Censorship of Arcane in China destroys its central queer romance

One of the reasons I thought Arcane was never going to really commit to the weird romance between Caitlyn and Vi is that League of Legends wonderful Popular in China Riot's long-running MOBA has been a staple of Internet cafes and teenage bedrooms since its inception, a free-to-play phenomenon in the country, played by millions every day.

It is also a country whose government is not particularly progressive towards LGBTQ+ people, and queer moments in film, television and video games are often censored when they air there. Many significant forms of agency do not survive these cuts. This is not possible in modern times, and these things are evident in the second season of Arcane. Caitlin and Vee's romance is thwarted to an absolutely hilarious degree.

Arcane is not the same without Caitlin's Sapphic Romance

Blockbusters like Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker, Avengers: Endgame, or Lightyear have quirky characters and moments that happen mostly in the background, and these smaller moments of representation seem designed to be dropped from the experience without consequence. It's the kind of weirdness that companies want to bring in. Not to portray LGBTQ+ people in a positive light, but to capitalize on a demographic where there is money.

There were even reports of Inside Out 2 claiming that Pixar made a concerted effort to make characters like Riley look “less gay” for fear of a backlash. He wanted to make more money, even if it meant leaving out weirdos.

Arcane is different. The first season was accused of betrayal for leaving Caitlin and his romantic potential in the subtext. They didn't kiss or confess their feelings to each other, but anyone with a critical mind watched the two interact and knew something else was going on between them. The dialogue, body language and pace of their relationship was exactly what you'd expect from two lesbians falling hard.

They even have a breakup scene in the rain where he compares them to oil and water. Like, could this be any more obvious? When the second season came, Fortich and Riot presented the romance, unless you watch it in China. Then the reality is a little different.

How Arcane Weirdness is Censored in China

Caitlyn and Vi's relationship is a major part of their respective arcs, and when you take that away, it undermines exactly what they're fighting for and everything they're going through. Caitlin vows to bring Jinx to justice after her mother's death, and convinces him to stand by her side as a co-executive despite going against everything she believes in.

After everything he's been through, he's so lost and alone that he's making all the right choices for the wrong reasons. In the third episode, Caitlin and V kiss and pull themselves deeper into a romance that, in that moment, leads them further to despair. Except in China where the scene ends awkwardly and little is done or established.

Everything that follows, including the confrontation with Jinx and Caitlin's betrayal of him in the final moments, lacks substance as a result. It's as if these characters decide to do things for no reason, because they have no meaning without that romantic context. The same goes for the sex scene in episode eight, which was completely skipped after he and Caitlin meet in the cell.

Only minimal details are discussed in dialogue to move the narrative forward without hinting that the two are romantically involved. It makes the show so much worse as a result, all because of censorship that will no doubt silence queer fans in China who are excited to see their representation. They are not stupid

The most chilling scene is the final scene where he and Caitlin are now living together after Jinx died (or escaped) during the final battle. In the original, it shows Caitlin walking into the lounge to join him by the fireplace, gently asking her partner if “he's still in this fight” only for him to lovingly lean on Caitlin's shoulder as Both women enjoy touching each other.

It's a soft moment of finality for Arcane. A climax where two of his toughest characters promise to keep going, as they have each other now. Hope is not lost, even if the battles ahead are difficult.

In China, it's like a horror movie where Caitlin and Wei live with ghosts.

You can hardly cut out the whole ending, so to deal with a scene involving two regular lesbians, he decides to sit instead of both of them, but then deletes one of them as the camera pans between shots. Various interrupts, giving the impression that they are both alone, sitting in different rooms, and not even talking to each other. It's weird, and shows how a story with common queer themes can fall apart when the censors try to erase them.

I can't get past Caitlin resting her head on a non-existent shoulder. Will leave my dreams forever. And I haven't even mentioned the scene with Maddie where Caitlin seems to be talking to herself in bed instead of another character. Everything is so strange…

Arkin's strange story deserves to be told

Last week I sat down with editor, writer, and co-producer Amanda Overton to talk about Caitlin and his relationship on Arcane, and surprisingly, getting them together was always the plan. This makes censorship even more so when Riot and Netflix didn't write this story to deliberately entice audiences with promises of representation, but rather let it get to the finish line without caring to undo it. Making more money in areas that don't want LGBTQ+ people to have a voice in the media shows that deep down we are considered expendable.

Suppressing queer voices clearly takes priority over telling a coherent story or doing justice to the characters, even though Chinese audiences are likely smart enough to read between the lines and discover the true intentions on their own terms. It's probably not the only country to do this with Arcane or other animated shows like The Owl House and She-Ra where quirky characters or themes are so central to their existence that their removal kills the life out of the stories. intention to say

There are LGBTQ+ people all over the world, and no matter how they are supported by their countries, they do their best to live their lives to the best of their ability and try to be happy. Arcane may only be a TV show, but it's one of the biggest shows of the year, and the hero is a sapphire couple at the center. This is important. In China and other countries, this has been dismissed out of sheer prejudice. Things are getting better, but we still have a long way to go.