Products You May Like
Warning: SPOILERS for WandaVision Episode 9 – “The Series Finale”
Last Updated: March 7, 2021
Vision (Paul Bettany) is one of the most powerful members of the Avengers but he literally has to relearn almost everything about himself in WandaVision. The android hero has had one of the most unique journeys of any character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and he’s been magically given a new lease on life, thanks to his wife Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen).
In his prior incarnation as J.A.R.V.I.S., the A.I. companion of Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) debuted in Iron Man so the future Vision was featured at the very inception of the MCU. J.A.R.V.I.S. was in the next two Iron Man movies and he was also heard in The Avengers. When J.A.R.V.I.S. became the Vision, Stark replaced him with F.R.I.D.A.Y. (Kerry Condon) as his artificially intelligent assistant going forward. Vision became a member of the Avengers and fell in love with Wanda Maximoff. He signed the Sokovia Accords during Captain America: Civil War while she refused and became a wanted fugitive; Vision still had clandestine romantic interludes with Wanda all over the world. Unfortunately, the Mind Stone ensconced in Vision’s forehead made him a target of Thanos (Josh Brolin) and the Black Order, who were collecting the Infinity Stones to enact the Mad Titan’s plan to wipe out half of all life on Earth. Vision made the ultimate sacrifice to let Wanda destroy the Mind Stone and kill him in order to keep the ancient power source from Thanos’ hands. Unfortunately, Thanos used the Time Stone to reverse Scarlet Witch’s heroic act, and he killed Vision himself to acquire the Mind Stone in Avengers: Infinity War.
Click the button below to start this article in quick view.
Vision was officially dead but WandaVision magically resurrected the Synthezoid; in the all-American suburban town of Westview, New Jersey, Vision and Wanda arrived as newlyweds living in a bizarre TV sitcom reality that rapidly moved through the decades from the 1950s to the present day. Curiously, Vision had no memory of his prior life as J.A.R.V.I.S or as an Avenger, but he knew he was a superpowered android and he kept his identity secret from the townspeople of Westview. Yet Vision also began to suspect something was very wrong in Westview and that it all stemmed from his loving wife, Wanda. Vision finally broke through the Hex, which was Wanda’s magical barrier surrounding Westview, and realized the scope of what was happening.
With the help of Dr. Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings), Vision began to piece his true life history together – including the fact that in the “real world” outside of the Hex, he’s actually deceased and was now the property of S.W.O.R.D. Since Vision began a road of self-discovery in WandaVision episode 7, “Breaking the Fourth Wal,” here’s everything there is to know about the Synthezoid, who has proved to be one of the most earnest and noble of the Avengers in death and in life.
Vision’s Origin In Iron Man And Avengers: Age of Ultron
Tony Stark actually modeled J.A.R.V.I.S. after his father, Howard Stark’s (John Slattery) butler Jarvis (James D’Arcy). The original Jarvis was a bumbling but properly heroic Brit who served Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper) since before the 1940s and he also teamed up with Agent Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) after World War II. Tony wasn’t only jealous of Howard’s friendship with Captain America (Chris Evans), he also apparently envied his father’s loyal manservant, so he created an artificially intelligent J.A.R.V.I.S. of his own. In Iron Man, J.A.R.V.I.S. ran Tony’s cliffside Malibu home before Stark integrated him into his Iron Man armor.
In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Stark’s desire to build “a suit of armor around the world” led to him creating Ultron (James Spader), an artificial intelligence that became self-aware, attacked J.A.R.V.I.S., and proliferated throughout the Internet before he constructed an android body for himself based on Tony’s Iron Legion drones. Ultron sought to evolve as well as wipe out organic life on the planet; with the help of Wanda and her twin brother, Pietro Maximoff (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), Ultron stole a supply of Vibranium and forced Dr. Helen Cho (Claudia Kim) to use her device called the Cradle to create Ultron’s perfect final form, his “vision”, which had the power of the Mind Stone. But the Avengers stole the Cradle and took it to Tony Stark, who placed J.A.R.V.I.S. into the dormant android. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) then used his lightning to bring the Vision to life – and the Synthezoid quickly proved his heroic worth by lifting Thor’s hammer Mjolnir.
