DISCLAIMER: This recap of the Loki episode “Lamentis” is laden with spoilers. You’ve been warned. Proceed at your own peril.
Welcome back, variants! It’s hard to believe that we’re now at the halfway point in Loki. “Lamentis” appears to have garnered mixed reviews, and to that, I say, “Poo poo!” I think this episode did an excellent job of establishing a rapport between Loki and Lady Loki a.k.a. Sylvie. In-depth character work is a necessity for any TV series. We need to root for our core characters.
Otherwise, there’s no attachment, and really no stakes. Once again, Tom Hiddleston delivers the goods, and my crush on Loki has been rekindled. Hiddleston and Sophia Di Martino‘s chemistry is off the charts.
Ready to delve into “Lamentis”? Let’s get to it.
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Now, we open with Hunter C-20 (Sasha Lane) and Lady Loki (Di Martino) at an upscale restaurant. Just a pair of girlfriends out on the town! Slurping margaritas and getting sloppy! Lady Loki broaches the subject of brain freezes, and how when they occur your synapses are essentially frozen. She grills C-20 regarding the Time Keepers. How does one gain access to them?
Back at Roxxcart, we see that LL is digging into C-20’s subconscious. The restaurant scene is really an illusion. After LL gets the answer she needs, she flees through the portal into the Time Variance Authority headquarters. Loki (Hiddleston) gives chase. LL discovers that her powers are ineffective thanks to the TVA’s abhorrence of magic. Loki tracks her down in front of the elevators. LL swipes a TVA device. Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) finds them both with a pair of agents in tow.
However, LL and Loki vanish before Renslayer’s eyes. They land in an undisclosed location. Unfortunately, the TVA device LL stole that can zap them out of this timeline needs to be recharged. Loki pockets it for now. LL learns that they’re on Lamentis-1 in 2077 amid what looks like an all-out war. This moon will be destroyed by a colliding planet. They’ll die as well if they can’t find a place with substantial power to recharge the TVA device.
Meanwhile, LL tries to “enchant” Loki into doing her bidding. But Loki reminds her that his mind is too impermeable for that. We also learn that LL doesn’t go by “Loki” — her name is Sylvie (her alias in the comics is Enchantress). Oh, and her plan was going quite swimmingly until Loki showed up at Roxxcart with the TVA. That plan was years in the making.
Now, the duo forges a tenuous truce as they attempt to get off this rock destined for inevitable death and destruction. They encounter a lone woman nestled within her desolate home. She notices right away that they’re not from around these here parts. They’re “devils.” Loki attempts to transform into her long-lost husband, but that fails miserably.
But not all is lost! They learn from her that there’s an ark, a train that’ll be transporting civilians off Lamentis-1. Surely a train will harbor enough power to successfully recharge the device. Sylvie and Loki find the train station that’s currently loading passengers. It’s a Titanic situation in that the rich get priority seating. Loki morphs into a guard and weasels his way onto the train with Sylvie as his “prisoner.”
Once our dynamic duo is on the train, Loki immediately starts imbibing. Why not? Trains are for drinking! We discover that Sylvie doesn’t remember her mother. Loki discloses his fond memories of Frigga, his own mama. Next, the pair dive into their love lives.
This is the first time that Loki’s sexuality is addressed in any Marvel property. “Must’ve been would-be princesses or, perhaps, another prince,” Sylvie remarks. “A bit of both. I suspect the same for you,” Loki replies. This is exciting! We finally have a main character that’s not inherently straight.
Then, our titular god of mischief and Sylvie attempt to define love, but both come up short. Sylvie is losing steam, so she decides to nap. When she wakes up, Loki is drunkenly cavorting with the other passengers and belting out a song. This bit makes me so happy.
However, Sylvie is irritated. Not only is Loki back in his TVA clothing, but folks are starting to get suspicious of him. In fact, that woman’s presumably dead husband is actually among the crowd, and he catches Sylvie’s eye. Uh oh.
Suddenly, guards descend upon our pair. There’s some scuffling. Loki’s promptly thrown out of a window. Sylvie remembers that he has the TVA device in his pocket, so she follows him out of said window. There goes their ride (and power source)!
Next, Loki procures the device to find it utterly destroyed from his fall. Sylvie is irate. But as she storms off, our god of mischief suggests that they return to the ark. This time, they try to save it. According to Sylvie, the train never makes it off Lamentis-1, but perhaps they can change that. Hey, it’s better than sitting around and waiting to die.
Meanwhile, Sylvie finally discloses how she enchants people. Some minds are quite easy to hack, while others put up a valiant fight. She notes that C-20 was of the latter camp. In fact, she had to recreate a memory from hundreds of years ago wherein C-20 was living her life on Earth.
This gives Loki pause. He thought that the TVA workers were created by the Time Keepers. Sylvie reveals that the workers, Mobius included, are simply variants like them. Humans plucked from their lives and forced to work for the Time Variance Authority. This would explain Mobius’ obsession with jet skis. Maybe he used to ride them in his previous life. Perhaps he’s really Owen Wilson!
Later, Loki and Sylvie walk into a metropolis of sorts. Apparently, the citizens within are waiting for the ark to arrive. Explosions shake the buildings to their core. It’s absolute mayhem and madness. A handful of guards attempt to thwart our pair from their mission.
Suddenly, just as the train arrives, it’s decimated before their eyes. Well, there goes that plan. With a useless TVA device and their only means of escape destroyed, how will they avoid death?
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That cliffhanger! Considering there are three episodes left in the season, I highly doubt that we’ll see Loki and Sylvie’s brutal demise next week. But it’ll be interesting to see how they manage to escape when every plan of theirs has failed miserably.
Now, I really enjoyed watching our titular god of mischief go head-to-head with someone as intelligent as him. I’m a sucker for mental gymnastics. Di Martino imbues Sylvie with nuance and layers aplenty. While her objective still isn’t that clear, I’m curious to see if Loki will team up with her to take out the Time Keepers.
One of my favorite scenes from “Lamentis” is Loki’s shoddy metaphor for love. It’s an imaginary dagger! Additionally, inebriated Loki is now my fave Loki. I’d demolish karaoke with him.
Overall, “Lamentis” is a delightful outing with stunning visuals that are reminiscent of Guardians of the Galaxy. Since Sylvie is Loki’s creation in the comic books and she may not have existed prior, I wonder if this will be addressed at some point. Perhaps a Loki from another timeline created her. Regardless, I’m here for the ride.
New episodes of Loki will stream every Wednesday on Disney Plus.
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What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events.
Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet.
Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium.
Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
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