Loki and the Eternal Cycle of Birth, Death and Rebirth
The latest episode of Loki jumps right back into the action, setting up the end or rebirth of the TVA.
In the recent episodes of Loki, Ouroboros sounded the alarm bells at the Time Variance Authority. He foresaw a looming danger. As more and more diverging timelines broke away from the Sacred Timeline, creating unique histories, the Temporal Loom couldn’t keep up. “We’re all gonna die!” O.B. exclaimed, hoping someone would take heed. In this fourth episode, I was anxious to see how it would all shake out. Spoilers ahead if you’re not caught up yet.
Delving Into the Hidden History of the TVA
Even with Victor Timely stepping in as an unexpected savior, they couldn’t mend the Temporal Loom in time. That leads to the enthralling twist episode 4, “Heart of the TVA,” leaves us with.
Along the way to that desperately frantic ending, we learn new secrets, conspiracies, and betrayals dating back to the beginning of the Time Variance Authority. Miss Minutes shocks us all and drops a major bombshell on Ravonna at the Citadel at the End of Time.
Apparently, there’s a forgotten chapter in Ravonna’s past. As Miss Minutes projects a mini-hologram, it feels like Ravonna is peeking into a memory, watching scenes from another person’s life. The views into mischief being done across various timelines take an even darker turn.
Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2023 MARVEL.
We see and hear the conversation Ravonna had with He Who Remains, a part of which Loki eavesdropped on during his “Ouroboros” episode escapades. We see He Who Remains showering gratitude on Ravonna for her leadership throughout the Multiversal War. He’s all praises and promises, expressing how proud he’d be to co-lead with her.
Ravonna, equally optimistic, foresees herself steering the TVA towards a golden era of harmony. But, little does she know, He Who Remains has other, more private thoughts.
As soon as she departs the Citadel, He Who Remains orchestrates a collective memory wipe across the TVA board, including Ravonna, giving him an unhindered canvas to remodel the TVA to his whims.
Ravonna and Miss Minutes Pair Up to Wreak Havoc
After learning of the past treachery, Ravonna allies with Miss Minutes. The two are eager to take back the TVA as their own. With the newly revamped TVA stumbling at every step (and Sylvie’s baffling decision to leave her TemPad with Ravonna in the ‘1893’ episode), they’re able to just waltz into the TVA nerve center, causing chaos galore.
They find General Dox and her loyalists in a holding cell, which they can somehow just open a Time Door into. That bit bothered me since allowing Time Doors to work inside cells used for interrogating Variants seems like a bad idea.
Photo by Gareth Gatrell. © 2023 MARVEL.
Nevertheless, the two antagonists can get into the room with Vox and her Minutemen unnoticed. They try to win them over, but most refuse to bite the bait. The exception? The double-crossing X-5. With no other choice, the rogue pair employs the TVA’s torture device, annihilating the dissidents.
My thoughts on the series speaking out against the dangers of AI came up again. You can see it on the animated anthropomorphic clock’s face as Miss Minutes displays an alarming amount of pleasure from the torture and murder. The AI construct, clearly too sentient and knowledgeable for anybody’s good, absolutely rejoices over the death of Dox’s squad.
Trying to Repair the Temporal Loom
Victor Timely, meanwhile, proves that he might really be a wholly different person from his other multiverse version, He Who Remains.
Brought to the TVA to mend the Loom, Timely reveals unexpected layers to his character. Sharing insights with O.B., a match in intellect, he revels in the mutual admiration – with O.B.’s work echoing Timely’s studies while also inspiring them.
A hint of compassion surfaces when Timely offers D-90 a mug of comforting cocoa, bringing a flicker of happiness to the otherwise impassive hunter, right before his untimely pruning. And in a testament to his mettle, Timely sets aside pride, collaborates, and risks it all for the TVA’s survival.
In payment, Timely gets completely spaghettified and presumably ripped from the timeline completely. The temporal radiation surrounding the Loom was simply too much. Whereas Mobius was able to be near the Loom for several minutes, Timely had no more than stepped past the blast doors when he unraveled.
After Timely’s spaghettification, the Temporal Loom seems to implode and then burst forth, emitting an intense radiance that swallows everything nearby. Loki and his team are powerless, merely spectators to the impending annihilation.
As this radiant force overtakes them, the intense soundtrack takes an abrupt halt, leaving viewers in pitch darkness for a brief moment before the episode’s credits roll. Just as O.B. had foreseen, the fragile Loom spelled doom for all.
Ouroborus Looks to be the Solution to Everything
The dazzling illumination engulfing Loki and his crew is eerily reminiscent of what one might witness during pruning. There’s a good chance the next episode will feature the TVA gang flung out of their timeline to the Void.
Ravonna met her fate by pruning in the “Heart of the TVA,” so a revisit to the Void doesn’t seem far-fetched. If they do wind up in the Void, and there’s no TVA to circle back to, what’s next? That’s the real kicker.
This season pivots around the mesmerizing concept of the Ouroboros. It’s not just Ke Huy Quan’s character’s moniker or the title of the inaugural episode. The Ouroboros symbolizes a ceaseless cycle of existence, decay, and resurgence.
Photo by Gareth Gatrell. © 2023 MARVEL.
The series has played beautifully with these juxtaposed scenarios, whether it was Loki pruning a version of himself lost in time or the intriguing time-spanning exchanges between Timely and O.B.
These, we learned, laid the groundwork for the TVA guidebook. O.B., in a moment of realization during “Heart of the TVA,” voices the use of mythological symbolism. He likens it all to the cyclical act of a serpent consuming its own tail.
He Who Remains was certain his demise wouldn’t script the final chapter. If the TVA is truly reduced to ashes, then perhaps Loki is set to unveil its phoenix moment. Or, maybe, it will delve deeper into a multiverse emancipated from the shackles of a Sacred Timeline.
Sylvie may have achieved her dream of toppling the TVA. But here’s the twist: at the same time, she may have unwittingly brought down everything and everyone else. With the clock ticking down to the season’s conclusion in the next two episodes, I can’t wait to see how it all shakes out.
Eagerly Awaiting the Rest of the Story
How do you think Loki will resolve things? Join me in our forums to talk about what’s happened and theorize about what’s coming next.
Loki streams Thursdays exclusively on Disney+. And if you want to get more, check out the Disney+ bundle, which includes ESPN+ and Hulu.
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