S02.E06: Glorious Purpose

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

Loki learns the true nature of ‘glorious purpose’ as he rectifies the past in this gripping finale.

Season finale; dropping on Disney+ on Thursday, November 9, 2023, at 9pm EST / 8pm CST / 7pm MST / 6pm PST.

[Vikitty]

Well, that felt like a series finale.

Loki's new costume looks great. 

It was a solid season, packed with a lot of great characters. If this is Tom Hiddleston's last time playing Loki, I think it was a perfect ending.

[Enigma X]

I am verklempt.

[Mr. R0b0t]

I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't that.  I think I liked it, but have so many questions.  This new power or Loki's definitely opens up the possibility of more time travel shenanigans when/if Marvel ever has to dip back into the Avengers 1.0 bag. I personally hope they don't ever go back and resurrect characters just to placate shareholders, but capitalism (yay?).

[Spartan Girl]

The second I saw that the title was “Glorious Purpose,” just like the first episode, I had a feeling about what was going to happen. And once again, I hate being right.

On one hand, this is a much better swan song for Tom Hiddleston’s Loki to go out on. On the other hand…again? Really? I mean, he’s not exactly dead, but he’ll never see Mobius or his friends again. He finally opens himself up to people and he winds up alone for all eternity. 

I don’t know. I was just hoping for something better for him after all the growth he’d undergone. Or at least more closure. Still, it’s more than what characters like Wanda, Talos, and Maria Hill got.

Well, despite at how sad the ending makes me, it was a fun ride. And it got the raw sewage that was Secret Invasion out of my mouth.

Edited November 10, 2023 by Spartan Girl

[paigow]

Did the Smoke Monster get Renslayer? But He Who Remains is alive again? So he could save her so they can live happily ever after...

[phalange]

The Marvel intro going backwards was a nice touch.

I knew it was coming but I still laughed when "Centuries later" popped up.

I was genuinely worried there would be some kind of re-do of the citadel scene from the season one finale which would render everything that happened this season moot, so I'm glad they didn't go that route. Not counting the thousand times or so Loki relived that moment, of course.

Loki walking toward the loom and his TVA clothes turning into an Asgardian outfit complete with the horns was amazingly well done. And it was beautiful how the timeline branches turned into Yggdrasil, the tree of life from Norse mythology.

Love that B-15 is an integral part of running the reformed TVA and OB got to publish another manual. I'm with B-15 though, not sure reactivating Miss Minutes is a good idea. Ravonna ends up in the void, and it looks like Alioth is headed her way. It's nice that Mobius got to see his life on the timeline.

Sylvie will finally get to go live her life on her terms after centuries of having to hide in apocalypses. Admittedly, I'm a bit disappointed that after everything they went through, she and Loki won't see each other again and didn't really even get to say goodbye.

...Unless we get a season three?

In any case, Loki going from a villain to the hero who protects the timelines is a well done character arc. 

[suzsqueak]

25 minutes ago, Spartan Girl said:

On one hand, this is a much better swan song for Tom Hiddleston’s Loki to go out on. On the other hand…again? Really? I mean, he’s not exactly dead, but he’ll never see Mobius or his friends again. He finally opens himself up to people and he winds up alone for all eternity. 

I don’t know. I was just hoping for something better for him after all the growth he’d undergone. Or at least more closure. Still, it’s more than what characters like Wanda, Talos, and Maria Hill got.

I read the ending slightly differently than you, Spartan Girl. I figured Loki could see any of his friends by focusing on them and their branch which was why he had a small smile at the end. He was seeing Mobius discover his variant's world and life and Sophie going to discover what her unwritten future held.

[magdalene]

That looked like a series finale and a swan song for Loki played by Tom Hiddleston. Only an actor of that intelligence and sensitivity could have carried this off with such skill and aplomb.

Since neither Kang the character, or the actor playing him did anything for me I am glad this finale was all about Loki.      As it should be.

[Brn2bwild]

Having seen this, I wonder why that anti-Marvel article that came out a short time ago made it seem like Loki S2 Ep 6 wedded the MCU to Jonathan Majors's Kang?  If anything, it seemed to open the window to having that version of Kang replaced with a different one.

[paigow]

What did Adult Chicago Victor Timely do after Loki absorbed all the branches? Stayed at TVA? Stuck in a timeloop - always getting the book? 

