WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Loki Episode 1, “Glorious Purpose,” streaming now on Disney+.
Perhaps one of the most ambitious projects in worldbuilding for the Marvel Cinematic Universe thus far is the new Disney+ series Loki. However, the whole new dimension in the familiar universe comes with some unsettling implications. The Time Variance Authority, aka the TVA, isn’t just mind-bogglingly powerful — they’re actually really depressing. This is best encapsulated by a throwaway gag in Loki‘s premiere episode.
The mindless bureaucracy of the TVA proves almost immediately funny as it undermines Loki’s sense of entitlement and power. As the Asgardian declares himself an unstoppable god, his attempts to assert his will are frustrated at every turn by the dull process of paperwork and protocol. The agents he comes into contact with pay little mind to anything he says, and as the episode unfolds, it turns out that they may not have much of a mind in the first place. This is best exemplified by Agent Casey, who reveals he doesn’t even know what a fish is.
The moment comes from a threat Loki makes to the desk jockey, saying he will gut Casey like a fish, to which Casey responds, “What’s a fish?” Loki is baffled that Casey does not know what the commonplace animal is. But Casey offers the explanation that his existence takes place almost entirely behind his desk. The sheer absurdity of the moment and its immediate undercutting of Loki’s attempts to seem threatening are hilarious. But as the joke subsides and the viewer thinks a bit more about it — the implications are depressing.
Just as in the comics, it seems the TVA staff were solely created by the Time-Keepers for the purpose of tending to their task, exclusively limiting their lives to work and giving them very little worldview outside that. It seems that different agents have varying degrees of cognitive function as those who work in the field, like Agent Mobius, have a far greater fluency in the world than the relatively clueless Casey.
An earlier joke in the episode hints at the sophistication of the artificial intelligence the TVA comes into contact with as the agency subjects Loki to a test that will identify whether or not he is a robot. It almost seems cruel to create life like Casey to attend to such robotic tasks if artificial intelligence is an option. In glimpsing the depressing monotony of Casey’s life, it becomes apparent that these Time-Keepers may not be the benevolent custodians of the timeline that they seem to be.
There will doubtless be more of Agent Casey and further insights into the lives of the TVA agents ahead. There are many disturbing and existential questions yet to be answered, but if Loki continues as it began, those answers may only grow ever darker and disturbing.
Loki stars Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Owen Wilson as Mobius M. Mobius, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Lexus Renslayer, Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15 and Sophia Di Martino, Richard E. Grant, Sasha Lane and Eugene Cordero. The series premieres June 9 on Disney+
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