Tumgik
#but will mobius search for loki now? knowing that it was loki's decision to leave him again
tsuyoiqueen · 5 months
Text
i just had the saddest thought and i need to share it. what upsets me the most about the finale is not the fact that mobius and loki are separated and alone as of now, because given that they're the only two who didn't get any semblance of a happy ending that only proves how much they need each other and the logical conclusion is that no matter how long it takes, they will meet again. it doesn't matter that they're worlds apart; it's like the legend of the sun and the moon, they're only ever together during eclipses but they are.
no, what upsets me is the fact that they parted the way they did, with mobius feeling like loki perceives him as a second option, as he's left him behind to follow sylvie and even that big declaration of "i know what kind of god i need to be... for you" was ambiguous. it's the fact that mobius probably feels like he doesn't have a place in this world because the one person he chose to spend his existence with couldn't choose him, couldn't stay for him in the end. it's the fact that he loved loki exactly as he was and supported him through everything for god knows how long. he watched him on a screen, saw his entire life unfold over and over again and then got to be a part of it, got to fight for the freedom of the multiverse by his side and they won but at what cost? at the cost of having the chance to go back to his old life or staying at the job he dedicated eons to and knowing none of these places will ever feel like home again. because it's not about where, when or why. it's about who.
Tumblr media
9 notes · View notes
bleufrost · 3 years
Text
There's Just Time (A Loki x reader Fanfic)
Chapter One: We've Met Before
Summary: You were an explosion waiting to happen who found love in the arms of a hurricane. Loki saw you as an angel that calmed his demons. For you, he was a savior that taught you to trust your abilities, yourself, and others. When he died, you were broken. You clung to any hope possible and watched as it all fell away. With nothing left, stories from your youth flooded back of a mysterious force that controlled time and space, and you knew that you would do anything to see him again...even if that something meant teaming up with the Time Variance Authority to capture the man you love.
A series of murders catch Mobius' eye. A familiar face catches yours.
Words: 3,118
Warnings: grief, mentions of self harm, death
Prologue
If you'd searched the whole wide world
Would you dare to let it go?
The pews of this church were far less comfortable than you could have possibly imagined. You let your feet dangle for a moment before pushing them up on to the pew in front of you. A bored yawn echoes in the empty halls and your eyes fall closed as the workers around you continue to struggle to make sense of the scene. When you try to breathe, you notice that the air is far too still.
“It’s great to see you making yourself useful.” The soft sound of shoes stop steadily next to your seat. With an annoyed huff, you push your feet down and sit up, looking at Mobius.
“I could be far more useful if you’d let me use my goddamn powers.” He sighs and stares down at his watch. “You know I can’t do that. Now come on, you’re a smart kid. What does this all look like to you?”
Your eyes don��t leave him for a few seconds. There was a time where you would have tried to run off; take what you needed to jump from place to place and find Loki on your own. Not now though. You know these people are far more powerful than they let on. You know that you need them if you’re ever going to see him again.
With that in mind, you walk over to the candlelit section, Mobius following closely behind. The bodies are spread out on the floor, each with wounds in a pattern far too familiar. Gunshots were never your forte. Stab wounds on the other hand, you were taught well by the best on how to both treat and inflict.
“They were stabbed.” He nods and squats down to inspect the wounds of one body more closely.
“They’re all consistent with the others. Look at the position of the bodies.” Your eyes glance over each of them. Some look defensive, but in a sudden way. Almost as if…”They didn’t know something was coming to them until it was too late. It was a blindside.” Mobius rises and pats your shoulder. It makes you uncomfortable, he’s trying desperately to be your friend and you don’t really know why. You both knew you weren’t here because it was your first option.
“That makes six attacks this week.” Your fingers tingle with the need to feel something. If you could just tap into the energy here, it could make everything so much easier. There is endless knowledge in the atmosphere of a room, especially one where such horrific things occurred. It was infuriating that they you couldn’t use a part of yourself that you had learned to depend on.
“Those are just the ones we know of.” Mobius walks around the side of the room again, just in time for your frustration to bubble over. You stare him down and, even without your abilities, you know he can feel the anger that courses through you.
“I thought you guys were all knowing.” You step toward Mobius and one of the soldiers lifts his gun. Mobius quickly puts a hand up to order him to stand down. He walks closer to you, arms up in attempt to defuse the situation. His patience pisses you off even more.
“This is a variant we’re talking about. You know better than most that those aren’t so well regulated.” He watches you closely as your jaw clenches. He’s right and you know it. It’s just felt like an eternity since any sign of Loki has come up. You were on edge, without your powers, and working with people you didn’t fully trust. Playing it cool was the only way to keep your position as Mobius’ partner though, and you had to remember that.
“Right.” You nod and turn away right as the shuffle of feet sounds from down the hall. A small child runs by and Mobius follows, along with a few of the crew. You’re not so quick to see what’s going on though. Right now, you need to think. The bodies around you were alarming. The stab wounds even more so. There was no way that Mobius didn't recognize the same signs you did, but you weren't about to broadcast it with the small chance that he didn't already know.
