Loki season 2 episode 3 recap and Easter eggs: A trip back in time – and another Kang

The second season of Loki is now in full swing as we reach the halfway point of the hit Marvel show. In the latest time-bending episode, there are some big revelations and even bigger introductions to wrap your head around, as well as sneaky Marvel Cinematic Universe Easter eggs to get stuck into as well.

So if you’re struggling to work out your Sacred Timeline from your Branched Timeline or you’re wondering what that ending could mean, you’re in the right place. Below, we’ve broken down a full Loki season 2 episode 3 recap, complete with Easter egg details.

Renslayer returns

Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Renslayer in Loki season 2 — (Image credit: Marvel Studios)

The latest episode of Loki sees the return of one Ravonna Renslayer, who’s been missing since the season 1 finale. After disappearing through that Time Door, we learn that she found her way to 1868 Chicago with none other than Miss Minutes. The pair are there on He Who Remains business to execute his last wish and leave the TVA handbook (yes, the one O.B. wrote) on a young boy’s window sill.

Meanwhile, back at the TVA, O.B. is in turmoil as he can’t get the Temporal Loom under control because he needs Miss Minutes to override the system. Luckily, there have been two hits on Renslayer’s TemPad, one in 1868 and one in 1893, which Loki and Mobius go to explore.

The former doesn’t hold much for them, but the latter is very interesting as they end up at a Victorian fair. There are a few interesting elements here, including a ghost clock haunting the town that’s clearly Miss Minutes and a fun nod to Thor in a taverna. However, the most intriguing element is a man called Victor Timely.

It’s now clear that this Kang variant was the young boy at the beginning of the episode who was given the handbook, which set him on his path of scientific discovery. He gives a demonstration of his Temporal Loom to an enraptured audience as he promises that it will power the world, leading to several interested bidders. However, it soon turns out that Timely is a con man who’s been swindling people into investing in his unique inventions.

With Miss Minutes, Renslayer, and a Kang variant all in one location, Loki and Mobius start chasing him through the crowds. When Sylvie arrives to try and kill Timely, all chaos breaks loose with magic flying everywhere. Amid the madness, Timely, Miss Minutes, and Renslayer make their escape.

A different time

Now on a ship, the trio starts discussing Timely’s inventions as he reveals how influential the TVA handbook has been on his designs. Renslayer then tells him that he actually created the TVA as he shares that they’re heading to his lab in Wisconsin. However, it soon becomes clear Timely has no intention of working with Renslayer as he pushes her off the ship and heads off with Miss Minutes.

Now at his lab, it seems even this partnership is in danger as the AI shares her grievances with the Kang variant. She tells him that he should have allowed her a real body as then they could have been together. Her unexpected romantic feelings take him by surprise, before Renslayer – closely followed by Loki, Mobius, and Sylvie – all turn up.

A fight ensues as the Loki variant gets the upper hand and plans to do away with Timely. It’s only his plea that he’s not He Who Remains that ultimately saves him, and she decides to spare him after mediating on pre-determined destinies. Along with Loki and Mobius, he slips through a Time Door back to the TVA, leaving Sylvie and Renslayer at loggerheads.

Timely is not the only person that Sylvie saves either, as in the final few moments she also lets Renslayer live too. Despite her overwhelming urge to kill her, she ends up shoving her through a Time Door with Miss Minutes to the End of Time. Here, He Who Remains’ body is rotting as Renslayer tries to make sense of what is going on. Miss Minutes then reveals she’s been keeping a big secret, before cryptically revealing, "I can tell you but it’s going to make you really angry."

Loki season 2 episode 3 Easter eggs

When Loki and Mobius arrive in 1800s Chicago they notice some statues that say Thor, Balder, and Odin. Balder has never been introduced to the MCU, but the character is a huge part of the Thor comics.
Victor’s lab is in Wisconsin, which is where his comic book equivalent can be found. That version decided to travel back in time to Timely, Wisconsin in 1901 and settle there.
The location where Loki and Mobius find Victor Timely is actually a real place. It’s the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, which was a months-long fair held in Chicago to mark the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in 1492.

Loki season 2 is airing weekly on Disney Plus. The latest episode features some intriguing revelations about Renslayer – you can read some exclusive insight on that from the producers here.

For more on the show, here are our guides to: