Appreciation Post for Shoola
I want to start this post by gushing about Shoola’s a design, a Black woman adorned in gold and red, from her clothes to her accessories, to show off she is the that she is one of the richest and most powerful in Piltover, a city already teeming with rich aristocrats and politicians. Speaking of accessories, Shoola’s mechanical neck ruffle is absolutely brilliant a great symbol of Piltover’s status as a steampunk state with her golden eye mask in S2 a cool addition that I must admit I much prefer over the ruffles. Oh, and her finger rings are absolutely gorgeous I love the sound they make when she taps her fingers on the table.
Now on to her character. Shoola is a politician and a member of the ruling Piltover council so her hands aren’t exactly clean, in fact she is one of the people Jayce is shaking hands in the montage of him embracing the political game. But Shoola is one of the more moral council members and the one who advocates for diplomacy and peace with Mel.
She voiced concern for the potential loss of income people would face from the shutdown of the shipping lanes, initially protested Heimerdinger’s forced retirement, and pointed out to the rest of the council they have lost touch forgetting that while the people of the Undercity were not their preferred constituents they were still their people.
The last line hits hard because it contrast the other councilors like Bolbok suggesting a hex weapon to use against them or Cassandra stating the Undercity is impossible to control, all of which is within earshot of Viktor, a man who came from the Undercity.
Shoola advocates for the capture of Jinx after she bombed the council but that’s it. She and Mel opposes the plan to fully invade Zaun in retaliation for the mural attack. Shoola was the only Piltovan who listened to Jayce’s speech and choose to stay and work with Mel to protect Piltover from Ambessa and Viktor.
Finally, there is the implication Shoola is the only one who has Sevika’s back in the new ruling council. She and Sevika lit together the funeral papers and Shoola was the only one who didn’t give Sevika a dirty look when she took her seat and turned her eyes instead at the new councilors who did. Shoola’s personality and previous actions lend weight to her implied relationship or solidarity with Sevika.
In conclusion, Shoola might be a supporting character but she is underrated in the fandom. She is empathetic and gorgeous character and is one of the only few characters from Piltover who never wavered from their principles.
