December 7, 2023

Episode 4 of Loki season 2 flies by, with essential twists at each flip. The episode ends with a giant cliffhanger that may make you surprise how Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino), Mobius (Owen Wilson), and OB (Ke Huy Quan) will save the day in episodes 5 and 6. However that’s not the one massive growth within the episode.

I’m extra drawn to a giant reveal initially of episode 4, one which Episode 1 teased. Earlier than I clarify, know that massive Loki season 2 spoilers will comply with under. Be sure to catch the brand new episodes on Disney Plus earlier than going ahead with this textual content.

The Loki season 2 episode 4 cliffhanger

Earlier than I get to episode 4’s opening, I’ve to deal with the cliffhanger as a result of it’s the form of cataclysmic occasion that could be essential to the longer term Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars tales.

Our heroes attempt to repair the Temoral Look with Victor Well timed (Jonathan Majors) going out to try to patch the machine that forces all that point vitality into timelines. The loom can’t match the big variety of branches and must be upgraded.

However Well timed turns to spaghetti, much like what we noticed occur to Mr. Improbable (John Krasinski) in Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity. This time, it’s not Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen). The radiation is just too highly effective, and it seems they’d missed their shot. Because of this, all the TVA and loads of timelines could be in peril.

Ke Huy Quan as O.B., Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, and Owen Wilson as Mobius in Loki season 2. Picture supply: Gareth Gatrell/Marvel

Episode 4 ends with what seems to be the upcoming dying of Loki & Co. If this had been to occur, effectively, then the MCU would most likely finish. There wouldn’t be a Sacred Timeline left. Or any timeline. We wouldn’t even get to Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars.

Then once more, I’ll remind you that the actions that occur on the TVA don’t comply with the circulation of time. Everybody on this utopic world exists outdoors the common circulation of time. Due to this fact, the occasions in Loki seasons 1 and a pair of overlap all of the occasions throughout all time.

From that standpoint, episode 4 might occur simply as the primary MCU actuality approaches the Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars occasions.

What I think occurs subsequent, nonetheless, is that Loki will journey in time to repair this downside. Loki season 2 episode 1 already informed us {that a} completely different kind of time journey is feasible as a result of the TVA sits outdoors of the common circulation of time.

The large reveal early within the episode

As thought-provoking because the cliffhanger could be, given what we all know concerning the MCU timeline and the roadmap to Secret Wars, I’m extra occupied with what we see early within the episode.

Mischievous Miss Minutes (Tara Robust) reveals Ravonna Renslayer Gugu Mbatha-Uncooked) her historical past with the He Who Stays Kang model.

In episode 1, Loki hears a recorded speak between Kang, who made the TVA, and Ravonna. It’s the next section that caught my ear:

Ravonna Renslayer, you’re fairly a marvel. I can be proud to guide you. You made a distinction on this battle. Thanks for being on my workforce.

This informed me that Kang had this dialog with Ravonna after they prevailed over the opposite Kangs. After they gained the multiversal wars which can be about to repeat in Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars.

Put otherwise, He Who Stays teased he had a workforce that fought in opposition to the opposite Kangs. This foreshadows the upcoming confrontation between the Avengers and the dangerous Kangs. And I think that one Kang variant will aspect with the Avengers. It could be the Kang we noticed in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. A Kang who may then win with the assistance of the Avengers.

Mobius (Owen Wilson) and Judge Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) in Marvel Studios' Loki.
Mobius (Owen Wilson) and Choose Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Uncooked) in Marvel Studios’ Loki. Picture supply: Marvel Studios

Episode 4 of Loki season 2 additional expands on that dialog. Until Miss Minutes manipulated Ravonna to manage her, we simply realized the reality concerning the Kang-Renslayer relationship.

She was instrumental in his massive win over the opposite Kags by main He Who Stays’ military. Once more, this foreshadows the upcoming conflicts in Kang Dynasty and particularly Secret Wars.

Additionally, Kang might need been in love along with her. But He Who Stays companions with no person. That’s one other massive takeaway from episode 4.

That’s why he enacted Protocol 42 eons in the past to erase the reminiscences of everybody, Ravonna included. Renslayer continued to be instrumental to his TVA success with out figuring out what a key function she performed prior to now.

With all that in thoughts, I’m actually excited to see what the connection between the great Kang and the Avengers can be. You already know, with regards to main the multiversal armies that may defeat the dangerous Kangs, after which preserving the peace.

Yet another factor

Protocol 42 is as merciless as Star Wars’ Order 66, although much less bloody. That was my preliminary response. Nevertheless, I’ll level to 2 direct wonderful implications for the MCU.

Since Kang has the know-how to mass-erase folks’s minds, perhaps he may undo it. This form of tech can be essential for a minimum of two completely different tales. First, there’s Spider-Man (Tom Holland). No person remembers Peter Parker after Physician Unusual (Benedict Cumberbatch) pulled off an enormous memory-altering spell on all the universe.

Secondly, keep in mind the Eternals? They’re robots who basically can’t die. Their reminiscences are wiped with every new mission. They’ll obtain new our bodies if wanted, together with a brand new set of reminiscences.

How and if Kang’s memory-altering powers will influence different MCU tasks is unclear. However Marvel simply gave us one other means for folks to neglect or keep in mind previous occasions.