Happy Birthday To The Amazing, Handsome, And Under Appreciated Owen Wilson. Passing A Full Year Of Being

okay listen…

i know that the ending is the ending to loki (supposedly) but can’t loki just make a clone to sit on the throne for him? like i get why they wouldn’t do that because it would take away the gravity of the ending but like isn’t it possible? maybe he doesn’t have to be alone?

idk if this is dumb

Reparenting Loki

I want to talk about a dynamic in the Loki/Mobius relationship (in the Loki TV-series) that I've seen touched on but not really discussed in depth.

Note to Lokius-lovers: nothing I say here in any way precludes a healthy romantic relationship. They're both consenting adults, after all, and this wasn't a formal therapist-client relationship.

There's a technique in therapy called "reparenting". The idea is that trauma and behaviors caused by bad parenting can be addressed to some extent if the therapist assumes the role of a "good parent".

I think we can all agree that the "All-Father" was crap as an actual father. Odin knew that Loki took after him even more than Thor did, but many of those shared traits were things that he tried to hide from everyone, while Thor better represented the image he wanted to project. The result was a cruel favoritism, which was picked up by Thor and the rest of the Asgardians. Frigga's love and support wasn't enough to counteract that cruelty, particularly in a strongly patriarchal society like Asgard.

Side note (because I'm that kind of geek): there were so many similarities between Odin and Loki (Odin's friend and blood-brother rather than his son) in the old Norse myths that some scholars have suggested that Loki was at one point simply an aspect of Odin. There's also evidence that the stories as they came down to us were manipulated by the Christians who committed them to writing to shoehorn Loki into something more like the Christian Devil.

Anyway, getting back to our guys... Within the context of the TVA, Mobius represented an authority figure to Loki, who had a long history of rebelling against (or betraying) authority for obvious reasons.

I think the first turning point in the relationship for Loki was:

Loki: I am smart!

Mobius: I know. Loki is rarely left speechless, but his only response to Mobius's simple affirmation was a very un-Loki-like "Okay..." He didn't know how to respond because he wasn't used to that kind of thing, particularly from someone who had power over him. It happened again with:

Loki: A villain.

Mobius: That's not how I see it.

The dynamic between these two people throughout Season 1 was like that. Mobius's genuine love (whether you read it as romantic, platonic, fatherly, brotherly, or a mix of any or all of these) for and non-judgmental acceptance of Loki was apparent from the start, but of course Loki's experiences during his very long lifetime made it nearly impossible for him to trust that until Mobius's actions convinced him that it was real. Learning to trust Mobius also allowed Loki to see himself in a new light.

For his part, Mobius consistently modeled what a good father would have been: loving and accepting, yes, but still able to apply "tough love" when that was warranted. Mobius didn't put Loki into the bad-memory loop to punish him because he was angry (though he was angry, or at least a bit hurt and disappointed). He was just trying to force Loki to acknowledge a truth about himself so that they could move forward — and it worked!

Mobius's instincts and experience as an actual father to two boys, one reasonably well-behaved and the other a mischievous troublemaker, served him well in this, even if he didn't consciously remember his life on the timeline.

Mobius all but confirmed this when he said:

Mobius:  I see a scared little boy, shivering in the cold... 

It's also significant that when Loki brought this up later, he called it "patronizing", which we usually use to mean "condescending", but can also mean "supporting" and has its root in the Latin word "pater" (father).

I see the hug in episode 1-5 as a sign that the reparenting had taken hold, and that Loki, while not completely healed (it would take a lot more than that!), was at least in a place where he could trust someone, accept love/friendship, and think beyond his own wants and needs.

By Season 2, the relationship between the two men was evolving into one of equals, but even then Loki still occasionally looked to Mobius for guidance. Mobius's approval had become important to him. When Loki witnessed the firm but compassionate way in which Don dealt with two boys who were so like himself and Thor (despite being a stressed-out single dad rather than a god-king with tremendous resources at his disposal), he had to have seen that this was at the core of who Mobius was. Moreover, Loki — and any viewers who had similarly survived a traumatic childhood full of emotional abuse and neglect — probably guessed that Don himself was a survivor who was determined to see to it that his boys would never have to deal with that. If that was the case, then Mobius didn't just see his own son in Loki. He saw himself and couldn't help but empathize.

Don wasn't perfect. His frustration with his younger son was very evident, but Loki, observing, could see the love that lay under it. He may even have thought of times when Odin was driven to anger by Loki's actions and realized that the anger didn't necessarily mean that Odin didn't really love him. Learning to forgive what can be forgiven is another aspect of recovering from childhood trauma.

