The Most Heartbreaking Jinx Moment From Arcane

Netflix's "Arcane" arrived like a lightning bolt when it debuted in late 2021, blowing viewers away with its gorgeously rendered animation and heartfelt storytelling. Based on characters from "League of Legends," it's among a rarified few video game adaptations to draw almost unanimous praise from critics and viewers, whether they are familiar with the game or not.

Taking place against the steampunk backdrop of Piltover, a rich city ruled by an elite council, and Zaun, its oppressed underworld, the series smartly keeps the cast of main characters small despite the expansive setting, focusing heavily on a handful of emotional relationships. At the heart of the story is Jinx (Ella Purnell), separated from her sister Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) at a young age and raised by the crime lord Silco (Jason Spisak). Over the course of Season 1's three-act structure, Jinx transforms from an innocent but clever child to a terrorist mastermind driven to madness and violence by her past traumas.

The show is full of emotional highs and heartbreaking lows, but across all of "Arcane," one moment stood out to fans as a particularly crushing moment that forever changes Jinx, pushing her past the point of no return.

The final episode of "Arcane" Season 1 sees Jinx pulled between her long-lost sister and her adoptive father while struggling to become her own person. In a final showdown, she kidnaps both, along with Vi's friend and love interest Caitlyn (Katie Leung), and seats them at either end of a table, tied to chairs. Pointing to two empty seats, one labeled Powder and the other Jinx, she asks Vi, "Where should I sit? That's your choice, really."

Vi promises that they can run away together, but Jinx isn't convinced. Meanwhile, Silco pleads his own case. He's come to love Jinx as a daughter, and promises he'd never betray her. Caitlyn takes advantage of Jinx's distraction to break free and grab a machine gun, causing Jinx to draw her own pistol, overpower Caitlyn, and seize the larger weapon. Silco picks up the discarded pistol and aims it at Jinx, causing Jinx to reach a breaking point and open fire with the machine gun, riddling Silco with bullets and killing him. As Jinx sobs, Silco's last words to her are, "I never would have given you to them. Not for anything. Don't cry. You're perfect."

The moment devastated fans. In the episode discussion thread on Reddit, U/Maegiri opined, "damn, in the end, it was Silco who genuinely loved Jinx unconditionally. And she lost that too." U/RedTulkas observed, "jinx being forced to kill the only person that loves and cares for her to protect vi... man its heartbreaking." Overall, fans found Silco's death at Jinx's hands as the most heart-wrenching moment for the character.