Burning Sylvie Questions

It’s no secret I LOVED the Loki series, and I spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about it, lol. Some of the things that I think about concerns Sylvie, and while we all still have questions about her and her life, I thought I’d articulate mine here:

Did Sylvie have Thor for a brother? We only have a little bit of information about Sylvie’s childhood, and she herself says she doesn’t remember a lot. One thing she doesn’t mention is Thor for a brother. In fact, I get the feeling she was an only child. Adopted, yes, and Odin and Frigga told her she was adopted (unlike Loki). But she never talks about siblings, which is something I think she’d remember. Without a brother like Thor to compete with (as Loki did continuously), her childhood was probably idyllic. Probably why she’s so furious it was taken away from her, understandably.
What was Sylvie’s nexus event? This is an obvious question that we have no answer for, but we can speculate. She must have done something to cause the TVA to come after her. I’ve seen fans consider the idea that Sylvie (probably as a result of her happy childhood; see above) was on track to be a good Loki–in other words, a Loki who doesn’t cause trouble, who isn’t a villain that makes others become their best selves. And the Sacred Timeline demanded that Loki do this, that he/she be the villain. I feel like there’s more to it than that, though. Sylvie asks Renslayer what her nexus event was, and Renslayer replies, “I don’t remember.” But we know darn well she remembers, she’s just not saying. Ironically, if Sylvie was going to be a good Loki, it’s that very thing that causes the TVA to rip her from her childhood and create the vengeful, perhaps even selfish, being that she is. They created a monster that tore them down, out of something good.
Does Sylvie really love Loki? Clearly, the mission has always been more important to Sylvie than anything or anyone else. She’s focused like a laser on her vengeance. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t have feelings for Loki (grudgingly). But it seemed to me at first that Loki had more feelings for her than she had for him, and it didn’t bode well. I just knew his heart was going to get broken, lol. When Loki gets pruned right in front of her, there’s almost no emotion on her face. And he was just about to bear his soul to her, and she had no idea what he was talking about, lol. Later, when she’s talking to Renslayer, Renslayer says “What if I told you we could get Loki back?” Sylvie says she doesn’t believe her, but even so, how will that help her find who’s behind the TVA? Or when she’s in the car with Mobius, and he says maybe Loki is still alive, she replies “It doesn’t matter.” She’s so focused on the mission, I just don’t see any room for love. Yeah, she kisses him, but was it real or just to distract him while she grabbed the tempad to throw him back to the TVA? Believe me, my sentimental heart wants to believe that she does love him–in her own way, I guess. But Loki wanted nothing more than for her to be okay, and she–well, she threw him away. It all makes me want to get on board with the Loki/Mobius shippers, lol. On the other hand, when Renslayer asks her if she has any good memories, Sylvie replies “Just one, really.” And we’re to assume it was the moment she and Loki held hands and looked into each other’s eyes on Lamentis, seconds away from destruction and death. So my verdict is that she cares for him, but isn’t willing to go any farther than that, at least until the mission was finished–when she killed He Who Remains. But after? We’ll have to see in Season Two!

Those are my main questions about Sylvie, and I really hope we get more answers and insight in Season Two. Hurry up, Disney+!

My Entertainment Weekend Update

Happy weekend, my Star Wars friends!

So I’m still working on two books, Out of the Shadows and I Was Anastasia. It’s taking me a while because I’ve started another Loki book called Truth and Other Lies, by Lyra Wolf (what can I say, I’m obsessed, lol). It’s another mythical version of Loki, with all the usual players, just mixed up a little bit differently. It also borders on the paranormal romance with quite a few racy sex scenes. I don’t mind it, but it’s not exactly what I was expecting when I picked up the book, lol. The storyline is keeping me interested, though. It’s the first in a trilogy, and I have the first two on my Kindle, and pre-ordered the third, so I guess I have high hopes, lol. I may do a separate post on all the Loki books I’ve been reading, so stay tuned.

Speaking of Loki, I just finished watching the Loki series for the fourth time. I did say I was obsessed, lol. And so did I notice anything I missed during the first three viewings? Not really (although I’m sure there are plenty of easter eggs I don’t know about), except to realize that Loki is clearly more mischievous in this show than he was in the movies. In the films, he’s a trickster–which is similar but not quite the same–but mostly he’s a villain, an anguished family member, or a wise-ass. He’s angry a lot. But as the God of Mischief, you’d think there would be more tomfoolery. And in the show, we do get glimpses of this: when he plays around with the time device with Hunter B-15, clearly taking joy in tormenting her with it; when he and Mobius are in Pompei, and he just throws caution to the wind, exclaiming on top of the goat cart; and on the train on Lamentis, when he gets drunk and sings. These are just delightful moments, worthy of Loki’s elemental nature, which is just plain fun, and the show gave the creators time to explore that.

