On to episode 3 of Loki, which takes us away from any place we’ve seen in the MCU before. Yet sometimes, no matter how far you go, some things are still the same.
For example, everyone looks like regular humans. That’s sure convenient for the costuming department!
Anyways, let’s take a look (with spoilers) and see how things are shifting in episode 3.
1.Attack on TVA
When episode 2 ended, the Variant launched an attack on multiple points in time, causing chaos at the TVA as countless Nexus Events began. So what amazing changes did this make to the Marvel universe, nay, the Marvel multiverse?
We don’t know, we don’t actually get to see that yet.
Instead, we do get to see the Variant attack the TVA and fight off several agents with ease, often using their own weapons against them. Would I have liked to see the alternate timelines the attack created? Absolutely. But the scene we get is pretty good anyways, and hopefully we’ll see more as it goes on.
In the meantime, this episode gives us time to get to know this Variant, as she and Loki are more or less forced to work together to survive.
2. Loki and Sylvie
So, let’s learn a little more about this Variant. During the credits to last week’s episode, the Spanish language version called her “Sylvie” instead of “The Variant.” Well, that’s not too much of a spoiler, since she calls herself that in this episode. In fact, she does not want to be called “Loki” at all, although she did say “that’s not who I am anymore,” suggesting she was a Loki at some point. So who or what Sylvie really is remains a bit of a question, but her use of enchantment magic has remained consistent.
Whether or not she’s a Loki, this episode still provides plenty of banter between her and the Loki we know and love. Whether they’re arguing, trying to trick one another, or discussing their pasts to see what lines up properly, there’s good chemistry between the characters.
This helps develop both their characters when they talk about their families. Loki talks about his mother, learning magic, and learning that he was adopted. Sylvie already knew she was adopted and taught herself enchantment magic, although overall, only a few points of their respective stories really align.
Now here’s the part that will make many fans happy: Loki confirmed that he’s interested in both men and women. Sylvie asked if there were any princesses or princes for him, and he replies “a little bit of both,” while implying that it’s probably the same for every Loki variant.
I know it’s not exactly an on-screen romance, but a central character like Loki casually mentioning being bisexual is a good step forward for representation. (Certainly better than an unnamed character in one scene in Avengers: Endgame mentioning being on a date with a man then never appearing again.)
3. It’s the End of the World as We Know it (And I Feel Fine)
Most of the action this episode takes place on Lamentis-1, an inhabited moon that’s about to lose its planet. Now, Lamentis is an actual place in the Marvel comic universe, located at the edge of Kree space. It appeared in 2007’s “Annihilation: Conquest Prologue,” and to the best of my knowledge has never appeared again. Still, it’s a nice little easter egg for comic readers.
The driving plot of the episode is Loki and Sylvie trying to recharge the TemPad so they can escape before everyone dies. It is, after all, one of the apocalypse events that Sylvie was using as a hideout.
Now, we know through Sylvie’s explanation that no one escapes or survives this planetary destruction. But the people living there don’t know that. In fact, they have a massive ark spaceship designed to escape to safety.
So naturally, it’s reserved only for the wealthiest who can afford a ticket, and everyone else will be left behind on a dying planet.
Honestly, I think that’s the most realistic thing on this show. Even in the end of times, the rich can afford luxury and safety, while anyone who can’t is out of luck.
Continued belowSure, this means they’re escaping a planet and leaving all the skilled laborers behind, save for security and bartenders. They’d better hope the spaceship has a few janitors on board, otherwise those rich jerks had better learn how to clean up their own trash. And whatever planetary currency they used might not be accepted wherever they end up landing, so all their money could turn out to be worthless.
But these are people who can afford entertainment and comfort while the world literally falls apart around them, so I’m less than sympathetic to them when the ark gets hit.
4. The Truth About TVA Agents
When the episode begins, we see Sylvie using her enchantment on Hunter C-20, in the form of an illusion where they’re friends getting drinks. This, as we later learn, turns out to be drawn from her memories… memories of being human on Earth.
That’s right, even though the TVA agents told us they were all created by the Time Keepers, that’s not entirely true. They’re all Variants themselves, even if they don’t realize it.
So that begs some questions. Did they have a choice in whether or not to join the TVA? Do they agree to have their memories erased, or are they torn away? Would the same thing have happened to Loki if he continued to work for them? This also could explain a few things about Agent Mobius, like his love of jet skis and an old Earth soda – old habits from a past life.
The mystery deepens, but I think it’s safe to say that the TVA and the Time Keepers are not exactly “good guys” here themselves.
5. The End is Near
The episode ends with Loki and Sylvie in a tough spot. Their TemPad is broken, so they can’t gate away. Loki’s plan to steal the ark goes south when it gets, well, destroyed. Lamentis-1 only has minutes left from the look of things, and in general, they seem to be out of ideas.
With that said, the long shots showing Loki and Sylvie running and fighting through the crowd to try and get to the ark were pretty nice. It’s really two long shots, since one of them was interrupted when Sylvie took a hit, but they showed the chaos and the rush nicely. (Admittedly, Marvel’s best long shot scene is still the Daredevil hallway fight, but this is good too.)
This creates a nicely tense situation, where all hope is lost. It’s probable that the next episode will begin with a deus ex machina getting them to safety (my money is on Agent Mobius coming in with a time gate), but perhaps Loki has something clever planned.
It seems like each episode has to end with some sort of cliffhanger. Episode 1 gave us the revelation that the TVA was getting attacked by a Loki variant, episode 2 had Loki chasing after Sylvie while she destroyed the timeline, and now episode 3 has it look like they’re more or less doomed. That’ll certainly keep viewers coming back each week.
As for me, I’ll keep coming back to review each episode, so I’ll see you next week for episode 4.
Other thoughts:
– Loki’s “Another!” glass smash moment is a nice callback to the first Thor movie.
– Tom Hiddleston can certainly sing
– The constant “Love is _____” metaphors did a good job helping us get to know how Loki and Sylvie view replationships, and the “love is a dagger” monologue was well done.
