn't a clear view of the events, or Silco and his manipulations, for that matter. He literally drilled into her that no one would ever love her but him, that it was them against the world; mind you, without ever saying "I love you". His love was a narcissistic, possessive one, reflective of his own trauma-shaped worldviews, that's why he was terrified of Vi's influence, which he knew might pull her away from him / make her into Powder again aka make him lose her. That's why he insisted on her name being Jinx. That's why he tried everything to kill Vi, right up to the end. He wasn't interested in her being happy or healthy or healing, he was interested in not losing her, for selfish reaosns (psychological & political ones). It pisses me off to no end that people want to see this stellar dad in Silco, when he actively manipulated her, made use of her trauma for his gains, giving toxic lessons and encouraging her mental decline, never even trying to make her mental issues better or setting any boundaries, keeping her away from her family, poisoning her view of them, and fucking TRYING TO KILL HER SISTER. "Your sister can't possibly love you, no one will ever love you but me, now go and make me my super-weapon" - dad of the year, everybody. I don't deny that he loved her on some level, in his own twisted way, but that alone doesn't make a good parent. Parents don't need to be raging alcoholics or physically abusive to be bad parents.

I think it can all be pin pointed the moment Jinx finds the stone. He looks at her first and then the stone, ultimately he would choose his daughter over power

You are bringing this whole analysis thing to another level man love these vids

Another fantastic video! I'm enjoying catching up on the conversation. My mind was totally blown when you put together that Vi's rejection of Powder was mirrored in opposite with Silco accepting her even when she kills him 🤯

I think It's funny that because my first language is not english I did not notice that Silco was speaking british, american and british english sounds' same to me Oh and as an add to the text", Jinx is a perfect picture of underground people. She does not have manners and is carefree since there is nothing holding her down, she could probably be the next leader of the underground city✨

What an amazing video. I’ve seen so many theory and analyzing videos, watched Arcane five times, and mulled over it for more than a month now, yet this video was PACKED with revelations I never thought of. I never realized these things. Silco was already awesome in my eyes, now he is incredible. How is it that I keep learning things about this amazing show every single day? I learn and notice more simply by thinking about it long enough. It’s absolutely incredible

i love your analytical view on arcane. i would’ve never looked at arcane like this without your videos, thank you.

I love your channel! I hope it grows big. Wishing you the best of luck!! 💕 thank you

I agree, the "You're Perfect" line is more about giving Jinx the nudge she needs to be what he couldn't be. Part of being a father is making your children into something better than you are. Its about making them do the things you couldn't do yourself and become something great. I think that's what all of his lessons to Jinx are about and its why he is completely comfortable with her instability. If you notice during the dinner scene everyone is completely shocked by the situation and Jinx's behavior, except Silco. He is totally comfortable with her shooting random shit at the table, the only time he seems upset is when Cait gets the gun and then he doesn't know what Cait will do. He only takes an action when Vi is calling in Jinx's demons and shutting her down...I guess that's a potential weakness for Jinx in S2...hopefully S2 is somewhere else because honestly I feel like this story is told completely and I don't know if I want to see anymore of it, I don't think it could possibly measure up to the standard this season set.

Silco would never ever give up Jinx, Because Zaun is helpless without Jinx anyway. Only a Hextech weapon would guarantee Zaun's independence. SHE made the Hextech powered weapon, she brought fear and destruction to Piltover, she is the great innovator able to crack their Hextech gemstones and turn it against the Topsiders. She is indeed the rogue embodiment of chaos that Silco has directed towards Piltover. And Jayce demanded not only the return of the Gemstone but also for Shimmer production to stop, which would end Zaun's leverage and source of income and power anyway. Zaun would be completely at Piltover's mercy without any means of self-defence or self-reliance. It'd be a false independence, only in name not reality, kinda like a Brexit in name only Lol. Peace was NEVER an option, so Jinx was never on the table. Also Silco is the best dad ever, I hope Riot brings him back and Jinx can finally be happy 😢 P.s. Silco's accent is British, but normal, neutral middle class, good and not uppity or posh and annoying like Caitlyn's or working class cockney. He is a balanced and well-centred character. Final note: Jinx is perfect :D

you have no idea, you are doing gods work, I swear I love your videos, the more I learn and understand this show the more I love it, thanks to you!

Yes! This is exactly how I interpretted their whole relationship - and you managed to sum it up in an eloquent, 10 min vid. Thank you!

