5 Marvel Characters Who Could Take Loki’s Place on the Time Throne (And Why We Hope They Don’t)

Not with a bang, but with a beautiful, emotionally complex finale that none of us were prepared for, Loki at the end.

All in all, it was a good ending. The stories he left hanging, he left hanging in ways that the viewer could make peace with. We don’t need to know what happened to Mobius after that, it’s enough to know where he ended up – back in charge of his own life. Meanwhile, the stories that wrapped up did so with grace. Loki was redeemed in poetic fashion: On a throne, wearing a crown, alone (and giving the Time Stone its color?). Better than good, it was enough.

But if the MCU has taught us one thing, it’s that enough is never enough. It would be really surprising if this was the last we saw of Loki Laufeyson, considering the popularity of the character and Disney’s willingness to spend money on Tom Hiddleston. In order to bring back the God of Mischief, Marvel would have to replace him on the golden throne outside of time.

There are five characters who could do the job, but here are all the reasons we strongly hope they don’t.

Mobius

There is no doubt that he is the most qualified man for the job. Better yet, stick the Time Throne on the back of a cosmic jetpack and he won’t be happy, objectively no more stupid than the Silver Surfer. You heard me, nerds: If Mobius on Sea-Doo space is stupid, so is Jack Kirby’s tribute to the fallen angels in the Abrahamic Apocrypha.

Why we hope it doesn’t: Because he got the ending he deserved.

If the creative team is behind it Loki with just a little less self-control, the show’s last shot of Mobius would show him beaming with joy on the back of a personal craft, slowly bouncing across the waves, with a Polyphonic Spree song playing in the background. Instead, we saw the company man divorced from the company, staring at a life stolen from him, wondering if he could still go home. If we ever hear from Mobius again, I hope it won’t be a multifaceted commitment. I hope he lives a My Two Dads a fantasy life, trading off home life and days on the sales floor with his significant other and a big hug for his kids.

Sylvie

Sylvie is a natural fit, right? She’s already Loki, and she spent most of the first season as Ginger Rogers throwing a sword at Loki’s Astaire, proving she can do anything he can, that too back and if he’s using a machete keep you If anyone could handle the responsibilities of sitting on a chair inside a tree in space more ably than Loki, it would have to be Sylvie.

Why we hope she doesn’t: Because it is the opposite of the point for her.

For all his talk about being burdened with a glorious purpose, Loki has mostly spent his life walking around. Meanwhile, Sylvie spent every day, since she was a child, running and fighting, watch the TVA if only through her rightful fear of them. His story – at least the part told in Loki — that she is demanding independence. Not looking over her shoulder, or living for anyone but herself. Her escapist fantasy life involved working at McDonalds. It meant not to worry anymore. Let her do that for a while.

That Loki version with a bicycle on his head from season 1

I do not know. It seems quite capable, right?

Why we hope it doesn’t: He has a kind Mark Millar, semi-ironic post-apocalyptic Old man Logan vibe. A lot of that has been done, right? We only need to carry it over into the multiverse because the man in charge has a subconscious crush on George Miller and a love of DIY cosplay.

Odin

Loki’s sacrifice at the end of the series follows the well-known storytelling tradition of sons echoing their fathers’ choices. In Norse stories, Odin sacrificed himself on a tree in exchange for wisdom. Bring on its MCU version back from its dusty goodbye in the run Thor: Ragnarok, and there’s a sweet scene to write about him taking Loki’s place, telling his son he’s really proud of him.

Why we hope it doesn’t: As Loki Still another storytelling tradition continues: The MCU gives perfect endings to Thor-near characters, and no one else.

Like Loki, Odin waxed poetic. Without fighting a CGI minotaur or straining to send blasts of digital glitter out of his hands, he did what parents do: he ran out of time. He told his children he loved them, and then he was gone. Even with the character’s habit of coming back from the dead several times in the comics, it would be a disservice to Odin – and Loki – to do it in the MCU.

Any of the Eternals

Be honest. Would you notice if any of the Eternals went into a tree forever?

Why we hope they don’t: Imagine 20 years from now, some third-generation MCU hero goes in search of the Time Throne to seek help from the God of Stories, and after a hard, herculean journey, Richard Madden, is sitting in a CGI easy chair. You felt bad for everyone involved.