Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: MCU

  • Marvel Studios is at a Crossroads

    Marvel Studios is at a Crossroads

    Marvel Studios’ has faced its worst opening weekend with The Marvels. Is it a simple discussion surrounding superhero or Marvel fatigue? Going by just how varied the discussions are online, it’s very likely not as simple as anyone wants it to be. One could discuss the impact of the last few years, a rough 2023 box office for blockbusters, the SAG as well as WGA strikes, and many more factors. So, there might simply not be a singular reason and just a lot of elements coming together.

    Of course, these kinds of numbers establish the expected “end” of Marvel Studios’ discussion online. Articles have dropped announcing that the films are no longer events which is why no one is watching them. Certain subsections proclaim the end of Marvel due to “wokeness” and whatever personal reason one has when leaving the franchise behind as “it should’ve ended with Endgame” echoes throughout the dark corners of the web. For years, the discussion was that superhero movies would go the way of the Western and if that point has been reached, we’ll likely see a very different Marvel Studios moving forward.

    As such, it seems like the perfect time to discuss what exactly the future might hold for Marvel Studios and likely the results that’ll come from this blow at the box office. We have no insight into what Marvel Studios will truly do moving forward but there are already some minor hints that may tease what the future has in store and what we can expect from the studio that reinvented blockbusters for over 15 years. We’re at a crossroads and potentially the beginning of a new era moving forward.

    First Signs Exist in 2023

    Bob Iger returned as the CEO of Disney, which saw Bob Chapek try his best to figure out what exactly they would be doing during a pandemic. He carried over the Disney+ goals that were started by his predecessor only to buckle under the weight and get replaced. Yet, Iger’s run since hasn’t been something one would describe as a “return to form” but he has pointed out that a reduction of releases is something they are definitely going to review the future.

    At the time the pandemic hit, we were leaning into a huge increase in how much we were making. And I’ve always felt that quantity can be actually a negative when it comes to quality, and I think that’s exactly what happened. We lost some focus.

    Bob Iger

    2023 was still a big push from all studios to make bank after a rough pandemic, but it has led to many films fizzling out. As much as we want to point to Barbenheimer and Super Mario Bros. Movie as a showcase of how strong the year was: it simply wasn’t. Many films have bloated budgets due to filming during COVID and subsequently were never going to truly make their money back outside of some massive numbers. Prices are on the rise and with a cost of living crisis affecting people’s decisions, it becomes clear that people are far more selective than they’ve ever been (a reason it’s not as simple as just fatigue).

    One thing is clear though: we’ll see fewer releases moving forward. We already saw the reduction of output in 2023 with only two Disney+ series hitting the streaming service with quite a bit of time between each release; even if Secret Invasion didn’t quite help matters. The Marvels was pushed from July to November, which ended up hurting it due to the actor’s strike heavily hampering its promotion build-up. So, we’re already in the middle of a transition phase for the studio.

    New Disney+ Strategy

    Actually, there is one new highlight I ended up leaving out and that is Marvel Spotlight. Out of nowhere, Marvel Studios unveiled an entirely new banner just for their “grounded” stories that aren’t necessary for the major storyline being told throughout the phases. It was a strategic move that definitely left some ripples alongside a strong first impression with Echo’s trailer. Ever since there’s been a bit more positivity in the air that was definitely needed for the franchise that has been. Of course, outlets were still ready to say it’s too late or won’t fix any of the issues it’s facing. Head of Streaming, Brad Winderbaum, shared the inspiration for this new brand:

    Marvel Spotlight gives us a platform to bring more grounded, character-driven stories to the screen, and in the case of Echo, focusing on street-level stakes over larger MCU continuity. Just like comics fans didn’t need to read Avengers or Fantastic Four to enjoy a Ghost Rider Spotlight comic.

    Brad Winderbaum

    It’s unclear if this might just become the de facto banner for the Disney+ shows and the way it is being described is to ease viewers into it. The fact of the matter is: there’s a lot of debate about Disney+ and the film’s connections potentially muddling viewership a bit, especially with The Marvels that technically ties into multiple stories. While many have been quick to point out that every Marvel film quickly introduces elements from these shows and doesn’t require audiences to do the homework they complain about online, it’s a clever way to just visually create a distinction and ease audiences in.

