SEVIKA: 3 Theories | ARCANE Character Analysis 

YES! Sevika never betrayed Vander because she was always clear about her goals and her stance for the cause. I like that you mentioned Vander betrayed the Undercity because while we understand his decision and it’s justified, it is also true. Stagnation isn’t what the people wanted, they wanted to fight. Thank you for putting it out there. Now people can stop calling Sevika a traitor maybe lol. But anyway I also see how Vi would see her that way due to her love for Vander, her family, but in the end both Vi and Sevika wanted to fight the enforcers. It’s sad since they could have been a team.

There is also another thing Sevika is, in my opinion. She represents the quintessetial Zaun. She is a brute of a warrior, she was molded by her environment to be tough like granite, she is so tough she smokes when a lot cann't breath, she uses Shimmer to boost her strength, she, like most of Zaun, is a melee fighter and uses blades rather than guns. She is the ultimate Zaun commoner, the person who represents not just the cog of the machine of Zaun, but the actual machine itself. The masses of Zaun represented by a single person, who defied the peaceful ways of Vander, even though he was protecting them, and embraced the cruelty of Silco, even though the left them mangled and addicted to shimmer. Sevika is the Zaun Vander betrayed and Silco let florish. That's also why the jealosy and resentment towards Jinx. Jinx is the Zaun Silco wants. Jinx is the worst of both worlds. Zaun doesn't use guns, Piltover does, Jinx does. Zaun uses shimmer, Piltover uses hextech, Jinx finishes the story with both.

Yes the fight with Sevika is useless but I think it's on purpose. After Vi part ways with Jayce who tell her she will not make it alone, Vi does the only thing she knows to do : punch people in the face. She just has no plan and no better idea of what to do to than to barge in the antagonist headquarter. In fact, in most of movies or videogames it would work, the hero beats the bad guys, end of story. For me, the fact it's pointless makes the scene better. It's like Sky's death, lot of people said it didnt have impact because we are not attached to the character, I felt the opposite : what a waste her death was made it even more impactful. It perfectly put us in the shoes of Victor who realize at that moment that he doesn't know anything about her.

Sevika isn't loyal to a person, she's loyal to the cause. It's why she leaves Vander, because Vander isn't fighting for her cause anymore. It's why when Silco asked if she was tempted, she says "not for a worm like him, but he won't be the last." She realizes Silco isn't the best leader for the undercity. She would absolutely turn on him if she found someone convincing enough to be a better kingpin. But she hasn't, so for now Silco is the best ally for her cause.

Strangely, in most other stories Sevika would be the hero, as a character who fights for the indipendence of the oppressed, selflessly (Because she extents the replacability of humans to her own person as well, risking her life for someone she just run over to).

I think it was made in purpose that VI and Sevika's fight had no stakes. It links well to the "So now that I've beaten Sevika, what changed? Absolutely nothing". They were fighting even though they knew they would accomplish nothing

at 0:53 I think what you're missing is how this scene relates to Vi's defining character trait: she tries to solve all her problems by rushing in to fight. Vander warned her in the beginning that this would not solve her problems and only hurt the people she cared about, but even here at the end of the story, she has not learned the lesson. How did she deal with the problem of Silco and Jinx? She rushed in to fight. She literally walked in their front door with no plan except fighting. She fights Sevika and wins, but now what? This doesn't solve anything. And what happens immediately after? Jinx knocks her out, and she wakes up in Jinx's tea party. Vi has the arc of a tragic hero. She never learns the lesson that Vander learned: fighting can't solve all your problems and you will lose the people you care about.

Huh, interesting. my interpretation is very different. For me Vi's scream after she beats Sevika reflects the scream she lets out the moment Vander died. Because yes, Silco is the boss and the brains of the whole thing. But Silco is also a physically weak man, only capable of stabbing Vander in the back. In Vi's mind, the reason Silco was able to overthrow Vander was because people abandoned Vander and sided with Silco. And the one that initiated that change was Sevika. So, in a way, by beating Sevika, she was able to avenge Vander's death. Especially since Vi isn't the type of person that kills. Or, to use chess as an example, Silco maybe be the king, but Sevika is the queen, the strongest piece on the board. As is Vi, on the opposite side. And the moment Vi defeated Sevika, it was only a matter of time before Silco fell as well. But apart from all that, I don't see the second fight as irrelevant. Yes, there are no stakes, but it's so symbolic. Hextech versus Shimmer, Piltover versus Zaun, and even the Lanes versus Zaun

Sevika is a personification of “the show must go on.”

I don’t know how much of a role it would play in Sevika’s “loyalty” to Silco but after she saved him and had her arm blown off he didn’t leave her to die, you see his henchmen carrying her at the end of episode 3. It would have been easy for Silco to see her on the ground missing an arm and say “oh well, lost cause” but he took the effort to save her, so maybe that has something to play in her choice to not betray Silco.

12:12 I adore the way this moment was edited, it made just so much more powerful going from a fight scene to an emotional scene of vulnerability

Interestingly enough, Sevika does actually fight for change. The status quo in the world of Arcane is different from status quo in the events of the show itself. Sevika wants the status quo of Piltover’s oppression to end. The status quo she is fighting for is how this change should be implemented - through violence.

