Rent Loki: Series 1 (2021)

Loki: Series 1 (aka River Cruise) review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso

Loki may be one of the more daring Marvel Cinematic Universe TV series, considering how many stakes it raises. It’s a show that takes advantage of a lingering plot threat from Avengers: Endgame. Remember when the imprisoned Loki managed to accidentally acquire the Tesseract and transport it somewhere else? Well, this show answers the question of where the villain ended up after his escape. In this timeline, Loki successfully manages to escape SHIELD's imprisonment, but due to the time-travel tampering, he also becomes a target of an unexpected enemy. The Loki TV series explores the villain’s out-of-place adventure as he is targeted by the timeline police known as the TVA.

In this version, Loki, reprised by Tom Hiddleston, finds himself trying to make a case against the bureaucracy of the TVA. The only employee of this organization who seems to be on his side is Mobius M. Mobius (Owen Wilson). He seems to be on his side as the agent has aspirations that he hopes to realize. With some convincing, Loki and Mobius work together as TVA agents, trying to track down variants of timelines. If a variant is present that deviates from a timeline, it could end up destroying that entire universe. After being convinced to work alongside TVA and witnessing his fate during Avengers: Infinity War, Loki works with Mobius to seek out a rogue variant that skips around timelines. But when Loki discovers this variant is a female version of himself, known as Slyvie (Sophia Di Martino), he suspects something more is happening with the TVA. He soon uncovers a conspiracy within the TVA and how the entire organization is being manipulated by someone higher than the TVA realizes.

This show essentially places Loki's character within a Doctor Who style. It takes many of the events and characters of the MCU and fuses them into a complex tale of destiny and time travel. Loki becomes a far more interesting character within this adventure as he’s humbled by witnessing his death but still committed to stirring up chaos if it means unraveling a conspiracy. His detective work between the likes of Mobius and Sylvie is compelling because both characters have far different goals for determining what matters most in life. Loki’s quest becomes one of finding his meaning for continuing to exist when so many timelines seem like a chaotic mess manipulated by rogue variants or unseen masterminds.

The production design of this show is worth noting more than any other MCU TV show. The TVA is designed like a workplace designed in the 1970s and never updated. Everything from the brown suits to the Fiesta-ware style decorations to the retro cartoon computer program Miss Minutes (Tara Strong) appeals to the dated office environment. Time traversing leads to some incredible sequences where Loki darts between different timelines with Sylvie, trying to solve the mystery of the variants. The storyline is also far more compelling, considering this show doesn’t end with Loki becoming a hero. It ends on a cliffhanger as Loki makes a big revelation about the true controller of the TVA, revealed to be a variant of sorts of Kang (Jonathan Majors).

Loki has some problems with its timey-wimey logic and hanging aspects of character development, but it still hands head over heels for the competition in terms of its ambitions. The second season is questionable, but the first season is a surprisingly exciting dose of attempting to shake up the MCU timeline. Hiddleston’s performance is great, Wilson brings his usual charm, Sophia Di Martino is unique considering her motivation and the presence of much wilder variants played by Richard E. Grant is fun. It’s a show that knows how to play up the cinematic universe most audiences are familiar with while still having fun with the concept of a time-traveling Loki. It’s a far more enjoyable and risk-taking show than past MCU TV series, making it easy to be invested in following for the show’s second season.