Silco is a prime example of somebody who genuinely loves their child, but is still bad at being parent. He starts off their relationship by projecting his own trauma onto Powder, without regard to what makes their circumstances different. He feeds her negative self-image to build the persona of "Jinx" which only contributes to her dysfunctional socialization. And let's not forget that he literally turned her into a coldblooded murderer. Powder's monkey bomb was used in defense of her family and the miscalculation which resulted in their deaths was accidental, whereas we see Jinx on multiple occasions playing games with her targets and gleefully wild-firing in mixed crowds, endangering her own allies. Jinx is seen by Silco's gang as his mad attack dog; Sevika is constantly complaining about her and low-level mooks like Thieram are terrified when she's arround. Sometime in the intervening years, there must have been a moment when Silco put a gun in Powder's hands and encouraged her to *deliberately* take a life for the first time. Does that sound like good parenting? Jinx's childlike behavior and overgrown pigtails indicate a case of arrested development, because being Silco's daughter is the only role for which she has a sense of belonging. Silco was seemingly grooming her to be his heir, despite her obvious disinterest in the daily operation of the Undercity and its politics. He also encouraged her inventive pursuits, clearly valued gifts she gave him (re: knickknacks on his desk), put trust in her abilities, and always defended her against criticism, even going so far as to give up on the opportunity to secure Zaun's independence because of the strings attached. ("Is there anything so undoing as a daughter?" suggests he was already inclined to reject Jayce's offer in order to protect Jinx, but she misinterpreted it.) What is the ultimate goal of a good parent? To raise their child with the resilience and life skills to be successfully independent? Jinx is smart and talented, yes, but those were qualities she already had as Powder, and was only being held back by her circumstances. Does Jinx seem resilient? Without getting into Season 2 spoilers, I would argue that her psychological fragility and willingness to fall back on self-annihilation in the face of adversity indicates no. (She has quite a bit more growing up to do in S2.) So what did Silco do for Jinx as a parent, other than twisting a vulnerable child into his own personal weapon, perpetuating the cycle of violence?
I don't think Jinx just wants to be loved - she wants to feel useful. She felt helpless as Powder and when she did try to help she made things worse. Silco made her feel capable and valuable with his validation
I agree, though I think its less about being capable and more about not being incapable, if that makes sense. She messes up -> "Now he thinks i'm weak" -> She goes and does something drastic to compensate, breaking into topside, killing enforcers and bringing Silco the gem
I read someone having a good quoting regarding the perspective of child: "A child that doesn't feel seen, doesn't feel exist at all". I think this isn't just true for children but also adults as we are highly social beings. wanting to feel useful is part about wanting to be loved.
Thanks so much for these livestram clips, I really enjoy sitting down and thinking about these physiological topics for awhile. This kind of content (long form and interactive) is what I miss from the Healthy Gamer channel. On the topic of this video, it's obvious Silco in some ways perpetuated Jinx's mental problems because he himself did not understand the healthy way to heal. But yet in many ways I wish my parents had his qualities. There was a good amount of physical attacks from my from my father and grandmother when I was a toddler. (Im not sure if my scale could be called abuse.) My father still beleives teaching with fear is the way to parent. And its really hard for me to see fathers in media actually care about their child in a healthy way, and Silco was one of those eye openers for me. I just wish this message of what Silco did wrong and right could reach more possible parents.
This is a topic i've had a lot of thought on, but never joined any discussion about because of the heavy biases people have. So watching this video and listening to you and everyone else joining the conversation was so interesting and refreshing to me.
I was waiting for this one! Thank youuu You might have a little bit more to add after watching S2 (if you do). We know what the fight is about in S1, they both were fighting hard for Zaun's independence. Vander saw the consequences (deaths, including the parents of the two little girls he adopted, seeing them made him give up, it is the intro) and decided to stop fighting. Silco wouldn't accept it, wanted to continue after that big event, so Vander turned against him. Yes, you learn more in S2 but we have the big picture in S1. We don't know why Silco wants Zaun's to be independent that much. Probably because of all the inequality, because people of Piltover don't care about Zaun at all, because of the injustice. I have to pause, I will continue later 😌
Yes I don't think it's a spoiler the problem is that it comes early in season 1 at the end of act 1 and it's easy to miss but Vnader does says something around the line of "you're going to get people killed" to Silco and given the first scene of ep 1 and the scene in ep 2 where he told Vi "who are you willing to lose" you can logically draw the conclusion that Silco wanted to keep fighting (and still does till the end) whereas Vander realized what he has done was probably not the best way. I don't think they ever show the EXACTY reason of the fight but it's something like that.
