Loki Appreciation 2019

[charliehustle415]

I'm getting a bit worried now, no Loki it seems for January either.

Pour one out for another great series put down before its time.

[Raye]

It's strange, though, since Kibblesmith still has not said anything, despite posting earlier today, and the last couple interviews, which were surely done after he would have known of it's fate, talked as if it was continuing. So I don't know what to think, basically, it feels like something weird is going on.

[Lambadelta]

I just checked and Loki: Agent of Asgard also took a two month hiatus so it could just be the same thing here. I think it's this waiting that is the problem. I mean I am a little bit more worried but not overly worried. I think if it's on hiatus for a third month, then I think I will really begin to worry. The problem is we are never going to get a "It's not cancelled" announcement to put all our minds at rest. We either have to wait until the February Solicts come out next month or the announcement that the series is cancelled.

King Thor was interesting though, although when I think of Thor and Loki merging Mind and Body I actually thought them as actually merging into one being lol. I really want to see the brothers now coming together and saving the universe and I hope we get to know Loki's motivations behind his actions. It's also nice to see that Freyja didn't give up on Loki and even believed that he will someone save everybody and that he wasn't completely enveloped in darkness

But please let there be Loki/Thor vs. Gorr next issue!

[Raye]

Yeah, I am still disappointed that at least in this particular future, Aaron was apparently of the opinion that Loki did just fall back into his old ways until the end of the universe, but him and Thor coming together to beat Gorr could be nice. But I also think that the universe may NEED to die, that by keeping this scrap of it alive on life support is preventing the next universe from being born, and thus kinda doing more harm than good.

oh yeah. i was meaning to bring this up, given what Ewing said about Verity and all, is part of what made me think of this. I read Valkyrie the other day as well, and in it ok so, the basic situation is that she is technically not a Valkyrie..... yet. Apparently you have to seal the deal by bringing someone to Valhalla, which Heimdall declined, instead choosing to be taken on 'a journey into mystery' because he had already seen everything in this universe, and wanted to see something new in his death. So though he qualified, no Valhalla, so Jane is still technically not a Valkyrie. But now Mephisto has set up Grim Reaper as his new Disir, and if he beats Jane to ferrying a soul, then he becomes the new Valkyrie, and by extension Mephisto gains control of Valhalla. Which is bad, obv. So already it is continuing a couple threads set up in Journey Into Mystery by Gillen, with Mephisto and the Disir, which is intriguing. (and also is tying into the other Mephisto stuff going on elsewhere, i presume, which I think may actually be where Aaron's co-writer contribution is coming into play, and why Marvel seems so intent on pushing the book with multiple overships recently) But no Loki so far, but I had a theory. Jane can't just wait for someone to die, when Grim Reaper would happily kill someone to bring their soul (. infact, he already has Strange's soul trapped. Granted, she doesn't yet know it is a race, but still, she's facing him right this second at the end of the most recent issue, and he's an idiot, so will probably spill the situation) but she has to beat him to getting someone who died a worthy death to Valhalla to secure her position, even if she beats Grim Reaper. I mean... We're dealing with Mephisto here. The most satisfying way to beat him is to win at his own game, with a loophole. So does that soul technically have to be dead right now or could it be, say, someone who died a worthy death, but due to unusual circumstances never made the trip before resurrecting himself? Loki is still (probably) owed a trip to Valhalla, bringing him there, even if he doesn't have to stay on account of being alive again and all, may fulfill the contract. The fact that Grim Reaper apparently intends to ferry Strange's soul, when he is not dead, seems to imply this could work. Also, if Ewing really does intend to bring Verity back somewhere, Loki kinda needs to be there too, at least for an issue or two, because her whole deal is kinda that she is his friend. Ewing did use Lisa without bringing America in (yet) but I feel like Verity would need at least a little bit of Loki being there. This could be that thing.

[Snoop Dogg]

I liked the self-hatred themes in King Thor. Not just from Loki but also Thor with how upset he is about how their relationship's gone. I hope they patch things up and kill a God Cooker.

If they're going to relaunch Loki, it makes sense not to do it the same month they're launching a new Thor. We'll see.

[Raye]

Yeah, i do like that it seems to be saying that Thor and Loki need to work together to be at their best, which was hinted at at various points leading up to this (10th Realm when they teamed up to break into Heven, the story in Hel where Loki and Thor worked together to get the Valkyries being the two big ones) it's just sad that at least in this future it took so long and it required Loki to fall into his old ways again. But I presume the ultimate goal here is to show what needs to happen to PREVENT that future since by most measures the Kig Thor future is a pretty shitty one, and is best avoided. If it means that it leads to Loki and Thor working together in the present and thus preventing that future, that could be nice.