Again, I think you’re right on the money. Once again I will refer to tweets by Amanda Overton, one of Arcane’s writers, talking about Vi vs Sevika. ”She (Vi) takes out years of pent up frustration and rage on Sevika, whom she thinks is the only thing standing between her and Silco.” And yeah. She beats her ass, remembering Vander as she gets back up, telling her Powder needs her. And what’s the scene like after Sevika sits unconscious and torn to bits in that smashed up jukebox? Nothing. Vi’s just stumbling on her feet in this empty, destroyed bar, the place that used to be her home, and she still doesn’t have her sister, even after the fight of her life. Everything she’s doing right now, the place she’s in, how she’s totally alone, fighting alone. How can you not feel small? feel weak? But also the catharsis of finishing such a brutal fight, of winning. That’s what it is, not just one thing, that scream, nay, that ROAR doesn’t just mean one thing, it’s the gutteral release of someone who is overwhelmed by everything going on in her life, overwhelmed by this chaotic mixture of emotion in the aftermath of a fight, a victory that meant so much to her on so many levels that somehow manages to feel hollow at the same time because she has no one left, nothing left right now. And then she gets what she wants, beating Sevika brought her to Powder and Silco, but now she’s strapped to a chair, powerless and unable to just ”take Silco out”, and we get it, man… The desperation from Vi in that whole final scene. After that fight where she gets to put all her strength to use, and then at the end, all her skill and muscle means nothing and she’s unable to save her sister, maybe even losing her for good. Just like Vander said. Her fists haven’t solved any of her problems, and now Jinx has given her even more of them.

Vi vs Sevika part 2 is one of my favourite moments of the show for one important reason. It shows Vi’s trauma and how, like Jinx, it has shaped her. Unlike Jinx who is stuck with the ghosts of Mylo and Clagor haunting her, Vi has the ghost of Vander spurring her on in a much more supportive way.

Sevika the queen gettin some much deserved attention!

I feel like a reason for this fight could be linked back to vi’s ideology of brute force solves problems. Think about it, she has just abandoned pilotover and after seeing Ekko and jinx fighting, she might have finally started believing that she couldn’t change jinx. She would’ve felt so lost and especially weak in this situation, unable to help the undercity and most of all being unable to help jinx, so what does she do? She needs a reason to feel strong just any reason so she finds the only person who she can fight and resorts to violence. I’m not good with analyzing but this kinda stuck out to me when thinking about the logic of this scene

Personally I see Vi and Sevika are like the cowboys in the old school Westerns. And We can make an assumption here - Sevika did not have a family so if the upper city was responsible then she would do what ever it takes to make them pay. If you are helping her get that done then she is on your side. If not - she leaves and finds someone that will. Vi still has her family and so she will do what ever it takes to save them all - and as long as Sevika is around none of them is safe. So for Vi, Sevika has got to go (also Vi wants payback for Vander). You got your Classic cowboy motivations.

You put into words why I love Sevika so much! She’s ruthless and powerful, smart and entertaining. I wouldn’t want to cross her path. I have high hopes for her in season 2!!

I was definitely shocked when Sevika chose NOT to betray Silco! The narrative was certainly leading us to think that she was going to betray Silco, but NOPE. This series is constantly surprising me.

I've been binging your channel, and it's all so good, so amazing how much you can get from this show!

yes, I absolutely agree that Sevika is a foil for Vi, and this is the characters reason to fight. But another thing that i kinda expected you to mention but didnt: Sevika and Vi's fighting style is almost exactly the same, which means that the symbolic representation for them is the tools they utilise: Shimmer and hextech. Their fight in episode 5 shows that the undercity has no way of changing because of silcos use of shimmer, and thats why Vi looses. Later when Vi gains her hextech gloves it symbolizes the only way to fight against shimmer and by extension Silco and his regime. The last fight therefore becomes a fight between hextech and shimmer. I'd love to hear more opinions about this because i havent seen this interpretation before

On first watch of the show my impression was that Sevika represented the Undercity itself giving character to the city and environment they in. When the city lost Vander, Sevika lost her arm, and when the city got a upgrade she got the same upgrade. That's why I really enjoyed both fight scenes with Sevika vs Vi. It was like Vi fighting the city itself. I think Sevika made an awesome 1st boss fight for Arcane as a whole.

I also noticed that Sevika's shimmer arm is different between bar fights. The first one the shimmer is injected from the top automatically but is shot out by Caitlyn. The new version is loaded manually in the forearm and is covered. She upgraded it not just with a laser knife but also clever placement of a known weak point.

