Loki: Season 2 Review

It has to be said Loki season 2 isn't really interested in getting new viewers but is more concerned with simply getting on with its story as the mischievous god returns to Disney+.

Thankfully with the addition of an exuberant and joyous Ke Huay Quan to add to the comedic potential of the latest and Jonathan Majors in a more vulnerable role than has been witnessed before, the series has fresh new elements to entice even if it feels a little slight in parts.

(It also has one of the most egregious product placements ever witnessed and is a real shock to see how low Disney will stoop throughout.)

Picking up from the end of season 1, and with the Time Variance Agency threatening to be ripped apart, there's less chance for malevolence in Loki's return, and more chance to dive into the kind of timey-wimey shenanigans you'd expect to see in Doctor Who. 

It affords Tom Hiddleston more of a chance to play dramatic than comedic as he, along with Owen Wilson's Mobius, race through time periods to try and save the day. Spoiler restrictions prevent too much discussion on their adventures, but much of what transpires in Loki Season 2 (in the four of the six episodes screened) feels more internalised and slight rather than the usual Marvel multiversal fare - which is odd, given much of the danger threatens millions of lives, none of which are ever glimpsed.

The tighter story edges gift the show focus though, and there's a taut brisk quality to the storytelling across each episode - though it has to be said Majors' debut in the third proves to be utterly compelling fare, given how he imbues a carny shyster with such nervous vulnerability and a stutter that it feels like Major's giving something different to the screen this time around.

There's more of an ensemble feel to proceedings, and while Hiddleston fades a little, and Wilson has scant to work with other than a prospect that he has a life out of the agency, the gel holds it all together. And you simply can't deny Quan's infectious energy as know-it-all technician OB; every scene of his is a delight and a reminder of what he can bring to the roles he inhabits.

Thankfully Hiddleston remains as charismatic as the seemingly unsettled Norse God in this latest, but there is ultimately a feeling that Marvel's playing it a little safe with this sophomore batch of ultimately enjoyable episodes.

Loki: Season 2 Review