Why SILCO Wanted to KILL Vander’s KIDS (& Why Marcus Saved Vi) | 1min Analysis

#LeagueOfLegends #Vander #Jinx
Too far, Silco! WAY too far! Vander was his obstacle to power, why go after the children? In Arcane episode 3, he lured them in to Vander’s cell so he could kill the entire family. This goes much deeper than wiping out his future rivals to power (Vi especially). Silco was trying to break the culture of the undercity that Vander had established: a community oriented ideal of family-like loyalty. By building an association with family and cowardice, family and selfishness, Silco followed the tyrant’s playbook exactly in this attempt to eliminate anything to be loyal to except THE CAUSE -- in this case, the NATION OF ZAUN. Marcus had other plans, however…
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[@darciaglaucerica]

i think it's also the matter of covering his ass. nobody would have believed Vander left out of fear without his kids. they would have inmediately suspected him, so if he wanted his take of power to go smoothly he needed to make that narrative as believable as possible.

[@apollosartz4487]

Im not sure if he hid the fact that he killed Vander tho? Finn mentions that he thought Silco was a good candidate BECAUSE he killed Vander. So i dont think Silco ever tried to cover the fact he killed him

[@bebe44144]

Also he kept one of Vanders kids, Jinx, so idk if this theory would of worked if he was giving the impression that vander left with his kids. Though maybe that was his plan to begin with before that scene where he was about to kill Powder, but then relates to her pain/situation and takes her in.

[@error8119]

@@apollosartz4487 He doesn’t hide it cause it no longer makes sense. His plans changed when Jinx dove at him. Right then and there you can see the first time Silco ever loses composure the way he does. It’s usually calm and collected and for the first time we see him buckle. He can no longer say Vander left with his kids cause he’s now bringing one of them back. Atp he just tells them he killed Vander and with Powder obviously viewing Silco as a father figure anyone who would’ve felt sympathy for the kids for losing their father automatically feels more attached to Silco taking Powder in. Telling ppl he killed Vander now works to his favor

[@silfnix1971]

@@apollosartz4487Finn says “When you took Vander out of play…” which is kind of ambiguous 🤔

[@maem7462]

True

[@immortalrose912]

I think Silco saw what vi was capable when she went to save Vander. She was going against adults and winning. Her will and strength would become a problem to silco in the future

[@enzie8786]

And it most certainly did

[@patrickbliss9264]

I think that lines up with silco's line in episode 6 " I thought you were the prize of your second hand family "

[@immortalrose912]

@@patrickbliss9264 omg you are so right

[@SaltyPancakesJrThe2nd]

Bro, you're literally talking about the fight that was meant to kill her. Silco said that Vander left with his kids and they were never seen again. he meant to kill them, however, vi put up a fight and was winning, He couldn't have seen that and then wanted to kill her. You know what I'm saying?

[@SaltyPancakesJrThe2nd]

Her going to save Vander was part of silco's plan. He left that open window open, That's why it was so easy to get in, He just didn't expect her to beat his big guys. He wanted her dead before that

[@No_uwu_pleawse]

Oh the irony of Silco associating family with weakness and calling vander foolish for even taking in these kids...and meeting his downfall due to his fatherly love for Jinx

[@j_g9109]

“There’s nothing like the undoing of a daughter.” He’s not a good man, but he loved her and was about to let his lifelong dream fail, just for her. For his daughter. Contrary to popular belief, sociopaths do have the ability to make connections _and_ love; it’s just very difficult, and they’re very choosy. Silco loved Jinx. No one can convince me otherwise.

[@Normercer]

@@j_g9109 he is a soziopath, not a psychopath

[@cryoblaster8371]

​@@j_g9109I really love the way they really show that Silco was a father to jinx. Not a good one, but a loving one still

[@vengeance1450]

​@@j_g9109 He would fit sociopath more than psychopath, people don't seem to ever know the difference. Psychopaths don't make bonds with people unless if it's an act to get what they want or manipulate. Sociopaths are a lot more human and can build bonds, it's just hard for them to have empathy for anyone they don't know or want to know.

[@j_g9109]

@@vengeance1450 You’re absolutely right- I Agree 💯. I changed it.

[@craig5322]

It's a good plan for Silco. He can't just take over and say "I killed Vander, I'm in charge now." No one would follow him. So he comes up with a story that Vander left to protect his kids, leaving Zaun to fend for itself against Piltover, and Silco will step in to lead the fight. But if only Vander disappears and his kids are still there, it doesn't work. Therefore the kids have to die for Silco to take over. When Powder says that Vi abandoned her, it plays right into the narrative. With Vander and Vi dead (so he thinks), and Powder saying that Silco saved her after she was abandoned, it only helps bolster his story.

[@HxH2011DRA]

Ooooooooh the powder aspect is a nice catch! They would want to leave her (in this story) because she's a Jinx, whereas Silco gets to play the "I'll never leave anyone behind" card (which is true)

[@def3ndr887]

The last part is actually true, despite Vi trying to return, Powder was effectively abandoned

[@clownphonecase]

If you think about the existence of Vander’s statue though it kind of changes this idea. I think the Undercity is established as a pretty ruthless and brutal place, so it probably isn’t the first time that someone has overthrown another person. The statue signifies that they know Vander was killed, because it doesn’t seem like the people of the undercity would build a statue to someone who abandoned them. So although there probably would have been resistance (again, statue being there implies a stand against Silco), once he’d unleashed shimmer onto the lanes, i think he would have just come out and told them that he killed Vander because it makes him seem more powerful.

[@d73w80]

@@HxH2011DRA damn, that retextualizes that scene with another layer. Adopting Powder wasn't just an altruistic "I relate and want to help this kid" move, it was also a carefully planned political maneuver. Adopting Powder may have been one of the reasons that Silco could take over so fast, Powder's presence made Silco's story way more believable and would easily rally people to his side.

[@HxH2011DRA]

@@d73w80 it just works

[@applechip6748]

I think Marcus saving Vi was more a desperate redemption point for him. He didn't think anyone would genuinely get hurt from working with Silco, he was just trying to clean up what mess of the Lanes he could and was taken advantage of. So going to see what happened at Silco's home base after the explosion and seeing Vi, he probably just acted on impulse to put one good thing in the world and keep one person alive because of how much bad he realized he was dealing with and that the general public in the Lanes wasn't it and he was just terrified. I don't think there was any deeper motivation or meaning behind it.

