Loki is a surrealist, kafkaesque mashup of True Detective and The Office—and it is a sight to behold. ... The show should not work, but it does. Loki (the series) was burdened with glorious purpose from the start and, unlike Loki (the character), you can consider that purpose fulfilled.
It’s incredibly promising from the first two episodes provided for press alone, especially as a series that doesn’t demand patience but instead straps you right into its heady and mischievous adventure.
If emo Loki is a bit of a drag — “Stop trying to be a hero,” someone tells him, “you’re a villain. You’re good at it. Do that” — Hiddleston gives the whole thing the patina of class. Even so, he’s not given much character motivation.
Only two episodes of “Loki” were screened for critics, making it hard to know exactly how successful the 6-episode season might be in shaping its own identity within the onscreen Marvel universe. Of these first two episodes, however, the second was far more engaging. ... When Loki sighs in frustration about the TVA’s tedious overreach dictating his story when he could be doing something much more dangerous and strange, it’s hard not to agree.
Loki could well improve, now that its arduous task of educating us about multiverses, and glumly explaining Loki to himself, is with any luck behind it. Let’s hope so. The character deserves a lot more room to get frisky and freaky than these cramped openers carved out.