Loki Review: Lamentis (Season 1 Episode 3)

It’s shocking that Loki Season 1 Episode 3, “Lamentis,” would choose to explore the characters at the heart of its story, rather than the chaos it so dubiously promised us in the first beats of this episode.

This change in direction forces the conflict bubbling over from the Lady Loki reveal into a bottle, where it is unable to overshadow this potentially unremarkable side mission.

It’s that very lack of conflict that suggests we should be disappointed, but I don’t find myself disappointed by the TVA’s absence. This is Loki’s show, and it’s about damn time the story came to terms with that.

Introducing an episode entirely separate from the main conflict when you only have six episodes to execute a story can be a massive risk. Falcon and The Winter Soldier Season 1 Episode 3, “Power Broker,” attempted a similar bottle episode and ultimately suffered for sidelining its greater story.

The difference in success between “Power Broker” and “Lamentis” is the prioritization of lead characters. The decision to use this Owen Wilson-less episode not as fuel for the TVA, but as a long-overdue conversation for Loki is crucial.

Yes, this episode could have incorporated more external conflict from previous instalments, just as the season could have incorporated more of this dialogue into future episodes.

However, there’s something about Loki being in the company of someone that understands him on a fundamental level that has us hoping this god never stops talking — because what he’s saying is bigger than any single episode could accomplish.

A bottle episode about Loki may seem redundant in a show named after him, but it’s easy for these characters to get lost in the bigger battle. Choosing to remove the battle altogether and focus on the quiet beats of Loki’s self-reflection may not win this episode the fight, but it will win this season the war.

This episode may cut itself loose from the chaos of the larger season, but what it lacks in storylines it more than makes up for with finesse and fan-fare.

“Lamentis” has so many wonderful details in its physicality. From Sylvie tying her hair back in a bun before charging into battle to Loki getting wasted and singing Asgardian folk tunes in what I assume is the Snowpiercer train.

The cinematography does not hold back, bathing this episode in a purplish hue and creating vast valleys of meteor showers to frame our tricksters as they walk to their demise. This builds to a glorious single-take scene that weaves through narrow streets and neon storefronts with precision.

There are no cuts, only grace, as the camera follows them through the crowded square, zooming in on weapons during particularly great hand-to-hand combat sequences and taking off over the hungry crowd in pursuit.

It’s a fast and furious feast for the eyes that leaves viewers panting to keep up.

The episode’s abrupt end at the height of this eye-catching action is the closest a cliffhanger has come to duplicating WandaVision’s cruel “Please Stand By” message. For that, I must commend Loki.

This episode operates around a constant stream of dialogue between Loki and Sylvie. In true trickster fashion, it’s difficult to distinguish what dialogue is filler and what dialogue will lead to a profound confession.

We learn more about Loki’s mother and the role she played in teaching him magic. We learn Sylvie has been fleeing the TVA her whole life. However, when the topic of lovers comes up, it unearths something groundbreaking about Loki — the God of Mischief is bisexual!

It’s a coming out for Loki Laufeyson that has been ten years in the making, and it’s groundbreaking for a franchise that has yet to acknowledge LGBTQ+ characters.

Sylvie: Must’ve been would-be princesses or perhaps, another prince.
Loki: A bit of both. I suspect the same as you.

Loki’s gender fluidity and sexual preferences are part of who the God of Mischief is and acknowledging that isn’t just a nice sentiment. It’s imperative to his story.

We lived to see two canon LGBTQ+ characters sitting in a train car flooded with bisexual lighting (a technique that uses pink, purple, and blue lighting to represent bisexual characters). Even better, the dialogue confirms the lighting is intentional, rather than a trick to stir further speculation — what a concept!

Sophia Di Martino brings Sylvia to life with an untamed and dangerous fury.

She’s very much a projection of Loki, but she’s also her own entity and one that understands how to be just as egotistical.

We’ve only had Loki and Sylvie for a short time, but they are a delight! Thrown together by circumstance, they are constantly finding ways to rephrase their desire to kill each other. Yet, these two cold and cruel people find comfort in one another too.

So much so that Loki gets drunk in Sylvie’s presence and shares intimate details about his life. Whether they’re slinging insults or drunkenly waving at each other from across the bar, these two knife-wielding lunatics make a promising team.

It’s lovely to see Sylvie unearth a desire in Loki to explore his own magical abilities.

Even in possession of his blades, Loki chooses to use his powers more as the episode progresses and we learn just how capable he is. One has to hope fireworks and glowing green temper tantrums are just the beginning.

Loki has just handed us an incredibly intimate and expensive character study with stunning visuals and even more stunning fight sequences. To shun something so glorious for being so different from Marvel’s typical approach would be to dismiss how successful these character explorations have been.

“Lamentis” is grounded entirely in Tom Hiddleston’s deep reservoirs of charm, and dialogue as clever as our two tricksters.

The reveal that the TVA is made up of mind-wiped variants isn’t surprising given the clues Mobius has dropped. However, the inclusion of this game-changing twist and the devastating look on Loki’s face is just the cherry on top of this spectacular character-driven episode.

When in doubt, bet on your characters. They’re the story worth investing in.

What did you think of this episode of Loki? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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New episodes of Loki air Wednesdays on Disney+.

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