Tuesday 14 April 2015

AtoZChallenge2015 - L is for Loki

Fictional Deities and Demons - AtoZ 2015
Hello and welcome to day 12 of the AtoZChallenge 2015.


Historically Loki is  trickster god from Norse Mythology, but the fictional portrayal I am interested in is Loki from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He is played by Tom Hiddleston and is at times sympathetic and at others completely unforgivable. I love him.

I even have a little Loki "shrine" on my desk :) (please ignore the dust!).

Loki is chaos embodied. In the first Thor film he is a trickster, but, to begin with his motives are fair. He allows Jotun into the vault to mess up his brother,Thor's coronation because Thor really isn't ready to be any sort of king. Yes he lets them in just to be killed by the destroyer, but these are the creatures he has been brought up to hate and in Asgard the general attitude seems to be, if it is bad, kill it.

It's when he finds out he actually is Jotun hidden under his Asgardian skin that things begin to go downhill. I think it's quite reasonable to say Loki has something of a mental break as his reality folds around him and he ends up trying to destroy all of Jotunheim just to prove he is still a son of Odin.

When he returns in Avengers he is the out and out baddy, but, given that he looks like he's been through a terrible ordeal, it could be argued he is neither of sound mind nor sound body throughout the whole thing.

Then in Thor 2 we have Loki's redemption, sort of :).

I love Loki for many reasons:

  1. Tom Hiddleston is gorgeous (I can too be shallow!)
  2. Loki is so complex
  3. He's a bad guy who isn't completely bad
  4. He has awesome powers - he can shape change, teleport, create illusions and much more
  5. He has a huge brain
Loki is simply fabulous!

Are you a Loki fan? Which is your favourite version, myth, MCU or another incarnation?



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67 comments:

  1. No, haven't heard of Loki. He looks cute and innocent sitting on your desk :)
    Inventions by Women A-Z
    Shells–Tales–Sails

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    1. That is his greatest talent - looking like something he is not ;)

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  2. I have not heard of Loki before, but I don't think you are shallow because you might consider Tom Hiddleston gorgeous :)

    betty

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    1. He's rather easy on the eyes :) and so very, very talented as an actor. His Coriolanus was simply mind blowing.

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  3. I share your love of Loki from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and also your appreciation for Tom Hiddleston's gorgeousness. I've only seen the first couple of movies--it's good to know that there's a "sort of" redemption in Thor 2.

    That's a pretty adorable Loki shrine on your desk. I used to have a set of Lord of the Rings action figures on mine, but finally had to sacrifice the space to stacks of books. :)

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    1. My husband built me a shelf next to my desk just for my marvel figures, but the cats had decided they like sitting on it so my desk is still crowded ;) Thor 2 is brilliant ... but then so are most of the MCU movies :)

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  4. I haven't seen any of these films, but I know the character of Loki from legends.
    I like tricksters as character in general, they are complex and... well... very tricky to relate to ;-)

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    1. I saw what you did there ;) The tricksters are always the most interesting ones, aren't they.

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  5. Not shallow, but I have to admit I don't recall Loki in the shows. I have heard of the name before, but it was in mythology.

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    1. Have you seen the movies? He was rather important in at least 3 of them :)

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  6. I too love a good, complex villain. And it doesn't hurt if he looks like Tom. :-)

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  7. You have a lot of Loki figures.
    Be curious to see where they take the character in the next Thor movie.

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    1. I wish I had the Hot Toys Loki too, but he was £180 when he first came out and is now much more. I hope they continue with him as kind of grey, while trying to stop Thanos, because I believe he will be in Avengers 3 and 4.

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  8. Yes, yes and yes! I'll second all those points on the wonderful and complex Loki. Not to mention Tom...*stares off into distance*

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    1. LOL - he is such eye candy and he's so talented ... how can anyone resist? :)

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  9. I've never come across Loki before but he sounds interesting to say the least!

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  10. I've never come across Loki before but he sounds interesting to say the least!

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    1. Oh definitely interesting - the whole of the MCU is very, very interesting :)

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  11. Loki is a very complex and deep character. He is unfolding well, and Tom Hiddleston ain't bad :-)

    Annalisa, writing A-Z vignettes, at Wake Up, Eat, Write, Sleep

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    1. Hot, I think the word you're looking for is hot ;)

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  12. I like Loki. Even when he's being bad, he's cool. And he's funny too.

    I love your Loki shrine! :D

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    1. He is - and so sassy :) Thank you ... I keep collecting.

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  13. Tom Hiddleston actually auditioned for the role of Thor before becoming Loki.

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    1. I know and he looks very cute all muscly, but he's definitely a better Loki :)

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  14. Loki is the guy you love to hate to love again... I was lucky enough to have an autograph of Tom, it would look awesome in the center of your collection. :)

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    1. I am lucky enough to have an autograph too ... my wonderful friends gave it to me for my 40th birthday :) It is in a frame on my desk shelf. They know me so well ;)

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  15. I have a huge crush on Tricksters in general, and Loki is a great example. I was incredibly excited when he showed up in the Marvel movies, and even more excited after the Avengers, because in true Trickster fashion he was bound to be on the good side next time. And lo and behold, Marvel was smart enough to do that! I loved it :)

    @TarkabarkaHolgy from
    Multicolored Diary - Epics from A to Z
    MopDog - 26 Ways to Die in Medieval Hungary

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    1. They do seem to know their stuff at Marvel - at least so far :)

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  16. Loki is great. Both in the original myths and the Marvel Movies!

