Loki – Episodes One and Two Review – A Fun and Funky Breath of Fresh MCU Air

Quick thoughts: The first two episodes of Loki are fun, funky and very unique. Tom Hiddleston is clearly having a blast, and it will be fun to see where the other four episodes go

The first two episodes deal with the aftermath of Loki creating a new timeline after using the Tesseract to escape the Avengers in Avengers: Endgame. Loki’s freedom is short-lived, and he is arrested by a space bureaucracy known as the Time Variance Authority (TVA). A sprawling corporation that has time labs, time cops, and time courts that judge whether or not a time traveler should be considered a “Time Variant.” What is the punishment for being a time variant? Well, the person is wiped out of existence, so the sacred timeline can be restored. Since Loki doesn’t want to be wiped from existence, he uses all of his tricks, and some luck, to win over TVA agent Mobius M. Mobius (Owen Wilson – so much fun), a seasoned time agent who hunts down dangerous time criminals, and he recruits Loki to chase down a dangerous criminal who is killing members of the TVA. What follows shouldn’t be spoiled, just know that there’s talk of jet skis, and Loki calls him a “Mischievous Scamp.”

The joy of the first two episodes is watching the joy on Tom Hiddleston’s face as he finally gets to let loose. This is his Thor: Ragnarok, and you can tell he loves letting his hair down and having fun. This isn’t the emo-Loki we were introduced to in Thor (2011), this is the mischievous and fun god of mischief that he was meant to be. His interactions with Mobius, Ravonna Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), Hunter B-15 (Wummi Mosaku) and a TVA office drone (Eugene Cordero) are a blast, and it’s fun watching time bureaucrats deal with the bombastic and untrustworthy Loki (who will definitely stab people in the back). 

The direction by Kate Herron is lively and confident, and Herron seems to enjoy the tiny moments of conversation as much as the fight scenes. The show is refreshingly devoid of CGI-smackem ups, and instead focuses on the verbal wizardry created by writer Michael Waldron (only credited writer so far). Also, the cinematography and production design by Autumn Durald (Teen Spirit, Palo Alto) and Karsa Farahani (Bliss, Thor, Captain Marvel) are top-notch, as they manage to make drab office buildings, and cafeterias look expansive and impressive (they also love the color orange). The shot selection is always visually interesting, and it makes the many conversations seem alive and spirited. 

If you are a fan of WanadaVision, Thor: Ragnarok and movies featuring space corporations, you will love Loki.

Final Thoughts: The first two episodes of Loki make me want to watch more of it. It will be exciting to see how it all plays out.