Blind Reaction: Arcane Season 1 Episode 1 "Welcome to the Playground"

In which we begin a journey that shows near limitless potential, and screams of everything I could want in a show.
Arcane: League of Legends
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[@TheFlamingShark]

Alright, so I have finished Season 1 prior to this first reaction being released. I'm very excited to share these reactions with all of you, so this should be a very special ride. Also, never thought I'd be reacting to Imagine Dragons, but here we are kekw. Also, speaking of music, would you guys be interested in a reaction to the lyrical songs of Arcane after my episode 9 reaction eventually drops? Similar to how I do reactions to the RWBY Soundtracks after each volume of that series. Arcane had quite a few, so I could make a fairly long video just listening to the songs and giving my thoughts on them in association to the series, again, as I do with RWBY. For the record, I did watch the full music video for Enemy after finishing the show, so I have heard that full song, but I have purposely stayed away from all the other songs in case you'd all be interested in such a video.

[@theblahwhatsup6558]

Yeah :)

[@blueao2670]

YES PLEASE. AND GOD FOR THIS COMMENT TO BE 2 WEEKS OLD, I KNOW YOU WERE ITCHING TO FINALLY UPLOAD THIS VID. I LOVE YOU SHARK YOU GODDAMN BEAUTIFUL MAN

[@baruda-_]

YESSSS everything arcane-related is pretty good

[@loganshalloe5927]

I'd certainly want to see those reactions, this show's soundtrack is nuts

[@tylerdixon2173]

YES PLEASE!!!!!!!

[@lockekappa500]

I'd wouldn't worry so much about what you're missing in the show. If anything just appreciate how much you gain by going in blind. Asking every other scene if this character is a champion or not will drive you crazy. Just take it all in. The show is made for the regular viewer in mind.

[@severedproxy]

Agreed, I would even go so far to say that you miss a lot more when you try to look for references, kinda like how he missed the jinxes every job line. Most of the references are not important to the story, just a little incentive for people who play the game. The series was made with people who don't play the game in mind. I would even go so far to say that arcane was not made to entice people to play league but to hype them up for the lore and world of runeterra for the upcoming release of riots fighting game and MMO.

[@lockekappa500]

@@severedproxy Sadly it worked on me....a month into league lol. To be fair I had been wanting to play with friends for a while now. Arcane pushed me over the proverbial edge.

[@severedproxy]

@@lockekappa500 It's fine, it worked on me too, but I just play AI, normals or TFT. I avoid ranked like the plague. 1 or 2 games a day maybe, then I go back to LoR.

[@lockekappa500]

@@severedproxy It's ok, my reservations are tempered. I have a couple years in DOTA 2, so I know what to avoid and what to stay clear of! Agreed, also a fan of LoR.

[@thewingedone1172]

@@lockekappa500 If you played Dota, you should know that what you should "stay clear of" is MOBA genre in general:)

[@IM-vv5dm]

41:34 My impression about the Enforcers using the breathing masks was for two reasons. One, they don't have to inhale any of the pollutants that is most likely all around the under-city as a result of essentially being Piltover's dumpster. Also, it hints at the Enforcers' elitism in the sense that they shouldn't have to breathe the same air as the criminals and lower class citizens of the Lanes.

[@finnpie9669]

U are right! TLDR: > Piltover and Zaun (formerly The Lanes) were once one nation > Something goes boom > The peeps from the undercity suffered for years and seen as poor and those things > The 2 city was separated Pilt-over from Zaun (The Undercity)

[@thechh8297]

@@finnpie9669 im pretty sure Zaun is still a part of Piltover at this point. Independance was part of the deal. In the lore, sometime in the past the whole area became toxic, can't remember why, until a wandering wind spirit cleared the air. The river is still toxic.

[@finnpie9669]

@@thechh8297 since Arcane is separate from LOL's lore u are right but im pretty sure in lol they are separate (but i may be wrong lol) And yeah thats Janna the spirit but she's getting unpopular so the toxins are getting worse still xD

[@mariaantonia-op8qc]

@@thechh8297 If I remember correctly they were trying to create a canal linking the two oceans with an controlled explosion, turns out it wasn't very controlled in the end and roughly half the city kinda "sank". The explosion opened underground caves they didn't know were there, toxic gas got leaked from them but then janna (the wind goddess gal) answered the people's prayers and saved them. The air on the undercity is still pretty shitty tho, the lower you go the worse it gets.