[thuganomics85]

Definitely felt like a series finale this go around compared to last season.  I guess the door still can be open for possible returns, but it seemed like a fitting enough swan song for Loki in particular.

Just like I never would have predicted that the charismatic villain from the first Thor film would exceed expectations and become one of the best characters in the MCU period, I'm sure the Loki of early years never would have predicted he'd go on to sacrifice his freedom in order to keep the timelines from dying, and yet here we are.  And more importantly, I can actually buy it.  This is a Loki who has formed attachments, hell, friends, and wouldn't just let them (and other innocents) be wiped off the face of the planet.  And this is a Loki who won't make the "hard call" and kill someone he cares for if there was a way around it.  So, yeah, while bittersweet, if this is really it, I think it's a good endgame for him.  Some of the best character work yet, IMO.  And, of course, Tom Hiddelston crushed it all.  Dude is talented!

Loved the opening "Groundhog Day" like shenanigans at first.  I know gods live longer, but I'm sure centuries of trial and error would do a number on anyone!  Loki has patience!

Jonathan Majors is better as "He Who Remains" compared to Timely, but still not great enough to warrant any hassle towards keeping him around, so hopefully a recast is around the corner.  I'm assuming the reference to the variant from "616" is the one Scott and company dealt with in Quantumania, heh.

Loved Mobius' speech.  Might have been some of Owen Wilson's best work ever.

Miss Minutes have been rebooted, but I don't know, TVA.  I feel like y'all are still playing with fire!

Renslayer seems to be regretting a lot of her choices now.

Hope this isn't it for O.B.  Or if it is, I certainly hope Ke Huy Quan continues to get a lot of work.  Best comeback story ever!

Not quite as good as the first season, but still still probably one of the best out of the Disney+ shows (certainly helped by following that dud known as Secret Invasion), and it was a great ride!  Well done, Hiddelston, Wilson, Quan, Sophia Di Martino, Wunmi Mosaku, and the rest of the gang!

[arc]

If Loki had hundreds of years to learn time science, couldn't he have worked with OB to make the gangway shorter? Or install a moving sidewalk? Or a catapult?

It's kind of super BS that the suit is attached by a huge hose but there's not even a retrieval system. Even if the wearer has to run all the way out there under their own power, there should be a winch to pull them back.

The mid-episode conversation with HWR is actually quite reminiscent of an old issue of Legion of Super-Heroes (from DC). In it, the Time Trapper, a villain who controls time and lives at the end of time himself, told the hero Mon-El that he had orchestrated their reality to create the Legion, etc, and thus was the author of Mon-El's entire life. And when Mon-El decided he'd still be willing to kill the Trapper, the Trapper told him that doing so would retroactively erase the Time Trapper from the timeline altogether, completely resetting the universe. (Then the next episode was with a weird alt universe where some other villain had taken over the universe by the 30th century, and then that reality was rewritten when they recruited someone to step into the vacant role of the former Time Trapper.) Bonus: the Time Trapper even wears a purple robe too.

Meanwhile, Loki sitting on the throne reminded me of the DC/Vertigo comic Lucifer, wherein the throne of heaven (the "Primum Mobile") is vacated by God and so reality itself begins to unravel, until a suitable heir can be found to sit upon it again and take up the role.

OK, anyways. So now Loki's fixed the timestream by sitting on the throne, HWR is dead, Sylvie's alive, and the TVA's main job is tracking down HWR variants? I think that's a decent enough season finale. Or even series finale, though I hope we'll see Loki one more time.

4 hours ago, Valerie said:

Loki's new costume looks great. 

Ahahahaha, the MCU continues its streak of having the TV shows debut new costumes. (I guess Loki S1 kinda didn't?)

[ItCouldBeWorse]

2 hours ago, paigow said:

What did Adult Chicago Victor Timely do after Loki absorbed all the branches? Stayed at TVA? Stuck in a timeloop - always getting the book? 

We saw that the child Victor did not get the book; he kept making candles.  He may still be a genius or an impresario, but unless something changes, that Victor Timely will not have access to the TVA guide.

However the yellow-covered 2nd edition of the TVA Guide says it's authored by Ouroboros and Victor Timely, so his previous contributions remain.

Edited November 10, 2023 by ItCouldBeWorse

[SueB]

8 hours ago, arc said:

If Loki had hundreds of years to learn time science, couldn't he have worked with OB to make the gangway shorter? Or install a moving sidewalk? Or a catapult?

