Visionary Dreams

Somebody has some how been tampering with the Vision’s mind and personality, making emotions that were long thought to have been destroyed to come back. Following the kidnapping of Jocasta and Deathcry at the hands of Tabula Rasa, the Vision has reached his absolute limit.[1]

Convinced that he is Alex Lipton, the Vision heads to the home of Lipton’s wife, Laurie. She is shocked to see her husband’s personality in control of the Vision’s body. Even though the Vision’s software was repaired using Alex’s brain engrams, Laurie was told that any trace of Alex’s persona were lost in the process.[2] She pleads with the Vision not to do this to her.

That’s when Crystal and Giant-Man, aka Hank Pym, of the Avengers arrive to reign in the Vision. They try to convince the synthezoid that he’s unwell and needs help. The Vision tells them to leave him be, saying he wants to be left alone with his wife. He then mistakenly refers to Laurie as his ex-wife Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch.[3] This makes Hank realize that the Vision’s various personalities are in conflict with one another.[4] When Crystal points this out, it confuses the Vision enough to allow Giant-Man to get Laura to safety. When the Vision tries chasing after him, Hank uses an energy weapon to incapacitate the android. This allows Hank to do a scan and he discovers that someone is dumping the Vision’s personality files, effectively driving him mad in the process.

Meanwhile, in a secret facility, Deathcry is starting to lose her patience after being locked up with Ultron and Jocasta for hours. This is particularly since Ultron keeps singing the same verse from “Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen” over and over. When Deathcry finally snaps, Jocasta comes to Ultron’s defense, saying that the young woman is love sick over the Vision.[5] The argument is interrupted when Tabula Rasa returns with the mastermind of this entire plot. It turns out to be the Ant-Vision, who avoided destruction during his battle with the Avengers, but the experience has left his android body disfigured and crippled.[6] He tells them that once he has the Vision as his prisoner their lives will be redundant to him, and that moment will be very soon as his master plan is almost complete. He then passes time by having Tabula Rasa torment Deathcry. When she calls to Ultron and Jocasta for help, they are unresponsive. Anti-Vision gloats that they are losing their minds and soon the Vision will suffer the same fate.

At that same moment, the Vision has the same dream again — of a woman and two children waiting for him to return to the farm home where they all live together. However, this time, the Vision appears in the dream in human form. As the woman reaches out for him, he desperately wants to reach back but no matter how hard he tries, their hands do not meet. When he wakes up from this dream, Crystal tries to reach out to him. He is disorientated and struggles over which personality is dominant. He start attacking her instead prompting Giant-Man to intervene. Using his phasing powers to incapacitate Hank, the Vision suddenly comes to realize that he doesn’t deserve this body that he is wearing and takes off to return it to its rightful owner.

Back at the Anti-Vision’s hideout, Tabula Rasa suddenly stops tormenting Deathcry and leaves the prisoners alone. Deathcry then tries to rally Ultron and Jocasta so they can break out of their cell and get away. However, the two robots have been so addled that they are helpless. That’s when the Vision arrives to surrender himself body and soul to Anti-Vision.

Recurring Characters

Vision, Ultron, Jocasta, Anti-Vision, Tabula, Avengers (Giant-Man, Crystal, Deathcry), Laura Lipton

Continuity Notes

1. Lots going on off the top. The Vision’s personality has been tampered with over the last two issues. Jocasta and Deathcry were kidnapped last issue as well. Next issue we’ll learn that the Anti-Vision is responsible. This version of Jocasta is from another reality, as seen in Avengers #372-373. Per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Alternate Universes 2005 #1, she comes from Reality-943. Tabula Rasa was brought to Reality-616 by Proctor and the Gatherers in Avengers #359. Tabula’s native reality is unknown time of this writing in January, 2023.

2. Laurie Lipton is the wife of Alex Lipton. Following his death, Alex’s brain engrams were used to correct a programming error in the Vision’s operating systems. This gave him access to all of Alex’s memories and (apparently very briefly) his emotions. See Avengers Spotlight #40 and Avengers #348. In the latter story, the Vision led Lipton to believe that her late husband’s personality was gone, but it is hinted that he might have been lying in order to protect her feelings.

3. The Vision and the Scarlet Witch had been married for years, starting in Giant-Size Avengers #4. The marriage came to an end after the Vision was disassembled and put back together. The process erased his capacity for emotion, estranging the android from his wife. See West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #42-45.

4. The Vision’s original personality and capacity for emotion were created using the brain engrams of Wonder Man, aka Simon Williams. When Williams seemingly died due to a perceived side effect of gaining his Wonder Man powers, the Avengers made a copy of his mind, circa Avengers #9. This brain engram was then stolen by Ultron who used it to create the Vision’s personality as explained in Avengers #57-58/134-135. This persona was seemingly erased when the Vision was disassembled by the government.

5. Deathcry had recently joined up with the Avengers in Avengers #363. Her interest in the Vision stems from an attraction she has had for him, which was revealed in Avengers #367.

6. The Anti-Vision was brought to Earth-616 by Proctor and the Gatherers in Avengers #359. This was to have him infiltrate the Avengers by swapping bodies with this reality’s Vision, as seen in Avengers #360. After being discovered, Anti-Vision was seemingly destroyed in Avengers #362, leaving the Vision stuck in the Anti-Vision’s body. Per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Alternate Realities 2005 #1, Anti-Vision comes from Reality-932.