Marvel had their work cut out for them in season two after the first season of ‘Loki.’ Expectations were incredibly high for season two, with the first season being hailed as one of Marvel’s best television series; I can’t disagree.
The Marvel/Disney+ show now has two seasons under its belt, without a third looking likely. But the (likely) completed series is now 16 episodes long. Forty-five minutes per episode, with plenty to watch and understand about the multiverse and its complex physics.
But as with any show, sometimes building expectations can be the downfall of the following seasons. Whether ‘Loki’ falls into that category is up for discussion.
Loki: The God Of Mischief
Season one was a brilliantly paced exploration of time and space and the developing characteristics of a previously depicted villain. Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston is a narcissistic Norse god who wanted to have reason to live. While he believed that ruling was his destiny, Loki learns that he is destined for so much more.
Following season one, Loki’s bromance with partner Mobius (Owen Wilson) is sticking around for season two. And the loving atmosphere between the working duo is still palpable. And with season one’s characters making a welcomed return, the cast for season two has expanded with two exciting additions.
Time-Slipping Into Season Two
After the Loki variant, Sylvie (Sophie Di Martino) succeeds in killing ‘He Who Remains’, season two begins where we left off—throwing us into the slow destruction of the TVA and Loki’s fight to save it.
With Loki slipping between timelines after being pushed through a time door during the fight with – ‘He Who Remains’ – the mysterious shadow who runs the TVA from within the shadows, he has to uncover how and why he is slipping between different places and times within various branches of the timeline.
It is filled with sarcastic quips that remind fans why they love the bromantic partnership of Mobius and Loki. Season two is a lot like season one. With quotes from Mobius such as “well, I’d ask who won, but…” after Loki describes being pushed through a time door during the season one finale.
To fix his ‘time slipping dilemma,’ Loki and Mobius head to the basement of the TVA to meet Ouroboros, also known as O.B. Played by the magnificent Ke Huy Quan, O.B. is the man behind the manual. Literally, Loki slips between the timelines and sees O.B. earlier in time, allowing O.B. enough time to fix it. And, of course, O.B. provides.
The season continues to explore further into the workings of time and space. Focusing on the branching of timelines and saving them when the temporal loom begins to crack under the pressure of growing timelines. In doing so, we meet a variant of ‘He Who Remains’ (Jonathan Majors) called Victor Timely, later revealed as essential to saving the TVA. While others, such as Sylvie, are experiencing a normal life for the first time.
Happy Working Minimum Wage
Ignoring the relationship between Sylvie and Loki, the two begin the season on very different paths. Sylvie spends the beginning of season two away from the TVA –living a minimum wage life on the timeline, content with her new life until the temporal loom fails to expand for growing timelines.
The romantic relationship between the Loki variants is much less about being together in season two. Loki is a man with a “glorious purpose” and will not settle for anything less than so.
Let’s talk about the good and the bad with all the characters accounted for. Season Two of ‘Loki’ is a complexity. The element of time-jumping left viewers struggling to keep up, while the basics of what was happening were clear enough. The smaller and more complex elements seem to get lost. Perhaps eight episodes were not enough for this season.
With viewers taking to X/Twitter:
With all said and done, ‘Loki’ season two brings a warming end that gives Loki what he’s always wanted. Reason. To keep the timelines alive, Loki sacrifices himself to become the new timekeeper. Essentially banishing himself into the void of time to keep together the branches and do what the loom couldn’t. To allow the branches to expand and grow, for lives within them to flourish.
What is Next for Loki?
While fans have theories about where Loki will go, if anywhere at all, Loki is now more than a god, and his development through the MCU has been more than glorious.
Some fans believe the show took place before the films, explaining why the time stone in The Avengers is Loki’s signature green. And it’s not too absurd to believe that he is now the time stone and represents so much more than he once was.
Whether we will see Loki again has not been discussed by the creators, but the idea that we will see him again isn’t far-fetched. Not when we are expecting a new Avengers film in 2026. Currently called “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty,” it would only make sense to see Loki appear in some manner as he has the most connection to Kang and his variants. Despite seeing Kang in Marvel Studios’ “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” in February.
We can’t say for sure what is next for Loki if anything, but we will find out closer to the time of the 2026 release.