This gave me the giggles.  But I kind of like the blind spot in that area and instead Loki pinchesoff every error.  ‘Don’t plan t it down! It rolls off!’ ‘The button is a little sticky!’

I found this episode EXTREMELY satisfying. 
 

Loki is a Big Damn Hero.  I wanted that.  I need that.  And if you realize that Yggdrasil‘a center is at Midguard, it makes him very close to Earth 616 (our Avengers timeline).  I think Loki sees all and takes delight in watching his friends (loved ones really … they became his family).  
 

And he got his Glorious Purpose.  He protects the flow of Time.  
 

What I want now is for Thor to see him in this position.  For Thor to know there WAS always good in him.  And I believe I’ll get my wish.  I think Loki is ‘Avenger Prime’ (I think that’s the comic book name.  I imagine he can astral project himself about to do what needs to be done.  If you consider Thor was able to focus the power of a sun through a lens and his own body to get the forge restarted in ‘Infinity War’, I think Loki can pull off this task he has set for himself. I expect him back for Kang Wars.  
 

Yes, I’m verklempt. Loki may have made a sacrifice but in the end he WON.  He was not destined to lose.  He has people who love him an a glorious purpose.  
 

And Tom Huddleston, Own Wilson, and the cast all deserve awards.  I hope they get some attention come award season.  

[paigow]

Can the other Loki variants take turns sitting on the throne... maybe Gator Loki is the most effective...

[Fool to cry]

I don't know what that exec quoted in the recent Variety article was talking about! If anything the Loki finale totally allows you to recast Kang! And the sooner the better IMO.

[magdalene]

Personally I don't take that Variety article as gospel for anything.  It comes across as very click baity, driven by a massive agenda and while obviously true about a lot is maybe already dated in some of its reporting?

I am very conflicted about this ending for Loki.  He gets to be a hero with a truly glorious purpose, having had a great character arc.  But purely selfishly I want Hiddleston to continue to play him in future projects because he is so terrific doing it.

[kickingnames]

Dang, that was good. The more and more I think about it, it was really clever. And beautiful. Not perfect, but definitely clever and beautiful. 

[Spartan Girl]

15 hours ago, suzsqueak said:

I read the ending slightly differently than you, Spartan Girl. I figured Loki could see any of his friends by focusing on them and their branch which was why he had a small smile at the end. He was seeing Mobius discover his variant's world and life and Sophie going to discover what her unwritten future held.

Watching them isn’t necessarily the same as being with them.

3 hours ago, SueB said:

What I want now is for Thor to see him in this position.  For Thor to know there WAS always good in him.

Thats what I wanted too. I know it was a long shot to get a Hemsworth cameo, but one more time-slip to say goodbye to Thor and it would have been perfect!

Don’t me wrong, this is the first show to stick the landing since WandaVision (until MoM blew it to hell). I’m just still sad for Loki because of the tragic irony of it all.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

Would Sylvie be able to visit? As Loki reminded her, she's also a god.

[Enigma X]

Now that I have rested, I can say more.

This was beautiful despite the Kangfoolery. (Sorry, I still think someone with as much power as HWR/Kang is boring. Therefore, I do not like the character and do not care for the actor.) It was funny minus being silly. It was thoughtful. It was a gut punch. 

And though I shed a tear for the original timeline Loki when Thanos killed him, there was no pause to take it in. I know this Loki is not dead but it sure feels like the end for him. If this is what he needs to do forever, this may be worse than death.

And poor Mobius. He also broke my heart. I needed clarification about that situation though.

This season was not perfect,  nor was the plot for this season, but this season finale was just what I needed.

[kay1864]

Could Loki have taken Sylvie through a time door to talk past-Sylvie out of killing Kang? Or is Loki the only one who can exist twice in the same place?

1 minute ago, Enigma X said:

And poor Mobius. He also broke my heart. I needed clarification about that situation though.

I as well. Where can he go after this?

[Sakura12]

3 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Would Sylvie be able to visit? As Loki reminded her, she's also a god.

That's what I'm wondering. Could she use her advanced time thingy she got from Kang to visit him? And could she take Thor there. 

Is he at the end of time or the beginning? Since Loki is not just the God of Mischief, he is also known as the God of stories. 

 

 

[paigow]

2 hours ago, Sakura12 said:

And could she take Thor there. 

Thor!616 would never believe her...