I see Sevika in a different light. Assuming she truly believes in the cause-to free the people of the undercity from Piltover- she’s the most selfless person on the show. Possible spoilers. Rather than being a soulless cog of inferiority, she’s willing to sacrifice any deep relationships to free Zaun. Earlier in the show, we learn that Sevika is a regular at the brothel. To me, this could be for three reasons: 1. She’s made a deal with someone in the brothel. 2. * She goes there to get a shot of humanity without making any deeper connections. 3. She loves someone who works at the brothel. There’s a reason Sevika keeps saying that Vander and Silco aren’t the right leaders: both of them are corrupted by love. And so is Vi. All of them will sacrifice the undercity for the people they love-those precious, irreplaceable people. After finding Jinx, Silco didn't want to fight anymore either. That's why he kept sending Jinx on the missions. He could build up her confidence and sabotage the mission at the same time. Jinx is unstable, and she has a history of messing up Silco's missions. He let her do this because he wants to live like Vander while still looking like Silco. He can betray Zaun in a sneaky way; Silco's not as brave as Vander, and his "care circle" is small like Vi's. *** Sevika’s the person who’s able to set herself aside and get close to no one. She has no ego. It’s not about her-it’s about the greater good. Sevika goes to the brothel-possibly to have a fling with some random, then leave-so she can be free of love for any one person. So she can free undercity from Piltover. What a lonely existence, but I think Sevika believes in freeing everyone. Because the others have precious people, they will choose those few over the many. And when they and their precious people do get a better life, they won’t want to risk those people to fight for random people. And so, Sevika’s hiding in the background, keeping everyone a nameless cog. If everyone’s a cog-and she doesn’t assign any preciousness to anyone-she could achieve Undercity’s independence. She can save everyone. So far, Sevika has been effective because she's in the background. She seems to be a matcher. A person who mirrors other people to get close to them. When she’s not with Vi, we don’t see Sevika fight too much. She’s looking relaxed, quiet, and watching other people. I think she’s standing behind a "leader" while pulling the strings. It’s clear she doesn’t think Vander, Vi, or Silco are fit to lead. Working in the shadows makes it easier for her to be forgotten. Rather than being the face of power or hatred, and having to put on any façade, she can be the lowly henchwoman who’s just following orders. But, she’s not. Slowly, much of the power is transferring to her, and she can keep that power even if the leader changes. “Sevika will take care of it.” I think she’s the Mel of the undercity, except more straightforward. Undercity people aren’t known to be extremely sneaky, so she can be manipulative in a straightforward way. From Sevika’s point of view, building a family in the undercity is a problem. If everyone decides to become a family and settle into their existence through love, they’ll never get their freedom. They'll all betray their own freedom. So far, each leader has chosen their precious people-in some respect, a selfish love-over freeing everyone. Vander sacrificed undercity for his children; Silco sacrificed undercity for his child, and Vi has a limited radius of love. She fights for her family. She’ll sacrifice anything for them. None of them care much about the masses; they care about the people they love. If Sevika loves no one, she can love everyone. *** But that makes me think: if Vi’s family was fine, would she keep fighting? Vi doesn’t seem to have a large enough “care zone” to fight for everyone. She deeply and passionately wants a few to do well. Her perspective widened later. From what we’ve seen, Sevika doesn’t have a Caitlyn. She doesn’t know a top-sider with a heart, so she believes the only way to get their freedom is to fight. The only reason Vi changed her mind is that she met Caitlyn. Before that, she was similar to Sevika, Silco, and Vander. Fighting was the only answer. But, thinking more about fighting being Vi’s only answer: If she hadn’t been in prison, would she have been able to create what Vander and Ekko were able to create? Would she have been able to create a family on a large scale? I don’t think so. Vi didn’t have the ability. She was too focused on pushing people away to protect her sphere of love. To protect her sister. Fighting was her only answer. She didn’t ask questions or slow down to listen. Before meeting Caitlyn, Vi wasn’t able to bring people together, and Vander wasn’t either before he found his children. Vi was family with Mylo, Claggor, and Ekko because of Vander more than anything else. He was the dad, and they were his children. I don’t think Vi would’ve been effective at bringing people together in the undercity or taking Piltover down by herself. She didn’t have a big enough perspective to do it. Ekko and Vander are able to scale up their care. Both of them are able to see the humanity of the masses. And Ekko is awesome. He’s focused on building a better world not fighting for one. They do live in the undercity of progress after all. Vi’s learning that now, but I don’t think she would’ve learned it if the situation was different. *** Vi wins that last battle, but she's lost the war. I think Sevika can start a war by herself, but Vi can't make peace by herself. We don’t know Sevika’s motive to free the undercity, but she’s the most selfless character on this show.

I love the twist they used for this character. At the beginning, we're led to believe that she's a disloyal opportunist who will switch sides at the drop of a hat, but when juxtaposed against Finn, we get to see how loyal she is. Her whole prosthetic arm is a testament to how much she was willing to sacrifice for the future of Zaun. Just in that one scene with Finn, she was elevated from a commonplace henchwoman to a gigantic figure in my eyes.

Arcane really goes in hard of the debate over nature vs nurture. Nature is ones individual personality. It's that one person's temperament, feeling, emotions, and heart. Nurture is your environment. When you grow up in a place like Zaun, it changes you to adapt. Even in Piltover, where technology and politics are well established, there are struggles for power.

Sevika is the embodiment of "The Sword of Damocles" hanging over Silco's head both figuratively and literally. I wonder if she will get someone to replace Silco or if she will fill the seat herself. I don't think she is willing to sit in the thrown herself but the only character as "strong" as Silco is Jinx herself. I would love to see her working with Jinx but at the same time, the only person who managed to get Sevika to sit in Silco's chair was JInx when she tied her into it. That could be foreshadowing of Jinx forcing Sevika into the leadership role against her will. If that is the case then Sevika will make an interesting villain.

