Arcane 2x09 'The Dirt Under Your Nails' | First Time Reaction

[@adambulmash6880]

For Maple's benefit: the greatest female sniper of all time is a WWII-era Russian woman by the name of Lyudmila Pavlichenko (also known as "Lady Death") with a credited kill count of 309 kills. The greatest all-round sniper of all time is actually a Finnish man named Simo Haya, with a credited kill count of over 500 and a gnarly facial scar to prove it. But Lady Death is absolutely in the Top 5 snipers of all time.

[@HeWhoShams]

@@adambulmash6880 He also didn't use a scope most of the time. Most his numbers were in the span of a year, as well. Simo did get half his jaw blown off but recovered and kept with it. Man was a force of nature

[@tomlangdonec]

They should watch They day of the Jackal.

[@fredwin]

Also, not to discredit either of their amazing accomplishments, it may be true that Simo ultimately had less of a kill count due to the inability to prove some of them. Yet Lyudmila's actions mostly occured during a massive siege, while Simo's was throughout the soviet winter war and in some of the worst weather imaginable.

[@bigkahuna7581]

The white death

[@DeathWishMonkey]

@@HeWhoShams Simo did most of his shooting at close range in the forest, sometimes with a submachine gun. He stated that fieldcraft was more important to marksmanship for the type of fighting he did.

[@Renoistic]

"Why arent you mage-ing Mel?". Because a wizard is never too late, and never too early. They arrive precisely when they intend to...

[@Punkanova]

I have to say, Maple's interpretations of the abstract, zoomed-out concepts in real time were incredible! she was ON IT this episode, and through the series as a whole, but particularly this episode.

[@JJMomoida]

I'm also of the belief that Jinx survived, and like other commenters have mentioned, the animators are pretty darn deliberate with what they show... and I don't think Caitlyn examining the Hexgate structure plans was just for nothing. I do hope we get to see Jinx someday in her travels, but for now... it's onto Noxus with Mel >:]

[@WickedHumor]

100%. The airship ending seems to point to that, otherwise idk how else it makes sense. I hope we get to see her thriving in Bilgewater or something.

[@Renoistic]

The end title literally has the "Jinx effect". It's pretty much confirmed.

[@WickedHumor]

@@Renoistic the hardest part now is waiting for her glorious return.

[@collisjeppesen4643]

Season 1 Episode 1 Powder says she is going to ride one of those airships. She finally did. If you slow-mo the explosion you can see the purple streak away from the explosion. She Jinxed away before the blast.

[@Greencheez-y]

I've seen a lot of other breakdowns explaining that, at the very last second before she "dies", you can see a faint glint of pink shimmer in the top right which makes people think that she activated her powers to make it out alive

[@DanielS2001]

Maddie was a Noxan spy from the start. She's not mad that Caitlyn broke her heart, she was following orders (that was the "hole" that was filled that Ambessa was talking about when talking to Vi in Episode 6).

[@Renoistic]

Ambessa literally references her warning about "entanglement" which is just salt on the wound 😂

[@merdufer]

When Ambessa said she filled the hole, she meant filling it with vengeance. If Maddie had been a Noxian spy from the start, detective Caitlyn would have been able to figure it out. Maddie was just a simple girl who was got bitter and vindictive after being mistreated by Caitlyn, and turned to Ambessa. The reason Caitlyn never noticed was because she was too busy getting it on with Vi by that point.

[@davidmolyneux9014]

Just noticed that the captions put out "Diet Jesus" whenever you say Diagesis. It's catchy, I like it.

[@DanielS2001]

Diet Jesus: half the calories, same great taste. XD

[@mowgli6345]

Y'all NEED to react to the Welcome to Noxus trailer.

[@Chevybevy1131]

thats for the game though

[@mowgli6345]

@Chevybevy1131 No it's not. The ending scene of the trailer ties it to Arcane. Also, the entire cinematic was animated by Fortiche, the studio that animated Arcane.

[@EalainEP]

​@Chevybevy1131 the game is attempting to merge the lore of the show with it, so whilst they might make changes for future arcane stuff it is essentially canon

[@BrandonWestfall]

@@mowgli6345 It absolutely is meant for the game.

[@KSIdragonrage]

@@EalainEP thats nothing new tho. They were doing that two years ago when arcane got big.

[@LS-tk7hp]

i lost it when she said victor looks like an alien lmao 10:10

[@WandererMisha]

1:13 The tears on Jinx's face are the Roman number 4 - 'IV' the opposite of 'VI'.

