Loki

I'm not a fan of Loki, or at least I wasn't until he was the villain-pretty boy of the movies, one we were also supposed to root for. But he got the opportunity to do something else in his series and I'm very glad that nobody threw that opportunity away. An interesting script, great production design (I really enjoyed TVA's sci-fi/retro design), a restrained Tom Hiddleston, and especially Owen Wilson, whose casting was a million dollar idea. All in all, I looked forward to each new episode like a new The Mandalorian. If instead of the series they had made a film, it would have been about 18 times better than the second Doctor Strange. (06/02/2023)

I don’t think I’ll be in the minority when I say that Loki is one of my favorite characters in the entire Marvel universe. Tom Hiddleston is largely responsible for that, so I couldn’t miss a series focused solely on him. Over the course of the six episodes, several subplots were developed, and the main story provided a rather complex viewing experience with interesting twists, though it stayed within more familiar and understandable boundaries for me. Tom was great, as expected, and I was pleasantly surprised by Owen Wilson’s performance; it’s clear what a talented actor he is (it would be great to see him in more dramatic roles). Audiovisually, it was a treat, and my positive view of the series was further reinforced by the well-handled relationship between Loki and Sylvie. The final episode set up a crazy scenario, so we’ll see how the creators manage to handle it in the second season. I’m looking forward to it :) For me, it’s 8/10. (22/07/2021)

One of the most anticipated Marvel series is ultimately just average, and for how high Loki's ambitions were, it's pretty weak. Tom Hiddleston is thankfully charismatic enough to steal the series for himself, but the rest is just so... meh. It's like it's miles away from the whole Marvel thing, the whole central theme of timelines and that "evil society" is just so uninteresting, the characters aren't even as interesting as we're used to, the villain is ultimately lame, and not much happens for the whole six episodes. Certainly an important thing for the MCU that every viewer has to want to check out, but I can’t say Loki gave me anything, not really. Impersonal, down to earth and scared to go into anything bigger - either in terms of action or plot. (24/08/2021)

Loki delivers as expected. It’s not groundbreaking, but it does what it set out to do. The only downside is the long wait for both this series and whatever comes next. Given the number of episodes, you’d hope they could shorten that wait time, but it is what it is. The show plays with time and alternate realities, so you can imagine the possibilities are endless. Owen Wilson is a standout as the time agent — his performance is spot on. If you’re a fan of Loki, you’ll be pleased, even if he’s not quite the hero he is in the films. But that’s the charm; you’ll be rooting for him all the way through. (27/08/2021)

Loki, as a story about the search for the line between truth and lies, about ubiquitous deceit, but also about unexpected love, entertained me across its six episodes and kept me pleasantly tense – yet I had hoped for something more from the ending. The third and final episode spoiled my impression of an otherwise brisk, action-packed and funny series that took the MCU in a different and fresh direction with its concept. I enjoyed both the storyline around the workings of the TVA, the Time Keepers, and the relationship level, though it took some getting used to - still, as I mentioned, I found the conclusion punishingly flat after a relatively layered plot. I definitely enjoyed episodes five and four the most. I can't fail to praise the imaginative production design, whether it was TVA or the various planets. Considering that there’s more than one unfinished storyline, I'll definitely welcome a second season and hope for a better ending. (17/07/2021)