Episode 5 of Loki introduced some new Loki variants that inhabit the Void — here's Kid Loki's powers and his flaming sword, Laevateinn, explained.
Warning: SPOILERS for Loki episode 5, "Journey into Mystery"
Loki episode 5, "Journey into Mystery," reveals more about the new Loki variants, including a look at Kid Loki's powers and his flaming sword. While this episode took a humorous tone toward the new variants (especially Alligator Loki) it also showed the serious power that can result from Lokis teaming up. Kid Loki serves as the King of the Void, ruling over a population of Loki variants eager to take his place — all while sipping on some Ecto Cooler Hi-C.
"Journey into Mystery" followed Loki as he learned more about his fellow variants and the land they'd been pruned into. The group of variants bring Loki to their lair (a.k.a a bowling alley) and give him some quick notes on survival and the beast that rules the land, Alioth. Ravonna revealed to Sylvie that this land is at the end of time; instead of erasing realities, they're sent to the end of time where they're no longer consequential. Sylvie prunes herself to find Loki, and after a brief reunion with Mobius, the variants team up to defeat Alioth with an impressive array of abilities. Just before they leave for their mission, Kid Loki (played by Jack Veal) gifts Loki with a precious gift — his flaming golden sword. Now, Sylvie and Loki are facing what lies beyond Alioth.
During Loki's introduction to the Void, it's revealed that Kid Loki is the king of the kingdom. Despite some double-crossing from Boastful Loki and a coup attempt by President Loki, Kid Loki walks away unscathed and still in control of his kingdom with their bowling alley lair still centered around his throne. In the Void, Kid Loki commands respect for having murdered Thor— from Classic Loki and the Alligator, anyway. When Mobius offers Kid Loki a chance out of the Void at the end of Loki episode 5, he ultimately decides to stay with his kingdom. Here's a breakdown of Kid Loki's powers and how they compare to his comic counterpart.
Kid Loki is one of the variants featured in Loki episode 5. In the comics, Kid Loki had an array of powers as a reincarnation of Loki after his death, much like Lady Loki. Missing the memories of his past life, the young god was running card game scams on the streets of Paris. After Thor returned his partial memories, Kid Loki began to unlock his powers as his desire to be his own person grew. Kid Loki was able to turn people into animals (as he turned the spirit of his former incarnation into a magpie), bind beasts to his will, and use all the other abilities his original self possessed — however, his child form caused his abilities to be weaker than they were in previous incarnations. Kid Loki is able to communicate with other incarnations of himself, including Ikor, the enchanted magpie, and the adult version of himself who would later kill him. A version of Kid Loki would go on to join the Young Avengers, where it was revealed that he possessed the ability to borrow other's powers when he borrowed the power of Wiccan.
While the team of variants was sharing the Nexus Events that got them caught by the TVA, Kid Loki admits that his own Nexus Event was killing his brother, Thor. In the comic "Fear Itself," Kid Loki makes a string of decisions in his attempt to save Asgard that result in Thor's death at the hands of Cul Borson, a.k.a. Serpent, Odin's older brother. One difference between Loki and Kid Loki is that the child version carries extreme guilt for his past actions and makes attempts to be a better person, serving as the conscience that previous Lokis were lacking. Kid Loki suffered nightmares of Thor's death in his guilt, giving him visions of himself killing his brother. It is possible that the Kid Loki variant in the Disney+ series actually delivered the fatal blow to his brother, creating the Nexus Event, but the details around what transpired haven't been revealed yet. It is also possible that this version of Kid Loki carries the same guilt for his brother's death, blaming himself for his brother's fate despite not delivering the fatal blow himself.
Loki episode 5 reveals Kid Loki's flaming dagger, or short sword, which he is able to summon at will. Toward the end of the episode, Kid Loki gifts the dagger to Loki, claiming he'll need it in his journey. This dagger is based both on Marvel Comic lore and Norse mythology lore. The blade is named Laevateinn, Loki's ancestral blade. In Norse mythology, Laevateinn is a sword that was crafted by Loki to defeat Viðofnir, a rooster that lived at the top of Yggdrasil. In the comics, Loki can be seen wielding Laevateinn on multiple occasions. Loki is able to summon Laevateinn to himself any time he has access to his powers, a useful trick Loki could learn from Kid Loki. Laevateinn has multiple translations. A sword of deception, a wand of cunning — or a "damage twig," as Sigurd refers to it as in "Lost Legends." Laevateinn first appears in Journey into Mystery Vol. 1 #115, making Loki episode 5 a fitting time for Laevateinn to make its first MCU appearance.
So far, Kid Loki hasn't shown much of his abilities in Loki. Kid Loki does summon Laevateinn multiple times, and he also seems to have the ability to communicate with Alligator Loki. So far, it seems that every Loki variant in the MCU is able to unlock the same powers as any other Loki variant; they just have to learn them, like Loki learned to enchant Alioth from Sylvie. With this knowledge, it can be assumed that Kid Loki has the ability to do what any other Loki can do. In the fight between President Loki and his followers, Kid Loki's only move is to throw Alligator Loki at one of the attackers, lending credence to the idea that MCU's Kid Loki might also possess weakened powers. With Kid Loki's current status unknown by the end of the episode, there is still a potential to see just what Kid Loki can do in the final episode of Loki — or future movies.
Loki releases new episodes every Wednesday on Disney+.