    --
    Tim Brannan, The Other Side Blog
    2015 A to Z of Vampires
    http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/

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  17. After reading this post...I am now a Loki Fan...for all the same reasons you listed. Wow...he's good looking...I too, can be shallow. There is a Loki character on the History Channel's Series VIKINGS.
    Sue at CollectInTexas Gal
    AtoZ 2015 Challenge
    Minion for AJ's wHooligans

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    1. He is good looking isn't he *happy sigh* ... sorry, got distracted there for a moment ;) I had heard about Vikings (can't miss it when on Tumblr), but I have only seen piccies not watched it myself.

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  18. I just don't have enough good things to say about Loki!

    Good luck with the A to Z Challenge!
    S. L. Hennessy
    http://pensuasion.blogspot.com/

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  19. I enjoy how he is so clever and one step ahead of everyone else. And Tom is a cutie.

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    1. Yes and yes :) I really hope he's been playing a long game to do with the Infinity stones, because that would make him so much more fun.

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  20. Loki in the films is hard for me to like, even when I do feel sympathy with him now and then. I've just started watching a series, "The Mighty Johnsons" made in New Zealand, and it's a "modern" take on Norse Gods. I don't know if I like it yet, but it is interesting so far... Lisa, co-host AtoZ 2015, @ http://www.lisabuiecollard.com

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    1. I think you either fall for Loki or you don't ... no inbetween :). I have seen that series advertised on TV around here too, but I have not watched it yet.

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  21. Everyone I know seems to like Loki way better than Thor! I do love MCU's Loki. Wasn't it Tom who said, "Every villain is a hero in their own mind" ? I love his character. When I'm tempted to write a completely bad villain/antagonist, my mind always goes back to Loki.

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    1. I have to say I love Thor too :D but Loki is my fav. I think the MCU people have realised how popular he is as well, which is nice. He's so interesting because he is a bit nuts and so very, very clever and he makes hideous mistakes because he can't let go.

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  22. Loki is great. Honestly, he blows Thor out of the water (as far as the movies go), and, as you point out, he's nicer on the eyes, too. ;) Your shrine is cute! I particularly like the Lego Loki.

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    1. I have an Iron Man and a Captain America lego version too - Rob bought them for me from China. They are not official merchandise, but they are fun.
      Everyone loves a trickster :)

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  23. He is the dude you love to hate in the Thor movies
    http://spudsdailyphoto.blogspot.co.uk/

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    1. I kind of love to love him, even when he's an arse because he has motivation - so many baddies just don't seem to have that in action movies :)

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  24. Yeah, I'm a Loki fan. Tom Hiddleson did a great job portraying the character and he is so complex that you don't always know what to believe.

    ~Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
    Member of C. Lee's Muffin Commando Squad
    Story Dam
    Patricia Lynne, Indie Author

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    1. That was the success of the character, he never would have come back if it hadn't been for how well Tom played him in Thor. If you look at the directions in the original script and what Tom did on screen - so much more complex.

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  25. Hi Tasha - I feel like I must be missing out on so much .. .I'm sure I know the name Loki - but that's it! Tom Hiddleston - I've seen in a few films or Beeb programmes .. but haven't seen Thor .. - fun collection of Lokis though and I'm glad the cats keep you in check and your possessions in your part of the house!!! Cheers Hilary

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    1. Have you seen The Hollow Crown - he plays Prince Hal and Henry V and is brilliant :)

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  26. Loki sounds like quite a complex character.

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    1. Oh he is, which is what makes him so compelling. He's bonkers sometimes and apparently completely rational at others.

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  27. I just remembered I haven't seen Thor 2. Is it on Netflix yet?

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  28. Loved Loki because he so complex, but I hate him to because he never learns that he only hurts himself more when he hurts his family. And Thor and Odin are his family despite what he thinks.

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    1. Well given what Odin did in Thor 2 I can see Loki's point of view - he get's an F for parenting and only a C for kinging :) Thor, Loki definitely still cares for and it will be interesting to see what happens next.

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  29. I know the mythological one, always up to his tricks. I really need to check out these films!

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    1. Oh they are brilliant :) The MCU are how to do comic books movies. I just hope they can keep it up.

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  30. That's actually one of the tamer shrines I've seen.

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    1. There isn't enough Loki merchandise available over here and our local shops are crap - or it would be bigger. Also if I had more money because, oh my, those Hot Toys Lokis are awesome. :)

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  31. I've only seen him in Avengers! I sort of missed the Thor side of the universe... but after giving Captain America a shot and liking it, I think I'd better try out Thor as well. :)

    Alex Hurst, A Fantasy Author in Kyoto
    A-Z Blogging in April Participant

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    1. Oh it's definitely worth watching them all. The first Thor is very Shakespearean in feel and the second is much more MCU, but they are both brilliant. So are all the other movies - well except the first Hulk, which no one really counts ;)

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  32. I do remember Loki from The Avengers, but never saw the Thor series. He is cute. ☺

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    1. Oh, if you think he's cute you should really, really see both Thor movies - in Thor, before he goes a little off the rails, he is even more adorable.

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  33. I'm a Loki fan! I actually had a Keeshond named Loki when I was younger. He was a cool dog, but a troublemaker as his name implies. My dad and I were actually just talking about him as well as his namesake Avenger the other day. Elle @ Erratic Project Junkie

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    1. I had to look up Keeshond - what a love dog - 'It's so fluffy!' :D Bet he could look totally innocent of any crime too :)

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  34. I love your Loki desk collection. Loki's one of my favorite "villains" in the Marvel Universe. :D

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    1. I keep adding to it every time my long suffering husband buys me another Loki :) He is really sweet and keeps an eye on eBay for me.

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