‘Loki’ Season 2 Introduces an Obscure Thor Villain From Marvel Comics
The obscure Thor villain Brad Wolfe (a.k.a. Zaniac) may be making his surprise entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Loki season 2. Loki season 2 premiered on October 5, 2023, and sees the God of Mischief (Tom Hiddleston) attempting to restore order to the timeline after Sylvie (Sopha Di Martino) killed He Who Remains (Jonathan Majors) at the end of season 1, sending the Sacred Timeline into chaos and opening up the multiverse. While much of the season 1 cast has returned, the second season has also welcomed some new faces, including Ouroboros (Ke Huy Quan) and Hunter X-5 (Rafael Cascal).
Spoilers for Loki season 2 episode 2, “Breaking Brad,” ahead!
In the first episode of season 2, viewers learned that Ouroboros was the lovable chief engineer of the TVA, but X-5 remained a little more mysterious. He was one of the agents who refused to listen to what Loki and Mobius (Owen Wilson) were trying to tell him about the truth of the TVA. Instead, he seems to serve as Dox’s (Kate Dickie) righthand man, following her orders without question and setting his sights on capturing Sylvie.
But by episode 2, X-5’s story takes an unexpected turn. Although he came across as the ultimate boss’s pet in the first episode, by the second episode, he is proving himself to be a rule-breaker as he goes rogue from the TVA. Now, he has adopted a new life in London in the 1970s, where he goes by the name Brad Wolfe.
Brad Wolfe’s Marvel history explained
It is surprising that Loki is introducing Brad Wolfe to the MCU, considering he’s a relatively obscure and minor Marvel comic book villain. As a child, Wolfe was a victim of child abuse at the hands of his mother. Unfortunately, as he grew up, he irrationally attributed his mother’s faults to all women, becoming a misogynist. As an adult, he got into the acting industry and soon became attracted to the role of the Zaniac, a misogynistic serial killer. While filming for the role, Wolfe was caught in an accidental explosion of radiation material, which mutated him, giving him super strength and durability, as well as green skin and a hulking figure.
As if this weren’t enough, at the same time that the radiation explosion mutated Wolfe, he was also possessed by a demon created by Dormammu in the Dark Dimension. The demon thrived in misogynistic hosts and even elevated their hatred of women, and it is revealed that Jack the Ripper was a past host of the entity. With his newfound super strength and demonic possession, Wolfe decided to become the real-life Zaniac and make the film’s events come true by murdering women. Meanwhile, he had the odd ability to generate energy knives from his hands, so he never ran out of murder weapons.
Fortunately, his murderous rampage was thwarted by Thor, who easily defeated Zaniac. After a period of imprisonment, Zaniac was freed by “Thug” Thatcher to go after Jane Foster. However, after Zaniac murdered Thug’s ex-girlfriend, he was shot and killed. Thatcher then temporarily inherited Wolfe’s demonic entity, but the TVA would later undo Thatcher’s possession, marking the end of Wolfe’s and Zaniac’s Marvel comics history.
Who is Zaniac in Loki?
Loki offers a different origin story for Wolfe, as episode two seemingly establishes X-5 as the character. In episode 2, the TVA agent left the TVA to start a new life for himself on Earth, apparently trying to reclaim his lost life. Mobius and Loki are sent to go after him and find him in London in the ’70s. Not only has he adopted the name Wolfe in this timeline, but he has also made a name for himself as an actor. When Loki and Mobius find him, he’s attending the premiere of his latest film, Zaniac.
However, the episode doesn’t delve further into Wolfe’s story, as he’s taken back to the TVA for interrogation. Meanwhile, he doesn’t seem to have mutated or turned into a demon-possessed serial killer, at least not yet. It’s difficult to tell what Loki’s intentions are with Wolfe. Is it hinting at transforming X-5 into the Zaniac from the comics or suggesting X-5 would have become Zaniac in his timeline before being taken by the TVA? Or is X-5 just one variant of Zaniac, and this is confirmation that a more comic book-accurate version is out there?
It remains to be seen what Loki’s and the MCU’s plans are for Wolfe, but he is shaping up to be quite an interesting villain.
(featured image: Marvel Comics)
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