Loki Season 2 is a TRIUMPH 

Victor Timely was there as an example that even Kang variants have free will and can choose to help. That, in turn, convinced Sylvie to rethink her own position and change.

There is not a MCU Fatigue. It's more like an inconsistency in quality during the recent Phases. Gotg Vol. 3 and Loki were great shows but there are a lot pretty mediocre or even bad projects like Secret Invasion or Quantumania

I was pleasantly surprised by how good the ending was. First Marvel finale (imo) that actually stuck the landing.

The scene where Loki realizes what he has to do and ascends to the throne was so visually stunning, but also so powerful! This character is so loved (largely thanks to Tom Hiddleston), and after so many years, watching him find his true purpose while making the ultimate sacrifice was heartbreaking yet beautiful. Masterful acting and writing!

Not sure i agree with your take on timely. While the plot point that he's required to open the blast doors might seem contrived, its actually pretty inconsequential. His presence in the story rather, had a great deal of thematic weight, as he's there essentially to show loki that no-ones path is predetermined. By all accounts he should be predestined to become he-who-remains, yet he proves that he isnt, that he has the capacity to choose. This is exactly the impetus Loki needs to make his own decision regarding the multiverse's fate. One of the core problems loki has had to overcome throughout the course of the show was his capacity to choose his own path, and self-determination therefor becomes one of the core themes of season 2. In this lense timely fits right in among sylvie, mobius, miss minutes and even brad, who all in one way or another, demonstrated their ability (or lack therof) to choose their own destiny.

what I love about loki is that season 1 and 2 both feel like different chapters in the same story, sometimes in some shows or movies, the sequel doesn't feel like it continues the story and is just another one, here however, it all feels very in lyne

Loki Season 2: When creative people actually care.

I want to give honor and respect to the *Script Supervisor* of LOKI! The continuity of the time displacements were perfect! Also, *Victor Timely was absolutely essential for season 2.*

I actually don’t think Renslayer died in the finally. If the theory of her being the one who tamed Aloith alongside Kang is true, it’s possible the smoke monster recognizes her and has some sort of fondness towards her. This is just me spitballing

lets not forget that all that time he "wasted" was actually what enabled him. He can materialize anything with magic. And to understand the mechanics and logic behind the loom after centuries. That gave him the knowledge, the power to create a new path, a new door. He invented a new solution with the "worthless" problem.

13:30 And showing Loki using HIS power, something we haven't seen since ages

Loki is a writing master class as they challenged themselves to recycle characters and use that to push the Oroborus concept into the forefront .

I love how this season actually remembers he is a God and builds upon that notion to make the ending work.

Victory Timely does contribute to the moment where Sylvie realizes she's basically gonna do exactly what the TVA did to here: "you do not know the heart that beats in this chest"

The _details_ in the show blew me away. Like the two conversations in the pie room being about free will and choosing your path, but they're surrounded by just key lime pie; there's no choice. You only get the one option the TVA offers. But they also chose key lime because of the green color. Even the set has layers

I think Johnathan Majors did a amazing job! I know he's under the light right now, but I would really love to see what he could do in kand dynasty

As a big fan of Loki as aa character, since 2012, this show is a blessing. I enjoyed season 1, and was blown away by season 2 - the writing, the editing, the acting... Chef's kiss. It actually gives me hope for the future of the MCU.

Tom Hiddleston is the 🐐🗿🔥💚💯. Loki is officially the Best Character in the MCU. Need more of him and that Thor reunion. I want this broken soul to to be happy man.

This season had a great beginning and a fantastic ending. I think the episode in Chicago was too drawn out though, just a bit too long. Both seasons of Loki are some of the best things Marvel has ever put out. They need to fire everyone involved with secret invasion and the Marvels and get more writers like the ones on Loki and Andor.

I think the quality of the first few episodes could've been improved by focusing on the loyalists plot more. * First, it'd fit very well into the aftermath of season 1; since the TVA is suddenly pivoting from pruning to nurturing the branches, it's natural that there would be internal opposition. * Second, it'd fit well into the dilemma of the season: do you try to find a way to keep the branches alive and risk everything, or play it safe and change nothing. * Third, it would've provided a difficult obstacle for the first half of season 2. What do you all think?

