VisionQuest is telling the long-awaited story of what becomes of The Vision (Paul Bettany) after being killed by Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, (sort of) resurrected by Wanda Maximoff in WandaVision, and rebuilt into a soulless copy of himself, the “White Vision.” The white version of The Vision has been lost in an existential limbo, trying to reconcile the memory of who he was with the reality of what he’s become. Helping him along the way is a collection of other advanced AIs that have all previously appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including Stark Industries models like D.U.M.E., F.R.I.D.A.Y., and E.D.I.T.H.
However, one of the biggest secrets The Vision has been keeping is that one of the most dangerous AI ever created is still alive inside his head: Ultron, the robotic villain who nearly wiped out life on Earth in Avengers: Age of Ultron. (MILD SPOILERS) After being a rascally antagonist to Vision and the other AI in his mind-palace, Ultron made another villainous turn and took control of Vision’s body in Episode 4, a goal he’s been chasing since Age of Ultron.
VisionQuest Is Proving Ultron Was Gone Too Soon
By now it should be no surprise that James Spader is a major scene-stealer in VisionQuest, as Spader has been owning the TV screen in shows like Boston Legal, The Office, and The Blacklist since the 21st century began. However, seeing the depth and development that Spader is bringing to Ultron in longform TV format has been as bittersweet as it is inspiring.
With every episode of VisionQuest, it becomes clearer and clearer that Ultron is a character who could have had a much bigger presence in the MCU, and the franchise would’ve been better for it. Instead, it took 11 years to retcon the bad decision to kill Ultron off in Avengers: Age of Ultron and pull a performer like Spader back into the fold.
More MCU Villains Deserve A Longer Arc
Ultron has gotten a second chance, but many of the other villains the MCU has introduced haven’t been so lucky. Ronin the Accuser, Crossbones, Ego, Gorr the God-Butcher, Malekith the Dark Elf, Hela, Red Skull, Obadiah Stane, Aldrich Killian, Wenwu, Killmonger; the list of MCU villains that never made past a single chapter or their arc is extensive. Even Thanos only got two films where he got to actually do anything villainous himself (Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame).
What’s even more unfortunate is the fact that most of the aforementioned villains have been played by some of the most talented actors in the business. Many of those actors are Oscar winners (Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Jeff Bridges, William Hurt, Ben Kingsley) or Oscar nominees (Michael Keaton, Tim Roth, Mickey Rourke), whose skills at performance could’ve been utilized numerous times by the MCU. After all, a comic book movie/TV universe should follow similar rules as an actual comic book universe, no?
In comics, villains get knocked down only to pop back up again, and again, and again. Other villains go on some kind of transformative or redemptive arc and grow into more complex versions of who they used to be (see: Venom). The MCU already does well with redemption arcs, as characters like Tom Hiddleston’s Loki, Sebastian Stan’s Winter Soldier – even Ben Kingsley’s Trevor Slattery – have gone from being movie villains to being some of the most celebrated recurring characters of the franchise.
Having villains that survive to strike again another day (with quality actors who can reprise their roles) would only be a bonus to the MCU. Because as we’ve seen in some comic book movies (Batman v Superman), a good villain can be really hard to find.
Avengers: Doomsday will be in theaters on December 18th. Which MCU villains do you want to see make a comeback? Tell us in the comments!