Is Latest Loki Twist Really Who MCU Fans Think or Is Marvel Playing Everyone?
Though MCU Phase IV started with WandaVision and The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, it's only with Loki that we are beginning to understand the true repercussions of the events that unfolded in Avengers: Endgame and will be truly exploring the limitless world of time-traveling, variants, different dimensions, and what not. But that doesn't mean that it's free from all the bamboozling Marvel pulled in WandaVision by dropping numerous fake hints about possibilities that never materialized. And that's why we and many MCU fans are having trouble believing the major revelation in Episode 2 about the villainous hooded figure killing TVA agents. Warning: Spoilers below if you're not caught up with the latest episode of Loki yet. In the last part of Loki episode 2, it was revealed that the hooded figure who had been ambushing TVA agents and stealing their time reset charges was none other than Lady Loki (Sophia Di Martino), complete with the horns, the green outfit, and Loki's trademark penchant for annoying people. Though the most shocking aspect of the episode was her setting off the countless reset charges and bombing the Sacred Timeline, the bigger question remains whether she is really who we think she is. She didn't say that she is a female version of Loki- we just assumed because of the similar outfits and the TVA's opinion that she is a Loki variant, and the fact that a promotional spot before the series premiered presented a brief look at Loki's TVA file wherein it was written that the God of Mischief is gender-fluid. Let's answer the second question first. If you made it to Twitter or any of the Reddit discussion threads about Loki's episode 2, you already know the reigning opinion that by introducing Lady Loki, Marvel didn't stand by its promise that Loki is gender-fluid. Well, the answer is a little complicated and is rooted in the response to the first question. If it indeed was Lady Loki, then yes, Loki is gender fluid. The answer rests on the fact that there is only one timeline, the Sacred Timeline. The unstoppable branch timelines have only been created recently as in the past, the Time Variance Authority nipped every branch timeline in its prime and apprehended any variant which cancels out the possibility that some major change was allowed to extend to the point that a female Loki was born. And remember, every branch timeline is an offshoot of the original timeline and a variant Loki is only formed when he does something he is not supposed to do. This only leaves two options, first of which is that this variant Loki took upon the appearance of a woman. The second option comes from the Marvel comics. In the comics, after Asgard is destroyed by Ragnorak and everyone dies, Loki manipulates the situation and chooses to be reborn in the body meant for Lady Sif's rebirth. Marvel has never exactly copied its source material and has always tweaked its elements to best serve its over-arching storyline. There is also the fact that this Lady Loki, let's call her Loki B, seems to possess more powers than the variant Loki, Loki A, the series began with. So maybe, along with Mind Control, Loki B also possesses the power to let his essence inhabit different hosts at will. Maybe when a Loki variant was apprehended by the TVA, he willingly left his body and instead occupied a female host to escape. It's also possible that Marvel has secretly introduced another major villain. But there is also the possibility that she isn't Lady Loki at all but a different villainous character, known as the Enchantress. There have been two characters in the Marvel comics who went by the name of Enchantress. First was Amora, an Asgardian who had magical abilities, especially the power to control someone's mind. Remember that the original Loki didn't possess this power but Lady Loki exhibited this ability in Episode 2. The second character to use the name of Enchantress is a human woman named Sylvie Lushton who was granted magical powers by Loki himself thus causing her to believe that she is an Asgardian. She took on the alter ego name of Amora and her preference for the color green. While she initially tried to join the Young Avengers, her penchant for mischief and inclination towards evil (just like Loki) turned her into an antagonist. Here is why it is deemed possible that the person, actress Sophie Di Martino, Loki Episode 2 introduced as a Loki variant is actually Loki's protg. While the end credits of the episode in the English and Spanish version list the character as "The Variant," in the Castilian Spanish dub she is listed as Sylvie. Then there is the IMDB page of Loki Episode 4 that has listed child actress Cailey Fleming as "Young Sylvie." Again, as mentioned above, no branch timeline would have been allowed to extend enough that a female Loki could take birth, which effectively cancels out the possibility of her having a childhood. This could only work out if Sophie Di Martino is not Lady Loki at all and is actually the Enchantress on the show. #Loki ITS NOT LADY LOKI GUYS... LOOK AT THESE CREDITS FOR THE OTHER LANGUAGE VERSIONS... ITS SYLVIE !!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/lKofSqUIpw  ashelynx (@ashelynx22) June 16, 2021  Many have also pointed out "Lady Loki"'s aversion to the name Loki and how the God of Mischief pondered that this is not how he would treat himself after he was thrown around by the person who is supposedly his variant. But again, we have learned our lesson with WandaVision, where fans came up with a dozen theories about how Wanda isn't the one pulling the strings but in the end, it was confirmed that it was her all along. Maybe Di Martino is Lady Loki and Marvel has only borrowed characteristics like the ability to mind control, the blond hair, and the human name from the Enchantress. After all, this won't be the first time when they have combined traits of two different characters to create a single character. Whether that was Lady Loki or not, we are so not done seeing the different variants of Loki, especially now that the Sacred Timeline has branched off into several different timelines. The latest episode of Loki is currently streaming on the official Disney+ app with new episodes every week on Wednesday.