It was a strange feeling to finish a Disney Plus show about a character I already know, and get more and more impressed as the seconds pass away. So refreshing. The whole show drew me in more and more as it progressed, and the finale felt creative and logical.

one thing i will say is that in the comics, rennslayer is an important character in kang’s story, so there’s a good chance they held back on fully fleshing her out because marvel want to save that for the big kang events

What a surprise the first and best (I think?) MCU show reprising for a second season is still the best

i think victor as a character was used as a way to contrast loki and expose loki's growth about dealing with the live's of other people. It showed that loki stopped seeing people as a means to an end.

Victor was absolutely needed to drive the main theme and message of the show. That nazi judge is the extreme version of order and her sub plot shows getting things into a pretty determined manner is very dangerous. The whole show deals with the dillema of order and chaos, authoritarianism vs free will. Victor is really a good man and he can be a brave hero, it doesn't matter what your variants have done or what's destiny.....you're free to make the right choice. There's point of these characters and subplots. Loki S02 should have 8 episodes but still, it's awesome. You didn't get it's main theme.

They really paid attention to the details with the min characters. There are flaws with some of the supporting character motivations, but it's so far in the background, you would really need to pay a hell of a lot of attention for it to influence the viewing experience. The one detail I loved the most is the lack of make up in the final few scenes. They made an effort to show Loki ageing and essentially becoming old Loki from the void.

Victor Timely is important because Sylvie needs to be able to see her in him, what she is doing is exactly what TVA did to her, she was trying to eliminate a problem before it became a problem toward someone that isn't a problem yet. She is taking that choice away from him, and she needs to be able to see that which she did. So in a way, Timely is needed for Sylvie to grow as a person. But this is a Loki series so his growth is more important, but the seed is planted for future growth of Sylvie as a character if they decided to go deeper into it. Timely is also a important character to show that not all Kang Variants are evil, some are just like Timely, a scientist and engineer just trying to learn and explore instead of conquering. Its why its even more fun when HWR made fun of Timely's speech pattern, it shows that there are Evil Kang, and Good scientist Kang out there.

I think its safe to say that this was definitely a breathe of fresh air for a lot of OG MCU fans. Let’s hope this level of story telling becomes the norm again.

The montage of Loki doing the same day over and over again caught me way off guard, bro was literally speed running.