    Still, one thing that the Disney+ shows should do is focus primarily on becoming the venue of exploring either side stories from movie characters or simply setting up its own subset within the grander universe. In a way, they could take the Defenders approach from Netflix and simply have its own little build-up with various characters that can bleed into Avengers releases that tie the entire Phase together. Small references here or there could ease viewers in but not lead to discussions of: “why is Ms. Marvel headlining a movie, does it mean I need to watch her show to know who she is?”

    Daredevil and Echo could become the grounded, street-level heroes on Disney+ that are visually and much more distinct from what they do with the movies. That would also help make the films stand out more, as these shows are no longer just as bombastic and expensive as their main counterparts. Agents of SHIELD worked as a complementary series that looked like it was part of the universe but distinctively is a TV series.

    New Cinematic Strategy

    2024 will only give us Deadpool 3 and that likely is mainly due to the writer’s strike but also potentially a deliberate choice to restructure next year. The only question is if they will stick with their 2025 schedule, which now includes three releases as is the usual norm for the studio. Yet, we might see them move away from that once they start reshuffling moving forward.

    The biggest problem that plagues these films is the production costs that have ballooned since COVID. The Marvels marks the final production that occurred during that time with everything heading our way in the coming years once again being under somewhat normal production rules for the studio moving forward. Though the SAG and WGA strikes are definitely going to show their thorns with Captain America: Brave New World which is getting extensive reshoots and Deadpool 3.

    Still, it would seem wise to perhaps pull back a bit going into 2025. Once again rolling out three films and who knows how many Disney+ series might just set them right back to where they are currently. Perhaps going back to the days of two releases a year to slowly build up momentum again might be the best way forward.

    Hell, if they do it right they could have one major event release per year with a bigger budget behind it, something we might see with Captain America 4, and then try to focus on a smaller project in that same year which can make back its money with even a softer release. Blade is rumored to have a $100M production budget and would perfectly fit that very bill. Once things “normalize” we might see the old MCU budgets back in action, as the current ones are definitely not intended. That way they can build up relevance and still given minor characters a spotlight even if they carry a bigger box office risk.

    No Single Solution

    Even making these examples and ideas of how Marvel Studios could move forward; mostly based on what signs are already there; there’s no true single solution to it all. Every franchise will eventually end up in a slump and the box office developments between The Marvels and previous projects are still showcasing a distinction. The current slump may remain an anomaly due to multiple factors affecting its release and the question will be if Deadpool 3 can draw in a crowd given where Marvel stands.

    Going into 2024, I wouldn’t expect many more releases outside of Echo and perhaps one more Disney+ series. There’s a chance the binge model works for them so they do make use of it to avoid the series occupying too much time and potentially not leading to the consensus of overwhelming audiences. Yet, this year has proven that they can have a massive success like Loki’s second season and a mild reception like Secret Invasion.

    The clear thing is: that once they show more consistency moving forward for audiences as they build toward Avengers: Secret Wars, we might see audiences once again return to theaters to not miss out on the latest Marvel movie. The studio is at a crossroads rather than an immediate stop. Whatever happens, moving forward depends on how they react to this current status and how they decide to build upon it moving forward.

    Source: The Verge, CNBC, Deadline, Variety, ComicBookMovies.com

  • RUMOR: Marvel Studios “Likely Moving Away” from Original Kang Storyline

    RUMOR: Marvel Studios “Likely Moving Away” from Original Kang Storyline

    There’s been much debate online over the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Many have already called it the end of an era after their first film in a while had a lower opening than even their 2008 release, but that doesn’t mean the production company is just going to sit around. The biggest challenge was that Jonathan Majors‘ Kang the Conqueror was going to be the main focus of the Multiverse Saga but as it turns out, they may be heading in a new direction.

    Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania writer Jeff Loveness is seemingly no longer involved with the first Avengers film, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. A podcast episode of The Ringer’s House of R features writer Joanna Robinson who made the recent MCU book exploring the inner makings that made the studio what it is today. In it, she seemingly hints that Marvel Studios might be moving away from its original plans.

    As this hasn’t been officially confirmed, it’s something we should take with a grain of salt but Loki definitely kept it open how they decide to move forward. They still have many options in how they tackle the entire storyline moving forward and there’s also a chance that they simply retitle the first Avengers film, or perhaps just jump straight into Secret Wars‘ storyline. They could turn whatever happened to the multiverse into a mystery film as these characters try to unravel what happened to their reality.

