I liked the first two episodes of this show, so let’s jump right in!
At the end of the previous episode, we saw Jarvis sacrifice his code to ensure that the rest of the AIs continue to run. We also saw Tommy steal a car so that he and Vision could escape Saint Mabyn’s. Where will they go next?
We don’t know yet at the start of the episode, as what we see first is Ultron painting while television sets show news broadcasts about the Butcherbird Killer. I don’t know if it’s a real killer or referencing Marvel lore, and I don’t wanna Google it because I don’t wanna be spoiled if it’s part of Marvel lore, and I don’t wanna be sidetracked either if it’s a real killer and his history is interesting.
We then see another person worried about the news broadcast and preparing to defend himself from what I assume is the Butcherbird Killer. Or maybe not? It doesn’t look human, and it has the same red eyes that Ultron had in his robot form. I know those are not Wanda eyes. I’m guessing this is Jocasta? Because that part of Ultron’s lore I do know.
Inside Vision, Edith and Friday are freaking out as Vision continues to metaphorically bleed out. Externally, Tommy is asking Vision where he can take him so that he can get repaired, but Vision points out that the only people who can do that are Tony Stark and Bruce Banner, and they’re both unavailable at the moment.
Vision manages to come up with a temporary fix, and can I say that I love the fart joke from Tommy and the gag with the voice modulation after Vision’s temporary fix works. I always appreciate humor in a show!
We then go back to the Paladin that’s been chasing Vision. It appears that the reason he survived Vision throwing him across the room is because he got an adamantium chest piece from the leader of the Ten Rings, who we first met in Iron Man. I wonder how this squares up to the Ten Rings in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings? I really need to watch that because I still haven’t. Also, I think the Paladin just referred to both The Punisher and Daredevil in that phone call with Philomena Cunk? The Paladin manages to come up with a plan as he’s tending to his wounds and sends three drones out to execute it. How those drones don’t draw the attention of authorities, I have no idea.
Edith is aware of these drones, and it takes some talking before Vision can convince Tommy to drive rather than wait until his questions are answered. They finally reach a hotel, and thanks to convenient electromagnetic pulses Vision is emitting because of his wounds, they acquire some money and a room to stay in.
While that’s a moment of peace for Tommy and Vision in the outside world, Vision’s internals are a lot more off-kilter. Friday rewrites some code to keep everything running, and I want to commend the actress portraying her for so effectively expressing the guilt Friday is feeling over being unable to save Tony in Avengers: Endgame.
Back in the outside, Vision and Tommy are trying to learn more about each other. Tommy, at least, is making an honest attempt at it, but Vision is being cruel and refusing to consider that Tommy may be his son. But maybe that’s because he still hasn’t accepted the fact that he is Vision. And then we get a montage of the simulations that Vision ran about how this conversation with Tommy would go and they all fail. I really liked it, although I am a little slow and had to think on it a little before I could figure out where the simulation ended and where reality started.
Outside the room — the actual room, not the virtual one in Vision’s head — Tommy accidentally phases through a vending machine’s glass. Is it really phasing, or is it his hand moving so quickly that it passes through the glass’ molecules or atoms? Science people, explain! Anyway, it results in a wound on his hand, making him return to the room he shares with Vision, where they engage each other in conversation once again. Tommy recalls that time he drowned, and I think this whole dialogue comes from the Young Avengers comics? I think? It really sounds familiar. I don’t know if it’s from the Heinberg run or the Gillen run.
Vision and Tommy finally start to see similarities in their situation when Vision realizes that Tommy can also phase, but any further discussion is cut short by the arrival of the Paladin. Or at least that’s what the show wanted me to think, because Paladin is at the Jocasta crime scene. It’s only the drones that are at the hotel Vision and Tommy are staying at, but they’re called to Paladin’s location without finding Vision or Tommy.
Back to the Paladin, he is not having a good time as this synthezoid he’s dealing with is not as forgiving as Vision. It’s digging through his thoughts, and we find out that he is not a Paladin, but only raised by one. He wants to be ~a real boy!, just like Vision and Tommy, and he might still get that chance as he manages to escape Jocasta, thanks to the arrival of his drones.
Meanwhile, Visions systems continue to fail, and he needs to reboot. To do that, he needs to go into the water and be powered up by Tommy’s speed powers, and to convince Tommy to do that, Vision reassures him that he is Tommy Maximoff, and that he’s real and not crazy. And Tommy succeeds in rebooting Vision! Unfortunately, it has the side effect of letting Jocasta know that Vision is in London. I don’t know if she knows where he is exactly, but she knows he’s there.
Back to the Paladin, it looks like his client might not be Jocasta? The client terminates his contract, telling him that there are other bounty hunters he can hire. There’s no mention of this Paladin’s fake lineage, so this client has to be somebody else. Interesting!
The AIs are eulogizing Jarvis in Vision’s head, and there’s this funny but also touching bit where DUM-E shows that he can talk, and even recites Keats, followed by U simply saying “Yeah.” And then U sings “Danny Boy” beautifully.
Of course, Ultron is there to piss on this display of emotion, even taking a shot at the wildly popular “What is grief, if not love persevering?” line. Vision responds that just because he may not have experienced love, or that he’s just a museum gift shop print when compared to the first Vision, he’s still wise enough to know that love exists.
However, that conversation will have to wait, as Friday has detected a security breach. During the reboot, Vision ended up connecting with another synthezoid — Jocasta — and now she’s in his head.
If any of you guys like what I do, feel free to leave me a tip!
Leave a Reply