7:19, As a contrast to the newly reformed Loki, Ravonna works quite well, as just like Brad and He Who Remains, she reflects the kind of person Loki used to be and could have stayed as if he hadn’t branched out of his reality and encountered Mobius and the TVA. Ravonna’s goal to restore the TVA and preserve reality aren’t based in belief or loyalty to the TVA, but in greed, vanity and entitlement that she excuses due to her eon’s long dedication to the organization (it’s this ego that had her convincing herself that her absence specifically was what put the TVA in crisis when her actions only obstructed the organization further from solving it), just as Loki hid behind the idea he was born for greatness and deserved compensation for the wrongs his family committed against him (perceived or real) to excuse his crimes. Loki gained the perspective to leave his greed and entitlement behind as he grew to care more about others, but Ravonna’s selfish ambitions led to her defeat, isolation and apparent death. Brad similarly reflects Loki’s vanity in his hunger for attention (or as Tony would put it, a full tilt diva, who wants parades, flowers and a monument built to the sky with his name plastered onto it) and his will to abandon or sacrifice anyone to achieve this, even his apparent mother figure in General Dox (their relationship appears to be a parallel to Loki and Frigga, the latter being indirectly killed by him when he gave directions to Kurse that led him to her). He Who Remains, in another time, would’ve been all Loki would have aspired to be, a trickster with full control over every situation, reality bending to his whim, hoarding the ultimate power in existence all to himself. But as Loki has matured, he now understands how burdensom that kind of power and the path to achieving it can be, as He Who Remains was driven so mad with loneliness and boredom (which he brought upon himself by betraying Ravonna, harkening back to Loki isolating and sabotaging himself with every person he wrongs and betrays), unwilling to share power) that he orchestrated this charade to coerce this Loki variant into complying with his demands to replace him while still preserving only the Sacred Timeline. All the series’s villains are what Loki was and all that Loki as overcome within himself to finally be worthy of genuine godhood, putting those he protects over his desire for happiness and connection. 13:51, Similarly, Victor reflects Loki as he is now, freed from his cycle of ego and his destiny of villainy. He sees what He Who Remains, the man others compare him to or think he will or should become, and is horrified at the results of attaining such a position in the people He Who Remains has harmed and the broken system he so ruthlessly maintained. Ravonna, Miss Minutes and Sylvie are all monsters He Who Remains’ actions created and that he ended up inheriting, with them extending their grudge against the man over to variant despite him having nothing to do with it. His arc is similar to Loki in deciding to be different from He Who Remains with the new perspective he’s been given and try to do something without personal success, reward or ambition in mind (even though he isn’t able to directly solve the issue at hand and it falls on Loki to sacrifice his freedom so that this new multiverse can exist). Both are able to prove with their actions that they aren’t bound by what other versions of them had become or done and can choose to be anyone they wanted, even someone good. Even his fascination with the Hot Cocoa machine that builds off his chair refrigerator design is meant to demonstrate that leaning away from the more malevolent nature of He Who Remains and hammers in the idea that not all Kang variants have to be villainous. 14:30, They already did this with Mobius in Season 1, where he was pruned before the audience knew that pruning only teleported objects to the Void.

Loki season 1 was pretty good until the last couple eps, but the second season is exceptional. Buddy time cops is what I want.

The ending was brilliant perfect and it doesnt only cover Loki but encompass the MCU. Think about it Loki turned the loom into Ygdrassil in the TVA for all time. So it has become reality For All Time Meaning when young Odin studied the Multiverse and teaches it to child Thor and Loki. Odin is teaching them about what Adult Loki created. The entire MCU exists in Ygdrassil branches meaning the MCU happens as Loki wills it. All of his failures his tragedies and sacrifices, everything that happened in the MCU was allowed by Loki.

Loki season 2 is an example that Marvel writers can write good characters if they try. Loki's character development is definitely the best in the whole MCU.

Loki's story is Marvel's Best🥹❤️

It's incredible how Disney overlords have incredible shows like Loki and Andor, and simultaneously allow lackluster shows like Secret Invasion to air. Really weird juxtaposition

Loki S1 was good, Moon knight was better but Loki S2 is the best.

I agree the worst three episodes had me a little worried. But the final 3 episodes totally saved the show as a whole.

I highly d-d-d-isagree ab-about Viv-iv-vi ... Victor Timely. On the Internet people were DEPRESSED after episode 4. Being Mobius or him did the same: the most gruesome death in the MCU. The sounds, the visuals, ... Timely was my 2nd fave character. The flaws are rather about side characters' ultimate destiny. The crusher prisonner scene should have been undone. It served NO PURPOSE at all, since Dox would have definitely joined Hunter B15. Some channels say Renslayer is gonna overcome Alioth, it's weird Timely is credited in the new guidebook when they show the alternate branch from where he came from doesn't exist anymore. Also... Council of Kang?? It should have been exposed to where they were... Instead, there is just no link at allbetween Pharaoh Rama Tut, Immortus, the third dude, The Conqueror and HWR or Timely. These unexplained scenes are really bothering, and stains a so memorable show.

Dude someone hijacked your account with crypto scams.

I guess SD was hacked?

The ending of this show made Loki not only my favorite character of the whole MCU, but also made this show my favorite thing to come out of the whole Multiverse Saga so far.

agree with your takes usually. But for loki season 2, it feels like we didn't watch the same show. I disagreed with everything. It felt stale, boring, plot driven (lume, lume, lume) with almost no character development and events just happening for the sake of having more episodes.

