TV Show Review: Vision Quest EPs 1 & 2

Spoilers ahead!

Vision Quest is the latest in a long line of MCU TV shows, and so far, it is looking like it could be one of their best shows after Loki—if not something that might even surpass Loki itself. It is an unofficial trilogy, following WandaVision and Agatha All Along, and this time, it brings back James Spader, the original voice of Ultron.

Quick Recap

Following the events of WandaVision and Agatha All Along, we have a whole new Vision. He is not the Avenger Vision, and he is not Wanda's Vision. He is simply... a Vision. And this Vision is suffering from an identity crisis as he tries to understand the life of the previous Vision, his relationship with humanity, and what his own role and path should be. So much so that this Vision does not have issues with killing people.

The story takes place in the Vision mansion, where Vision has created a cyber home for all the other artificial intelligences created by Tony Stark. We have JARVIS, EDITH, FRIDAY, U, and D-U-M-E, all living in the mind space of the original Vision. Vision is a sentient, living being, but his mind space, his cyberspace, houses these other AIs.

And if you remember correctly, EDITH was the AI Tony designed specifically for Peter Parker. So she has an energetic vibe to her that lets you know she is Peter Parker's AI.

In the same house, Vision has brought back Ultron. Yes, Ultron, who was created and decided in less than five minutes that he was going to destroy all of humanity. Now, he is physically embodied by James Spader, which I have to say is an amazing thing to see after The Blacklist, right?

So, yes, spoilers ahead, of course.

The Story So Far

The first two episodes introduce us to a bounty hunter looking for Vision. Already, Ultron has gone rogue by informing the bounty hunter of Vision's location, which leads to the death of someone close to Vision. However, Ultron is not the one who hired the bounty hunter. This then begs the question: who hired Paladin?

Paladin is the current bounty hunter in a long line of bounty hunters who have sworn an oath to their employer to ensure that, when hired for a job, they get the job done.

These first two episodes already have strong dialogue because, really, who doesn't love Vision and his dialogue? We have Ultron, played by James Spader, having issues with the fact that he was even recreated to stay in the cyber home in the first place. He is already looking for trouble and trying to find a way to break out of the mind space.

And then we have Vision questioning everything.

But now there is a problem: a young orphan in London claims to be Tommy, Wanda's imaginary son from WandaVision and Westview.

It turns out that somehow, when Wanda was closing up Westview, she sent a subconscious matter through time into the body of Thomas Shepherd. This young Thomas is a teenager or an adult who has memories of Wanda and Vision being his parents, even though he is an orphan.

It is as though one of the imaginary children from WandaVision, Tommy, has somehow embodied his subconscious in another person, giving him memories of his parents and abilities and powers of his own.

Fans have also spotted how much he looks like a young version of Steve Rogers and how his female friend, Lisa, looks like a younger version of Romanoff, played by Scarlett Johansson.

Paladin eventually gets hold of a tape from WandaVision's reality and uses it to track down Tommy, whom he kidnaps and uses as bait to lure Vision. Vision knows it is a trap, but he does not realise that the main trap is the facility where Tommy is being held. This hampers Vision's CPU and puts everyone in danger.

With all the AIs finding themselves on the verge of death, JARVIS deletes his code, making the ultimate sacrifice. And that absolutely broke my heart.

I mean, I was heartbroken when JARVIS sacrificed himself. I pray he comes back somehow, but his sacrifice genuinely hurt. I would have expected one of the dumber AIs, either D-U-M-E or U, to sacrifice themselves. But then I realised that the processing power needed to continue healing Vision was not something those two imbeciles would have been able to provide.

So JARVIS was obviously the best option.

It was painful. Not my first choice and definitely not my second, according to Ultron. But it happened, and then Tommy comes back for Vision.

So now we have Tommy reunited with Vision, JARVIS is dead, and the other AIs are wondering where exactly they are going to go next.

