Loki Appreciation 2018

[Raye]

Loki can definitely have some adventures now, hopefully with Verity in tow. His new found confidence in his powers and in himself is great! But I also think it was necessary to draw his journey out for this entire run, as the emotional weight of it was really heavy, and Loki's spent so, so long trying to please everyone else. It would have felt forced and false if he'd suddenly just been like "I'm okay with me", I feel. This really felt like a journey for the character, and I couldn't have asked for a better ending, I don't think.

I think that's where we differ. I've seen people go on about the emotional weight of this issue and a few before and they... just didn't do anything for me, emotionally. Part of that is me, I'm a very reserved sort of person, and it takes a WHOLE LOT for a story to get an emotional reaction out of me, but also I think I was just kinda, like i said above, just done with it. I just wanted to move on already. I realize that it was necessary and has left him in a good place and I am glad for that. And not like i thought it was a bad issue or anything. I just think it could have happened sooner. I am not saying I wanted him to just be ok with himself with no leadup, I'm just saying maybe a few issues too long is all, I was just missing him having fun with what he did, to the point where I was getting frustrated. I mean there were PARTS where some of that shone through, but it kept getting dragged back down again.

*a friend just pointed out to me that part of my reaction may also be because I had kinda figured all this out months ago, not all the details, but I knew the broad strokes of where it was headed and how it would end for him. So in my head, this had kinda already happened, so I was impatient with it and it felt a bit flat for me. And that is part of why I am so excited for how things will go in Thor. He's far more unpredictable now, I really don't know what he may do, and it's already set up that his loyalties will be pulled in 3 directions (though I think it's a safe bet he won't actually side with Laufey, and if he chooses a side at all, siding with Odin is the most likely scenario. But it's been set up that he could kinda play all the sides, so that could go interesting places.)

[theilikepie]

So what I gathered is Loki skipped most of Secret wars with verity

If that's the case i hope he pops up in the final battle,looks at whats ands like "I was only gone for a while people"(well 8 years in comic time to be precise)

[Darkspellmaster]

So what I gathered is Loki skipped most of Secret wars with verity

If that's the case i hope he pops up in the final battle,looks at whats ands like "I was only gone for a while people"(well 8 years in comic time to be precise)

Loki: "So, this is what happens when other people try to do a gods job? No idea how to deal with chaotic neutral? So let me guess, I"m going to have to help clean this all up? Figures."

[Darkspellmaster]

I hope he doesn't keep her in the bracelet for that long. I kind of like her having her own body. Wonder if he's going to run into his A-Force counterpart, that should be interesting and fun. What I want to know is how much of this did Odin know about? As much as it seems that he's acting a certain way, he seems to have at least planned a bit of this. Which brings up the question to me of, what role is Loki going to take now that he's God of Stories? Will he help out Odin? Or can he be manipulated by Cul?

[Byakko]

The way Ewing wrote him saying Loki feels like 'taking a break' makes me think Loki would not figure as a big part of any major stories for a bit until after the new #1s post-Secret Wars are done teething, and we see which series survives the first year of publishing.

Also at some point, I'm wondering if Loki would gain a meta-fictional power to see beyond the 4th wall, considering he is part of a story and is the God of Stories and all that. If I recall, one of the old Lokis in the past knew that he was part of a comic world.

[Shura]