and with the solicits and stuff, yeah, it may be relaunching and may be waiting on something to happen in the Thor book to do that, which may not happen with the first issue. But I mean, it just feels like a weird situation. Kibblesmith is talking like it's going to continue, the Pinterest also seems to indicate that with some stuff that does not fit an old west issue being added quite recently, (a shot of David Bowie, the stuff from the 20s/30s and stuff) and the book itself has one issue left until it disappears from the solicits, yet it doesn't really feel like it's even close to wrapping up the initial plot threads it introduced. It introduced the stuff with Now and Then and what they did, Frosti and Drrf, the Frost Giants being displeased with Loki, the stuff with Loki wanting to join the Avengers, and then it goes into a flashback issue and teamup with Wolverine which really doesn't seem like it would leave room to tie up the plot threads at all. I know sometimes writers are not given a LOT of room to tie up plot threads, but they are usually given at least a couple issues notice so they can at least give a little closure to plot threads that were introduced, and instead it seems to just be piling on more plot threads. The Avengers stuff, that may be could be left out to be tied up in Avengers itself, Frost Giant rebellion maybe could be turned into something in Thor's book, but the Now and Then stuff and Frosti and Drrf can only really be tied up in Loki's book....

[Rosebunse]

Whatever is happening, Cate's Thornis the key here. So I'm reserving my judgement. Either way, at least we'll have Loki in some form.

[Raye]

Well, that's a possibility, it feels like it may be, but we don't actually know that Thor is the reason for any of this. It could also just be art troubles behind the scenes or something, or it really is axed and Kibblesmith etc just is not saying.

And I don't think anyone is expecting Loki to vanish into limbo if it is cancelled, he's too important as a supporting character for Thor for that to happen, especially right now. But in Thor's book he could end up just appearing for a few pages every now and then, like most other Asgardians not named Thor, so him having a solo is obviously preferable.

[Lambadelta]

I don't think it's been cancelled since as I said before it would have already been announced. There is no reason to not announce it but it could be the case of Marvel waiting and seeing how sales do before deciding if it should continue or if they should cut it. So with that it's more the case of it could be cancelled rather than it is cancelled. But no company waits over a month to announce cancellation when they have already decided on the cancellation already.

The thing is it's not like this hasn't happened before, again as I said before, Loki: Agent of Asgard also took a two month hiatus between July and August 2014 as well for reasons I don't know.

Truthfully there are a few reasons why Loki is on hold but the worst part is the waiting. It's another month of waiting for the February Solicts to see if Loki will have a 6th issue, waiting for the possible announcement that it will be cancelled. I kind of wish we would just know either way but I know that no one is going to announce something not being cancelled outright.

[Raye]

I like speculating as much as anyone, but you should always keep in mind what is speculation or rumor and what is fact. I'm just saying we don't actually KNOW anything right now, so while certain scenarios may seem likely, we shouldn't be saying that something, like tying into Thor or whatever, definitely is the reason, or even that Loki has a particularly important part in Cates' run. Even if it seems likely, we don't know. It's that same type of thinking, just coming to a different conclusion, that got us to the is it cancelled or not discussion in the first place. I know I speculate a lot, but I do try and use words like 'may be' or 'i suspect' or similar for this reason, especially when it comes to things like real life publishing stuff, rather than stuff that's up for interpretation within the stories themselves, because I always know my speculation can be proven wrong, no matter how likely it seems. Yeah, the missing issues could be due to a connection with Thor and it may be that Loki will have a big part in it, which led to a delay or something.... or the missing issues could have nothing whatsoever to do with Thor at all, and Loki may appear for a few pages in the first issue and then not be seen again for like 6 months. We don't know. Right now, all we know for sure is that at minimum Loki's book is skipping 2 months, and Loki appears for a minimum of one page in Thor's book in Cates' run. That's it.

I do think it seems likely that Loki could have a large part in Cates' run, given his history with the character on Dr Strange and all, and the fact that he does appear in at least one page, one which seems to suggest something strange happening with Mjolnir, but we still only have that one page as actual proof of him appearing at all, and it doesn't guarantee that he will appear in the book on a regular basis.

The skipping issues is the bigger issue here, though. It is true that books sometimes skip a month for a variety of reasons, and a book skipping a month isn't necessarily a reason to declare it cancelled. 2 months in a row though? that's extremely unusual, even if it did happen once before with Agent of Asgard. but on the other hand we still don't have anyone actually saying it's cancelled, and on the contrary Kibblesmith talks like it's continuing in some fashion.

So I do think a relaunch, possibly with a new artist, possibly due to something that happens in Thor, could explain this oddness, but... just saying, we don't actually know that, and it's important to not start thinking speculation is fact.

[Rosebunse]

I guess my thing is, is Thor's importance sort of done for the moment? It just feels like with Aaron stepping down and Ewing taking his place for the moment, there's a shift in the MU about who is important. I don't mean this to be a bad thing and Ewing clearly has an interest in Thor. I mean, the guy has an interest in Thor, it's just that War of the Realms is done and there's just sort of this feeling of what else can you really do?