Zaun never existed except in Silco's and Vander's heads. It was their idealized nation they wanted to turn the Undercity into. Sorry for being pedantic though. I would imagine Powder's actual Parents would have been raising her if they lived in Piltover, and she would be in the Academy.
I don't know that I agree with good enough because his manipulation, and crafting her into a sort of weapon is contrary to that imo, but given the situation it was the best she had. I think she would have been alright for a time with Vi, but she was so young it seems like a matter of time before she can no longer deal with her own issues while also raising her sister, vi hasn't developed parenting skills so she could only go on for so long winging it. Ultimately Silco supports her but also enables her destructive tendencies. She becomes very reckless and he uses that as a tool and enables her to lean into the violence BUT he's the best she's got. Vander would have been ideal but things didn't play out that way. So I'm in the camp of "not good enough, but definitely better than nothing"
Loved this discussion. Tons of nuance that takes into account both the flaws and the good without heavy bias, which was super refreshing to listen to. This topic gets heated cause Silco is basically Arcane fandom's boogeyman, so a lot of critical thinking gets shut off when it comes to his character.
Hes almost TOO well written, he tends to deflect "critique" which are more a critique of his morality, not how well written he is. But some people have issues balancing the two.
@@lockekappa500 Yeah, I think so too. There is a trend to moralize over fiction rather than engage with stories in a way that challenges comfortable black and white boxes. It is too much for some fans who want evil and good to be slotted in easy and clear categories. It's a shame, since Silco is such an enjoyable character to really 'think' about.
@ It's why I push back against a lot of blind Silco apologists, and yet he's probably my 2nd favorite character in the show. I just think if you push away all the bad he did and rationalize it it makes him lesser of a character.
@ Yeah, there is a difference between understanding the 'why' behind Silco's actions, and washing all the interesting flaws away. The contrast between his genuine cause and his terrible methods is the fun part. There is a flip side too though with blind haters going to the opposite extreme. Both are boring and missing out.
I dont like how Silco ignores Jinxs nature of being an gentle soul and doesn't want Jinx to process the pass by telling her not to show weakness. We cant 100%say for certain if Silco and Jinx had tried to actual process the end of EP 3. But Silco seems like the type of person to tell you to "move on, the past cant be changed" Type of person. Especially since he was the Initiator of this whole Vander rescue mission. He would have to admit screwing things over and i really don't see that happen. Jinx is struggling to keep the past buried and i think shes unconsciously frustrated and gets told to not show weakness by the second adoptive father who killed her first one. I definitely think Silco sees jinx as her daughter but i dont think its the same for jinx. She is just with silco because she was weak and needed someone. Pretty much a la "toxic relationship style" As much as i dislike Silco as a father figure for Jinx, i really love his flawed character and its a shame he died so early
You can see pretty clearly in jinxs grief about Silco, she loved him very much and indeed as a father. But, he also happened to be one of the reasons of her "episodes", and the victim of it.
@@kul2130 Yeah she loves him but an addict also loves his drugs. Silco doesn't want Vi to come back into jinx life, straight up tells jinx Vi will leave you once she realizes she changed. Why say that? Is he aware he created a unlikeable unstable "monster" ? Sure he's afraid to lose Jinx but he's an adult and he could act selfless and take the blame for his actions resulting on the sisters growing apart and killing their father figure.
I think that starting with "Is this dad actively trying to murder his adoptive daughter's sister?" should kind of answer the question within the first 10 seconds.
I would disagree with the unconditional love thing, which might sound weird, but sometimes people read unconditional love as shielding people from the consequenses of their actions? Which can stop people learning and growing from their mistakes
I guess that’s one way to look at it. Someone else might say that depends on the behaviour that takes place after the action. You can still love someone but make it perfectly clear that there are still consequences to their actions for example in criminal offences they could still be punished and imprisoned. Other people in relationships can still love someone but leave them etc. At the same time there might be times when people think they can get away with anything because they will be loved no matter what. It seems very individual.
@CtR-Movies-Shows Yeah that makes sense. Obviously it's good to comfort the people we love. It's just rare cases where that can unintentionally become enabling if you keep saving someone from the consequences of their own actions Like if you keep forgiving someone for hurting you, without them putting any effort to make amends, that kinda thing
@@matthewadamlock Im pretty sure the show was leaning towards the latter and implying Silco was enabling Jinx's bad habits. This is show in all of the situations in which he defends her despite situations being very much her problem.
Silco is a prime example of somebody who genuinely loves their child, but is still bad at being parent. He starts off their relationship by projecting his own trauma onto Powder, without regard to what makes their circumstances different. He feeds her negative self-image to build the persona of "Jinx" which only contributes to her dysfunctional socialization. And let's not forget that he literally turned her into a coldblooded murderer.
