The first season of Disney+’s Loki took the pop culture world by storm during its release through its inventive narrative style, tight plotting, unique characterization, and ample fan service and world-building moments. Initially turning out to be an oddball of a series, Loki was the only major venture of MCU to have maintained the scope of the big picture, as not only did it continue exploring some of the farthest corners of the MCU in the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame, it also set a proper course for the future of the franchise. The first season of the series was part of the fourth phase of the MCU’s overarching narrative, as it officially introduced Kang as the big bad of the ongoing Multiverse saga. Adding to that how each of the six episodes of the first season kept viewers on their toes by never committing to expectations, season two of Loki was undoubtedly something fans have been waiting for with bated breath.
Looking back at the first episode of the second season recently released on Disney+, it can be stated that the exploration of TVA continues as a means of furthering the time-related conundrums, which have been the focal point of the Multiverse saga so far. Among the few characters who have already been introduced in the first episode, the most intriguing one was definitely the TVA R&A chief, Ouroboros, whose role in the future of the so-called timekeeping organization will be significant. Let’s discuss whatever we learned about the character and, additionally, all the time-related confusing shenanigans we were introduced to in the first episode.
Why Did Mobius Bring Loki To O.B.?
Ever since getting thrown out of the Citadel at the End of Time by Sylvie, or more precisely, after the death of He Who Remains, Loki has been pulled across various points of the timestream. The reason for this particular occurrence remains unknown, and in the midst of this, preparing for an upcoming catastrophe (caused by the uprising of Kang and his variants) gets delayed as well. Initially, Mobius urges him to seek help from Miss Minutes, the A.I. assistant of TVA, but Loki forbids him from doing so as he knows it can’t be trusted due to its complete adherence to He Who Remains. Mobius then takes him to Ouroboros, or apparently, as he used to call him, O.B., the head of TVA’s R&A department, to discern Loki’s condition and find a remedy.
Fans were eager to see Ke Huy Quan being a part of yet another multiverse after Everything Everywhere All At Once as he took on the role of Ouroboros, and quite expectedly, throughout the first episode, his character remains the most interesting part of this season so far. The quirky, mild-mannered chief techie of TVA has forever been busy with an unending tirade of tech-related problems and feels relieved at the sight of a familiar face (Mobius) after almost four hundred years. However, Mobius fails to recollect any occurrence of his previous encounter with O.B., and in hindsight, viewers realize exactly what happened. Earlier in the same episode, it was shown that Loki’s initial arrival in the past and his attempt to warn TVA about Kang’s uprising supposedly alarmed He Who Remains, who changed TVA’s appearance to suit the Timekeeper narrative. While doing so, He Who Remains had mind-wiped all the denizens of the organization, perhaps except O.B., who was spared due to reasons unknown. This is the reason why Mobius is unable to recall his previous meeting with O.B. or basically anything about the R&A department.
What Might Be The Possible Role Of O.B.?
The symbol Ouroboros represents eternity, an unending cycle symbolized by the imagery of a serpent consuming itself; similarly, O.B. unwittingly had to dedicate his entire life to TVA for eternity, much like other members of the organization. His condition is even worse as he is the only member of his department and doesn’t get visitors too often either. O.B. engages in funny banter with Mobius regarding the latter’s difficulty recalling their encounter, but it’s really tragic, given how alone the character seemingly is.
O.B. is responsible for the construction of every major and minor functional mechanism and programming of the TVA, yet he is massively neglected, which might be for a reason. Perhaps, with his knowledge and expertise as the sole techie of TVA, He Who Remains considered him to be too important to be mind-wiped and instead subjected him to deliberate isolation to curb any possibility of dissent, which makes O.B. a possible ally of Loki and Mobius in their quest to protect the multiverse from Kang and his variants. On the other hand, and this might be a long shot, O.B. can also possibly be a failsafe made by He Who Remains, who chose to let O.B. remain as one constant factor in case he himself ceases to exist. As we said, this is rather wild speculation, but it definitely will be a game changer if, eventually, O.B.’s conscious allegiance turns out to be on the opposite side of Loki and Mobius.
What Do We Learn About Timestamping And Temporal Loom?
After learning about Loki’s condition, O.B. diagnoses him as being subjected to time slipping; therefore, he is being sent to the future and past without having any control over the situation. According to the existing lore, TVA exists outside the bounds of time and space, which means any temporary shenanigans like this should be impossible. But ever since the sacred timeline has fractured into infinite thanks to Sylvie’s transgressions, TVA has been thrown into disarray.
O.B. suggests accessing the ‘Temporal Loom’ with a Temporal Aura Extractor to pull Loki out of the time-slipping condition, and viewers witness the grand timeline-weaving machine that collects raw time to create a steady, sacred timeline that TVA was assigned to protect and also powers the entire faculty. However, with the central timeline getting branched out, the overload caused by the Loom results in a power surge in TVA and temporal radiation bursting out at random. Pruning the branched timelines being out of option, O.B. decides to remodel the Loom according to the changed condition. Loki and Mobius manage to work in unison to extract Loki out of the time-slipping state, but not before Loki sees an ominous vision of the last moments of the TVA. It remains to be seen whether getting extracted has turned Loki into an anomaly that cannot be affected by any form of temporal shifts or whether the vision turns out to be true at the end, but what we can say with certainty is that this season is going to take a deeper dive into uncharted territories of the MCU, retconning some of the events in the process as well.
