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'Loki' finale: Greta Thunberg joins MCU with Mandela and Malala!

As the Marvel Studios logo appeared at the start of the final 'Loki' episode, viewers could hear lines from Nelson Mandela and Greta Thunberg

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has flirted with some weird strains of environmentalism in the past — who can forget the great Malthusian eco-fascist Thanos? But with ‘Loki’, we see a whole new game.

‘Loki’, the Disney+ series created by Michael Waldron, starring Tom Hiddleston, which premiered on June 9, concluded on July 14. Episode 6, the finale, titled ‘For All Time. Always’, written by Waldron and Eric Martin and directed by Kate Herron, featured none other than Greta Thunberg, even if in passing, among several others. 

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As the Marvel Studios logo appeared at the start of the episode, viewers could hear lines from various points in the MCU timeline and real life. This included Neil Armstrong saying, "One small step for man,” Thunberg saying, "How dare they!" Malala Yousafzai saying, "My dream…" and Nelson Mandela saying, "We have fought for the right to experience peace.”

Thunberg's line comes most likely from the United Nations Climate Action Summit, where the Swedish environmental activist delivered an iconic speech in 2019. In that speech, Thunberg said, “How dare you pretend that this can be solved with just ‘business as usual’ and some technical solutions? With today's emissions levels, that remaining CO2 budget will be entirely gone within less than eight and a half years… You are failing us. But the young people are starting to understand your betrayal. The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us, I say: We will never forgive you.”

Online, Thunberg’s appearance (even if in voice) caused a flurry among fans. “ITS 3 AM AND GRETA THUNBERG IS NOW A PART OF THE MCU,” wrote a fan on Twitter. “can’t believe Greta Thunberg is canon in the MCU,” tweeted another fan. “Greta Thunberg canon in the MCU? Queen thingz,” noted one fan. Another fan wrote on Twitter, “the wildest thing is that Greta Thunberg is canon in the MCU.”

One fan said, “So if Greta Thunberg and Nelson Mandela are in the MCU… does this mean I’m in the Marvel universe? Mom… I made it.” Another fan observed, “If Greta Thunberg said the same thing in the MCU as she did in our universe that means the MCU has a climate change problem as well and Tony Stark and the rest of the super scientists aren't fucking doing anything about it.”

Earlier, the second episode of ‘Loki’, titled ‘The Variant’, also featured climate change as a theme and a looming threat. Mobius (Owen Wilson) assigns Loki (Hiddleston) to research Loki variants for clues. Loki figures out that the Variant is hiding in apocalyptic events. Mobius is then able to narrow down a timeframe for what apocalypse the Loki Variant could be hiding in, and they start looking through apocalypse events between 2047 and 2051 to find one that would have provided the Loki Variant with access to Kablooie.

These include the Climate Disaster of 2048, the Tsunami of 2051, the Extinction of the Swallow in 2050, Krakatoa eruption in 2049. The episode sees Mobius say that it's "just one damn thing after another" as he lists cyclones, famine, volcanoes, and more.