It’s 1985 in Wisconsin, and Oshkosh is home to an all-out Renaissance fair. There are people in costumes, barrels of beer and the delicate tones of a lute to set the mood. That is the scene that opens the second episode of the Marvel latest television show, “Loki.”
“Hi. What’s going on? You guys aren’t dressed right,” a Wisconsin woman says as agents from the Time Variant Authority enter the strange scene. The woman does not have a noticeable Wisconsin accent, which is a shame.
From there, the agents enter a dimly lit Renaissance fair tent to focus on their mission, and the Wisconsin setting fades into the background. But thankfully, later on in the episode, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) makes a visit to the fair, where he strolls through the festivities during a conversation with Mobius M. Mobius (Owen Wilson) and other members of the TVA. The walk-and-talk is when we get the best look at Oshkosh’s scenery, and it really does look like the characters are passing through a Wisconsin festival.
Marvel’s Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) also gets a mention in this episode. Fun fact: Ruffalo was born in Kenosha.
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“Loki” is the third Marvel television series to be released, and it’s also the most popular one yet. The first episode even broke the Disney+ viewership record previously set by “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.” The show follows Loki, the God of Mischief and adopted brother of Thor – a notorious villain and occasional hero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – as he gets to know the powers that manage the “sacred timeline” of the universe. New episodes are released on the Disney+ every Wednesday, and you can catch Wisconsin’s scenes in episode two.
If you don’t subscribe to Disney+, you can get the slightest glimpse of Marvel’s take on 1985 Oshkosh in the original trailer for the show. About one minute and 15 seconds in, Loki and a team from the Time Variance Authority step through a portal that transports them to Wisconsin. While this shot mostly shows the neon logo on Loki’s back reading “VARIANT,” if you look closely you’ll see some of the Renaissance fair in the background.
This is not the first time that Wisconsin has gotten some recognition from comic book cinema. In the recent HBO Max release of the Zak Snyder cut of Justice League, Gotham City University faced off against the Wisconsin Badgers in a football game. To find out who won, read this.