YES! Sevika was loyal to Zaun and stayed loyal to Zaun from day one. in season 2: i would love to see young vi looking up to sevika.

The "Zoomer terminology," I'm dead! On a serious note, I love how they not only created all of these fleshed-out, fascinating characters but also wove them together and used them to enhance eachother's arcs and themes. Even the side characters that seem plot-driven on the surface have so much more to them. It's so good; you can just stare at this show for months, just studying it and taking it apart, and not get tired of it! A big thanks for always showing me the hidden depths!

Damn you, Schnee... You made me wanna hug Sevika and tell her that she's perfect!

I mean, Silco's office is right above the bar. As far as Vi knows, Sevika *is* the last thing standing between her and getting her hands on Silco, right?

The whole Vi against Sevika is used greatly to show how neck on neck the advancements in hextech and shimmer, but also how they're functionally so different with shimmer augmenting life at its core while hextech is meant to be an extension. In the last episode fight, we see Sevika with one arm exposed and the other augmented by shimmer, while Vi has both Atlas gauntlets on until one is destroyed (by shimmer might i add), leaving her with her bare fist exposed and on an equal playing field. After that, Vi destroys Sevika's augmented arm with the gauntlet, meaning that by the end, we've seen both sides destroy the other until one comes out victorious, which is potentially symbollic of the war between Piltover and Zaun that lurks over the whole series.

I’d argue there was actually a point to Vi fighting Sevika again, and she did have a plan, although a brutishly simple one. But then again, that’s who Vi is so it kinda works. She’s very earnest, direct, and fearless to a fault. Her loose ‘strategy’ the way I saw it was “I will punch stuff till I conquer the obstacles that harm me and the people I care about (Powder, Ekko, Caitlyn).” Her goal, in a way, looped back around to what it was in episode 1. Fight for what matters. At one point, Vander holds up her bruised hand and tells her essentially that violence solves nothing. She tries to rethink her worldview based on this advice from the one she admires, and in later episodes tries other methods of conflict resolution. She tries giving those she doesn’t know if she can trust a chance to prove themselves, she tries diplomacy, she tries letting others help break down obstacles (all of these mainly happen when she’s with Caitlyn and Ekko, but also The Council - and later Jayce apart from the rest of the council). These alternatives all fail for one reason or another. She goes from wondering if violence works to considering that maybe trying something new works, and then a step further to trying a mixture of different methods, violence included. When all of that fails her, she reverts back to the method she always thought was best. Punch your problems out of existence. By the time of Sevika fight 2, she is flailing, grasping for any way to reach her goals. Everyone she tried to challenge her own views and work with either failed to make change or died (I assume she thinks Ekko’s dead), which is still failure since it changed nothing. Left in this situation, she opts for the only thing she knows. Fight for what matters. Punch problems away. Silco’s empire is a problem that needs to be punched away, in VI’s opinion. So that’s what she does after parting ways with Jayce: punches Sevika until she’s down, and then Vi focuses on finding and punching Silco. However, in her usual chaotic fashion, Jinx throws a wrench into those plans and they grind to a halt. I feel like if that didn’t happen, we would have seen Vi punching her way through Silco’s goons until only her sister was left. That never would have worked, but she was out of options by this point.

Great points! I didn't realize people didn't like the SeVika bar fight? That fight serves a TON of purpose! In terms of being a foil for each other, Sevika teaches Vi important lessons. In round #1, Sevika says "You never learned patience" and Vi immediately starts ducking and waiting for the right time to strike. She learns a bit of patience. (It also forces Vi and Cait together, and forces Silco to lie to Jinx). In round #2, Sevika destroys a gauntlet, forcing Vi to reconnect with the Vander inside her, reminding the audience of her journey (vital leading up to the dinner scene in which she chooses to protect Cait) and from that she learns to protect herself better; a literal Hextech shield that we will definitely be seeing more of. Plus, it will force Vi to ally with Jayce (and Piltover) to get a new pair of gauntlets. Sevika is Vi's mentor, in an antagonistic way. As well, Sevika is the last character who could possibly interfere with the dinner scene and needed to be neutralized. My prediction for season 2: Sevika joins the Firelights. Sound crazy? She isn't a leader, as you said, and she ain't gonna join Jinx or Piltover. Plus she needs a new arm, and Ekko and Heimerdinger (who both probably believe in rehabilitation) could easily hook her up (Sevika with a glowing green arm!). This will cause immediate tension between Vi and Ekko, as Vi see's Sevika as a traitor. Vi needs new gauntlets from Jayce, loves Cait (and may need to support her if Cait's mom is RIP), and feels guilt for "creating" Jinx; Vi will stay in Piltover, and in Ekko's eyes Vi is the traitor. Jinx may link up with Singed (and maybe Viktor and Warwick??). Throw in a pissed off Noxian warlord and a mage from Jayce's past and baby you got a season two going.