[dwmarch]

19 hours ago, arc said:

If Loki had hundreds of years to learn time science, couldn't he have worked with OB to make the gangway shorter? Or install a moving sidewalk? Or a catapult?

I would assume he tried this but the amount of temporal radiation made such efforts impossible.

Amazing finale and the best one from MCU television yet. And big props for that music! The end theme was especially powerful.

[KerleyQ]

It was so good, but I feel so sad. 

I'm hoping we've got one more season coming (at least). For one thing, I need my Loki/Thor reunion. I need Thor to see how truly good and heroic Loki was. That relationship is such a big part of both characters, that it would be a shame to not have that moment. 

It wasn't until a while after we finished watching that I realized they left some threads dangling. I think they have some groundwork laid for a third season. We've got the return of Miss Minutes. Ravonna is at the end of time and could potentially have a conversation with HWR, where she finds out that Miss Minutes's version of events does not match up with his version. (That part is just my theory. I think that Miss Minutes was threatened by the Ravonna/HWR relationship, and she erased her memory of her own accord, not on his orders).  Oh, and while this reset appears to have left young Victor Timely alone, his name is still in the TVA manual, which makes me think that he could still end up getting dragged back into things somehow, if someone were to go looking for him. 

But, like I said, I feel sad. Loki wanted his friends back. He wanted to hang out with Mobius and the rest of the gang. And he gave it all up. And, as someone who has never liked Sylvie very much, it irks me that she got to go out to a world of endless possibilities, getting exactly the happy ending she wanted, and that was on the back of Loki making such a huge sacrifice and not getting his happy ending. 

Oh, and I wonder why the new TVA didn't find some way to allow people to go back to their own timelines and lives while still working. Like, just make it a normal job (with travel, obviously). I'm thinking a situation where Mobius can still work there, but he can also still go home to his boys. It wouldn't be quite a routine 9-5 situation, but with the abilities TVA agents have, couldn't they kind of straddle both their TVA existence and their "real" lives? 

God, Tom Hiddleston was incredible, in every episode, really, but especially in this one. Give him all the awards. 

I was a little bummed we didn't get some post credits outtakes of Loki's science lessons with OB.  

[tkc]

And so Loki season 2 ends with "Glorious Purpose", reprising season 1's premiere "Glorious Purpose", much like an Ouroboros. An amazing episode, at times reminiscent of watching the Twelfth Doctor from Doctor Who.

What a redemption arc for Loki, stolen as an infant and never properly acknowledged by his adoptive father, to trying by any means to grasp for himself the position to which he thought himself entitled, to realizing the importance of the bonds of friendship and the power of sacrifice -- finally at peace and fulfilled.

The conclusion of The Tragedy — no, The Apotheosis of Loki of Asgard.

Glorious!

(And before I close, let me just raise a virtual glass to Natalie Holt, and her wonderful work as composer this season!)

Edited November 11, 2023 by tkc

[magdalene]

I just watched Tom Hiddleston on Jimmy Fallon.  He said among other things that the Loki season 2 finale was the conclusion of his 14 years long journey as Loki. It sure sounded pretty final.  Did you guys watch that?

[baldryanr]

7 hours ago, magdalene said:

I just watched Tom Hiddleston on Jimmy Fallon.  He said among other things that the Loki season 2 finale was the conclusion of his 14 years long journey as Loki. It sure sounded pretty final.  Did you guys watch that?

You mean like how Hugh Jackman was finished with Wolverine after Logan?  At the moment Hiddleston likely believes he's finished with the role, just like RDJ, CE, SJ, etc. are done with their characters.  That doesn't mean he won't come back if his interest is rekindled (or his bank accounts could use a good influx of cash).

I get wanting Thor to see what his brother could become, but he already knows about Loki's good side.  They were on good terms right before Thanos popped up.

[paigow]

7 hours ago, magdalene said:

I just watched Tom Hiddleston on Jimmy Fallon.  He said among other things that the Loki season 2 finale was the conclusion of his 14 years long journey as Loki. It sure sounded pretty final. 

Just like Kit Harington on the Jon Snow Resurrection Denial Tour...

[Affogato]

I also found this discouraging. Is variant Moebius going to lurk watching the sacred timeline Moebius raise his kids and sell jetskis? Maybe he will go back to the TVA after a little time wandering around the sacred time line, trying out the water sports. Can Loki monitor what happens at the tva?

Loki sure seems like he is in a position of total isolation, even if he can watch all of the reality television he wants.