You had been working with Mobius for a little while now. You weren’t exactly sure how long because time has a weird tendency to move differently at the TVA. It was long enough to establish that, while you weren’t the most fond of him, he held a certain faith in you that the others lacked. Still, something was off, you just didn’t know what yet.
That’s what made all of this even more concerning. If your suspicions were even close to correct about the recent murders…you knew where your loyalties were held, and it wasn’t with Mobius or the TVA. Loki was somewhere out there. For a brief moment, before you had your powers stripped from you, you could almost feel him. It was the connection to his energy that tethered you to him when you first met, and it was a similar one to what called you to him back at the revisit to New York. There was something that kept hope in you that he was still alive, and the feeling stayed with you until the moment you entered the TVA.
Every once in a while, out here in the field, you think you can still feel little shards of it.
Your mind stops wandering when you see Mobius take something from the child to be examined. It was a little blue package, but the glowing teeth on the child are what really catch your eye. You make it just in time to see the kid point out the stained-glass imagery of the devil. Horns protrude from his head like a crown. It all felt too familiar: the god-like being, horned crown, stab wounds, and tricky nature of a blind attack. The anger, the mistrust. Your eyes can’t seem to tear away for a second, but when they do, you can’t help but stare at this kid. Something was definitely not right. Why was he so calm?
Mobius watches you from his place by the doorway and takes it all in. You can see it when you look back at him; the knowing look he gives you. It’s unsettling to think that your thoughts are so easily deciphered when you don’t have your shield to hide behind. He doesn’t ask any questions though, and for that you’re almost grateful. He says something else to the kid, but you aren’t listening anymore.
“Alright, let’s head out.” Mobius takes your arm and guides you back to the main hall. Part of you thinks these little gestures are to establish trust. Mobius truly has given you no real reason to dislike him. As a person, he appears inherently good. Without your ability to read him though, you never know what to trust. The fact that they seem adamant to keep them from you, while not his decision, makes you weary of the whole organization.
“Any of that seem odd to you?” He looks between your face and the rest of the room quickly. You know he’s trying to make it seem like he’s not watching you that closely, even though he is. Keeping your face as steady as you can, you choose your words carefully. Focus on the gum, not the horns. Not the stab wounds.
“Yeah, the gum was weird as shit. Definitely not the usual candy for this time period.” You brush his arm off of you and move your body around to feign looking over the church in attempt to hide the action. “You never know though, they might be more modern than we think.” He watches you with a straight face that breaks out into a smile instantly. Mobius nods and grins at you.
“I agree. No time variance there.” His voice is sarcastic and playful in that moment, but his face falls serious again. “What about the devil?”
You do everything in your power to not flinch or make any indication of discomfort at the question. “What about the devil? I feel like it could be a clue, but it could also just be some kid who learned from a very early age that any evil is done by a creature with hooves who lives in hell.” He continues to watch you and you continue to be as nonchalant as possible.
Finally, he nods. “Maybe.” Mobius turns and you pause to breathe for a moment before following him back to the TVA.
Upon your arrival, things move incredibly fast. Thoughts of the case are abandoned in favor of a much more urgent matter.
A call came in immediately. Before you even had a moment to settle yourself back into the usually stale atmosphere of TVA headquarters, Mobius was rushing you into a room. You almost miss the fact that the air is not stale in the slightest; in fact, it almost felt as though it was crackling with electricity.
“I need to know that you won’t do anything stupid.” The words left his mouth with urgency. The constant glances over his shoulder to the awaiting hall a clear sign that he knew something you didn’t.
Your eyebrows scrunch in confusion, “What are you talking about?” He turns and paces the floor. Once. Twice. Three times before his movements halt.
“The Loki you know isn’t here. He never will be. You understand that, right?” His device flashes in his hand. You don’t know what the flashes mean, but you do know what he’s implying. Loki’s here. Somewhere in this building. In the same general place that you are. Loki is here.
Mobius continues to wait for a response. His foot taps with impatience. “When I took you in, we promised each other that our partnership wasn’t over when we found him. You can’t go rogue on me or this is all over for everyone, do you understand?”
Your breaths come out in rapid little puffs as your mind tries to wrap itself around the unspoken truth here. Mobius is right in theory. This isn’t the Loki you knew at the time you lost him originally. This Loki is still afraid. He’s angry, hurt, confused, and so far from trusting you. Where Mobius is wrong though, is in thinking you aren’t familiar with him at all. You know Loki in all forms, and if it takes a little extra time to make up for lost memories, that would be more than okay with you.
“Hey, I need an answer.” Mobius’ voice was barely registering with you, but you heard it. He’s on edge and you almost panic at the thought of potentially not seeing Loki as soon as possible if Mobius doesn’t think you can handle it.