Sevika's motivations are quite simple: The Future: To see the undercity thrive in the long term. Who does she betray: Vander and The Chembarons. She betrays Vander because Vander only wanted to keep things as they were, with no ambition to improve their situation in the under-city or Zaun if you will. She betrays the Chem-barons for similar reasons: The Chem-Barons did not seek to improve the current situation, sure they might have fixed a few of the more immediate issues (Jinx), but after that, they have no plan to actually improve the undercity's standing. The reason she betrayed Vander is because Vander did not have any ambition to improve their lives, whilst Silco did. On the other hand, whilst the Chem-barons would've solved the immediate problems, they had no long-term plan. You know who did have a long-term plan, Silco, and his plan for the independent nation of Zaun.

finally sevika!!! ok here is my grand sevika theory i've been waiting to share: sevika's main interest is talking sh*t. we're introduced sevika talking sh*t to vander, she talks sh*t when beaten in a fight, when tied up to a chair, sh*t talk is sevika's true loyalty. is vander a good sh*t-talker? no, silco is so: betrayed. is finn as good a sh*t talker as silco? not by a long shot, we see finn's dialogue annoys sevika with it's worminess over bravado, and as if to confirm it right after sevika saves silco what does he do? talk some sh*t to rennie about her dead son. my theory started as a joke in my mind, but the more i thought about it the more i bought into it. love the videos and the discussion about this amazing series.

Now that you said all those things it hit me - What Sevika represents is EXACTLY what Silco ideology is, and what inability to do ultimately causes his 'failure' in claiming the Nation of Zaun. Sevika is all about 'sacrificing for the cause'. That idea, is worth everything - she isnt loyal to any*body*, she is loyal to this idea... Like you said: She leave Vander because she feels like HE gave up on it, she feels betrayed. And doesn't backstab Silco because no matter how many flaws Silco displayed, especially with Jinx, his ultimate goal still aligned with Sevikas, while chembarons didnt rly want a fight... they wanted to profit. So ofc Sevika wouldnt go with Finn instead of Silco: thus the line: "not for a worm like him". Sevike is *perfect* embodiment of Silco's ideology.

Sevika not betraying Silco was a lot more...tenuous. He's breathing hard because he entirely knew there was a chance she WOULD betray him. I think she genuinely considered it as an option. But as she said, not for a worm like him. It wasn't Silco that determined that she didn't, it's that the alternative leader wasn't good enough. And both of them absolutely know that other alternatives will come along and that she just might...whenever he stops being the best choice. Vander did stop being the best choice for leader of what the people wanted. So she made the choice that time. It's consistant. She still betrayed her leader, but that's because she wanted to follow the will of the people then, the rage and urge to bring down Piltover, even if it burned Zaun. Strength happens to be the valued tool to GET to that revenge.

You could make the argument that Sevika was so hugely representative of Silco's strength (as mentioned by Finn in that she is the muscle behind everything) that defeating her foreshadowed Silco's downfall. Because Sevika is only loyal to that willingness to fight, and Silco had just given up everything he had fought for for Jinx. In the end, Silco saw Jinx as "perfect" because he saw more Zaun in her than in Sevika, and she never could have stayed loyal to Silco after he (like Vander) gave it up for family. So i guess you could say that Vi's defeating Sevika isn't trivial by any means. Silco lost at Vander's statue, we just didn't know it yet. The fight lets us see Silco losing his power, but the truth is he already lost it.

You're so insightful here about the multiple ways her character plays into the story- how a character who switches sides still has her own underlying loyalty to the cause that views individuals as replaceable, how her actions make sense when you consider that she's doing what she thinks will keep things 'on plan' for Zaun. I said 'wow' out loud listening to the part about how she is the anti-Vi because unlike Vi, and, as an imperfect mirror also, of Vander and Silco's relationship- she views people- even herself as tools for a goal she's committed to, and as replaceable in that. I also really appreciated your previous videos' insight into Vi and her attitude to Piltover and how she resents Zaun's inferiority, as compared to Silco's embrace of Zaun as itself (and Jinx as symbolic of that), in another video. It helped a lot to understand some of the seeming inconsistencies of Vi there. One thing I think is interesting in the light of this analysis is Vi vs Jayce on this issue. In the scene down at the chemical factory we have Vi telling Jayce deaths, like the death of this kid he killed, had always been going on, out of sight in Zaun. But she also seems, there, to be closer to seeing that one kid as being as replaceable as Piltover and Zaun sees him to be even though she is, too, upset by it. Perhaps it's more.. she sees that in the context of a war between them, they would be, then again, she herself seems keen to fight them to get to Silco.

I think another reason why Sevika chooses Silco other than feeling betrayed by Vander is the fact that Silco is super ambitious and got things done. He did actually help them out some and sure some ppl were worse of. I think for Sevika she saw what he did was helping her and some other ppl from the undercity

Starting to think VI felt this way because Sevika sort of 'raised her'. They seem to share a lot of history. Specifically when she has her arms trapped in their first fight (I see you never learned patience) and when Sevika says "The Vander 'I' knew". That line seemed pretty personal and she wasn't including the rest of the Lanes people when she said it. Also that look when Vander was being pulled away on the bridge. Sevika felt guilt and disappointment and then seemed to remember her goals. I think her and the kids share a lot more history than it leading on. And I think Vi / Sevika are going to reveal more in season 2, while 'Vander' is going to remember her and just rip her apart. I wanted to say that even Jinx may kill Sevika, but, Sevika is like....her only remaining 'family' member around. So, she may beat up Sevika, but she wont out right kill her.