[@Pallyrulez]

I'm inclined to agree with this view. And it also gives him a scapegoat for the explosions (they were still looking for the "culprit").

[@raven5048]

I believe it's just because someone had to be arrested for the explosions event on jaces lab

[@rinzzler366]

Probably this but I also like to think that he was going to do what was said in the video, just my head canon

[@sissin2324]

I disagree... I think Vi is an insurance policy for Marcus at best and a future bargaining chip at worst!...

[@applechip6748]

@@Pallyrulez idk, Caitlyn said there was no record or her arrest or any charges made against her, if she was the scapegoat for the explosion then that would be on her record, there's no reason to hide that. And then with their police chief being murdered and Piltover getting a new golden boy, I doubt they were too worried about a building in the lanes burning down. Marcus probably put her in Stillwater so she wouldn't jeopardize her own life or his relationship with Silco so he could keep Piltover from civil war.

[@LF-mg3nx]

Basically Silco wanted to do what Mama Medarda advised Mel to do.

[@ArukiTsukaru]

*Mommy Medarda 😉😏

[@LF-mg3nx]

@@ArukiTsukaru :'D

[@detectivebrown6211]

@@ArukiTsukaru ew

[@emn2375]

@@detectivebrown6211 why ew

[@WorthAShotAndMore]

@@ArukiTsukaruew

[@cornphone]

I actually don't think that Silco intended to kill Vander or his family in episode 3 - at least not initially. When he first captured him and he told Vander how he lost his respect after he made peace with top side, Vander says "I had no choice" and Silco replies with "...but now you do" while showing him a vial of shimmer. The implication here is that Silco still had some hope that he might be able to convince and/or force Vander to join the cause. And I think the way he planned to force Vander to join the cause was by capturing his family and holding them hostage. The way Silco sees it, Vander only gave up the fight in order to protect his adopted family; therefore, he would surely pick up the fight again if doing so was the only way to continue to ensure his family's safety. When Vi was fighting off Silco's goons on the bridge, Silco actually had a slight smirk on his face as if he was evaluating her performance and she was passing his test with flying colors. Again, I think in Silco's ideal world he would have found a way to convince (or force) Vi to join his cause and fight against topside as well. For additional evidence, see episode 6 where he says to her "I thought you were the prize of your second-hand family..." If Deckard had been instructed to kill Vi then there's no reason he wouldn't have simply snapped her neck when he held her by the throat - instead, he just (very forcefully) tosses her to the ground, momentarily disabling her from the fight. Finally, Silco only gives the order to "kill them" after Powder blew up his factory, destroyed the great majority of his shimmer stockpile, killed at least half of his goons, and seriously injured his scientist. This action set his operation back months or even years, so it's understandable that he would be in a bit of a rage. But the main point is, if Deckard's orders had already been to "kill them" prior to this point, then reiterating the order would have been superfluous. Silco himself intervenes by stabbing Vander in the back both after he's presented the opportunity but also after he saw that his fight against Deckard wasn't quite as one-sided as he would have hoped (if Vander defeated Deckard in that moment, Silco would have been completely done for). So he had to eliminate the immedaite threat to his operation. After pushing Vander off the side to his "death," he regained his composure and modified his instructions to Deckard: "Find the girl" (not: "Kill the girl").

[@silfnix1971]

THIS!!! Underrated comment! This lines up with Silco’s character all throughout the show. We see him attempt to talk to people, make use of them, as a first reaction rather than killing first. Uhh, maybe a sore spot for him, considering Vander’s attempt to drown him…? Of course he also has no qualms with bystanders becoming shimmer addicts, but it’s “for the cause” as far as he’s concerned. Plus someone earlier made the catch that adopting Powder still fits the narrative if she was abandoned by Vi and the rest.

[@eatandrun8020]

Absolutely agree with this!! If we learned anything about Silco’s character, it’s that he makes thorough plans and he improvises.

[@CertainlyCynical]

Holy shit wow there’s so much nuance here it’s crazy. Never thought of this possibility but it makes absolute sense!!!

[@dcscruz2970]

Also is seen many already were (the new gen and even vi before the kidnapping) getting tired of Vander wanting to “keep peace”. But again this peace was at their own detriment. The topside had all the money, all the tech and resources while zaun only had the scraps. Vander sacrificing Silco and anyone to maintain it yet the kids who literally went to piltover and had put everyone on a bigger target were shielded brought about the last straw. It was easy that everyone would turn on him easily if not soon. If silco didn’t end him it would’ve been the city he tried to protect. Even Vi still wanted to fight for zaun. Had silco not taken Vander it would’ve been easy to sway her. But silco was so revengeful of Vander he didn’t think. That’s why jinx and vi are a metaphor for Vander and silco. Vi sees the bigger picture caring more for a medium reach and giving too much benefit to the top (thanks to Caitlyn) and never explaining her intentions clear making jinx (silco) feel she’s choosing the top against everyone else and more not understanding that things change and there’s consequences. Vi left jinx or that’s how jinx sees it and given they don’t talk for more than two minutes after years of emotional tension it made them fall into their roles in a way.

[@user-gz6zu8kl5m]

Wow! Haven't though about this but it makes so much sense!

[@Dakarai_Knight]

Well I mean... Leave the kids alive and it's almost guaranteed enemies in the future. Ones with political power through their connection to vander.

[@sissin2324]

Agreed. They would definitely be Silco's enemies in the future. But in the short term, so long as Vander's kids are around they become martyrs, which would not have aided Silco's goals, and probably would have got in the way. Imagine Zaun having to care for the kids of the fallen or lost leader, they would have garnered the sympathy of the undercity. Silco needs there to be a void in leadership and he needs to erase all sympathy and emotional investment in past leadership for him to be able to take over the undercity. As for Marcus kidnapping Vi - this is an interesting question. I like the idea that he would try to minimise killing after Grayson's death, but given he is a bully, and an opportunist, I'm more inclined to believe that keeping Vi alive and hidden is to service him. Either, as you suggest, to groom as a potential puppet leader or spy. Or, as an insurance policy or bargaining chip. If ever he needed to get one over Silco, having a live witness of what had happened gives him leverage. Thanks for another great read!!

