It follows an alternate version of the character who is arrested by the mysterious Time Variance Authority (TVA) after creating a new timeline during the events of Avengers: Endgame (2019).

Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as Loki from the film series, with Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Wunmi Mosaku, Eugene Cordero, Tara Strong, and Owen Wilson also starring.

[4] Herron and Waldron executive produce alongside Hiddleston and Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, and Stephen Broussard.

As part of Herron's pitch to Marvel, she had referenced a scene from Minority Report (2002) where John Anderton sees a projection of his wife as something that Loki should experience.

[13] The episode stars Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Renslayer, Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Eugene Cordero as Casey, Tara Strong as the voice of Miss Minutes, and Owen Wilson as Mobius M.

[15]: 48:23  Additionally, members of the Avengers appear in archive footage from Avengers: Endgame,[9][additional citation(s) needed] with other MCU cast members appearing in footage from different films such as Rene Russo as Frigga, Anthony Hopkins as Odin,[9] Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson,[16] and Josh Brolin as Thanos.

[17] Herron, a comedy fan, was looking to find comedians who would be fun to include in the series, and called casting Fadem in the episode "a miracle".

Herron felt having this set gave a "level of reality" to the TVA to make it "feel like a real, living space".

Herron changed the aspect ratio for the D. B. Cooper flashback to full screen since it is a "big cinematic moment" that was previously unseen.

[9][11] Strong, who voices Miss Minutes, enjoyed the Mr. DNA comparison because the TVA and Jurassic Park both had the "juxtaposition of very high-end, modern technology with very basic, classic '60 and '70s animation".

[30] Commentators noted some animation inspirations included 1950s public service announcements for the car industry (the Miss Minutes video begins similarly to Walt Disney's Magic Highway U.S.A., while it has similar character designs, tone, and narration style to Your Safety First produced by Automobile Manufacturers of America);[31] the 1950s Disney space documentaries created by Ward Kimball; the "mid-century modern" animation pioneered by United Productions of America; and the Warner Bros. Cartoons Merrie Melodies cartoon Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century (1953).

[39] Disney CEO Bob Chapek announced that "Glorious Purpose" was the most-watched series premiere for the streaming service in its opening week.

The site's critical consensus reads: "Though "Glorious Purpose" bears the burden of a tremendous amount of exposition, there's no denying the joy of Tom Hiddleston and Owen Wilson's budding chemistry.

She felt the premiere combined the "tactile worldbuilding of Guardians of the Galaxy with the offbeat humor of Ant-Man and the meaty character reflections of Iron Man 3".

[45] Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone felt the premiere struggled to "shoulder the burden" of everything that Waldron and Herron were trying to accomplish, but found the performances of Hiddleston and Wilson prevented the episode from "collaps[ing] under the weight" of all its exposition.

[14] Siddhant Adlakha, writing for IGN, felt the episode had "a number of laughs and fun concepts, [but was] one where the drama doesn't always neatly fit together".

Adlakha enjoyed Hiddleston and Wilson's "classic two-man act", but felt the dramatic segments that broke up their banter were "far less compelling" and made the episode feel like a clip show.

Praise was also given to Holt's music that "adds a sense of strangeness and possibility" and Kasra Farahani's production design, with Adlakha giving "Glorious Purpose" a 7 out of 10.

She believed Hiddleston was "having a blast" in the role and the pairing of him with Wilson was "nothing short of inspired", since she was never sure who had the upper hand or was telling the truth in their exchanges.

[17] Kasra Farahani won for Excellence in Production Design for a One-Hour Period or Fantasy Single-Camera Series at the 2022 Art Directors Guild Awards.

[46] Waldron was nominated for Best Writing in a Streaming Series, Drama at the 2nd Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards for his work on the episode.