I do think theres a bit more to this. Theres a lot of depth in this scene for a supposedly simple fight scene. If you think about the context of the scene, Vi says Silco is still out there, so she goes to his HQ after leaving Jayce. That is where shes headed. Shes on a mission to clean up the lanes, defeat Silco and Sevika is standing in her way again. But its not only that. The bar that they are fighting in is as much of a home to her as anywhere. In many ways Sevika enabled all these bad things to happen when she essentially lead the rebellion against Vander. Sure she joined Silco but she was the one leading the others to join him. She gave the muscle to Silco to enact these changes. Im sure to Vi, she is one of the main reasons her father figure, Vander is 'dead'. And like in the scene when Finn tries to win her over, he is saying shes actually the one who holds the power here. Which is true really. She is the one who is still socialising with the rest of the zaunites, who has her finger on the pulse, its her decision if Silco dies and another takes over. Its the stubborness and hard-headedness of people like Sevika who keeps fighting for the undercity which gives any real weight to the idea that Zaun is strong enough to stand on its own and stand up for itself. Yes I think Vi's scream is one of frustration at these obstacles and her inability to change things, but in a way, she also just avenged Vander in his own pub. Thats who she sees. Thats who gives her strength and reminds her what shes fighting for. The moment in which she sees vander at the point she could have given up, is deeply touching. Shes fighting to get her home back. And yet she cant get her father back. Who Sevika betrayed to Silco. The way she just goes in on her the first time Vi sees Sevika out of prison shows the rage and the hurt she holds against her as the person who turned her back on Vander and lead the undercity into the control of Silco. Its not just that shes his 2nd in command. At least thats how I read it. And while I do think theres a coldness to Sevika, I think she does see the love Silco has for Jinx ans advises him from a place of sincerity. I can empathise with her too in a way, because Sevika is the angry downtrodden. She is too angry to make peace with Piltover after the way they treated her and her people. She doesnt believe they deserve peace, she believes Zaun deseves its independence. Itd be good to get more backstory on her but the idea of her as an angry youth, disagreeing with her father and storming off. Now matured into this colder, determined anger that won't rest until it gets what it wants, no matter what it takes. Maybe Jinx tipped the scales in the end but she seems less motivated by a mission to see Zaun lifted up and more out of interpersonal reasons, she wants what her family wants. Shes motivated by personal pain and the desire to take it out on others. Sevika may well also be motivated by personal pain but its not about appeasing anyone. Its a case of principles. Her principles that she has stood by and have become hardened into her. Sevika is cold angry determination. And you're right Vi is softer, more willing to hear other peoples perspectives, she has a good heart. She feels deeply for the people around her. On a personal level. I definitely agree with you on this. But I wasn't disappointed by her fight with Vi, it was a rematch waiting to happen. But it was almost Vi's last stand. If Silco was cowering behind that bar or upstairs, she could have marched up there and defeated him without his bodyguard. She could have reclaimed her home and avenged Vander. But ofc Jinx interupts that road to victory..she Jinxes it again, by kidnapping them all.

Sevika really grew on me through the series to the point of being one of my faves... such a badass no nonsense character with a redeemable set of qualities and characteristics

My first time watching savika not betraying silco did not surprise me much. Her loyalty was simple after all. Whoever is better for zauns independents. Vander failed miserably once his deal fell thru. he lost everything he built as it was on a house of cards. Silco was the opposite though it seemed like he was loosing at that time as we know now he was completely winning, only jinx made him look bad as she was a wildcard. Her better option was silco

I figured the fight happened naturally as Vi, when she doesn't know what to do, appears to attempt to find a new way by beating up on Silcos goons. Bald Guy, Sevika and Sevika again. After that massive impass of leaving Caitlyn because of her oil and water theory.

What I really like about Arcane’s sometimes ambiguous nature is that it leads to awesome analyses and discussions about the underlying meaning(s) of it, such as this here video and comment section.

Fart

Sevika is not a hard character to understand. She has a dream of undercity independence. But she wants progress, Vander wanted Safety. This is a common THEME in this show. Safety is stagnant, Progress is dangerous. Vander/Heimerdinger Safety, Silco/Victor Progress. Only reason she didn't betray Silco was because he was the better option than what she had and Silco knows it. She is keeping Silco in line. But like Vander he now has weakness. Sevika's problem is she's a coward. In all her toughness she doesn't have the courage or confidence to lead and so she will always be waiting for someone to fill that throne and carry her to her dream.

Nice analysis! I never thought of Vi choosing to side with Silco because “We have to fight,” but the way you presented it makes so much sense. Just goes to show how much more depth there is to this series than most others. Personally, I’ve always like Sevika as a character. She’s as tough as a brick outhouse, _never_ backs down from a fight, and her magical adamantium jaw can take any punishment. But she also has enough respect for her most hated enemy to let both of them take a breather for a minute halfway through an epic showdown.

9:32 Something else that I thought was pretty interesting is that Silco is seen smoking cigars throughout the show. Cigars are a symbol for power, they are a symbol for strength and having him smoke one in this scene where Sevika calls him a worm I thought was pretty neat.

