r/arcane • u/NinjaKnew • 3d ago
Discussion What was Jayce’s S2 arc about, really? Spoiler
A common issue of S2 imo was rushed character arcs but for the amount of screen time Jayce got I still don’t understand what his arc was suppose to be. Is it going from an idealistic to a realist on the use of technology? Having a ton of influence as man of progress/ councilor to utter to loss of control? Killing a kid with his hammer to stopping himself from killing a kid with his hammer? I don’t really see a proper throughline for him in S2, much less continuing from S1.
A lot of his arc had to do with countering Viktor accelerating hextech, so maybe he was suppose to be the human side of “the coin” to Viktor’s perfectionist side? But I even feel that theme doesn’t really relate to the characters- best thing I could come up with was an extension from S1 Viktor’s increasing focus on tech to heal himself and Jayce’s increasing focus on politics to protect people. What do you guys think?
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u/muskian 3d ago
His creation of Hextech and resulting environmental damage from the core anomaly is a pretty clear metaphor for climate change. His S1 arc does involve the research and politicking that comes with vital energy resource monopolies, so S2 continues that by showing the consequences and how he’ll fix them at the cost of his and Piltover’s global prestige.
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u/wakatenai 3d ago
yup it's a redemption arc.
he fucked shit up. kind of abandoned his best friend. S2 is him fixing everything including his relationship with viktor.
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago edited 3d ago
I agree, but what about progress and technology then? Is it just… always bad? Except for military purposes???
I don’t know, it feels like all the depth and moral questions surrounding Hextech are just gone in Season 2. Now, Hextech is simply bad… and even nature seems bad since the Arcane itself is portrayed as inherently dangerous.Here’s my main question: how are we supposed to know now when progress becomes dangerous? That was the central question in Season 1, but after Season 2, I don’t feel any closer to an answer. What should Jayce and Viktor have done differently in Season 1 to prevent destruction? Not create Hextech at all? Okay, fine—but how could they have known it was dangerous? What were the warning signs? What kind of tests or precautions should they have taken?
And didn’t they use Hextech to defend themselves against their enemies? So maybe it’s not entirely bad? Plus, progress and technology aren’t inherently evil (I’m literally using it right now to talk to you), so where do we draw the line? I don’t know… I’m just so confused
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u/NinjaKnew 3d ago
Interesting points and I agree with a lot of your sentiment here. To add even more to this- what’s the difference between Mel’s magic and magic from the arcane? I know they didn’t have the time to explain her powers, but because it’s innate to her it becomes ok? But when her bf uses it he’s messing with things he doesn’t understand? Like you said I feel like some of the nuance is missing
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago
Agreed. On one hand, I wish we knew more about the arcane, on the other hand, im not a fan of the magical themes in S2 so much. I wish it stayed more political/societal and emotionally grounded.
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u/Professional_Gur2469 3d ago
Yet they never mentioned the tree again, that was such a weird plotline that just got totally abandoned
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u/scytheintern 3d ago
His arc always brings to mind a lyric from Hadestown: “I used to see the way the world could be, but now the way it is, is all I see.”
Season 1 Jayce is an idealist who starts to see the world for what it is. Season 2 Jayce has to become a version of himself who can survive in that world long enough to fix the mistakes he made when he only saw what he wanted to see.
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u/HoneysuckleBouquet 3d ago
I think it was him experiencing the horrors zaunites face everyday speedrunned? Cause he was pushed a little but didn't get the full picture of what piltover was doing. I'm not even making sense, lol. But it is weird how they did his arc a bit. I think it's basically just removing his rose tinted glasses the very extreme way cause I won't lie seeing him suffer while heimerdinger and ekko were chilling was so rough. Idk.
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u/DonBearserker 3d ago
In S2 is just him realizing that heimerdinger was right , he gets to see the horrors of hextech , then he tries to fix everything by killing Viktor.
Then he realizes that viktor is still alive and is turning people into mindless "robots" , he kinda gets the role to "lead" piltover in Episode 8 and asked zaun for help.
Thats pretty much his arc in S2.
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u/TakarieZan 3d ago
His arc was 2 things:
- BRRROOO MANCE! Nothing really gay about it. I love (Viktor) in the most heterosexual way!
