Loki Laufeyson

"Loki's always been one for mischief . .."

- Fandral Thor

Loki is the god of mischief in Norse mythology and an antihero as well as a supervillain. He is the adopted brother of Thor, the adopted son of Odin and Frigga, and the biological son of Laufey and the enemy of The Avengers.

Thor
"That was just a bit of fun, really."

- Loki

Adopted by Odin and Frigga at the end of the Asgardians' war with the jotuns, Loki was treated as a prince of Asgard and was never informed of his true heritage throughout his youth. Loki is smaller and thinner, and has darker eye and hair colour while paler in complexion than the Asgardians and is treated with less respect and acceptance because of it. Throughout their childhood it is implied that Loki spent much of his time trying to prove himself as Thor's equal while being ridiculed for his obvious inadequacies which led to him studying sorcery and magic instead of trying to acquire strength that he would never attain. Admittedly jealous of his step-brother, Thor, and anxious about a kingdom ruled by the loud and violent God of Thunder, Loki allowed several Jotuns to enter Asgard who then proceeded to try and steal the Casket of Ancient Winters during Thor's coronation. Later Loki admits that it was 'just a bit of fun' meant to ruin his brother's special day and to keep Asgard from his reign for a short while longer. In the wake of this intrusion, Thor opted to launch a counterattack on Jotunheim with a number of his friends, and while Loki initially tried to dissuade his brother, he eventually relented and accompanied him, though he left word with a servant to immediately inform their father of the plan to prevent any further harm.

Once in Jotunheim, Thor again led them into conflict and attacked the Jotuns even after being granted safe passage home. During the ensuing fight, Loki uses his abilities to save his brother and friends in several instances including creating false versions of himself and hurling magic daggers at the Jotuns. He is then attacked by another that siezes him by the wrist. Loki is surprised by his own resistance to the Jotuns' freezing touch and sees his flesh turn Jotun blue and then return to Asgardian colour, a revelation that led him to conclude that he was at least partly Jotun rather than an Asgardian as he had been led to believe. Odin arrives and takes the group back after Laufey promises that Thor will have the war and death he desired. Thor and Odin exchanged heated words and insults until Odin, saddened by his son's disrespect for his people, decides to punish him. Loki tries to intercede on his brother's behalf but is given a stern reprimand by Odin prompting him to withdraw and be silent. Odin banishes Thor to Midgard (Earth) while Loki watches in horror; Odin also sends Mjolnir enchanting it to only allow a worthy person to lift it and acquire the 'Power of Thor'. Loki watches Mjolnir fly after its previous owner and decides he will follow it, finally having something he has always wanted.

In the meantime, Loki along with the warriors go to the healing room to treat their respective wounds. Loki still wonders about the changing of his flesh on Jotunheim and decides to see if he can induce it using the Casket of Ancient Winters. While he lifts it, visually repeating to himself that 'this cannot be, this is impossible', his skin up to his hairline turns Jotun blue and his eyes turn Jotun red. He is interrupted by Odin and confronts him regarding the incident. He learns that Odin discovered him as an infant left to die in the temple of the Jotuns during the battle. Odin does not reveal that Laufey had hoped to do away with his misshapen son, but does reveal that his purpose in rescuing him was not solely out of compassion, but also in the hopes that peace could be brought permanently through Loki (he also asserts that those plans no longer matter because of Thor's actions). Infuriated that he had been lied to and had been taunted with the promise of a possible birthright, Loki shouts hatefully at Odin and, overwhelmed by the stresses of both his sons and angry wife coupled with the impending war with Jotunheim, Odin falls into the deep "Odinsleep" in front of him. With Thor already banished to Earth for the attack on Jotunheim, Loki is offered the position of king by his mother and assumes the role of Asgard's regent. From his position of power he goes briefly to Midgard to lie to Thor telling him their father has died and that their mother forbids his return as well as trying to take Mjolnir for himself. He then makes a visit to Jotunheim under the guise of trying to repair the damage his brother has done, but instead offers Laufey a chance to slay Odin while he sleeps, promising to return the Casket to him as soon as Odin is dead. Laufey agrees.

When Sif and The Warriors Three disobey Loki's command to wait for his word by going to Midgard to retrieve Thor, he confronts and freezes Heimdall for allowing them to leave. He then sends The Destroyer after them to eliminate everything in its path as it ensures that Thor cannot return home. This action proved his undoing when Thor's courage in confronting the automaton paved the way for his return, and just as Loki revealed his double-cross against the Jotuns who were infiltrating Asgard, Thor arrived to challenge him over his actions. The resulting fight quickly moved to Heimdall's Observatory where Loki had opened a portal that would destroy Jotunheim. Thor's power ultimately overpowered Loki's cunning, at the cost of the observatory and the Bifrost.

As Loki fell into the abyss below, the spear in his hand was grabbed by Thor who in turn was anchored to the remnants of the bridge by the newly-awakened Odin. He appealed to his stepfather that by annihilating the Jotuns he was doing what was best for Asgard. Odin sadly rejected this, and with his Asgardian life now in tatters Loki released the spear and allowed the void to claim him.

The trickster was not so easily felled however, and found his way to Earth where he began to influence the human population again. One in particular, Erik Selvig, who was summoned by S.H.I.E.L.D. to turn his scientific knowledge to the task of unlocking the secrets of a mysterious cube also known as Odin's Tesseract. Loki, as an apparition in control of the man, whispered words of encouragement to proceed.

The Avengers
"You were made to be ruled."