5:40 yes, for example, those stories about families trying to survive war or disasters and try to stick together through it all, to not separate, to STAY together, to continue life toghether... actually those stories keep me on edge. OOOOH and like when Tohru chases Kyou, because she wanted him to CONTINUE living with her in that house, that was one of the strongest episodes in fruits basket, and it was preventing change.

I absolutely love Sevika. She is higher on my list than Vi actually. For which caeachters I love most

I actually think Vi went to clear out the Last Drop. She was cleaning house and evicting the unwelcome new owners of her home. Then she breaks down because she knows, finally, that her entire family is gone and there's no way it'll ever feel like home again. She never allowed herself to accept the loss, and Sevika represented a tangible target to eliminate on her list of wrongs to make right, something she could actually DO something about. But Powder will never go back there, and so Vi has to shift her view of how to "save" Powder. She could always keep herself going by relentlessly chading her objectives. But after beating Sevika, punishing her for Vander, it still got her no closer to saving what was lrft of her family, and Vander's ideals. Nothing makes sense anymore, but she still has one thing left she can fix: chase the monsters away and get Powder back.

I always thought Vi just needed her revenge against Sevika thus explaining the "unnecessary" battle

Your analysis vids are so good! Been impatiently waiting for this one!

you seriously blow my mind with each of your videos, your analytical skills are top tier and you make me love and appreciate this show even more

Ill also say, I really like how "When Everything Went Wrong" played during Sevika and Vi's fight. Because Vi coming back is when everything started going wrong for Sevika, and Sevika betraying Vander is when everything started going wrong for Vi. So it's a personal conflict because each of them ruined the other person's goals.

Sevika is one of my favorite characters in the show, I love this video

I'm obsessed with your Arcane analysis videos. Obsessed. You notice the most incredible details and story threads and themes and every time I watch a new one it makes me love Arcane even more. I also learn more about storytelling itself and I love that you use Arcane as a vehicle to teach about that. You are so smart and your analysis videos are crafted so eloquently, concisely, and brilliantly. Thank you so much for continuing to do these, they are my favorite videos on RU-vid!

I still feel like the scene in this figth whwre Vi sees Vander is really important. This shows Vi beeing at her lowest ponit, but she regains her hope when she sees her father figure once more.

I'vent seen arcane yet but I just love your analysis videos of arcane

Knowing vi is going to win that fight makes the scene much more impactful. I think it shows Sevikas place within her own ideology. People are replaceable and she is no exception. Vi may have beat sevika in the fight, but as far as their ideological parallels go, sevikas loyalty to her own, even when she and the audience knows she can’t match up to a plot armored character like vi, makes her real and relatable. I don’t think we have seen the end of her and I think she will prove herself a worthy final boss for vi.

I thought Silco (Scheming, never gets his hands dirty) was the anti-Vi and Sevika (places doubts in Jinxs head and calls her a problem in front of Silco) was more of a Mylo-replacement in Jinxs new "family".

In the case of Sevika telling Silco not to go after Jinx, I see this as her being a real human connecting with her boss; not everything she does has to be concerned with her role as someone trying to uphold the status quo. She's just a multi-dimensional character, and I'm glad they let her be human. It's also extremely refreshing to see a second-in-command character be content with being second-in-command, instead of the ambitious henchman stereotype that is so predictable and uninteresting because it's just lazy conflict (in my opinion).

Sevika used to work for vander, and vi expresses deep disgust and a feeling of betrayal in the very first line she speaks in their first episode "you filthy fucking traitor" in the first scene, vi won, but not "really". she was exhausted, beaten to bits, and sevika ultimately won in the end and was able to warn silco. In the second fight scene vi is saying "i am better than you, i am stronger than you, and i am more loyal than you." by ripping her arm off, the arm that was destroyed to protect and rebuilt by silco. she is saying "no matter how strong you are being a follower, i will always be stronger than you on my own."

Congrats 20k! Well deserved.

I LOVE your long video's. Thanks for putting so much work into your video's. They are a treat!!

I feel like the whole premise of this video is that Sevika is trying to keep the status quo, to prevent change, but things clearly have changed and in large part because of her actions. You even pointed that out (13:27) but then right after you went back to saying nothing has changed. You also said Vi wanted everything to be the same, but that's not true either. I think they both want change, but they just have a different vision of what that change should be. I think when Vi gets out of prison, she sees everything changed, but for the worse. Even Vander wanted change, but he had given up hope so at the end, he was just doing his best to hold onto what they already had. I think you are right about Sevika's loyalties though. She doesn't care about one person, she just cares about whomever has the power and can change things to reflect her vision of the undercity.

That last fight also seems like a way to show the power of shimmer vs hextech. When jayce and silco spoke, jayce said that the under-city wouldn’t stand a chance against hextech. Yet we see that sevika (using shimmer) was able to take out one of vi’s gauntlets easily, making it useless. And it took vi down once the anti-gravity was lost. But we also see that hextech was still able to beat shimmer( once vi put up her guard and the gauntlets formed a shield)

Aw yes! I was looking forward to your thoughts on what's-up-with-Sevika, love these theories 😄 Is especially impactful to point out how she she's succeeded in all the ways Vi failed, damn, so cool! And congrats on the 20k (and rising)!