I believe the flying car sequence was an Homage to The Fifth Element, which is a very deep cut because it only makes sense after the finale. Loki, literally the savior of life falls into a flying yellow Taxi the same way Leelo Dallas Multipass falls in the flying yellow cab in Fifth Element, and she is destine dto be the savior of lielfe in the Universe.

One thing I’m confused and couldn’t understand from the show’s explanation was how Loki gain the ability to glitch through time.

I agree with most of your points in this video, I just do want to mention that you say that Mobius should have taken the place of Victor as the one who gets spaghettified, but it’s important to remember that they already “killed off” Mobius in the 4th episode of season 1, so if they did it again in the 4th episode of season 2 it’d kinda get repetitive. That’s probably why they didn’t have Mobius do it, and I think the reason they chose Victor is to show the audience that Victor is able to be different than He Who Remains, by choosing to do a selfless act. It also works for a good subversion when he gets immediately killed, right as he’s proving himself. Anyway, I do still agree with the majority of your criticisms and your praises, but I have to say that despite the first three episodes not being as amazing as the last three, the show is still a personal 10/10.

I actually much preferred Loki season 1 to season 2, thought it flowed a lot better. Apart from the last two episodes, season 2 was actually really boring imo, spending way too much time with uninteresting characters, going through endless exposition which turned out to be pointless anyway. I also still don't get what the point of Victor Timely was, he didn't add anything to the plot imo.

As much as I liked the show, Phase 4 and 5 being mostly garbage makes Loki's sacrifice feel a little pointless.

Can someone just explain why the rest of the MCU can't be like this?

Just finished watching it. It's a masterpiece!

I’m really glad they put the effort into making this show as good as it was. I was starting to feel like an mcu hater because I didn’t like their shows. Glad to know it was just bad writing lol

Loki's arc in this (and the MCU) is a mirror of itself The meeting with HWR is the middle point Being someplace he shouldnt (escaping the avengers), seeking power(to get away from the tva), Submitting to the answer(you can't go back and you die), finding power(getting away meeing female loki, Lemantus ), shocked by the outcome (looking for he who remains), !he who remains! shocked by the outcome (time slipping) ,finding power (controlling Time Slipping), Submitting to the answer ("I can't fix the loom"),seeking power( I will find someone who can), Being someplace he shouldnt (the end of time) This is a rough copy of what i'm thinking.. but it's close.

The one thing I REALLY hated about Season 2 is that it focused solely on one technical problem instead of we were promised in the last season (the Kangs are coming). I wished we just had one Kang appearing (Timely doesn't count, I mean one of the Kang the Conquerors) because this season apparantely forgot that Kang is supposed to be the next big bad.

I genuinely forgot I was watching Loki...at one point I thought.. there hasn't been an action scene...let's hope it stays that way...😅😅

This is why I liked the Vision vs Vision fight in WandaVision. It ends with a ship of Theseus debate.

You can tell the show was changed towards the end. I think it originally meant to have more to do with Miss Minutes and Ren Slayer. Also, Ren Slayer isn't shown actually dying,.

Loki season 2 is what I've been missing from the MCU .

I have issues with this season, not gonna lie. Firstly, though, Tom Hiddleston is spectacular and he is what made this season worth watching. I agree with everything you said about him and his ending wonderful. But I absolutely hate how little Sylvie had do this season. They built up her and Loki’s relationship through a whole season and gave us such a cliffhanger that they never followed up on. They go straight to being this estranged couple and you don’t at all see that Sylvie had any feelings for Loki, which bothers me. It’s a shame because their relationship was built on an aspect of narcissism and that theme is such a perfect fit considering where Loki ends up. Imagine they had made up, admitted they want to be a part of each other’s lives, only for Loki to then realise how selfish that is and that he basically has to kill her to save the universe. Plus their banter was one of my favourite parts of season 1, but that’s somewhat besides the point. And I don’t agree that Sylvie’s small part made sense for the story, either. I think her contribution this season was saying the same thing over and over, while we could have had her way more fleshed out. I think we’re missing important information on what made Sylvie different from other Lokis and I wish they had explored that. They could have skipped most of Victor Timely and had a subplot in which Renslayer and Sylvie are forced to work together to stop Miss Minutes or whatever, and they end up learning about trust and Renslayer could reveal some things about Sylvie’s nexus event. Then they’d both have satisfying archs. Anyway, sorry about the rant, and I get the feeling I’m outnumbered here, but this has really been bugging me.

