Warning: The article contains spoilers for Loki season 2, episode 1.
Oh boy, what a wild ride! Even though we knew that Loki was the star of the show and would not be “lost to time” as the delightfully clueless yet all-knowing O.B morbidly announced, it was hard to keep our heart from racing as he slowly inched towards the ringing phone, still stuck in the future and unable to find a Time Stick to prune himself to escape. Thankfully, at the last second, someone prunes him and he is back in the present, with Mobius. But, after you were done sagging with relief, the question crept in – who pruned Loki in the future and why was Sylvie there? You struck gold again, mister because I have the answer.
Just to get it out of the way — the original “out of time and space” TVA (which stands for the Time Variance Authority) is not so much free of the tangles of time after all. There is a past, present, and future for the TVA as well. And second, we can rest assured that Loki is not done Time-slipping as the various trailers and promos have revealed scenes of the same that are yet to make an appearance. Maybe he will consciously harness the power of Time-slipping to stop Kang.
So, what do we know? According to O.B.’s really dangerous plan, Loki had to separate himself from every timeline by pruning himself as soon as the light on that pocket watch turned green. But as he Time-Slipped into the future, he left the Time Stick behind. Just as he gives up, a telephone around the corridor starts ringing. The dejected Loki is drawn to it and as he stares at it in curiosity, the elevator in front of it is pried open by Sylvie. But before he can say anything, he is pruned, which fulfills O.B.’s plan, sending Loki back to the present.
Who was the one holding the Time Stick in Loki?
Sylvie? Nope, she was in front of him. Also, as he is pruned away, we see that the Time Stick is behind him. This leaves a lot of possibilities — Mobius, a revenge-seeking Renslayer, maybe O.B.?
But the answer is in the name of the episode — “Ouroboros.”
“Ouroboros” technically means a serpent eating its own tail, thus representing an infinite loop. It is O.B.’s full name as well and I am sure his getting this mysterious name will have significant implications down the line. But this episode serves to reveal that it was the future Loki who pruned the present Loki.
It is a classic infinite loop — if the future Loki doesn’t prune the past Loki, he would not exist. The future Loki is the only one who is aware of where his past self will be looking for a Time Stick, which also answers that he is the one ringing the phone to ensure that he draws out the lost Loki in time. I mean look at it this way — had the severely paranoid Sylvie who somehow trusts only Loki (the whole He Who Remains fiasco aside) seen someone else behind him, would she look that relaxed and confirm that she was actively looking for him?
Loki season 2 episodes air every Thursday on Disney Plus.
