Loki Appreciation 2018

[kaimaciel]

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#rightinthefeels

[ThrowawayIdk]

So I just finished reading Agent of Asgard and I have a couple questions. 1) Is he still God of Stories? 2) What do I read next to keep up with him? The girl Thor series?

I never really liked the character until the JIM, Young Avengers, and Agents of Asgard stuff, so I hope they continued with his interesting, less villainous characterization. It'd be such a shame if they just turned him into a generic bad guy again...

[Raye]

the thread lives! I guess he just hasn't been in a lot recently. he had a whole one panel in the most recent issue of Thor, but the letters pages insist big things are coming.

So I just finished reading Agent of Asgard and I have a couple questions. 1) Is he still God of Stories? 2) What do I read next to keep up with him? The girl Thor series?

I never really liked the character until the JIM, Young Avengers, and Agents of Asgard stuff, so I hope they continued with his interesting, less villainous characterization. It'd be such a shame if they just turned him into a generic bad guy again...

I am in kinda the same boat, where I never really liked him much before JIM. I didn't DISlike him, but I didn't think he was anything terribly special. I liked the mythology version better, where he was more gray area. I too hope he continues in this more interesting gray good-ish role. anyway....

1) He has stated in Thor that he is the God of Stories, and even filled this role when one issue was kind of story time with Loki and he narrated a tale from the past. But I think Aaron is writing it as another aspect added to his character, while Ewing was intending it as more of a total switching of roles. But in any case, yeah, God of Stories is still a thing, just kind of downplayed a bit.

2) He shows up in Mighty Thor after Agent of Asgard ends, he pops up every couple issues more or less. As mentioned above, the editors/creators keep insisting there is something big in store for him, but there has been very little payoff for this quite yet. Also, if you read it, try not to be discouraged. He is playing the bad guy here, but I and several others think he will come through in the end, that he is either suffering a momentary backslide but is regretting it and will make things right, or he is playing a long game, trying to bring down Malekith's plans from the inside. He also was in his own miniseries, Vote Loki, where he ran for president of the USA.

[Rosebunse]

I'm trying to figure out Loki's plan here, and I'm not sure what it is. Just defeating Malekith seems too small...

[Riimi]

the thread lives! I guess he just hasn't been in a lot recently. he had a whole one panel in the most recent issue of Thor, but the letters pages insist big things are coming.



I am in kinda the same boat, where I never really liked him much before JIM. I didn't DISlike him, but I didn't think he was anything terribly special. I liked the mythology version better, where he was more gray area. I too hope he continues in this more interesting gray good-ish role. anyway....

1) He has stated in Thor that he is the God of Stories, and even filled this role when one issue was kind of story time with Loki and he narrated a tale from the past. But I think Aaron is writing it as another aspect added to his character, while Ewing was intending it as more of a total switching of roles. But in any case, yeah, God of Stories is still a thing, just kind of downplayed a bit.

Was it stated in Thor? I thought Aaron seemed to be sticking to the "God of Lies", but I wasn't sure if he was walking it back or if it was just part of the general obfuscation wrt whatever Loki's up to. Also, the letters sometimes refer to him as that and then the editors respond with 'god of lies' and I have decided it is the most passive aggressive war ever fought and also kind of hilarious. With all that said, I do think Aaron is going to stick with it eventually, there's been too much allusion to it, especially in Loki's early appearances in Thor, to be pure coincidence.

2) He shows up in Mighty Thor after Agent of Asgard ends, he pops up every couple issues more or less. As mentioned above, the editors/creators keep insisting there is something big in store for him, but there has been very little payoff for this quite yet. Also, if you read it, try not to be discouraged. He is playing the bad guy here, but I and several others think he will come through in the end, that he is either suffering a momentary backslide but is regretting it and will make things right, or he is playing a long game, trying to bring down Malekith's plans from the inside. He also was in his own miniseries, Vote Loki, where he ran for president of the USA.