I really love the Loki finale. Fantastic! I wish we had more like this and less like... well, every other marvel thing coming out lately. I've already watched that final Loki scene several times.

Is it? It was pretty lame and meaningless imo, a lot of it had bland acting, dialogue and story, who needed to see that whole nonsense with timely, who tf cared? Also i hate this version of loki, hes not a trickster anymore and toms acting is stale, he feels like a joke.. this entire story could have been told in one short or film cuz nothing really happens, its just an epilogue to the first season not a second season..

Maaannn, It's been a while since I saw Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THE PARALLELS of both finales.

Groundhog’s Day is one of my favourite films too. Right behind Pulp Friction.

i feel like Loki is classic British writing, like "this is Dr.Who suppossed to be like" or "this conversation feels a lot like something Sherlock would do" in a good way

I was hoping that Renslayer was actually another Kang variant. Then being robbed of power could REALLY get to her and drive her to extreme actions a la “If I can’t have it, no one can!”

Imagine in secret wars Loki theme starts playing in the climax everyone would loose their mind

I hated every scene with Sylvie, that just spoiled the entire season for me.

It's slop for pigs... Welcome to the Disney trough.

I can't be the only one who forgot this show existed.

I really enjoyed the dynamic between HWR and Loki. One is a man and the other is a god, and Loki at first is frustrated that a man is pulling the strings and that he is... just a man. HWR needed a loom for his timeline because he can't figure out how to scale for the infinite and he deliberately only wanted his timeline to exist. Loki doesn't need to figure it out, he is a god. He could literally do it himself using his power. The scene of Loki sitting on HWR's chair after HWR said he makes the tough decisions "that's why I get the big chair", was so powerful. Loki made the toughest decision that HWR couldn't figure out, being able to control the infinite branches without starting an all out war. Without a loom, using only his power. So Loki gets the big chair now. This is a classic example of how man tries to one up a god, by pretending to be one. Something Loki criticized Thanos of in infinity war, because while Thanos is powerful. He still needs some external factor to achieve his goals. It doesn't come from inside himself. Thus the title of a god would be insufficient. Loki is truly a god. Always was. Always will be.

so ur saying i should stick it out im on ep 3 and its so boring to me

I thought that thumbnail said Trump for a second

For the first 4 episodes, I was definitely enjoying it, but wasn't as strong as season 1 in my opinion. But the last 2 episodes made it my favorite MCU season by far. I liked Hawkeye, Wandavision(besides the finale), and Moon Knight, the rest I've seen are meh to bad. Loki just triumphs over all of them

I seriously cannot believe this came out the same week as the Marvels.

that teal and orange though

I'm glad Season 2 really focus on Loki again because Season 1 is more likely focus on Sylvie despite the name of the show is Loki.

There is so much hate watching going on

Fantastic, best ending in the MCU ever....So many emotions.

Loki was always a god of chaos... him presiding over the multiverse now seems intensely fitting, and the journey over the course of this show got him ready for that.

Viktor Timely insists on getting a cup of hot chocolate, something he's never heard of before and it helps endear us to his character even more.

Thankyou ! it's not just me who thought the actor guy arc in that whole episode felt so forced and filler like... but I am not complaining. It was fun :)

I think this season could have been infinitely better if the first episode was just 10 minutes of chaos at the TVA and then the next 3 episodes were spent with Loki dealing with his time slipping, spending time in different time lines.

