Editing Blog Task

When the animated TV series Arcane was announced on the 10th anniversary of League of Legends in 2019, there was a level of hesitation around its premise long before the final product had been viewed. Video game adaptations that aim to condense often hours of gameplay and lore, endless clicking through cutscenes that deliver layers of context and subtext, into a Netflix original show only consisting of nine episodes are often not well received - the common complaint being that it is simply impossible to do without simultaneously tarnishing the story.

Two years later, its release in 2021 managed to destroy this misconception and for many audiences, using TV as a medium managed to elevate the storytelling on a level that the games simply hadn't achieved. There were multiple aspects of the show that managed to impress a wide range of people - cinematography, sound design, its expressive art style, a concise yet impactful script and its masterful use of editing. Unanimously considered the best scene of the entire show, the fight between the antagonist Jinx and the so called "perfect" side character by many critics, Ekko, is the pinnacle of each of these elements working in conjunction to create a spectacle illustrating their unique and complex dynamic in just under 2 minutes. 

Memories of the past are the core theme underpinning this moment. Opening with us seeing Jinx's sinister reaction as her sister Vi is leaving her yet again, two close up shots of their faces with a straight cut allow us to see and know that this will be the defining interaction of their relationship for the rest of the series. In the same shot, Ekko moves into the frame through a camera pan with the match-on-action technique being displayed as a straight cut from a close up to a mid shot occurs. The composition of these frames consistently keeps Ekko and Jinx in the centre as they exchange a couple of potent lines. The lighting is also consistently used to deliver on narrative, using low-key lighting with strong back lighting behind Ekko, giving him a holy effect, connoting his role and nickname in the series as a "saviour", whereas Jinx is left mostly shrouded in darkness, with a hint of top lighting from the right left to show her facial features. 

Using the shot reverse shot technique through the cross-cutting of close ups that allow the audience to focus on the expressions of each character, medium close up shots and mid shots that remind the audience of their figures and weapons, the scene builds up tension alongside the diegetic sound of the stopwatch in Ekko's hand and the non-diegetic soundtrack that builds in its tempo to communicate the narrative within this short scene. The use of cross-cutting combined with the sound design also allows the audience to  The stopwatch cleverly acts as a sound bridge between the cross-cutting of mid shots and close up shots of Jinx and Ekko as children. 

Juxtaposition is vital to the core of this scene as a smash cut is abruptly used, where the entire setting and lighting of the scene drastically change. This could suggest a flashback from Ekko's perspective, but more likely it is to depict their joint understanding of the current fight as nothing more but a continuation of the games they used to play as children - the violent iconography of bullets suddenly being cut together with paintballs. The pace of the editing becomes noticeably slower than the events before, further suggesting it to be either a flashback or train of thought, yet the high tempo of the non-diegetic soundtrack combine with this pace to build suspense from the audience. Almost every cut in this segment is match-on-action to transition between the child and adult versions of Jinx and Ekko, the composition changing to place them on either side of the frames in order to depict their binary opposition within the narrative, as well as using a long shot and two shot to capture one of the keyframes of this scene. Mise-en-scene becomes notable due to the colour choices made, with there being three main colours as opposed to the realistic palette beforehand, and the use of the iconography of the crow, symbolising bad luck in relation to Jinx, and the firefly in relation to Ekko (the binary opposition of good vs evil shown through light again) that are layered over each other in this montage-like sequence. 

This distinctive sequence of events comes to an end as the pace of the editing becomes faster and more akin to real human movement, with Ekko losing the paintball game indicated by close ups of the paint splatter and the extreme close up of the stopwatch. Another smash cut combined with the rewinding of the clips returns us to the real world, further indicated by the realistic use of colour and the lack of non-diegetic sound; all sound effects after this point are Foley sound. Pacing becomes breakneck as the match-on-action technique is almost exhausted to show the agile movements of both characters, alternating between the two shot composition established in the previous segment and close ups on their weapons and faces. Suddenly, the main keyframe of this scene is accentuated as the clip is slowed down, allowing the audience to focus on the conflict between our characters and the position of power that Ekko is about to hold over Jinx, the image of good trying to conquer evil shown through the use of lighting as established previously. 

A powerful match-on-action cut combined with an extreme close up gives the audience a visceral sense of the blow that Ekko delivers, lasting a split second. More quick cuts follow in swift succession as the fighting escalates, cutting abruptly to a close up shot of Jinx's face, with her expression immediately yet wordlessly asking Ekko for mercy. This scene with its slower pacing works well after the montage as the audience is now able to fully understand her relation to this character, even if they hadn't watched anything else from the show: this isn't just her enemy, this is her childhood friend. Extreme close ups are used after this eyeline shot of Jinx from Ekko's perspective, creating an emotional shot reverse shot sequence where the audience can understand that both characters recognise the children within each other that used to play together. Unfortunately, this second of mutual understanding is quickly dismissed as the camera pans from the right to the left of the screen, following the close up of a grenade leaving Jinx's hand. One last reaction - an extreme close up of Ekko's expression of shock, fear and realisation - before the final blow is dealt to his lifelong bond with Jinx, an extreme long shot showcasing the explosion consuming both characters.