There has been sadly little payoff . However, I have decided that I agree with you that he is most likely 'War Thor'. I was torn and then the solicit for July's issue came out with basically the line "Can [Thor] trust him to guard her back?" and I was like yuuup. Especially since one of her lines was to the affect that no matter what, she'd never trust him, which is just one of those lines begging to be disproved. And, like I think you mentioned, he had that line (I think it was in the third issue?) about 'The Mighty Loki and his Magnificient Beard". (I also don't think Aaron's totally dropped the 'god of stories' role if Loki is accidentally able to foreshadow via joke). Hopefully. It'd be a shame if they just leave him stranded for perpetuity.

[Rosebunse]

It seems to me that Freya found Loki and convinced him to work with her again. Loki, still on something of a high from "winning" in Secret Wars, decides to help her our by being her mole in the Dark Council. Loki then realizes that Freya's original plan will never work due to what Malekith is planning and because of the unexpected addition of Cul in Asgard.

By poisoning Freya, he unites Asgard, gives them a common enemy which strengthens them against the Dark Council.

[Raye]

I think i am leaning more towards him having initial good intentions, but then suffering a bit of a backslide at the moment, because he has let too many opportunities slip by where he had a perfect opening to take out Malekith. But either way, I think he will come out on the right side of things in the end.

Was it stated in Thor? I thought Aaron seemed to be sticking to the "God of Lies", but I wasn't sure if he was walking it back or if it was just part of the general obfuscation wrt whatever Loki's up to. Also, the letters sometimes refer to him as that and then the editors respond with 'god of lies' and I have decided it is the most passive aggressive war ever fought and also kind of hilarious. With all that said, I do think Aaron is going to stick with it eventually, there's been too much allusion to it, especially in Loki's early appearances in Thor, to be pure coincidence.

I'm pretty sure he said so in that issue where he is with Laufey and is a big badass? hm.... *checks*... ah, the line i was thinking of was in Vote Loki, now I look. Well, either way, I don't think Aaron has forgotten it, just kinda downplaying it. Loki redefined himself to, well, himself. Only he and Verity were there for that, no one else knows, and I think he could be using that to his advantage.

There has been sadly little payoff . However, I have decided that I agree with you that he is most likely 'War Thor'. I was torn and then the solicit for July's issue came out with basically the line "Can [Thor] trust him to guard her back?" and I was like yuuup. Especially since one of her lines was to the affect that no matter what, she'd never trust him, which is just one of those lines begging to be disproved. And, like I think you mentioned, he had that line (I think it was in the third issue?) about 'The Mighty Loki and his Magnificient Beard". (I also don't think Aaron's totally dropped the 'god of stories' role if Loki is accidentally able to foreshadow via joke). Hopefully. It'd be a shame if they just leave him stranded for perpetuity.

I really think it will come down to it being either Loki or Volstagg. Both have things pointing to them, you could make a case for either one at this point. But I am leaning towards Loki. And yes, I know i am heavily biased and that's a large part of why. But it is also in part because in many ways it LOOKS like Odin (but I don't think it's Odin, dialogue didn't fit, and then why bother making his identity a secret if it appears to be obvious?) and of those two, only Loki has any real reason to model his disguise after Odin.

But yeah, that solicit is just yet another hint that it's Loki under that absurd beard. There is no way you could ever call into question Volstagg's trustworthiness. Hopefully, assuming it is really him, once the secret is out, he can carry around his shiny new hammer minus disguise. Though a hammer isn't really his style, even though, if it IS him, the fact that he CAN carry it is amaaaaaaazing, so maybe he can do some shapeshifting magic on it to turn it into a sword or staff, like he did with Freyja's spear. tho Ultimate Mjolnir Is a cool design so.... I dunno. either way works i guess.

