Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Loki season 2, episode 2

Summary

  • Loki season 2 introduces the obscure Marvel character Phone Ranger, who is featured on a movie poster in episode 2.
  • Phone Ranger is a very minor superhero in the comics, with only three appearances and a ridiculous costume.
  • The inclusion of Phone Ranger as a fictional movie superhero within the canon opens the door for other obscure Marvel characters to become part of the MCU's own superhero movie genre as well.

Loki season 2 has made one of the strangest and most obscure Marvel Comics characters part of the official MCU canon. Thanks to the Time Variance Authority and the wonder of time travel, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and Agent Mobius (Owen Wilson) are on the hunt for Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) on the Sacred Timeline, searching for the rogue Loki variant who killed Jonathan Majors' He Who Remains in Loki season 1. However, a blink-and-you-miss-it Easter egg had canonized one of the most ridiculous Marvel superheroes ever.

As seen in Loki season 2, episode 2, Loki and Agent Mobius visit London in 1977, attending a movie premiere for a movie entitled Zaniac! starring actor "Brad Wolfe". However, Brad is actually the TVA's Hunter X-5 (Rafael Casal) who went rogue to become a movie star on the Sacred Timeline. Having located Sylvie before he went AWOL, the episode follows Loki and Mobius' interrogation of X-5 before the titular God of Mischief reunites with Sylvie at the end of Loki season 2, episode 2. However, the reference to an absolutely bizarre Marvel superhero is featured in the episode as well.

Where To Spot Phone Ranger In Loki Season 2

Loki Season 2 Phone Ranger Easter Egg

Amid the premiere for Zaniac!, Loki and Mobius are seen walking past a collection of movie posters promoting various upcoming films. This includes a fun reference to Eternals' Kingo in Loki season 2. Having become a movie star after the Eternals disbanded in the 16th century, Kingo starred in countless movies over the centuries by creating a family legacy of actors to mask his longevity. As such, this movie released in the 1970s likely stars Kingo's "father". However, it's not the only movie being promoted by the theater.

Immediately following the poster of Kingo, another poster is featured for the movie Phone Ranger. In the original comics, Phone Ranger is a very obscure hero with even stranger origins. While the poster itself is hard to make out, it does look as though Phone Ranger is wearing his red and yellow costume, including the dial numbers on his chest and giant telephone receiver/mask on his head. To that end, the tagline for the movie reads, "Criminals, he's got your number". As such, it appears as though Phone Ranger exists as a fictional movie superhero within the MCU canon (unless of course the movie's based on a true story).

Related: Loki Season 2 Episode 2 Recap: 10 Best Moments & Biggest Reveals

Who Is Phone Ranger? Marvel's Weirdest Superhero

Phone Ranger Marvel

Unsurprisingly, Phone Ranger is not a major superhero in the Marvel Universe by any means, having only had 3 total appearances in the comics since 1985, though one was during the events of Civil War where he was arrested for superhero activity. Real name A.G Bell (riffing on the inventor of the phone), Phone Ranger was once an ordinary telephone repair man who discovered a minuscule alien civilization living within a phone. Reverse-engineering their technology, Bell became the Phone Ranger with the ability to interact with any communication device...and that's about it. He hasn't been featured much and there are no explanations for his absolutely ridiculous costume in the comics.

At any rate, a character as bizarre as Phone Ranger is perfect for an MCU Easter egg in Loki season 2. While he's now part of the official MCU canon thanks to this new episode, the proviso that it's in a fictional sense as a movie superhero character is most welcome. Furthermore, it does open the door for questions about which other random heroes from Marvel Comics' past have become part of the superhero movie genre within the MCU itself.

New episodes of Loki release every Thursday at 6pm PT / 9pm ET on Disney+.

Key Release Dates