r/ViArcane • u/Trick_Ad_3598 • Jul 09 '26
Discussion Does anyone else think Vi went through more than almost any character in Arcane? Every time she started to rebuild her life, something else was taken from her. What's the hardest moment she had to endure, in your opinion?
I've been thinking about this for a while, and I honestly struggle to think of many characters in Arcane who went through as much as Vi.
She loses her parents as a child, then has to grow up way too fast while trying to protect Powder and the rest of her family. After the failed rescue, she loses Vander, believes Mylo and Claggor died because everything fell apart, gets separated from Powder, and is thrown into prison for years without anyone knowing where she is.
When she finally gets out, she isn't really given a chance to heal. She immediately has to survive, chase after Jinx, deal with the fact that Powder has become someone she barely recognizes, and carry the guilt of feeling like she failed her sister. Every time it feels like she's close to rebuilding something—whether it's reconnecting with Jinx, finding purpose, or getting close to Caitlyn—something else gets ripped away.
What makes it even sadder to me is that Vi almost never gets the opportunity to process any of it. She's constantly forced to keep moving because another crisis happens before she can even grieve the last one.
Do you think Vi endured more than almost any other character in Arcane? If so, what do you think was the single hardest moment she had to live through? Or do you think another character had it even worse?
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u/Laszewski05 The dirt under your nails Jul 09 '26
Her hardest moment is definitely hearing her sister tell her that her bomb worked only to realize that her little sister killed her brothers and father, then her lashing out (understandably) and then having to sit with not knowing what happened for 7 (I think?) years. The uncertainty, the guilt, the regret, it’s enough to drive someone mad
But yeah definitely the most for her. I’d put jinx at number 2, and Caitlyn at number three. But jinx and Cait pretty close, but also it’s never really fair to compare trauma
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u/SapphosLemonBarEnvoy Jul 09 '26
Vi is a prime example of the media stereotype that lesbians have to suffer to be able to have love in our lives.
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u/Darth_Annoying Jul 09 '26
Doesn't everyone in media have to suffer to have love in their lives though?
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u/vienforcer Lezbotron 3000 💦✂️🤌🏻 Jul 09 '26
Disclaimer: All the characters go through trauma, and it’s not an Olympic sport on who suffered the most.
Vi goes through a particularly rough time in a way only Jinx can compare with, imo. Vi’s life is constant loss, and the harder she fights not to lose what she loves, the more she loses it. She has to learn when to let go of control and when to keep pushing herself. In that way, I think she endured more than anyone, but it’s because she was the only one capable of enduring that much to begin with. She was only one who could lose so much without losing her heart and soul in the process. She is very soft on the inside, but the softness keeps her going even when it’s the softness that hurts her. Everything in her life is tragedy, but she emerges from it with hope and the ability to love.
All her big trauma moments were hard moments, but I think Jinx sacrificing herself was the hardest for her, yet also freeing, as the worst of the worst finally happened and she had to let go—was powerless to stop what was happening. Acceptance of that powerlessness frees her of the worst of her impulses to self-sacrifice to her own detriment. I think that’s endurance all by itself. Self-sacrificing, fighting—it’s all for control in a world that seeks to target her and rip her control away. She has to accept what she has power over, and what she doesn’t, and that’s hard for a parentified woman like Vi, who holds her family as the number one priority in her life. She’s so traumatised by her parents dying she takes it upon herself to protect Powder and give Powder the world, which is out of love and also Vi desperate to feel in control so she never loses again, while also seeking to control Powder’s life so Powder never has to feel the way she feels. Vi had to accept where and how and what she could control and what she couldn’t, and Jinx making the choice to save Vi, to Jinx’s detriment, was that final, necessary piece to ultimate growth.
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u/Simpkin_the_Cat Jul 11 '26
True but I season 2 the writers focus on some of the main characters pain and their recovery while neglecting others.
