Warning! This article contains spoilers for Arcane season 2, Act I.
Arcane season 2, Act I introduces the Kiramman family key, a vital plot point that furthers the war efforts between Piltover and Zaun. The ending of Arcane season 1 saw a massive event shake up the conflict between the wealthy nation of Piltover and its destitute undercity of Zaun; Jinx, one of Arcane‘s many League of Legends characters, shot a rocket at the tower that houses Piltover’s council. This ended season 1 of the show on a massive cliffhanger, with Arcane season 2 picking up the pieces.
Arcane season 2’s story mostly focuses on the aftermath of this event in Act I, exploring which characters survived the ordeal and which did not. One of the more unlucky characters was Cassandra Kiramman, one of the most influential people in Piltover and Caitlyn’s mother. This greatly impacts Arcane‘s wider cast of characters, with Caitlyn embarking on a revenge arc and Vi attempting to contain her partner’s growing rage. Another way Cassandra’s death affects Arcane‘s story is via the introduction of the Kiramman key, an important heirloom that further pushes the war between Piltover and Zaun into bleak territory.
Caitlyn Receives The Kiramman Family Key After Her Mother’s Death
Cassandra’s Death Has Big Ramifications For Caitlyn
As alluded to, Cassandra’s death changes Caitlyn’s life massively. Not only is the latter left grieving for her mother due to Jinx’s actions, but she suddenly becomes the head of the Kiramman family given her already high status within Piltover’s political landscape. As many of Arcane‘s characters focus on Hextech as a means of furthering the war with Zaun in light of Jinx’s attack, Caitlyn discovers that something else could help her further punish the undercity and its scattered leaders after Silco’s defeat.
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This comes in the form of the Kiramman family key. As Caitlyn and her father are shown mourning Cassandra’s passing, the latter gives the former this key, stating that her mother wanted her to have it. Caitlyn is visibly shocked at this and declares that she does not yet deserve it. Caitlyn’s father insists and says that it is her legacy now, but what the Kiramman key does is not revealed until Arcane season 2, episode 3.
The Kiramman Family Key Provides Access To Zaun’s Ventilation System
In the opening montage of Arcane season 2, episode 3, Caitlyn is shown using the Kiramman key for the first time. The key accesses a computer in Caitlyn’s house, which outlines one of the key contributions the Kiramman family has made to the cities of Piltover and Zaun in their rise to power. Caitlyn’s mother, Cassandra, can be heard talking about the rise of pollution in Zaun due to the increase in industry by Piltover’s factories. This pollution is called The Gray in Arcane and is shown to be very damaging to the human body.
The Gray’s animation resembles oily water, providing a neat Easter egg to Arcane season 1, episode 8, which was titled “Oil and Water.”
As a result, Caitlyn’s mother instructed the Kiramman family’s architects to develop a ventilation system. This system runs throughout Zaun and allows the people of the undercity to breathe clean air, with the vents trapping The Gray in a contained space so that it does not pollute the streets. With the Kiramman key, Caitlyn discovers all of this while also gaining access to the control of Zaun’s ventilation system, which spells trouble for the undercity given one of its inhabitants recently killed the vengeful Caitlyn’s mother.
The Kiramman Family Key Sends Caitlyn Down A Dark Path
Caitlyn Uses The Key For Revenge
Following the explanation of the Kiramman family key in Arcane season 2, episode 3’s opening, a montage is shown. This montage is accompanied by a song that includes the lyrics “Is it bad that I’m making friends with my demons?” indicating that Caitlyn is doing exactly this. Now that she has access to the Kiramman key, Caitlyn uses the ventilation system to pump The Gray into the streets of Zaun. This coincides with her decision to lead a strike team into Zaun to apprehend Jinx and dismantle any positions of power or influence the undercity has left.
Rather than head into Zaun with her strike team and find Jinx normally, Caitlyn’s use of the Kiramman key to leak The Gray into the streets of the undercity causes a great deal of collateral damage…
Evidently, the Kiramman family key allows Caitlyn to indulge her dark thoughts. Rather than head into Zaun with her strike team and find Jinx normally, Caitlyn’s use of the Kiramman key to leak The Gray into the streets of the undercity causes a great deal of collateral damage. Although it remains true that The Gray makes finding Jinx easier, the gas will undoubtedly affect the countless innocents living in Zaun. Arcane‘s introduction of the Kiramman key allowed Caitlyn to do this, with the character aptly venting her frustrations in a damaging way.
Set in the League of Legends universe, Arcane focuses on sisters Violet and Powder (later Jinx) as they end up on opposite sides of a growing conflict between the wealthy utopia of Piltover and its dark undercity whose citizens wish to break away from their oppressors. Hailee Steinfeld, Ella Purnell, and Kevin Alejandro star in this animated adventure.
- Release Date
- November 6, 2021
- Writers
- Christian Linke , Alex Yee
- Directors
- Pascal Charrue , Arnaud Delord
- Showrunner
- Christian Linke , Alex Yee
