WARNING: The following contains spoilers for the fourth episode of Loki, "The Nexus Event," streaming now on Disney+.
Mysteries abound throughout Loki, and much of the fun in the series comes in trying to stay a step ahead of the questions the show's dizzying travels through time eventually answer. Perhaps the greatest mystery since the start of the series came in the form of the Time-Keepers, seemingly omnipotent entities who rule over the Time Variance Authority as a tool to maintain order in the multiverse.
Yet it seems they were only a distraction, as Loki's latest episode revealed that the Time-Keepers are merely puppets. And with that reveal out of the way fans may, at last, get to meet the real puppet master, He Who Remains.
At the start of the series, the jaw-dropping power of the Time-Keepers and, by extension, the TVA, dwarfed anything the God of Mischief himself could muster. Although he boasted of his superiority to all other life, the organization's mastery of time rendered Loki's attempts to escape ineffectual, and, as he schemed to snake his way into the Time-Keepers' chambers for an audience, the idea that he could do anything to threaten them was laughable. But in the show's latest episode, he and Sylvie did just that.
Outfighting the guards around them and confronting the Time-Keepers head-on, the council of three offered little resistance as a sword flew at one of them and decapitated him. However, this act revealed that the head was that of an android's, robotic components sparking out of its open neck as the others laughed and the two Lokis realized there is an even greater evil at work. As ever, the comics could well hold the secret as to who that greater power here may be.
In the comics, He Who Remains is the final director of the TVA at the end of time. He created the Time-Twisters to help guide the next universe with the lessons of the old, but rather than fostering the fledgling universe, the Time-Twisters went rampant in pruning the past and grew out of control. Given that Loki already referenced a multiversal war in the past, He Who Remains may be the last survivor of that conflict and sought to control the timeline after the chaos it created.
Creating the Time-Keepers as a robotic stand-in for himself would be a great way to maintain a strong façade as He Who Remains works from the shadows. Indeed, the Time-Keepers were treated with such reverence that the TVA agents discovering their true overlord was just some guy rather than an omnipotent council of gods would upset the delicate balance. In true time-twisting fashion, for a series that puts a Kid Loki right alongside a geriatric Loki, He Who Remains would represent a paradox where the TVA is overseen by one of their agents from the future, ensuring the agency conducts itself as it did in his lifetime.
There is seemingly no end to the twists and turns of Loki, but an adaptation of He Who Remains could prove to be one of the most mind-boggling turns yet. With the Time-Keepers revealed to be merely puppets, their master will surely step forth from the shadows soon. Be it He Who Remains or another dark figure, there is no doubt the God of Mischief will need all of his guile to find his way back from the brink.
Created by Michael Waldron and directed by Kate Herron, Loki stars Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Owen Wilson as Mobius M. Mobius, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Renslayer, Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Tara Strong as Miss Minutes, Eugene Cordero as Casey, Sasha Lane as Hunter C-20 and Sophia Di Martino as Sylvie, with Richard E. Grant and Jack Veal. New episodes premiere Wednesdays on Disney+.