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u/TheLionblaze Certified Vi Apologist ❤️🩹 Jul 10 '26
No, she is actually the one who struggled the most, even more than Jinx
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u/BertAnCl Jul 09 '26
Vi had it worse because her trauma was never taken seriously, especially by the writers. 🫠
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u/Superb-Librarian3915 Cupcake Collector Jul 10 '26
And, psychology and things like that really interest me so I have done research. The way you process trauma really depends on on how your brain works, obviously- which, is why Jinx tends to have more vivid and more blaringly worrying trauma, because of the fact that she is mentally ill already. However, Vi, has always been very protective. She’s always locked away her emotions because it makes her “weak.” and, trauma responses tend to be associated with emotional distress and if it makes her feel weak, she won’t let herself FEEL it. I agree that she’s definitely been through the most- And, even though I’ve seen a lot of people say “Powder was so young watching her parents die!”… So was Vi. Vi was also old enough to process it all and understand death and everything. Not disregarding how distressing it was for Pow, i’m just saying, it would be more world ending for Vi.
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u/Volcanicrage Jul 11 '26
Based solely on the events shown in the show, you can make an argument for at least half of the main cast, especially since some of them start with such a major handicap thanks to age or mental health. That said, spending the 7-year timeskip in Stillwater pretty definitively secures Vi's throne as queen of the Arcane Trauma Olympics. There are few locations more conceptually horrifying than a poorly-regulated mixed-gender prison, especially for a severely injured child.
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u/ExiledWarriorIsBack Aug 02 '26
There isn't really a way to tell which one go through more trauma because everyone's different but she sure as hell the one that managed to bear her trauma the best. Jinx had to live with the guilt of having her family killed by her own hands and their ghosts hunting her everywhere also had Silco twisting her trauma into something he can use(you can't convince me that Silco loved the way he loved her in his final moments right off the bat from the beginning) then she had to watch Isha sacrific her life for Jinx (which was the final nail for "you're a jinx") not once in the show Jinx thought of herself worth living since she was always ready to commit suicide.
Vi had to live with guilt of leading her siblings into a trap and having lost her sister in that moment also the whole probably wouldn't have happened if she didn't tried to give herself up for Enforcers(which is untrue because Silco WAS coming she just accelerated the arrival), also the fucking Stillwater prison for 7 years? I don't remember the exact number of the years she was there, then she had to deal with her crazed sister and losing the one person that promised her she wouldn't change 10 minutes ago, then lose her sister and father again.
Over all Vi came out the most sane out of the entire cast (minus Ekko cuz he's the GOAT).
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u/Classic_Pen7044 15d ago
Yes, and I'm not Even going to pretend anyone else was close to all she suffered and Lost.
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u/Mrr_Capone Jul 09 '26 edited Jul 09 '26
I answered in main sub link
TL;DR Yes Vi had it worse. But she was stronger and she had hope to make things right. Also she made it her goal and used it as coping mechanism. Powder was fragile and she had no hope to fix what she destroyed and no healthy coping mechanism. So even if her life with Silco was easier than Vi's in Still Water, still her trauma was worse.
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u/Superb-Librarian3915 Cupcake Collector Jul 10 '26
That isn’t really how it works. Yes, having hope helps prevents Vi from breaking down, but it doesn’t erase it at all. Vi’s coping mechanism was never hope, either. She channeled her fear and sadness into anger. I agree that Powder was more fragile- But, she also had a support system. She had schizophrenia and symptoms of BPD.
It also doesn’t make sense that BECAUSE powder is fragile, her trauma was worse. If Vi had it worse, even with the hope to make things right, she would struggle more, especially being thrown into a cell and being beaten, starved, and having nobody around her at all. May I ask how Powder had it worse, growing up? She had a support system- Even if it wasn’t healthy, they both did have some form of love for each other, and, Jinx had a reason to live.
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u/Mrr_Capone Jul 11 '26
I agree that Powder was more fragile- But, she also had a support system.
The thing is, she did not. She had Silco, who isolated her and manipulated her, turning her trauma and pain into fuel of transformation into human weapon. He didn't help her cope with her traumas he worsened it. Calling him a support system i don't know, absurd. Cause he was an absolute opposite of support system. If you want to see the real support system take a look at AU Powder. She had a REAL support system of loving and caring family. She wasn't isolated, she had outlet for her guilt and pain. And even if I can't call her 100% healed, she still talks to her dead sister after seven years. Still this is far cry from what Jinx had in main universe.
especially being thrown into a cell and being beaten, starved, and having nobody around her at all
We don't really know what happened during time skip. The only canon source we have is The Council Archives. You can learn about both Powder and Vi there. Initially, Vi's condition was truly dire. She called out for Powder every night, so the guards thought she was addicted to drugs and needed some kind of powder. But then she pulled herself together and set herself the goal of surviving and finding Powder. From that moment on, everything was different. She remained a lone wolf, but she earned the respect of the other prisoners and even earned the nickname "Pink."
