Marvel has a number of different organizations, so many in fact that it's difficult to keep track of them all. However, some have bigger roles to play than others. The Time Variance Authority is a group that has a very important task.

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Plenty of Marvel heroes have traveled through time over the years so it's not all that surprising that someone needs to be watching them. Here's 10 things that you may not have known about the organization that is responsible for those observations.

10 FUTURISTIC ORIGINS

Future TVA

Although the group first appeared in 1986, their origins are actually a lot more futuristic than that. The Time Variance Authority or TVA for short, was actually founded in the far-flung future, centuries past the point the Marvel universe is currently at.

The people involved with the agency are time travellers who have taken it upon themselves to be responsible for time itself. They are quite out of reach of many people in the present, yet their decisions can actually impact everyone in history.

9 MULTIVERSE MONITORS

Marvel Multiverse

Not only do the TVA therefore monitor different timelines, they consequently also have to look at different realities. Due to the various events that take place in the Marvel universe, including M day, age of Ultron and even Zombie takeovers, a number of dimensions can develop.

Each version of Earth has experienced a different timeline and is therefore very different in terms of its landscape. The TVA have to make sure that each of these timelines and Earths are working how they are supposed to be, without interference.

8 TIMELINE IMPACT

The TVA has quite a limited impact over the timeline overall. They are usually protectionists, guiding the timeline and various Earths in the right direction rather than allowing outside factors to get involved. They therefore have one key duty.

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Their biggest responsibility is to remove anything from a timeline that shouldn't be there. By removing these threats, the stream can carry on as usual and reach the end point as it's supposed to. Failure to do so could have massive consequences.

7 NOT ALL-POWERFUL

Despite having authority in their name, the TVA have a number of weaknesses that can be abused. There are individuals in time who they cannot go after and some areas of the time stream cannot be touched by them.

Kang the Conqueror is one of the biggest problems for the TVA. The time-traveling villain has amassed a lot of power and knows how to manipulate the time stream and indeed this organization, in order to remain firmly in control.

6 COURT CASES

One other ability that the TVA have up their sleeve is that they can put people on trial for crimes against time and humanity. Extreme criminals can be plucked from the time stream before their death. But they need a fair trial.

The TVA often use She-Hulk's services therefore, in order to ensure they are abiding by the laws of the universe. If a criminal is found guilty they can be completely erased from the universe. They will have never been born and therefore will never die.

5 CHRONOMONITORS

Chronomonitors

Any agency needs a stock of employees and the TVA use a number of different methods for ensuring they have a constant stock of workers. Every timeline that ever exists is being watched and that takes a lot of people being involved.

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The TVA have therefore gotten their hands on Chronomonitors. These are faceless and emotionless beings who are simply able to watch the time stream and effect it where they need to. They are very logical in their actions and choices.

4 CLONING

The other way that the TVA remains stocked in terms of people is through the use of cloning. We've actually seen cloning used in the Marvel universe on a number of different occasions, but perhaps never quite on this scale.

A vast array of the employees at the Time Variance Authority are actually just clones. This way they can guarantee that they always have their best agents on a mission because it's the same agents no matter who they choose for the job.

3 CHOICES OF AGENTS

Despite the clones and the monitors, some of these agents do have their own choices and can make decisions based on their own opinions. As can well be imagined, not every agent will have a completely objective outlook on the events unfolding.

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Therefore, some agents from the TVA are actually corrupt or perhaps act on their own self-interests. These individuals are especially dangerous and have been punished accordingly, due to the damage they can do to the time streams.

2 TWISTERS AND KEEPERS

At the end of time, the last leader of the TVA had to make sure that time would continue to be safe even after they were all gone. He therefore created the timekeepers, a group of three who set out to balance out the time streams and keep the peace and provide a number of other functions.

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This subsequently lead to the creation of the time twisters from them however, who felt it was their duty to cause chaos. The time twisters were ultimately defeated by the avengers and time was allowed to continue as it was intended to.

1 MCU DEBUT

The Time Variance Authority has already been teased for an upcoming Disney Plus show. They have captured the God of Mischief Loki and likely held him to account for his own time-traveling misdeeds. This will be the first time we see the agency on-screen.

How comic accurate they will be remains to be seen, but their logo is exactly the same as the comics and it appears they are fulfilling the same role that they were always designed for. The question is whether Loki escapes justice or not.

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