Character Analysis
You'd think that seven heroes pitted against one villain would make for a super short movie. Usually when there are seven heroes doing their hero thing—like, for example, when there are Seven Samurai—they're going up against a dang army instead of one pale dude with greasy hair and a greasy smile.
Don't worry; Loki's villain enough to make it a pretty fair fight.
On the surface, he's got a plan to rule the Earth just for yucks (like all villains from time immemorial). But he's got more going on than that. If you look into his background a little, you'll see that there's more to him than just "I want to lord it over you puny humans because: reasons."
To understand him, you have to look at what he did in the original Thor: seize the throne of Asgard from his adoptive father Odin after Thor himself got banished to Earth.
The man loves power, but not for its own sake. He believes that he really is the best person to be put in charge…and if we're being totally honest, he's not at all bad at it. He certainly knows how to manipulate those around him. Sure, the end of Thor sees Loki plummeting into the endless void of outer space, but he gave the whole "Master of the Universe" thing the ol' college try.
Loki shows up at the beginning of The Avengers in a pretty bitter frame of mind, and he clearly views the Earth as some kind of consolation prize after failing to hold onto Asgard. In his mind, the humans should be glad for his presence. He says so almost as soon as he arrives on planet Earth.
NICK FURY: We have no quarrel with your people.
LOKI: An ant has no quarrel with a boot.
NICK FURY: Are you planning to step on us?
LOKI: I come with glad tidings of a world made free.
NICK FURY: Free from what?
LOKI: Freedom. Freedom is life's great lie. Once you accept that, in your heart...
Loki sees himself as the best option for the Earth: a way for our small blue planet to finally achieve peace and prosper. Who could possibly want more?
But while Loki may be a fairly good (and totally psychopathic) politician, he's no warrior. And by the end of The Avengers, he realizes that he's way out of his depth. Watch the facial expressions he makes when the aliens come—he realizes this isn't quite what he bargained for.
He's a villain all right, and he's tough enough to confound a good half-dozen Grade-A superheroes. But even he can't control the chaos he creates. He can only hope to ride it to somewhere better…where he can very easily forget all the people that have died along the way.