Finally! I´ve been able to read the issue, what a beautiful ending I couldn´t ask for one better (by the away, I also re-read the whole series together, and it´s one of those series that is a LOT better as a whole than with monthly issues, the biggest problem were the F***** CROSSOVERS! they really damaged the storytelling no matter how well Ewing was able to do the tie-ins. That´s why we can´t have nice things, Marvel!)
The way Loki scared Those Who Sit Above was great and badass and the end of King Loki was really touching, I could make a long review of the issue and the series, but I´m lazy for write everything in english
Even if I´ve loved this last issue, I have to agree partly with Raye, I thought the redemption story was done with issue 13 and I didn´t need much more details about it, maybe because of the timing but it was delayed a lot (we already know that the revelation of Kid Loki´s death was meant to happen during Original Sin, but you know... axis...), but on second thoughts this wasn´t that long (c`mon, they were ending what started years ago with the Siege oneshoot, I think we have felt it too long because of reading it monthly, I mean there were just 17 issues a lot happened, look at the Godbutcher arc in Thor for example, it had 11 issues, too much if you read it each month, but as a whole it was amazing) Also a lot of readers wanted a better icing on the cake, and this series has never been action-packed but psychological, so the final battle being just a conversation fits the tone of the book, also King Loki is also the agent of Asgard, so he had the ending that he deserved, the Loki who was Evil was totally defeated by himself (in both ways), the Loki who was sad, depressed and hated himself finally found peace, and the God of Stories gets a better definition about how and who he is, proving that he´s way superior now and accepting King Loki as a "cautionary tale" that should not be forgotten, because if you forget that past you run the risk of repeat it.

I ´m really sad, but not for seeing this series over, because the story of the Agents of Asgard it´s already done and end on a high note, I´m sad because there´s no Loki series after secret wars and I´m going to miss Ewing´s writting and Lee´s art, but I´m also very excited to see what´s next in Thor.

[kaimaciel]

I do wonder how much was left from the Kid Loki story in this All New All Different Marvel World.

The point of this is sell more comics and make things less complicated for new readers. That said, Kid Loki would have to disappear from continuity because most of Thor readers don't know who he was or what happened between him and Ikol. Most comic book reviewers on YouTube complained about it, they didn't read it or understood it why Thor was so angry, most assumed Loki had traveled back on time and killed his younger self (I corrected them on the comments but I don't know if they read it since it was never mentioned again). Very few people on the comic book community read JIM and/or Young Avengers. They complained that this whole guilt thing was too complicated and many even said they dropped the comic because of it.

I don't know if Thor is going to still be mad at Loki because of Kid, if the writers will include it or simply make Thor wary of Loki because Loki was a villain and enemy for so long, that would be easier for non-JIM readers to understand. Also, Loki didn't save Thor's story so he probably will miss a few things.

[Raye]

Even if Loki hadn't bypassed the incursion entirely (thus, even if it were a reboot, he and the rest of Asgard minus Thor would not be rebooted along with everyone else) It doesn't look like anything is actually changing as far as continuity goes. All it is is a jumping on point. You can make things accessible to new readers without erasing history, and that appears to be what Marvel is doing. I mean, I did really enjoy Agent of Asgard, but I fully realize that it would be pretty confusing for someone coming in cold, especially when it came to the whole 'killing himself' thing. JiM and to a lesser extent Young Avengers is pretty much required reading for it. It kind of had to be that way, in order to get Loki to where he needed to be, but now that he's there, it would not surprise me if they just kinda glossed over how he got there, but that doesn't mean it never happened. They seem to have gone out of their way to make sure Asgard specifically could continue without any continuity changes or major interruptions, so I am sure the status quo will remain exactly the same. Though they may not mention specifically why Thor is mad at Loki. I mean, given their history, it's kind of something that doesn't really need to be explained. We know it's because of Kid Loki, everyone else can just assume Thor hates Loki just cus that's the way things are. (though, really the dynamic is now reversed, it was always Loki that hated Thor, not Thor hating Loki. but close enough)

I got Loki's new costume in MH today, it's nice but SO TINY. I had to use a Crystal of Cyttorak to make him bigger. also the horns on his head dress i notice now are freakishly small. So... good that they finally added the costume but... I'm kinda disappointed they got it wrong. :-/ I made a thread to hopefully get him back to his normal height, if you wanted to go add your voice: http://forums.marvelheroes.com/discu...omment/2910162

[Post Monster]

Now Loki can focus on deciding what he wants since he's not on Asgard's agenda anymore. You can only be a couch bum so long, so I'm hoping for some cross pantheon relationship. Loki need to explore his options as a god and make some non-Norse friends. Starting with Hurcules. Imagine putting Loki on some version of God Squad?

