The first episode of Loki has just premiered, chock full of all of that MCU Loki goodness that fans love so much. As far as first episodes go, it's got a lot of stuff for fans to mull over, but the most important thing the episode introduced is the TVA, otherwise known as the Time Variance Authority. It showed something new to MCU fans who thought they knew everything.
The Marvel Universe in the comics is full of secret organizations, ones that add something extra to the overall universe and would be great additions to the MCU, much like the TVA is shaping up to be.
10 The TVA Protects The Integrity Of The Timestream When It Suits Their Purposes
For people who have watched the first episode of Loki, they know the basics of the TVA and these basics are pretty much the same as in the Marvel Universe. The Time Variance Authority is a bureaucratic organization whose entire purpose is to keep time working. Of course, they aren't as good at it as they seem to be in the MCU. For example, they rarely if ever do anything about the umpteen Kangs running around time.
The Time Keepers, the shadowy bosses of the TVA, have actually attempted to change the timestream themselves, even once almost destroying humanity. The two different iterations of the organizations are subtle and fans will see how things change over the course of the show.
9 X-Force Is Now The CIA For Mutants
Mutants have gone through a big change recently, gaining their own country. Like every human country, they have established an intelligence and black ops service and used X-Force as the basis for it. X-Force has had a storied history in the comics and transforming into a secret agency à la CIA makes a lot of sense.
Overseen by Beast, the new X-Force goes on black ops missions, working to keep the mutant nation of Krakoa safe in subtle ways. They've even destabilized an entire country and taken secret control of it, with things already starting to backfire, just like the real-world CIA.
8 XENO Is Actively Trying To Destroy Mutantkind
So far, X-Force has had one main foe, a super-secret organization called XENO. Little is known about them; they've captured and vivisected mutants, using their bodies to empower humans, and were even able to pull off an attack on Krakoa itself by grafting Domino's skin to soldiers, allowing them to pass through Krakoan gates.
XENO doesn't seem to be working with any government but they have a wide reach and resources, making them a match for X-Force and a danger to Krakoa.
7 The Orchis Initiative Exists To Hold Mutants Back
While XENO doesn't seem to have any government behind them, the Orchis Initiative is very different, drawing from a variety of secret agencies like SHIELD, Hydra, AIM, HAMMER, and more to hold the mutant race back and failing that, destroy them. The Orchis Initiative has a wide reach all over the world, with tacit approval from many organizations and governments.
Their main base is a sprawling facility orbiting the sun, a place used to build Sentinels, including the extremely dangerous Nimrod units. Orchis will do anything to destroy the mutant race, especially since Krakoa's formation.
6 The Hellfire Club Is All About Using Their Wealth To Gain Power
The Hellfire Club has two faces in the Marvel Universe. On the one hand, it's a venerable club for the wealthy, with the public seeing it as merely a bunch of rich perverts partying. However, there's the secret side of it, the Inner Circle. Usually run by mutants like Sebastian Shaw or Emma Frost, the Inner Circle has an army of goons it uses to cement its power.
The Inner Circle hasn't always been run by mutants though, as super-intelligent human children led by Kade Kilgore have taken over the Circle and used the Club's power to indulge their own sadistic agendas.
5 SWORD Is Very Different From The MCU Version
In the MCU, WandaVision introduced SWORD and they basically seemed like they were SHIELD, just with a different name. In the Marvel Universe, this isn't at all the case. SHIELD works on terrestrial threats but SWORD deals with ones from outer space. While they have things in common, SWORD in the comics would never deal with what it did in WandaVision.
Currently, SWORD has been restarted by the mutant nation of Krakoa and acts as the mutant space program. While they have just been re-established, they've already made a splash, helping defend Krakoa from invasion by the King in Black.
4 The Secret Empire Used Political Power To Get Its Way
The Secret Empire started off as an offshoot of Hydra before breaking away. Their whole schtick was secrecy, each member wearing a full hood and keeping their identities from the others but all of them working together to conquer the US from within.
They were even able to take over the US government for a time, with Cap fighting against them and discovering their terrible secret—the President was a member of the Secret Empire. This disillusioned Cap and caused him to go rogue for a while. Since then, the Secret Empire has pretty much been a non-issue, but they still got very close to achieving their goals.
3 AIM Is A Collective Of Evil Scientists
AIM stands for Advanced Idea Mechanics. Consisting of some of the most intelligent scientists on the planet, their entire goal is to use their amazing technology to overthrow the governments of the world and replace them with something run by the intelligentsia of the group.
Compared to some of the other secret evil groups in the Marvel Universe, AIM is kind of non-threatening in a lot of ways in that they aren't a bunch of homicidal maniacs or racists, but a bunch of science nerds all banded together. For a time, the mutant Sunspot had even bought them and made them part of the Avengers.
2 Norman Osborn Transformed SHIELD Into HAMMER & Used Them For His Nefarious Goals
Norman Osborn was made head of SHIELD after killing the Skrull queen in Secret Invasion and completely changed them. Rebranding them HAMMER, which he hadn't even thought of an acronym for, they would become the centerpiece of his power and a way for him to execute his terrible agenda.
HAMMER used many of the same agents and infrastructure as SHIELD and Osborn was able to wield them quite effectively. After losing the legitimacy of governmental sanction, Osborn would rebuild HAMMER as a run-of-the-mill evil organization but they never wielded much power in this iteration.
1 The Hand Has Been A Thorn In The Side Of Many Heroes
The Hand is a devil-worshiping clan of ninja that has been amassing power for centuries. Taking orders from the Beast, the Hand has been known to battle heroes as disparate as Wolverine, Daredevil, and Spider-Man and has teamed up with Hydra many times over the years. They'll often sell their services to the highest bidder as well, giving their customers an inexhaustible supply of undead ninjas.
The Hand combines martial might with ancient magics to present a multi-faceted threat to whoever it faces. They've even mastered the art of resurrection, allowing them to kill their foes and bring them back as diabolical agents of the Hand.