Why The MCU “Reviving” The Original Loki Was A Smart Decision

When Loki hit Disney+ it seemed they might be exploring the arc of an earlier Loki with different motivations; in reality, they have effectively brought back the original version of the MCU’s beloved character revived from the end of Avengers: Endgame, and that’s a good thing. This Loki escaped from his MCU timeline at a much earlier point having absconded with the Tesseract in 2012. However, by the end of episode 2, it is clear that the character the series is following more directly reflects the later iteration.

In a plotline that spanned from Thor to Avengers: Endgame, Loki goes from an almost two-dimensional cartoonish villain to being a more complex and tortured character. While undeniably still in a morally gray area, his motivations become less selfish, he accepts that there is some good in himself, and he develops a closer bond with Thor as he begins to feel more accepted by his Asgardian family. The Loki that escapes in a 2012 time-traveling scene to establish the events of Loki has had almost none of this character development and is still bent on domination of Midgard, however.

Despite the differences between these two versions of Loki, the initial episode quickly rectifies what could have been a problem. Loki gets access to the TVA headquarters’ Time Theater and watches a movie montage that rebuilds the key characterization moments from the whole MCU with particular focus on his relationship with his family and his eventual death at the hands of Thanos. This spins Loki into an existential crisis, provides him with the knowledge that he can change and be a different person, and offers a moment of vulnerability that opens him up to working with Agent Mobius M. Mobius more proactively, allowing both audiences and writers to continue Loki with a version of the character that is effectively indistinguishable from the one who perished in Avengers: Endgame. Killing Loki in Infinity War and replacing him with an earlier iteration posed a risk for the Loki TV series as it could have led to the show spending the limited episodes retreading much of the same ground in trying to redevelop the more nuanced character that audiences had previously grown to love.

Using this shorthand to handwave Loki back to a future version of himself keeps the character interesting. While it is clear that Loki will always be a trickster and value saving himself whenever possible, his emotional responses to his mother’s death (and to a lesser extent his father’s) as well as to learning of the destruction of Asgard demonstrates that the change he shows is real. This means that his motivations can remain unclear throughout Loki, as is common for the character, and leave viewers in the dark as to his true motivations for seeking a meeting with the Time-Keepers or following Lady Loki at the end of episode 2.

A crucial part of this “reviving” of the original Loki is that Mobius shows him not only that he can (and did) change, but that his change would be emotionally validated by his loved ones. This Loki has seen himself as the villain and felt that he will always be the villain in their eyes because of his origin, but the Time Theater shows not only his change but also his acceptance by his parents, Odin and Frigga, and his rival/brother, Thor. Without this emotional setup, the sudden character progression in episode 1 of Loki would be unbelievable. This is particularly highlighted with the interactions with the TVA as he struggles against his past reputation and instincts to play both sides while knowing that he can be something else.