[@thomasolson1154]

I don't think Madi betrayed anyone, she was a Noxian soldier who was loyal to her Warlord.

[@SaiyanHeretic]

Yup, people were theorizing that Maddie was a spy pretty much as soon as she showed up.

[@inFAMOUSBlastshards]

Correct. In the lore, Noxians have spies embedded in Piltover and many other places in Runeterra.

[@jefferymojo3761]

Maddie was a PLANT the entire time by Ambessa, she was not jealous and didn't hesitate to pull the trigger at all. An Jinx is not dead? Caityln reviewing the plans of the Hex gates looking for vent shafts and possible exits while holding a Jinx monkey head. Right as the explosion went off there was a purple shimmer-ish streak off to the right. Riot is also doing there own universe like MCU. Powder also said in season she would one day fly off in an airship just like the last shot of the show.. SO NO BODY, NO DEATH.

[@aranthur]

I think the fight Cait talks about is, yes, in part the fight for their relationship, but also the fight for the relationship between Piltover and Zaun. The city may have come together briefly for this battle, but there's a lot of work to do before it's really healed from all the hurt and problems of the past

[@comicclash1]

yea what you said near the end about fighting for love, yea that's it. I read an article about the end meaning and a writer said that was cait's way of asking VI after everything that just happened, if she is ready for "their" relationship from here on out.

[@clonexx]

Most people believe Jinx lived. When the explosion happens from her device, you can see a streak of purple fly away from the explosion. Then, at the end, they show a normal airship leaving Piltover, and the final thing we see is “The end” in the style of Jinx So the prevailing theory is that Jinx used her supernatural speed to escape the explosion and then left Piltover behind, just like how Silco said. Jinx goes on to new adventures and Vi is free to be with Caitlin. Ive rewatched the explosion a bunch of times and I tend to agree with this interpretation. The final shot being an airship leaving followed by “The End” in Jinx’s style is too coincidental.

[@Etticos.]

Also Caitlin is looking at a map of the hexgate tower, holding the head of one of Jinx’s monkey bombs, BECAUSE they never found Jinx. The creators of the show have always been so deliberate and intentional with every detail they put in this show. This isn’t live action where something can make it in by mistake, everything in the show is put there by design. The creators wouldn’t have included the pink lightning streak + Caitlin and the map + Powder’s airship + “The End” if Jinx wasn’t alive. There is just no shot.

[@UCFJayBird]

Also in the first episode Powder says that one day she's going to fly an airship.

[@DrLipkin]

The next series is supposedly going to take place in Noxus, so I wouldn't be surprised if Jynx stowed away on the same airship that was taking Mel home.

[@UhDewSea]

That is pure copium with the explosion. Theres nothing different in that explosion to signify she escaped. What DID more for the theory, obviously, is Caitlyn looking at the blue prints and noticing an escape route. She wouldnt tell Vi because she knows Jinx did it so Vi can not worry about her being alive and the final shot of the blimp ties back to Powders wish in the beginning of the series. TLDR: no, people are having strokes if they think they actually saw something with the grenade explosion. Everything after is actual hints that Jinx is alive, not grenade

[@SaiyanHeretic]

@@DrLipkin First of all, Mel is on a regular ocean-sailing ship, not an airship. Secondly, if Jinx *is* on that airship, she's *not* going to Noxus. Leaving one warring city for an entire country in a constant state of warfare is not what she would be looking for. It's headed out over water, and based on the official map of Runeterra, that puts it on a course for either to Bilgewater or Demacia. The later is more likely, since League cinematics and in-game dialogue depict Jinx as being friendly with Lux.

[@sciencehistoryandentertain734]

Jinx escaped into the air ducts and sailed away on an airship...JUST LIKE SHE SAID SHE WOULD!!!

[@BurnDem101]

You should watch Bite Marks as part of your wrap up episode. It's basically a trailer for what's to come

[@BadassRaiden]

It's actually just the 2025 season trailer.

[@BurnDem101]

@BadassRaiden lmao did you not watch the whole video? 🤣 The last minute is all dialogue setting up the next series.

[@BadassRaiden]

@@BurnDem101 lmao did you not read the description? 🤣 It literally says League of Legends, Season 1 of 2025 live Jan 9th. It's a trailer for the season. It literally says it.