Powder's monkey bomb was used in defense of her family and the miscalculation which resulted in their deaths was accidental, whereas we see Jinx on multiple occasions playing games with her targets and gleefully wild-firing in mixed crowds, endangering her own allies. Jinx is seen by Silco's gang as his mad attack dog; Sevika is constantly complaining about her and low-level mooks like Thieram are terrified when she's arround. Sometime in the intervening years, there must have been a moment when Silco put a gun in Powder's hands and encouraged her to *deliberately* take a life for the first time. Does that sound like good parenting?
Jinx's childlike behavior and overgrown pigtails indicate a case of arrested development, because being Silco's daughter is the only role for which she has a sense of belonging. Silco was seemingly grooming her to be his heir, despite her obvious disinterest in the daily operation of the Undercity and its politics. He also encouraged her inventive pursuits, clearly valued gifts she gave him (re: knickknacks on his desk), put trust in her abilities, and always defended her against criticism, even going so far as to give up on the opportunity to secure Zaun's independence because of the strings attached. ("Is there anything so undoing as a daughter?" suggests he was already inclined to reject Jayce's offer in order to protect Jinx, but she misinterpreted it.)
What is the ultimate goal of a good parent? To raise their child with the resilience and life skills to be successfully independent? Jinx is smart and talented, yes, but those were qualities she already had as Powder, and was only being held back by her circumstances. Does Jinx seem resilient? Without getting into Season 2 spoilers, I would argue that her psychological fragility and willingness to fall back on self-annihilation in the face of adversity indicates no. (She has quite a bit more growing up to do in S2.) So what did Silco do for Jinx as a parent, other than twisting a vulnerable child into his own personal weapon, perpetuating the cycle of violence?
I don't think Jinx just wants to be loved - she wants to feel useful. She felt helpless as Powder and when she did try to help she made things worse. Silco made her feel capable and valuable with his validation
I agree, though I think its less about being capable and more about not being incapable, if that makes sense. She messes up -> "Now he thinks i'm weak" -> She goes and does something drastic to compensate, breaking into topside, killing enforcers and bringing Silco the gem
I read someone having a good quoting regarding the perspective of child: "A child that doesn't feel seen, doesn't feel exist at all". I think this isn't just true for children but also adults as we are highly social beings.
wanting to feel useful is part about wanting to be loved.
@@Gutzahn yes definitely more of a negative mindset/reinforcement situation than positive
got my drawing tablet, water and snacks ready for this video, im sure itll be amazing. thank you for doing these videos, youre an inspiration!
Thanks so much for these livestram clips, I really enjoy sitting down and thinking about these physiological topics for awhile. This kind of content (long form and interactive) is what I miss from the Healthy Gamer channel.
On the topic of this video, it's obvious Silco in some ways perpetuated Jinx's mental problems because he himself did not understand the healthy way to heal. But yet in many ways I wish my parents had his qualities. There was a good amount of physical attacks from my from my father and grandmother when I was a toddler. (Im not sure if my scale could be called abuse.) My father still beleives teaching with fear is the way to parent. And its really hard for me to see fathers in media actually care about their child in a healthy way, and Silco was one of those eye openers for me. I just wish this message of what Silco did wrong and right could reach more possible parents.
This is a topic i've had a lot of thought on, but never joined any discussion about because of the heavy biases people have. So watching this video and listening to you and everyone else joining the conversation was so interesting and refreshing to me.
just wanted to say that I absolutely love how you include your Patreon members and give credit to them for their ideas / comments.
Thank you. We’re all in this together!
Being this early feels illegal
46:28 she probably would have formed the firelights with Ekko, that would be a pretty deadly duo !
I was waiting for this one! Thank youuu
You might have a little bit more to add after watching S2 (if you do).
We know what the fight is about in S1, they both were fighting hard for Zaun's independence. Vander saw the consequences (deaths, including the parents of the two little girls he adopted, seeing them made him give up, it is the intro) and decided to stop fighting. Silco wouldn't accept it, wanted to continue after that big event, so Vander turned against him. Yes, you learn more in S2 but we have the big picture in S1.
We don't know why Silco wants Zaun's to be independent that much. Probably because of all the inequality, because people of Piltover don't care about Zaun at all, because of the injustice.
I have to pause, I will continue later 😌
Yes I don't think it's a spoiler the problem is that it comes early in season 1 at the end of act 1 and it's easy to miss but Vnader does says something around the line of "you're going to get people killed" to Silco and given the first scene of ep 1 and the scene in ep 2 where he told Vi "who are you willing to lose" you can logically draw the conclusion that Silco wanted to keep fighting (and still does till the end) whereas Vander realized what he has done was probably not the best way.
I don't think they ever show the EXACTY reason of the fight but it's something like that.
