This article contains spoilers for Loki.
The long-awaited season finale of Loki premiered on Disney Plus on Wednesday and answered several fan questions, while leading to many new ones and ending off at a massive cliffhanger. Though most of the episode was carried forward by powerful monologues and dialogues, something Loki seemed to have perfected over the course of six episodes, the series finale did prove a major fan theory to be true.
Even before the series premiered, many fans were convinced that Kang the Conqueror would be making an appearance in the highly-anticipated Marvel show and would go on to be the main villain of Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Jonathan Majors was cast to play Kang in the upcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania film and fans believed he would be introduced in Loki. After weeks of speculating, the finale was a satisfying end for these fans as the series officially brought Kang (or a version of him) into the MCU.
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Loki lived up to fans’ expectations, unlike its predecessor WandaVision. When the first Disney Plus series premiered, the most prominent fan theory was that the devil Mephisto from the comics would be revealed as the big villain. In the comics, it is revealed that Wanda’s twins, Billy and Tommy, were created from fragments of Mephisto’s soul. After she discovers the truth, Agatha wipes Wanda’s memories in order to spare her from the pain of losing her children. The twins appear on WandaVision, which led many to believe that Mephisto’s introduction was around the corner. They were evidently wrong.
When the series ended, several fans expressed their disappointment over the fact that the show had failed to introduce a major villain that would go on to create havoc during Phase 4 of the MCU. Agatha Harkness was revealed as the series’ villain instead. The powerful witch from the comics was out to pick up a few tricks from Wanda, who finally came into her own and became the Scarlet Witch that fans have been wanting to see since Wanda’s first appearance in the MCU.
So far, fans had only seen Thanos reach the highest caliber of villains in the MCU, wherein he was able to bring The Avengers down to their knees. But, following his death, there was no one else left to fill that void. With WandaVision having ended, the big villain of Phase 4 had still not made an appearance and fans hoped that the next Disney Plus series would perhaps fill that void. However, following in the footsteps of WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier failed to introduce a big bad, but did bring forth U.S. Agent.
However, what the two previous Marvel series failed to achieve, Loki managed to do so in its six-episode run. In fact, not only did the season finale manage to offer fans the one thing that they had been theorizing over, but also introduced the Multiverse, a concept that has been teased for a long time. Everything from episode 1 was leading up to the big reveal of the man behind the curtain, and Marvel’s decision to deliver on the fan theory and hype is definitely the right one.
As fans theorized, Kang the Conqueror will be the one that could create a reason big enough in the MCU’s future to have The Avengers assemble once again. The clues were there all along, and keen-eyed comic book lovers continued to spot them as the series progressed. While WandaVision only teased the arrival of Mephisto with its subtle hints, Loki delivered on all the clues and perfectly set up Kang’s MCU debut.
Some of the reasons fans believed that Kang would arrive at the end of Loki’s season 1 were the significant presence of Judge Ravonna Renslayer, who plays Kang’s love interest in the comics, the introduction of Alioth, who in the comics is connected to Kang in a complicated way, and the discovery of a weapon from the 31st Century in 19th Century Oklahoma. Social media and Reddit forums were overrun with conversations about said discoveries and fans awaited the arrival of the next supervillain. Had Marvel decided to go a different way, it would have disappointed thousands of fans around the world. But, confirming Kang’s arrival in the MCU has only led to positive feedback for the series and a more loyal fan base moving forward.
The Loki series finale, “For All Time. Always.” begins with Loki and Sylvie arriving at the Citadel and, much to their surprise, coming face-to-face with Miss Minutes, the Time Variance Authority’s clock mascot. There was another running theory about how Miss Minutes would definitely be involved in some way with whoever is running things at the TVA, and the finale proved it to be correct as well. She was in fact in cahoots with the man behind the curtain the whole time.
She tries to strike a deal with the two Loki Variants, offering them a chance to return to the sacred timeline with a few changes. Not only would they both be able to coexist on the same timeline, but Loki will finally be able to win the Battle of New York and become the ruler he has always wanted to be, while Sylvie wouldn’t have to be on the run anymore and live a life with happy memories. Rejecting this tempting offer, the two Lokis then progress into the main chambers where they meet Jonathan Majors’s Kang, or at least one of the Kang Variants.
This version of the popular Marvel villain, known as He Who Remains, informs the Loki Variants that he is just one of many Kangs in the Multiverse. He then goes on to explain the Multiversal War and how he used Alioth to end it and went on to protect the sacred timeline. If they kill him, they will expose the timeline, inviting the other Kang Variants to once again go to war and completely destroy the peace in the Multiverse. While he manages to convince Loki, Sylvie isn’t affected by his story and stabs him to his death, after sending Loki back to the TVA through a time portal.
Back at the TVA, Loki is seen rushing through the halls and finally coming across Agent Mobius M. Mobius and Hunter B-15. As he informs them of the incidents that occurred at the Citadel, it becomes obvious to the God of Mischief that the timeline is already broken as Mobius doesn’t even recognize him and the Time Keepers’ statues at the TVA have been replaced by one that looks like Kang.
While both WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier played their roles in the introduction of Phase 4 of the MCU, Loki has proven with its season finale that it is largely responsible for launching the MCU’s next phase. Fans are guaranteed to see Majors in the MCU again, with possibly multiple Kang Variants arriving in the future. Also, living up to fan expectations only increases the series, and in turn the MCU’s, fan following moving forward. It’s a win-win situation for Marvel and the fans.
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