“I understand and I’m not going to do anything stupid.” You can’t speak the words fast enough and as Mobius searches your eyes for any sign of deceit, you know all he sees is honest desperation. You would do anything to be with him again. That’s the truth.
With an affirming nod, Mobius leads the way to a section you recognize as the courtroom.
The air here is thick, almost unbreathable. The crackles turn to little sparks as you near the doors. How is it that in a place that banishes magic, Loki can still make the ghost of yours come to life? To say that you aren’t prepared to see him again would be an understatement. You traveled through time itself to be near him again, but the prospect of achieving that goal never actually felt like a fantasy you could fully entertain. How very like him to bring your wildest dreams to fruition in the most obscure of moments. Your thoughts all come to a sudden halt when you hear the faint sound of the most narcissistic angel to ever utter a word.
“…because they traveled through time. No doubt in a last ditch effort to stave off my ascent to god king,” Your mouth falls open in silent shock. Of course the first thing you hear from him in years is an accusation, you assume, to have you arrested instead of him.
Your gaze falls on him and you feel a weight lift off your shoulders as you see him, truly see him, moving, speaking, and having just as big a flair for the dramatics as usual. He’s here. He’s alive. He’s okay.
Mobius nudges you to follow him and you both attempt to silently take your seats in the rows lining the courtroom. Your heart pangs as Loki mentions Tony, but you sit and listen, nonetheless. He continues to argue with the judge, bringing up your old team and reminding you of just how much things have changed irreparably.
“Perhaps you can provide me with a task force and resources, and I can return and eliminate them for you.” His hands are spread confidently, but they immediately fall when you let out a short laugh. The comment caught you off guard and a part of you loved that he still thought he could squash your team so easily. Even after all that happened in New York, he never gave up and you loved that about him; even if his determination was a bit misplaced at the moment. Loki is nothing if not confident in his abilities to charm and disarm.
Your hands fly to your mouth immediately when you realize that the majority of the courtroom is staring at you.
That’s when it happens. His gaze pierces into you like a dagger, sharp and oh so welcome to do whatever damage it pleases. Your hand goes down, stopping at your chest where you can feel your heart pounding. Tears slowly well up in your eyes, but you blink them away as quickly as they came.
Loki tilts his head to the side subtly. You know he recognizes you and you know your lame attempt to hide your pain and love was seen right through. He doesn’t say anything though. Even though he was just offering to hunt your team down for sport and turn you in to gain his freedom, he says nothing to indicate you should be on trial. Instead, his eyebrows scrunch together, and he continues to stare at you. There seems to be a hint of sadness in his eyes, but you know you’re just imagining it.
The judge clears her throat, calling the attention of the room back to her. Loki’s eyes slowly move from yours. You continue to watch him though. It isn’t irrational to fear he might disappear at any moment. Not with him, and definitely not here.
You barely listen as he learns many of the same things you previously did about the Time-Keepers and his inability to use magic here. His attempts to conjure his daggers pulls your focus, but not in the same way a conversation would. No, you swear that you feel the frustration and utter helplessness that courses through him. You know the feeling, but this rushes over you just as fresh as the day you lost your powers. You can't be feeling it from him though, and that is reestablished in your mind as his magic fails to conjure.
What does call your attention is the sentencing that Loki receives and the sheer panic of potentially losing him again. You move to rise, ready to put up a fight because you know that being this close and failing is not something that you want to survive. In that moment, you don’t care if they kill you instantly. You just can’t live in a world without him. Not again. If you could find a way for him to escape, a way to feel him one more time and know that there is a chance that he could be okay, that he could live and learn to love again…well, death wouldn’t be so bad at all.
Before anything could happen though, Mobius pushes you back into place with a firm hand and rises. He runs over to the stand, speaking to the judge in whispers that you can’t decipher. Your lip trembles and you choose to scan the room for an escape route instead of focusing on Mobius, and Loki’s impending doom. When you find Loki again, his eyes are fearful and searching just like yours. You’re too preoccupied to notice when his worried gaze lands back on you. You don’t see when the fear slips from him and turns to calmness for a reason that he can barely understand.
The few seconds that Mobius spends by the stand feel like a lifetime, but his words are worth the wait.
“Alright, Loki you’re coming with us.” You have never felt more grateful for the man in your time here. Mobius takes hold of a collared Loki and guides him to the door. Loki shrugs his hand off and glares at him. “Who is us?” You take that as your cue and rise to fall into step on the opposite side of Loki.
Loki’s eyes find you the moment you’re next to him. The first time you met back in New York, you were young and still in training to fight. They had put you in the field out of desperation. When you came face to face with Loki then, you had felt small and insignificant. His confusion when he wasn’t able to control you had sparked a subtle interest in him, but you were still just an insignificant child in the eyes of a powerful god.
