It appears that Loki Season 2 cut the God of Mischief's Captain America namedrop from Disney+.
Loki's second season may be Marvel Studios' latest Phase 5 story, but Tom Hiddleston's Loki has been part of the MCU since his debut in 2011's Thor.
Throughout his lengthy tenure, and before becoming somewhat of a hero himself, Loki Odinson crossed paths with the bulk of the MCU's original heroes, a fact he was supposed to mention in Season 2 but apparently was removed.
Loki's Deleted Reference to Chris Evans' Captain America
At the 2022 D23 Expo's Marvel Studios panel, attendees were treated to the first trailer for Loki Season 2 which concluded with Loki referencing Infinity Saga characters, including Chris Evans' Captain America.
However, in true TVA fashion, it now seems the callback was pruned from the season altogether.
In the D23 trailer, Loki explains to Mobius at the TVA automat who once saw him as a "bad guy," proving his point by naming off "Iron Man. Captain America. Hulk," as well as "Phil Coulson" and even "Thanos:"
Loki: “I don’t want you to think I’m the bad guy in all this.”
Mobius: “Who says you were?”
Loki: “Iron Man. Captain America. Hulk. Black Widow. Hawkeye. Phil Coulson. Thanos. Nick Fury. My father. My brother. Miss Minutes. You.”
Mobius: “Hm.”
Loki battled the bulk of these characters in 2012's The Avengers. In addition, Tony Stark and Chris Evans' Captain America time traveling back to this battle in Avengers: Endgame is what led to Loki's Nexus Event in Loki Season 1 and being taken captive by the TVA.
It's also worth noting that Loki has shape-shifted into Evans' Star-Spangled Man more than once, such as in Thor: The Dark World and in Loki Episode 1.
Why Marvel Removed Loki Season 2's Avengers Nod
At the moment, Marvel Studios has yet to explain why this Loki and Mobius exchange was deleted from the show.
Of course, reasons related to episode length or momentum are likely contenders. However, in light of this season's story so far, the scene could've served an important purpose.
First of all, two years have passed since Loki's first season where Loki Odinson underwent a character arc that transformed him from an original MCU villain into a hero.
Loki listing characters who once saw him as a "bad guy" reminds fans of how far he's come as his Season 2 journey unfolds in reportedly "unexpected ways."
In addition, naming heroes like Iron Man and Captain America, who have only been in Marvel movies so far, further connects the Disney+ shows to the films and makes the MCU more cohesive overall.
Hopefully, fans will learn why Marvel pruned this scene from Loki Season 2; and, just maybe, the God of Mischief will have more to say about his MCU past in episodes to come.
New episodes of Loki drop on Thursdays on Disney+.
