Though Avengers: Infinity War seemingly ended with the Mad Titan holding the stone-encrusted upper hand, you don’t have to look hard on any given Marvel forum to find a theory positing that the other shoe is about to drop. While much of this Avengers 4 speculation centers around Doctor Strange and his mysterious plan to steer Earth’s Mightiest Heroes towards their prophesized victory, other fans prefer to focus on another seemingly deceased character known to pull a trick or two.
We are, of course, referring to Thor’s brother and former big bad of the Avengers saga, Loki. Though many a viewer has questioned the legitimacy of his apparent death at the hands of Thanos, others have suggested that Loki did indeed die, but with a hidden motive in mind.
Just take this recent theory, which has earned the praise of ScreenGeek. According to one Reddit user, the God of Mischief’s futile attack on Thanos with a mere knife was launched with full awareness that his target would retaliate by killing him. In other words, Loki’s death was effectively a suicide – but to what end?
Well, according to Norse mythology, the character’s noble death in battle would send him to the heavenly realm of Valhalla. From here, Loki would be in a position to take advice from Asgard’s greatest warriors, and as Thor: Ragnarok demonstrated, he would then be able to relay this critical information to the world of the living to assist in the fight against Thanos.
On top of that, it’s said that Loki considered the opening sequence of Infinity War to be a particularly opportune moment to die, since his own demise would make it more likely that the balance-loving Thanos would spare the life of his brother Thor, who will apparently play an important role in taking down the intergalactic tyrant.
We’ve certainly heard similar explanations in the past for Loki’s alleged death wish, but this theory still serves as an endearingly fleshed-out variation on the suicide idea. Of course, whether or not Marvel Studios has such a twist in mind is another matter entirely, but we’ll find out if there’s life after death for Loki when Avengers 4 comes out on May 3rd, 2019.