Now, standing next to him, you didn’t feel small in the slightest. You felt just as powerful as he had taught you to be. Even if he didn’t remember the endless time you spent together, the nights you cried over the torment your powers put you through and the days he could barely see himself through the monster he thought he was. Even if he had no memory of picnics in the park, dark nights spent teaching you to dance beneath the stars, movie nights, and laughing as you screamed lyrics at the top of your lungs in an effort to get your family to sing along (Tony, Wanda, and Thor often did); it was okay. All you needed was each other. The rest would fall into place.
“Hi. I think we’ve met before.” You give him a smile and continue walking beside them. Loki’s eyes don’t leave your face and you feel him staring as you all leave the courtroom behind. Finally, he shakes from his thoughts and offers you a soft nod.
“Yes. I believe we have.”
a/n: ahh first chapter done! I really hope you guys like this. please feel free to leave any feedback/suggestions you have to make my writing or story better. I appreciate any interaction so so much xx
Tags: @adefectivedetective @peachlobotomy666 @unfortunatelyymuggle @st6jimmyandtheidiots @cheydanoa @thenerdyniallgirl @jessalynjones1989 @00schasez @lunala-luvgood @floweaus @fangirltrash15 @bandsruinedmylife @mydelusionalworld-7 @uada-animus @randomfangirl7 @effmigentlywithachainsaw @drakesfiance @phantomr0se @payton-1-jones @letscici @strangemaximoff @hassbite @magi-no-aladdin @littlesouthernrebel @jessiejunebug @coppercorn-and-cauldron @orighami @wrappedinlokisarms @dark-night-sky-99 @unicornsandgliiitter @oatballsoffury @themusingsofmany @darkprincessloki92 @lokiedokiee @shegatsby @cherrygeek86 @beckymarvel
If you want to be added or taken off this list, just shoot me an ask!
129 notes · View notes
barnesandwilsons · 3 years
Note
Oh! Can I get some TVA Loki x reader fluff? Like they knew each other on Asgard and in the timeline he’s in at the end of the show he meets reader again and Loki finally has to confront the feelings he’s always had for reader even though he kept them at arms length? 😁
Timeless
A/N: So you know how Mobius had to interrogate Loki.. I made it like that… except for the interrogating part. So basically the reader is a variant.. and Loki ‘works’ at the TVA.
A/N 2: FORGIVE ME I HAD TO MAKE IT A TINY bit angst..ish
Summary: Loki decides to tell Y/N about his feelings towards her.
warnings: a mention of mobius, loki spoilers..in a way, reader gets ‘captured’ in the tva.
————————————————————
He couldn’t believe it. Sylvie had done it. She killed He Who Remains. She created a multiversal war. Great. Another problem for him to deal with.
Now he has to work at the TVA and figure out how to get out of this place. Mobius doesn’t even remember him, and he also has to question a variant. An order from the commander of the new TVA organization. He decided to get rid of the variant problem first.
Walking up to the receptionist to get the files hopefully containing details about you. He says, “Good morning,” The receptionist takes a look at him and gives him a curt nod, eyes flitting back to the computer in front of her. Continuing he says, “I would li-,” She cuts him off by shoving a stack of papers in his hands.
“Thanks.” He mutters briefly and makes his way towards the questioning room. The room was located at the East Wing, which was secluded at this hour.
—-
He approached the door and muttered, “Let’s get this over with.” The room was a replica of the room he was previously interrogated in by Mobius.
Once the door was opened you turned around to see who it was.
It was him. The same person who ignored you for months, who pretended he wasn’t in love with you.
You were even surprised by the fact he worked here. A place where sociopaths are. You knew Loki inside and out, or maybe you thought you did..
But you weren’t the only one in shock. Loki was too.
“Y/N?” He said disbelievingly. He couldn’t believe it. “Why are you here?”
“Why am I here? Why are you here? These people are crazy, they question these people and then kill them if they don’t obey,” He furrows his brow, showing you to carry on with your rant, “They only do it for power. All they say is that we ‘created a nexus event,’” You air-quoted. “What does that even mean?”
He sat down in the chair across from you, intrigued by the reason you were here. He folded his hands and leaned forwards, “Y/N. Is there anything, I mean anything, about what you did that was…..excessive than normal?”
You narrow your eyes slightly at him, “I was looking for you. Cause you can’t just up and leave me in Asgard. I thought something was wrong, turns out there was.”
His eyes widen, “Oh.” I mean what was he supposed to say? He tried so hard to push his feelings down at that moment. But you weren’t, in fact they were bubbling up, “How could you do it?” You asked, crossing your arms, “I mean, Do you even know how much I loved you?”
Without thinking he spat out softly, “I love you too.”
Your eyes went wide. Silence.
He immediately looked to the ground.
Finally speaking up he said, “I’ve been wanting to tell you that forever. But, a girl like you possibly cannot love a guy like me.”
You lifted his chin up with your thumb, to meet face-to-face, his eyes moved back and forth, trying to search for any emotion in your face. “Stop selling yourself short. Your amazing, sure, you make bad decisions. But still.” You smile.
