Episode 8, “Previously On” has changed the entire face of WandaVision, with the many revelations. We all got a hint of Agatha’s past and the sacred witch ritual in Salem, Massachusetts, in the year 1693. This tells us that Agatha Harkness is a witch with power so extreme, that it only amplifies with her centuries of experience. But what really blew away the fans, was the revelation of White Vision. It is believed that the concept of White Vision was in the works since Avengers: Age of Ultron.
WandaVision’s episode 8 revealed SWORD’s long plan of reviving Vision. Episode 8 introduced S.W.O.R.D.’s true sentient weapon, the White Vision who is clearly set up for an intriguing, no doubt devastating showdown with the “real” Vision (Wanda’s version) and Scarlet Witch in the finale. The character’s shocking introduction was the clever pay-off to Acting Director Hayward’s almost buried tease in episode 7 of Project Cataract being ready as Monica Rambeau prepared her own attempt to infiltrate Wanda’s Hex. Episode 8 also gave us the origins of Wanda’s name, Scarlet Witch, as Agatha Harkness tells us that she’s the myth with the power to create anything she wants.
This new Vision is called ‘Cataract’ by SWORD, and it is actually a major giveaway. Cataract not only means “imperfect vision” but also relates to the fact that that the new Vision has its white gloss removed from its eyes. White Vision really excited the fans as it led directly into the comics with no possible doubts. Vision’s white body was first seen in Avengers West Coast storyline from 1980s Marvel Comics, and it is believed that this storyline has been affecting the WandaVision’s plot in some way. Well, we have something really interesting for you. The same storyline, “Vision Quest” ultimately revealed that Vision, at a point of time, gets disassembled and rebuilt in his white body, and was a part of the plan by a bigger big bad. So, where have we seen that? Exactly, in WandaVision!
Let’s trace our steps back to “Vision Quest”. In this storyline, it is rogue agents of the US government that abduct Vision and dismantle him, rebuilding him in a chalk-white body. Vision was able to be brought back online if we speak on the mechanical grounds. But, in the process, Vision got rebuilt but with no soul. A void nothing can fill, and we are talking about the brain patterns of the ate Avenger Simon Williams/Wonder Man). Ironically, the White Vision made its debut by attacking Scarlet Witch and his fellow Avengers, ultimately settling into a strange new existence where he was more machine and less human.
Now, that kind of major conflict, and its ultimate resolution is possible for WandaVision’s finale episode. Now, the “soul” of Vision Wanda created inside her hex bubble reality now has to face his physical white body. The key detail here is the “Vision Quest” story is why the government agency took Vision apart and rebuilt him. This is a question that has not been answered? How did Vision’s body even leave Wakanda? Well, it is believed that it was all a part of manipulations by Immortus.
What Disney+’s WandaVision is doing with Vision, SWORD, and Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) may lead directly into Kang’s MCU invasion. Here’s how the events of WandaVision – specifically, Vision’s resurrection – relates to Kang and what it could mean for the future. It would seem that what SWORD wanted to do was get Vision back online, despite the fact that the Mind Stone – which gave him life – was destroyed by Thanos along with all the other Infinity Stones. SWORD reviving Vision without the Mind Stone draws an interesting parallel to what West Coast Avengers did with the character in the 1980s with the John Byrne story, “VisionQuest”. When Vision was dismantled by the government because of a previous bout of insanity, Scarlet Witch and the Avengers stormed a government building and recovered him.
In John Byrne’s 1989 arc Vision Quest, the synthezoid loses his color when he is disassembled in response to seizing control of America’s nukes by an international task force led by Cameron Brock. Ultimately, it turned out that Vision was being manipulated by Immortus (an alt-universe version of Kang the Conqueror) but he was taken apart and studied by Vigilance, Brock’s taskforce. Immortus is pulling the string of SWORD to affect events in Wanda and Vision’s lives. Wanda’s mere existence as a Nexus being capable of power chaos magic makes her an invaluable tool for Immortus to change time, reality, and probability in ways to his own designs. If you do not know who Immortus is, he is the elder version of Marvel villain Kang the Conqueror – a warlord who hops between timelines and realities to conquer to them and build a temporal empire.
It is believed that Kang the Conqueror will be the big bag in Marvel’s Phase 4 and has been cast for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (actor Jonathan Major). The delicious part of that villain choice is that most mainstream fans won’t be aware of an Immortus/Kang connection, so this connection between WandaVision and the other MCU Phase 4 projects will be rather interesting.
All episodes of WandaVision are streaming on Disney+. And the finale is ready to hit the floors on Friday.
