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Arcane Season 1 Episode 6 Recap – When These Walls Come Tumbling Down
BY Harris
Published 2 years ago
An Illness
In the fissures of the Undercity, a young Viktor is working on his invention: a windup boat. He sets it out into the river while he limps along with his wooden cane. His boat leads him to a small cavern, where he finds a strange hermit in his cabin. The man is with a creature he claims to have cultivated, along with mysterious flowers glowing around his cave. The creature called Rio is dying; Viktor offers to assist the man. He agrees, saying they can be loners together.
In the present day, Viktor comes back to see the place from above. Heimerdinger approaches to comfort him in his prognosis. Viktor contemplates his death, saying he isn’t satisfied with his accomplishments. He thinks they are merely figments compared to the professor. The professor tells him those who shine the brightest often burn the fastest.
Jayce meets Medarda in her studio while she paints. He apologizes to Mel for leaving so early the previous night. He tells her of Viktor’s condition. They think it came from the gasses in the Undercity where he grew up. Jayce laments he couldn’t save him. His research was supposed to improve lives, not just for wealth. Viktor was the one who saved him, and now he feels powerless.
Jayce finds comfort in Medarda, who admits she is an exile in her own family. Medarda tells Jayce to be with Viktor.
Discoveries
Viktor is back at the lab, contemplating the weird movements of the gemstone. He sees his own blood and realizes the gem had contact with it. He reaches out to the device.
Jinx goes to a bartender named Chuck for news of what Silco’s gang is doing. He tells her of Sevika’s fight; they are searching for some girls. Jinx pranks him with a smoke bomb for his tip.
Caitlyn is helping Vi up, who is struggling to walk. They reach a place with a huge neon sign. Vi jumps down but falls clumsily due to her wounds.
The masked Firelight leader watches them from above, noticing the men chasing after Vi.
Sevika goes into Silco’s office to tell him they lost Vi, but she sees Jinx seated on his chair. Jinx activates her trap, filling the office with toxic fumes. Sevika passes out.
Sevika wakes up as Jinx slaps her face. Tied up on a chair, Jinx interrogates her, but Sevika immediately reveals Vi is back. The lieutenant taunts her, telling Jinx she’s worthless and her sister has replaced her. Jinx feigns sadness, then laughs.
Dangerous Threats
Back in their home, Sheriff Marcus ponders his next step. When he checks in on his daughter, he finds Silco and some henchmen there, playing with her. Silco asks Marcus about Vi. Marcus insists she is in a cell, but Silco refutes him. Vi is in the Lanes with an enforcer around the same age.
Marcus tells Silco he can’t control Caitlyn but promises to do something. Silco warns the Sheriff that Vi and Silco cannot return to the surface. Marcus agrees, threatened by his child’s safety.
Viktor shows his new discovery to Jayce: the gemstone cube is responding to organic matter, growing an unusual plant with its energy. Viktor suggests it could extend life; Jayce adds it could even cure him — but there’s a problem — the plant withers. Each specimen has rejected transformation.
Jayce tells him they can solve it. Viktor laments they don’t have enough time. Still, they keep working at it.
Down Under
Vi and Caitlyn find themselves deep in the underbelly of Zaun, where beggars and undesirables live. They find a room to hide. Vi lies down, nauseous. She remembers the place; she had lived there with Powder before.
Caitlyn tries to nurse her wounds, but Vi refuses. She doesn’t like topsiders. Caitlyn tells her they’re people too. In the room, Vi keeps seeing visions of a young Powder.
Heimerdinger comes in to check on Viktor’s experiment. Viktor calls it Hexcore — Hextech that evolves. The professor, who’s seen the atrocities of magic in the past tells them to destroy it. What caused the destruction before looked exactly like it. He steps forward, but Jayce blocks his way. He tells the professor to leave it for the council to decide.
Caitlyn goes outside to find help when a man greets her at the door. He claims to know Vi and owes Vander his life. She points his rifle at him, telling him Vi needs a doctor. The man leads him to someone who can help.
They find a shop selling potions. Caitlyn trades in her rifle, as the shopkeeper puts a drop of Shimmer into the vial. She hugs the old man for his help.
Deliberations
Marcus brings Jinx’s grenade to Jayce, claiming it as evidence against the Firelights. Jayce orders him to strengthen security, starting with the bridges. Marcus tells her about Caitlyn freeing a prisoner. The councilor tells him to stay out of it.
The councilors meet to decide the future of Hexcore. Heimerdinger argues they have lost their way and cannot be subject to power and pride — it has destroyed the world before.
Jayce argues back. He tells Heimerdinger that Shimmer has been rampant underground and has been causing chaos and destruction. Jayce argues they can heal the city. He challenges the professor on what he has done to make progress. In the end, he suggests it is time for Heimerdinger to retire.
The council members are left speechless, but one by one, they raise their hands — a unanimous decision.
Caitlyn gives Vi the potion. After the initial shock from Shimmer, she wakes up. Caitlyn finds drawings in the room. She learns about Powder; the enforcers had killed their parents.
Confrontations
There’s a commotion outside as Silco and his goons are waiting. Vi asks for her sister, threatening to burn Silco’s empire down. Drugged-up goons attack them, but Vi punches the building down, collapsing it. The neon lights fall on Silco.
Jinx takes the flare Vi gave her several years ago and lights it up. Vi climbs to safety, aided by Caitlyn.
Marcus and his team arm themselves to guard the Undercity.
We flash back to Viktor’s past, where Rio is infused with the extracts from the purple flowers — an early version of Shimmer.
Viktor approaches the old man in the present day.
Silco goes back to his office, only to find Jinx had learned about her sister. Sevika hangs from the ceiling with the words ’liar’ scrawled around her.
Reunion
Just as Jinx’s signal runs out, Vi finds her; the sisters hug each other. Vi explains she got arrested. Jinx asks her if she’s real. Vi reassures her it’s all right then Caitlyn appears.
Caitlyn learns they are sisters. Jinx distrusts the enforcer. Tensions flare, along with the voices in Jinx’s head.
Jinx tells Vi that Powder is dead. She suspects her sister of going after her gem. Vi insists she came back only for her and won’t abandon her again. The voices growl in Jinx’s head. A gang of Firelights appears from the sewers. The sisters defend themselves from the circling attackers.
A Firelight member takes the Hextech gemstone. Vi sees her sister’s violent nature before she is taken out. The Firelights distract Jinx with smoke and take her sister. Jinx is enraged.
Our Thoughts
This series really doesn’t know how to let up, does it? I really appreciate how every scene feels so meaty, there doesn’t seem to be a lost detail. Every single movement moves the story along. How cool Jinx’s internal voices are presented — definitely my favorite character. I rate this a 4/5.
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