Warning - This article contains spoilers for Episode 4 of Loki.
Marvel Studios delivered some exciting developments with Episode 4 of Loki, providing character progression for Tom Hiddleston and Sophia Di Martino while setting the stage for a dramatic ending. Loki and Sylvie finally got closer to figuring out their end goal, realizing that the Time Variance Authority was a farce before all hell broke loose in the pruning department.
Through their intense situations together on Lamentis and in the TVA headquarters, the two leading anti-heroes have developed an interesting bond, especially since they're different versions of the same being.
As the God of Mischief tries to find himself in an ever-changing universe, who better is there to give him a look in the mirror than someone who's been through similarly traumatic life events?
While details on the relationship between the two are still unclear, the connection is becoming more obvious with each scene that passes. As it turns out, the depth to this was something added to the show thanks to pandemic-induced delays.
THE BOND BETWEEN SYLVIE AND LOKI
Loki director Kate Herron spoke with Marvel Entertainment about Loki's relationship with Sylvie after Episode 4, adding how the pandemic helped the team develop their story even further.
Herron described the whole story behind Loki as "a show about identity," putting the God of Mischief on "a different journey."
While his experiences are "different life experiences" than those that Sylvie has gone through, Herron admitted it was "interesting to dig into" the dynamic between their journeys:
“Who’s a better match for Loki than himself? The whole show is about identity. It's about him, and he is on a very different path, and he is on a different journey. He sees things in Sylvie that he is like, ‘Oh, I've been there. I know what you feel.’ But she's like, ‘Well, I don't feel that way.’ And I think that was the kind of fun thing about it. She is him, but she's not him. They've had such different life experiences. So just from an identity perspective, it was interesting to dig into that.”
With a difficult task ahead of her, Herron was expectedly careful setting up Loki and Sylvie's relationship upon Sylvie's arrival in Episode 2. She explained that it "was just about giving it the space to breathe and digging into it in a way that felt earned" as they got to know each other more.
Herron also touched on the global pandemic, revealing that "there were tonally some things that were coming to the surface" from what had been filmed before their production was shut down. She used this to help expand on the bond between the two, confirming that the team "added or tweaked scripts" to "emphasize" this relationship:
"As we were cutting it together in the studio, everyone was, ‘Oh, this [relationship] is really cool. Let's dig into that more.' When we went back to filming, we added or tweaked scripts basically to [emphasize it].”
A HELPFUL BREAK IN PRODUCTION FOR LOKI
The global pandemic clearly affected nearly every major studio in the business with projects currently in development, which was the case with Marvel Studios. Both WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier had to halt shooting and pick up months later, and both of them were much further along in their efforts than Loki was in March 2020.
Forced into a difficult situation, Marvel clearly took the opportunity to further develop future Phase 4 projects, which was showcased in Loki through the pairing of the God and Goddess of Mischief.
The two Variants both endured a lifetime of harsh conditions through which they had to adapt and evolve, and it's evident that Herron and her team wanted to push those similarities to the forefront. It's unclear what the story was before these unexpected changes, but fans seem to be enjoying what came to fruition.
The first four episodes of Loki are available to stream on Disney+.
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