For once, fans were right about their theories regarding the man behind the curtain on a Marvel Disney+ show.
Loki and Sylvie went beyond The Void and Alioth on Loki Season 1 Episode 6, only to discover “He Who Remains.” And while we never received verbal confirmation about his true identity, we can infer who he really is.
“For All Time. Always.” was the perfect bridge between the finale of Loki Season 1 and the setup for Loki Season 2, which was confirmed during the credits. The episode was suspenseful, hit all of the emotional beats, and created a world of possibilities for Loki’s future.
Since Loki and Sylvie discovered that the Time Keepers were not real on Loki Season 1 Episode 4, they have been on a mission to discover the truth behind the Time Variance Authority.
That truth finally came at them full force when they were met by Kang the Conquerer at a Citadel at the End of Time.
Sylvie: Well, if you think it’s a bad idea, I’d prefer you to speak your mind.
Loki: No. Nothing to say.
Sylvie: That would be a first.
Fans have been speculating for a couple of weeks now that the famous villain from the comics would be making an early appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It was announced that Kang, played by Jonathan Majors, would play a key role in the upcoming film, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Given this news, it was a shock to see his character introduced on Loki.
But it makes sense if you factor in Kang’s role as a time-traveling entity in the comics.
This is what is so great about the MCU. A television show could set up a movie, and vice versa. A character from one project could cross over into another. It’s all connected.
You almost have to be a diehard fan of this universe for it all to make sense, which could be a negative for some. But for those of us who are truly invested and obsessed, the premiere of each movie and each episode is like Christmas morning.
That’s what this episode felt like. It was a treat for fans, and it paid off tenfold.
Loki: Both of us…together on the Timeline.
Miss Minutes: It’s crazy, but he could make it work. All of it. Everything. Exactly the way you’ve always wanted. And you can have it all, together.
Sylvie: It’s fiction.
Loki: We write our own destiny now.
It was a bit slow at times as we waited for the shoe to drop, but the ending and the reveal of Kang the Conqueror made it all worth it.
After Loki and Sylvie discovered “He Who Remains,” or Kang, he explained to them who he was and how the TVA and the Sacred Timeline came to be.
Props have to be given to Jonathan Majors, who played Kang with such conviction, forcing us to lean in and be engrossed with every line he spoke.
As a new character, he did a whole lot of talking about his backstory, which could have been super boring. Instead, he succeeded in turning the boatload of exposition into an exciting new development in the story.
Loki: He Who Remains.
Sylvie: Not for much longer.
We were on the edges of our seats and holding our breath as Kang told Loki and Sylvie about his past and the Multiversal War between an infinite amount of versions of himself.
The Multiverse has been teased for quite some time now in the MCU, and who would have ever thought that Sylvie would be the one to start it all by killing Kang?
While Loki has come a long way since The Avengers and Loki Season 1 Episode 1, Sylvie still lets her hatred and her feelings of betrayal fuel her.
Sylvie wanted revenge, and she wanted to give people back their free will. Her own mindset blinded her, and she refused to see the bigger picture.
It’s hard to one hundred percent blame her for wanting to kill Kang because the TVA ruined her life. They ruined multiple people’s lives, and she felt that someone had to pay.
But the true villains of stories can change by the hour, and after Kang explained himself, his actions made sense.
Obviously, a Multiversal War is bad, and it needed to end. Maybe there could have been a better way to make sure that it never happened again, but Kang did what he thought was right.
Loki, having grown from his experience and from meeting Mobius and Sylvie, understood that. He knew that he and Sylvie needed to take a step back and analyze what to do next.
Ravonna: If anyone was ever gonna make it back from The Void, I suppose it was gonna be you.
Mobius: Oh, well, you know, one’s man Void is another man’s piece of cake.
But Sylvie did what Loki has done multiple times in the past. She acted on her feelings, and, in turn, she sent the Timeline into chaos and released the evil versions of Kang into the universe.
And, as a result, she betrayed Loki.
Oh, how the tables have turned.
Loki has always been the betrayer, not the betrayed. Now, he knows exactly what it feels like.
It’s hard to imagine that Loki will truly be mad at Sylvie, but there’s no doubt that her actions hurt him. He has fallen very much in love with her.
Sylvie: Why aren’t we seeing this the same way?
Loki: Because you can’t trust…and I can’t be trusted.
She kissed him and then, presumingly, sent him to the TVA in another universe where no one knows who he is and where a version of Kang rules the TVA.
All hell has broken loose, and he is on his own once again. Somehow, Loki has to figure out how to get back to his universe and stop an infinite amount of Kangs from starting another Multiversal War.
Oh, and he also has to make sure that people retain their free will. Who would have ever thought that we would feel this bad for the God of Mischief?
What did you think, Loki Fanatics?
Were you surprised that Kang was behind it all? Is Loki now in another universe? How will he fix everything now that he is a hero? Where did Ravonna go?
And how fantastic was the opening scene with all of the famous lines from previous MCU projects? Did anyone else tear up when they heard, “But what is grief, if not love persevering?”
Let me know in the comments!
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Sarah Little is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.
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