I always wondered how Silco would raise Jinx or Powder if they were living a simple life in Piltover instead of Zaun
Zaun never existed except in Silco's and Vander's heads. It was their idealized nation they wanted to turn the Undercity into. Sorry for being pedantic though. I would imagine Powder's actual Parents would have been raising her if they lived in Piltover, and she would be in the Academy.
I don't know that I agree with good enough because his manipulation, and crafting her into a sort of weapon is contrary to that imo, but given the situation it was the best she had. I think she would have been alright for a time with Vi, but she was so young it seems like a matter of time before she can no longer deal with her own issues while also raising her sister, vi hasn't developed parenting skills so she could only go on for so long winging it. Ultimately Silco supports her but also enables her destructive tendencies. She becomes very reckless and he uses that as a tool and enables her to lean into the violence BUT he's the best she's got. Vander would have been ideal but things didn't play out that way. So I'm in the camp of "not good enough, but definitely better than nothing"
Loved this discussion. Tons of nuance that takes into account both the flaws and the good without heavy bias, which was super refreshing to listen to. This topic gets heated cause Silco is basically Arcane fandom's boogeyman, so a lot of critical thinking gets shut off when it comes to his character.
Hes almost TOO well written, he tends to deflect "critique" which are more a critique of his morality, not how well written he is. But some people have issues balancing the two.
@@lockekappa500 Yeah, I think so too. There is a trend to moralize over fiction rather than engage with stories in a way that challenges comfortable black and white boxes. It is too much for some fans who want evil and good to be slotted in easy and clear categories. It's a shame, since Silco is such an enjoyable character to really 'think' about.
@ It's why I push back against a lot of blind Silco apologists, and yet he's probably my 2nd favorite character in the show. I just think if you push away all the bad he did and rationalize it it makes him lesser of a character.
@ Yeah, there is a difference between understanding the 'why' behind Silco's actions, and washing all the interesting flaws away. The contrast between his genuine cause and his terrible methods is the fun part. There is a flip side too though with blind haters going to the opposite extreme. Both are boring and missing out.
@@TheDreamingDays Agreed.
What did you think of the Season 1 finale in general?
We havent seen any of Act 3, no real reason to know that now.
I dont like how Silco ignores Jinxs nature of being an gentle soul and doesn't want Jinx to process the pass by telling her not to show weakness.
We cant 100%say for certain if Silco and Jinx had tried to actual process the end of EP 3.
But Silco seems like the type of person to tell you to "move on, the past cant be changed" Type of person.
Especially since he was the Initiator of this whole Vander rescue mission. He would have to admit screwing things over and i really don't see that happen.
Jinx is struggling to keep the past buried and i think shes unconsciously frustrated and gets told to not show weakness by the second adoptive father who killed her first one.
I definitely think Silco sees jinx as her daughter but i dont think its the same for jinx. She is just with silco because she was weak and needed someone. Pretty much a la "toxic relationship style"
As much as i dislike Silco as a father figure for Jinx, i really love his flawed character and its a shame he died so early
You can see pretty clearly in jinxs grief about Silco, she loved him very much and indeed as a father. But, he also happened to be one of the reasons of her "episodes", and the victim of it.
@@kul2130
Yeah she loves him but an addict also loves his drugs.
Silco doesn't want Vi to come back into jinx life, straight up tells jinx Vi will leave you once she realizes she changed. Why say that? Is he aware he created a unlikeable unstable "monster" ?
Sure he's afraid to lose Jinx but he's an adult and he could act selfless and take the blame for his actions resulting on the sisters growing apart and killing their father figure.
Oh man this is going to be a tough one.
I think that starting with "Is this dad actively trying to murder his adoptive daughter's sister?" should kind of answer the question within the first 10 seconds.
I would disagree with the unconditional love thing, which might sound weird, but sometimes people read unconditional love as shielding people from the consequenses of their actions? Which can stop people learning and growing from their mistakes
I guess that’s one way to look at it. Someone else might say that depends on the behaviour that takes place after the action. You can still love someone but make it perfectly clear that there are still consequences to their actions for example in criminal offences they could still be punished and imprisoned. Other people in relationships can still love someone but leave them etc. At the same time there might be times when people think they can get away with anything because they will be loved no matter what. It seems very individual.
@CtR-Movies-Shows Yeah that makes sense. Obviously it's good to comfort the people we love. It's just rare cases where that can unintentionally become enabling if you keep saving someone from the consequences of their own actions
Like if you keep forgiving someone for hurting you, without them putting any effort to make amends, that kinda thing
@@matthewadamlock Im pretty sure the show was leaning towards the latter and implying Silco was enabling Jinx's bad habits. This is show in all of the situations in which he defends her despite situations being very much her problem.
No