Vision joined the Avengers to stop Ultron’s extinction-level event in the Battle of Sokovia; the Synthezoid purged Ultron from the Internet and then helped Earth’s Mightiest Heroes destroy Ultron’s legion of drones until only one remained, which Vision then eradicated. Vision’s romance with Wanda also began in Avengers: Age of Ultron and it intensified in Captain America: Civil War before they consummated their love in Avengers: Infinity War, where Vision died twice.
Vision’s Physical Composition And Powers From The Mind Stone
As a Synthezoid, Vision is a blended construct of organic and synthetic material, and his outer shell is made of Vibranium. The combination of Vibranium and the Mind Stone in Vision’s forehead grants him an incredible suite of superpowers. Along with great physical strength, endurance, and the power of flight, Vision can alter his molecular density and even turn intangible, enabling him to pass through solid objects. By Avengers: Infinity War, Vision learned to change his physical appearance to appear human. Curiously, Vision also had Superspeed in WandaVision episode 3, “Now In Color,” before a different version of Wanda’s dead brother Pietro (Evan Peters) arrived.
Vision can use his artificial intelligence to interface with computers – a skill his co-workers in WandaVision marveled at, especially in the 1950s and 1960s. Vision can also use the Mind Stone’s power to reject Wanda’s psychic programming and give people back their memories within the Hex. Additionally, Vision can emit powerful beams of energy from the Mind Stone in his forehead. WandaVision had some fun with Vision being an android; in episode 2, “Don’t Touch that Dial,” one of the gags was that Vision could become “drunk” by swallowing chewing gum, which got tangled in the sprockets inside his chest cavity (although it’s highly unlikely there actually are sprockets in Vision’s chest).
Vision’s Future In The MCU
Despite his humanity and desire to do the right thing, Vision is a tragic figure in the MCU. The Synthezoid only lived three years before he died in Avengers: Infinity War. WandaVision revealed that S.W.O.R.D. somehow acquired Vision’s remains from Wakanda and sought to use him for a different purpose. Codenamed Project Cataract, S.W.O.R.D.’s most likely agenda was to use Vision’s technology to create sentient weapons, but every attempt to revive Vision was met with failure. However, this was before Wanda Maximoff came to S.W.O.R.D. headquarters in a bid to say goodbye to Vision, with the agency pinning the theft of Vision’s remains on her.
In Avengers: Infinity War, Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), who contributed his intelligence to Vision’s matrix, theorized that even if the Mind Stone was removed from the android, there would be “a whole lot of Vision” left. This was proven true when S.W.O.R.D. was able to reconstruct Vision without the Mind Stone embedded into his forehead. The organization was even able to give him back the use of his powers, including the ability to phase in and out of people and objects and fly. That said, he seemingly didn’t come back online until after Wanda paid S.W.O.R.D. a visit in the series’ penultimate episode. By then, however, the emotional intelligence that made Vision such a standout character had been removed completely. That changed when Vision battled Hex Vision and, upon receiving new information, backed down from being the killing machine S.W.O.R.D. had turned him into. After obtaining Hex Vision’s memories, all of which included the previous events of the MCU films and Westview, White Vision flew away, though where he went is unclear right now.
WandaVision‘s finale ultimately confirmed that, while Hex Vision couldn’t live out in the real world, White Vision was perfectly capable of doing so. White Vision’s existence suggests that he could appear in another MCU project at some point in the future. What’s more, White Vision is now upgraded so that he’s effectively an altered AI, no longer the Vision fans had grown to love. This maintains Vision’s tragic death in Infinity War while paving the way for a different future for White Vision, whatever that may entail. While Wanda mourned the loss of Vision, there’s also no telling what the future holds for her and White Vision after the events of WandaVision.
About The Author