[@aech619]

I dunno, I always thought Silco kinda wanted to use Vi kinda similar to the way he ended up using Powder. He specifically told Vi “I had thought you were the prize of your second hand family…” and it made me think he had plans to use Vi as a shimmer subject in the future when he realized Powder would be much more easily manipulated and more dangerous in her rage. I thought Marcus just took Vi because he needed to bring something back after Grayson and all of his men died, something to help him get his promotion instead of coming back to Piltover as a failure

[@The_GlitchWitch]

I understood that Marcus arrested Vi because he still needed to return to Piltover with someone culpable of what had happened in the earlier explosion and then subsequently the death of the sheriff. It was never put in her official record why she was arrested because they never actually tried her for any crimes. They just needed a body to put away, and Marcus couldn’t return from the under city empty handed.

[@michabuksalewicz8907]

The reason why Silco wanted Vi and the whole gang dead is simple. If left alive they'd seek revenge and would be a future threat. For example, they could lead a anti-Silco movement, same as Ekko did.

[@keithharper32]

Just imagine if Vi and the others got away. Ekko did a great job on his own, with Vi's muscle and Jinx/Powder's inventiveness, Silco may not have been able to take over at all.

[@michabuksalewicz8907]

@@keithharper32 that's why he needed them dead

[@glamorous.427]

@@keithharper32 Yep I want this ending 😭😭😭

[@violetsparkles5453]

@@keithharper32 that would be perfect. Now I wanna cry

[@margarethood]

I'm a little bit late for this discussion, but there's nothing good for Zaun in "anti-Silco movement". At the end of the series he was basically the only person in Zaun with a power enough to change Undercity's fate for the better (no matter how questionable this methods were). Ecco (due to mutual misunderstanding) and Vi (due to personal vendetta) being against him is a tragedy, cause they're all should've been on the same side. It was Wander who started all these inner fights in Zaun, not Silco.

[@ConnorNotyerbidness]

Theres a huge unspoken moment for silco nobody talks about When hes sitting at the fountain thats a statue of vander “Oh but everyone knows how he talks about how similar they are!” Thats not what i mean That statue would never have been built by vander It Was built by silco Or at the very least silco did nothing to stop them building it If he truly wanted that statue destroyed, he would have done so. And note something All over zaun its covered in grafitti and is in various states of disrepair Except that statue Its pristine Still full of water Silco built and maintains that statue in memory of his brother

[@cassiopeiasfire6457]

Whoa, interesting, I hadn't noticed that.

[@ASimpleBall]

I genuinely enjoy hearing what you say. Makes my brain go whoa. Lol thank you

[@Jadeddoxy]

ikr

[@sinpfiec1047]

yeah everytime I watched his videos, I always got blown away and grants me 69999+ brain cells

[@jauxro]

fr this guy inspired me to rewatch arcane

[@ebutuoyotwen]

I also think Marcus was trying to minimize the killing after Greyson fell. He felt slighted and was on damage control. I also think Silco was trying to lure Vi, the other kids were just collateral damage. I believe Silco did see that she would have taken Vanders place and if he couldn't turn her he would kill her. He watched with admiration as she beat the crap out of his minions. He also said as much later when he referred to thinking of Vi as the prize until he discovered Powder. He then realized he found his super soldier. Unfortunately, he now had to wait for her to age and grow. Where as Vi was war ready. Anyway it would explain why he kept Sevika out of the fight. I got to say you really like Silco as a super villain. I think he may have been bad but not super bad 🙂 Still hope Vi takes Silco's place as the lanes leader in season 2.

[@Pete...NoNotThatOne]

1) no, don’t let the hype deceive you, Silco was a bad, bad man, but I’ve already been over this with others. 2) I noticed when Deckard Hulk was unleashed on Greyson and Benzo, Marcus was screaming that this wasn’t the deal, to which Silco replied “Deals change,” and threw a bag of coins at him. Marcus throws the bag on the ground, one coin rolls into some of Greyson’s blood. Marcus kept that one coin. When the factory exploded, he was sitting on a dock staring at the bloody coin. Years later, he’s still looking at that coin when deciding whether to use Jinx’s grenade to pin the dirigible attack on the Firelights. Maybe Marcus did have a conscience somewhere, and he genuinely tried to save Vi because it was right. Would have been nice to check up on her every once in a while, though. See how she’s getting along. EDIT; some spelling mistakes.

[@Lusor_Caterpillar]

@@user-nw5og then tell me anything silco had his hands in which was not in a "good" intention. If you are wrong I correct you. If you are right then well done and I admit it in that point.

[@RikuHarada6996]

Vi is not gonna be the leader of the lanes, she's gonna be an enforcer. It's either Sevika, Ekko, Singed or one of the chembarons as they are the most influential in Zaun.

[@user-nw5og]

@@Lusor_Caterpillar Flooding the streets with drugs. Drugs destroy people. Just because we didn't see it in the show doesn't mean this man didn't have a hand in the destruction of countless lives. Also, I'm really not trying to debate here. Just stating my opinions and how I feel.

[@Lusor_Caterpillar]

@@user-nw5og shimmer production was started to make Piltover care about Zaun and it's situration. Next argument.

[@SwordTune]

He needed them all gone to sell the story that Vander ran. Everyone in the Undercity knew Vander wouldn't leave without his kids.

[@zephgodofwind]

I disagree on the read of Marcus. It doesn't really seem to me like he has any premeditated thought or plan put into saving vi. I ultimately think Marcus' actions are dictated by two things. His belief in piltover being a higher/ultimate good, contrasted to his belief of zaun being a corruption of that good, and his cowardice. Marcus doesn't fall under Silco's control because he believes in Silco's mission or actually enjoys any of the lucrative benefits he gets "working" with him but because he's too much of a coward to do anything else. And to that i think, more than anything, his actions with Vi are opportunistic. It was only chance that vi was on the outskirts of where he actually showed up to the scene and he doesn't dare creep much further out the dark then he has too. He sees the opportunity and relatively low risk and takes it. Maybe he justifies it to himself in the moment as "doing something good/saving her" as all his actions up to this point are done with the intentions of someone thinking they're on the "right side" but in the end all it really accomplishes is cover his ass by giving the council its pound of flesh; which might possible be all he was thinking about in that moment, even if just through the lens of justifying it as "this is good because it's for piltover".

