Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Loki Season 2 Episode 5.

The Big Picture

Episode 5 of Loki explores Loki’s desire for friendship and a place to belong, highlighting the importance of a found family. Head writer Eric Martin emphasizes the significance of fan interaction, stating that he wants to respect and deliver a character-driven story. The complicated relationship between Loki and Sylvie is explored throughout the season, delving into unresolved conflicts and messy emotions.

With just one episode left of Loki, the series has taken some twists and turns in its sophomore season. Episode 5 “Science/Fiction” pulled Loki (Tom Hiddleston) into multiple timelines after the meltdown at the TVA and the destruction of the temporal loom. In trying to get Mobius (Owen Wilson), B-15 (Wunmi Mosaku), Casey (Eugene Cordero), O.B. (Ke Huy Quan), and Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) back together with him, Loki discovers his own desire for friendship and also for a place to belong. The show has been slowly building a found family for Loki and we’re finally seeing the fruits of that labor. With Loki finally mastering his ability to time-slip, the possibilities of where the finale could go are endless.

We spoke with head writer of the series Eric Martin to break down some of the events of the show so far. Martin talked with us about the fan interaction he’s had while writing the show. He also discussed Loki’s Episode 5 revelation and talks about the importance of a found family to him and to the character. Martin elaborated on the complicated relationship between Loki and Sylvie and why the two are in opposition for so much of the season. He talked about Mobius’ real life and how it was always in the plans to have him be a single dad. And finally, he gave some insight into his inspiration for the season (also pulling out a book of poetry like Natalie Holt, given to him by Tom Hiddleston) and how he uses that inspiration.

Loki Loki, the God of Mischief, steps out of his brother’s shadow to embark on an adventure that takes place after the events of “Avengers: Endgame.” Release Date June 9, 2021 Cast Tom Hiddleston, Owen Wilson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Richard E. Grant Seasons 2 Studio Disney+
COLLIDER: So just jumping right into it, the fan reaction and interaction for this show is massive. I know this because I crowdsource some questions. And the response was insane.

ERIC MARTIN: I love that by the way.

I knew what I was getting into. [Laughs] But did that get to you when it came to writing for this season? I mean, the Loki, Mobius, Sylvie of it all, it can be a little overwhelming.

MARTIN: So I never want to write, like in a prescriptive way what I think people want. I want to respect what they want. I want to respect them as fans and tell the best, most emotional character driven story possible, if that makes sense. And like really let these characters lead the way and tell the story. We know who they are. Let’s let them tell us what they need on the screen. And so, the fan interaction is great. I love that they love it so much. And I just want to respect that in the best way I can.

Looking at last night’s episode, can we talk a little bit about that major revelation that Loki has, you know, not only that he wants his friends, but he needs a place to belong as well. I feel like that’s so central to Loki’s story, and it has been since the beginning. Can you talk about developing that?

MARTIN: Well, yeah, because I think Loki has been around for a long time, right? But I think that it’s still just an unresolved thing. And I think that’s a thing that I don’t think you can ever resolve within yourself. You’re always searching for that. I think found family is an important thing in my life, and so that was a touchstone for me in writing Loki and all of that stuff. I think it’s an important thing for all of us, the communities we bring around us, and for him to have that revelation that, “Oh, I’m doing this because of them, but for me? Oh.” He can’t turn his back on that, Sylvie stuck that knife and she’s right. But then it’s not that simple. And he does have this chance to like, “Oh, I can save them. I have to say them. Nobody else can.” And now it’s just like, “I must save my family.” I think it’s really touching. I hope it sounds like it’s getting through, I hope it does.

Image via Disney+

Yeah, definitely. I need to know, speaking of Sylvie, what is going on with Sylvie and Loki this season? You know, they’ve been at odds all season. And they kind of fall on two sides of chaos and order, which is kind of crazy because Loki was, he was pretty much chaos embodied for a while. Can you talk about the roadmap when it came to developing this relationship for the season?

MARTIN: Yeah, so I think everything goes back to last season. I think we are still working through that fight they add at the Citadel at the End of Time. And which one of them was right. Is one of them right? Is it that simple? And I think Sylvie went off– It’s like, they had a breakup, and Sylvie went off and she does her thing. Loki still kind of in it. He’s like, pining but like, I don’t know, not quite sure where he is. And Sylvie, she’s had a rough ride. She just wants a simple life. And when he walks into that McDonald’s, that look on Sophia’s face, it’s just– Sophia just nails it there. Because I think what Sylvie is feeling is just like, on some level, she knows the life she’s created there, is nuked. It’s not going to ever be what it was these past eight months she has been living down there, and she has created a life. And I think she’s in denial from that point on of like, “I can go back, I can go back.” And then we get into [Episode] 5, and, it’s like, you can’t go back. It’s not there in the way you wanted it to be. It’s not going to be there for anyone. And so I think it’s just all a complicated mess of emotions. And then you get these two together, and they’re this couple that like never quite got there and they’re still working things out. And I think it’s just messy and emotionally true. And it’s not quite neat and tidy. That’s what I like about romance. It’s never neat and tidy.

I agree.

MARTIN: Sorry, that was a long answer.

No, I totally agree with you on that! I’m curious, regarding the show, I don’t know how much you can tell me about this. But is there going to be an explanation as to why Loki is the only one who time slips and why that’s something unique to him.

MARTIN: Yeah, look, I think we’re clocking that the time slipping is meaningful from the beginning all the way through the end.

Okay. And we got to see Mobius’ real life, and we learned that he’s a father. And first, I just want to know, was there ever a discussion about Mobius’ real life just being Owen Wilson’s life?

MARTIN: [Laughs] No, that’s a really funny idea. No, we never really thought about that. Honestly, the single father thing came and it just always felt right. It never really changed. The only thing that changed is that instead of having six boys that are nearly burning down the house, he has two, two boys in real life, which I think brings so much heart and sweetness to it.

Yeah, and are we seeing this future for him as a character? You know, I’m curious as to where these characters can go beyond the Loki show? And is this something that is viable for him for the future? I know you can’t tell me much!

MARTIN: No, I mean, you know, I can’t answer where these characters are gonna go beyond this. But I think it is all just an emotional mix that is in that character now. And I think that has to be part of the character going forward, right?

Yeah. And when it came to inspiration for the season, we got that Velvet Underground song for Episode 5, and I felt like that was so significant. And I know Natalie [Holt] told me that Tom [Hiddleston] gave her a book of poetry to read based on the season. Did you pull from any– Oh!

MARTIN: [Holds up a copy of T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets]

Yes! Did he give that to everybody?

MARTIN: Yeah, he gave this to me before I even started writing the season. And we went back to it, and we talked a lot about it.

Okay, so did you pull from any other inspiration for the season?

MARTIN: In terms of like filmic things, I don’t really work from a point of view of like, “Oh, I’m going to try to emulate this or that,” I just watch a lot of stuff and whatever comes out of me, comes out of me. I think musically, there are a lot of things. Velvet Underground, it’s funny, that song was Aaron [Moorhead] and Justin [Benson]. But I listen to Velvet Underground throughout the writing of this, like that was just writing music for me. And then Fiona Apple. I love Fiona Apple, and I feel like the tone of the show, I’m just trying to chase the emotion of a Fiona Apple song. I think she plays the minor keys and the heavy keys, and it can be whimsical and then suddenly very emotional. That’s what I want to try to do with this, I just want to emulate Fiona because I think she’s just the greatest artist out there.

Loki Season 2 is streaming on Disney+ in the U.S.

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