Breaking Brad

Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as Loki from the film series, starring alongside Sophia Di Martino (Sylvie), Wunmi Mosaku (Hunter B-15), Eugene Cordero, Neil Ellice, and Owen Wilson (Mobius) reprising their roles from the first season, alongside Rafael Casal (Hunter X-5), Kate Dickie (General Dox), and Ke Huy Quan.

After the TVA's General Dox and Hunter X-5 stop responding, Loki and Mobius attempt to track down X-5, thinking that he has encountered Sylvie.

Wolfe proclaims that they are all in mortal danger, so Sylvie enchants him, revealing Dox's actual plan to simultaneously bomb and destroy all the branched timelines.

Loki, Mobius, and Sylvie travel to Dox's location and launch an attack to stop her ongoing operation, but most of the timeline branches were destroyed by then, via reset charges and modified TemPads.

[9][12] TVA Hunter X-5 is revealed to have become actor Brad Wolfe when he finds his real life on the Sacred Timeline, starring in the film Zaniac.

[14] A generic restaurant was considered, RoxBurger, part of the villainous MCU corporation Roxxon, but DeLeeuw pointed out that it did not tell any sort of story in the same way that McDonald's had a "timeless" quality to it that many could relate memories too.

[15]: 45:52–46:25 To accurately portray 1982 Sylvie and her coworkers, costume designer Christine Wada consulted McDonald's official handbook for details on period-accurate uniforms.

As this "didn't sell", a smaller rising platform was built instead while members of the special effects team held pieces of plexiglass for Casal to push up against.

[21] Visual effects for the episode were created by FuseFX, Industrial Light & Magic, Yannix, SDFX Studios, Framestore, Trixter, Cantina Creative, and Lola VFX.

[26] Space.com's Fran Ruiz commended Tom Hiddleston and Owen Wilson for successfully recapturing key moments from season 1 between Loki and Mobius.

He noted that their character development is achieved through actions that don't rely on large set pieces or complex devices, which is impressive given the show's significant narrative elements.

[27] Vulture's Siddhant Adlakha rated the episode 2 out of 5 stars, describing it as "confounding" and feeling stagnant, as it fails to advance character arcs or deliver engaging stories within the multiverse.

He criticized the portrayal of multiple branching timelines, suggesting that the lack of a visual representation diminished the emotional impact of the destruction.

He highlighted Rafael Casal's performance as Hunter X-5, noting it skillfully combined traits of an "asshole co-worker" with a genuine threat.

She also remarked on the reunion between Loki and Sylvie, which conveyed a romantic, bittersweet quality, noting that the actors’ subtle movements and eye contact added depth to their connection.