[@aikordcz4424]

I think Marcus saved Vi because he saw Vanders sacrifice and even though he's an asshole, he's also a father (I think his daughter was just born, like months old during ep 3) and he doesn't want more blood of innocents on his hands (cuz his actions got Grayson killed, I suppose she was his only friend, but Marcus is that kind of asshole friend like Rocket in Guardians of the galaxy, he's mean to his friends yet he needs them). That's also why he locked Vi and didn't kill her, Marcus is scared to make radical decisions, last time he did one, Grayson got killed. That's why he doesn't killed Vi, but to not anger Silco he didn't free her either. Other scenes works for my theory: - Marcus thinks about blowing himself up with Silco, but he is scared to make this huge step (also he would have left his daughter alone) - Marcus didn't shot Caitlyn on the bridge because he knows she is a good person, yet he can't let her go because he is, again, scared of doing something big and radical. He fears Silco and what he would have done to him. You can see him struggling between morals and keeping status quo when pointing a gun at Caitlyn. - Its also why he keeps that bloody coin, its a reminder of what he did and a nice symbolism to his situation That's my look on Marcus, I just don't think he's just flat character only made to be a plot device. I'm not saing he's a good person, cuz he's not, he is a bad person, coward and overall weak, yet he has some good sides. Silco is a bad person too, yet he can be a loving father. Every coin has two sides. Side note: Also his first intentions when teaming up with Silco at the begining were probably to get some cash and help Silco with Zaun independance, that way he would not have to go there anymore (cuz we know how much Marcus hates undercity).

[@theliato3809]

@@aikordcz4424 Marcus seems to have a similar kind of issue to vander and Heinerdinger. Namely they value stability. But they can’t improve things because they see the chaos of trying to implement serious extensive chain as risking more damage then could be fixed

[@bouhhgz1969]

@@aikordcz4424 - I don't necessarily believe Markus didn't kill Caitlyn on the bridge because of an internal moral struggle - its because he didn't think that far a head when it became apparent she was involved in all of this based on what she knows - he had other officers standing just yards away from them, watching the whole thing. Think about it - how many other times that we HAVEN'T seen where Markus fanastizes about a scenarios that plays out where he's desperate or willing enough to take out Silco with a grenade. He's a corrupt, scummy cop, and he's proven he's not smart enough to plan ahead far enough of what steps to take if something like the bridge incident happens much less take out Silco.

[@aikordcz4424]

@@bouhhgz1969 yeah, that could be it too. I'm sure he can't come out with any plan, the reason he couldn't shoot Caitlyn could be that he is in a situation that will be bad in every outcome. Kill Caitlyn in front of other enforcers? That's gonna be hard to explain to council. Don't kill Caitlyn? Silco will destroy his life. Two bad outcomes and he needs to choose one, and we know he's not strong (or smart) enough to do anything. Maybe his morals were shaping his thoughts only by 50%, other 50% was his lack of planing ahead. Good point. (also sorry if I misunderstood something, english is my second language)

[@zephgodofwind]

@@aikordcz4424 I think all of Marcus' actions are plagued by cowardice to the point that he can't make big decisions because he's too afraid of the outcome and more specifically afraid of what will happen to himself. But i think the show clearly shows that Marcus values, or idealizes, the greater good. He idealizes Grayson, is upset over his dead officers, he's discontent with SIlco but has no way out, and ultimately fantasizes about being the hero, both in silco's office and in act 1 as the person to find the 'super evil terrorist bomber' from the undercity. He wants so much to be a good guy but every step he ever ends up making almost always ends up just serving himself cause he's just too afraid of the cost of being an actual good guy. Which is why i dont think he means to "save" vi. She's just there when he happens to arrive and in the end and he rashly jumps at the chance. All vi does for him in the end is bolster himself while again doing harm around him, no matter how he wants to frame it in his own mind.

[@garrettkiley522]

Ironically Silco became Vander in way in the same day he "killed" him. Wouldn't give Jinx up for the state and I think in the end understood Vander.

[@baxland2539]

When I 1st watched act 1 when it released my idea behind 'why would he do it' wsas pretty obvious. Vander was a leader of the undercity for a moment, and yes, SIlco took over on the prinipal of 'let's stand against Piltover', somethink that people already wanted - but I doubt him killing / experimenting on Vander was gonna go unnoticed by people... therefore 'The Rumor" to be spread and belivable, kids also had to go (one way or another, if Vander vanished, they also had to)

[@KM-vq1vy]

Then he found Powder.. [ alone, vulnerable, willing to do _anything_ to not be abandoned yet again.. ]

[@wolfgirl09cs]

......ahhhhhh hell, here we go with uncle Scar trying kill the family again!!! 🤣😂

[@anastasiahan8461]

I think that Silco used to see Vander's children as the only reason Vander abandoned him and their cause to protect them Vander gave up his previous "violent" life, Silco and their whole project and even made sort of a peace with Piltover just because of them, or at least is what Silco thinks since is a very well written show their actions and intentions aren't always plainly explained, but it became clearer when Silco had to choose between Zaun and his daughter and go talking to Vander's statue, finally getting why he gave everything up for them

[@jace8470]

When watching that scene it more seemed like Marcus grabbed Vi not to save her but more so he had someone to lock up and he could be rewarded for doing a good job. It's either the next episode or two episodes of later but we then see him in Silco's office confronting him and such and Silco makes a point to call him sheriff as if their deals is what has been getting him promoted and gotten him the power he's been seeking. So that's kinda how I've seen him grabbing Vi as. Him working to have someone that he could lock away and please the council and be rewarded for.

[@danielcruz4960]

You are giving Marcus way too much credit, he ain’t that smart he just felt guilty

[@fabriziocarbajalpimentel4700]

In a chapter Silco even says that he thought that Vi was the best of Vander’s family, but the true best was Jinx at the end. He already recognized the danger that they represented.

[@The_Isaiahnator]

That was a wonderfully inspiring Mission Statement at the beginning, read wonderfully by the host.