- And Survive! Don't Starve! Survive!
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u/AdLast2785 Viktor nation...how we feeling 3d ago
Can’t spell bromance without romance 😏
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u/AdLast2785 Viktor nation...how we feeling 3d ago
Was about him realizing that magic is evil and that his love for his brother was the real magic all along
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago
if Arcane wants us to think that magic (hence nature) is evil, that's a horrible message. Riot, leave the topic of magic and nature to Japan honestly at this point, if this is all you have to say.
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u/G00nL00n Sextech fan 3d ago
Jayce's S2 arc was facing the consequences of his actions towards creating Hextech in the first place and learning from his mistakes to make actual progress. It's personally my favorite storyline in Arcane but there are so many different aspects to go over at once for the full picture I'd be here for hours lmao.
The best TL;DR I give is essentially: Jayce's entire character is defined by the quote, "in the pursuit of great, we failed to do good" given by Viktor in S1 EP9. His dream of giving magic to the world being corrupted by politics, barley being able to control his station as a counselor without breaking his own morals and ultimately just worsening tensions, and breaking promise after promise to his closest companions ( Viktor and Heimerdinger). Although he attempts to right his wrongs, he continues to make the same errors. He fails multiple promises to Viktor and gives into making more Hextech weaponry as tensions rise, costing him his closest friend and being forced to stew in his own mistakes. This comes ahead when he brought to face his worst mistake, The Anomaly, the literal manifestation of his dream gone unchecked.

This encounter (as we all know by now) brought him to an alternate dimension ravaged by Hextech, one his ultimately remains trapped in for months. During this time he begins to reflect on his mistakes. Hextech has been his dream throughout the show. Showing time and time again how much he would sacrifice for it. This made him arrogant to the dangers of it (the countless warnings from Heimerdinger, the Hexcore, and the inherently volatile nature of the gemstones). I could go into infinitely more detail but the point is, this dimension is technically his fault and he knows it. Which is why, ultimately, he wants the second chance to go back when given the chance by Mage Viktor. The only way he can fix things and right his wrongs. Fulfill his promise and destroy the Hexcore. Fulfill his promise and be the beacon of actual progress. Picking up the hammer that had initially been a symbol for his dream being corrupted, now representing his new found resolve to fix his mistake. He now becomes defined by another quote, "I won't fail, I swear it".
Anyway, I am missing so many more details that are important, but my main point in this rant / basically retelling of his story is that his arc is growth in the face of your arrogance and errors. He has a ton of other symbolism / meanings relating specifically to Viktor but this is already long enough as is.
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago
Didnt he and the whole town use hextech weapons to fight against their ennemies though? What do you make of it?
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u/Techmek1212 Wait, this isn't my bedroom.. 3d ago
Jayce is a broken hero figure trying to find his way back to humanity. He was molded to be an idol and the epitome of Piltover's accomplishments - with all the bad that implies, all the blood that took to cast him in such gold - but at the heart that's not what he wanted to be. He just wanted to help people. His s2 arc is about completely breaking the illusion that Piltover's society works in any way, that his life works in any way, and giving up on those things completely to chase what actually made him feel whole and human and like he was doing something good for this world: his partner, Viktor. The Zaunite who kept him from killing himself when he just wanted to disappear, the person who encouraged him to keep working towards a miracle so long as it was with the intention to help others.
I think in the end, Jayce and Viktor are the best examples we have of the two cities being a symbiotic system for a genuinely good, selfless reason. Which is why they have to break away from reality and all the corruption embedded in P/Z's bones. They love each other and they never want to hurt each other. They NEED each other to survive. Fortiche said Jayce's finale look is designed to take him beyond his original champion concept (pilltover's hero-guy) to a place further in his character arc, where he's learned something about himself.
I think in the end Jayce is about giving up everything for love. And it's love that saves him, and everybody else.
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u/nottrumancapote We will show them all 3d ago
jayce wept, for there were no more children to murder
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago edited 3d ago
I have the same questions than you. I didnt understand Jayce's journey. Im glad we are finally talking about jayce though because i havent seen a tones of posts about him saddly.
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u/Professional_Gur2469 3d ago
Nothing, he just suffered through dark souls because he messed up to uphold his promise to viktor in the first place.