He also needs to meet Dr. Strange, join or team up with Defenders, get acknowledged as the Supreme Sorcerer of Jotunheim, poke Spiderman again and deliver that favor, send Doom some roses, etc, etc.

[Riimi]

As far as things going forward, I've gotten the impression that Loki is going to be (at least acting) antagonistic towards Jane!Thor but not a villain. (This is mostly from the discussion regarding the picture of him Risbic drew in the Thor annual where he was on the side with the other villains--I'm too lazy to look it up right now. Iirc, it was Ewing who responded, so things could possibly change with Aaron in charge, but the fact that he was commenting on Loki's appearance in the Thor books gave me the impression that he and Aaron had already talked over Loki's new status quo. If I remember, the upshot was that he could be a "good" guy - for a certain value of "good"-and love his brother but not necessarily like Jane.)

As far as why he'd be acting against Jane, I have a few theories. My leading one is that the world only had one "slot" for a Thor, as it were, and Jane stepped into it. Though I'm not sure if they'd choose to have Thor not exist for a while in the Thor books, especially since Aaron has kept him on in a leading role. But there are plenty of other explanations - he could be playing the double agent, he could be a trickster mentor, he could have even decided that this was a great way to act on some of his past frustration with his brother by proxy.

I do want him and Thor to meet up eventually. I also feel like Thor doesn't actually hate him, he was just really, really mad at him (and I agree that they can keep that attitude without explaining the cause in depth, Loki has pulled enough shit over the years for it to be understandable). I hope they can patch up their relationship, leading to an awesome book starring both of them. (I am not giving up on this hypothetical book, not in a million bajillion years).

Now Loki can focus on deciding what he wants since he's not on Asgard's agenda anymore. You can only be a couch bum so long, so I'm hoping for some cross pantheon relationship. Loki need to explore his options as a god and make some non-Norse friends. Starting with Hurcules. Imagine putting Loki on some version of God Squad?

He also needs to meet Dr. Strange, join or team up with Defenders, get acknowledged as the Supreme Sorcerer of Jotunheim, poke Spiderman again and deliver that favor, send Doom some roses, etc, etc.

Looooool, I thought of the doctor Doom thing myself. Seems like a thing Loki would totally do, even if approx. 50% of it was done simply for the sake of trolling (not saying Loki might not still be interested, but Doom might have an issue with Loki being a guy some of the time).

[Raye]

Now Loki can focus on deciding what he wants since he's not on Asgard's agenda anymore. You can only be a couch bum so long, so I'm hoping for some cross pantheon relationship. Loki need to explore his options as a god and make some non-Norse friends. Starting with Hurcules. Imagine putting Loki on some version of God Squad?

He also needs to meet Dr. Strange, join or team up with Defenders, get acknowledged as the Supreme Sorcerer of Jotunheim, poke Spiderman again and deliver that favor, send Doom some roses, etc, etc.

heh, Loki and Hercules would be awesome! I think there Loki could find a new mark to replace Thor who probably would not be terribly willing to go along with his crazy schemes right now. I'm not talking evil schemes, more like some things from the myths where he's just messing with people for fun.

Jason Aaron has said that in Dr Strange, Strange would have a sort of magic club, where some of the top magic users in the MU would gather and discuss the latest developments, trade tips and whatnot. Given that Aaron is writing both Strange and Thor, I think it's a fairly safe bet that Loki is part of the club. It is a perfect link for a potential crossover between the two books.

As far as things going forward, I've gotten the impression that Loki is going to be (at least acting) antagonistic towards Jane!Thor but not a villain. (This is mostly from the discussion regarding the picture of him Risbic drew in the Thor annual where he was on the side with the other villains--I'm too lazy to look it up right now. Iirc, it was Ewing who responded, so things could possibly change with Aaron in charge, but the fact that he was commenting on Loki's appearance in the Thor books gave me the impression that he and Aaron had already talked over Loki's new status quo. If I remember, the upshot was that he could be a "good" guy - for a certain value of "good"-and love his brother but not necessarily like Jane.)