[@mariaantonia-op8qc]

@@finnpie9669 yeah in lore they are separated, I just don't remember if they always were separated like that (piltover and zaun) since the explosion or if it's like arcane where the undercity was part of piltover, but got their independence as a separeted city after some time

[@clementolatum]

When I watched Invincible I really didn't expect to find an adult cartoon I liked more for a very long time, let alone in the same year but here we are lmao

[@Vonias]

For real haha. Western animation is hitting a good stride, hope it keeps up.

[@manolgeorgiev9664]

2 God tier adult cartoons within a single year! 2021 Really put the bar high for western animation.

[@otakugirl5512]

If you're intrested in adult cartoons, go check out The Legend of Vox Machina.

[@Dacre1000]

@@Vonias There is more to the "west" than America. Plenty of great western animation has been made for years, adult and otherwise, but the Empire only cares about himself.

[@Dr.HooWho]

You'll be happy to hear season 2 will be close by for arcane and invincible

[@colt1903]

"She Jinxes Every Job" Should sign her up as an enforcer. Make their work hell.

[@redeyedanime2512]

Just a minor comment but, I doubt they had to pay much for Imagine Dragons lol. They have been working together for nearly a decade now, and it seems whatever Riot does, Imagine Dragons is usually involved in some way. From what I hear they really really enjoy working together with the people over at Riot.

[@robbywilliamson4152]

As someone who knew nothing about the lore and characters of League of Legends, this show is one of the biggest surprises I’ve had in a long time. If future seasons are able to maintain this level of quality, then it could easily become one of my all time favorite animated shows.

[@PerfectZeroMusic_]

Honestly Riot always knew how to make intricate and well-built stories so it's no surprise to me that Arcane was so good. And the one thing that sticks out is how well the separate character stories intertwine

[@abnormalvampire8366]

"immediately starting with the tragic backstory" laugh crying in pain right now

[@amberaizen]

i cant believe shark didnt catch onto mylo calling powder a jinx lol

[@FO0TMinecraftPVP]

Ikr

[@BLeePrit]

A fun fact. Imagine Dragons are actually league fans and have made music for them before.

[@somebrid2147]

The easter eggs aren't as many as you assume. The show is made with the regular viewer in mind.

[@saki1333]

There's a lot of Easter eggs, just in the room the robbed alone there's like 10 nods to items in the game ^-^

[@blueao2670]

LETS FUCKING GO! That Vi profile picture is goddamn perfect.

[@sofiagovea228]

That already tells you he’s liking the show a lot.

[@Krash2o]

Arcane is a good introduction to the League of Legends universe while being a great addition for fans of the game and the lore, especially considering there wasn't that much on Piltover characters. There are however some things that separates it from the cannon, similarly to marvel comics vs cinematic universe. Then you add the fact that this series in great.

[@wisefelipe]

I really hope they truly go for the comics vs CU route as more seasons/shows come out, so they don't have to be restricted by the game's current state or cannon. Although I can see that taking a few seasons to really be a thing

[@opsoo2229]

No matter how much I enjoy Arcane, I will never play league of legends

[@siph0r154]

Shark: "Well, It's sorta like you... It's certainly symbolic" Me: Yeah. You could say that.... given it's blue....and highly unstable.

[@0xVENx0]

i actually remember seeing league on your desktop around 7 or so years ago on one of your AT reactions xD

[@TheFlamingShark]

Yeah, that sounds about right. I played it exactly one time with some friends in high school, so that checks out.

[@beyondviolet]

I love how all sorts of people have reacted to and enjoyed this show, says a lot

[@pauloresende2203]

Fun Fact: Season 1 of Arcane (9 episodes) actually took 6 years to make.

[@omarmoore5000]

In other words season 2 ain't getting here anytime soon

[@sleepytoons2155]

@@omarmoore5000 I don’t think that’s the case. When developing a new and complex style it takes a while to get a hold on it. Especially since the tech they started with was no where near as good as tech is now. Now that they have a hold on things and have actual public support and more money to work with it def won’t take as long to come out with season 2. At most we’d probably be looking at 3 yrs. And at least, they could probably have it out by next year or the end of this one.

[@robbywilliamson4152]

From what I understand, the first episode was completed about 5 years ago. Then, it was put on hiatus for a couple years before the full series was officially greenlit, and the pandemic slowed things down further.