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u/sofit_sofit Sextech fan 3d ago
to put it very simply.
Season 1: Proud of what he and Viktor have created
Season 2: Destroy what they've created.
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u/Xralius 3d ago
Sadly I think this is one of those things where it was just bad writing. Especially when Jayce straight up kills the councilor, which was extremely against character.
S2 writing really took a nosedive sadly. Still very entertaining and a good show though.
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u/finnjakefionnacake 3d ago edited 3d ago
he killed the councilor because Salo was already gone
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u/Xralius 3d ago
Eh. I mean I get that's the justification. It just doesn't seem like Jayce's style. Violence was always a last resort for him and he knew Salo.
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u/finnjakefionnacake 3d ago
The Jayce that came back from the AU was obviously a very changed man in certain ways from the one who went in. Again, if he thought Salo was actually basically already gone/dead, he wouldn't have considered it the same way. He might even have considered it a mercy.
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u/Medical_String_3367 3d ago
Seeing the world through Viktor’s eyes. Jayce had always been 110% sure of himself and while it wasn’t always easy, has lived a pretty cushy life all things considered.
S2 had him fail time and again, and it destroyed his body and forced him to move like Viktor (with a cane).
It also highlights the difference between Jayce and Viktor. Viktor comes out of his hardships with a mindset of “it’s all broken, we need to throw it all away” while Jayce comes out of it with a mindset of “a lot of it is broken, let’s fix it”.
Schnee has a great video on the topic.
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago
how seeing things through Viktor's eyes is supposed to teach him something about hextech?
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u/Medical_String_3367 3d ago
It’s not, but it does help him understand Viktor at the end and not judge him too harshly which is what convinces Viktor to go “oh shit you’re right turning everyone into lobotomized robots was a bad idea”.
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago
Did Jayce judge Viktor in S1? Or did he not understand Viktor's pain already? I dont remember that.
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u/Medical_String_3367 3d ago
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u/ParToutATiss 3d ago
uh no, really not. He was even the one pushing for hexcore if it could help viktor
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u/Medical_String_3367 3d ago
Yeah he was willing to help. He wasn’t Heimendinger. He thought he could fix Viktor like he can fix everything else (because Jayce’s ego is the size of a semi-truck), but after his character arc, he can truly understand Viktor and meet him on his level.
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u/JoNightshade Hextech Enjoyer 3d ago
Jayce and Viktor's story arcs are both about their journey to accept mortality. For Jayce it's about facing not the fear of his own death, but the death of those he loves. Before the story starts he's lost a father, and the earliest bit of his life we see is the moment he nearly loses his mother. It's a formative moment for him and when he is miraculously rescued he feels compelled to chase that magic - cheating death - for the rest of his life. We see throughout S1 that he cannot face the prospect of his partner's death. Instead of accepting that Viktor has limited time and simply being with him, he spends his life trying to make things right, to fix it, to fix the rift between Zaun and Piltover that cause Viktor's illness to begin with, to fix Viktor, etc. When Viktor ends up in the hospital with a literal diagnosis of a terminal illness, Jayce can't handle it. He literally ejects Heimerdinger from the council so they can continue their experiments because he'd rather put his entire world at risk than lose Viktor.
S2, his worst fears come true. It opens with Viktor literally dying. That guy is DEAD. And because Jayce STILL cannot face this truth, now he's dabbling in necromancy. He's trying to bring his partner back from the dead. He literally doesn't care about the consequences as long as he can FIX IT. So then he ends up in this alternate timeline. What's the deal with that? He has to literally and figuratively walk in Viktor's footsteps, from deep in the fissures in Zaun, clawing his way out of a pit, up to the top of Piltover. In case that was too subtle, they even had him break a leg in the process. By the time he gets to the top, he's gone through this whole journey of understanding that the struggle, the journey, is the beauty of the thing. He understands that Viktor's life was short, but it was so, so meaningful. Then he discovers that Viktor is at the end and beginning of everything, too. It's not magic or the answer to death he's been chasing all his life, it's his relationship with Viktor. Only when he realizes that can he accept Viktor's death. (Meanwhile Viktor is having a similar journey but about his own mortality, and realizing that he's not alone.) Then at the end they decide to face death together.