That aside, this was a slick, satisfying end to the series. If it is Hiddleston's swan song, I think he picked a good time to leave the MCU, and there is always the option of the occasional revisit--we can hope not via AI.

[Spartan Girl]

15 hours ago, KerleyQ said:

And, as someone who has never liked Sylvie very much, it irks me that she got to go out to a world of endless possibilities, getting exactly the happy ending she wanted, and that was on the back of Loki making such a huge sacrifice and not getting his happy ending. 

Ugh, yes. Her actions messed with the balance of the universe, hurt people, and yet she gets to live happily ever after without showing any remorse. Gosh, who does that remind me of? *glares hatred at Steve Rogers*

[Morrigan2575]

On 11/9/2023 at 10:33 PM, phalange said:

And it was beautiful how the timeline branches turned into Yggdrasil, the tree of life from Norse mythology.

I wondered if it was The Tree of Life that Odin hanged himself from in Mythology. 

Is Loki now the Living Tribunal? Did Renslayer ended up in Ancient Egypt or the End of Time? I can't tell if the Purple light was He Who Remains or Kang-Tut.

It's a satisfying ending for Loki, he found his Glorious Purpose. Given the state of things, we can totally see a Loki Variant or even Living Tribunal Loki (assuming that's right) again.

Edited November 11, 2023 by Morrigan2575

[Bill1978]

This episode was a return to Loki S1, well I was at least captivated and enthralled like I was with S1.

My main issue is that this episode really made episodes 2-5 feel like filler episodes (which they felt like when I first watched them). I could easily watch S1, then Ep 1 of S2 and jump to this episode and feel like I have not missed a single plot point. And as long as you've met Timely as the dude from the credit scene in Quantumania, I honestly think you could skip 2-5 and know what is happening in Ep 6.

If this is the end of Loki as a series and a character then what an incredible note to end on.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 11/10/2023 at 5:17 PM, kay1864 said:

Could Loki have taken Sylvie through a time door to talk past-Sylvie out of killing Kang? Or is Loki the only one who can exist twice in the same place?

Or could he have asked her to read his thoughts, so she'd understand what he was trying to prevent?

5 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Ugh, yes. Her actions messed with the balance of the universe, hurt people, and yet she gets to live happily ever after without showing any remorse. Gosh, who does that remind me of? *glares hatred at Steve Rogers*

Did Steve Rogers hurt people, or did he just get his own happy ending?

Edited November 11, 2023 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Spartan Girl]

39 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Did Steve Rogers hurt people, or did he just get his own happy ending?

I am not going to open that can of worms again. But I will just say that whether intentional or not, both his and Sylvie’s happy endings came at the expense of other people. 

Edited November 12, 2023 by Spartan Girl

[festivus]

I'm with you on opening that can of worms. Your post did make me think about both endings though. I think Loki's was so much better and showed character growth and that's what I'm here for. Sylvie did get him to admit that when he said he wanted to save the TVA what he really wants is to save his friends. So he does go on and have his glorious purpose but this growth is motivated by how he feels about his friends and finally feeling he belongs somewhere. So satisfying of a character arc for me. This sacrifice is a good thing and more importantly it makes sense for Loki. The person that always felt less than and was always looking for something. 

I hope this version of Loki and Thor do get to speak to each other sometime in the future. I'm satisfied if it is Loki's swan song but I do think we'll see him again. 

[tv-talk]

I liked this as the finale to Loki's character but found it very weak in terms of resolving the parameters it had ostensibly set up. Namely at the end of the day most of what happened was meaningless and they went to the tired ass "Nordic God" trope as the savior of everything. Blech. The show was pure sci-fi and just face-planted into Fantasy to resolve the story. Very weak as there was zero attempt to explain why Loki was impervious in all the situations that annihilated everything else. Why he could just flit in and out of timelines at will, get infinite number of re-dos. None of that made any sense. Again the premise of the show was that any individual in the MCU you could think of was really just a dust mote in the scale of all Time and Realties...oh but then really the Asgardieans are Gods above it all. BORING. And contradictory to the previous canon about Thor et al who are really just powerful beings with 5,000 lifespans (or whatever). Gods to humans but certainly not to all the lifeforms out there.

Again though, as a finish to Loki's story I get it and think it was done just fine. Loved the cast and this season had fantastic scenes just in terms of the acting- real rarity in MCU and I definitely appreciate that.