    Source: Spotify

  • ‘The Marvels’ Debuts With Disappointing $110M Worldwide

    ‘The Marvels’ Debuts With Disappointing $110M Worldwide

    The Marvels is off to a slower start across all markets as the film has pulled in $63.3M internationally and a disappointing $47M domestically. That puts the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe outing at a total opening weekend of $110.3M, which marks the lowest the franchise has ever faced. Sadly, the film hasn’t had any momentum throughout the weekend and ended up on the lower end of Saturday’s estimates, but it hasn’t crashed as hard as some expected going in with the Thursday preview numbers.

    Still, it’s a far cry from the $70M predicted a few weeks ago and initially set for around $80M worldwide. So, we didn’t quite make the jump to the $140M. The social scores seem quite decent but the lack of urgency to check out the movie in theaters is hurting it. That B CinemaScore is not helping matters and it seems the film might fizzle out around the same The Flash did earlier in the year; though that had the promotion from its cast marking this a very different situation.

    Variety states that audiences “flat-out rejected” the film but don’t back it up on why this is a fact. However, the problem remains with its $220M budget and $100M marketing costs (likely cheaper given they didn’t have to organize a lot for the cast involved). Though Variety also seems to have a bone to pick with the studio ever since they dropped that debunked article. Though as CNBC points out there’s hope that legs could still carry the film closer to breaking even with the Thanksgiving holidays don’t he horizon.

    Despite posting the lowest domestic debut for the MCU, ‘The Marvels’ proved once again the importance of the international marketplace for the Marvel brand. The film will now rely on Thanksgiving holiday corridor moviegoing to help move the big budget superhero film closer to profitability and help to determine the film’s ultimate success at the box office.

    Paul Dergarabedian, Senior Media Analyst (Comscore)

    One thing is clear: there’s a lot of debate online on what exactly happened here. While it got the usual lower CinemaScore, online chatter has been on the uprise since the film was released in theaters. The fact that they had a last-minute debut for Brie Larson on a talk show the day after release isn’t going to randomly sway things even if some are pointing to “promotion taking place anyway.” There’s also the discussion of “being good” not being enough for a film to do well at the box office nowadays as they have become more selective.

    Some are pointing to Oppenheimer and Barbie taking place during the strikes and making bank, but those films were released on July 21st and the SAG AFTRA strike started on July 14th. So, they technically had all the momentum already built up going into the release, and isn’t a fair comparison given that the actors were only able to start after it was in cinemas. Just odd to see that comparison as momentum was definitely carried into the film once it was made available.

    There’s also the streaming factor that has plagued Marvel releases since Disney trained audiences they can always wait 45 days before checking it out if it’s not a “must-see” event similar to Barbenheimer or Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. There has been a slow pushback on it but it’ll take time to allow audiences to adapt to this new normal once again. Something highlighted by Five Nights at Freddy’s continuing to just drop as fast it can at the box office with another 53% drop domestically, but it still managed to pass the $250M mark internationally.

    One thing that also stands out is that the box office is in such a state that even with such a disappointing opening for Marvel’s standards it remains at the top spot given how low others are performing. As mentioned in the last analysis, the “bomb” that was Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania also remains the tenth highest-grossing film of the year. It’ll likely be analyzed for many years to come and the big question is what is Marvel’s future once 2024 rolls around.

    CNBC’s article shares a curious statement from Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com, that highlights that as much as this snag will hurt Marvel Studios: it may be just the changing point from everything it had to endure moving forward:

    If any IP has the depth and capability to do that, it’s Marvel under the leadership of Kevin Feige and his teams. This is certainly a crossroads moment from a creative and business standpoint. Perhaps the relative slowdown in Marvel content next year will provide a healthy and necessary buffer for the studio, for Disney, and for audiences.

    Shawn Robbins

    Source: Deadline, Variety

  • ‘The Marvels’ Heading for MCU’s Worst Opening Weekend

    It’s been an uphill battle for the MCU throughout the last few years. Negative consent has started arousing a certain perception throughout 2023 which has been quite damaging overall with only a few releases making bank and the blockbuster releases burning up before they even got a chance. Continuing that trend is Marvel Studios’ latest The Marvels.

    The film has pulled in $21.5M on its Friday and is likely heading to a weekend gross of $47M to $52M. With a B CinemaScore, it likely is looking at a below $50M. That is slightly higher than the lowest estimate from Box Office Pro, which was at around $45M but there are a lot of different factors at play here (some even believed it would be as low as $35M as the tracking on this film was quite chaotic in the last few weeks).

