WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for Loki episode 2.
While actors Sophia Di Martino and Tom Hiddleston are both playing variations of the God of Mischief, Disney's Loki makes it clear that their powers are distinctly different. The new series follows Loki as he tries to help the Time Variance Authority, an agency in charge of Marvel’s Sacred Timeline, track down an alternate evil Loki that’s messing with time. That evil Loki turns out to be Di Martino’s character, and though Hiddleston’s Loki is the only reason the TVA catches up to her, she always seems like her plan is a step ahead.
In episode 2 of Loki, Owen Wilson’s Agent Mobius explains all the nuances of Loki variants. Apparently, Loki is one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe characters that most often breaks out of the TVA’s Sacred Timeline, and no two Loki versions are exactly alike. Mobius cycles through several variants the TVA has apparently encountered, including a Hulk-like Loki and a Frost Giant Loki. He also explains that Loki variants can have slightly different powers. While Hiddleston’s Loki seems to have the standard Loki powers and abilities, such as shape-shifting and illusions, Lady Loki has one significant upgrade.
Di Martino’s Loki has powerful mind control, which is something Hiddleston's Loki hasn't used in the MCU. After Hiddleston’s Loki tracks her down to a store in Alabama in 2050, Lady Loki possesses multiple people and speaks through them while her physical body is elsewhere carrying out her plans. The possession can also pass from person to person through physical touch. Interestingly, when her victims come out of the spell, they have horrified looks on their faces. It seems they’ve been shown something or had visions while under her trance.
Lady Loki’s mind control is far beyond what Hiddleston’s Loki appears capable of. In the episode, he calls her possession enchantment “cowardly” and “a bit amateurish,” which means the God of Mischief is jealous. Hiddleston’s Loki does use a form of mind control, but it’s more about suggestibility and manipulation rather than possession. In The Avengers, he used mind control on different characters, but that was only because he was in possession of the Scepter, which has the Mind Stone. Lady Loki’s mind control seems like it’s more on the level of Wanda Maximoff’s, especially with the possibility of her victims seeing things while she has control.
Regardless of the lack of mind control, Loki's powers have served him just fine. From illusions to shape-shifting, Loki has used tricks time and time again to deceive enemies or simply annoy his big brother, Thor. He also knows those abilities inside and out. In Loki, Mobius even calls him Professor Loki for his in-depth explanation on duplication casting, which involves creating an exact facsimile of one’s own body to act as a holographic mirror of its molecular structure. So far, Lady Loki hasn’t displayed any of these powers, much less given a college lecture on how they work.
Despite their differences, Di Martino’s and Hiddleston’s characters may be more similar than it seems. According to an Easter egg in Loki appearing on Lady Loki’s case file, both Hiddleston’s Loki and Lady Loki are the offspring of Laufey, the leader of the Frost Giants, so the pair have the same Jotunheim heritage. In theory, they could have the same capabilities. Perhaps Lady Loki has shape-shifting powers that just haven't been shown yet. And maybe when Hiddleston’s Loki calls Lady Loki’s spell “amateurish,” it’s not because of jealousy. It's because he’s already mastered it. Then again, when it comes to Loki, it's always jealousy.
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