[arc]

10 hours ago, Affogato said:

Is variant Moebius going to lurk watching the sacred timeline Moebius raise his kids and sell jetskis?

Technically, the Mobius that we know of with a regular life is on a branched timeline, according to episode 5. Who knows what sacred timeline Mobius is doing <shrug>. (For my own headcanon, I'm going to say that actual TVA staffers are outside the timelines altogether.)

It seemed to me like TVA Mobius has accepted that his role in the (multi)universe is to work at the TVA. It is a little bleak that it doesn't seem like they have personal lives though. The s1 TVA probably didn't have vacations, or else Mobius would have just gone jetskiing on his own.

22 hours ago, KerleyQ said:

Ravonna is at the end of time and could potentially have a conversation with HWR, where she finds out that Miss Minutes's version of events does not match up with his version.

Ravonna's just an ordinary human though. Loki and Sylvie only made it through to HWR thanks to the heroic interventions of Old Loki and his magic. And also, apparently per this episode, because HWR had intended them to get there.

[KerleyQ]

1 hour ago, arc said:

Ravonna's just an ordinary human though. Loki and Sylvie only made it through to HWR thanks to the heroic interventions of Old Loki and his magic. And also, apparently per this episode, because HWR had intended them to get there.

I think it would stand to reason, then, that if he wanted to see her, she'd be able to get through. 

[MisterGlass]

I watched the last three episodes together.  It was a ride, and it was very touching.  I also have to assume this is a series finale, and if it is, it's a proper one.  There aren't enough of those.  Few characters get one good finale, let alone two.

The time loop format gave Loki the chance to try all his options, and to accept that he could not both save his friends and be with them.  There was always magic in the series, and after the encounter with Classic Loki it seemed inevitable that there would be more exploration of that.  Magic, sacrifice, and Yggdrasil made a poignant solution.

[Athena]

13 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Or could he have asked her to read his thoughts, so she'd understand what he was trying to prevent?

I thought of that but the way Sylvie wanted things to end ("I grew up in apocalypses") made me think it wouldn't have changed her mind. They've traded one neutral evil god for a more neutral good god. I didn't care for Sylvie. I am just glad that they didn't revisit their odd romance thread and this became more of a Loki character show the last 2 eps.

14 hours ago, Bill1978 said:

This episode was a return to Loki S1, well I was at least captivated and enthralled like I was with S1.

My main issue is that this episode really made episodes 2-5 feel like filler episodes (which they felt like when I first watched them). I could easily watch S1, then Ep 1 of S2 and jump to this episode and feel like I have not missed a single plot point. And as long as you've met Timely as the dude from the credit scene in Quantumania, I honestly think you could skip 2-5 and know what is happening in Ep 6.

If this is the end of Loki as a series and a character then what an incredible note to end on.

Yes, most of Ep 2-4 could be skipped. I actually liked Ep 5 more as it discussed Loki's character motivations. The show is best when focusing on the character and the relationships around Loki himself. I found the plotting around both seasons off and I am still confused about some things.

I am really sad but story wise, it is a great end to Loki's arc. Tom Hiddleston's Loki has been one of the only characters I actually came to care about in the MCU in large part because I like Hiddleston as an actor. He always gave Loki a lot of depth and brilliance in the movies. The last couple of episodes has really showcased his range and they did give him great character development. It feels earned and right that he would do this for his friends that he made along the way especially Mobius and the TVA. I felt more vested in the Mobius/Loki friendship than I did in the Thor. Thor saw Loki as his brother first but Mobius really saw potential in Loki as someone who could help the TVA and did. Great and glorious purpose indeed.

On the whole, good job to the show runners, the cast, the music, and the designers. It's been a good ride for the most part. I have learned to have low expectations from the MCU especially in regards to character work, but they did stick the landing here. Hopefully they won't ruin it like they did WandaVision and I'm glad Hiddleston can close this chapter at least for awhile.

[Spartan Girl]

34 minutes ago, Athena said:

Tom Hiddleston's Loki has been one of the only characters I actually came to care about in the MCU in large part because I like Hiddleston as an actor. He always gave Loki a lot of depth and brilliance in the movies. The last couple of episodes has really showcased his range and they did give him great character development. It feels earned and right that he would do this for his friends that he made along the way especially Mobius and the TVA. I felt more vested in the Mobius/Loki friendship than I did in the Thor. Thor saw Loki as his brother first but Mobius really saw potential in Loki as someone who could help the TVA and did. Great and glorious purpose indeed.