    Deadline makes a strong case that this isn’t really the fatigue discussion, as people will watch a film they believe is going to be great; Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania still had a grand opening all things considered but lost its legs quickly but it remains in the Top 10 for 2023 (which says a lot about the year). And there’s the entire discussion surrounding Disney’s strong pre-pandemic push to promote its streaming service by milking its cash cow as dry as it could. The pandemic certainly didn’t help.

    In addition, this release isn’t like Captain Marvel which dropped between two of the biggest Avengers releases of the years. I do believe that the assessment of Killers of the Flower Moon’s low box office shouldn’t still be assessed if $200M is truly worth to “advertise” a film on a streaming service while making an additional buck, especially given any MCU film also benefited from a strong streaming surge once available. So, the discussion in those comparisons can be twisted however one would want depending on the result one is looking for, as what is or isn’t successful on streaming is still the biggest question mark in the industry.

    It’s a shame though to see the film open this low given the fun it provides. Most are pointing to a weak word-of-mouth with the B rating but one could wonder if Five Nights at Freddy’s A- rating is also bloated by fans making sure they check out the first installment that had a very impressive $80M opening but quickly floundered the week after. Plus, that film unlike The Marvels didn’t really require much promotion from its cast given it’s a first-time adaptation of a very young audience.

    There’s also the depressing aspect of the current climate that the film releases. Brie Larson and the “Captain Marvel” brand has been hounded ever since that film released and was the butt of many people’s jokes online. So, a negative reception existed, and with a seemingly lack of advertising push in its key demographics but didn’t go out of its way to reach the other side to attract the actual core demographic of this film. Though, the anti-Disney and anti-Marvel sentiment throughout the year also definitely is showing its fangs.

    Is it the end of Marvel? Probably not as next year’s release schedule has been drastically cut down and likely something that was going to happen eventually anyway. One thing is for sure: Marvel Studios is going to be looking internally to restructure their approach which already started with Marvel Spotlight to create a bigger distinction between releases (or more likely their Disney+ outings).

    What is a bit bizarre is the current “downward trend” some are pointing out like Variety, who released an article that actually got debunked by quite a few in the past few weeks but also highlights the way MCU is being discussed. The only “soft” spot it had was during the pandemic when it made more money than most releases and this is the first below $100M opening in a long time for the brand. The bigger question is this going to be a one-time low before a swing back up or just the baseline for future entries needing lower budgets.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter, Box Office Pro, Deadline, The Numbers, Variety

  • REVIEW: ‘Loki’ Season 2 Finale

    REVIEW: ‘Loki’ Season 2 Finale

    The reinvention of the God of Lies is complete. With a thrilling and satisfying finale to the second season of Loki, Tom Hiddleston has roundly addressed critics’ concerns (including my own) about how much could possibly have been left in the tank for a character who had already done so much. Hiddleston’s dedication to the character, a fantastic creative team that was fully dedicated to some ridiculous sci-fi concepts and held fast to their vision and a deep cast combined to provide 12 incredible episodes of streaming television including an astounding season (and likely series) finale.

    Though it won’t be the last time we see Loki, “Glorious Purpose” was a wonderfully fitting bookend to the entire series (you’ll recall that the first episode of the series was also entitled “Glorious Purpose”). Loki’s journey into mystery led him right back to where Season 1 ended and put him face to face once again with He Who Remains who, sort of unsurprisingly, revealed that every step of said journey–including his own “death” and all the crazy bits that went on in Season 2–where engineered by him. Having spent centuries trying to save every reality and totally recreating himself along the way, Loki’s refusal to take He Who Remains final offer as an answer leads him to make a choice that nobody, including himself, could have ever predicted. No longer the conqueror or mischief maker, Loki reanimates the dead branches of reality and sets himself about the endless task of giving life to others at the expense of his own freedom. Free will outside of the boundaries set by He Who Remains.

    (L-R): Owen Wilson as Mobius, Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Eugene Cordero as Casey, Sophia Di Martino as Sylvie, Ke Huy Quan as O.B., and Tom Hiddleston as Loki in Marvel Studios’ LOKI, Season 2, exclusively on Disney+. Photo by Gareth Gatrell. © 2023 MARVEL.

    As a finale to a season and the series, the episode lands because it ties up so many of the series’ threads nearly as neatly as Loki ties together the branched timelines. Loki is the MCU’s longest experiment with longform narration to date and it’s a tall task for any writing room to keep everything together over the course of nearly 12 hours of a series. Thankfully despite series creator Michael Waldron moving on, the studio maintained continuity by handing the keys to the show to one of Season 1’s most key contributors, Eric Martin. Resultant of that, Season 2 picked up where Season 1 left off, took the audience on a wild romp and then dropped them right back off in a familiar place with the main character in a familiar predicament.

