Which led to an interesting argument with my good friend, Alex. Alex feels that Loki remains evil, and he should be judged by his actions. In Thor, Loki tried to kill the all the Frost Giants. He also tried to strand to his brother on earth, caused who knows how much torment by making his brother think their father was dead, and committed treason against his home world of Asgard. When he landed on earth in The Avengers, Loki killed lots of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and mind controlled several others. He committed those acts as he pursued his goal to conquer all of humankind with a plan of unleashing an army of alien Chitauri onto the earth, destroying a lot of New York City in the process.
As Alex pointed out to me, that’s a lot of bad stuff: Loki deserves punishment, not our sympathy. It’s pretty hard to argue with that line of reasoning, but I’m going to try anyway. Because Loki’s story is about redemption, and I’d like to think that, no matter how far we fall, we always have a chance at redeeming ourselves.
Of course, I know some people do horrible, unforgivable things. That’s true. But whether or not we can forgive them for those acts, redemption is always about the individual trying to forgive themselves. I also take a small consolation in thinking that the Loki in Avengers was written too darkly for his true nature. I prefer Loki from The Avengers comic who didn’t kill anyone, but instead shouted “Bah! I’ll destroy you all!”: A daunting but hollow threat.
Of course, when Marvel brought it’s superheroes to the silver screen, they realized that an ethical code like not killing was hard to maintain in a more real looking world. So not only do Marvel’s villains kill, but so do Cap and Iron Man and the rest. Marvel has left the white-washed world of the Comics Code Authority far behind.
So while I admit, there are some challenges to feeling sympathy for Loki, I think it’s useful to recall the following scene from Thor: The Dark World. Loki has been sentenced to life in an Asgardian prison for his attempt to conquer earth. While he is there, Asgard is attacked by Dark Eleves who have come to steal the Aether (one of the Infinity Stones known as the Reality Stone). The Aether has been accidentally trapped inside Jane Foster (played by Natalie Portman who does great when the writers give her character anything worth doing!). To protect both Jane and the Aether, Queen Frigga (in a fine performance by Rene Russo) fights with the Dark Elves and is killed during the combat. Thor (embodied by Chris Hemsworth) goes nearly mad from the loss. Loki appears too angry to care, but then we learn the truth about his own suffering from his mother’s death. As Thor approaches the cell, Loki says:
Loki: “Thor. After all this time, and now you come to visit me. Why? Have you come to gloat? To mock?”
Thor: “Loki, enough. No more illusions.”
[Loki had been standing, sneering at Thor. But Loki closes his eyes, and the illusion fades away to reveal Loki slumped against the back wall of his cell. The chairs and tables in his cell have been smashed and broken. Loki is barefoot and his left foot has a long, bloody cut on it.]
Loki: “Now you see me, brother.”
[Thor walks up near the wall of the cell.]
Loki: “Did she suffer?”
Thor: “I did not come here to share our grief. Instead I offer you the chance of a far richer sacrament.”
Loki: “Go on.”
Thor: “I know you seek vengeance as much as I do. You help me escape Asgard, and I will grant it to you. Vengeance. And afterwards this cell.”
[Loki laughs bitterly.]
Loki: “You must be truly desperate to come to me for help. What makes you think you can trust me?”
Thor: “I don’t. Mother did. But you should know that when we fought each other in the past, I did so with glimmer of hope that my brother was still in there somewhere. That glimmer of hope no longer exists to protect you. You betray me, and I will kill you.
Loki [with a smile]: “Hmm. When do we start?”
The closes ups of Loki’s face show us how broken and lost he is from his mother’s death. When Thor offers him a chance at vengeance, of course he takes it. But he is simply trading anger for grief. Loki doesn’t care about living and thinks he has no reason to live. He has done too much evil, and the one person who truly loved him, his mother, is gone. Thor’s speech also makes it seem that he has given up on his brother.
Perhaps Loki deserves having everyone give up on him. And yet, how many of us have made huge mistakes? I think the reason audiences took to Loki as a character is not that we want to excuse his crimes. Instead, we can see ourselves in Loki: Flawed, crushed, sad, lost. A person does not have to commit major crimes (and I certainly hope none of our readers do!) to feel alone and guilty for any number of sins. How many people are haunted by their mistakes and bad choices? There’s a little bit of Loki in all of us: The trickster, the rebel, the child who believes they are loved less, the person who never got the glory they deserved.
And as we see Loki for what he truly is, not an evil demi-god or monster, but a flawed “human,” he begins to win us over. Well, maybe not my friend Alex, but me and a lot of other viewers. Loki does become a kind of cool anti-hero. And he is so charming and handsome, of course. But it is his grief and his failures and his struggles that make us root for him.
Loki has a brother that cares about him. A father who loves him in spite of Loki’s flaws. If Loki could let down his guard just a little, he could find the acceptance and love he needs far more than any king’s crown. But Loki can’t see his own faults. As his mother tells him, “You’re always so perceptive, about everyone but yourself.” Loki thinks everyone is against him and that he knows what’s best. He is wrong on both counts. His pride always gets in his way. He would rather mock people or act cynical or sulk in indignant outrage at the wrongs done to him, than swallow his pride and try to do better. “It’s not fair,” Loki always seems to be saying. How many times have I found myself saying that? And what about you?
As the film goes along, the two brothers end up fighting side-by-side. The key for both Loki and Thor is their brotherly bond. Like all brothers, they both love and hate each other, always struggling to outdo each other, even in grief:
Thor: “You had her tricks, but I had her trust!”
Loki: “Trust? Was that her last expression, trust? While you let her die?”
Thor: “What good were you in your cell?”
Loki: “Who put me there? WHO PUT ME THERE?”
Thor: “YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHO! YOU KNOW DAMN WELL!”
[Thor shoves Loki against a wall of their Viking winged airship, then lets him go.]
Thor: “She wouldn’t want us to fight.”
Loki: “Well, she wouldn’t exactly be shocked.”
Thor [smiles]: “I wish I could trust you.”
[As Thor turns away, Loki whispers,]
Loki: “Trust my rage.”
Loki’s rage is his way of protecting himself against all of his hurt and loss. But anger can only protect us for so long. We have to get past the anger. We have to let go of that anger and trust again, open ourselves up to the potential of being hurt again. The trust and the risk go hand in hand with the connection and the love.
Loki has to learn this. He has to learn trust, and he has to learn to be trustworthy. He has to find honor and earn the respect of his brother. He has to become better than he was. Which is what we want, too, to be better than who we have been when we have made mistakes. Which is why, despite all his flaws, so many of us end up rooting for Loki to find redemption. His redemption is a hope for our own.
Gian, I agree with your thoughts about Loki. Throughout the franchise you see him lean more and more toward redemption and being one of the good guys even if he does so somewhat reluctantly, but I think his inner conflict is also evident in the first Thor movie. He doesn't know who he is or where he fits in, he grew up learning to hate the frost giants which he finds out he is. How would anyone reconcile that without issues? That doesn't excuse someone for wrongs done, but it shows that people are imperfect and doing bad things doesn't always mean you're a bad person. This reminds me of an interview I saw with members of the cast of Buffy talking about why some of the evil characters (for fans, it was specifically referring to Spike and Drusilla) are likable even though they're evil. The reason was because you see the humanity in them, you see their struggles that "the good guys" have, too, and you connect with them.
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