Jinx: How Arcane Wrote Psychosis

One interesting topic is how arcane wrote psychosis. Specifically, when it applies to Jinx and her struggles with psychosis. Arcane wrote so many good characters but this topic tops the "Arcane did something good" list.

Khimyra (Use WALRUS for 10% off)

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Merch!

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Questions? Leave a comment or,
Twitter - @A_FlyingWalrus
#arcane #writting #jinx

Intro 0:00
Powder's Arc 2:04
Silco and Powder 5:31
Hallucinations 7:12
Emotions on Screen 9:02
Jinx 10:14
A Contrast 14:38
Closing Thoughts 15:46
Khimyra 17:02

[AFlyingWalrus]

My intention of this video is not to diagnose Jinx. Whether she has BPD, DID, schizophrenia, PTSD, or any combination of mental trauma. Is beyond the scope of my intelligence, as i am not a trained professional. I have watched and been close to people who have had forms of psychosis and that experience is where im drawing from. I'm glad you are all are enjoying the video and I hope I was able to help some people understand psychosis better, and expand your knowledge of visual storytelling structures.

Be kind to yourself.

[Kalepsis]

Agreed. Jinx is written so well; less the Hollywood cliché "Sexy Psycho", and more "heartbreaking reality of mental trauma". What a masterpiece.

[SparklerBlack]

"its important to note that love alone is not enough to make something healthy" this hits so hard...

[bennh]

Regarding Powder's panic scene making people feel uncomfortable...it should. As someone with a panic disorder, that is the most realistic depiction of a panic attack I have EVER seen on screen. THAT is what it can looks and feel like. Granted, everyone's panics look different, but if we never see how bad it can really get, it's easy to be dismissive of panic attacks and anxiety disorders.

[SkinnyPaninis]

Another interesting thing that my partner pointed out to me about a lot of Jinx's psychosis scenes is that there's usually a violin playing in the background. Not sure what the significance of that is, but it's something that I found fascinating after looking into it.

[inferiorinferno]

As someone who actually had a psychotic depression in her teenage years due to PTSD, I can actually tell you she felt relatable. I can see bits of how it felt for me when watching her arc in Arcane, and whilst I'm still mapping out the kinks of the idea, I actually have been thinking of making a Jinx edit solely out of those relatable scenes to showcase how psychosis stemmed from trauma feels like as someone who's actually been there.

[SanguinaryBlade]

I will never cease to be impressed by how they made Jinx, who is more or less a harley quinn knockoff in the game, into a deeply sympathetic character with a sense of inevitable tragedy to her, and yet still keeping the very recognizable 'crazy' quirks game Jinx have, just in a manner that's much more grounded.

I love how you get the feeling she never really had a chance, that every action she takes to try to do good, ends horribly. She blows up her family while trying to save them, she kills her father in a panic reaction and/or in trying to protect her sister. It took me a second viewing for it to sink in that -that- was why she accepted she was a Jinx. If every time she tries to do good, she kills those she loves, why fight the inevitable? That sort of self destructive self hatred and nihilism is... terribly relatable.

Add onto all the trauma she's endured, whatever plethora of mental illnesses has been compounded or brought on by it all, and then being absolutely dosed up to the eyeballs (Literally, they're freaking pink) on shimmer? It's really no wonder she feels so inevitable, and yet the show manages to make you wish for her to somehow escape that.

AND all at once, while making her sympathetic, tragic, relatable and likable... It NEVER shies away from the horrors she comits, really plays them down or makes excuses for her. It really is a remarkable accomplishment.

[melissakimbrell]

It’s surprisingly accurate how she never talks around people but talks when she’s alone. I suffer from psychosis and mild hallucinations, and I only ever speak when around VERY close friends or when I’m having auditory hallucinations

[caiuscosades]

At their reunion, when Jinx asks "who's she?" she's not asking because she wants to know who Cait is, she clearly remembers her from progress day and instantly recognizes her as an enforcer disguise or not. She is asking who she is in relation to Vi, when Vi says she's a friend the trust between them is severed.