    For as complicated as the sci-fi weirdness of the show seemed to be, in the end, Loki remained a fairly straightforward character study of one of the MCU’s greatest characters. And powered by one of the MCU’s greatest talents in Hiddleston, Loki became the warm light for all mankind to share. In that regard, Loki was more than just a series that maintained continuity over 12 episodes; it was a reverential ode to every beat that has made the character so popular since he first appeared in 2011’s Thor. In just about every way, Loki is the MCU’s “Breaking Good” full of all the things that make stories great. Perhaps, in his big chair at the end of time, this was a story written by the God of Stories himself.

  • New Synopsis for ‘The Marvels’ Promises Multiversal Madness

    New Synopsis for ‘The Marvels’ Promises Multiversal Madness

    Down to days before the release of The Marvels, Marvel Studios has made some significant changes in its marketing approach. Facing a disappointing opening weekend at the box office, the studio released a new trailer full of scenes ripped from the film’s third act (something they have typically avoided over the years) that play up the film’s multiversal stakes. Now, a new synopsis further teases the problems caused by the tear in space.

    In Marvel Studios’ “The Marvels,” Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol’s estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau. Together, this unlikely trio must team up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as “The Marvels.”

    As seen in the trailer, Monica Rambeau is tasked with investigating and repairing the wormhole created by Zawe Ashton’s Dar-Benn. Given what awaits on the other side of that tear, it’s shocking that the studio featured it in the latest trailer (they’ve also already shown what’s over there as well). While all signs point to The Marvels winding up as a box office disappointment for the studios, first reactions will hit social media later today so maybe some positive last-minute word of mouth can help boost the opening weekend take.

  • Matt Shakman Expects ‘Fantastic Four’ to Film Next Spring, Calls It “Unlike Anything at Marvel”

    Matt Shakman Expects ‘Fantastic Four’ to Film Next Spring, Calls It “Unlike Anything at Marvel”

    The WGA and SAG strikes shut down Hollywood for several months and in the absence of genuine news, a deluge of liquified bullshit ran wild. Marvel Studios long-gestating Fantastic Four was the subject of many such rumors, including one that indicated director Matt Shakman had departed the project. It looks as though that rumor–like many of the other rumors that have made the rounds since July–has been dispelled as Shakman provided an encouraging update on the project in an interview with Collider.

    From the sounds of the interview, it seems unlikely that there was ever any chance of Shakman bailing on Fantastic Four. “Absolutely having a great time,” said Shakman when asked how his work on Marvel Studios First Family project was going. “It’s a dream of mine to be able to work on that. I’ve loved those characters since I was little. It’s such an awesome world to be in,” he explained. “The script is awesome, the characters are brilliant. I’m super excited. I’m obviously very happy now that the writers’ strike has resolved in such a good way, and we’re able to reunite with Josh Friedman, our amazing screenwriter. I’m really hoping for a fair and equitable resolution to the actors’ strike soon, too. Keeping our fingers crossed. But we’re going! We’re a snowball heading downhill. It’s awesome. It’s got a lot of momentum. It’s really fun.“

    After updating the post-WGA status of the script, Shakman revealed that the project will be ready to go in front of cameras in 2024, “probably in the spring” at Pinewood Studios in London. The director also explained that the film should be able to make its projected start date because while the WGA and SAG strikes were ongoing, work continued with visual effects and production design crews to build the right mix for the world that the Fantastic Four will inhabit.

    We have been nonstop. Despite the strikes, yes, we’ve been working with the effects and with production design and building our world, and that’s been incredibly exciting. You know, how do you translate those skills into live-action in dynamic ways? Because some things that work beautifully in John Byrne and Jack Kirby are a little tougher when you’re filming them. How do you make sure that things are exciting but also grounded in a scientific thing, which is also part of the Fantastic Four that I love? There’s some stuff I’m super excited about. I can’t say too much, you know?