*edited to add - also, remember, that tease on the final page of God of Thunder, that showed us a lot of things that are all coming together right now, including Loki in a suspiciously Thor-like costume? He had the leather straps around his hands, and the armor with the little squares Thor always wears all down his arms, and stuff? I remember there was a lot of discussion about that, and I know there was some weirdness going on there with Esad Ribic having to redraw his head and stuff, but... given recent developments, and the fact that everything on that teaser page is pretty much hitting right now, I wonder.

[JKtheMac]

Sticking to the God of Lies / God of Stories thing here, because I am not a fan of the Loki as War Thor theory, he is too humble when he appears. Loki wouldn't question why the storm called to him, he would assume the calling was appropriate.

Regardless of the fact that Loki didn't use God of Stories in Aaron's run (as far as I can remember), I do believe that he is using this power a little when he grants the Hulk powers to Agger's men. The Viking Avengers are presumably a forgotten story that only Loki is aware of. It is possible Loki put them together in a weird story based time loop. Regardless we are promised more of them at some point. Will that be a time travel story or will some of them come forward to today. Indeed has one of them come forward to pick up Ultimate Mjölnir?

[Raye]

Er, did you like, just gloss over the whole of Young Avengers and Agent of Asgard? What you say would apply to pre-Siege Loki, but not anything after that. A lot of his arrogance, at least in regards to something like 'worthiness', is gone. I mean, I think he is still arrogant in the sense that he loves being Loki, he thinks he is awesome, has a lot of pride in his skills, and has a tremendous amount of fun doing things his own way... mostly. But arrogance in one, or even most, aspects of himself doesn't mean he is arrogant about ALL aspects. A large part of both Young Avengers and Agent of Asgard was him coming to terms with the fact that he had done terrible things, knowing they were wrong, and feeling actual guilt and regret about that. He doesn't feel good about that part of himself at all, and while the worthiness requirements on Mjolnir are still not exactly clear, i think he knows enough about enchanted hammers to know his past actions would normally mean he's out of the running for picking the thing up. He said several times that he knew he was a bad person, doubted he could ever be good, but wanted to be better. (while his actions demonstrated that he was better than he thought he was. not GOOD, exactly... but better) The dialogue fits that very well. And the way Aaron himself writes him in the pages of Thor fits as well. Aaron writes Loki, particularly after the whole bit with Freyja, as dripping with regret and sadness about what he is doing (which is mostly expressed in the art, but I presume Aaron has asked for all the sad mopey faces that let us know he hates every minute of what he is doing), and that fits the dialogue in Unworthy Thor very well.

Also, there are others aware of the Viking Avengers, there is a museum display of them in Gwenpool. But yes, that issue did show him in that sort of role, even if it didn't use the words. though I do not think there is any evidence for any sort of time loop being created. Loki was using the story to try an make a point, one which Dario promptly ignored and went forward with his plan which the story Loki had JUST told indicated was doomed to failure. Also, Aaron has said that War Thor is a character that has been in the book already. We've seen some wall carvings of the old timey Avengers, but I really don't think that counts. There really are only a few characters it could be, especially if the story is to have any sort of cohesiveness. If it's some cameo character that's showed up for a few panels, like I dunno, one of the League of Realms characters, while the dialogue about them having seen horrible things would certainly fit, I just don't think it would feel like there was any buildup or payoff to that. It feels like this is part of a character arc for a character that has been a part of the story, not just some reveal.

[JKtheMac]

You may be reading too much into my choice of words, as I didn't mention arrogance at any point.

Plus we have seen most of the Viking Avengers in the book, and one in particular is very aggressive who had two whole issues written about him. Just because he was an antagonist doesn't make him not a member in the later team.

[Rosebunse]

I honestly don't think War Thor could be Loki. The speech is off for Loki.

Aaron might not be calling Loki the God of Stories, but Loki has used stories quite a few time in this run, far more than we've ever seen him use when he was the first Loki.

I guess it being one of the vikings would make the most sense. I see people saying that it's Ultimate Thor, but where the hell did Ultimate Thor come from?

