MCU Loki Vs Norse Loki: What’s the Difference?

With Disney Plus soon to release the new Marvel Cinematic Universe series on June 11, Loki is starting to gain some hype, and we are starting to get excited for what’s to come. As we wait, I thought it might be a good time to share a little about what the traditional Norse Loki was like in comparison to Marvel’s version.

As an avid lover of mythology, I have always needed to make sure that I take the MCU’s version of the Norse gods with few grains of salt. Although, I can’t help but love Marvel’s version of Loki (especially the MCU’s choice of casting Tom Hiddleston) there are some pretty big differences in the movies that tend to nag at me. There are a nice handful of things that they get right, but there is so much about Loki that is altered or being left out altogether.

Let’s dive in.

His Appearance

The Norse Loki was never truly described in appearance, outside of being very handsome with a cunning grin. When it comes to his appearance, he was mostly known for his shape-shifting capabilities and was even known to change his sex. We may see Loki within the MCU change form, but there are so many old Norse tales that amp up his talents as a shapeshifter. At one point, he even shifted into a mare and gave birth to an eight-legged stallion named Sleipnir.

Although, I do believe that the charming Tom Hiddleston fills the role quite well when it comes to what we might picture in our minds – except for the fact that he was probably blonde. Hiddleston does a fantastic job with the way Loki’s character holds himself. He’s definitely got that bad boy thing down pat. He is arrogant and clever in a way that we can’t help but love. We geek girls can’t help but swoon over the coy Loki and his impish grin.

Loki’s Behavior

Loki, naturally, as the god of mischief, cannot help himself but to pull pranks and cause unnecessary havoc. In almost all of the Norse stories, Loki is up to trouble and playing tricks on someone, but somehow he usually finds a way to redeem himself and stay in the god’s good graces.

One of the things that the MCU got right was Loki’s motivation in his villainous acts. Loki wasn’t really a god but rather a giant. He was only ever accepted by the Aesir for his talents and skills as a cunning shapeshifter. He was always quite envious of the gods and sought out causing them trouble to ease that jealousy.

Thor and Loki’s Relationship

In the MCU, Loki and Thor are portrayed to be rival brothers, but within the traditional Norse Mythology, Loki and Thor were never more than companions and warriors who fought alongside one another. One thing that Marvel did get right for sure is Loki’s constant trickiness and his use of it against Thor. The true brother of Thor, Baldr, actually died at the hand of Loki due to his relentless trickery. It was after that Loki was truly made out to be a villain. Baldr, Odin’s son with Frigga and the god of light, is left out entirely from the MCU films.

Another big change made revolves around Thor’s hammer, Mjölnir. Loki is actually the one who got Mjölnir for Thor.

In one story, after mischievously cutting off Sif’s long blonde hair, Loki has to find a way to redeem himself. Crafty as ever, he tricks dwarves into making her whole new head of hair made of gold. Miraculously, he also gets them to craft a few other wonderous treasures such as Odin’s spear Gungnir. Sif was Thor’s wife rather than one of his warriors three.

This also shows that Mjolnir wasn’t exactly as magical as the movies make it out to be. Although it was very heavy, Loki could carry it.

Loki’s Relationship to Odin

Loki was never known as the son of Odin, adopted or otherwise. In the MCU, Odin takes Loki from the Ice Giant of Jodenheim as an infant and adopts him. Odin changed his blue skin white and kept his true identity a secret. In the myths, however, Loki was well-known for his giant lineage. He was the son of the giants Farbauti and Laufey. Loki was included as part of the Aesir due to his skills and talents.

The true Odin from the original stories would have whooped some Marvel Odin butt. Odin loves war and often even encourages it. The Marvel Odin is way more peace-keeping and seems much less powerful.

Love Life and Children

The MCU Loki has no romantic attachments while Norse Loki was actually married with a son while also having several other flings on the side including a mistress with whom he has three monster children.

Those monster children had a major impact on the fate of Asgard. One of them was a colossal serpent named Jormungand that was so large that it could wrap itself around Midgard. Another was Fenrir, the giant wolf that was shown in Thor: Ragnarok as the pet of Hela. Hela or actually Hel was the goddess of death and actually the third child of Loki and his giantess mistress, Agnorboda.

Ragnarok

Luckily for Loki, his wife, Sigyn (a goddess and member of the Aesir), was extremely faithful and devoted to him. So devoted in fact that she sat with him through his eternal punishment after he killed Thor’s true brother, Baldr, and kept him from enduring the worst of his punishment.

To extract justice against Loki, the gods had him chained up with a venomous snake hung above him so that its venom would drip down into his eyes. Sigyn would catch as much of the venom as she could in a bowl before finally having to turn away and dump it out. It wasn’t until all this happened that the mischievous god became motivated to truly destroy all of the gods. His original petty jealousy turned to pure hatred and drives him to bring about the end of the world.

In the actual Norse Ragnarok, Loki’s children, Jormungand, Fenrir, and Hel bring about the end of the world. Jormungand kills Thor. Fenrir kills Odin, and of course, Hel is the Goddess of the Underworld and oversees it all.