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The Mast's 30 Days of Comicdom (Day 2): Who Is Your Favourite Villain?
I was tossing and turning this decision over in my head like some kind of weird pancake, and then I realised there was really only one choice. My favourite villain is of course...
Loki.
It really was such a close call between this guy and Dr. Doom. Recent events, however, just made it clear that Loki was the guy, but why?
In many ways, Loki Laufeyson is the typical cliche. The younger brother who never becomes quite the man his brother is. He develops envy and then hatred etc. You know the drill. Loki, adopted son of Odin (His real father was Laufey, a frost giant), is a very simple character...but one that has a load of depth.
The God of Mischief is definitely someone who lives up to his name, and whilst I haven't been a life-long fan of Loki, he has catapulted into my ranks over the years. Naturally, he is a liesmith, he crafts lie upon lie to achieve his own ends. You would think that, by now, those around him would be aware of his traits and never listen to a word he says. Such is the genius and diabolical skill in his craft, and why I love the guy so much. Even his language, when written well, just smacks of sarcasm and mischief.
Loki is SO good as what he does that it doesn't matter if he's lied to you 100 times before, he will plant a seed, however small, that causes that tiny element of doubt. Then, when it takes root, he will have your ear. Look no further than his plot to have Thor cast out of Asgard. Now, what are the chances that Loki, a grand liar of unfathomable proportions, could achieve such a thing? Thor, hero of Asgard and son of Odin, cast out due to the machinations of a known trickster?
Loki resurrected Bor, father of Odin, and transported him to Earth. Cast under the spell that caused him to see everything as a demon, Bor wrecked everything he saw until Thor was forced to take him down, entirely unaware of who he was. Loki, during this battle, told King Balder who Bor was and suggested they go there to stop Thor killing him, though it was too late. Loki knew this. When it was revealed that Thor had killed a royal Asgardian, he was placed on trial and Loki so charmingly and sarcastically said, pretty much, "Oh...but isn't the punishment supposed to be banishment from Asgard forever? My, my! It is!"
You could tell Thor knew something was up, and Loki knew that he knew, but that's what made his plan all the sweeter. With a smirk on his face, he had seen his half-brother exiled, and he barely lifted a finger. It was just such a brilliant moment. It doesn't matter that Loki manipulated Bor either, because the fact remained that Thor had killed a royal Asgardian, so he met exile regardless.
It doesn't stop there. In an attempt to get Asgard back under his own ruling, he even caused the entire Siege event. Getting into the ear of Osborn he said that the reason Civil War happened was due to an inciting incident with a super-powered being. Then went so far as to say that the only reason Osborn would need to invade Asgard is to do the same with an Asgardian, thus leading to Volstagg's unfortunate situation and the whole Siege event.
Diabolically clever, throughout Siege he barely lifted a finger. He appeared to empower The Hood's gang with Norn stone power, and the event did end with his uncharacteristically noble sacrifice, but do you ever know with Loki? Never. That's the beauty of his character. He must be a dream to write because you can write him as logically out of character as you want and then reveal it to be a plot.
I am so pleased that Tom Hiddleston is playing him in the movie, he looks amazing in the outfit. He gets it too. Loki IS exactly like Edmund from King Lear, just meaner and more manipulative. The dialogue between Loki and Dr. Doom in the early issues of Kieron Gillen's run on Thor was amazing. Dr. Doom didn't appear TOO unsettled by Loki, because he's just that badass, but you could tell Loki had such audacity that he was manipulating Dr. Doom without him knowing it.
What's so good about Loki is that, well, he shows us all what power lies in the lie. Telling lies is a very powerful and influential skill if you can do so and do so well. How many of us, in our lives, have told lies that we didn't need to? Lied to get what we wanted? Maybe you've lied to craft a day off school or work. As bad or wrong or mischievous as that may be, nobody can deny that feeling of victory when a crafty tale ends up working in your favour. I think that is what's so brilliant about Loki. Of course, then there was the time that he was trapped in Sif's body and thus, was effectively a woman for a while...
I really do recommend reading J. Michael Straczynski's run on Thor if you're interested in seeing some seriously awesome tinkering by the man himself. He did #1 to #12 and then they re-numbered it, from which he did #600 to the Giant-Size Finale #1, which is between #603 and #604.
Loki is someone so diabolically charming, such an enchanting ne'er-do-well that it's impossible to call him evil. He isn't evil, but he is most certainly a villain. He is my favourite villain, for all the above reasons.
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Another day, another post.
The questions get more and more interesting as time goes on, so be sure to keep your eyes glued to this blog over the coming 30 days!
Thank you very much for reading, thanks for the comments (Keep leaving comments, they're awesome. Let me know what you're thinking) and the continued support, too. It's very much appreciated.
For now, though, I bid you adieu until tomorrow.
Until next time, peace.
-The Mast