Almost all of his thoughts went blank, the only thoughts left were telling him kiss you. Which he did. The kiss was passionate, you forgot about every problem you had. And once it ended all you wanted was to do it again.
——
56 notes · View notes
twh-news · 3 years
Text
Interview: Makeup Artist Douglas Noe on Loki’s Looks Through the Years & Creating Anew for ‘Loki’ [EXCLUSIVE]
Douglas Noe has been in Hollywood for three decades. An award-winning makeup artist, he’s worked on projects such as World War Z, Planet of the Apes, Spider-Man 3, I Saw the Light, and Birth of a Nation. On top of these impressive credits, he’s also been Tom Hiddleston’s personal makeup artist since joining the MCU in The Avengers, designing all of the looks for Loki’s subsequent appearances.
Tumblr media
Noe has been nominated for three Emmys with one win, and five Makeup Artist and Hairstylist (MUAHS) Awards resulting in two MUAHS awards. His skills include creating making natural and period looks, prosthetics, hair, and tattoos.
Along with being the head of the makeup department for the most recent Disney+ series Loki, Noe is also creating looks for the new Netflix comedy series True Story starring Kevin Hart and Wesley Snipes.
We had a chance to chat with Douglas Noe about his work on Loki, The Avengers, the incomparable value of teamwork on set, and most importantly, Richard E. Grant.
Nerds and Beyond: So you started your Marvel journey with The Avengers, but what drew you to your field in the first place? And how did you get your start?
Douglas Noe: Star Wars was a huge influence to me as a young boy, both sketching and drawing, and a little bit of sculpting but not much. Cut to 1983, Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” comes out and I find a magazine called Fangoria on the newsstands where I can order blood and wax and pencils and fake hair. So, I started playing with these things. I was also taken with the horror movie craze that was happening in the early 80s — Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th, and others, obviously.
In High School, in 1984, I joined choir thinking I would get an easy credit, but my voice had not changed. So the choral instructor had been waiting for a boy soprano to do a theatrical opera presentation. So with that I sang the lead, I quit choir after that, because my peers were merciless, but, I learned the world of theatrical makeup which I hadn’t been introduced to.
I did years of theater. I went to a performing arts high school — it’s called Fort Hayes School for the Performing Arts in Columbus, Ohio — graduated, went to beauty school, and continued working in Ohio doing industrial, commercial, theater, and opera [makeup]. Worked for Maybelline and Revlon, got restless, worked in Cincinnati on my first film in the summer of 1990, it was July so 31 years ago, A Rage in Harlem. And my boss said you come to Los Angeles, I’ll make sure you get on your feet.
Nerds and Beyond: So you mentioned that it’s been about 31 years since your career started, what’s changed over the course of those 30 years in your field?
Douglas: How much time do we have? I’d say the biggest, biggest change would probably be the way we make these things now. Although another large change, more specific, would be the materials that we use. There’s a constant evolution and reinvention of almost all aspects of the materials that a makeup artist uses. That said, I have to shine a light on the way we do things now with the onset of digital and digital cameras. Shooting on film now has almost completely fallen by the wayside. Film was very forgiving, quite frankly, and now it’s not so forgiving. And because of that, the bar has been raised. The wonderful thing about this journey is watching my peers just get better and better and better, my colleagues rising to meet the challenge of not having anything to hide from with this new way we make films.
Tumblr media
Nerds and Beyond: So, sometimes you kind of throw prosthetics to the wayside in favor of a more traditional makeup. How do you make that decision on which one to go with?
Douglas: That’s an excellent question. The decision is based purely on what are we going to see. That’s where I start, what is the lighting? I have a conversation with the director of photography and I find out what is the dynamic. Obviously, I know from the script whether it’s an interior or exterior, or if we’re exterior but we’re going to be on a stage, if it’s day or night. These variables all play into my decision as to whether or not I should rely on my theatrical experience and ability to paint 2D to appear 3D, or go ahead and make small prosthetics and put them where I need to put them and use actual prosthetics in lieu of paint.
That has everything to do with lighting, locations, logistics, and because most of his [Loki’s] wounds appear on his arm and some on his face in the Void, it’s all very moody and very dark. And again, the theatrical quality of the paint is not going to be altered by the changing light, it’s just going to react the same way the rest of the face is going to react. It’s purple light, it’s going to make everything have a purple hue. There was no accounting for any correction that didn’t need to be done. There wasn’t anything wrong with that. It’s real.
Nerds and Beyond: So, you did make up for not only Tom on Loki, but you helped plan out the looks for everybody?
Douglas: Yes, what I do is I surround myself with strong talent. It’s all about team. I designed Wunmi Mosaku, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sophia DiMartino, and Tom [Hiddleston]. Regarding the rest of it, Neil Ellis, both Dennis Liddiard and I, added to the elements of his scars and wounds, which you would only see in close-ups.
The rest of it, the parameters are set — Blade Runner to Mad Men — and stay in those confines. And obviously, I choose color palettes for the women and there are parameters set for the men, but then it’s about team. I’m a big one on a team and not putting my thumbprints on other people’s work, but rather build other people up so they feel like they own what they’re doing.