    Matt Shakman on the world building of his Fantastic Four film

    While Shakman couldn’t give any updates on casting, he was pleased to heap more praise on the new script. “It’s different in so many ways,” Shakman said of Friedman’s rewrite. “I wish I could be specific. I wish I could say more. But we are doing things very differently from a story standpoint, from an approach to the filmmaking standpoint, that really fits the material. I wish I could say more. I would love to, but I can’t. But I think it’s going to be unlike anything you’ve seen before, and certainly unlike anything at Marvel that you’ve seen before.” Given the importance of this project not only to the Multiverse Saga but the continued health of the MCU, setting it apart not only from previous big-screen iterations of the team but other teams already in place is perhaps the most encouraging update fans could have hoped for.

    Fantastic Four should hit theaters in 2025.

    Source: Collider

  • Potential Release Dates Emerge for Marvel Studios Delayed Streaming Series

    Potential Release Dates Emerge for Marvel Studios Delayed Streaming Series

    The recently resolved WGA strike and the yet-to-be-resolved SAG strike have taken a toll on Marvel Studios’ streaming plans. Streaming series such as Daredevil: Born Again and Wonder Man were forced to shut production down which began a game of dominoes with the once robust slate of programming. Without a solid idea of when series would resume production, much less complete it, the studio began to reshuffle its plans to make sure consumers would have something to consume in 2024. As a result, Echo, a finished product, was bumped out of November 2023 and into January 2024 and other series’ release dates, such as those for Agatha: Coven of Chaos and Ironheart, faced some serious uncertainty. Now, as the future of production schedules begins to become a bit clearer, some clarity around the release of these projects may have gained some clarity as well.

    According to multiple filings with the US Copyright office, originally found by @ScarletWitchUpd, Marvel Studios has begun to plan out their 2024 and 2025 streaming schedules a little more specifically.

    While these dates must certainly continue to be taken as tentative for the time being, it seems the current plan is to release the first episode of Agatha: Darkhold Diaries on September 29, 2024, the first episode of Daredevil: Born Again in January 2025 and the first episode of Ironheart on September 3, 2025. The late 2025 release date for Ironheart comes as quite a shock considering principal photography on the series wrapped in November 2022 and a good deal of footage was shown off at D23 2022 in Anaheim.

    If these dates should hold–or even be relatively accurate–it also speaks volumes about Marvel Studios plans for series such as Wonder Man and Vision Quest. As it stands, it would seem that neither of those two series would be on the books before 2026. Given the studio once had eight unannounced series (of which Wonder Man and Vision Quest were two) set to stream between the Fall of 2024 and the Summer of 2025 it will interesting to see just how much fat has been trimmed from the slate since Bob Iger returned.

  • REVIEW: ‘Loki’ Season 2, Episode 1

    REVIEW: ‘Loki’ Season 2, Episode 1

    In the wake of the widely panned Secret Invasion and the shuffling of Echo into 2024 and Ironheart into who knows when, Marvel Studios’ hopes for streaming success in 2023 rest squarely on the shoulders of the second season of Loki. While it’s foolish to judge an entire series by its first episode, if “Ouroboros” is any indication of what to expect this season from the creative team of writer Eric Martin and directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, who previously teamed up with Marvel Studios on Moon Knight, Marvel may be able to rest easy.

    “Ouroboros” comes out of the gate swinging. Opening in the moments immediately after the Season 1 cliffhanger, the episode quickly dismisses the most prevalent fan theory about where Loki ended up when Sylvie kicked him through the time door. Whereas the belief was that Loki was transported to an alternate TVA, the first quarter of the episode establishes that he has in fact been transported to the same TVA in the past…and what an interesting past it was. By grotesquely “time slipping”, Loki learns that He Who Remains once openly ruled the TVA before installing the Time Keepers and slipping away to the Citadel at the End of Time. Taken in concert with the recent revelations that all TVA employees are Variants who were ripped from their lives, the very foundations upon which they believed the TVA stood are now entirely reframed as the implications of He Who Remains’ actions become crystal clear. These people’s minds have been wiped repeatedly in the service of the TVA and anything and everything they think they know about themselves is just a fraction of their actual lives.

    Once the episode moves forward under those implications, finding a solution to Loki’s time slipping becomes the central focus of the episode. Finding a solution to that problem leads Mobius and Loki to one of the second season’s key new members in Ke Hey Quan’s Ouroboros. The march to find OB, the TVA’s resident tech guru, not only allows for an exploration of some of the unseen nooks and crannies of the TVA but also time for the series’ marquee characters, Loki and Mobius, to shine. Much of the success of Season 1 came from the chemistry between the two and even under the direction of a new creative team, the pair continues to cook. Tom Hiddleston continues to be so wonderfully charismatic and catalytic as Loki which means that it’s nearly impossible for him to share an awkward scene with anyone and so as funny as his scenes with Owen Wilson continue to be, his split-time scenes with Quan’s OB are equally brilliant. By working together, Loki and OB come up with a solution to Loki’s issue but in attempting to solve that issue, the larger mystery of Season 2 is revealed.