[@pape5473]

@@omarmoore5000 I mean they confirmed it wont come in 2022 but hinted at late 2023

[@mrhatty2644]

@@omarmoore5000 it won't take 6 years but definitely isn't going to take 1 year

[@zeemod1556]

As someone who knows next to nothing about League (I only discovered it was famous for having really great lore around the time this show came out) I loved the heck out of the show. It really doesn't come across as a Video Game show. It never goes out of its way to make references or in-jokes - but even if I'm wrong you can kind of get the impression when a show is doing that "for the fans" sort of thing even when you aren't a fan yourself, right? It's so heavy on doing that stuff "with a wink and a nod" kinda distractingly a times too. And here I never got that impression. I would not be surprised if many of the lore ideas (locations, characters, back stories, etc) were invented wholesale uniquely for this show. As someone who likes a good story it was really nice feeling like I never had to worry about how X or Y was connected to the game you know? You may even get the impression League fans don't know what will happen in the story. And by the end I completely forgot this is even tied to the game. If you removed "Riot Games Presents" and "League of Legends" subtitle I would have never known to begin with. Like when I hear these characters get mentioned in the future by League fans my brain will *specifically* go directly to these incarnations of the characters. The voice actors and writers really breathed a whole new kind of life into them and it keeps getting better.

[@me8wme8w]

oh my god you have no idea how many times i have thought to myself how it would be awesome if you would react to arcane. i absolutely love arcane and i too love watching you, so to be able to combine the two makes me very happy! i hope you love the experience as much as i have!

[@christopherross8976]

This show has been in production for several years and it shows from just how good it looks. The facial expressions on the models, music, animation, art, story, etc. are all top notch and gives the show a unique style and personality only known as “Arcane”

[@igorporfiirio4915]

Welcome to Arcane season 1, where anything shark thinks is a reference to the game, isn't

[@vyrimidghoalabrupt7922]

God has blessed us with Flamingshark and Arcane, combined. I cannot wait for the rest of the show.

[@superabi5214]

SO EXCITEDDDD CLICKED RIGHT AS YOU UPLOADED

[@qingelia7121]

HOLY oh my god I swear I had a heart attack getting this notif because Arcane is so good that it's a must react kind of thing and I didn't expect you to react this soon ohhagshah I'm on the verge of crying lmao I might be overreacting

[@nobodyurso6867]

You're right. Arcane has some quality reasons for the hype and I think you found why is that, all of these things will be paid of in a brilliant way, just as you said.

[@heisencraft_official]

This is one of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time, very hyped for this reaction series.

[@shade0636]

This is gonna be an amazing ride.

[@quarksarranged]

The show in total cost about $100M to produce and took 6 years. They put a LOT into it.

[@draftsmanCompulsive]

to be honest, I think the show works so much better if you *don't* know anything about league of legends

[@CrimsonNeo]

Same.

[@megasauruss]

Agreed. I know jackshit about it.

[@venomouswyverns8819]

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS FINALLY ITS SHARKS ARCANE REACTIONS

[@MagicDuckFMagicDuckF]

Man you never disappoint, I can't wait to see the rest of your reactions to this show

[@rafaelmartinez4803]

38:31 I love how this conversation is not even that "they defend you after you leave" thing, because Vi was already defending her ("She made a mistake, she's young"), and when Powder runs away, she says that Powder is her problem (not defending her at all) and starts talking about every problem Mylo have.

[@elkaidred0512]

This will for sure bump into your top 5 shows of all time once you're done with it. It's on a whole other LEAGUE!

[@Tvoya_mama_neploxa]

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES MY BOY!!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!

[@TheUndeadFish]

Oh, oh, the misery, of-waiting-for-TheFlamingShark-to-finally-put-out-reactions-for-this-series.

[@bthsr7113]

His name fits though.

[@zairaner1489]

I had kept this show of beause I knew you would react to it soo. Very excited to get into this show because I have never seen so much pure praise for a show.

[@phantomslay5612]

So it begins.......I'm very happy to see you starting this masterpiece of a show. Possibly the best thing to come out of 2021.....Aside from Fruits Basket's final season.

[@heisencraft_official]

And AoT final season.

[@phantomslay5612]

Yeah. That was pretty great too. It’s just my opinion though

[@august3046]

@@heisencraft_official fuck no

[@christianbenjaminledezmava8498]

I had a mini heart attack when I saw your new profile picture!!!

[@j.d.6901]

YESSSSSS ARCANE IS SO GOOOOD

[@DOCTOR.DEADHEAD]

YEOOOO I'M SO HYPE FOR THIS. Holy shit, you have no idea how happy I am that I get to rewatch this with your reactions, this just made my day. By far the best thing Netflix has put out if you ask me.