[@dorkasaurus.gretch]

I LIVE for your analyses of this show, it's so satisfying and I'm learning a lot

[@terabitez3374]

What’s ironic about his ideal of family is weakness he did actually feel parental love for jinx

[@hawkeye0378]

Then it all comes back in a roundabout way for Silco near the end. He was offered Zhaun’s independence in exchange for Jinx, but he couldn’t accept the deal because of how much he cared about her and he finally understood Vander’s actions

[@zenmindgamer]

For once, I think this is reading a little too much into Silco's motives. Most people in the underground knew Vander was highly protective of his kids. As pressure from Piltover increased for somebody to be arrested it wouldn't be a hard sell to convince the underground that Vander left to protect his children. The lie wouldn't go over well though if said kids were still around, but no Vander.

[@error8119]

That would make a lot more sense than anything else I’ve seen about it. You get her out of there and when she gets back in later she can reclaim the undercity and he’ll be able to save his daughter and his job.

[@mediterraneanchicken1141]

But then when he became jinx’s dad, he knew what it was like to be a father

[@mohamaddelkhah]

I think it was also part of his revenge/clash with Vander and his mindset. "Look how when you accept weakness and abandon your ideals to protect someone, in the end you'll fail to protect even them futilely", which is exactly what happened to Silco himself, making it even more tragic.

[@cryoblaster8371]

We also onlw Silco had been keeping tabs on the group for quite a while and had been explicitly paying a group of boys to spy on them from afar for him. I really like the subtle details they added in the first dew episodes that set Silco up as a meticulous and aware villain.

[@quigsthevicious]

I think people are totally misreading Silco's intention. He captured Vander to turn him in to a shimmer monster, but how was Silco going to control Vander afterward? Silco controls powerful people by using their kids as leverage. He lured the kids to hold them hostage and it was only after his henchmen were beaten and his shimmer arsenal destroyed that he lost his cool and spat "Kill them!" to Deckard. Letting Vander's monster out after killing his kids would be suicide.

[@Gothmog2266]

Mate, you're overthinking it. Silco couldnt overtly ovethrow Vander because of the latter's support in the lanes. The explosion at the lab and the heat it was bringing down on the lanes gave Silco the opportunity to kill Vander while plausibly seeding the story that Vander skipped town with his kids to avoid prosecution and spare the lanes further crackdown from the enforcers. That is something Vander would believably do. But it wouldnt make sense at all for Vander to leave town without the kids so they had to be eliminated as well to establish the ruse.

[@citizenlame246]

And it's the idea of family that ultimately undoes Silco (and potentially Zaun)

[@cin1295]

With Vi whole backstory in League of Legends becoming an enforcer I really thought after episode 3 Marcus taking Vi just somewhere he would've mentored her and of course it wouldn't have been easy with his backlash and temper but in a way similar to Vi and his perspective. Just like Caityln was with (Forgot her name the Enforcer lady who passed away episode 3). I'm not sure how but Caityln keeping her cool and Vi with short tempter is a cool duo with good cop and bad cop

[@josuebartley7272]

I wish Silco was in the first couple of episodes more. There was a lot about his character and motivation I found difficult to fallow in first viewing, particularly with his relationship with Vander and their power struggle over Zaun. All the info is in the show but I think a lot of set up was probably cut to spend more time on Jinx and Vi, which is good, but I don’t remember an independent Zaun even being mentioned until almost the end

[@red4679]

Killing the family of your enemy is a strategic move that has always been used in history. The family would seek revenge, it's too high of a risk.

[@VivaLaPluto1518]

Honestly re-hearing the ‘vander and his family left town’ line just messed me up YET AGAIN so hard, because of POWDER though. From ep. 1 you have decard (dekard??) following the kids there’s the obvious background characters who notice the kids after coming back from stealing danger stones and sorta do that motion to each other like ‘it’s those kids theres gonna be trouble so let’s go’ and they clear out fast, it seems like the undercity had an awareness of silco’s “obsession” or at least awareness and potential plans for vander and his kids. Vander doesn’t give anything away that I see when he asks oh what happened to your face to vi (basically) then talk about being followed by someone on ‘their side’ and that stuff. But why it messes me up hard is because I’m imagining this a bit further and silco is all, “let me dramatically exit from the shadows with an even scarier threat behind my faux nice exterior” all the time, so he probably mostly has goons (god I love being able to use that word it works here) spying on vander and his kids. Eventually though knowing silco hes gotta check this out for himself to have the best info for himself obviously and so he had probably seen the kids before, knew what they looked like really well, had FULL intentions of killing vi, claggor, mylo, AND LITTLE BABY POWDER SHE WAS SO YOUNG AND TRAUMATIZED (MY BABY), anyway, he goes out of the building after the explosion to finish off vi I’d assume, finds broken powder, probably STILL FULLY INTENT ON KILLING POWDER, does the creepy, “where is your sister little girl?” Still wanting to slit her throat and vi’s (probably?!!) through all this until powder reveals in a way “I’m just like you (silco)” and then after eyeing up this kid and her siblings for who knows how long to KILL THEM, HES LIKE OH YEAH THIS POOR KID I GUESS ILL JUST ADOPT HER AND NOT MURDER HER NOW BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MUCH COMMON GROUND????? Great idea! Definitely not a hypocrite by the end of the same episode, not at all none

[@EmMcree]

I love that Ekko carried on Vander’s mission by making the firelights, since they were a family-based community. It shows that Ekko may be more of a successor to Vander than anyone else in the show.

[@shubs9532]

I think the reason that Marcus took Vi was because the council was still breathing down their necks to get someone to pin what they stole from Jayce on, so he took her to cover his own ass. Thus, while tensions remained high over the next couple years between Zaun and Piltover, the council didn't have a direct reason to send an army down there yet.

[@antiradiationsnowy1536]

To be honest, I believe Marcus took Vi only to accomplish his original mission in the face of the council. Blaming her of the explosion and branding himself as the survivor hero.

