User reviews

This has no right being as good as it is. I mean, it's based on a video game, since when did that ever result in anything better than passable? But despite that this is one of the best shows I've watched in a long time.

I just saw the first episode of the new adaptation of the Wheel of time, and disappointed with that one I looked for something else and just happened to se that this was getting good reviews. It quickly grew on me and I binged the entire season in one sitting.

Arcane does everything right that so many shows and movies get wrong these days. They respect all of their characters, making sure that you understand why they do what they do and makes you sympathize with them. They take just the right amount of time to draw you in to the story and world before having major plotpoints happen, so that you really feel the impact of them. They set up things well in advance and makes sure to give you a proper payoff, so nothing feels rushed or cheap.

And something that is oh so rare these days; they are not afraid to give all of their characters flaws and allowing them to fail, no matter their gender or how powerful they are supposed to be. This is a show with two female main characters that both can overpower anyone, and none of them feel like they haven't earned it. And not once do they feel the need to belittle men to show how cool they are. Pay attention, creators of other shows, this is how you write powerful characters, regardless of gender, that your audience can feel invested in.

A special mention has to be given to the animators. Kudos to you for being able to make characters that can communicate both strong and subtle feelings clearer than most real actors are capable of. And also kudos to the choice of voice actors and music, both are top notch.

All in all a very enjoyable show that gives me a glimmer of hope for future entertainment, looking forward to season 2.

Made by gamers (RIOT) for gamers, but, also, is a stand alone piece of art for people, like me, unfamiliar with the game, LEAGUE OF LEGENDS. The series is visually stunning in 3D and 2D animation with beautiful attention to detail. There is incredible world building, an engaging story line, music that serves as narration and a stellar voice cast. I give this series a 9 (superb) out of 10. {Steampunk Fantasy Adventure}

I am a newbie to the source material, but the first 3 episodes of this show blew me away! And, now having seen the whole first season, my rating remains even more solidly a 10! :-)

Groundbreaking/beautiful animation, awesome environments, spectacular cinematography, cool musical choice, compelling characters, great voice casting/acting, and some interesting Sci-Fi/Fantasy lore! :-)

YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS SHOW!!! :-)

Beautiful storytelling, great underline currents, and the emotion behind this is just amazing. The story is for everyone, but especially for League of Legends fans. The entire time I was watching it I was trying to piece together who is whom. And some of them are obvious but other ones really make you dig deep and see where they're trying to head.

I truly believe this is a fantastic series, I love everything I've seen of it so far. 10/10 a complete knockout.

I have heard of it but never played it. When i first turned this on and saw kids i immediately turned it off and sighed "not another kids show". But then i kept watching and realized this is not a kids show. It just has kids as characters. But wow it got dark and good.

I watched it with my parents who don't know anything about league's universe. I have been playing league since 2010, So my opinion may be a bit biased.

But my parents were pleasantly surprised. They said that sometimes it was a little clear that this series is more aimed at a young adult audience. Some usage of the pop songs, and the villian being a little over the top mustace twirly.

But overall they enjoyed the first 3 episodes and wouldn't mind watching the rest in their own time.

As for me. I loved it! It was everything I hoped for and then some. Riot's art department was always on their A game. And with the track record from Fortiche I knew this had very little chance to blunder.

Knowing Riot's art department it has an excellent story, well written charaters and a lore rich world to take elements from. All in all, this show comes together very nicely. And shows some of the best talents Riot has to offer.

9/10: Amazing.

Arcane: An animated SF/Fantasy Steampunk series on Netflix. In the cities of Piltover and Zaun there is unrest, Piltover the upper city literally looks down on and oppresses Zaun. We have gangs of thieves, rebels, steampunk Stormtroopers, magic melded with science. This is serious stuff with great physical and "magic" fights. Also a tale of two sisters falling out and Scientist/Mages battling against the conservatism of the Council who fear the unleashing of uncontrollable powers. It's set in the League Of Legends game universe. Directed by Pascal Charrue and Arnaud Delord, written by Christian Linke and Alex Yee. 9/10.

As someone who had never played the game before, this was a great introduction to its lore. The story was riveting and the pacing was perfect. And the amazing animation and soundtrack just enhanced the entire viewing experience. The VAs did an incredible job as well, particular the VA for Powder/Jinx.

I'm not a League of Legends player. In fact, I know almost nothing about it. But this show is fantastic. To say that the opening scenes of the first episode were "gripping" is an understatement. I don't often start on the edge of my seat with a TV show-- animated or live action.

(UPDATE 1/14/2022: Rewatching the show for the second time and the opening scene still puts me at the edge of my seat, holding my breath. Wow.)