It's worth remembering that Mobius knew Loki in much the same way we do. We got to see the things that Loki never let anybody see: the fear, the vulnerability, the pain, the longing, and the sadness. (Doesn't hurt that TH can turn a simple reaction shot into a freakin' soliloquy!) The difference is that, while we only get to see the highlights (and lowlights) of Loki's life, Mobius had access to all of it and he had centuries to study it.

Mobius literally knew Loki better than anyone else in (or out) of the multiverse. How could he not love him? And for Loki, knowing that somebody who knew him that well genuinely cared so much for him (same with Sylvie, who understood him in ways that only another Loki could and vice-versa) had to have shaken him to his core and made him rethink a lot of things. The fact that it was Mobius to whom Loki turned in episode 2.6 when he thought he might have to kill Sylvie shows how much he still looked up to Mobius in many ways.

This was a show about redemption, yes, but also about healing from childhood trauma. They did an amazing job with it.

POV: Loki when he met Mobius at the TVA

I NEEEEEEED IT

literally them

i’m fucking salivating… shit… don’t tell loki guys

Owen / drunk / bathtub / cowboy hat -> CINEMA

on my knees for him ong

Mobius S01 - E02

Sorry what? I can't hear you on account of this scene making blaring noises in my head at all times

i’m so excited for this entire work to come out.

WIP Wednesday

Lokius. Virgin Dom Mobius finds out he has to go undercover...with Loki. 😏

“You’re going undercover,” Ravonna said, handing him a file and sitting down beside him on the sofa.

“Really? Wouldn’t you want someone else to do it?” Mobius frowned, opening it and reading the first page. It was a mission to find a variant hiding out in suburban Ohio. He’d gone to ground after an initial chase and all scans indicated he hadn’t moved on. He was unarmed; a sitting duck.

Mobius was to settle into the community, make friends with the neighbors and report back with intel. That was it.

Ravonna picked up her glass and took a swig. He could feel her eyes on him while he tried to read as much as he could. Flipping the page, he scanned the next sheet and saw a photo of a white picket-fenced home labeled ‘where you will be staying.’

“Will you do it?”

“I haven’t got through all the paperwork but it looks alright,” Mobius agreed, not looking up. He wasn’t sure why he’d been given this mission in place of someone more used to field work—Ravonna must want him out of her hair or something, but this could be an excuse for a free holiday. Maybe it would be fun.

He flipped through some more pages until he reached the last one and there, with their signature smirk and dangerous eyes, was a photo of Loki and a note stating why they would be accompanying Mobius on this mission: they needed a Dom/sub pair.

“No,” Mobius gasped. “You don’t really mean this?”

“You’re compatible. You’ve got the patience to deal with…those more wayward than most, and they’re…eager to explore.”

He picked up his glass and down the contents. A million thoughts rushed through his head. It had been hard not to notice Loki’s stares when they passed by his desk, how they’d deliberately dropped something on the floor near him to make him turn around and look. He’ll never forget the time he found that pink sex toy in his drawer.

Mobius knew Loki was more than just a handful. Bringing them to heel in a prim and proper world where subs stayed at home behaving might be nigh impossible.

“I think you should get someone else.”

“I disagree. You are more than capable. Look how you handle that last case. You kept persevering even when I thought we’d have to give up. You can do this.”

Mobius huffed, feeling hot under the collar. Managing one tough case wasn’t a clear indicator he was going to succeed here, especially when Ravonna didn’t know his secret.

“I still think it’s better…”

“No, you’re going and that’s final.” Ravonna got up and poured herself another drink. “There isn’t anyone else I can send, and I need my best on the job.”

“But I’m…”

“Mobius. I won’t have you continue to downplay your vast experience. You can do this and you will because I said so.”

“Ravonna…”

“No ifs, no buts. You’ve got 2 sleep cycles before you need to go; that’s all I can spare you. Oh, and you’ll need to brief Loki, too. Don’t mess this up.”

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god they are killing me. they are so adorable

Owen Wilson: "You and I kind of talked about, you know, what kind of makes for a meaningful work experience, and of course enjoying the people that you work with, feeling that you're kind of doing something interesting; and then if you feel it has a chance to connect with an audience and it'll get a good reception. So I definitely felt that from you guys tonight." 🥹

Cool path

Wait

Holy shit is that

MOBIUS M MOBIUS !??!!