My team consists of artists that also have stronger resumes and quite frankly, skills that exceed mine. It’s the mutual trust that allows us to keep a high level of artistic integrity in every aspect of the job. It also means I get the very best from my team, and it shows on the screen.
So, I didn’t have every look in my hand. Dennis Liddiard designed the Mobius character and I had Ned Neidhardt run with Gugu and turn up the volume on some of the elements that she already possesses that we can play with. Her eyes and lips, I think Ned turned the volume on both. And because we’re shooting in order, it’s a progression in the makeup you did.
Tumblr media
Nerds and Beyond: When it came to Sylvie and Loki, when you when you’re doing those, did you try to kind of plan them both to have any similar things to give them a Loki look?
Douglas: It’s a fair question, but the answer is no. So again, I think the characteristics and traits that were going to be similar among them, aside from wardrobe and costume hints, were all character driven. And I did nothing with the makeup and hair to try to make them look or even closely resemble each other.
Nerds and Beyond: I want to kind of back up a little bit to Tom in the first Avengers film. That was by far one of his most standout looks. Can you tell me anything about what went into the creation of that absolutely tormented, haunted look that he had throughout that entire movie?
Douglas: Yeah, and that’s probably one of the elements that, because the character has evolved, we kind of left with Avengers because by the end of Avengers, and we carried it into Endgame, he does have a bit of an edgier look in Avengers, and not many people pick up on it. But the reality is he’s a little sculpted in Avengers.
I remember sculpting his cheekbones and temples, and doing a little play on his forehead for when he’s in the cell on the Helicarrier carrier with all that overhead lighting. I did like a little devil horn shadow, which is so subtle. The only person who’s going to notice is anybody who looks back at it and having read this and knows what to look for, but it is so nuanced and so subtle. And that’s the only place I think we did that. But the rest of him is very much chiseled and sculpted, but it’s a light touch.
And I think, again, as he evolved through the Marvel Universe and into the other movies that was something that was easy to leave behind, because I think that look played directly into his evil desire to rule over Earth. We rested that design element with that storyline.
Nerds and Beyond: It’s very clear too and I’ve always loved looking at that, because I’m a huge fan of the character. I’ve always loved kind of comparing how he looked in that movie to the rest of them.
Douglas: You’re on to me!
Nerds and Beyond: I’m not! I swear [laughs] So, what’s your best method for making the actors comfortable in the makeup chair? And with the final outcome?
Douglas: It’s dialogue; listening, talking to them, talking to their representation, whether it be an agent or a manager, and doing my homework and doing my due diligence to find out what’s going to make them comfortable the moment they walk through the door. I do my homework on them. It’s not just IMDb, it’s an internet search. So, I spend some time on the web and find out who these folks are, and if I find out, for example, they’re not one that likes to talk a lot, well, the writing’s on the wall, we’re not going to talk a lot, we’ll cut to the chase and get to the point. But also, it’s about building a rapport and building a relationship. Also, knowing that, I’ve said this in previous discussions, knowing it’s necessary to get out of the way.
Like if, for example, I’m not a proper fit for somebody, I have to be plugged in, I have to be aware enough to understand that it may not be working before somebody says to me, “Hey, this isn’t gonna work.” So it’s just about being open, especially as Tom’s personal on these projects and running the department, knowing that I don’t get to do everybody. I don’t get to put my thumbprint on other people’s work. Because not only is that disrespectful, it’s very often unnecessary, because I hire good people. I hire contemporaries and peers. Truly, you’re only as good as your weakest crew member. I surround myself with good people.
So, take Owen Wilson, for example, it would have been wonderful to do Owen’s makeup, but there were times when he was not going to be shooting with Tom and I was going to need to be ready for Tom or available to Tom, so it didn’t make sense. So I never touched Owen, I had Dennis Liddiard design that look and run with it. And then Ned Neidhardt took over that look when Dennis had to depart. That’s just one example of not trying to do everything.
Another one was the Classic Loki. I wanted to do Richard E. Grant’s [makeup] so bad, I can’t even tell you. I’ve been a huge fan since 1987. I wanted so badly to bring that full circle, didn’t make sense. It just didn’t make sense. So again, I never touched him. It wasn’t necessary. Ned was always there. And I think the same thing happened to me on Ragnarok reshoots, which I ran in Atlanta again with Dennis Liddiard. I wanted so badly to do Sir Anthony Hopkins makeup, but it didn’t make sense. So I was happy to hand it off to Bill Myer.
Tumblr media
Nerds and Beyond: Oh man, I loved Richard E. Grant in this show so much.
Douglas: He’s amazing.
Nerds and Beyond: He’s so good!
Douglas: He really is. And he’s that good in person. He’s just so fun and interesting and alluring and attractive. He’s such a wonderful, wonderful person and, of course, a phenomenal actor.
