Loki fans blown away by dramatic episode two twist: ‘I have waited for gender-fluid Loki for years’
Tom Hiddleston as Loki (Disney Plus/Marvel)
Loki literally met his match in episode two of the new Disney Plus series, and fans can’t get enough of the new God of Mischief. Warning: major spoilers ahead!
Episode two of Marvel’s Loki arrived on Disney Plus on Wednesday (16 June), giving viewers a glimpse of how his alter ego has managed to evade the TVA (Time Variance Authority).
Tom Hiddleston’s trickster god was captured by the timeline bureaucrats after his escape in Avengers: Endgame, but he soon learns another version of him is hiding out in apocalypses throughout time.
After teaming up with Mobius (Owen Wilson) to track down the dangerous new variant, Loki finally meets his literal match – but it’s not quite what he expected.
// #LOKI EPISODE 2 SPOILERS!!#LokiWednesdays #LokiSeries
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LADY LOKI HAS ARRIVED pic.twitter.com/d7zlR8bJVI— jessie ✪ LOKI SPOILERS!! (@JEDIODINSON) June 16, 2021
Dubbed Lady Loki by fans, she’s played by English actor Sophia Di Martino, and in a nutshell, she spells doom for Loki and pretty much everything else in creation.
Di Martino’s role had been kept tightly under wraps, but viewers were already speculating after she was spotted on set wearing a costume almost identical to her co-star Tom Hiddleston’s.
Even though this iteration of Loki hasn’t been seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he’s long been canonically gender-fluid and pansexual, both in the comics and in the ancient Norse mythology.
Earlier this month Disney confirmed this would aspect of the character be portrayed in the new series by sharing a tantalising teaser trailer with a dossier listing the god’s sex listed as “FLUID”.
Tom Hiddleston said he was “thrilled” to explore this identity – and when the big reveal finally came, the fans went wild.
HOLY FUCKING SHIT pic.twitter.com/0aLwrCUQkT
— Jerico COMMS OPEN (@Drakko_Jer) June 16, 2021
PLEASE IM FUCKIN SCREAMING I HAVE WAITED FOR GENDER FLUID LOKI FOR YEARS
— alx (@moonlightalx) June 16, 2021
#Loki SPOILER!!!!!!! ⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️
Today Loki broke gender, heteronormativity, and the sacred timeline, be like Loki and be Gay and do crimes.What an Icon really.
— Alice ⁷ ? ? ? (@pwettyVantae) June 16, 2021
Loki chooses genders like we choose underwear in the morning and that’s why we love them
— PRIDE WAS A RIOT AND SHOULD STILL BE ONE (@dude_wolves) June 16, 2021
the gender envy loki gives me oh my god
— cait ☆ (@neondiscs) June 16, 2021
Me after watching #Loki episode 2: pic.twitter.com/93Rlgu5Uho
— Amerah ४ | LOKI ERA (@idkneelforloki) June 16, 2021
The term “Lady Loki” was seen in the Marvel comics, though some gender-fluid viewers feel the term is problematic and offensive.
It gets a bit problematic since they’re still the same person, just a different gender expression, but using the expression ,Lady Loki’ to make it sound like they’re different individuals is kind of genderfluid erasure.
Hope that helped! 🙂
— Lonisuwu (@lonisuwu) June 16, 2021
How Loki’s gender-fluidity will actually be expressed in his character is yet to be seen, but either way, it’s a huge step for gender non-conforming representation on TV.
The next episode is out on Disney Plus on Wednesdays 23 June.