[@Maxisamo1]

Jinx is alive btw: 1. Her whole lesson is to learn to just walk away 2. A purple streak goes to the walls during the explosion 3. Cait is looking at vent schematics during the epliogue while holding a piece of her monkey bomb 4. The Jinx "the end" flashes as we see an airship fly away from Piltover

[@CADRIDORN]

Also... Echo's paper was likely for Heimer.. not Jinx. otherwise he woulda done 2.

[@adambulmash6880]

Powder/Jinx also says "Someday I'm gonna ride one of those [airships] in the very first episode, foreshadowing this ending. Point is there's plenty of evidence to believe that Jinx is still alive and on that airship.

[@Ts-lz1gj]

@@CADRIDORNwell heimer is still alive to. Apparently because of his race he just gets transported back to the place his people are from. Kinda like Phoenix thing. So ekko just probably thinks that either heimer is dead or jinx is.

[@red2977]

@@adambulmash6880 yes Jinx is almost certainly still alive

[@UhDewSea]

the purple streak is pure copium and people having strokes trying to look for evidence. What is more evident is the blueprints and the airship like you mentioned. The "streak" is pure bs

[@kyu2o337]

"All cults start out good" Uhhh, not sure I'd go quite that far, lol...but I get what you meant.

[@Renoistic]

I'm sure scientology was "good" insofar that it started as just a scam and not whatever it is nowadays...

[@chudez]

My general feeling at the end of it all is a quote straight out of Tolkien: "If this is victory, then our hands are too small to hold it." - Thorin Oakenshield

[@BadDubII]

All the songs in this show are new and written for the show btw :)

[@DeathWishMonkey]

The "best" sniper, of all time as per kill count was not a woman. But Lyudmila Pavlichenko, a Ukrianian lady from the Soviet Union, was one of the best with 309 officially confirmed kills. She went on a tour of the states and became a lifelong friend of Eleanor Roosevelt.

[@Nate-ry4gp]

AMBESSA FOR LIFE AAAAHHHHHHHH i love her so much

[@SacredKlown-un7pz]

Simo Häyhä is considered the best sniper in history…he’s a man, but Lyudmila Pavlichenko, nicknamed “Lady Death” is up there too

[@GiveMeAYesNo]

It's new music because it was all made for Arcane

[@milikitito]

This reaction is so geniune

[@Gildedbeachrat]

sad to see this series end and your guys reaction to the episodes but glad i found this channel,yall are great!

[@lvfd6117]

"desperation is the doorway to oblivion" ambessa says it to cait, but its even more true for herself, willing to risk whatever viktor would do to humanity all for her war with the rose

[@fitnessandfandom]

Underrated comment

[@WandererMisha]

Ambessa was chosen by Kindred, Runeterra's embodiment of death. She was as fearless as they came but she could not stand against the Black Rose.

[@Ghoulstille]

Alas Poor Loris, We barely Knew him. *Pours One Out*

[@Rubber_Monkey]

Just for context, One Piece has been my favorite series since I was 13. For many years, I was always convinced that no other series would ever top it. That was until Arcane came in. Now I can say Arcane is now my favorite television series of all-time. This show is truly something special, in more ways than I could possibly put into words.

[@truevamp9857]

Yep people saying S2 ruined the whole show idc it’s still my favorite show of all time and I’m ready for the next one they put out

[@CrazeeAdam]

Fun fact: we see something very similar to Viktor's hand, grabby, laser in season 1, episode 4. Jayce and Viktor present it to Heimerdinger as a tool, for artiscans and more. Now... Viktor is so corrupted, he uses something similar as a weapon, something he swore not to do

[@SaiyanHeretic]

Yeah, the Hex Claw seen in S1E4 was a reference to Viktor's design from the games. He must have stopped by the lab and grabbed it on his way to the Hex Gates. 😂

[@BadassRaiden]

I'm most sad about Jayce. He just gets sucked into another dimension very dramatically most likely never to return, and we don't even get a scene where the city makes a monument to him? We got a memorial for the 3 council members that died, one of which was Cait's mom and the other two we don't even give a shit about. Two characters the audience couldn't care less about get statues but Jayce doesn't get one? Kinda lame.

[@vederianl9723]

Pretty sure the writers have said Jayce and Victor got disintegrated.