    Owen Wilson as Mobius in Marvel Studios’ LOKI, Season 2, exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2023 MARVEL.

     In pursuit of curing Loki’s time slipping, OB discovers that the Time Loom, an object which he explains is used to refine raw time into physical timelines, has been overloaded as time broke free following the death of He Who Remains. The second half of the episode ends up being some of the MCU’s best hardcore sci-fi to date as it attempts to address the madness erupting in the multiverse. The back half is full of imaginative set designs and mumbo jumbo jargon (a dial on the ceiling keeps track of the chronons being emitted per hour) that allow for the audience to have some footing in what’s actually taking place. Sci-fi, time travel and mulitversality have never been for everyone but the writing team, lead by Martin, did an admirable job of making it palatable and as relatable as possible under the circumstances.

    While “Ouroboros” solves Loki’s time slipping issue and resolves the Season 1 cliffhanger, it ends on one itself. In the absence of Ravonna Rennslayer, the headless TVA is now subject to the whims of an interesting group of folks led by General (Paradox), Judge Gamble and another fellow with all the energy of Ray Winstone’s Dreykov. Just as Loki is pulled back from the time stream, several brigades of Hunters are seen taking off through a series of time doors into the newly created branches in search of Sylvie. While her location is unveiled in the show’s post-credit scene, the actions of these Hunters and are sure to have some pretty heady consequences for the show and set up one of two ongoing plot points for the season.

    Though in many ways it feels like more of the same (great writing, great characters and timey-wimey mysteries), the opening episode of Season 2 also gives the MCU something brand new. While Loki’s glorious purpose, established over a decade ago in the MCU’s timeline, seems like old news to the audience, it’s important to remember that this Loki Variant was plucked from 2012 where he only very recently attempted to kill the Avengers and sought to rule all of humanity. “Ouroboros” give this Loki room to grow into a new glorious purpose: becoming the hero of all time. From the moment he first appears on screen, Hiddleston plays the part with a distinct desperation we’ve never really seen. Even in the Season 1 finale, there was some hesitancy to become the hero but now, having been Lokied by another Loki, this Loki now seems fully committed to an all-new, all-different path. And maybe, just maybe, the sun will shine on Loki and his brother again at the end of it. If you thought there wasn’t room for more Loki in your life, “Ouroboros” did its level best to make you think twice and set up one hell of a first two-thirds of a season of streaming TV at its best. In an increasingly entropic MCU, Season 2 of Loki seeks to return order and remind us all what’s always been so great about this shared universe.

  • REVIEW: ‘Loki’ Season 2, Episodes 1-4

    REVIEW: ‘Loki’ Season 2, Episodes 1-4

    Though it’s undoubtedly at least partially revisionist, Marvel Studios has a history of success that seems strongly weighted by the Infinity Saga. The internet is full of talking heads who will tell you that following Avengers: Endgame, the MCU just hasn’t been the same and that the quality of the projects, both theatrical and streaming, has fallen off drastically. 2023 has added fuel to the fire with projects such as Ant-Man: Quantumania and Secret Invasion failing to impress the majority of fans–and even fewer critics–leading to an even louder refrain of “The MCU is dead” than ever before. Leave it to the ultimate agent of chaos and the most entropic entry in the Multiverse Saga to date to restore order to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The God of Mischief has heard your concerns and Season 2 of Loki answers them authoritatively.

    Picking up directly where Season 1 left off, Loki quickly reframes what fans thought happened in the prior season’s cliffhanger and puts Loki up against the clock. As the MCU builds towards an adaptation of Jonathan Hickman’s 2015 Secret Wars, the first episode–and then again the first four–certainly have the feel of the Time Runs Out prelude Hickman weaved through his Avengers and New Avengers titles. While Season 2 of Loki is certainly no adaptation of those–indeed it seems not to be an adaptation of any particular comic run or set of stories but rather an original idea from the production/writing team of Michael Waldron and Eric Martin–the first four episodes are fast-paced, intense and make it very clear that time is running out for all time. Getting down to brass tacks, the premise of Season 2 is this: the death of He Who Remains has created a multiverse that the TVA simply is not prepared to manage.