The animation is well above average for a TV series. It's atmospheric in ways that most animated series don't even try. This isn't just another Star Wars-style animated series. It feels distinctly unique.

The characters are also really interesting. Again, I know nothing about League of Legends. But based on the series description, I'm assuming at least a couple of these characters become a league champion? Ultimately, I have no idea what that really means. But I'm interested in finding out.

And that's why I think this series is really successful. I don't know anything about the source material, but after just the opening scenes of the first episode, I'm invested in finding out more.

10/10 easily. I would give it that score just for the first few minutes of the series alone.

It was no secret that this show was something special in the making after its 1st season, but after hearing it would conclude with season 2 I was sad yet exhilarated. The creators could've easily dragged this series on but decided to stick with their guns and end it on the terms they set. I wanted Arcane to be around 3-4 seasons long so the announcement of 2 was shocking to me given how much it took the world by storm in 2021. But it gave the creators the freedom to go all out with its final season and hold no punches, and I'm sad to say it was still very rushed and lacked the character drive of season 1.

Season 1 of Arcane shattered boundaries by setting the stage perfectly with only 3 episodes, then proceeding to commit and deliver one of the best 1st seasons in TV history along with the likes of GOT, AOT and True Detective. The final season in comparison felt very lackluster, lacked focus, and above all had poor execution. Some of the writing decisions on paper seemed brilliant, yet seeing them play out was another story. The contrast of care put into characters in season 1 & 2 was night and day. The story surrounding Viktor & Jace, arguably the two most important characters in the series, needed much more time considering the stakes yet their story, like much of this season, feels like it comes and goes.

Despite my complaints one of the best aspects of arcane is its animation. Studio Fortiche brought a whole new level of creativity that can't be boxed into any category. It's a breath of fresh air and adds a unique look into this story. But I'd argued that the writing in season 1 is what made this show a must watch. In hindsight it doesn't hit the same knowing where the story goes, but it still holds weight with its characters that are unique to that season. I'd also add that many aspects of season 2 act 2 were great and it was the highlight of the final season.

While there are some all time great female characters in TV like Kim Wexler & Annalise Keating to name my favorites, it's not often when both leads of a show are female characters and are also written very well. The dynamic of Violet & Powder is one of the best in Arcane and the performances of Hailee Steinfeld & Ella Purnell / Mia Sinclair Jenness only further invoke the emotional appeal of these characters that have so much depth in that regard, despite the execution with these two not seeing its full potential in the end.

If you're recommending a show to anyone, this is still a good one due to the fact that it hooks you with an all time great TV episode just a couple of episodes in, and only has 2 seasons that give you little to no room to breathe. While I'm disappointed with the lack of care in the back half, I understand that others experiences could differ from mine.

Arcane tells the story of two young orphaned sisters, growing up and getting into trouble in the dual city of Zaun and Piltover.

The series is based on the video game League of Legends, and although it drops you right into this fictional world, the necessary time and care is taken to set up places and characters in a commendable show-don't-tell fashion. Solid character development and world building means it's an entirely enjoyable watch without knowing anything about the game.

The animation is outright exquisite. As an anime fan, I found the animation in Arcane to be leagues beyond anything I've ever seen from an animated series before. There is an incredible attention to detail. It's clear that no artistic talent or monetary expense was spared in bringing the world of Runeterra to life.

Great soundtrack, great acting and a compelling story that doesn't pull any punches when it comes to violence and more adult themes.

So far only the first three episodes have been released, and I can't wait to see what else they have in store for us!

Here's to the new us.

League of Legends (LoL)' first project in expanding its own cinematic universe is done. The story between sisters, rich and poor, loyalty and betrayal, peace and war, and everything in between.

There's a common saying that LoL's big budget went into animation instead of balancing the champions in game, and this couldn't be more right. I did not expect this masterful level of animation. After each episode, they found more ways to wow audiences with amazing visuals and transitions. The fighting scenes were hard-hitting and jaw-dropping.

Even though the series wasn't fully canon to the original lore, it's still an intense story that set up an interesting universe. Not gonna lie, the first act didn't impress me too much, but episode 4 afterward got me entirely on board. My only problem with the story was that I just couldn't get enough of it. I wanted more and I don't like waiting.

Just as cool as the animation was the characters. Many character dynamics fascinated me and made me realized how much I needed them. I'll admit that some characters were straightforward, but not all of them were predictable. Some still surprised me until the very end. The directions for all characters were incredible.

Overall, even though the game was a love-hate relationship, Arcane was for sure all love, and a phenomenal step in setting up LOLCU. 8.5/10.

