Is Heimerdinger really dead in Arcane season 2?

Professor Heimerdinger is a Yordle, a species born from the spirit realm. This species has a very different way of aging and are immortal beings, so there’s a layer of uncertainty surrounding Heimerdinger’s apparent death in Arcane season two, episode seven.

Here is everything we know about Heimerdinger’s death and whether we believe he truly died in Arcane season two.

Did Heimerdinger die in Arcane season 2? Our theories and interpretations

It pains me to type this, but I believe Heimerdinger died in Arcane. Sticking with League of Legends lore, there is a good chance Heimerdinger transported to Bandle City, the home of Yordles. This means that Heimerdinger could be reborn in the material world, linking back to his last words where he told Ekko he’d be “back in a wink.”

Heimerdinger was 307 years old at the start of Arcane. Born from a realm outside of what we’re conscious of, it’s a wonder whether Heimerdinger can truly die, but there is evidence that says otherwise.

Heimerdinger’s last words

Aware of the possible repercussions when using science to engineer magic, Heimerdinger solved the temporal machine to help send Ekko home, knowing that it’d likely be the end of his long life. He even said to Ekko “I must say, since I’ve met you lad—I’ve truly lived” before jumping out of the anomaly. It is in his words alongside his vanishing from the timeline that point towards Heimerdinger dying at the end of episode seven.

His last words could mean something else entirely. A kind farewell to Ekko, Heimerdinger may have known that he’d return to Bandle City—but couldn’t predict when he’d return to the material world—so he’d likely never see Ekko again within his lifetime. His song “Spin the Wheel” (in episode seven) talked about Ekko’s journey through time. A particular line stood out to me that I will happily cling to as an indicator that we will see the fluffy Professor again: “This ain’t goodbye no more. Nah, it just began.”

Where is alternate Heimerdinger?

The main evidence backing this theory is how when Heimerdinger disappeared, the original version of him didn’t appear in his place. We saw Powder holding the original and unconscious Ekko right before our version returned to his timeline. This means that we should have seen the alternate Heimerdinger replace him immediately after vanishing. But this never happened. Unless Heimerdinger never existed in the alternate timeline to begin with (like how they never discovered Hextech), then we can only assume he has been wiped from all other timelines. This theory is strengthened further by no one mentioning his name after his death.

Whose name did Ekko write down?

Finally, there is that unanswered question surrounding whose name Ekko wrote on the paper in episode nine. If Jinx didn’t die during the war, it’s highly likely he’s mourning the loss of his friend and mentor, Heimerdinger. But, if Heimerdinger vanished from all timelines, then he would cease to exist, meaning he never existed in the first place.

It’s also possibe that Heimerdinger returns to the material world but in a new form, as Yordles’ aren’t born from standard views of reproduction. This supports the theory that Heimerdinger could be reborn and return in a spin-off show.

What happened to Heimerdinger in Arcane season two? Heimerdinger death summarized

The climax of Arcane season two saw Ekko master his time-traveling abilities, restore Viktor’s humanity, and become a crucial component (alongside Jayce) to saving his original timeline. To achieve this, however, Heimerdinger and Ekko were thrown through the Hextech Core and came out the other side in a new timeline. Heimerdinger waited 1,128 days for Ekko to arrive, where they then began creating their own version of the anomaly so they could return home.

Rather than offer his usual advice, Heimerdinger took action after being inspired by Ekko’s determination to go home, and his will to repent for his lack of action to help Jayce. But without the Hexgates, the pair must create Hextech from scratch with some help from Powder. The trio created a rudimentary temporal machine (anomaly) that had a four-second use limit, but going outside of this four-second mark would tear Heimerdinger apart.

Attempting to understand the runes better, Heimerdinger sent Ekko away while he continued to work on the machine. Ekko returned to Powder’s hideout only to find that their invention had a significant upgrade, courtesy of Heimerdinger. The anomaly starts, but there isn’t enough power to send them through, so Heimerdinger leapt out of the anomaly, leaving Ekko inside, and sealed his fate. He powered the anomaly and evaporated in an instant.