I also watched the latest What If? episode, which saw an assassin take out the Avengers one by one. At first I thought maybe it was Loki, but it didn’t quite make sense. It surprised me who it turned out to be; and Loki did make his appearance, at first to avenge Thor’s death, and then to help Nick Fury nab the killer. And then, of course, to take over Midgard, lol. It was a neat episode, as they all are. Fun little nuggets of Marvel.

In more Marvel news, I did catch the Spiderman: No Way Home trailer, after the whole leak debacle. I was more excited about seeing Dr. Strange in it than anything else, but he looked a bit…off, lol. Sweatpants? Snow in the Sanctum? And actually helping Peter with his request to change the fact that people knew who he was? It’s just all wrong. Is he an imposter? A variant? Possessed? What the hell’s going on? Very excited to see him, though, no matter how weird he is.

Finally, in the Star Wars universe, I watched the Mandalorian Gallery on Disney+ on the final episode of Season Two. You know, the one with Luke freaking Skywalker. Very cool, very fun to watch how they put it all together. I had no idea how they brought back a young Luke, except, you know, “technology.” The details are fascinating, and a bit bewildering. It’s so much work! And we are so glad and very lucky we have these dedicated people bringing our favorite characters to life, with so much care and respect. That’s why I love these behind-the-scenes specials, because it’s easy for us to take for granted the amazing shows we watch. But there’s literally an army’s worth of people, tons of talent, and painstaking work behind these shows and films, and I’m awed and thankful at all these souls who bring us such joy. So yeah, check it out if you can, lol.

That’s it for this week. What have you been up to? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

My Star Wars Weekend Update

Happy weekend my Star Wars friends!

So this week I’ve done my usual attempt to keep up at my reading, and not quite getting where I’d like to be, lol. I did finish the middle-grade book “A Test of Courage,” by Justina Ireland, and it was quite good and kept my interest despite being for kids. I just can’t seem to make any headway with The Rising Storm, for some reason. Well, I am about halfway done with it, but it feels like I haven’t gotten to the good parts yet. At this rate I don’t think I’ll be finished with it by the time the next High Republic YA novel comes out later this month (Out of the Shadows, by Justina Ireland).

But that’s okay. I’ve decided that for the rest of the summer, I’m going to dial it back on the blogging, and just read, watch Marvel movies, and spend time with my family. Soon enough, my daughter will be back in school, and we have a list of things we’d like to do this summer before that happens. Which includes going to the lake and sitting on the beach reading books!

And now that Loki is done (my brief thoughts on that below), I’ve decided I need to catch up on the rest of the Marvel movies if I’m going to watch going forward. Because it seems like what happened in this series will tie into the movies in the future, including Ant Man and Dr. Strange, and I haven’t watched those yet, just the ones with Loki in them. So last night I began with the first Iron Man movie, and will continue with ALL the Marvel movies (and Wandavision and the Falcon and the Winter Soldier) until I catch up. That’s a lot of hours, lol. And it seems like summer is a great time to do it, since there’s not a lot of Star Wars going on except the Bad Batch, and whatever books I’m reading.

So not too many posts from me for the next month or two, but I will probably do a weekend update sort of thing, just riffing on what I’ve been reading and watching. I haven’t been doing much with the podcast recently, either. I just feel uninspired there, and it bores even me, lol. I’m hoping by fall I’ll have a new plan, new ideas, new inspiration for the blogs. Once my daughter goes back to school, I’ll have more time.

So–Loki! OMFG, what an amazing series. Loki is, by far, the most interesting Marvel character to me, and I just love where he’s gone in this show. And that finale–so not what I expected, but I really had no idea what to expect anyway. It had way more talking and less action than I thought there would be, but it didn’t matter–I was glued to the screen. And my heart is utterly broken for Loki, who now finally understands what it means to be betrayed (tricked? I’m not sure which word to use here), how much it hurts. It’s a lesson he inevitably needed to learn, but my heart aches for him, anyway. And what a hot mess the universe is now (thanks a lot, Sylvie!). And now Mobius doesn’t even know him. He is, as always at the end, alone. But I think he’s ready to do what what’s right, what needs to be done to make it right. I think so, anyway, lol. Can’t wait for season two. What did you think of the series?

Loki' Season 1 Ending Explained - What Happened in 'Loki' Finale? — Loki’s always been a little broken, but not like this. Feels!

What have you been up to lately? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!