"If dangerous ideas didn't excite the imagination, we would never wander astray."
— Heimerdinger
The lab blown up in the previous episode turns out to belong to Jayce, a young student at the Academy, who now has to answer to the Council for the explosion. Jayce has been researching crystals in order to master magic, to the disapproval of his mentor and the Council leader, Heimerdinger. He is expelled from the Academy and loses the favor of his patrons, the Kiramanns. However, Viktor, a Zaunite research assistant, approaches him in the aftermath and offers to help him continue his research.
Meanwhile, the Enforcers continue to investigate Zaun to find the robbers. On one hand, Grayson asks Vander to give the culprits up; on the other hand, the residents of the undercity despise the Enforcers' meddling and want to rise up against them. Vander refuses either option and plans to ride out the conflict.
Tropes in this episode include:
- Art Shift: Heimerdinger's traumatic flashback to the abuse of magic is done in absolutely gorgeous classical painting form.
- Big Shadow, Little Creature: Heimerdinger's introduction. Before he's seen, it's established that he's the head of the Council which will decide Jayce's fate with his looming shadow making him look like an intimidating figure. And then he pops through the door frame headfirst, looking like an adorable little old grandpa.
- Call-Forward:
- After getting discovered at the arcade, Vi throws the face target plate of the robot boxing game at an Enforcer, knocking him out. It's shown landing and spinning for a bit before coming to a rest on the floor. In the "A Score To Settle" preview, Jinx finds this plate in seemingly the exact same position years later.
- Caitlyn is seen briefly playing with a hat while talking with her parents, the same hat that would become an iconic part of her ensemble.
- Cannot Keep a Secret: Heimerdinger warns Jayce to keep quiet about his pursuit of the Arcane during his trial. When he is ridiculed after losing his research, he loses his cool and explains his actions. To save him from banishment of Pilover, Heimerdinger offers that Jayce is to be expelled from the academy.
- Ceiling Cling: The gang and Ekko hide from the Enforcer looking for them by clinging to the pipes on the ceiling of their basement hangout. Powder barely holds on, falling just as he leaves.
- Cymbal-Banging Monkey: Such a toy gets remotely activated by Vander to warn the kids about the Enforcers having entered the Last Drop.
- Cliffhanger: The episode ends before the Enforcers can take away Vi.
- Dramatic Spotlight: Jayce is put under a spotlight in the dark during his hearing at the Council.
- Gangsta Style: Mylo's style of shooting at the arcade. He doesn't hit a damn thing doing it.
- Gift-Giving Gaffe: Salo, seeing Mel give Hoskel a birthday gift hastily attempts to gift the ginko nuts he was eating. Unfortunately, Hoskel is allergic.
- Gray Rain of Depression: When Jayce goes to the Kiramman's house to explain himself, he's locked out and dismissed with contempt by Cassandra Kiramman, Caitlyn's mother. He and Caitlyn's brief interaction makes him realize he can't be happy working at his family factory and he's planning suicide in the next scene.
- Heroic Sacrifice: At the end of the episode, Vi intends to turn herself in to spare everyone else.
- Improbable Aiming Skills: Powder is established to be exceptionally good with handguns when she aces the shooting game.
- Internal Reveal: The kids learn about Vander's deal with the Enforcers.
- Interrupted Suicide: Jayce almost jumps to his death before Viktor interrupts him. He even asks "Am I interrupting something?"
- Ladder Tipping: A Chase Scene ensues wherein the kids try to flee the Enforcers. They climb up a fire ladder and Vi tips it over with Enforcers on it.
- Love Ruins the Realm: The more belligerent members of Zaun complain that Vander is willing to let the Enforcers push them around because he's just trying to keep his kids safe.
- Mythology Gag: Camille's family, Clan Ferros, is briefly mentioned during a council session.
- No Man Should Have This Power: Piltover's stance on magic, as the city was founded explicitly to avoid "the warmongering of mages".
- Perspective Flip: The opening scene reveals Jayce's perspective of Vi's gang breaking into his lab.
- Psycho Serum: Silco's drug, Shimmer, is revealed to transform the user into a hulking monster, complete with bulging muscles and Tainted Veins.
- Rewatch Bonus: Caitlyn actually has a somewhat important impact on Vi years before they ever meet. In hindsight, it's her dropping a piece of equipment that alerted Vi to pay attention to the door and thus hear Jayce approaching and lock him out.
- Science vs. Magic: Piltover has a stance against using magic, even saying their city was founded to defend themselves from the tyranny of mages. While Heimerdinger understands Jayce wanting to research magic for the city's betterment, he lived centuries with the dark history it brought and tries to talk him out of it.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Inverted. Rather than wanting to avoid a conflict, a Zaunite named Sevika leads a small walkout at The Last Drop of those who want to ally with Silco and fight Piltover, finding Vander's calls of pacifism weak.
- Second Episode Introduction: With the first episode focusing entirely on Vi, Powder and their family in Zaun, it's up to this episode to introduce major characters in Piltover like Jayce, Viktor, Caitlyn, or Heimerdinger.
- Source Music: The jukebox in The Last Drop plays "Our Love" while Powder mopes.
- Spiteful Spit: One of the Undercity inhabitants who is captured and questioned by Marcus spits on his boot indicating that he won't rat out who did the break-in.
- Stealth Insult: Mel chooses a child's toy over more complex puzzles to give to Hoskel, clearly (and correctly) viewing him as unintelligent.
- Talking Down the Suicidal: Viktor talks down a suicidal Jayce by telling him believes in his vision of Hextech and offering to help him complete it. Viktor's offering to Jayce his childhood crystal and Jayce's acceptance visibly see Jayce deciding to live on.
- Teleportation: Jayce and his mother are saved from freezing to death when an unknown mage uses the magic of a crystal to teleport them to a green sunny field.
- Title Drop: Heimerdinger does this when warning Jayce that researching Arcane magic through science is dangerous in the eyes of the Council.
- War Is Hell: Briefly discussed when Vander tries to dissuade Vi from fighting Piltover:Vander: Nobody wins in war, Vi.
