As a self-proclaimed Marvel fan, I was a little disappointed in myself when I watched the Doomsday trailer, and I found the tweets about different timelines in the multiverse unfamiliar. My knowledge of phases five and six of Marvel was severely lacking.Â
Maybe I should stop self-proclaiming.
To familiarize myself with the new plotlines before Doomsday’s release on Dec. 20, I went on an intensive binge-watch to reacquaint myself with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And the latest show to watch? VisionQuest.
VisionQuest is set post-Endgame, post-WandaVision, post-Agatha All Along. It follows a reprogrammed Vision and the newly transferred soul of Tommy Maximoff as they struggle to reconcile the fragmented pieces of who they once were.
The pilot episode introduces the “new” Vision attempting to adapt to human life by working at a bar in Edinburgh (where old Vision and Wanda lived peacefully before Thanos’s humanity-ending mania). We see him recharge for the day in an old storage closet, when his consciousness is transferred to a home of other AIs created by Tony Stark. Here we run into some familiar voices like Jarvis, E.D.I.T.H., and Ultron.Â
Putting a face to these AIs I know, love, and hate made them a lot more human to me. It felt like the AIs created by Stark were a real family, reconfiguring and bickering at the same time. This is probably a cause for concern IRL: the depiction of human AI, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.Â
As the plot unfolds, we watch Vision’s quiet life turn upside down as someone attempts to kill him at the bar he works at. Facing this threat, we start to see the difference between the original Vision and the reprogrammed Vision. I think this is a fantastic performance by Paul Bettany, as we see Vision’s character become less humanity-saving and more cold and cutthroat. The transformation is so distinct, and it really makes you wrap your head around the change that’s happened within Vision.
Okay, let’s back up. If you haven’t heard of VisionQuest before today, then surprise—we’re introduced to Tommy Maximoff in this series. Tommy is struggling with his own identity because his brother Billy Maximoff frantically threw his consciousness into the body of another boy, in an attempt to save him (this happened in Agatha All Along). Although Billy succeeded, Tommy’s mind is now fragmented, having two distinct memories of his life. From an outsider’s perspective, he seems unwell, having recollections of a life that he never lived, with parents that he never had.
The father-son duo finally meet when the bounty hunter who attempted to kill Vision and kidnaps Tommy to draw Vision out. While the reprogrammed Vision is more glacial, he still has the original Vision’s memories. He can’t feel emotions, but he knows they exist. Vision chalks up his desire for Tommy’s safety to a desire to protect humanity. But there’s no denying the genuine care Vision has for Tommy.Â
It’s not so overt because it’s Marvel, but it’s nice to see a father-son story in mainstream media. Especially one that tackles identity and the denial of one’s own humanity. Isn’t caring for humanity, in essence, the most human thing?
As we get to the latest episodes, one of the AIs in Vision’s “hub” escapes and attempts to destroy humanity once again. I’ll let you take a guess at which one this is.
VisionQuest will reach the season finale on Nov. 10. I’m excited to see how the show will portray Tommy’s new speedster abilities and Vision’s attempt to lead with logic into his increasingly chaotic life. But as Vision himself said, “Humans are odd. They think order and chaos are somehow opposites, and try to control what won’t be. But there is grace in their failings.”