[@Ash_TheDabloonCat]

I know this video is quite old, but I wanted to bring this up because it should of relates to this scene here. (LONG COMMENT AHEAD) As I was rewatching Arcane (as most do, the show's that good), I noticed a line that Silco said twice which sort of threw me off a bit. The first time he said it was after the monkey bomb went off, telling shimmered Deckard "find the girl." (referring to Vi). Now this wouldn't of been as important if he didn't bring it up a second time when he crouched down next to Powder. He was already planning to kill her, so why wait and ask "where is your sister?". Arcane isn't the type of show to mention something twice without it meaning something. During when Vi was fighting on the cat walk, it kept panning back to Silco, having this surprised but also intrigued look on his face, probably impressed and taken aback by her fighting skills. This sort of brought up a "what if" situation for me: "What if Vander died before he could take the shimmer?" Then it brought my mind to Warwick, and how he's most likely Vander. And that just brought up more questions! If Vander died? Would someone take his place? My first thought is that Silco might of been planning to turn Vi into a weapon (probably with some shimmer experiments, cause I know Vi would not work for him willingly). I know I might be stretching it, and I think another idea for this is he was just making sure she was dead. Cause like you said, she was mostly the next leader for the Lanes after Vander, and Silco needed to make sure she was dead so she couldn't rule. I know this mostly isn't true, and is just a theory, but it's been on my mind for a while and haven't heard anyone bring it up.

[@orangeglow57Official]

I don't think Marcus had any kinda of plans for Vi. I think he realized what he had gotten himself into and saved the one person he could on impulse. He never told Silco she was still alive but also locked her away in Stillwater. When he grabs Vi initially, I believe he says something like "If he sees you he'll kill her". Which I see as him trying to prevent any more unnecessary deaths. But in order to do so Silco had to think she was dead, so Marcus put her in jail and paid off the warden to keep it secret.

[@ZeketheZealot]

Re: Marcus. I still maintain that he kidnapped Vi to further his career. He could have pinned the break-in, and Greyson’s death, on her and easily elevated himself to Sheriff, and when next we see him he is indeed Sheriff. There would be a great many more questions if he returned alive from an altercation with someone that killed Greyson, and with no one to pin it on.

[@StickandBrickGames]

Or to make it look like Vander gave up and left with his kids, to stop an uprise against silco.

[@jaeger7498]

@schnee I think Marcus' only redeeming quality was being a father to a daughter and his only two good moments was stopping Vi saying silco will kill her if he hears you, and on the bridge Marcus was unable to pull the trigger and shoot Caitlyn. I don't think he had any grander plans like propping up Vi as a potential rival at a later date

[@joelpena209]

Also Silco: I never would have given you to them. Not for anything. Don’t cry. You’re perfect

[@Raycifer]

It's like from the Harley Quinn show said you kill the kids too, so they don't come back for revenge

[@kachiedits6231]

It makes sense to take them out as well because it was clare they would be a problem later on

[@stm-pnk]

it's funny how Silco's final words are "I wouldn't have given them to you, not for anything. Don't cry, you're perfect." as he passes away while his now "daughter" (if you can call it that) holds his face and sobs. Silco was always selfish and strived for his goal he's been holding onto for god knows how long, and his death is for an act of selfishness too, wanting Jinx for himself, wanting FAMILY, the thing he sees (or used to) as inferior and selfish

[@The_Story_Of_Us]

First bit seems right, but Marcus saves Vi out of guilt for his role in Grayson’s death and took Vi to make amends. He genuinely thought he was doing the best thing for her, protecting her from Silco by putting her in Stillwater. You can see this same soft spot in him with his daughter.

[@Hawkido]

Killing Vander was a contingency if Vander didn't rejoin the fight, EP3 was all a final play to convince Vander to rejoin the fight for freedom, re-listen to what Silco says, you can even hear him get frustrated when Vander keeps refusing to fight for everyone's freedom, he just wants what he has, he is too afraid to live his dream, so Vander just dreams about living. Threatening the children was Silco's last attempt to force Vander to FIGHT for something, and it was something that Vander actually wanted. Vander's appeasement tactic had failed, and Vander lacked the strategic insight to see he had been maneuvered into a catch-22. He got maneuvered into a trap where Vander only had the power granted to him by a covert agreement with Piltover, and Piltover could decide when "the deal has changed". Silco did not want to live in a society where one side always held that power over him and his people. Marcus revealed that Vander has a secret agreement with Greyson, Silco only Just found out about that the day before the events of EP3. Sevika hears about the agreement and can't believe it is true, but at the meeting at The Last Drop, she sees that it is true and realizes that Vander has abandoned the Undercity, and calls him Weak and leaves with the few people who were old enough to have fought last time and survive. Have you noticed that all the people who were old enough to have fought last time are with Silco other than Vander and Benzo? Silco threatened Vander with the same thing that Vander threatened him with. Vander spread the rumor that "the coward" Silco fled "never to be seen again" after Vander failed to kill him. Killing Silco was the price Vander had to pay to get his secret agreement with Piltover. Vander got played, not by Silco, but rather by Piltover. Vander no matter what would not be there for his kids. Either he would be in Stillwater while the war raged and his kids would be unprotected when the news hit that Vander had a secret deal with Piltover and he children face that fallout. Or Vander gets killed by Silco and thus has to kill his kids for the strategic reason he lays out, that way the undercity can move as one in this war for freedom. Or, and this was Silco preference, Vander rejoins the fight. He helps rally the people together he children aren't left to fend for themselves without him and the Undercity would appear even stronger. Ultimately Silco didn't want war, he wanted freedom, not for JUST the Lanes, but for all of the Undercity, all the way down to the Bilges. But the threat of war had to be real and it had to be credible, and it had to be demonstrated in such a way that Piltover knew that this war would be the end of both of them as Noxxus would claim both of their corpses if they fought, but fight they would if they were not released from Piltover rule. Jayce messes up at the Parley, his final statement, "Get me Jinx and I will GIVE you your nation of Zaun". Silco knew Zaun wasn't Jayce's to give, it wasn't Piltover's to give. Something given can be taken away. Jinx was the only reason why the Parley was happening. If your first act as an independent nation is subservience, then you aren't independent and your actions will lead you right back to the collar and chain. Silco would have given up Shimmer, the Hextech gemstone, and even himself to get freedom for the Undercity, but he knew Jinx wasn't his to give up. Silco didn't do anything to Vander, that Vander hadn't already done to him. Silco gave Vander a path to redemption, and Vander refused, the death of the children would have happened in 2 of the three paths available to Vander. Vander never gave Silco a path other than death or slavery under Piltover. When your enemy presents you with two targets, strike a third. Looking at this any other way is like blaming the victim. Vander wanted the same thing as Silco, only Vander wanted it by an impossible means. We all want clean energy, but the person who sits on their hands hoping for perpetual motion or over-unity devices, will never see it. The person who burns wood, coal, oil, gas, then nuclear fission fuel rods, will one day achieve nuclear fusion. But it will be a dirty path to the goal. But once the goal is reached, everything that happened before can be forgotten and those wounds can heal. If you are lost in a dark forest, all paths to the light are shrouded in darkness. Refusing to walk through the darkness doesn't mean you stand in the light.

