Marvel's ambitious foray into streaming, which kicked off five years ago with the unconventional sitcom pastiche WandaVision, is winding down. The studio has scaled back its live-action series output, with recent announcements indicating that shows like Daredevil: Born Again will conclude their runs. In this context, the arrival of VisionQuest serves as a poignant bookend to an era that began with such a unique experiment.
VisionQuest picks up the narrative threads left by WandaVision and Agatha All Along, weaving them into a conclusion that is both unexpected and largely satisfying. Showrunner Terry Matalas, known for his work on Star Trek: Picard, helms the new series. Despite being its own distinct entity, VisionQuest cleverly continues several key plot points, suggesting Matalas possesses a deep understanding of this corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Paul Bettany's Masterclass
At the heart of VisionQuest is a standout performance from Paul Bettany as Vision. The series finds Vision in Edinburgh, working at a pub while his true existence unfolds within his digital mind. Here, he has constructed an elaborate mansion populated by every artificial intelligence created by Tony Stark, including E.D.I.T.H., F.R.I.D.A.Y., and J.A.R.V.I.S. A significant plot development, revealed in the show's trailers, is Vision's imprisonment of Ultron within his mind, a surprising turn given the AI's apparent demise in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Bettany's portrayal of Vision is particularly compelling. The series explores the aftermath of the events in WandaVision, where a newly formed White Vision, imbued with the original's memories, embarks on a quest for self-discovery. This Vision possesses all the memories of his predecessor, including his death in Avengers: Endgame, but lacks the emotional maturity developed over his existence. Bettany effectively conveys this struggle, highlighting the character's internal conflict between possessing memories and lacking the lived experience that shaped his predecessor's virtue. "I have his memories, but not his virtue," Bettany's character remarks, encapsulating the core of his journey.
James Spader also delivers an excellent performance as Ultron. While his presence primarily in human form, rather than as a CGI robot, might seem like a cost-saving measure, Matalas argues that human actors offer superior performances. Spader's Ultron is presented as more complex and entertaining than his previous iteration, serving as a source of dark humor and exhibiting a sharp intellect that occasionally borders on breaking the fourth wall. The series also delves into the reasons behind each AI's chosen human form, leading to intelligent narrative twists.
The series draws parallels to Disney's Pinocchio, with Ultron's early declaration, "I had strings, but now I'm free. There are no strings on me," echoing the AI's desire for liberation. However, by the story's end, it is Vision who embodies the Pinocchio archetype, a manufactured being yearning for genuine humanity.
A Fitting Farewell
Despite its strengths, VisionQuest is not without its flaws. Across its eight-hour-long episodes, the pacing occasionally falters, with significant revelations sometimes feeling delayed. The introduction of a mysterious antagonist in the first episode, whose identity is only revealed in the seventh, exemplifies this issue. The show also shifts genres multiple times, including a segment where Vision and other AIs engage in detective work, which feels largely unnecessary and fails to match WandaVision's skillful integration of sitcom tropes.
Matalas also misses an opportunity to deeply engage with the real-world implications of artificial intelligence at a time when it dominates cultural conversation. The series prioritizes exploring AI within the MCU's established lore over commenting on contemporary issues like privacy or data center consumption. While this might be an understandable constraint for a franchise installment developed over years, the timing of the series makes this a missed opportunity.
Ultimately, VisionQuest succeeds as a series, a format that allows Matalas to explore his ambitious narrative scope. The strength of Bettany's performance is crucial to its success. What might have been just another entry in a long line of Marvel shows in a different reality, in this one, it stands as a triumphant conclusion to a grand, albeit ultimately unsuccessful, streaming experiment. Regardless, it delivers compelling television.
VisionQuest premieres October 14 on Disney Plus.