Is Loki already setting up the Young Avengers with Kid Loki?
A mysterious little boy could set up another variant twist in Marvel's latest Disney Plus series
There’s a new kid on the block in more ways than one this week, with the first episode of Loki arriving on Disney Plus to open the door to a whole multiverse of possibilities.
Much like WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki is part of a cohesive slate of shows and movies that tie the Marvel Cinematic Universe together in Phase 4. And at the moment, the MCU is seemingly working toward the formation of a New Avengers to replace those lost during Endgame, while elsewhere there are reports that everyone from the Dark Avengers to the Young Avengers are waiting in the wings.
And on this theme Loki might’ve just introduced a cunning candidate for the Young Avengers in the form of Kid Loki.
You see, while Michael Waldron’s series rattled through explainers of Nexus Events, the Time Variance Authority and proper use of Infinity Stone paperweights, it was also quick to tease its own endgame. The first scene with Owen Wilson’s Mobius M. Mobius featured the TVA agent hunting a rogue variant to 1549 France. Here, a small boy pointed to a stained glass window featuring a devil - which would’ve been the perfect time to open a can of Mephisto theories. But instead, we've got a different tinfoil hat on this time.
Who is Kid Loki?
The little boy was given some blue gum by the rogue variant, which we’re sure will play out as more than just an Easter egg further down the line. But what's important for now is that instead of Mephisto being the de facto villain, it looks like the “devil” of this series is actually Loki with his horned headdress.
Returning to the little boy, what if this angel-faced addition is actually Kid Loki from the comics? For those unfamiliar with their Marvel arcs, Kid Loki was introduced in 2010’s Thor #610. After adult Loki was killed in a botched assault on Asgard, he woke up in a younger form and later had his memory restored by Thor. And in that story, it just so happens that Kid Loki was tracked down by the God of Thunder to France (specifically Paris) - insert side-eye emoji here.
Although the boy in Loki could simply be an unnamed extra, the concept of Kid Loki has some important ramifications for the franchise’s future. Since Avengers: Endgame reintroduced an older Cassie Lang, the MCU has slowly been building a roster of Young Avengers. WandaVision added Billy and Tommy to the mix as Wiccan and Speed, while The Falcon and the Winter Soldier teased Elijah Bradley's future as Patriot. Added to this, Hawkeye has Hailee Steinfeld's Kate Bishop and Ironheart is set to introduce Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) as the hero of the same name.
Much like the main Avengers line-up, the Young Avengers has changed a lot over the years, however, Kid Loki has been a staple alongside all of the above.
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How could Kid Loki fit into Loki?
Even if the young boy wasn’t Kid Loki, we don’t expect the God of Mischief will be alone for long. The Loki premiere ended with another TVA team falling victim to the series’ big bad, which we’re guessing will be a rogue Loki from a different reality. Like Paul Bettany playing classic Vision and White Vision in WandaVision, Hiddleston could be pulling double duty. That being said, it’s likely that the person under the hood is a different version of Loki. They’re seemingly too tall to be Kid Loki, but that doesn’t mean a junior God of Mischief isn’t part of the series’ overarching villain plot.
It’s unclear how Loki will play with the idea of multiple Lokis, but remember, there are swirling rumours that Sophia Di Martino is playing a female version of the trickster god as Lady Loki. And perhaps instead of introducing these characters as iterations of the OG Loki in different bodies, they could be Lokis from different timelines. For a while now, theorists have guessed that the crux of the story will follow Hiddleston’s Loki, working with the TVA to apprehend multiple (alternate) Lokis who are messing with the timeline. If this is the case, it leaves room for Kid Loki, Lady Loki, and Richard E. Grant’s rumoured role as Old Man Loki.
Whether it’s too early to introduce Kid Loki or not, there are more possibilities than timelines for how/when the character will make his MCU debut. Certainly, Loki is already living up to its hype as being one of the wackiest Marvel outfits to date.
With OG Loki before his redemptive turn, Lady Loki, and possibly Kid Loki all in the TVA’s crosshairs, we can’t wait to see where this timeline trickery takes us next.
Loki episode one is streaming now on Disney Plus – for more information see our Loki release schedule guide. To watch, you can sign up to Disney Plus for £7.99 a month or £79.90 a year now.
Check out more of our Sci-Fi and Fantasy coverage, as well as our guides to the best movies on Disney Plus and best shows on Disney Plus. Looking for something else to watch? Check out our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.