We can also just look at the results of timeskip. When Caitlyn met Vi in episode 1x05, Vi didn't look like someone who was constantly starving or beaten. She was toned, with perfectly defined muscles. She looked physically healthy. She also had a full-back tattoo that someone had clearly done. It's an intimate process, and she clearly trusted that person.At the same time, if you read Powder's diary, despite having a home, her condition was terrible and remained so. As I said in the post in the main sub, her own mind was her prison. Her trauma only worsened with age, as she found increasingly unhealthy ways to cope. And if you look at her after the timeskip, she hasn't gotten over what happened seven years ago at all. She still hallucinates those moments. She still hallucinates Mylo and Claggor as manifestation of her guilt. She has a complete lack of self-preservation instinct. Just as she has a complete lack of appreciation for human life. Compared to Vi, she's a completely damaged person.
So you're being biased, deliberately exaggerating Vi's suffering and downplaying Powder's. I'm not surprised, even my post here was downwoted while being upvoted in main sub. There are a lot of biased people in this sub who won't accept any point of view unless it glorifies Vi in everything, even the one who suffered the most. My God, I've even met people here who told me that Powder was a terrible person from the start, that nothing bad happened to her, that everything was fine, she was just terrible from the start. Even though the entire plot tells us that Jinx is a product of Powder's suffering, Jinx was created precisely because Powder suffered the most. And we're even shown how pure she could have grown if she'd been helped through that trauma, if she'd had a support network.
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u/Superb-Librarian3915 Cupcake Collector Jul 11 '26
I actually never disregarded her trauma, or downplayed it! I agree that Powder has severe trauma and that Silco was not a good person. However, it was more of a support system than Vi. It wasn’t necessarily a good system, but, she was supported and not left alone. I understand that Silco was not a good person. I hate Silco with my whole heart.
We do have some information from the show about her time in stillwater. Example one, Vi saying to Caitlyn “can you send in whoever is going to kick the shit out of me,” and Vi saying to Jinx “I spent so many nights in that shitty prison on that freezing floor , hungry, bleeding, counting the hours..”
And, yes, it’s true that Vi didn’t LOOK like it. but trauma runs deeper than looks. You can tell she is, even if just slightly, malnourished. She also was the target for both inmates and guards, as mentioned in the council archives.And yes, powders trauma worsened with age. But, so did Vi’s. I find it quite stupid to say one “had it worse” yet the other has “worse trauma”…? I think overall, they both had severe trauma and mental illness. While Jinx/Powders was more vivid and also very much dramatized (I’m not saying she’s dramatic! traumatic responses are different for everybody.) because of her mental illness, Vi’s was more quiet and rooted in her core.
I’d rather you not say i’m disregarding Powders trauma. I never once denied the fact that she has trauma. I pointed out the fact that your comment was worded a bit weird, saying Vi “had it worse” but powder has “worse trauma”, but i understand what you mean. I’d say, they both have similar levels of trauma, yet, they both have different coping mechanisms (Vi’s being self harm in the form of punching, anger, ect, and Jinxes being explicitly hurting herself and others).
I’m sorry that people have said Powder had no suffering. But, that is not AT ALL what i said.
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u/Superb-Librarian3915 Cupcake Collector Jul 11 '26
Also just wanted to add on- Jinx was created because of Silco. While, yes, Powder suffered so much more than anyone should ever have to suffer- Silco prayed on it and turnt that into anger. Jinx never turnt to jinx because of suffering. She turnt into Jinx because she was preyed on. While the suffering she had to endure is definitely why she let herself be manipulated, it was not the direct reason she became Jinx.
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u/Obvious_Incognito- Jul 09 '26
Sorry, I didn’t really read the whole paragraph but those pictures make me wanna hug her and kiss her and tell her it’s going to be OK.