VisionQuest Episodes 5 & 6 finally picked up the pace with its plot and showcasing some impressive creativity. Compared to the other two shows in Jac Shaeffer’s Marvel Television trilogy, it took much longer to lock down a unique feel.
Episode 5, “Firewall” is he most creative episode of the season by far. With the AIs trapped in Vision’s (Paul Bettany, Avengers: Infinity War) mind due to Ultron’s (James Spader, The Blacklist) takeover, they have to resort to less conventional means of surveillance to follow Ultron. This is represented by a black-and-white rendering of scenes, taking place in a minimalist space. It feels like a stage production, highlighting the performances and dialogue by stripping away the setting.
Episode 6, “Deadlock” didn’t have this same level of visual intrigue, but the lighting and color grading still add to the show’s visual identity. The sixth episode follows Vision and Lisa (Lauren Morais, The Red King) to Madripoor to rescue Thomas (Ruaridh Mollica, Witness Number 3) from the Paladin’s (Todd Stashwick, 12 Monkeys) clutches.
The dialogue cleverly provides cheeky technical references when the AIs chat, but the Paladin’s real-world expository drops in the sixth episode feel clunky and out of place. As fun as it is to see Vision deal with a literal firewall, having Paladin explain everything so plainly is irritating.
None of the performances have stuck out as exceptional. Despite Spader’s great rendition of Ultron, the character doesn’t have enough appeal to justify his own B-plot. Ultron was far more interesting in Vision’s mind, toying with the other AIs instead of playing cat-and-mouse with the similarly evil Jocasta (T’Nia Miller, The Haunting of Bly Manor).
Another downside of these episodes is Thomas’s absence. Just when Vision and Thomas bond, they are separated and can’t grow their relationship anymore. Vision has been skirting around the topic of WandaVision for many episodes; as a viewer who has already seen the show, I’m just as impatient as Thomas to hear what Vision has to say finally.
Having two episodes to watch each week makes this dramatic irony frustrating, since it refuses to commit to the true slow burn it seems to insist on. With only eight episodes, it’s shocking that Disney+ didn’t drop one a week.
Out of the episodes we’ve seen so far, half of them have felt like unfashionable filler and have neglected Thomas and Vision’s connection to make Ultron the villain yet again. With the last two episodes dropping one at a time over the next two weeks, viewers can only hope for some real substance.