    (L-R): Ke Huy Quan as O.B., Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, and Owen Wilson as Mobius in Marvel Studios’ LOKI, Season 2, exclusively on Disney+. Photo by Gareth Gatrell. © 2023 MARVEL.

    Starting with but certainly not limited to that premise, it’s amazing just how often these first four episodes of Season 2 of Loki work as an allegory for the criticisms faced by Marvel Studios. As He Who Remains’ death allowed the timeline to break free and grow into something far too large and chaotic for the TVA to handle, so has the Multiverse Saga opened the doors to criticism about Kevin Feige and co. potentially adopting a quantity over quality approach with, at one point, 8 projects planned in a calendar year. The technological MacGuffin of the first four episodes, a Multiplier that allows the Temporal Loom to be able to collar and manage the new timelines, provides the impetus for Loki and Mobius to take a trip through time and allows for the introduction of Jonathan Majors‘ Victor Timely. As the buddy cop duo sets off to find a Variant of the man who built the TVA to restore it to its rightful status as a timespace behemoth, so has Bob Iger returned from retirement with a renewed focus on curating and managing projects and characters amid jeers that there’s simply too much content for fans to consume. And as an all-new, all-different Loki is mocked, reminded that he’s a villain, not a hero, and told to stick to what he’s always done, so too do the critics hammer away at Marvel Studios for breaking away from the “Marvel formula.” Much as the future of Marvel Studios seems up for grabs, the first four episodes of Loki’s second season end with a truly shocking cliffhanger that will leave fans suspended in uncertainty…but not before a return to form and a reminder of what these streaming series should be.

    Like its predecessor, Season 2 of Loki allows Tom Hiddleston all the room in the Multiverse to explore the nooks and crannies of the title character. Hiddleston has filled the godly shoes for well over a decade now and as easy as it might be to question what else there might be left to do with Loki, the first four episodes–and Hiddleston’s continued brilliance in the role–provide plenty of answers. Keeping in mind that this particular Variant of Loki, Variant L1130, was created when he escaped with the Tesseract in the aftermath of the 2012 Battle of New York during a botched effort by the Avengers during their time heist, allows the audience to truly see the realtime (sort of, since it technically takes place out of time) evolution of the character. Not far removed from seeking to subjugate all of humanity, Loki now seeks glorious purpose in keeping them free and, as such, Hiddleston finds space for an empathic Loki who recognizes the true beauty and power of humanity–a truly heroic version of the character, though thanks to some fun plot devices is able to get back to some fun magical mischief.

    (L-R): Owen Wilson as Mobius and Tom Hiddleston as Loki in Marvel Studios’ LOKI, Season 2, exclusively on Disney+. Photo by Gareth Gatrell. © 2023 MARVEL.

    However, Season 2 is not simply the Tom Hiddleston show. So much of what made Season 1 work so well was the chemistry between Hiddleston and his co-stars, specifically Owen Wilson and Sophia Di Martino and, thankfully, a new creative team did nothing to change that. The Loki-Mobius dynamic is just as strong as always and the fractured relationship between Loki and Sylvie allows for an even deeper exploration of both characters. The brilliant addition of Ke Huy Quan as TVA tech guru Ouroboros will rightfully draw plenty of praise as Quan is an absolute joy in his surprisingly extended role; however, don’t underestimate Rafael Cassl’s saucy X-5/Brad Wolfe who ebbs and flows throughout the first four episodes as an agent of chaos in his own right. Majors‘ brings a definite strangeness to Victor Timely, who isn’t exactly what you think he might be and returners Wunmi Mosaku, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Tara Strong all get more to do to the benefit of the project as a whole.

    As is always the case with pre-release screenings of Marvel Studios projects, critics and press have not seen the whole series which makes a true analysis of Season 2 of Loki impossible. Simply put, no matter how entertaining the first four episodes are, if the last two drop the ball, the project won’t be seen as a success and that’s not something Marvel Studios can afford at the moment. However, what can be said is that for four episodes, Marvel Studios leaned on one of their strongest and most veteran talents to put together what is unquestionably their best effort–theatrical or cinematic–not only of 2023 but of the entire Multiverse Saga. A combination of strong creative work behind the scenes by writer Eric Martin and the directing duo of Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson and an enormously talented cast make Loki a fun sci-fi mystery that will fill the Void-sized void you may have been feeling.