Marvel Studios knows how to keep us on the hook, and a mid-credits scene at the end of last week's episode of Loki featured the show's best cliffhanger to date.
In the scene, the God of Mischief was met by four Loki Variants: "Classic Loki," "Kid Loki," "Boastful Loki," and an alligator decked out in the trickster's familiar helmet. We have absolutely no idea where this is heading, but it wouldn't be at all surprising to see even more alternate Lokis show up (something tells us that the "President Loki" seen in the trailers could be one of those Variants).
A new TV spot for Loki aired on ESPN last night, and while we're still waiting for it to surface online (officially or otherwise), some screenshots have been doing the rounds on Twitter.
Tom Hiddleston's Loki can be seen alongside Jack Veal's Kid Loki and Richard E. Grant's classic version of the villain, looking at some sort of rift that could be the one they've all arrived through after being "pruned" by the Time-Keepers. That could end up being Loki's only means of escape, but chances are it's a one-way trip given how many Variants are in this desolate New York City.
Check out these intriguing, spoilery screenshots below:
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biggest reveals from last week's episode of Loki!
8. Loki Falls In Love
Well, it's fair to say we didn't see this coming. Facing the end of the world together, Loki (and Sylvie too, perhaps) create a massive Nexus event when they fall in love.
Despite them being in an apocalypse (where nothing they do should matter), it seems their bond is strong enough to have created a branch on the Sacred Timeline that's unlike anything seen before. It's weirdly appropriate that Loki would fall in love with himself, but before you get too grossed out, remember that they are technically two separate beings.
Sylvie is entirely different to Loki, and her time on Asgard came to an end as a child when her timeline was pruned. Exploring this romance in the next two episodes promises to be fascinating, but will the God of Mischief pluck up the courage to confess how he feels?
7. The Death Of Mobius
We can't lie, this really stung. Loki's unlikely friendship with Mobius has been a highlight of the series, and the two men finally got on the same page in today's episode. That came when the TVA agent realised that the God of Mischief was telling the truth and that he too is a "Variant."
Unfortunately, Judge Renslayer had deduced his planned betrayal and swiftly had Mobius deleted.
Based on what happened to Loki after his own deletion, we can't help but hope he's ended up in some sort of purgatory that he can be rescued from. This is an undeniably tragic end for the character, though, and it might hit harder if there's no way for the Asgardian to resurrect his friend.
6. Renslayer's True Nature Revealed
Talking of Judge Renslayer, we learn here that she's a much nastier piece of work than we first suspected. Whether it's the callous way she pulls Sylvie from her reality or the sneer on her face when the villain says she can't remember why the Asgardian had to be pruned in the first place, it's no exaggeration to say we hate her.
Renslayer is clearly aware that the Time-Keepers are not what they appear, but the way she tells Sylvie to "do it" when she's at her mercy makes us wonder if the Judge would rather die than accept punishment at the hands of whoever really rules the TVA.
That would make sense if we're talking about someone who is to be feared, and it's questionable whether Renslayer will choose to reveal all to Sylvie in next week's episode. Who was behind those robots? Well, we have an idea, but will get to that a little later in this feature.
5. Sif Returns
Look, this may be a throwaway cameo in some respects, but how great was it to see Jaimie Alexander back in the Marvel Cinematic Universe after an eight-year absence?
A bad memory from the God of Mischief's past, this did nothing to explain where she's been since the events of Thor: The Dark World, and definitely didn't set the stage for any Loki to steal her body and become the villainous "Lady Loki." That's far from the end of the world, of course, and it's just great to finally see Sif back in the MCU in some form.
She'll next return in Thor: Love and Thunder, though we have no idea what to expect from the character there. Regardless, this cameo in Loki is hopefully an indication she's all in on this shared world again.
4. Vampires Exist In The MCU!
There have been a couple of jokes about vampires in the likes of Thor: Ragnarok and WandaVision, but Loki confirmed that they exist in the MCU when Mobius pointed out that they've previously brought "Kree, Titans [and] vampires" back to the TVA.
This is a nice tease for the Blade movie we know is eventually coming and confirms that there are still major parts of this shared world we've yet to delve into. In fact, there's a whole supernatural side to the Marvel Universe that Kevin Feige has yet to start mining for stories, but that's looking likely to change as we head deeper into Phase 4 and eventually Phase 5.
We're also intrigued by the mention of "Titans." There were others before Thanos, of course, but the thought of him being dragged through the TVA in a collar is an intriguing one...
3. The Truth About The Time-Keepers
There have been a lot of crazy theories about the Time-Keepers, but not many fans figured out that they'd be revealed as androids. When Sylvie beheaded one of them, the other two laughed before being deactivated, so there's definitely someone behind the curtain pulling their strings.
Renslayer seems to know what's going on, so we can only assume that these robots have been used to keep everyone else in the TVA compliant in order to make sure they buy into the story.
That doesn't explain why someone like Mobius has never met them before, of course, but whoever is really in charge of the TVA seemingly knows that they need to keep their true face hidden in order to effectively rule over this group and shape the timeline in a way they see fit.
2. The True Big Bad
Who is pulling the strings in the TVA? We'd like to think it's Kang the Conqueror prior to him appearing in Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, and that would certainly make sense seeing as he has a history both with Renslayer and the creation of advanced androids.
Unfortunately, we can't help but think that we're setting ourselves up for a Mephisto-sized disappointment there, so we're going to go with a less exciting, though slightly more plausible, suggestion.
The man behind the curtain will be a Loki Variant. For some reason, he wants to prune other versions of himself from the timeline (perhaps so he can remain the one "superior" Loki), and it's certainly possible that Kang will eventually be revealed as a Loki Variant in the MCU just like his comic book counterpart was once known by names like Iron Lad and Rama-Tut.
1. A Home For Loki Variants
In Loki's first mid-credits scene, we're taken to a desolate New York where the God of Mischief finds himself confronted by four alternate versions of himself offering their help.
Those are Classic Loki, Kid Loki, Boastful Loki, and...an alligator wearing Loki's crown? That has to mean we'll see Throg, but meeting these different Variants offers our first glimpse into the Marvel Multiverse and opens the door for a movie like Spider-Man: No Way Home to make use of multiple versions of the same character (so, three different Peter Parkers in that instance).
We're not sure what their story is or how they've ended up here, but that's likely to be explained next week. Somehow, they've taken refuge from the TVA and seem all too willing to help Loki out. Could it be that he ends up wearing that Presidential garb after trying to become the new ruler of this group?