[Raye]

Did you mean Cates, not Ewing?

It's a little early to say, without seeing what Cates is going to do with the book, but I don't think so. Cates is relatively new, but packs a pretty big punch after Venom and Absolute Carnage and all, so I'm pretty sure it will sell pretty well. the first solicit mentions the Black Winter, but that might just be a warmup, it's also likely that he will continue the Knull saga in Thor, considering Thor smacked him down back in the viking era and all, plus the Necrosword being a major part of Aaron's run, which could lead big places considering that Knull wants to end all of existence to get his perfect silent void back. Those kinds of stakes mean it could easily rival WotR. (after some buildup, I mean WotR took years to build to) Thor as a character... it kind of feels like he may retreat from Midgard to an extent to focus on Asgard related stuff, but maybe not, it's a little early to say. But just because Thor personally is more Asgard focused doesn't mean all of Asgard will be. We've speculated before about how it seems to be leading to Loki possibly taking Thor's place, there is lots pointing to that, from all the stuff in Loki's own book, to hints dropped in Avengers and Thor, so it could be just that they swap out Thor for Loki on the Avengers and connect the Asgard stuff to the larger MU that way. Also, as happened with Jane, the fact that it's, well not a new character but one new to that kind of role, even if the events are not as all encompassing as WotR, they could still FEEL big, because he's still learning the ropes. And might be tempted to fall into old bad habits to save his own skin, betraying everyone else kinda thing. Raising the stakes can be done not just by increasing the threat level, but also by reducing the power and/or experience of the people who need to face the threat, or make it more personal and emotional. Tho Cates described the book as feeling like a metal album, so i suspect there will be plenty of action with big bombastic over the top action sequences. In the words of Nathan Explosion:



But it's all just guessing right now, we'll just have to wait and see. But I somehow doubt they can't find a way to bring some big stakes.

[Rosebunse]

Did you man Cates, not Ewing?

It's a little early to say, without seeing what Cates is going to do with the book, but I don't think so. Cates is relatively new, but packs a pretty big punch after Venom and Absolute Carnage and all, so I'm pretty sure it will sell pretty well. the first solicit mentions the Black Winter, but that might just be a warmup, it's also likely that he will continue the Knull saga in Thor, considering Thor smacked him down back in the viking era and all, which could lead big places considering that Knull wants to end all of existence to get his perfect silent void back. Those kinds of stakes mean it could easily rival WotR. (after some buildup, I mean WotR took years to build to) Thor as a character... it kind of feels like he may retreat from Midgard to an extent to focus on Asgard related stuff, but maybe not, it's a little early to say. But just because Thor personally is more Asgard focused doesn't mean all of Asgard will be. We've speculated before about how it seems to be leading to Loki possibly taking Thor's place, there is lots pointing to that, from all the stuff in Loki's own book, to hints dropped in Avengers and Thor, so it could be just that they swap out Thor for Loki on the Avengers and connect the Asgard stuff to the larger MU that way.

But it's all just guessing right now, we'll just have to wait and see. But I somehow doubt they can't find a way to bring some big stakes.

Cates is getting Thor, but Ewing is clearly being set up for the next big event.

[Raye]

But that's just how things go, there are lots of events and each one kind of gives the spotlight to a different character, but it all comes back around, it's not like WotR was the first event Thor/Asgard was the center of, and it won't be the last. It's entirely possible Cates could be setting up an event to follow Ewing's thing. As mentioned before, WotR took years to set up, so Cates can do all his leadup while Ewing's event is going along with whatever event(s) follow that, and then a new Asgard centered event after all the groundwork is laid. And since Ewing's thing involves a mystery about who the Eternity Mask guy is (I presume that's what you're talking about) it will have less impact on who is the big dog of the MU than most, and since it's not one of the big dog established characters anyway, it's not like it's going to take away prominence from anyone else, really. I wouldn't read too much into it, Thor/Asgard will be fine, and there's plenty of big stakes stuff it can do. It's superhero comics. The world is in danger of ending every other week.

also I just had a thought - if Cates does continue the Knull/symbiote stuff in Thor, hopefully the Maker comes with that. I mean the Maker is an excellent bad guy anyway, but IF Loki is kinda taking on Thor's duties on Midgard, what a perfect foil for Loki an evil Reed Richards would make.

[Prof. Aegis]

I think the Maker would be a great adversary for Loki. He's science compared to Loki's magic and it would be great to see the two of them go at it.

And beyond the general info we've been given so far on Cates first story, I'm curious as to his goal and plans for the other Asgardians, including Loki. Does the status remain as to how Aaron left it, or is there a change. I know it seems like its picking up from Aaron's storyline, and it's been mentioned that something happens that changes things, including giving Thor a new look. I'm curious as to how it will affect everyone else..., yes, including Loki. If he has any real plans for him in his Thor series.