The third one sets things up fairly well too. Vi faces everything with action, and when she finally takes down Sevila that way... nothing changes. At least, not in a positive way. Sevika seeing people as replaceable clashes with Vi, then she loses. And then immediately Sevika is left with the void of Silco's death and no one to fill it.

I urge anyone who loves your analysis as much as I do, to share the love on your Patreon. Your content is truly phenomenal and thought provoking!

I'm excited to see Sevika for Season 2. If your theory about Sevika being the person who embraces the ideology of preventing change, then what comes next for her in season 2 could be really interesting. In the last clips she's in Silco's office, but she takes a seat on the side. Nothing appears to be hinted on what she'll plan or do next, but after her confrontation with Vi who is her anti-Sevika, she may be forced to change. Would she take over Silco's position, find someone else to take his place, or gain a greater understanding on how Vander decided to live his life and become a new Vander. However it may be, I do hope she just doesn't become meat-fodder as Warwick's first victim or something.

This was such a good analysis video! My favorite of yours so far! I love the compassion of these two characters, both of which I love so much.

I know I'm in the minority, but Savika was my favorite character. Her goals and intentions are obscured but at their core are simple and straight forward. They couldn't have made a better foil for Vi, and an antagonist couldn't ask for a better henchman. I need more Savika in this show's future!

Sevika is one of my favorite characters, for many of the reasons mentioned in this video. Tough, loyal to her ideals, disciplined and honest (after a fashion). I'm not sure I agree with Sevika being an avatar of dehumanization. But the arguments are good. I'll have to give it some thought. Also, she has to hate Jinx's guts. I mean, she lost her frigging arm to her. And yet, she does her best to work with her. I wonder how these two will get along after Jinx killed Silco and sunk his agreement with Piltover.

I was so exited for this video and you definitely delivered 😊

i loved that scene with sevika fighting vi in the bar, as someone else said yea its "useless" but i think intentionally because it shows how vi got some more power and is angry and just wants to fight, i also have my own theory that sevika is going to begrudgingly side with vi next season for something, and i think the way the fight went where its almost like the physical manifestation of an arguement makes sense, especially the short bit where vi stops to take a drink and then throws it at sevika, i also 100% cried when the image of vander appeared so it was a perfect scene for me

Love the effort and thought you put into your content!!! ❤

Vander: "Do I look afraid?" Sevika: "No. You look *weak."* Silco: "Would you betray me?" Sevika: "Not for a *worm* like him." Is she a survivalist? Sevika values strength, and seems more interested in following the strongest powerhouse than their mission. She probably already knew about Vander vs Silco and the rise of Shimmer when the left Vander, sensing the power shift, and Silco had offered her a position, using his knowledge of Vander's trust. The Chem Baron snake guy made the error of telling Sevika his plans to usurp Silco, with enough time for her to betray him to Silco and come out on top. However, this paints Sevika as a survivalist, which contradicts her sacrifice for Silco.

I just hope Sevika gets released as a champion in league, she seems like she’d be fun to play ;-;

Geez your videos are so in depth. I love them.

i've forgone most of my responsibilities today because i can't stop watching these arcane analyses!!! i'm constantly blown away by how enlightening and valuable these videos are

Congrats on the 20k you 100% deserve it, at the time I'm writing this comment you're already at 24k lol. Consistently really well thought out analysis expressed eloquently, and the editing is well-done too even though the main focus is obviously the analysis. In my opinion the best Arcane-related content on RU-vid

Excellent video! I really appreciate that you center your analysis on story structure and what characters and scenes represent rather than what they textually are. A lot of video essayist start with this but end up taking this too...personally? I love Sevika as a foil for Vi and just as a beautifully designed character, and I'm hoping season 2 digs into the meat of her story more.

i rewatched arcane recently and shortly after that started to watch your videos. on the first watch, i didn't paid attention to Sevika at all, but damn. now she's my favourite character for her personality, overall purpose and image. with your video, i just liked her even more. very excited for season 2 and your further analysis videos about it!

Your analyses are really fantastic -- thoughtful, thorough, deep, and full of insight. Thanks!

Your brain is quite impressive. Your videos are almost an outlet for my own analyses(but better)that I have no one to share with, so thank you

so glad i found your channel!! the first video i watched was the character analysis and im hooked - awesome video!!

Love your content, every time I watch a new vid I end up thinking man, Arcane is so smart with its writing, no way it can get better than this? And then the next video and the next keeps revealing a new nuance that I never considered. It’s thanks to your channel that I can properly appreciate this work of art! Thank you and keep up the good work :)

Not even finished watching but already subscribing. You starting to lay out her decisions is what immediately sold me

ahh ive just been waiting for a sevika video !!!

These characters mirror each other and Vi wanted to be the Sevika character (have her status) in her ideal world, if she hadn't been imprisoned. You can even find the reflection in their names. SeVIka, like one could've become the other if they had switched loyalties from ideology and family.

Best analysis videos on a series i have seen. Great work

congrats man on getting 20,000! You've got fantastic analysis videos that have been making me get back into Arcane. Man that show has no right being this good

another on point analysis

I love your analysis. Keep doing what you love!

I love this analysis of the characters. Keep up the good work!

This is possibly my favorite video you've ever made my favorite villain is Sevika I absolutely adore and this video is perfect!!!