It’s amazing how much Loki grew. It all started when Mobius showed him his other life and the price all his schemes and manipulation all for what ultimately was nothing. He was finally able to see that his family did indeed love him only when he lost them forever. His bitter, incredulous laughter at his ultimate fate was one of my favorite moments in the series. It wasn’t just bonding with Mobius, someone who was able to call him out on his crap, that helped him change: meeting Sylvie and all his other variants was a wake-up call that made him realize “my God, am I ALWAYS like this?” At the same time, listening to what Sylvie and Classic Loki’s had been through helped him break through and realize truths about himself that he never wanted to admit—namely, that he did not want to be alone. And yet after all those time loops, he saw it was inevitable and accepted that fate to save his friends and change the TVA for the better.

Dammit, now I’m sad all over again. And pissed that these writers that were able to give Loki such a full circle character development were the same ones that flushed Wanda’s character development in down the toilet in MoM…

Edited November 12, 2023 by Spartan Girl

[Enigma X]

My interpretation of some events in the last episode differs from most.

I thought HWR wanted Loki to stop Sylvie from killing him, but instead, Loki "became" the loom. Sylvie still killed HWR. I see a lot of comments and YT videos saying Loki ending up where he was was all part of HWR's plan. I don't think it was. If this whole HWR cycle is explained by saying it was all in his plan, I hope it starts to get as old for everyone else as it has already become for me. Also, that train of thought lessens the impact of what Loki (anyone, really) did and has done.

[gail56]

1 hour ago, Enigma X said:

My interpretation of some events in the last episode differs from most.

I thought HWR wanted Loki to stop Sylvie from killing him, but instead, Loki "became" the loom. Sylvie still killed HWR. I see a lot of comments and YT videos saying Loki ending up where he was was all part of HWR's plan. I don't think it was. If this whole HWR cycle is explained by saying it was all in his plan, I hope it starts to get as old for everyone else as it has already become for me. Also, that train of thought lessens the impact of what Loki (anyone, really) did and has done.

HWR wanted Loki to kill Sylvie. To make the hard choice like HWR did. His plan was for Loki to spin his wheels trying to come up with another solution and to eventually realize that the Loom needed to remain. That all alternate branches needed to be pruned or all the universe would be lost including the Sacred Timeline in the Multiversal War.

Loki explained this to Sylvie and she responded that free will was so important that even if they all died, they at least all died fighting. They should have that choice, not to have lives controlled to such a degree in the Sacred Timeline to keep the Kang variants from starting a huge war.. Also Mobius telling Loki that we all have burdens and to choose which one to have. 

HWR intended for the Loom to remain, for Loki to kill Sylvie, after realizing why the Loom was needed. Why he wanted Loki to kill Sylvie to save the Loom is a bit of a mystery unless he wanted to play a little game for is own amusement. He never intended for Loki to become the Loom. He was horrified when Loki declared he should just destroy the it.

It was Loki's idea to destroy the Loom and seeing if he could succeed in replacing it with "something better." Himself. I am not sure he thought he would succeed but he wanted to try. He rejected the status quo pitch HWR gave him after talking to Mobius and Slyvie.

Now Loki protects the branches and the TVA is also protecting them and watching out for Kang variants. I like the little sign I saw at the new TVA saying something like, "Let's all grow together."

[Enigma X]

@gail56 Thanks. I got all that, but I also think he wanted Loki to kill Sylvie so that Sylvie wouldn't kill him. I just removed the middle man. 

[gail56]

3 minutes ago, Enigma X said:

@gail56 Thanks. I got all that, but I also think he wanted Loki to kill Sylvie so that Sylvie wouldn't kill him. I just removed the middle man. 

Yes, he wanted Loki to kill Sylvie so she wouldn't kill him, but why not stop her himself? As Loki said to him, "Why are you not fighting back?" I am sure HWR had the power to kill Sylvie himself, but he wanted Loki to do it. He never once lifted a finger to defend himself from her. Thinking about it, since Sylvie is a variant of Loki, he would be killing himself, like HWR had to kill the other Kangs. Maybe that was the point.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

Yes, if he could freeze her, he could kill her. Maybe that's too easy?

[tv-talk]

I dont think Sylvie killed him nor that he is gone, there is nothing that happens which would prevent him from still being out there in untold number or forms. I think they made reference to that actually?