Loki is currently halfway through its six-episode run on Disney+, and it's safe to say that the narrative is far from over.
Created by Rick and Morty's Michael Waldron and directed by Kate Herron, the time-hopping series follows the story of an alternate version of Tom Hiddleston's God of Mischief from Avengers: Endgame who was apprehended by the Time Variance Authority.
Loki's freedom was cut short due to his crimes against the Sacred Timeline, thus forcing him to work together with the TVA to catch another Variant of himself. Owen Wilson's Mobius M. Mobius recruited the titular trickster for several missions, but the arrival of Sophia Di Martino's Sylvie, the Variant that they were chasing, made things complicated.
After escaping from the clutches of the TVA and fighting off one another, Loki and Sylvie accidentally ended up in an apocalyptic scenario in Lamentis-1 in the third episode. The installment focused on the pair's relationship, with them being forced to work together to escape this deathtrap after their only TemPad was destroyed.
One of the main topics of discussion among fans after the episode was the pair's romantic possibilities. The episode touched on love multiple times and some believe that someone as vain as Loki wouldn't have trouble falling in love with a female version of himself.
So far, the odds are stacked against Loki and Sylvie, and it is expected that more will be revealed in the upcoming episode. While fans wait for the pair's fate, the show's director gave more details about the duo's intriguing dynamic.
LOKI DIRECTOR OPENS UP ABOUT EPISODE 3
Loki director Kate Herron sat down with Thrillist to talk about the big moments of "Lamentis" and the potential romantic dynamic between the titular trickster and Sylvie.
When asked about a potential romance brewing between Loki and Sylvie, Herron pointed out that her focus was "just about it becoming a character story" while saying that the partnership is "not necessarily romantic:"
"For me, it was just about it becoming a character study. Not necessarily romantic, but Loki doesn't have many friends, you know? He builds this friendship with Mobius across the second episode. It was really about crafting out characters that, by the time they get to the city at the end of the show, they're going to work as a team. And they have to have gone on a journey and maybe they'll be friends, we don't know, but at least they are at a point where, 'OK, I've got your back in this moment.'"
The MCU director then took note of using apocalyptic scenarios in the series, revealing more details about the Pompeii and Roxxcart sequences from the second episode while praising Bisha K. Ali, the writer of Episode 3:
"I remember reading in Bisha's writing, you really felt like you were with the characters and I remember that I loved the idea of [feeling] like you were in a real apocalypse for the first time, which sounds silly. When Loki and Mobius are at Pompeii, for example, that's shown through Loki's POV, right? He's joyous and he cracked the case. Pompeii was horrific, but we're seeing it through his perspective and he's in a completely different headspace. Whereas Roxxcart, it's got an element of this cracking the case when we start to peel back a bit and be like, "No, these apocalypses are quite scary."
Herron then shifted into the final scene of Lamentis, pointing out that she really wanted the audience to feel like "they were along for the ride with Sylvie and Loki" as they propel themselves into the ark:
"And I think then, with Lamentis, it was the next step. It was like, 'Actually, this is quite a scary scenario here.' The key for the finale bit was that I wanted the audience to feel like they were along for the ride with Sylvie and Loki as they try and get to the ark. So, that's why I was like, 'We should just have it as this big epic shot.'"
LOKI AND SYLVIE'S NOT-SO ROMANTIC DYNAMIC
Kate Herron's comments about the relationship between Loki and Sylvie should give fans a hint about which direction the series will take the pair in the last batch of episodes. The director's reveal about it being "not necessarily romantic" should dash hopes of a potential pairing in the future, but many would agree that it would be for the best for Loki's upcoming adventures.
Seeing Loki and Sylvie work together in "Lamentis" was definitely a visual treat, and it makes narrative sense for them to team up to survive. The third episode might've veered away from the usual TVA exploits, but it seems that the installment was necessary to cement the relationship of the duo.
After spending most of his time with Chris Hemsworth's Thor throughout the Infinity Saga, Loki was primed to showcase Tom Hiddleston's God of Mischief out of his brother's shadow. So far, the series is doing an excellent job on that front, as evidenced by the character's partnership with both Mobius and Sophia Di Martino's Sylvie.
There's still a lot that has yet to be unexplored about Sylvie, and it seems that Loki will play a major part when those secrets are unveiled in the remaining episodes. The mid-season trailer already confirmed that both of them will be arrested once again by the TVA, and it's reasonable to assume that the bond between them will be even stronger once they team up again to escape the organization.
The first three episodes of Loki are now streaming on Disney+.
