LOKI 002: Secrets of the THOR MCU Guidebook!

by Rebecca Kaplan · May 4, 2021

Welcome to your first day of Loki Academy! The Crown Prince of Mischief is pretty upset that he wasn’t invited to teach at Strange Academy, and at Marvel Blog, we’re presenting a course outlined by Loki himself to help make up for the awful snubbing of the Sorcerer Supreme.

Loki Academy Orientation is already in the past – and we don’t have a Tesseract to take us back in time – so we hope that you found orientation as enriching as Odin found pillaging the fields of his opponents in battle (hey, Asgard wasn’t built in a day – just ask Hela)!

Photo: Marvel

Today, Marvel Blog Untrue Believers, we’re going to dig into one of the more obscure Marvel Comics grimoires: Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Marvel’s Thor (2015). Trust us, it’s full of mysteries, as well as some answers about Loki, King of Asgard.

Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe

The books in the Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe series are based on The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, a series of classic Marvel comics that give you an encyclopedic look at the world of the 616.

Photo: Marvel

The Thor MCU guidebook offers comprehensive coverage of the Marvel Studios films and television shows. It features fact sheets, movie stills, character profiles, and more! And as you can see from the creator page below, a whole host of amazing creators contributed to this project, as well.

Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Marvel’s Thor. Photo: Marvel

LOKI 002: Secrets of Loki from Thor Guidebook

In addition to running through Loki’s role in the first Thor movie, which was directed by Kenneth Branagh, a character fact sheet reveals some fascinating details about Loki, and some of these details may prove to be integral elements of his usefulness to the Time Variance Authority! And, if you read closely enough, it may also show you how Loki’s story will tie into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Photo: Marvel

1. Loki Duplicates

For example, Loki can make duplicates of himself; however, these variants are illusory and take on different forms: cat, child, adult, man, woman, non-binary, you get the point. Back when Thor: The Dark World was released this lead to some interesting theories!

Loki: Agent of Asgard by Al Ewing, Lee Garbett, Nolan Woodard, and Clayton Cowles. Photo: Marvel Comics

2. Loki Can Go Invisible

Loki can also render himself completely invisible – and when they say “completely,” they mean “even to Heimdall.”

Loki must be light on his feet. Photo: Norse and Viking Mythology via Marvel

3. Loki Can Bypass the Bifrost

Another key piece of information included in the guidebook is that Loki knows methods of entering and leaving Asgard without utilizing the Bifrost.

Loki 002. Photo: Marvel

4. Loki Gets Power from Wiccan

Plus, as the guidebook points out, the renegade trickster is tied to none other than Mephisto in Marvel Comics. Excitingly for WandaVision fans, Loki’s also connected to Billy Maximoff (known as Wiccan), who, in the comics, gives the God of Mischief access to the power that he needs to defeat an inter-dimensional parasite.

Loki: Agent of Asgard #2 by Al Ewing, Lee Garbett, Nolan Woodard, and Clayton Cowles. Photo: Marvel Comics

Will these special abilities play a role in whatever plans the TVA has for Loki? Only time will tell, Marvel Blog Untrue Believers…

LOKI 002: Will You Hit the Guidebooks?

There are loads more facts to uncover in the Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Marvel’s Thor, including some that aren’t related to Loki (at least not directly), and we definitely suggest picking up a copy of this guidebook before Loki airs on June 11th, 2021!

For example, the guidebook reminded me that the introduction of Darcy Lewis took place when she hit Thor while she was driving a truck. This highlights the story circle her character has undertaken, as the last time we checked in with the good Doctor Darcy, she had just hit Tyler Hayward also while she was driving a truck.

Photo: Marvel

You can read the Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Marvel’s Thor for yourself on the Marvel Unlimited App right now! And be sure and check your course schedule for future course offerings from Loki University. Let’s build a dark arts course catalogue that would make Doctor Strange blush, Marvel Blog Untrue Believers!