by Chantal Ashford, Contributing Writer
WandaVision, Agatha All Along, and now VisionQuest. The trilogy we’ve been waiting to see completed has finally come to an end, and I have to say, the MCU has another solid hit on its hands. More importantly, VisionQuest gives some of our favorite characters a beautiful and satisfying conclusion.
Picking up roughly a year after the events of Agatha All Along, the new Vision (Paul Bettany) is hiding in human form while attempting to understand exactly who—and what—he is. Inside his mind, he’s communicating with the different AI avatars, sharing space within his coding, including F.R.I.D.A.Y. (Orla Brady), E.D.I.T.H. (Emily Hampshire), J.A.R.V.I.S. (James D’Arcy), D.U.M.-E (Henry Lewis), U., (John Sayer), and, of course, Ultron (James Spader). While Vision searches for answers about himself, he discovers there’s a bounty on his head and eventually ends up on the run with a teenager who may actually be his reincarnated son, Tommy (Ruaridh Mollica).
Across eight episodes, we watch Vision attempt to pick up the pieces of himself while simultaneously being torn apart from the inside and out. This particular journey for our favorite synthezoid isn’t an easy one, but it makes for one of the strongest closing chapters this story could have received.
Vision’s biggest battle is ultimately with himself. He knows there’s another side of him buried somewhere within his mind, one filled with memories he can’t completely access and emotions he doesn’t fully understand. He constantly fights against accepting that those memories belong to him, but only Vision can ultimately break through those barriers. At the same time, he struggles with Tommy, who desperately wants answers Vision can’t give him while Vision himself struggles to believe that Tommy could truly be his son.
The series continues the themes of parenthood, specifically fatherhood, through Ultron, Vision, and Tommy. Vision’s abusive and complicated relationship with his own creator doesn’t prevent him from trying to become a good father to Tommy. Grief also hangs heavily over the entire series, especially as Tommy deals with the loss of a mother he never truly knew and the discovery of a father he never realized he had.
Nearly every character in VisionQuest has lost something or someone. That makes the return to one of the greatest lines in MCU history feel even more fitting: “What is grief, if not love persevering?”
Bettany and Spader being reunited is easily one of the show’s greatest strengths. This time, seeing them interact in human form allows their chemistry to shine differently. Bettany brings Vision’s philosophical and empathetic nature while Spader brings that wonderfully sardonic quality which has always made Ultron so entertaining. They’re basically oil and vinegar, yet somehow they work perfectly together. Their moment in the finale—”Forever.”—allows us to finally see a softer side of their relationship and realize that, in their own strange way, they were always in this together.
Mollica also gives a solid performance as Tommy Shepherd/Tommy Maximoff. We meet Tommy as a young man already surviving on his own, slowly beginning to remember pieces of a life he can’t quite place. Mollica plays those moments subtly without overdoing them, while also proving he has great comedic timing. There’s one scene toward the end that had me absolutely dying laughing. It was a very creative way to showcase a powerset that we have seen done many times before to varying degrees of success.
T’Nia Miller’s Josephine Carrington was another highlight. She became someone I immediately wanted to root for, and the second she appeared, I wanted more of her. Josephine becomes a crucial piece of the story, especially when it comes to the AIs we’ve known throughout MCU history. Miller’s Josephine paired with Spader’s Ultron was also a duo I never expected to enjoy as much as I did. I honestly wish we’d gotten even more of them together.
The standout of the entire series, however, is easily the penultimate episode, “Immolation.” Vision becomes trapped within his own mind and has to fight his way out, but first, he has to confront several different versions of himself. Watching Vision battle against the truth of what happened to him while slowly accepting the emotions and memories his former self held is heartbreaking. He’s spent so much time refusing to believe that past life was truly his, only to realize that understanding it means allowing himself to feel everything that Vision once felt.
Paul Bettany vs. Paul Bettany. It really doesn’t get much better than that.
By the end, VisionQuest wraps everything up neatly and concludes this trilogy beautifully. After spending years with Wanda, Vision, Agatha, Billy, Tommy, and this incredibly strange family, the series feels like the ending this corner of the MCU deserved. Of course, after that glorious post-credit scene, I would absolutely love to see this family again.
As the final MCU story we’re getting before December 18th, this was the perfect way to leave us.
Now bring on Doomsday, because I have a feeling we’re in for one hell of a ride!
Rating: Loved It
VisionQuest is currently streaming on Disney+.
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