Falcon and the Winter soldier was pretty good Moon Knight was pretty good wandavision was pretty good Loki season 2 was a masterpiece

I really liked S2, but I feel like they side-lined Sylvie because of all the 'incest' backlash. Narratively it felt like Loki and Sylvie's relationship was not resolved. Even if the writers wanted to kill off the romance (a rare occasion where I think they SHOULDN'T have done that), they could do that with a bit more exploration and in more depth. Otherwise it just felt like she was such an important presence in S1 to only be reduced to almost nothing in S2.

SPOILER. SPOILER. Okay when sylvie straight murders Renslayer in episode 5 I jumped out of my couch and yelled "YES!!!!" Because of all the dicking around up to that point. It was so refreshing to see such a hatable character who has skated by for so long finally get a no nonsense speechless death. And then when loki began going through time I was nervous that he would bring her back to life somehow. And then I became disappointed when she did in fact stay alive AND now she's with the actual Rama-tut Kang. Sounds like an upgrade which I didn't want her to have. But perhaps she's the Gamora of this world and will show up in the avengers movie.

The show sucked. It had a few cool visuals like the reveal of the yggdrasil tree but the story and the pacing was horrendous. Having an idea of a good ending does not make the ending good, the journey to that point was nonsensical garbage with uncreative and repetitive shots.

say it again, say it loud: EVERY 👏WORD👏 IN 👏THIS👏 VIDEO👏 IS 👏A GODDAMN 👏TRUE👏

saying season 1 is better than 2 is all i need to hear to know its not worth watching season 2.

I thoroughly enjoyed this season but felt that episode 3 (Victor Timely's plot) was the weakest. But for me, the production design was an unsung highlight of both seasons. I don't know what you call it, but that Retro-70s-Brown-Futuristic look was right up my alley.

The first few episodes or mostly subplots because for me at least it shows that time is running out and when it gets to the end of the season you realize all of that time that the characters thought they had is actually gone because they spent too much time doing all of this side stuff.

Great but you lack foresight regarding Miss Minutes and Renslayer. It’s like you forgot this show is just one piece of a puzzle . Renslayer is extremely integral to Kangs story . This is only the beginning .

What’s happened is that Phases 4 and 5 have had wildly inconsistent quality, tone and visuals. Pretty much the exact same issues that plagued the DCEU after they fired Zack Snyder.

I completely disagree with your analysis of Renslayer. Her main characteristic is being power hungry and in this season it completely takes over her of course she's not "being rational" humans aren't rational. I think the irony of her being the reason the TVA is falling because of her power hungry desire to take control of it is amazing and I think you missed the point. No hate at all though and if you disagree I completely respect that.

the death of victor timely being swapped to mobius wouldn'tve made a difference... it blows the loom up and destroys TVA so everyone in that shot dies no matter who fails

I gotta say... this show single-handedly made me interested in the MCU again.... After so many failures in writing. If the movies and shows can be anywhere near this level. I'd legit be able to fully forgive them for the past blunders. (Now this is a ME thing, but, I'm worried Loki will die again in a Avengers movie because of like... Dr. Doom's plan to become a God.... They went through the trouble of bringing the poor dude back. Let him keep his glorious purpose....)

Great video essay! I really agree and I think we definitely need to shout out Natalie Holt for the incredible score, especially in the finale. To your point regarding Mobius being the one to die on the catwalk, I think thematically Loki wouldn't have wanted Mobius to keep dying on the catwalk during the Groundhog Day segment, whereas it was easier to dissociate from the repeated gruesome death of Victor.

Remove victor timely would mean a boring story with just nerdy theeories victor timely was jokes

Have to agree. The dialogue scenes, where the characters just talk to each other were the best parts of the show. The action... who cares, it was all about the drama.

lol. this fool thinks they used real sets. its all green screen.

First of all, ive loved loki since season one and season 2 is the best visually ive seen in a long time... that being said, i found sylvie in season 2 frustrating at best... like cmon, you understand everything will end. In the first season, she fought tooth and nail to exist, and by season 2 she seems to be actively try to unexist

one thing that really annoyed me about he who remains is that they hint that He who remains real name was Nathaniel Richards... father of reed. but they seem to have dropped that.

naah... season 1 was good. season 2 was shit all the way thru except for the ending.