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The situation at the TVA came to a head in the latest episode of Loki as all the key players found themselves gathered as the organization begins to crumble around them. While a last ditch plan is implemented to try and save everyone, things don't quite go as viewers may expect and leave things with more questions than answers with only two episodes left in the current season.
*Warning: This article contains spoilers for Loki Season 2, Episode 4*
Recap
Episode 4, Heart of the TVA, picks up right where 1893 left off with Miss Minutes and Renslayer in the ruined tower of He Who Remains. It is here where Miss Minutes drops the first of what will be several reveals over the course of the episode, this one being that Renslayer worked hand-in-hand with He Who Remains to both win the multi-dimensional Kang war and oversee the TVA in its heyday before wiping the memory of her and everyone else in the TVA. This revelation puts Miss Minutes and Renslayer back on the same page as they prepare to make their play to overtake the TVA.
Following this, Victor Timely arrives at the TVA and begins taking in everything when he is whisked away by Loki and Mobius to meet OB in the hopes they can find a solution that will prevent the Temporal Loom's destruction. The meeting results in a charming awkward moment between the two geniuses as they praise each other's work which, fittingly, leads to the realization each of them has half of the potential solution ready to go.
The two get to work while the rest of the characters get a moment to breathe and consider everything that has engulfed the TVA in such as a short amount of time.
Hunter B-15 uses this time to reach out to General Dox who, along with her loyal Minutemen and Brad Wolfe, are in holding for their actions at the end of episode 2. Despite their differences, B-15 extends an olive branch to Dox to rejoin the TVA and help it evolve into something better than it was.
Loki and Sylvie have their own heart-to-heart after the latter blows up at Mobius for his seemingly-laxed response to the current situation. It serves as a moment of self-reflection for Loki who, despite not living the same life as the original version, has shown a similar level of growth as a result of his time at the TVA. The message appears to start sinking in with Sylvie when things begin erupting into chaos across the TVA.
Renslayer and Miss Minutes reappear in the TVA in an attempt to recruit Dox, Wolfe, and the rest of the captive hunters. Wolfe joins on the promise of getting to return to his life as an actor on the timeline while Dox and her hunters refuse, leading to their deaths at the hands of Renslayer and Miss Minutes. Timely is taken captive shortly after as Miss Minutes begins to take over all the TVA's systems.
Loki and Sylvie rush to try and save Timely as the Loom begins to fall apart, though Miss Minutes doesn't make it easy for the pair. It is during this that it is revealed that this was the future Loki visited while time-slipping during episode 1 and that the one who pruned him was, in fact, himself.
In an effort to stop Miss Minutes, OB suggests a full reset of the TVA's systems which Loki and Sylvie are in full support due to the not-so-small point that it will remove the safeguards stopping them from using magic. The reset effectively ends Miss Minutes' threat while Sylvie is able to enchant Wolfe who, in turn, prunes Renslayer as the two gods of mischief rescue Timely and bring him back to the Temporal Loom.
Once the trio are back, the decision has to be made as to who will run out to install the fix OB and Timely crafted that could expand the Temporal Loom to handle all the new branches. Loki steps up to do the deed when Timely offers to go instead due to his familiarity with the Loom, though things don't go exactly as Loki and everyone thinks.
Review
In what has largely been a positive season with a few hiccups, especially in the second episode, Heart of the TVA may be the best episode of season two thus far.
Like episode one, episode four is very eventful as the audience's focus is pulled in multiple different directions during its first half between Hunter B-15 dealing with Dox, Timely's arrival at the TVA, and Renslayer and Miss Minutes power play to takeover the TVA. The difference this time around, though, is that episode does a better job of managing the story threads and having them weave together by the time the credits role.
The cast also get time to shine as the episode plays out, especially Tom Hiddleston and Sophia Di Martino who get only their second “heart-to-heart” of the season. However, this one hits harder than their other interactions with how it feels like a culmination of both characters' growth since the series began.
While not necessarily a negative, it is interesting how the episode has the pacing and feel of a season finale despite only being the fourth episode. It suggests there may be even bigger things set to play out before the credits hit after the actual season finale, though given how this episode ended that could be hard to beat. And with the ending in mind…
Ending Explained
Episode four's climax sees Timely step up to try and save the branching timeline and TVA from impending doom with the fix he has devised alongside OB. Despite being suited and ready to “be brave,” the radiation emanating from the loom is too much and Timely is ripped apart after only a couple of steps.
The rest of the cast watch in horror as the last hope they had to save everyone is gone and the Loom finally gives way. As the temporal energy destroys the device, Loki and the rest can only stand there an accept their ends as the shockwave nears the TVA, itself, before the episode cuts to black just as it make impact.
While the ending feels akin to the kind of cliffhanger a season closes out on, it sets the stage for what is likely to be an eventful final two episodes for Loki and the rest of the TVA. It is not clear who, if anyone, will survive the Loom's destruction and what effect Timely's fate could have on the larger universe.
Should You Stream Loki Season 2, Episode 4?
Heart of the TVA is easily one of the best episodes of the entire series and should be considered a must watch for the season, standing alongside season one's Journey Into Mystery. Going beyond that, the episode appears to be giving a small preview of where the larger MCU may be headed, especially with teases by Kevin Feige about the MCU's future and a potential reset following Secret Wars.
Loki Season 2 is currently streaming on Disney+.