Nerds and Beyond: I was watching little videos that he posted and he just seems like the warmest person.
Douglas: You know, just one last tidbit about Richard Grant is he’s got wonderful stories and as he’s telling them he’ll often stop and pause and just laugh. Just laugh, not for the sake of the stories or for anybody that he’s telling the story to, but because recounting the story brings him true joy. So he’ll stop and embrace that joy. Oh, it’s so wonderful.
Nerds and Beyond: That’s so amazing to hear. What is the most memorable job that you’ve done?
Douglas: The most memorable … That’s a tough one because I have so many fond memories of so many projects. The first Avengers film was memorable because there was a buzz, there was a vibration, a frequency, that was in the air when we were shooting that. We kind of knew we were making something big and something special. I don’t think any of us knew how big or how special it would be, but that certainly is one of the most memorable and most special projects.
I’m pretty good about focusing on the positive aspects of all these things, regardless of how difficult the project may be for whatever reason. The pros always, always heavily outweigh the cons, but I have a lot of wonderful, memorable experiences. Another one, it’s the polar opposite only because of the conditions in which we shot, but Birth of the Nation was one of the most memorable and exceptional experiences of my career. I was on the wrong side of 40, had 25 years of experience, and had still never worked so hard in my entire life. We did a 50-day shoot in 27 days. So proud of the work we did.
It was 100 degrees with 99 percent humidity, we shot it in the summer in Georgia, in Savannah, so it was hot, humid, and just getting the makeup necessary to be on individuals to stay put was its own challenge. And then the other challenges only added to that. But Nate Parker, the director, writer, producer, and lead actor, he is a special human being. And he was inspiring from start to finish. Usually, the first people in are the teamsters, transport department, and usually I’m second. He beat me in almost every single day. He’s in three hours before he needs to be. That was a very special experience.
Nerds and Beyond: Finally, are you excited about the news of Loki Season 2?
Douglas: I’m beyond thrilled! I invite being in the dark a little bit, I kind of like surprises and I like not knowing, so I suspected, but hearing the news confirmed, I was thrilled, naturally. What are they going to dream up? This is amazing. How do you top season 1 of Loki? That’s the burning question.
30 notes · View notes
aion-rsa · 3 years
Text
Marvel’s Loki Season 2: The MCU Questions We Need Answered
https://ift.tt/eA8V8J
The following contains Loki spoilers.
Marvel’s Loki may have only been six episodes, but it was a wild ride from start to finish, reinventing a fan favorite character, wrestling with complex existential questions of free will and fate, and telling one of the franchise’s weirdest love stories to date. Plus, you know, it also managed to entirely rewrite the reality of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we know it. 
Thankfully, Marvel wasted no time confirming a second season, announcing the show’s renewal in the end credits of the Season 1 finale. (Likely because it was obvious that fans would riot if we weren’t promised some answers to the many questions – both literal and philosophical – that this show raised.) 
cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });
Here are just a few of the things we’re definitely going to need Loki Season 2 to explore.
Where in the Timeline is Loki?
The first season of Loki ends with a jaw-dropping cliffhanger: He Who Remains is dead, the multiverse is reborn, and when Loki returns to the Time Variance Authority he doesn’t find things exactly as he left them. Mobius and B-20 no longer remember him and the three giant statues of the Time Keepers at the TVA have been replaced with a single figure carved in Kang’s image. What in the world is going on here?
One of the first key questions Loki Season 2 will have to answer is precisely where and when this Loki and the TVA even are. Is this the remnants of the Sacred Timeline, rewritten into something new by He Who Remains’ death? Did Renslayer’s actions somehow change the TVA? Or did Sylvie’s temp-pad launch Loki across the multiverse into another world entirely? (Though since the TVA is supposed to exist outside of time and reality, could there even be a second one?) 
Thinking too hard about this is enough to make your head hurt, in the best way possible. 
What’s Next for Sylvie?
When last we saw our favorite female Loki variant Sylvie, she was watching time fracture around her after killing the man she’d spent her entire life trying to find and punish. Where does she possibly go after that? She’s literally changed reality – both for herself and everyone else.
Throughout the series, we’ve seen Sylvie driven by an aggressive single-mindedness. But where does she turn that focus now? Will she try and build the home she’s never been able to have before in one of the new timelines she’s created? Track Loki down in whatever timeline she’s sent him to? Or does she begin seeking out the Kang variants, trying to prove that her decision to essentially create them all doesn’t have to doom the universe the way He Who Remains predicted?
Is Sylvie and Loki’s Romance Doomed?
The season ended with Marvel’s most bizarre romance having their first relationship spat. Of course, for Loki and Sylvie that means literally fighting each other with swords while debating whether the universe deserves free will, all before one kisses and then betrays the other by shoving them through a temporal gateway. Shakespeare says the course of true love did never run smooth, guys. 