Arcane (2021)

I have never played a single minute of League of Legends in my life but I always knew how influential this online game is. Normally, I wouldn't have paid attention to this series but considering the 9.4 on IMdB, I had to check out at least an episode to see what is so incredible about it. Starting of in a rather casual way, I wasn't too impressed with what I saw in that first episode, but the cliffhanger made me want to see what would happen next. Once I climbed that cliff, I was immersed into a fast paced steampunk world that had a lot to offer and many more cliffhangers to be experienced.

The animation style of this series is best described as taking 6 buckets of paint, throwing them into a 10,000 volt transformer and stepping into the electrical blend of colors to be engulfed in the sheer awesomeness. As you adjust to this dynamic animation, you wilk see a story of an inventor, an underworld crime boss and a girl who wants to find her sister. All of these characters find themselves in the middle of a political intrigue that involves a utopian city and a rotten underbelly with it's social classes striving to achieve their goals by any means necessary. To top it off, there is plenty of emotional stuggle between family, friends and enemies.

While all the technical, sound and visual aspects are second to none, it is the characters that made me want to come back to this series again and again. The show is irresistible to watch and the two reasons for that are the masterfully crafted intro that got me pumped in the beginning of each episode and the nail-biting cliffhangers that made me want to see hiw the story continues. Whether you like videogames or not, this show will grab your interest and won't let up until the final second. At that point, you will be anxiously waiting for season 2 which I hope will come very soon.

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I came into this show completely blind, including the fact that I had never played League of Legends. This show really caught me by surprise, and I'm am so glad I stumbled upon it randomly. It took me one evening to binge watch the six episodes that are currently on Netflix. This is now, along with Castlevania, one my favorite animated series to ever exist. I really hope this show can stay good; and stay long. It's such an interesting universe already, I feel like it could go really far.

What I especially enjoyed was how expressive the characters are. Character development is impressive for every single major character. Many of the characters are morally grey in a realistic way. Most shows are lucky to get a few characters that go through good character development arcs- in Arcane we get to see all the main characters develop and it's never forced or unrealistic. Overall, Arcane is a masterclass in world-building and character writing. This puts most other television shows to shame in the intensity and detail of its story, and will be remembered as a staple in the development and adaptation of modern fantasy for years to come. I'm really looking forward to season 2.

I'm not a big league of legends player but I deeply appreciated the animation, storyline, and music of Arcane. This is one of the best animated series I have ever watched. My wife has never player league of legends and she loves the arcane series so far.

Season 1 was the best animated series that I have ever seen. I would have given this series a 10/10, but...

Season 2 ended up being a stark contrast to the emotionally gripping and well-crafted first season. The story felt chaotic and unfocused toward the end, making it hard to stay invested in what was happening. The characters, who were once unique and well-developed, gradually lost their individuality and became generic.

One major issue was the attempt to give every character some sort of "redemption arc," creating the impression that no one was truly "bad." While this can work in some stories, here it felt like a forced attempt at a "Pixar-style philosophy" that ultimately fell flat. This undermined the conflicts and relationships that made the first season so compelling.

Jinx, in particular, stood out as a major disappointment. In the first season, she was one of the most complex and captivating characters, but by the end of this season, she completely lost her spark. Her character felt ruined, which was especially disheartening given how central she was to the emotional weight of the story. Silco once said "I never would have given you to them. Not for anything. Don't cry. You're perfect." and I agree, she WAS perfect.

Overall, Season 2 was a weak follow-up. Where the first season evoked strong emotions and made you deeply care about the characters, this one left only a faint impression. Expectations were high, but unfortunately, they weren't met.

Season 1 was excellent. And if you check the reviews you'll see most of the 9/10 of 10/10 reviews are from before the release of season 2.

That's because season 2 fails to deliver on everything that season 1 set up. Where S1 focused on the story of the characters against an interesting background, S2 looses that balance. It doesn't give enough attention to the existing characters and even introduces new characters. And fails to fully develop those new characters. Background material like for the Arcane is begun but never wrapped up. S2 tries too much, and then promptly fails to deliver for all of it. The ideas and material for 2 or 3 seasons are crammed into 1, and everything suffers for it.

S1 is still worth a watch, if you're OK with watching "incomplete" shows. Add the first couple of episodes of S2, and then simply move on. Ignore the rest.

After S1 I couldn't wait for S2. Now that S2 is released I'm glad there won't be a S3.

I never played the game lots of people at my jobs are fan of it.

But this series is amazing, anime, story everything i can't wait to see season 2 and where it goes.