- Loki

After his bid to overthrow the throne of Asgard was thwarted by his brother Thor, the evil Loki retreated to lands unknown to plot his revenge. Not just against his brother, but against Earth, whose inhabitants Thor now protects. Loki, now returns with a nefarious plot to conquer Earth and will stop at nothing to see his vision realized. When his misuse of power threatens the entire planet, it may take more than The Avengers to stop him.

Thor 2
To be added

Character traits
Unlike his stepbrother, Loki is not an impulsive man, quite the opposite: thoughtful, manipulating, farseeing, he's the perfect tactician. Loki is mischievous by nature, always eager to prove himself: being physically weak, he developed a sharp intellect and an acute mind to overcome his handicap among the Asgardians. He's pitiless and obstinate, ready to destroy everything on the path to his goals. Brilliant and smart, he's an incredible foe for a society mostly based on brutish combatants.

Being a misshapen Frost Giant, Loki possesses some of the characteristics of his kind, as the resistance to extreme cold and to his brethrens's frost powers. He also possesses superhuman physical abilities, such as strength, stamina, speed and reflexes, but to an extent equal or even near to the Asgardians. He's a skilled magician, specialized in the art of illusion, and can create mirages and false images of himself, make himself invisible to anyone, included the omniscient Heimdall, and can even control the minds of lesser beings like humans. Loki proves some skills in combat wielding Odin's spear, Gungnir.

Powers

 * Superhuman Strength: Loki possesses a formidable strength as a result of his jotun lineage, that is comparable to his Asgardian contemporaries.
 * Superhuman Durability: As a Jotun, Loki has a resilient body with a tolerance for trauma well above what a human body can endure. Of particular note is his pronounced tolerance for cold. Loki has also shown extreme endurance against bullets which just bounce off him. Loki has also taken a blow from Captain America's shield which also just bounced off him. Loki has also withstood a blast from Iron Man's repulsors without being burnt or horribly scarred as well as a fierce beating from the Hulk which Loki walked away from with minor damage (of course being floored and out of action for a short while).
 * Superhuman Longevity: Loki has the capacity to live for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years.
 * Sorcery: Loki is a master of magic. He can create illusions, including copies of himself and can influence people with his mind. He can conceal himself or others from sight. In the movie, Loki masks the Frost Giants from Heimdall. Loki can summon objects out of thin air. In the movie, He summons The Casket of Ancient Winters and used it against Heimdall freezing him solid. He can also alter his appearance and attire whenever he wills it.
 * Teleport: Loki can travel to other dimensions without the Bifrost. He can even teleport others. The full limits of this ability aren't known.
 * Cold Manipulation: As a Frost Giant, Loki can generate cold, like when he froze the lightning in the Bifrost Bridge to jam its functions.

Weapons

 * In battle, Loki uses piercing daggers to injure his enemies.
 * While he was the king of Asgard, Loki uses magic artifacts like Odin's spear, Gungnir, which can project mystical blasts of energy, or the Casket of Ancient Winters.
 * Loki used a special staff given to him by Thanos that was exceedingly powerful. He was able to use it as a means of energy projection which was powerful enough to kill several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Loki also used the staff to put people under his mind control and even used it as blade to stab Agent Coulson with.

Friends and Allies

 * The Destroyer
 * Erik Selvig - Unwitting Pawn
 * Chitauri - Army
 * Thanos
 * The Other
 * Odin - Adopted Father, former ally and friend (Loki feels animosity towards his adopted father, but still desires to please him which causes him a great deal of conflict and anger.)
 * Frigga - Adopted Mother, former possibly current ally and friend (Loki feels no anger towards his adopted mother outwardly as she has been the only person who has treated him as an equal and even set him on the throne for a time.)

Enemies

 * Thor - Step-brother
 * Laufey - Biological Father (It should be noted that Laufey wanted to kill Loki at birth and left him to die, he ordered him to be executed during his visit to Jotunheim to offer an alliance, and likely would have killed him after destroying Odin; Laufey hated Loki for his small appearance and weakness.)
 * S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * The Avengers (including Captain America, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Hawkeye, Thor, and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents)
 * Frost Giants
 * Heimdall
 * Warriors Three - Former allies
 * Sif - Former ally
 * Humans that oppose him
 * Any other race that stands in his way of accomplishing a goal

Behind the scenes

 * At first, Tom Hiddleston auditioned to play Thor, but Kenneth Branagh decided he was fitter to play Loki.
 * Hiddleston had to go through a strict diet since Branagh wanted Loki "to have a lean and hungry look".
 * Hiddleston took inspiration from Peter O'Toole's interpretations from The Lion in Winter and Lawrence of Arabia.

Appearances/Actors

 * Marvel Cinematic Universe (3 films)
 * Thor (First appearance) - Ted Allpress (young) and Tom Hiddleston
 * The Avengers - Tom Hiddleston
 * Thor 2 - Tom Hiddleston

Trivia

 * Loki is based on the god of mischief in Norse mythology.
 * In the comics, Loki never meets his biological father after being adopted by Odin, while in the movie he even allies (and betrays) him.
 * At the end of Thor, Loki looking at the Cosmic Cube and deceiving Nick Fury is a hint to the comics continuity, in which he's the villain to stop which The Avengers assembled for the first time.
 * Loki was the main antagonist in Thor, and will also be the antagonist in The Avengers.
 * Loki is the first villain to appear in more than one movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He is appeared in Thor and will appear in both The Avengers and the tentatively titled Thor 2.