[@karbon7902]

Marcus is not that deep 😂 but maybe lol. I love your analyses.

[@user-cq1cw8xz7f]

Vander is Dom Toretto confirmed

[@katastrofygames]

I thought it was to make a fitting cover up story for Vander’s murder. The people love and respect vander. For him to go “missing” would cause problems. And for him to be discovered “dead” would cause outrage. He was killing the kids to remove loose ends. If he made them ALL “run away” it was a more believable story after already planting the seeds of Vander being weak just to protect his kids.

[@igorporfiirio4915]

I don't think Marcus had any plans for Vi. He was just broken after realizing what he did and saved Vi trying to do one good deed, even if a vain one. But in the and he threw her on jail because he didn't knew what to do and was too afraid of doing anything else.

[@ethanstyant9704]

I think people are missing a very crucial point. Killing the kids hurts Vander, who he despises. He was a brother to Vander who betrayed him, this is shown many times to interfere with his judgement in the most logical decisions

[@something3920]

I thought everyone knew Silco killed Vander and the others and just started following him and i wondered why they didn't rebel against him. I figured because he was so strong but I really didn't think they didn't know.

[@Ikuto1313]

All of these and jealousy. He felt like Vander was a brother to him and betrayed him. He was jealous the kids had the love of Vander that he wanted. I think Vi was worried Jinx about Jinx doing the same thing and that's why she mentioned fleeing with Jinx and abandoning Caitlyn, because she was worried Jinx would kill Caitlyn out of jealousy for Vi's attention, the way Silco wanted to kill the kids to get Vander.

[@kingexplosionmurderfuckoff9376]

You should do a video on Rio.

[@gm6393]

That is the only explanation of Marcus kidnapping vi that makes sense to me. I’ve always been confused by that

[@bluefox726]

Could easily be that the kids know what actually happened to Vander? They'd tell everyone.

[@treeanimation368]

I always thought Marcus saved Vi so that he could arrest someone for the crime that was committed. It was to stop the enforcers from continuing persecuting the undercity.

[@DragonXYZ8641]

I think it might be for the auience, since it feels like a big ol monologue, whther he actually plannaed to kill them, "give them to the doctor" or actually just yeet them into shurima i cant say, i do choose to believe he would kill them. tho maybe he did wanted to keep him alive for Vander to see him succed? he does still respect him

[@lizzyrank5405]

I think the kids were annoying his eyes cause Vander used to be by his side. Also, if he killed the kids and another to attack Vander and get even more revenge for turing his back on Vander. Not to mention if he didnt have the kids maybe Vander would want to work with Silco again. I honestly surprised Silco didnt try to secretly off them, but this is why I think it has more to do with revenge than with wanting Vander back.

[@slylover123]

I found this so uncharacteristic of Silco, powder and the father angle really saved him

[@Taj_SAS]

He didn't save Vi, he saved himself. Because we know from the beginning that they want us to arrest the person who caused the explosion. Well, so it does not make sense for Marcus to return to the council without the culprit and Garyson, and he will certainly ask him about what happened to her, so in order to remove suspicion from him because he is one of the people who caused the death of Grayson. They caught Vi and put her in jail, so please stop saying that Marcus saved Vi because if he was such a good person why is he still working with Silco and if he really wanted to save Vi why did he throw her in jail all those years uh?

[@tydshiin5783]

I don't think Marcus actually captured Vi just to overthrow Silco, if anything he more likely caught her because he did not have the guts to actually kill children, at first I thought he caught her because of the explosion at Jayce's workshop but it didn't work out as Jayce made Hextech work and was pardoned and she had no value anymore

[@RandoDoodlz]

I like that Grayson can remove her mask at least indoors. She doesn’t necessarily need it as much as other people from up top. She can breathe well enough, though I think the reason why her voice sounds so hoarse is because of her breathing in too much of the toxins in the undercity.

[@mrthomas2847]

NO so many has mistanken this, Vander only protects dose that was part of his crew, why did you think he apply the rule only to steal from undercity not to steal from the piltovers. The undercity is suffering, but his crew was still following him, it was until Piltover sendt their enforcers that they then go to favour Silco since he is one that really wants to fight the Piltover.

[@mikoajtokar5846]

I think that Marcus saved Vi because he simply didnt want her to die. He isnt a psycho fond of death , he didnt plan it this way and was disgusted with himself for the death of grayson

[@user-oc6mx5fi8z]

silco just wanted to get vi. he said that he thought she was the prize, but jinx was the real thing or something

[@kaleb749]

I originally thought that Marcus was just trying to be a good person where he could, but I see how your theory could be very true

[@guyr3618]

He probably just didn't want to leave behind kids who could tell what really happened. "Vander fled town" is a good story for Silco's image. "Silco murdered Vander", not so much.

[@Steelrat1994]

I don't believe anyone in the undercity saw Vi as the next leader after Vander. She was just a kid at that point, there was zero reason for anyone to go after her. For Silco to get rid of the kids is a reasonable move because kids grow into adults and come back for revenge. Besides who would've believe that Vander fled without his kids, when the consensus was that he was not going to war to protect them.

[@MerlinTheCommenter]

I don’t know where you got the “He saved Vi so he could prop her up as the Undercity leader so he could have someone reasonable to work with but underestimated how quickly Silco took over power,” but that’s just major speculation on your part since there’s zero supporting evidence of that being a motivation for Marcus to doing that. I never once heard him say that nor did I see any indicator in that. The girl was imprisoned for 7 years! If having her as the next leader was his plan, he did everything he could to make sure that didn’t happen lmaoooo.

[@andirieger1]

Nobody would believe the story about Vander skipping town as long as his adoptive family is still around, so they had to go, too. Vander "fleeing" would have made it easy easier for Silco to take over. But after the disaster at the canary, there wasn't much use in hiding his death. Marcus only "rescues" Vi without much think, because of his own bad conciousness (though, who the fuck just has a bottle of chloroform on his person??)- which is why he locks her up and throws away the key as soon as he realizes the mistake he made.