Silco tells Vander in episode 2 that he's not going to war for pride but for RESPECT, and the way (for him) to get that respect is through fear. He's always talking about that ("be what they fear", "I just need to scare them"). But when Jayce offers him peace and Zaun's independence is not out of respect but out of pity, the complete opposite (he tells him he's trying to save Zaun from annihilation, a spat in the face for Silco if you ask me). So yeah, he would've never given Jinx up, Piltover is terrified of her, she IS perfect.

Grayson/Vander was not a relationship of equals - Grayson was wearing the pants there (give me what I want or I'll bring an army of enforcers down here to take it anyway). Marcus/Silco is the opposite (Silco wearing the pants). Neither relationship was healthy. Caitlyn/Vi has the potential to develop into a true relationship of equals (season 2 pending), though obviously it wouldn't function the same as Grayson/Vander or Marcus/Silco, since Vi doesn't have power over Zaun. Still, it may at least be symbolic of what can ultimately be achieved between Piltover and Zaun in the long term.

I really love your videos! if possible I hope you could make more for other movies/shows (and more arcane bc there's no such thing as too much arcane)

THESE ANAYLISES BE SOOOO GOOOODD AHHHH THNXXXXX UUU

Great analysis. Fully agree. He can't give up all his power and hope Piltover would honor the agreement, he'll lose his bargaining tools. He does not know Jayce so he can't know he is honest. For him he's just another fancy topsider, who can't be trusted. That's why he can't go along with the deal. On the other side I had a crazy theory, what if during Vander's rebelión the topsiders offered a truse but one of the conditions was that Vander had to kill Silco, let's say he was the mastermind behind their attacks, hence that's why Vander was drowning him and now Silco having experienced such thing refuses to repeat it cus he knows nothing will change if he follows the council.

Thank you for this video, I disagreed your earlier takes on Silco (and Jinx) The rest of your content was far more convincing, but this brings it all together I would never want to live in a city with silco in it, but if I was unlucky enough to, I would want silco fighting on my side. I still think Silco is a Libertarian/An Cap in that he wants people to be independent, and their unrestrained creativity is going to be the engine of progress (also very similar to Singed's views and they work together for that reason). He even makes a joke about "progress" in the parley with Jayce. Except I think it was a tongue in cheek joke, that they have their own separate visions for progress. In that way the 2 cities have a different vision and approach to progress. This leads me to a topic / symbolism that I have not seen you or many other people pick up on. The two cities' respective magical sources of power. Its funny no one points out the symbolism of the two technologies. They are 2 different philosophic / axiomatic systems - external / technological vs the internal / biological No one seems to ever talk about this analysis angle. In particular w/ Silco and Singed / Zaun being the invested in Chemtech, while Jayce/Council being in Hextech. It even plays into the audience tropes with Hextech being given a good/blue/ethereal visual, while Chemtech/Shimmer is mysterious purple ooze/goo/nasty. I actually found that one of the most blatant, least nuanced and lease immersive imaginings in the entire show.

Good content and insightful as always. 💯 I enjoyed the first half of this video which was more easily understandable thanTheSecondHalf whichwasmoreonsuperspeed blendingwordstogether andHardertounderstand 😏

Very good video my friend!! You just made me realize the whole nuance of Silco's character!! Man, Arcane is just so good!!

See, the thing about Silco is that he intentionally starts off as a cartoonish super-villain, and gradually grows out of that role due to his relationship with Jinx, and therefore, becomes 'weak'. It's the main thread of conflict in his story, the reason the rest of the Underworld is plotting against him, the reason Jayce and Vi destroyed his factory, the reason even Sevika was considering offing him. His relationship with the Piltover police or that fact that he chooses to de-escalate the conflict by making peace with Jayce instead of going to war isn't an accidental mirroring of Vander's behaviour, it's a fully intentional parallel meant to symbolize the way Jinx changed his perspective in life (that's why his penultimate scene shows him finally understanding Vander's choice to sacrifice everything for his own 'daughter's', Vi's, sake) as well as underline the tragic irony of how, the closer he came to achieving his goal, the more unsuited his character became for actually seeing it through. His spirit and his ideals live on in Jinx, sure, but it's a more supporting "Go. Set yourself free. You can finally realize what I was only able to grasp at" instead of a cold, calculative, purely utalitarian "Now the final masterstroke in my plan is complete", since Jinx constantly undermined his plans by her catastrophic behaviour (By killing Marcus, she sparked the attack on the factory, and therefore put himself in a position of having to shut down his production and hand Jinx over to Jayce, none of which benefit Silco's cause in any way, not to mention how she tried to run away from him to find Vi).