As far as why he'd be acting against Jane, I have a few theories. My leading one is that the world only had one "slot" for a Thor, as it were, and Jane stepped into it. Though I'm not sure if they'd choose to have Thor not exist for a while in the Thor books, especially since Aaron has kept him on in a leading role. But there are plenty of other explanations - he could be playing the double agent, he could be a trickster mentor, he could have even decided that this was a great way to act on some of his past frustration with his brother by proxy.

I do want him and Thor to meet up eventually. I also feel like Thor doesn't actually hate him, he was just really, really mad at him (and I agree that they can keep that attitude without explaining the cause in depth, Loki has pulled enough shit over the years for it to be understandable). I hope they can patch up their relationship, leading to an awesome book starring both of them. (I am not giving up on this hypothetical book, not in a million bajillion years).

Looooool, I thought of the doctor Doom thing myself. Seems like a thing Loki would totally do, even if approx. 50% of it was done simply for the sake of trolling (not saying Loki might not still be interested, but Doom might have an issue with Loki being a guy some of the time).

Loki and Jane Thor HAVE met. In Squirrel Girl. He seemed pretty cool with her, and she with him. But he is a curious sort, I could see him really trying to figure out who is under that mask, which could lead to conflict. I could also see him wanting to help his brother get Mjolnir back, maybe as a way to help repair their relationship, and of course first he has to get it away from Jane. Though I am sure she would just let Thor have it back any time he wanted, assuming he had made himself worthy again, but Loki doesn't necessarily know that.

And yes, I want my Odinsons book, dammit. Aaron said that the BEGINNING of Loki's story would be in the new Thor book, so I am holding out hope that the first arc or two will lead into a spinoff series. And I hope that with Laufey being brought back that Loki's parentage will be addressed, and maybe it could lead to him changing his name from Laufeyson to Odinson, like it was in Ultimate.

[rpmaluki]

I'm actually quite happy with him continuing as Laufeyson. It's how I've always known him. It doesn't make him less Odinson, he was adopted after all and see himself more as the son of Odin than Laufey.

[Raye]

But that's why I would like to see it maybe get changed. It's not that I dislike the name Laufeyson, but isn't it a bit weird that he goes by the name of a father he barely knew and hates, rather than the one that actually raised him, and has finally accepted him? I just think it would be a nice way to show where Loki's loyalties lie, and that Odin has finally accepted him, and the Laufey story could be a perfect time to explore that.

[Prof. Aegis]

I already miss my Loki series. Just knowing that I won't be getting a new issue each month is sad. I do hope we hear and see something about a new series with Loki as a main character soon. I feel as if Marvel, had a great series with a fantastic character, and now, they don't care or know what to do. I do hope they're just waiting for the right time to announce the new series.

Also, I'm looking forward to a complete edition of the Loki series with the Original Sin tie-in mini too! Hardback would be a dream.

[Raye]

He may not have a book of his own, but I do honestly feel optimistic about what will happen in Thor. Some of the things Aaron has set up have potentially big consequences for Loki, especially the resurrection of Laufey. You can't expect me to believe that Loki will not be HEAVILY involved in the Laufey story, I mean that's his birth father. And Aaron has said he has a big Loki story that he has been kinda holding off on until the time was right (apparently he meant he was waiting until he would not be stepping on anyone elses toes) so I really don't think him being a supporting character in Thor means the end of big things for him. And I know some are worried that Aaron will just make him a villain again, but I really don't think he will. He co-wrote the 10th Realm where Loki was the hero, and has been pretty respectful of what Al Ewing was doing in Agent of Asgard, and as far back as that big splash page at the end of God of Thunder, it showed the broken horn and missing tooth on Loki, so obviously the current status quo with Loki was planned a looong time ago, and Aaron was aware of it. I am sure he will work with it rather than against it. Yeah, i know the recent cover has a different design, but Dauterman has been given free rein to create new designs for most characters, minus the two Thors which were designed by Ribic. I'm sure that's all it is.

Also, I still hold out hope that after an arc, maybe two, my desired Thor and Loki book will spin out of the story in Mighty Thor.