What’s next for these two crazy kids is anyone’s guess – as far as we know, Sylvie’s currently still in the castle at the end of time, and Loki’s in…well, Loki’s in a timeline that we haven’t entirely identified yet. How they’ll find their way back to one another in season 2 (because of course they will find their way back to one another in season 2) is anyone’s guess. 
Will Sylvie realize her decision to kill He Who Remains was a mistake? Will she regret kicking off what may well be another multiversal war and seek Loki out to try and fix what she broke? Will Loki try to find her again, in the wake of all that’s happened?
What About All Those Other Versions of Kang?
According to He Who Remains, Sylvie’s choice to kill him would essentially release a veritable army of Kang variants across the multiverse, who will wreak untold havoc and destruction until one essentially takes over again. And that appears to be exactly what has happened, to some extent, given that the statues of the Time Keepers at TVA headquarters have been replaced with a giant Kang figure. But which version of the character that is – or what the other, less benevolent version have done in his name – is up in the air. 
We know that Jonathan Majors is set to play Kang the Conquerer in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania but that film isn’t set to hit theaters until 2023 and that’s an awfully long time to let the MCU’s new Big Bad sit idle. So it seems safe to assume that we’ll see some version of him pop up in at least one MCU property before then, if not more. 
Where Did Judge Renslayer Go?
When last we saw Judge Renslayer, she seemed determined to prove that her life as a leader of the TVA – and the many morally dubious decisions she made as such – had some sort of meaning, despite the fact that her actions were essentially all performed in service to a group of leaders who didn’t actually exist.
After an emotional confrontation with Mobius, Renslayer escapes in search of “free will,” which as we know in this universe generally means Kang. Whether she finds him, or what happens during her confrontation with whichever version of Kang she meets is unknown, but since Renslayer is Kang’s girlfriend in the comics, it seems safe to assume that she has some hand in the creation of whatever version of the TVA Loki stumbles back into at the end of the finale. 
Why Does the TVA Still Exist?
Throughout Loki Season 1, the TVA was sort of the literal embodiment of the “you had one job” concept. They were meant to patrol and protect the Sacred Timeline, pruning rogue variants and cutting off dangerous branches before they threatened the balance of reality. But now that He Who Remains is dead and there is no Sacred Timeline anymore, then what purpose does the TVA still serve in this new reality? 
Judging by the giant statue of some version of Kang in the lobby, there’s every likelihood that the organization has shifted focus to either battle or track the many variants of the former He Who Remains throughout time and space and may have even been created in this reality by one the the “good” Kang variants. But, it’s also possible that the TVA is still trying, in some small way, to corral or at least organize the multiverse into something where its many branches can somehow peacefully co-exist. 
What’s the Deal with Miss Minutes?
Miss Minutes, the TVA’s cheerful sentient clip art, is one of the most memorable parts of Loki’s first season. Her organizational prowess is clearly unmatched and very little appears to ruffle her determinedly perky attitude.  But we still don’t know much about her, including how she came to exist or what her ultimate goals are. 
Simultaneously helpful and vaguely menacing, it seems clear that she had an agenda of her own throughout the season. But an agenda in service to whom? He Who Remains? Kang the Conqueror? The larger concept of order? And what sort of secrets does she still know?
Is Alligator Loki Okay?
Obviously, a real concern going into Loki Season 2 is the fate of all the other Loki variants we met throughout the season. With He Who Remains dead and the multiverse unleashed, will the other Lokis be able to leave their Void prison and return to their real lives?
Most importantly, is Alligator Loki okay? Are he and Kid Loki striking out on their own now, perhaps to a Disney+ Young Avengers series near you? Loki Season 2 definitely needs to provide us with an update on our favorite reptilian god. 
Could Classic Loki Still Be Alive?
As long as we’re talking about Loki variants, does the rebirth of the multiverse mean that Classic Loki might return in some way? Your mileage may vary on whether or not you think his sacrifice was truly heroic or a heroic piece of misdirection, but we don’t actually know what happens to the variants and timelines gobbled up by Alioth. 
Sure, the other Lokis hinted that to be eaten by the fog monster equals instant death, but this show also spent four full episodes pretending that pruning equals being killed, so trust but verify, is all I’m saying. Plus, Richard E. Grant is just too good an actor not to put back in a classic Loki costume as soon as possible. 
How Will Doctor Strange 2 Impact Loki Season 2?
With reports swirling that Tom Hiddleston will make some sort of appearance in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it seems likely that the film will impact Loki Season 2 in significant ways. 
Of course, the question of which version of Hiddleston’s Loki we might see in the film – the same one we saw in Loki or some other perhaps as-yet-unknown variant – remains an open one, but given that this Loki had a direct hand in the creation of the multiverse, it certainly makes sense that he might cross over to a film dealing directly with that concept. Could Sylvie also pop up? It’s certainly possible and after Loki and WandaVision it seems as though anything could happen in this film. 
The post Marvel’s Loki Season 2: The MCU Questions We Need Answered appeared first on Den of Geek.
from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2UhDRmU
0 notes