The Cast: A Surprise Appearance!

Speaking of the cast, we had Diane Morgan, the face of Philomena Cunk.

When I saw her, I cracked up because I did not expect to see Philomena Cunk in the MCU, but here she is! And it was absolutely hilarious. The minute I saw her, I started singing her theme song in my head. It was just so funny. So, so, so funny!

But that aside, let's go back to the core of the show.

The Production, Technology and Dialogue

Already, the technology and studio production are off the charts.

The imaginary home, the Vision home, is built in a way that reflects how an AI assumes a home is supposed to look. This is so on point because artificial intelligence often seems to believe it knows how things are supposed to look.

When you look at the furniture and the setup in the home, you can see that it is AI. It looks human on the surface, but when you look closer, the arrangement is so distinctly not human. Yet, it is colourful enough to give off the impression that it is human.

I love how accurately this is portrayed because that is exactly how artificial intelligence works right now: mimicking the human experience in a way that makes it look human, even when it is not actually human.

And the dialogue and conversations are already top-notch.

Of course, we also have that famous line repeating itself: “What is grief, if not love persevering?”

That is an absolute banger of a line from the conversation the original Vision had with Wanda when they were discussing her brother's loss. To hear that line come back again is just very heartwarming.

Fans, Explosions and What This Show Is Really About

Critics are loving this, and fans are currently still loving it. But the thing about fans is that they always want explosions. They want things to go awry. They want things to scatter. And when things do not go that way, they begin to drop their ratings for a TV show, which I think is very foolish.

This TV show is going to give us emotions unlike anything we have ever seen in any other Vision story because we are focusing just on Vision.

I know Ultron is still going to do something crazy. Already, he has gone rogue, and he is the reason they are on the run in the first place. I know he is still going to want to do something insane in order to take control, and I am looking forward to that in what I assume is going to be six more episodes, all things being equal.

But one thing we have to look forward to is not just the bangers and the explosions. Paladin is obviously still going to come back. What matters most is that we are watching Vision try to come to terms with what exactly he is.

The show uses the analogy of the Ship of Theseus, which raises the question of whether something remains the same thing after it has been broken down and rebuilt over and over again.

And that is such an amazing way to explore Vision's identity. 

How much of the original Vision remains in this new being? 

Is he still the same Vision if his body, memories and experiences have changed? 

What makes him who he is?

These are the questions I am excited to see the show explore.

And, of course, we have James Spader spilling his vocabulary, his eloquence and the distinctive way he carries himself. You know you are already in for a ride, and you cannot help being excited and stoked about it.

Where Does It Fit in the MCU?

As an unofficial trilogy, there are some issues because it almost feels as though VisionQuest does not belong anywhere.

It does not seem to be tied to any particular timeline or reality. There have been no mentions of the Avengers, New York or what happened there. We know he is an AI, and he was an Avenger when the movies began. But the show is not currently tying itself to any particular timeline.

We do not know exactly when these events are happening. We just know that the story follows the events of WandaVision and Westview.

Perhaps we will eventually find out if the writers decide to connect it to a particular timeline. Or perhaps it will remain a standalone story. We never can tell.

But I see it as a trilogy following WandaVision, Agatha All Along and now Vision Quest.

Final Verdict

So far, VisionQuest has been explosive, interesting and high-definition. The production sets have been amazing, the energy of the cast has been off the roof, the chemistry has been beautiful, and the antagonising has been on point.

And I know we have so much more to look forward to.

I am particularly excited to see where Vision's journey of self-discovery takes him, what Ultron is planning, what Paladin will do next, and how the remaining AIs will find their way forward after JARVIS's sacrifice.

If the show continues at this pace, we could be looking at one of the best MCU TV shows yet. It has the dialogue, the performances, the emotional depth and the philosophical questions to make it stand out.

If you have not seen the first two episodes, go watch them as we await future episodes. I, for one, am looking forward to what comes next