[@chelz7373]

So incredibly hyped for this; arcane was a masterpiece in every sense of the word

[@markarrington7397]

Dude, how did you get away with that reaction? Don’t get me wrong, it was awesome! But you played full song clips and basically the whole show. The screen in screen was perfect, and lastly your volume setting was dope! I’ve watched hundreds of reactions to this show hoping someone would come close to the experience like you did. Bravo man 😊

[@artboymoy]

I believe Riot made the music fair use except ENEMY but he even got away with that... I don't know how it's flagged and not flagged. Maybe he's paying them off. :)

[@markarrington7397]

@@artboymoy 🤣

[@artboymoy]

@@markarrington7397 Help me out. I'm an old guy and doesn't know what this two vertical lines mean. Thanks! :)

[@markarrington7397]

@@artboymoy are you talking about my response to you?

[@artboymoy]

@@markarrington7397 Oh actually I'm looking at it on another computer and can see it's a laughing emoji. Guess it doesn't look that way on all my machines.

[@gayninja6567]

Yess! I'm so excited for you to watch this show, it's definitely one of my favorite shows of all time. Love the new Vi pfp as well.

[@mello5442]

HELL YA!!! I have been thinking about how much I wanted to see him react to this just recently! LETS GOOOOOOO

[@manolgeorgiev9664]

"There seems to be a lot of time and effort put into it." Well, the show did take 6 years to produce, so...

[@loganshalloe5927]

Impeccably fitting new pfp is wonderful

[@yassermontasser7196]

LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO Arcane imo was the best thing to happen through 2021, so excited for you to react to it

[@Belbecat]

Oh thank gawd, last time I saw you do an update there was no mention of Arcane I thought we would have to wait months to see this xD glad you found a spot for it

[@tuulikannel]

29:47 noticed a kind of... name drop there.

[@fuminshoo1266]

YEEEESSS!!! Waiting so long for this FlamingShark reaction!!

[@krysmodina8556]

remember when you said infinity train had the strongest 1st season, this show might actually have THE strongest 1st season

[@buenoloco4455]

Good pick. I'm almost tearing up just hearing the music from the start. You gonna get a good ride with this one. Better fasten your seatbelt for what you're gonna get ; )

[@nickmilo932]

well.. he already finished it

[@lockekappa500]

@@nickmilo932 Where are you seeing that? He doesnt update his twitter or anything.

[@nickmilo932]

@@lockekappa500 literally pinned comment

[@nickmilo932]

@@lockekappa500 wait nvm... it isn't there anymore DX

[@Hana_H]

I saw the former pinned top comment too… Shark said he already finished this before even starting to post the reactions. Also, check his new profile pic - I don’t think he’d pick a character he’s only seen in one episode for a profile pic

[@comfehhh]

OKAY I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS LETS GOOO

[@pheonic3665]

OMG this show is so bloody good super excited to see your reaction.

[@ultrabaker1599]

So exited for this. I LOVED Arcane when it came out.

[@opsoo2229]

Wow I wasn't expecting an actual arcane reaction

[@lionheart4049]

Oh hell yeah!

[@perro692]

2021 was a good one for adult animation

[@Lambofgod2316]

Hell ya I cannot wait for you to get deeper in this show. This is easily one of my favorite shows in a while

[@recharge8936]

Okay I’m on another level of excitement for this reaction. Hopefully you like it shark!

[@nah1366]

OHMYGOD OHMYGOD

[@yassermontasser7196]

Btw Shark I think it's best if you don't start playing the game for better reactions, the designs and voice lines of some characters in-game kinda spoil the direction their characters are taking, and I think it's best if you stay as blind as possible with these reactions

[@Unknown69846]

He already finished the season

[@yassermontasser7196]

@@Unknown69846 well it's still good for him to know this before going into season 2

[@kraaiwaker8312]

always nice going back and rewatching some Arcane reactions (p.s. "she has them, she has the blue balls" - Shark 2022)

[@Mandus_The_Mad]

Humanity is saved

[@MasterSorez]

Ooh, I expected these to be 3 ep sets since theyre 3 arcs of 3 eps each that came out weekly, but this works too, means Arcane feels will be stayin for longer :D Ep 3 reaction gonna be wiiiild

[@chippotat0]

So happy you did this, can't wait till the rest of the reactions drop.

[@joelblake5310]

Oh boy, oh boy, OH BOY! This is gonna be a wild ride.

[@abdulrahmanmahayni7473]

Man the last time I watched you was when you finished Legend of Korra and FMAB, saddened about how your old account ended up but I’m glad I have another show to watch with you after 5-6 years

[@redeyed9530]

Lets go man so excited for this.