I think we need to stop saying that vi betrayed powder or that powder was betrayed by anyone Vi was a child too who saw her father die in her arms and her entire family wiped out by an explosion which she finds out seconds later that her sister was the one who set the bomb off That's a hard thing to deal with and it's natural for her to lash out It was wrong to hit her little sister of course, even more for smth she didn't do on purpose But it was totally okay to step aside so vi can calm down I think vi stepped aside to actually protect powder because if she had stayed there with powder she would have lashed out even more And we have to acknowledge that she didn't even went that far, she could still keep an eye on powder which is why she could have gone back when she saw silco approaching powder, if she wasn't kidnapped by marcus And that's where I draw the conclusion that if powder was ever betrayed by anything it was by the unbalanced power of zaun and piltover, just like anyone as broken as powder in zaun was betrayed by that

You need to stop being so good at explaining things I'm literally balling my eyes out rn

Wow. So much fits into place with this. Every line from Silco, especially “we will show them all” makes so much more sense. Thank you

I think the fact that he went to Vanders statue, to talk to him and said now I understand, and that he was drinking, shows how he did love Jinx and was struggling as to what decision to make. And, decided then he was not going to give her up. He is the one who carried her off that bridge when he had two big goons who could have. The doctor even had to knock Silco out because he knew Silco love for Jinx. And that he would be able to save her or watch him perform surgery on her. Plus, she was the only one he trusted to shoot medicine in his eye. Even when she confronted him about lying and she stabbed him in his face several times and then shot it in his eye shows that he trusted her. Also Sevika was so jealous of Jinx when she could have embraced her chaotic ways, plus she hated Vi. She manipulated Jinx before Vi could get to her. He saw her discarded, abandoned, just like he was. And you said it your self he was a very calm man. He could stab Vander in the back because Vander was the one who was trying to drown him and damaged his eye. When he saw Jinx as a young girl and embraced Her in her sadness and took her in, there was no way for him to know she was going to grow up mentally ill. Her flashbacks were always about her struggling with getting her friends killed and Vi abandoning her. They were never about Silcos because…he loved her, just as she was, Perfect. It had nothing to do with using her chaos against the upper class. And he always scolded, like a father would, when she would be disruptive. He was never initially happy about that. I believed was a genuine love for her and not manipulative like you suggested. Great theory and point to bring up for discussion. New follower.🤗

And that's why *_EKKO_* is the leader Zaun really needs. You can be proud of your roots *AND* still acknowledges that changes are need. (As a Brazilian I can just tell)

omg i had no idea that jason spisak voiced silco. i loved him in as wally west young justice growing up!!

Just watched Arcane this last weekend. I loved it instantly and told my girlfriend that I could write a book on every episode. You’ve basically done what I wanted to do. You understand Arcane the same way I do and you phrase what you mean so intricately. I’ve watched nearly every Arcane video you’ve released and I’m so happy to have watched so many of your analyses. Thank you. From the bottom of my heart: thank you for all this fantastic content concerning a series that reset my rating scale for films/series’s(es?). Can’t wait to hear more from you as I continue to watch and rewatch every minute of Arcane content that you’ve posted.

Silco wasn't the Sole cuz of things getting worse in zaun under his leadership.....by my own estimate silco is only responsible for 1/4 of zaun's problems under his leadership... ironically it is Viktor and Jace's fault, more specifically the rise of hextech... despite a great increase in prosperity, wealth was STILL kept in piltover thus any economic benefit gained by hextech was solely for the people of piltover, what this did is leave that under city behind in All the ways that matter, like employment, technology and food source... piltover also increased it's level of production thus also increasing the Level of pollution that they were doing to the undercity... another unintentional side effect of the rise of hextech is that it most likely pushed any person who was near the poverty line firmly in to poverty

It's his daughter. You never let anything happen to you child. There, question answered.

Silco's British accent, as you mentioned accents applying to status, is also a way he is opposite to Vi: Vi is a natural Zaunite who desperately wishes she was a "True Pilty," and Silco is ACTUALLY a natural Pilty who wishes he a "True Zaunite." Their wishes contrast their goals, and make things harder. If Vi wished to be a Zaunite, she would have been able to fix the Undercity, and if Silco wished to be a Pilty, he would have probably been a powerful councilor.

