How Loki Was Responsible For the MCU's Ragnarok All Along

Ragnarok, the prophesied twilight of the Norse Gods, is a mythically apocalyptic tale that has been told and retold for millennia, including through the Norse pantheon's prominent integration into the Marvel Universe. Last year's Thor: Ragnarok saw the Marvel Cinematic Universe's own version of the cataclysmic event unfold as the kingdom of Asgard was completely annihilated by the warring Hela and Surtur with only a score of refugees making their escape before their homeworld's destruction. But while it may have been Surtur that dealt the final blow to obliterate Asgard, Loki, like his comic book and mythological counterparts, ended up being the one ultimately responsible for Ragnarok all along.

For a better sense of context, let's look at Loki's role in causing Ragnarok in the original source material. In Norse myths, while Loki is a true son of Odin and not a Frost Giant as depicted in the comics and MCU, the God of Mischief ultimately sides with Jotunheim, the realm of Frost Giants, as they go to war with Asgard. As the Norse Gods fall, Loki and Heimdall ultimately slay each other in single combat. Loki's apocalyptic association with the Frost Giants undoubtedly influenced Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in their Marvel adaptation of the pantheon making the mischievous deity son of the Frost Giant ruler Laufey before being adopted by Odin after the Asgardians' victorious war against Jotunheim.

Just as the myths that inspired them, Ragnarok eventually came to Marvel's comic book incarnation of Asgard with Loki at the helm. As seen in the pages of Avengers: Disassembled - Thor (Thor #80-#85, Vol. 2) written by Michael Avon Oeming and illustrated by Andrea DiVito, Loki revives Surtur and leads an army of Storm Giants against Asgard before Thor breaks the cycle of Ragnarok with the Norse Gods put into hibernation for an eventual rebirth.

The MCU's Loki, portrayed by Tom Hiddleston, has been a largely more sympathetic figure than depicted in the original source material, though he's no less destructive. Constantly feeling slighted as a lesser son in comparison to his half-brother Thor, Loki's mischief is both a desperate cry for attention and a misplaced outlet for years of pent-up frustration. And, like his comic book counterpart, his tendency to instigate chaos both big and small, is an impulse the adopted Frost Giant cannot contain in spite of himself.

After his introduction in 2011's Thor, Loki fell in with the forces of Thanos in the following year's The Avengers in an effort to recover the Tesseract which housed the Infinity Stone of Space. This would be the Asgardians' first encounter with the Mad Titan, foreshadowing a longer association to come. However, the sides of Asgard's fall would truly be planted from within in 2013's Thor: The Dark World.

Page 2: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='How%20Tho%27s%20Least-Liked%20Film%20Defines%20Loki%27s%20Role%20in%20the%20MCU']

Imprisoned for his actions in the first Thor and Avengers films, a captive Loki would dismissively aid Kurse after the Dark Elf made his own escape from Asgard's dungeons. In doing so, Loki created the chaos he craved as Dark Elves invaded the kingdom in an attempt to recover the Aether which contained the Infinity Stone of Reality but it also inadvertently caused the death of Loki's adoptive mother Frigga.

Desperate for both freedom and revenge, Loki joined his brother to journey to the Dark Elf homeworld of Svartalfheim to confront their leader Malekith. After destroying Kurse and avenging Frigga's death, the trickster god faked his own demise and impersonated an Asgardian soldier that accompanied a grief-stricken Odin to the titular Dark World. Isolated from the rest of Asgard, Loki took the opportunity to strip Odin of his powers and banish him to Earth while returning to the throne posing as his adoptive father.

Upon Thor's return to Asgard in last year's Thor: Ragnarok, the God of Thunder discovered the Nine Realms in chaos and an idle Odin enjoying tributes to his supposedly fallen son. The two brothers search for Odin on Earth only to witness his dying moments, which Thor immediately blames his adoptive brother for. The death of Odin signals the release of his secret daughter Hela, Goddess of Death, and when Loki instinctively attempts to use the Bifrost to return to Asgard, it allows Hela to return with them. Weakened after years of Loki's ineffective rule, Asgard is easily conquered by the goddess while the brothers recuperate on Sakaar.

After Thor realizes that Hela draws her power from the kingdom itself and the spirit of Asgard will live on through its people, the God of Thunder instructs his brother to revive Surtur using the Eternal Flame deliberately bringing about Ragnarok as foretold. Before resurrecting the Fire Giant, Loki secretly pockets the Tesseract and makes his escape as the kingdom and Hela are both destroyed. However, even the Asgardian people find themselves targeted due to Loki's impulsive mischief as Thanos returns to collect on the Prince of Asgard's sins being drawn to the Tesseract. This results in half of the Asgardian people being wiped out by Thanos and the Black Order in the prologue to Avengers: Infinity War, including Loki himself in one final act of defiance.

The MCU's Asgard was always destined to be destroyed at the fiery hands of Surtur as foretold millennia ago. However, it is Loki's constant sense of victimhood and misplaced ambition that ultimately brings about the destruction of the kingdom and its denizens. While a more sympathetic figure, Loki still manages to bring about Ragnarok just like his inspirational counterparts because he just can't help himself, unintentionally or not. Asgard is dead. Long live Asgard.