I think the reason Loki works so well is that's he's so great at invoking a desire for no. 2. But I think this is the sort of cake that's better to be viewed than eaten, if Loki did become good he might lose a lot of what was attractive about him in the first place. It's like will-they-won't-they relationships. We want Loki to be good which is why we keep on watching, but if he actually ever turns good then we lose that reason to care about Thor films.
I think you'd be very satisified with the arc Loki takes in Thor: The Dark World. It's neither 1 or 2 but it combines elements of both in really good ways. (In The Avengers he basically just felt like a slightly different character altogether. To the extent that there's lots of fan theories along the lines of mind control/torture etc)
In defense of the character change in the Avengers, Joss felt that Loki's experience tumbling through the space between dimensions had driven him a bit wacko, so that's why he was behaving differently. While I'm unsure as to whether or not that explanation really works, at least they were thinking about it. Overall, Loki could have been better, but he's still one of the best antagonists in the MCU.
I'm a geek.
I dunno, he's pretty much exactly like his MU counter part. He's just likeable enough to think he can be redeemed, but also too selfish to make that leap.
Loki is hands down the most obnoxious aspect of the MCU. Nothing really struck me as all that different about him, but time and again I'm reminded that he can do no wrong in the eyes of his fans. Oh well.
Tom With No Numbers, I see your point that Loki turning good would rob the franchise of a lot of its dramatic appeal. And I can also see why a redemption arc would be a bit difficult to pull off at this point. But I still maintain that Loki could be a compelling hero — or at least, could have been, before he went and killed all those people.
I agree about Loki in Thor: The Dark World; I liked him a lot better in that film than in the previous two. His character's more consistent than in Thor, but more nuanced than in The Avengers, and his actions actually make logical sense for once!
"Crisis or no, nothing should interfere with tea!"
Thanks to {{Thor: The Dark World}}, we do see him as a good guy, even if it's somewhat half-hearted. One reason Loki turns down chance after chance for forgiveness, and goes kind of wacko in The Avengers, is because some think that the staff given to him by Thanos is a form of brainwashing and influence. He talks like brainwashed Selvig and other mind controlled pawns, stating "I've seen worlds you've never known about!" I find him sympathizable in Thor, but less so in the Avengers.
Yeah, so if I could just find happiness, that'd be great.Leave a Comment:
Let's talk about Loki
We have plenty of reviews discussing Thor as a whole; I'd like to dedicate one to its most interesting and frustrating element: the villain. Superficially, Loki is just another Evil Prince, kind of like Scar. But what sets him apart from other villains is how likeable he is. While we can tell at a glance that Scar is evil, Loki spends a whole hour looking and acting like one of the good guys! His opposition to Thor — who behaves like an idiot — makes him easy to relate to. And the scene where he learns his true parentage is heartbreaking. By the time he assumes the Asgardian throne, the audience can't help but root for him.
And then it all goes wrong. Loki is revealed as deceitful, manipulative, and homicidal. Even worse, he gets stupid. He tells needless lies, and makes the same mistakes that got Thor banished. He goes from resentful to sociopathic, and from being Asgard's only sane man to its biggest nut case.
This is a remarkable waste of a great character. Loki becomes impossible to sympathise with, but too wangsty to take seriously. While menacing in The Avengers, he's kind of flatly evil — not the rounded, sympathetic villain he could have been.
In my opinion, there are two ways Loki could have been better developed:
It's too late now for the first scenario, but maybe not for the second? It's the reason I'm still holding out hope for a redemption arc.