Another thing: Jinx is THE most honest person you will ever come across. Not necessarily in a good way, but in a true "100% honesty" way. She doesnt manipulate, she doesnt plot, not a single lie comes out her mouth during the whole show i think. If she doesnt like you, she tells you or even attacks you. Sometimes she even listens to see if she is the one in the wrong. She's kinda like an animal. If something crosses her mind, she acts on it.

Side note its also worthy of mention that Silco said jinx was perfect because she kept the power of the shimmer with none of the side effects when no one else had. Not even Viktor. Jinx is the embodiment of every one of Silco's successes. His idea of Zaun and his and Singed's perfected weapon.

Silco wouldn't give up his dream for a free Zaun, he'll keep Jinx and fight for Zaun still. He's not Vander

I’m going to get the same combo and this is real nice for showcasing it thank u

Thanks for this. Great analysis. I love how succinct your videos are regarding complex content. I began watching ready to disagree with you, but you've changed my perspective and really made me think. Well done. Even so, I'd love to see that other video just as a matter of perspective. Argue the other side -- even if you no longer believe it yourself. It will probably speak to the theorist I was before I watched this.

I think one of the things that also supports this theory is that when Jayce asks for Jinx he says "they're no her crimes their mine" or something, sacrificing himself over Jinx. This might initially be seen as love but in reality, he might just know that Jinx will serve (and be a better leader for Zaun than he is, she represents it more). Furthermore, he says to Vi "I used to think that you were the prize of your family" meaning that he thought Vi represents Zaun more but then goes on to say that Jinx is way more valuable than he could have ever imagined. Silco has realized that Jinx embodies Zaun far more than Vi does. (Maybe even that he planned on using one of Vander's kids as this mentor... that's why he left the trap for them? Idk. It's just a theory).

Jinx was never going to choose to go back to Powder, and I think Silco could tell. And Jinx had her own freedom he never got.

Between you and Georgia Dow! Maaaaan, the analyses are 🔥

Yoooo very cool this channel is growing 💗 ❤

The more I learn about Silco, the more I love his character

I always take issue with the claims that Silco's goal is to gain power. It is such a Disney view of good vs bad. Forgetting that power is not the end goal, but simply a tool to be used. We can see Silco's willingness to shut down shimmer production. Something that amases him a great deal of wealth and power. And how quickly he's willing to sacrifice himself, when Jayce asks for Jinx, in exchange for Zaun. If what Silco wanted was just power and to stay in chaos, he would have worked to maintain the status quo (like the other underworld bosses). The freedom of the undercity is what matters most to him. I feel like most people misunderstand what the undercity is. Mostly because a very common trope, in media, is the poor slum that deeply values family bonds. While a rich class ignores them. But the undercity is not a slum. It is a collony. Subject to rule and exploitation by a foreign power, that views it's people as resources rather than citizens. The people of the undercity are forced to work in dangerous mines, with almost 0 protection from the toxic air and other hazards. Making being forced (either physically or socioeconomically) to work in the mines almost a death sentence. The resources extracted are then taken and used for the sole benefit of Piltover. Similar to how the British would cause famines in it's colonies, by taking all the produced food for themselves. During Silco and Jayce's exchange on conditions for peace, Silco lists "free trade routes". The European colonial system placed heavy trade restrictions on their colonies, making it almost impossible to trade with anyone other than the empire it belongs to. In the end the undercity isn't some small poor community in a thriving American city. It is India under the thumb of the British Empire. It is French controled Africa. It is apartheid's era South Africa. And while the leaders that are celebrated most are people like Gandhi or Mandela. The freedom they strived for could not have come about without other, more extreme, leaders.

my theory is that younger silco started with a more lowerclass cockney/zaunite accent but developed a classier way of speaking in his rise to power. you can hear some dropped gs in silco's drowning flashback soliloquy.

Yeah I kind of thought that when he said that it was like everything Jinx embodied. It's not that I didn't sense any love or care in that at all, because I feel like Silco did actually care and love Jinx, but what she was and the things that she embodied were more important than the person could ever be. This is to me the reason why he didn't say I love you, is because the reasons that he would never give her up follow the same sort of outline to his pursuit of power. Power comes to those who are willing to do anything, and he, even in death was thinking of Jinx and his own power and vision that would live on within her.