‘Loki’: What Was He Who Remains’ Plan for Victor Timely?

Episode 3 of ‘Loki‘ was truly an eventful one. We saw Mobius, Loki, Ravonna, Miss Minutes, and Sylvie chasing a Kang Variant, going as far as to time travel to the past to apprehend Victor Timely, a variant of the center of it all. Mobius and Loki needed Timely to fix the Temporal Loom, Sylvie needed Timely to kill him, and Miss Minutes and Ravonna needed him to fulfill a plan that He Who Remains left in case of his death. That leads us to question, what was He Who Remains’ plan for Victor Timely? 

The clues to what Victor Timely really is were left back in episode 1 of Season 2

In episode 1 of Season 2, we saw TVA in disarray following He Who Remains’ death at the hands of Sylvie. Loki couldn’t stop time slipping, Ravonna & Miss Minutes were nowhere to be seen, Sylvie was on the loose, and no one knew what was happening. 

General Dox called in an urgent meeting, and this is where Loki heard a weird recording of a conversation between Ravonna and He Who Remains. He Who Remains thanked Ravonna for her service and role in bringing them to this stage. After what happened in episode 3, things have become a lot clearer.  

Why did Ravonna and Miss Minutes travel back in time?

Ravonna and Miss Minutes time traveled back to the 1860s and left a TVA guidebook written by Ouroboros at the doorstep of a young Victor Timely. Miss Minutes explained that this was the first step in He Who Remains’ contingency plan and that it’s something that has to be done. By providing the TVA guidebook to Victor Timely, they would ensure that he had access to knowledge about time traveling and multiversal mechanics so that he could replace He Who Remains in proper time.

But was that really the plan all along, or was there something much deeper going on in the story? Likely yes. 

The second clue is the TVA guidebook itself 

TVA guidebook that was left to Timely when he was a kid was written by Ouroboros. If you are not aware, Ouroboros is a mythological snake from Greek and Egyptian mythology that is represented with its tail in its mouth that keeps devouring itself and being reborn from itself. 

It goes forever in circles, devouring and rebirthing, representing an infinite cycle of destruction and rebirth. He Who Remains knew that Loki and Sylvie were coming, and he knew that Sylvie would kill him. He also knew that in another timeline, he would be reborn again as Victor Timely and that by placing that TVA guidebook at his doorstep, he would be remade into He Who Remains.

Victor Timely is not only a convenient variant to take He Who Remains’ place, he is him. But please note that this hasn’t been confirmed. This is just my theory. 

Another clue might be in Sylvie’s Nexus Event 

One of the mysteries that stuck with us all the way from Season 1 is the fact that we still don’t know what Sylvie really did to cause her reality to be pruned and her to go into exile. Ravonna Renslayer seemingly knew but wasn’t about to reveal it any time soon. 

He Who Remains died before he could answer that question.

It’s possible that Sylvie didn’t do anything, but she had to be arrested as she is the key player in creating He Who Remains and the TVA as we know it. It’s possible that without Sylvie killing He Who Remains, the cycle cannot be started and repeated. 

There’s also that secret Miss Minutes will reveal to Ravonna. Hopefully, we will learn more about it in the next episodes. 

What do you think? What was He Who Remains’ plans for Victor Timely? Share it with us in the comments below!