[ericjohnson]

Not sure if the symbolism or whatever is on purpose, but i just noticed that the hair colors of Jinx, Vi, and Caitlyn could be foreshadowing. Vi has red/pink hair, Powder/Jinx has blue hair, adn Citlyn has violet/purple hair. In the color spectrum purple separates red and blue.

[LacrosseAlmighty]

Will always wish there was a scene of lil Ekko and Powder interacting. It's easy to infer their friendship but we never actually see it on screen, only in the enemy music video

[SandyTheDesertFox]

As a person with severe mental illness i had to stop watching Arcane for a few days after the first scene portraying Jinx's psychosis. It was triggering to me not just due to mental illness being portrayed, but how close to home it came, as i realised the scribbles representing Jinx's 'demons' looked exactly like mine back in the psych ward.

[axthxrn]

9:53 tbh anyone who thought this was "too much" probably hasn't experienced that level of panic attack before. As someone who's had panic attacks at that level before, arcane managed to capture it perfectly. The loud messy crying, the yelling, the throwing things out of anger, her hitting her head, it's all so well done and so realistic

[lightfractals]

the scenes with her breaking down are so good it almost feels like it's written by people who went through it

[kismetfolly]

As someone with BPD who's also suffered severe Psychosis. watching arcane made something visceral react in me. Especially growing up very poor she felt like an extension of me

[rainbowwigglecactus]

Silco and Jinx's relationship is ABSOLUTELY toxic and I understood that perfectly when watching the show, even after hearing people glorify their relationship. Yes, they love and care about each other, but it's STILL toxic and manipulative

[VenhedisKaffas]

I wholeheartedly agree with what you said about Silco. Like, this is no hate against him. He's such a good character and I fully believe he loved Jinx as a daughter and wanted the best for her. However, he's basing it all on his own traumatic experiences. Which he hasn't dealt with either. Jinx even mentions something like it herself before the tea party scene. She mentions his "hard-won lessons" and "thinking everything was the same as when Vander left him". Which it's not. He projects his vision of Vander onto Vi and his vision of himself onto Powder. He tries to make her follow the same road he followed because it made him strong. However, the situation is not the same. Powder is clearly not doing okay, the situation she experienced was different and instead, he gave her a gun and sent her to his enemies.

I get that it's also important to keep in mind what setting we're in. Silco really was the only option, as the Undercity isn't exactly the best place for a kid to grow up in the first place and everyone around Powder died or wasn't around. Just saying, Silco tried but he was far from a perfect father.

[cellowhite]

As someone who struggles with mental illness and a severe fear of abandonment, powders breakdowns seriously messed me up. The especially the *"WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?!"* . That. was way too real for me

[HK-gmpe]

wow, finally someone brings this topic up, I have bipolar with psychotic features which means that I have hallucinations and delusions at times but hankfully mostly thanks to medications I have them (mostly) under control, I also have social phobia, I feel physically sick when I am around of punch of people and also my paranoia and delusions kick out, some of the scenes with Jinx were soo well done that I actuallyfelt even a little triggered....but even more I felt Jinxs pain when I was later reading the comments and for my disappointment many, many people didnt understand whats happening with her at all ....mental issues are still sooo misunderstood in our society.
Great video btw :)

[eternal]

Jinx has got to be one of my all time favorite characters (maybe even number 1 for me). They did such an amazing job depicting her in Arcane that she is somehow badass, adorable, scary and heartbreaking within very little screen time. Every scene with Jinx has you on edge because she is so unstable and has been twisted into a mass murdering psychopath. She's terrifying and does terrible things, and yet you feel bad for her because inside she's just a scared little girl, tormented by hallucinations caused by guilt and abandonment, who only wants to be loved... and as wild a character as she is, Jinx is incredibly relatable.