Loki Episode 6 Ending Explained
Contains spoilers for "Loki" Episode 6.
The end of "Loki" is finally here — although, as fans learned by the episode's conclusion, the story isn't really over. So far, the series has introduced audiences to a number of cosmic ideas that explain how the very fabric of the MCU works through the eyes of everyone's favorite God of Mischief, Loki himself (Tom Hiddleston). At the show's beginning, we learned that there are Variants — alternate versions of characters in the MCU, like Sylvie or Lady Loki (Sophia Di Martino) and Classic Loki (Richard E. Grant).
Ultimately, Episode 6, "For All Time, Always," set the stage for something even bigger on the way. Although there were plenty of predictions about where "Loki" was heading — and who might be involved — the finale still felt like a genuine surprise. The ending of Episode 5 saw Loki and Sylvie fight their way through the monstrous Alioth in the Void where they stumble onto a bizarre castle... and what they find there is something, or someone, that will probably change the face of the MCU forever. Here's the ending of "Loki" Episode 6 explained.
Meet the next Thanos: Kang, the Conqueror
The eerie castle –later called the Citadel at the end of time — is a truly bizarre place, filled with ruined statues of the Time Keepers and ominous looking details. The creepy design of the building looks more like something out of "Harry Potter" than the MCU, which makes it even weirder when Miss Minutes (Tara Strong) appears out of nowhere. She's not the overarching villain of the series, but she's certainly not good either. As it turns out, the animated clock is the direct line to a mysterious individual she refers to as "He Who Remains."
Once again, the MCU has taken something from the comics and repurposed it for the ongoing franchise. He Who Remains is in charge of the Time Variance Authority in the source material, even meeting Thor and Jane Foster in "Thor #245" back in 1976. However, when he arrives on screen in "Loki," it's instantly clear that He Who Remains in the MCU is actually a variant of Kang the Conqueror, played by none other than Jonathan Majors, who recently broke out as the star of "Lovecraft Country."
Majors' casting as Kang was previously revealed by Deadline in September 2020 in a report claiming he'll be the villain in "Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania" — although how he'll go up against the MCU's tiniest hero remains to be seen. If you're up on your MCU casting news it's instantly clear who this mysterious, purple-robed individual is once Majors' character steps out of an elevator to meet Sylvie and Loki. Majors clearly has a lot of fun with the role, and he has a pretty chaotic presence which rivals the God of Mischief himself. Majors, likewise, is having a ton of fun with the role off the set — when asked by Variety whether fans could expect him to appear as Kang in "Loki," he replied, "I have no idea what you're talking about."
However, in yet another twist, he's not exactly the version of Kang of the Conqueror that fans might be familiar with.
He Who Remains contains multitudes
While other MCU Disney+ shows like "WandaVision" and "The Falcon and The Winter Soldier" featured action-packed finales, "Loki" takes a quieter approach. It mainly revolves around the universe-breaking conversation between this Kang Variant, Loki, and Sylvie about the true nature of the TVA, the Sacred Timeline, and the Multiverse War. Essentially, it prepares audiences for Jonathan Majors' ongoing role within the MCU as Kang the Conqueror, because as He Who Remains explains, he's but one of the countless variants of the villain that exist throughout the multiverse.
Essentially, He Who Remains is using the TVA and Alioth to keep the Sacred Timeline flowing as he thinks it should, which ensures that the universe doesn't fall into yet another Multiverse War. The war itself was, once upon a time, waged by different Kang variants, who originally united for the good of every universe only to ultimately betray one another and fight for one timeline's supremacy. In the comics, this alliance was called the Council of Kangs, and they've been around for centuries. He Who Remains even alludes to this in the episode, saying that he's been called many names over time: "a ruler, a conqueror, He Who Remains, a jerk."
So where do Loki and Sylvie fit into all of this? He Who Remains says he's been pulling the strings on them from the very start, dictating their lives so that they both arrive at this meeting. However, the seemingly all-knowing villain doesn't actually, well, know it all. His knowledge of the timeline only goes up to a certain point, stating that once they cross that threshold, anything Loki and Sylvie do is out of his control. That's when the sacred timeline begins splintering all around the Citadel. Coincidence? Surely not.
Loki vs. Sylvie
This revelation forces Loki and Sylvie into a fight as they grapple with the choice of killing He Who Remains for creating the TVA and snatching free-will away from the timeline...or taking over the TVA themselves. Sylvie is all for killing him straight away, because her goal from the start of the show has been to tear down the TVA and those who run it. So it's understandable that she wants revenge for the life that was snatched away from her.
However, Loki has his head screwed on for once, and clearly recognizes the bigger potential danger of another Multiverse War and the other Kang variants that are out there — leading to a brief duel. But the romantic tension between these two is palpable, especially when Sylvie passionately kisses Loki. In fact, Loki has clearly pushed aside his own goals of domination for her. Just look at when he says "I don't want a throne, I just want you to be okay" — so many feelings! Unfortunately, the kiss was self-serving for Sylvie, who used it to distract Loki in order to hurl him through a time-door. She may call herself Sylvie, but she's still a Loki — and that means manipulation.
From the very beginning, Sylvie's been on a journey of her own and will not compromise for anything or anyone — which is almost respectable. Ultimately, she stabs He Who Remains, and he dies in his chair. Of course, this isn't even close to the end for Jonathan Majors. Before he dies, the villain whispers, "See you soon." Basically, get ready to see a whole ton of different Kangs in the MCU. And that's the last we see of Sylvie...for now.
For all time, always
The TVA took a bit of a backseat in this episode, which is understandable since the MCU clearly just introduced it's newest overarching villain in Kang the Conqueror. But clearly the agency will never be the same again, as Hunter B-50 (Wunmi Mosaku) finds the original Ravonna Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) in a school in 2018 Ohio to convince the rest of her fellow hunters that everyone in the TVA is actually a variant. It's a pretty shocking revelation, but clearly the TVA hasn't torn itself apart because they're all still watching the Sacred Timeline splinter beyond repair by the end of the episode. Meanwhile the TVA's version of Ravonna disappeared early in the episode to search for "free-will" — whatever that means.
Anyway, when Loki crashes back through the time door, he frantically tries to warn Mobius about He Who Remains, and the threat of an impending Multiverse War. But when he finally tracks his friend down and begins talking, Mobius stops him and asks him what his name is. Uh oh. Clearly, Loki has ended up in an alternate version of the TVA, and a Variant Kang has already messed with the timeline, changing events in the past to change the status quo in Loki's present. That's confirmed by the towering statue of the villain in a pretty comic book-accurate version of his costume that has replaced the trio of Time Keeper statues we originally saw at the center of the TVA complex.
As fans may already know, Kang's reach spans across millennia, so changing the past to put himself in a supreme position of power isn't much of a surprise. Come on, in the comics he even made himself an Egyptian Pharaoh named Rama-Tut in ancient Egypt! Luckily, "Loki" Season 2 has already been greenlit and specifically teased at the very end of the episode, so it'll be interesting to see how the God of Mischief tackles this new timeline.