An alternative multiverse
I haven’t seen Everything Everywhere All at Once yet (I’ll watch eventually, bcs I adore Michelle Yeoh), but I’ve heard very good things about it. Interestingly, the directors -- Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert -- turned down the offer to direct the Loki show (source). Can’t say I blame them for wanting to do their own thing, but I also can’t help but wonder how Loki would have fared in their hands.
Instead we got Herron’s version, in which Loki was transformed from Branagh’s tragic, flawed-but-relatable antihero into a bumbling fool. Yes the script was shit (Waldron wasn’t interested in Loki; it was just a way for him to get his foot in Marvel’s door). But the director typically has leeway to change the script, and Herron did have a hand in shaping the plot (e.g. the Void was part of her initial pitch). And despite calling herself a Loki fan, she showed absolutely no understanding of OG Loki’s motivations, his trauma, or his psychology. Instead we got a nearly unrecognizable character -- an ineffectual, pompous jerkface who goes from zero to full-ass simp in less time than it takes to do a load of laundry. RIP my lovely prince.
Kudos to Kwan and Scheinert for passing on an opportunity that they weren’t passionate about. Sounds like they came up with a much better thing.