Loki Season 2 Review (Mid-Season): Tom Hiddleston Leads A Sequel Visually Rich, Strongly Written & Enough To Keep You Hooked Even When Flawed

Cast: Tom Hiddleston, Owen Wilson, Sophia De Martino, Jonathan Majors, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Eugene Cordero, Tara Strong, Ke Huy Quan, and ensemble.

Creator: Michael Waldron.

Director: Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead.

Streaming On: Disney+

Language: English (with subtitles)

Runtime: Four Episodes, Around 50 Minutes Each.

Loki Season 2 Review (Mid-Season) : What’s It About:

The season one ended with Loki realising that it is He Who Remains (a Kang variant) that is actually the father of Time Variance Authority and that it is his evil doings that the workers there have lost their memories and become robots at his service. Now the, season two is about saving the world from He Who Remains as it branches out, and the TVA falls but cannot be allowed to fall.

Loki Season 2 Review (Mid-Season): Script Analysis:

While the world of righteous superheroes showing their superpowers with hammers, arrows, and fists is something that has held is for over a decade and half, we have all rooted for Loki even when he was evil and transitioned it good, only to get back to his arrogant self. He is the God Of Mischief, a man who was destruction and transitioned into stopping destruction at a point. But his mischief lives. So what happens when his conscience tells him to be a hero for a setup that brought him as a criminal? The series dedicated to him is one of the most detailed character analysis to have come out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Yet again led by creator Michael Waldron with his team of writers with Eric Matin also credited for the story this time, who was an intern production assistant on Rick And Morty in 2013, Loki season 2 sticks to its structure of being about one thing at a time. It Literally begins on the frame it ends and takes the story forward from the very last minute of season 1. You can stream both seasons back to back and call it one with 12 episodes. That makes this show stand out from the clutter that is busy restructuring the MCU but also failing continuously. Loki was always a character study more than the stunts and the big schemes of the illustrious hero fighting a massive villain.

The villain is massive but doesn’t have a generic villain-like shadow on this product. He has created the problem, and now Loki and Sylvie, with Morbius, are in the center to solve it, giving them the time to shine. The bravery in Loki 2 is in the fact that the first episode itself feels like the last one, and the climax of it is so wholesome that it sets the bar high for the rest 5 episodes to come. While this indeed shows the confidence makers have in their product, it also sets the bar too high because now a viewer will only expect broad strokes – big moments. But that is not the only thing Loki has to offer.

Loki, while having a nod to the AI trying to penetrate minds, lacks the conversation season 1 tried to have. There was a mention of bureaucracy and how it serves the people in power. It was about the herd mentality, the lack of rights to question the system. He Who Remains literally spoke about all this in the climax of the last season, but season 2 doesn’t take that baton forward till the fourth episode.

Loki Season 2 Review (Mid-Season) : Star Performance:

Tom Hiddleston, at this point, is Loki. It feels like being Tom must be difficult for him because the way he slips into the character and portrays the shades of this sometimes villain always a hero in his head character is insane. This time around, he has some empathy in him, and that is something new to witness. Not going to talk more and spoil the fun.

Owen Wilson and his crooked nose are one of the best parts of this series. He now shares camaraderie with Tom, and that shows on screen. Sophia De Martino, as Sylvie, deserves more attention than she is getting. There has to be a point where we start seeing her as a potential part of the main canon. We cannot yet. Gugu Mbatha-Raw is good at what she gets to do, and so is Eugene Cordero.

Jonathan Majors, as a new Kang Variant (not revealing), is a human with humanness with him. Apart from the Hamming (which feels like he is asked to do, but goes overboard), he manages to be a good addition. But one cannot forget he is an alleged assaulter at this point, and if the claims turn out to be accurate, the studio needs to take a strict step.

Ke Huy Quan is a very cute addition to this bandwagon, and you need to witness how adorable he is yourself.

Loki Season 2 Review (Mid-Season): Direction & Music:

The direction in Loki season 2 grows horizontally. Now they have their main characters in place, and the task for this season is to give them respect and a worthy screen time to bloom. The director duo does a prolific job at that as they do manage to give each character attention and time to breathe on screen. Even Miss Minutes has a hefty role to play. A Kang variant gets an emotional story to tell where he isn’t the villain. The explanation of Time Slipping and travelling is quite interesting this time, though; pay attention.

Marvel Cinematic Universe with Loki is now trying to bounce back to the glory they were enjoying with the OG team. Loki is one of the most underrated, interesting OG characters who finally got the attention he always deserved with this show. Till episode 4, one can see a studio taking a resort under an IP that they know is love. While I still hate the mini-series obsession the studio has, I pray they do not run to reach the climax in the final two episodes like all the recent shows. Secret Invasion, an incredible idea, was wasted in the same race to finale. The CGI, VFX, and music are top-notch, and that goes without saying at this point.

The production design and cinematography, though, is par excellence and has taken the bar even higher than it already was.

Loki Season 2 Review (Mid-Season) : Last Words:

While being a bit flawed, Loki season 2 proves why the audience has invested so much in this anti-hero character. Hope the studio doesn’t mess things up in the final two episodes.

Fore more recommendations, read our Never Have I Ever Season 4 Review here.

Must Read: Secret Invasion Review (Finale): MCU Crash Course On How To Spoil A Supremely Potent Concept With Their Mini-Series Obsession

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