[@johngrimm2074]

I think Silco wanted Marcus to kill Vi, hasn't that already been stated. And that's why Silco was surprised to see Vi alive. Marcus didn't have the guts to kill Vi, that's why he saved him from running up and getting killed by Silco and his goons. He didn't want another person he could've saved die right in front of his eyes.

[@horsewings3561]

You know something scary? We're seeing that same thing happening today. There's an attack on family and religion today.

[@taetannim3581]

Vander has the "no one left behind" policy? The guy that abandoned the undercity? How?

[@refalalamoud8603]

Hey the theory of Marcus arresting Vi to make her a leader later and work with her instead is actually a really cool AU idea someone needs to write that

[@thatotherguy8138]

It's also possible that Silco was leaving Vander an out - if Vander had said "Noxus is looking mighty appealing these days..." and agreed to leave Zaun with his kids, would Silco have let him leave? If Vander leaves, Silco doesn't have to worry that someone will be disloyal (intentionally or stupidly, like when drunk/high) and reveal that Vander and the kids are actually dead. He can honestly say that Vander left, and maybe he's being a bit dramatic by saying he is a coward who fled, but he did leave, with his kids. Silco doesn't have to worry that maybe one of the bodies gets discovered and unravels his lies. Vander actually leaving does make life easier for Silco. I don't think he expected Vander to take that out, and indeed Vander did NOT take that out, but if Vander HAD tried to take it... ?

[@VendettaProduction01]

I’m actually more surprised that you don’t talk about how Silco actually models himself after jinix far more than jinix models herself after him

[@cosmefulanito5052]

I think Marcus just wanted someone to arrest.

[@layneroberts68]

can u talk about jinx n vander relationship?? bc she would hear the voices n see her brothers she even had fake models of them. but not for vander. he wasnt even at the dinneerr

[@yusa5391]

I dont think undercity is ruling by a monarchy. When vander die Vi isnt gonna be the leader no. I think they choose the person which respected the most. It could be anyone...

[@HxH2011DRA]

I actually think it's far less ideological than you think and he just needed a reasonable story for why Vander is gone, which the kids would obviously get in the way of XD. You are correct that industry is subordinated to his idea of the nation, not that it's a bad thing- profits in command is how we got the oppression of Zaun in the first place

[@VendettaProduction01]

I don’t think so to any of this. First Markus. I don’t see Markus having that much thought for a future leadership for two reasons. One, there was no way Markus could have known that he would have been selected as sheriff at that point, just a few hours after the blood money. Two Markus as a character is a short term reactionist hot head, even later on his thoughts are always how to get myself out of this without losing my daughter. Once he saw the explosion he ran to it (maybe for revenge) but when he saw he was out numbered he changed his mind and when he saw Vi he figured to grab her as insurance. Just in case Silco decided to betray him. As for Silco, a simple bad guy plan kill Vander and say that he left but since Vander would never leave without his kids they had to died. But the explosion and jinix changed everything. His overall plan, what just happened. Keep in mind that explosion was large enough that Markus saw it, which means the entire underground would have known about it in a few hours. So what do you do? You have a dead Vander, his kids, a bunch of dead enforcers, and half your building is missing. False flag, change the story to the Vander was at the end of his rope and went to his old buddy Silco for help, when the enforcers attacked Vander and his kids fought bravely with Silco and his men but sadly lost his life in the explosion along with his kids. But luckily one survived and he’ll do the right thing and rise her like a daughter. Then later on Silco informed his head members and only those close to him what actually happened. That would explain how Silco took over so fast and why he allowed a statue of Vander to built in the first place. And how he was able to push shimmer so fast.

[@Arob4343]

Yeah I also thought it was interesting that Marcus saved Vi. He had made a deal with Silco, but had seemed to realize it wasn’t a great deal

[@Lea-im3wr]

But then Silco becomes a daughter Guess his mindset has been jinxed.

[@emilyolsen6777]

I can't listen to silco cuz i had an intense fictional crush on a character Jason played and did the same voice for

[@careless3360]

So thats why Silco got mad when he heard Vi got out of prison. Not only because he got scared Jinx would be taken away from him, but also because Vi would be the next leader if he was defeated. Tbh, Vi can't lead, she has very bad leadership capabilities

[@Soulxstar]

I don't think that Marcus's thoughts were that deep, his deal with Silco get out of control, he wanted a connection with the undercity like his predecessor has with Vander but he wasn't the one with Silco on a leash it was Silco who has him in a leash, and, despite being a traitor and a coward, he didn't want to have the blood of a child in his hand so he put by away from everyone else, no one gets out of that prison so no one will ever tell Silco that Vi is still alive and if Caitlyn didn't take her out it would have remain that way

[@princessthyemis]

Oooo this makes sense! I was always confused why Marcus saved her 😐

[@Brumy-os4tx]

This is completely wrong. No one would have believed that Vander left and abandone his kids. So he had to get rid of the kids to sell his false narrative. You showed the clip of Silco explaining this, Vi was literally like 14 or something, why in the world Silco have seen he as a rival potential leader, much less Marcus.

[@Alice.59]

Really don't think he was going to kill them, more like turn them into monsters ( while finding a way to control them of course )

[@bcmm1880]

Not with Vi, they were definitely trying to kill her

[@Alice.59]

@@bcmm1880 Allow me to object with a citation from episode 6 when Silco meet Vi in the slum : "I thought you were the prize of your secondhand family.. But Jinx... Oh. She is more than I ever imagined." He see her as "the prize" for her strength and determination which could have been a great soldier in his army for the war. He only decide to kill her : 1 When everything exploded, everything he have build is gone, he is really pissed and just want to kill everyone. 2 When he learn Vi is still alive and realize that if Jinx learn it he could lose her

[@bcmm1880]

@@Alice.59 the first guy she fights tries to shank her with a knife, and proceeds to send in people with weapons which could easily kill her if she wasn’t as good at fighting, then he sends in the super soldier on a very experimental drug who could’ve easy crushed her neck, instead of sending Sevika who would’ve been more level headed and still detain her

[@kingtreck7117]

Can you go over those two history or did you already do that

[@matthewferguson7210]

Always end the bloodline