The Mid-Season Slump?: Loki Episodes 3 – 4 Review

Regarding the Marvel Disney+ shows, Loki has had the strongest start. With an engaging mystery, universe building implications, and fun characters, it’s been a fun ride. And while these shows are a successful venture for Marvel and a great way to universe build…they are still shows. And with shows they sometimes fall into those trappings of being an episode story. Has that happened with Loki? Yes… a little bit. Let’s dive in and talk about it. Usually, I try to dance around spoilers as much as possible, but we need it here to discuss both the highs and lows so… *WARNING SPOILERS AHEAD* Skip to the last paragraph for the wrap-up if you don’t want spoilers.

The Mid-Season Slump is Real We’re just going to jump straight into it. Episode 3 is by far the weakest episode. It’s used to introduce the variant Loki we’ve been chasing so far, who turns out to be a female version who’s name is Slyvie (Sophia Di Martino). Slyvie is very different from the Loki we know and brings in her own chaotic energy to the table. It’s just that, at first, it’s a very “by the books” TV interaction. Slyvie is a justifiably angry person but in this episode it’s all very surface. “You’re annoying, and I don’t like you” is pretty much the whole character in the episode, and we know Marvel is capable of deeper character development. While she does drop some meaningful info such as the TVA being brainwashed and full of variants like themselves, this character needs to be more than a lore dump.

The…