Loki TV show's timeline explained: Making sense of the alternate timelines

Of course, this could cause some confusion for viewers, particularly among more casual fans of the MCU that have already seen Loki "die" on three separate occasions.

Fortunately, RadioTimes.com is here to clear things up, so read on for your full breakdown of the Loki TV series timeline.

What timeline is the Loki TV series in?

The Loki television series will primarily take place outside of the main MCU timeline, where the mysterious organisation known as the Time Variance Authority is based.

Loki is forced into working for the bureaucratic group, which is responsible for maintaining the proper flow of time and correcting inconsistencies where they occur.

The series is very much part of the MCU, with head writer Michael Waldron hinting that its effects will be felt in upcoming blockbuster Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

However, in another sense, it is separate as it does not follow the same sequential timeline as most previous projects from Marvel Studios, with an eye to creating a lot more chaos (or should that be mischief?).

Did Loki create an alternative timeline?

Not exactly. So, as we all remember, Loki died (for the third time) in 2018's Avengers: Infinity War, after a noble (but failed) attempt to take down Thanos single-handedly.

That seemed to be a definitive end to the character's story until sequel film Endgame gave the Asgardian another chance at life, during the Avengers mismanaged trip back in time to 2012.

While there, the modern day Avengers attempted to retrieve the Tesseract – aka one of the Infinity Stones – but after their plan was derailed by an angry Hulk, Loki got his hands on the item and teleported off to whereabouts unknown.

This act of misbehaviour landed him on the radar of the TVA, as it created a contradiction in the so-called Sacred Timeline of the Marvel Universe.

In this sense, Loki did not create an alternate timeline so much as he broke the existing one, which was promptly corrected when he was apprehended for his trickery.

Read more: Meet the cast of Loki on Disney Plus

Is Loki a prequel?

No. While the time-travelling narrative may muddy the waters a little bit, Marvel Studios have been very clear that Loki takes place after the events of Avengers: Endgame.

However, the Loki variant featured in the show is from an earlier point in the timeline, having fled the events of 2012 in the aforementioned Endgame sequence.

For this reason, you can expect this particular God of Mischief to be more overtly villainous and unpredictable than that which we saw in Thor: Ragnarok and Infinity War.

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Where does Loki TV series fit in the MCU?

In the ongoing timeline of the MCU, Loki technically takes place after the events of Avengers: Endgame, although the time travel nature of the storyline means that it could revisit other points in the timeline.

Check out our comprehensive guide to the Marvel movies order if you want more information on how to watch the Marvel films in the best possible way.

Loki premieres on Disney Plus on Wednesday 9th June - 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.

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