As one of the most compelling, albeit heartbreaking, duos to ever hit the big screen, Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes have a cult following of dedicated fans who loved watching their story unfold in the MCU. Now that Steve is gone, a lot of viewers were left feeling like they got robbed, angry on behalf of Bucky, who was abandoned in the present by the man who was supposed to be with him until the end of the line.
Although this pair can never be replaced, the recent events in Loki give hope that another tortured bromance is about to take the MCU by storm. Based on what fans have seen so far, Loki and Mobius are quickly forming a close-knit bond that has the potential to be greater than the story of Steve and Bucky. After taking a closer look at the TVA’s most unexpected allies, it seems as if Loki and Mobius have a lot more in common with the supersoldiers than fans realized.
Mobius is a dedicated agent of the TVA, who truly believes in the cause he’s dedicated his life to. This mirrors Steve’s dedication to the war effort during Captain America: The First Avenger, when he wholeheartedly committed to joining the army and taking down Hydra, no matter the cost. Although Mobius is fighting a war entirely different than the one Steve was part of, he’s very soldier-like in his dedication to the TVA as he fights for peace and protecting innocent lives within the multiverse. For the most part, Mobius follows the orders given to him from the top of the TVA food chain, but after only two episodes of Loki, he’s illustrated that he isn’t afraid to go against the grain, if he thinks he’s doing the right thing.
Steve might have been the greatest soldier to ever live, but the Captain America franchise has proved time and time again that even the best of soldiers can go rogue. Steve stuck his neck out for Bucky during Captain America: The First Avenger after being explicitly told not to go behind enemy lines. Steve was even willing to give up his own friends during Captain America: Civil War because he thought he was doing the right thing by refusing to sign the Sokovia Accords.
Mobius has also shown that he’s willing to bend the rules a little if it means reaching the desired outcome. Taking an unsanctioned trip to a previous apocalypse could have been detrimental to the timeline. Defying the Time Keepers is no easy feat, but Mobius put his faith in Loki and decided that it was worth the risk. Like Steve, he knows when to follow orders and when to do things his own way.
Despite their extremely different circumstances, Steve and Mobius are just two guys fighting for what they believe in, who aren’t afraid to take risks every now and then. Their most prominent shared quality is the ability to look beyond the surface and see people for who they truly are. More specifically, Steve and Mobius vouch for those who are misunderstood by the people around them, meaning Bucky and Loki.
Even when everyone else thought all hope was lost, Steve knew that he could break through the outer shell of The Winter Soldier and get his best friend Bucky back. Mobius does something similar with Loki, getting him to open up about his true self and convincing the TVA to give him a chance to prove himself, even though Loki is seen as a dangerous criminal.
Bucky needed a friend to look out for him when he was lost, and that’s exactly what Steve did. Mobius is trying to do something similar for Loki, digging deeper to get beyond the monstrous persona Loki embodies for self-preservation. Getting Loki to admit that he uses cruelty to put others down as a result of his own feelings of weakness was a major step for Mobius and Loki alike, showing the God of Mischief in a rare moment of vulnerability.
Although episode two of Loki doesn’t look so promising for his friendship with Mobius, all the best MCU duos have their fights, including Steve and Bucky. If Steve could forgive Bucky for beating him senseless on an exploding airship, Mobius can easily forgive Loki for following the variant to get some answers. Loki is slowly becoming the most open and honest version of himself around Mobius, so there’s hope for the two of them to repair their bond as the series progresses.
If they keep heading down this path of self-discovery and giving each other the benefit of the doubt, even when the rest of the world disapproves, there’s a good chance that Loki and Mobius will be new Steve and Bucky. Hopefully, there won’t be anymore brainwashing and time traveling to be with dead lovers, and even if Loki doesn’t survive his Disney Plus series, there’s no question that Mobius is the best friend he’s ever had.