The Loki series was a major success for Disney+ in its first year. Although it should not come as a surprise that Loki Laufeyson, a fan favourite, would receive such a positive response from viewers, the program’s excellent first season led to a renewal, making it the first and only Disney+ MCU show to receive a renewal. Kevin Feige introduced Ke Huy Quan to the stage with Tom Hiddleston, Sophia Di Martino, and Owen Wilson at this weekend’s D23 Expo. Following the success of Everything, Everywhere, All at Once, in which he portrayed Waymond Wang, it appears that Quan will once again be venturing into the multiverse. The presentation for Loki Season 2 was brief; it mostly consisted of the announcement of Quan and the revelation that the cast and crew had flown in from London, where they had been filming Season 2 for the last 12 weeks, only to promptly board an aircraft back to London after the panel.
However, it did something that fans have been waiting for a long time to see, unlike prior even shorter announcements (looking at you, Fantastic 4). We tried to take as many notes as we could at the first look, but it was hard to remember everything that happened on screen. It opened with Loki (Hiddleston) stumbling down a corridor at the beginning of the trailer-style segment. He seems to be in the midst of a painful dismemberment. He appears in a series of alternate forms, which are rapidly cut between in rapid succession to the accompaniment of creepy music.
As he begins, “This is going to sound bizarre,” it’s clear he means it. I was dragged through time and witnessed horrible events. His audience’s identity is unknown, but Loki’s statement that the TVA and the universe are “facing complete destruction” makes it very obvious that both are in peril. Although it appears that no one in this universe remembers Loki, Wilson’s Mobius and Loki quickly reunite in the clip. Rather than Sylvie, they have to deal with a more formidable enemy this time (Di Martino). Loki is shown crashing through a wall in the TVA, and below him, Kang’s face is carved in a gold pattern. Then he appears in several incarnations and different times, like the Prohibition era (complete with Mobius) and other eras.
However, the most crucial variation is conspicuously absent from these antics. Sylvie is seen in a more unkempt outfit, sporting over-the-ear headphones and seems sad in a rather standard-looking living room. After slaying He Who Remains, she clearly hasn’t regained her equilibrium quite yet (Jonathan Majors). Our hopes are still high for reconciliation between Loki and Sylvie, but it seems that it hasn’t happened just yet. In one scene, Ke Huy Quan appears dressed as he works for the TVA, and Casey, Eugene Cordero’s former secretary, makes a comeback appearance. Likewise, Gugu Mbatha-character, Raw’s Ravonna Renslayer, is shown in the footage.
The first teaser gives off an eerily sinister vibe. Some early sequences have a stronger horror feel than the rest of the film. As the trailer draws to a close, though, Mobius and Loki have a conversation in which Loki recounts all the individuals who find him unpleasant (spoiler alert: it’s a huge list). Not much else is known about what happens in Season 2 beyond the fact that it opens up just where Season 1 left off, that Loki has returned to the TVA following his breakup with Sylvie, and that neither Mobius nor Hunter B-15 recognise him. “Exploring the eternally expanding and vastly more perilous multiverse,” Tom Hiddleston adds, will have both new and returning characters in peril. Owen Wilson chimes in to say that the season would have recurring moments where characters wonder, “How did I get here?” The only way to know if we ever get those explanations is to wait.
Season 2 of Loki will air in 2023.