The Trickster is Back

This week the newest Marvel Cinematic Universe series, Loki, will debut on Disney+. While Loki is a beloved character in the MCU, this show will be a bit different from anything we’ve seen so far. This will be the first time a villain is getting their own series, and the series will be time travel based. It could end up being a bit confusing, like Back to the Future Part II, for some, but with a bit of previous knowledge, all should be made clear within the series.

Loki’s Journey

Loki started out in Thor (2011) as the mischievous and misguided brother of the heroic God of Thunder. He learned that he is actually part frost giant and eventually turned full villain. He has appeared to have died numerous times: at the end of Thor, Thor: The Dark World, and Avengers Infinity War. Before dying for the last time, though, Loki seems to have reconciled with Odin and even heroically sacrificed himself for Thor. The last we saw Loki, he grabbed the Tesseract from Avengers(2012) during the time heist in Avengers: Endgame.

What do we know?

Disney+’s Loki will be about the Loki, who has never reconciled with Odin, died multiple times, or fought alongside Thor. This is the villainous Loki bent on ruling the Earth who recently made a deal with Thanos. He is a prisoner of the TVA Time Variance Authority who seems to protect time from disruption. Unfortunately, Loki’s jumping time using the Tesseract appears to have set off some chain reactions that need to be fixed. That task falls to the TVA led by Owen’s Wilson’s Mobius M. Mobius, who tells Loki that he needs his unique perspective to help repair the problems.  

Mobius M. Mobius

Mobius has not appeared in the MCU before, but is part of the TVA in Marvel Comics. His first appearance is in Fantastic Four #353(1991). It’s good to note that in the comics, the TVA operates with known time travelers. They have connections to Kang the Conqueror, already cast for a future Marvel role, and Immortus, who has ties to Kang. We know from trailers that Mobius was “created by the Time Keepers to protect the sacred timeline” and that the Time Keepers are “three space lizards.” This doesn’t really tell us much, except more new and powerful characters will likely be introduced in Loki. These characters will probably have ties to or appear in future MCU events. 

What to Rewatch 

We have a few suggestions to prepare for Loki or get more insight into his character between episodes. 

• Avengers (2012)

This is the last appearance of the Loki that we will be spending this series with. The events of Avengers will be fresh in his mind, and his character should be the same villain that almost manipulated his way into ruling the Earth. 

• Avengers: Infinity War

Loki only appears at the beginning of the film because he makes his final sacrifice to save Thor. Here we get a glimpse of the heroic character Loki has become and get a grasp of how the actual timeline views him and his current existence. 

• Avengers: Endgame

Endgame is an excellent place to get warmed up for some time-bending action. Time travel is not for everyone, and sometimes getting in the mindset first can be beneficial. Endgame also shows the events that lead to Loki surviving outside of reality and existing in this series. There is also a good chance that the timelines or characters in Endgame could be revisited in Loki. A scene in the trailer looks a lot like Natasha Romanov sitting on Vormir, where she sacrificed herself, which is explained in Endgame. 

Honorable Mention

• Thor: Ragnorak

Thor: Ragnarok is a fun movie and puts on display Loki’s transition from villain to hero. The Loki in the upcoming series will not have experienced any of the events of Ragnarok. Still, characters in the actual timeline will have, and it shows Loki’s potential for growth. 

Plan B 

If you don’t have time to rewatch these, luckily, Marvel has provided an alternative. The Legends series on Disney+ now has an 8 minute Loki episode that will give you a quick refresher. There is also an 8-minute Tesseract recap episode to remind us of the Cube’s power that Loki used to create the need for this series. Although it may not be used in the series, it is important to remember that the Tesseract has been a part of almost every movie and character in the MCU. 

The Future of the MCU

Loki will undoubtedly affect multiple aspects of the MCU. This show is based on fixing the problems and likely alternate timelines created by Loki escaping time with the Tesseract. There will likely be some fractured timelines or multiverses in December’s Spider-Man: No Way Home(hence the title) and 2022’s Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness(again). As mentioned before, time-traveling Kang the Conqueror is slated to appear in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and could end up being the big bad for Phase Four of the MCU. Will Loki appear in either or both of those films? Could this out-of-time Loki only continue to exist by working with the TVA for the foreseeable future? 

Don’t Forget

Although Thor believed maybe Loki wasn’t so bad after all, this isn’t that Loki. Instead, we get to see full-on villainous Loki, who doesn’t hold back, in action, likely jumping through time. He’s partnered on this adventure with Owen Wilson, so if The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is the Lethal Weapon of the MCU, Loki is The Other Guys. The difference is they have the “fate of people across all of existence” and the future of the MCU in their time-traveling hands. Loki debuts June 9 on Disney+.