[@NicWir]

Vander as the Hound of the Underground, he couldn´t be more alive :D

[@Shax22132]

I'm very glad to see you reacting to this great series. I'm looking forward to all of the future reactions.

[@yangxiaolong7681]

Fun fact: Mylo has the same voice actor as Mercury from RWBY

[@phoenixbellajinx1744]

Which i love but also hurts🤣

[@ascottishghost2687]

You are the only one that i have seen that uploaded the full episode reaction. How did you manage it?

[@kaizen5023]

Try to avoid spoilers at all costs -- it's really awesome to watch this show without any knowledge of League of Legends, like I did, and just enjoy the ride!

[@incelnicel8565]

Are you planning to react to music videos related to Arcane? (Such as Enemy and Get Jinxed)

[@bravado2809]

Rejoice, friends! The time has finally come.

[@AhsokaTanoTheWhite]

Yeah, they really did shell out for the music in this series, one of the tracks has one of the top 3 violin soloists in the world, but you don't even hear him play in the episode the track is played... lol

[@randomdrawerwriter1094]

I hope you like the rest of the series just as much! 😊

[@slenda2526]

Honestly in terms of references, there weren't a ton of notable ones, throughout the entire series in fact.

[@Naugur]

Those that are there are very subtle. Items in the backgrounds, never interacted with, typ subtle.

[@thepinkkakyoin3598]

OH MY GOSH IT’S HEREEEE! I am insanely hyped for this, it’s gonna be a wild ride!

[@xavierthe9]

I'm so excited for this series

[@SobekKoteowski]

Best moments! 21:43 49:20

[@tylerdixon2173]

Finally!!!!! My body is not ready for this!!!!!!

[@justinrussell2865]

We've done it lady's and gentlemen and everyone in-between,, we've won. He's stared watching Arcane

[@danielmugisha3725]

Man l love arcane so much l hope you enjoy it as much as l do.

[@erzdev5669]

I KNEW IT SHARK YOU CRAZY SON OF A POTATO

[@joyboy2408]

Damn right on KZbin I'm not complaining though

[@artboymoy]

Another reactor that needs to check out THe Expanse to get some more sexy silky Grayson voice. Fortiche is a French studio using a lot of 2D painted background and FX and 3D hand animated characters. It's all animated by hand and not motion captured. They really set up the world and characters so well. The hype is real. You don't need to know anything about the game. I know of Jinx and if you do then you know she'll appear. The music is also incredibly well done. I went out and bought the soundtrack. Claggor is the big guy and I think it's spelled "Mylo" not Milo but you could turn on the subs to get the names right.

[@ArtoriasB]

This is gonna be an intense ride, but I think you'll enjoy it.

[@chaostourist2951]

i'm looking forward to this, but i'm gonna wait till they're all released to watch.

[@lichtmond1482]

Yeah it least the first three episodes

[@nickmilo932]

9 WEEKS T_T

[@sonicbrony7]

It's official, three of my favorite reactors have reacted to Arcane! 💙 That being I am Zamber, Not so Average Fan Girl and you Flaming Shark!

[@FO0TMinecraftPVP]

Ngl this is just my personal opinion but I can't stand Zamber, kind of an annoying voice and it feels very forced and doesn't go much into detail like shark does

[@boomitscocosucker]

@@FO0TMinecraftPVP agreed. I don't hate her, she seems very nice but I can't stand to watch her content for that reason

[@beestreebzz1510]

Td89kssg wha- *WHAT I HAD AN EXISTENTIAL CRISIS, A TOKYO GHOUL FUNERAL AND A OL BOCKET OF FLAMING SHARRK AT THE SAME TIME WHOOOOOOO ARCAAAAAANNNNNEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!*

[@jetpacksforhobos1035]

Love your reactions as always. Arcane is such a brilliant show, glad to see you reacting to it. Don't know if you have any interest or plans, but the Amazon show The Legend of Vox Machina is fantastic. Think Invincible meets DnD. Would love to see you give it a watch. Anyways, can't wait to see the rest of Arcane as well, keep on with the great content. Cheers

[@sorasgurlkairi]

I was not expecting this reaction this soon im so happy aAAA this show is definitely quickly one of my favorites ever

[@punkypony5165]

Vi and Powder are biological sisters.

[@punkypony5165]

ARCANE HYPE! Vi is my fave.

[@omaroo01]

Finally! The new pfp is sick!

[@non_existant9112]

I sense this is going to be a rollercoaster of emotions. Ive seen the first 3 episodes.

[@gridemann]

Nice ! I was hoing he would react to this. Arcane is truly something else.