[@BadassRaiden]

@vederianl9723 it was the co-creator and I honestly don't care what he said, because based on what was shown to us directly on screen, Jayce and Viktor absolutely did not get disintegrated. The scene shows quite clearly them getting literally sucked into the acceleration rune and then the rune poofing from existence. In no way does that look or sound like disintegration, so I'll believe what the show showed me directly over what the co-creator said about the moment in hindsight because what he said was after the episode aired. I mean he also didn't allow Jinx's actress to say that Jinx was alive when the show itself illustrates that she is, so I don't rightly trust anything that guy has to say about the canon of the show.

[@Sherberythrill]

​@@vederianl9723 Christian Link said so in the Afterglow interview. The man is known for being inconsistent, though. He has also since walked back this comment a bit on X and, in an interview with Necrit, stated that they wanted to explore Viktor more. Amanda Overton has said something similar. It's definitely the end to their story as far as Arcane is concerned. In a world like Runeterra though, "disintegrated" is not at all the same as "dead". They laid it out for us that someone is either born with Arcane abilities or they are not. Multiple times. Viktor is not a mage. I'm so curious to know what the hell that makes Viktor; is he similar to an Ascended Shuriman? Or a pilgrim that makes it to the top of Mount Targon and is chosen to be an Aspect? Neither of them remotely fit how he gained his power.

[@cmm0120]

Man, i just wish someday they at least give us like some idea of what season 2 was gonna be before all the changes, like watch S1 again , its so obvious that was not Viktor, Also is so sad that Vi character has absolutely no dept whatsoever, like she lived all her childhood and young adulthood through Jinx, and now she will live al her life through Caitlyn

[@pangsofguilt1]

Can you please do a reaction to the next series trailer "Welcome to Noxis" 🥹

[@blurrest]

I don't think It's a trailer for the next series but rather the next league season.

[@templeofdoom8629]

You guys have been the best reactors to this masterpiece!! I was full on ugly crying along with you! 😭💜

[@daurydavis3983]

I'd like to recommend the tv series Motherland: Fort Salem

[@FluorescentPhnix1]

I hope you check out the LOL trailer Welcome to Noxus. It is NOT a trailer for the next season but it does introduce what might be to come in the new series being made in Runeterra. Fortiche(the animation studio for Arcane) also animated Welcome to Noxus and Blood Sweat & Tears, which I also recommend reacting to.

[@grazitamuller9802]

Jinx survived 🥳

[@alexlandsbergs]

no the best sniper was not a woman, it was Simo hayha. a fnnish guy.

[@germanojeda6272]

Wen Vi use the nickname "cupcake" to Caytlin she said for need more close. "You are hot Cupcake" "You help me up Cupcake?" "Its bean rial Cupcake, tanks for everything"

[@Neevilstöö]

Alltime best sniper is Finnish guy Simo Häyhä but one of top places is woman

[@master72448]

Almost 4 years with you, girls! My first reaction channel. Still waiting for Fallout reactions)

[@merdufer]

Arcane, AKA Viktor got tired of perfection and found the most convoluted way to stop himself.

[@wilwaycoholland4337]

Bite Marks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@kyu2o337]

Kind of the opposite of a trojan horse

[@4thwallbreaking870]

Remember when Ambessa said to Vi that she left a vaccum that Ambessa could fill. Ambessa became a mentor to Caitlin never a lover. But she filled that void to. Maddie was a plant from the beginning

[@TheLegitJoker1940]

Yo! That Wu-Tang hoodie goes so fuckin hard! Sheesh!

[@willmendoza8498]

Looking forward to the discussion episode

[@MR.i.]

Underwhelming ass reaction smh

[@crybbyrosa420]

Girl, we were all mad at Maddie, it's okay!!

[@shaunyb0i]

yo yo Ariana provide a link to that wu tang hoodie pls and thx.

[@dabdaddyfr]

"wasn't the best sniper of all time a woman"

[@jd306]

React to the trailer for Season 3 please!

[@Cenforge]

Bravo.

[@HeWhoShams]

How do you confuse Simo Häyhä with a woman? Lol

[@vederianl9723]

If you aren't into that sort of history you would have no clue. Pretty sure she just heard someone, somewhere talking about Lyudmila Pavlichenko.

[@HeWhoShams]

@vederianl9723 gotta call her out when she's spreading false information

[@ReconWafflez]

@@HeWhoShams Is it really that serious though? She wasn't entirely wrong, the woman she was talking about is still one of the greatest snipers of all time.

[@ernestorodriguez791]

👍🏾