Core Theme: Ancient, ageless, charming, sleazy, (mostly) immortal, well-dressed villains-turned-heroes from hit 2010s/2020s series centered around the forked-up system that the world revolves around (The Time Variance Authority/The Afterlife). Despite initially participating in these systems and generally being maniacal, sadistic people, over time they would become better through the bonds they made during their time in the TVA/The Afterlife. >!Both had to say goodbye to these friends on a bittersweet note. However, while Loki’s final stepping stone in his story was becoming a god above all other gods, ruling over the multiverse like he so wanted, Michael’s conclusion was living out a normal life as a human.!<

Connections:

• At the start of their stories, both were lying, sleazy, antagonistic characters who betrayed some of the few people who saw them as a friend (Thor/Team Cockroach). Though they did take pleasure in seeing others’ pain, it was mainly driven by a sense of worthlessness amongst their peers and a desire to prove them wrong, primarily proving themselves over someone who was viewed as superior to them for millennia (Thor/Shawn).

• In order to do so, both put humans through immense pain and suffering, though notably with a theatrical flair to it (Loki in order to rule the realms and have people bow before him/Michael to show that his new way of torture is superior to the others) as well as being rather bad at it and repeatedly failing at their goal. However, as time went on, both would feel a huge sense of remorse for their actions, and through the help of a group of humans would go on to both redeem themselves and become genuinely better people. Speaking of…

• Their character development is jumpstarted when they’re forced into proximity with a group of humans and one nonhuman (The TVA Employees & Sylvie/Team Cockroach & Janet), though particularly by the nonhuman, who is the first one among them that they actually grow genuine affection for, culminating in a pivotal moment when they admit this (Loki confessing his love for Sylvie/Michael admitting that Janet is his friend). >!This person is also one of the last people they speak to in the whole series, with their last conversation being a bittersweet and heartfelt farewell.!<

• Another cornerstone of their development is a snarky, sarcastic human who becomes their work partner and later best friend (Loki & Mobius working for the TVA/Eleanor helping Michael run his fake Good Place). While this person is distrustful of them at first, through time and genuine care, their friendship grows into something special for them both.

• Both also have a comic relief friend who, despite their goofiness, is actually one of the smartest/wisest among them when it counts (Ouroboros being a talented scientist/Jason coming in clutch several times, and being oddly articulate \[such as when he described how difficult being a human is to the Judge\]).

• Both are tied to bureaucratic world controlling organizations (The TVA/The Afterlife) that regularly dooms innocent people to eternity in a desolate, agonizing realm (The Void/The Bad Place) for minor slip-ups in their life, just in an attempt to keep things “orderly.” Upon realizing how forked up these systems are, both Loki and Michael would work diligently with their human friends, who were also victims of this system, to try and fix it. >!This culminates in a scene where they sacrifice themselves for the cause, though they don’t actually die (Loki’s sacrifice by becoming a time god/Michael’s sacrifice by letting Eleanor go to the Judge in his stead, knowing that he may be retired).!<

• Both are human-resembling creatures, though notably not actually human (Loki is a god/Michael is a demon). Their respective groups (Lokis/Demons) are renowned universally for being lying, backstabbing, evil sons of benches, which they eventually prove wrong by changing themselves. Both even go so far as to stop the wiping out of humanity.

• Both have entered a time loop with the aforementioned group of humans for ages, trying and failing over and over again until they realized that there was no winning if they kept doing what they were doing (Loki’s attempts at fixing the Temporal Loom and later realization that it cannot be fixed/Michael’s attempts at torturing the humans only to realize that the humans would always change and figure out his plan). Speaking of time travel, both are linked to places where time notably moves differently from our world (“Time moves differently in the TVA”/Jeremy Bearimy), though they can enter worlds via a special orange door. They’ve met versions of their friends prior to when they were Pruned/Died through their time travel adventures.

• Both have dealt with a high-ranking figure in their respective bureaucracies (Renslayer/Shawn) who are the main obstacles towards fixing their flawed systems and act as the main villains, trying their best to stop Loki/Michael’s plan.

• Both have been multiversal fugitives on the run from their respective authorities, causing them to have to go through the aforementioned other realm where undesirable beings are sent, as well as a train.

• Both have similar styles of comedy and dry ways of delivery, often talking about fantastical things in a simple, everyday manner.

• Both have the innate ability of reality warping, able to conjure up immensely realistic illusions in an instant. 

Contrasts:

• >!Their arcs bittersweetly culminate in them getting what they’ve always wanted by going through a door at the cost of not being able to be with their friends, though this is completely opposite for each of them. Loki ascends to one of the highest planes of existence in the MCU, viewing over the millions of timelines with the knowledge that his friends are safe. Michael, on the other hand, relinquishes his power and lives amongst the humans as another one of us, trusting his friends to continue aiding the process of redemption. So, while one gets all the power in the world, the other loses it.!<

• Loki was completely powerless in the hands of the TVA, while Michael held all the power in his Neighborhood.

• Marvel’s 3rd Horniest Man vs Thinks kissing is disgusting

• God vs Demon

• Both have dealt with a soft-spoken reality warping AI assistant who falls for a human (Miss Minutes/Janet). However, while one is a definitive villain in the story, the other is one of Michael’s closest friends.

TVA Loki vs Michael (MCU vs The Good Place) || “Everything is Glorious”