Hey, hey, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here with another review/reaction of a VisionQuest episode, “Theseus.” If you want to see my thoughts on VisionQuest’s first episode, “No Strings,” check out this link. “Theseus” begins by backtracking a year in the life of Thomas Shepard. Or is he Tommy Maximoff? Fortunately, VisionQuest doesn’t dwell too long in Tommy’s past, just long enough for us to get sense of where his life was headed, how he met his love interest Lisa. I like that VisionQuest gave us this quick flashback and went back to current events. I don’t mind flashback sequences, but they should be meaningful and shorter. Good job. I also like how VisionQuest is developing The Vision and Tommy’s relationship. This development could drive the show.

Before we get any further into VisionQuest “Theseus,” a spoiler warning is in effect. You should watch the show and the Disney+ series WandaVision and Agatha All Along. I said this in the last review/reaction and I’ll say it again, this trilogy of mini series are the highlights of the Marvel Cinematic Universe post Avengers: Endgame. With that out of the way, let’s talk about VisionQuest “Theseus.”

VisionQuest continues to balance scenes with The Vision’s interior world and the world outside his head. I like how Paladin isn’t “The Paladin” but one of many. VisionQuest hasn’t dropped too many breadcrumbs as to who hired Paladin to capture The Vision, outside of S.W.O.R.D., who rebuilt The Vision. But who’s in charge of S.W.O.R.D.? S.W.O.R.D. is the organization that emerged from the wreckage that was S.H.I.E.L.D.. The leader of S.W.O.R.D. makes sense as the person who tasked Paladin, but their name drop could–and should–affect the MCU. Who is the one pulling the strings?

Getting back to Paladin, his odd sense of morality has me intrigued. He insists on no collateral damage but didn’t hesitate to murder the sanitarium guard the moment he questioned his authority. Isn’t the guard collateral damage? Don’t get me wrong, VisionQuest did an adequate job of showing this guard as a comically sadistic jerk, but Paladin broke his own rule. They may not be rules. They may be guidelines. We didn’t see as much of Paladin’s handler in “Theseus” as we did in “No Strings.” Not gonna lie. I was a little disappointed. Diane Morgan is fantastic, and she and Todd Stashwick (Paladin) have great chemistry, exchanging barbs. We should get more of the handler in next week’s episodes.

I hinted at it before, but Paul Bettany has done a great job conveying The Vision during his latest iteration. He isn’t the synthezoid he used to be. He struggles to make connections, specifically with his son, Tommy. And Tommy has his own struggles. We saw Billy struggle with identity issues in Agatha All Along (seriously, you should watch this show if you haven’t already), but Billy’s powers align more with his mother, Wanda. Tommy’s powers are closer to his uncle’s, Quicksilver. Quick shoot out: VisionQuest has did a great job in the first episode with hinting at Tommy’s powers and does a great job exploring what he can do with those powers in “Theseus.”

It makes sense that Billy would take to his powers and past better than Tommy. Billy’s consciousness found a well-adjusted kid with a strong family. Tommy’s consciousness found a kid with a broken family life. I love the moment at the end of “Theseus” when Tommy won’t let The Vision get captured by Paladin. “I can’t leave you. You’re my…something.” Ah! Tommy can’t bring himself to call The Vision his father, but The Vision is the closest thing Tommy ever had to a father. This was such a great moment. It tugged at the heartstrings.

I’ve avoided it long enough. It’s time to talk about The Vision’s interior world. I like the development of Ultron getting released from his prison. The Vision could no longer maintain Ultron’s prison, so Ultron walked out the front door. Ultron is the most human of all The Vision’s interior residents. He appreciates humanity. And I can’t help but think he has an evil plan afoot and that makes his escape even juicier.

Ultron’s the one who suggests that one of the other AIs sacrifice themselves to save The Vision. J.A.R.V.I.S. answers the call. He deletes himself, so The Vision can have a chance with his son. In the following moments, Ultron suggests that J.A.R.V.I.S. wouldn’t have been his first or second choice, but it had to be J.A.R.V.I.S.. I loved James D’Arcy’s performance as Jarvis from the Agent Carter television show. I was happy to see him return as an AI version of J.A.R.V.I.S. in VisionQuest, but J.A.R.V.I.S. is the most famous and popular of all The Vision’s AI friends. He had to sacrifice himself because his death carried the most emotional depth.

Honestly, I had to rewatch that sequence of events to absorb that J.A.R.V.I.S. was gone. That was an excellent choice on behalf of VisionQuest’s showrunners and writers. While I wouldn’t mind Ultron sneakily convincing the other AIs to systematically sacrifice themselves, I don’t think that fits for Ultron’s character, and it would become old hat real soon. Ultron has something else in mind, but I don’t know what and that has me on the hook. Paladin may be a worthy adversary, but I’m more intrigued by Ultron’s motives and who hired Paladin to retrieve The Vision. And of course, the father/son dynamic of The Vision and Tommy and even Ultron and The Vision. VisionQuest has set up a nice collection of story threads to explore.

Those are my thoughts on VisionQuest “Theseus.” What are yours? Let us know in the comments. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.