‘Loki’ Fans Aren’t Happy With a Noticeable, Annoying Change to the Main Character
Marvel fans have had a lot to be excited about this year. With the MCU finally returning to theaters recently with the release of Black Widow, fans are excited to delve into what the future holds for their favorite Marvel characters. While the Marvel series on Disney+ started for many fans as a way to cope with delayed theatrical releases, hit after hit out of the streaming service has some fans awaiting the next series release as much as the next film release.
In many fans’ eyes, Loki set the bar for MCU productions to new heights with its in-depth themes, big-budget effects, and nuanced storyline. Some fans, however, have been quick to point out some ways that Marvel may have altered the character a bit for his translation to the small-screen.
Loki on Disney+
Loki wasn’t a series that many fans ever thought to ask for, and it was a bit of a shock when it was announced. Fans had seen the character die in Avengers: Infinity War years ago, but thanks to some time travel shenanigans in Avengers: Endgame the character (well, a version of the character) was able to return in an all-new feature series.
Loki took as many unexpected turns as you’d expect from the god of mischief, and fans loved the stark contrast from Marvel’s prior storytelling. While the tone of the show was often closer to the awkward humor of Loki and Thor in the latter’s franchise, the show’s formula and style were notably different from any feature film in the MCU.
This was also the case with WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, so it seems that Marvel has made clear that experimentation with different film techniques and bold directions are definitely on the table on Disney+.
Just a few changes
Many fans have loved Loki, and with a total score of 92% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, critics have also largely praised its bold direction and subversion of expectations. Some fans, however, have some issues with changes made to Loki’s powers between the films and his series.
On Reddit in a discussion about how Loki’s previously seen super strength was mysteriously missing from the series, one commenter points out:
“My guess is since we’re unlikely to see Thor level threats for most of this maybe none at all, they kinda nerfed Loki’s physical abilities to retain some sense of danger. Otherwise, he’d just be swatting humans aside like flies.”
Another user was quick to point out that this has been pretty normal for the Disney+ shows, saying:
“We just had a show where the WINTER SOLDIER got bi***-tossed in every single fight. They’ve been pretty consistent with the nerf bat for these shows.”
While this may be the case, many fans are pointing to an incident where Loki gets apprehended by guards and tossed off of a train as proof that he has no super strength. As another fan remarked:
“Lamentis is part of the Kree territory or something like that in the comics, so those people might be pretty strong. Also, those guards inside the train threw Loki very far, I don’t think I’ve seen someone like Black Widow displaying that kind of strength.”
It is true that may be pretty tough to gauge Loki’s strength level while he’s fighting an unknown race of aliens on the other side of the galaxy.
Still very super-powered
Despite fans’ complaints that he’s not whomping alien guards on trains easily enough, Loki displayed a pretty ridiculous level of power in the series. We of course saw his trademark duplicate casting and illusion projection, but we also saw him use telekinesis several times. On one occasion, we even saw Loki lift a falling skyscraper momentarily in what CBR called “his most powerful act yet.”
We also eventually saw our — or rather our new version of Loki learn enchantment from his alternate reality alter ego Sylvie. Now in addition to having super strength, super durability, illusions, and telekinesis, this Loki can control minds.
There will of course be more to see of Loki’s powers as the MCU continues on, especially now that Loki season 2 has been announced. With or without super strength, pretty much all Marvel fans are excited to see more of this Loki’s story.