[Raye]

I honestly don't think War Thor could be Loki. The speech is off for Loki.

Aaron might not be calling Loki the God of Stories, but Loki has used stories quite a few time in this run, far more than we've ever seen him use when he was the first Loki.

I guess it being one of the vikings would make the most sense. I see people saying that it's Ultimate Thor, but where the hell did Ultimate Thor come from?

Presumably because it's Ultimate Thor' s hammer.... honestly, that one actually makes a tiny bit more sense to me than invoking time travel at this point completely out of the blue, or using some character that has little to no panel time so far. The Viking Hulks don't even have names mentioned for any of them. Also, if it was one of them, then hiding their face becomes kind of pointless. And when the reveal comes, it will result in Jane and the others going all like:



The way it is set up, it only makes narrative sense for it to be someone Jane RECOGNIZES.

Also, it is an Asgardian. Unless the letterer screwed up, that is the one thing we know for sure about them. So that knocks out the Viking Hulks right there.

And with the nods to Odin in the design (beard, consistently obscured eye) it is likely either Odin himself, which still feels wrong to me, or someone with a connection to him. Which, if we assume no gender flip is involved, leaves us with a very limited set of choices. As mentioned, that is the main thing that makes me think it is not Volstagg, since he is not exactly thrilled with Odin at the moment. But it could point to either Cul or Loki, but Cul feels wrong.

And JK, you may not have used the word arrogance, but the sort of dialogue you described certainly implied it, and my point still stands that the attitude you describe does not fit the CURRENT characterization, like, at all. What you described is basically Loki minus all his recent character development.

[JKtheMac]

I stand by it not being recognisable Loki dialogue to have doubts about being the most worthy person to lift a magical hammer that is calling to you. I don't consider Loki as having that kind of self doubt currently. Boredom yes, self doubt in recent years as a younger character, maybe but not expressed in that manner.

As to names of Viking Avengers we have most of them, but I am suggesting it may be Bodolf, last seen wandering the earth as a TV style Hulk figure. He has been in the book, he had a speaking role, he is aggressive, he may well have learnt humility, he has a big beard and if he was accepted into the Viking Avengers may well have been residing in Valhalla and picked up an Asgardian accent.

Digital Mighty Thor V2015 #7 - The Strongest Viking There Is Part Two (2016_7) - Page 19.jpg

The boxed narration, by Loki, even hints we haven't seen the last of him.

I am more intrigued if Malekith is doing his usual trick of shapeshifting as somebody else and spying. If so who?

[Raye]

It's not an accent, that font denotes the All Tongue, a magical language spoken by Asgardians (and some others, like elves and dwarves) that can be understood by anyone listening. People in universe may hear it as a sort of accent, but people with that font are speaking an actual different language, not just an accent. I mean sure, he may have been able to learn it but still. And I don't think the dialogue means the character has to be aggressive, more that they are willing to play that part. But I am willing to admit he could make a certain amount of sense, but it still doesn't smell right to me.

And I am just gonna have to very strongly disagree about the characterization. I think it has been made very clear that recently Loki has been harboring a great deal of self loathing about certain aspects of himself. I am frankly baffled that you can't see it, since it is made so plainly obvious. The writers have gone out of their way to demonstrate this aspect, it is a large part of what makes him more sympathetic in recent years . He tries to hide it from most people, (even before Siege, some of his displayed arrogance is bluster to mask insecurities) but its still there under the facade he presents to the world. It's also made fairly explicit in issues 2 and 3 of Mighty Thor in particular, so Aaron is going along with that characterization.

[Rosebunse]

Well, yeah, the character is full of self-loathing, but when I look at that dialogue in Unworthy Thor, it just doesn't sound like something Loki would say.

Seeing things doesn't freak him out, and on top of that, the coloring is totally wrong. Loki's shapeshifting almost always retains some aspect of himself, be it green eyes, maybe black hair, or his two-horned helmet/crown. Even when he lifted the hammer, he had plenty of green in that design.