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thebibliomancer · 7 months

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Essential Avengers: West Coast Avengers #43: VISION QUEST

April, 1989

To rescue the VISION!

Fingers crossed!

Everyone looks grimly serious about rescuing their kidnapped good pal Vision. Except Tigra who just looks thrilled to be having a fun day out.

Can't believe that this part of VisionQuest is titled VISION QUEST. That's a decision.

Last time on West Coast Avengers: John Byrne took over the book and jumped it forward to a new context with no explanation. Tigra, Dr Pym, and Wasp rejoined the team alongside Hawkeye, Wonder Man, Vision, and Scarlet Witch. Except Vision got kidnapped and unpersoned out of the Avengers' records while they were distracted fighting a fake Ultron. It looks like the kidnapping was an inside job and whoops look who showed up: inexplicably smug Mockingbird, Hawkeye's wife who quit the team and the marriage when he got mad she manslaughtered a cowboy who did a sex crime.

He immediately lunges at her, maybe to just throw hands, but Wonder Man holds him back and goes c'mon dude lets get the context here.

Hawkeye: "Blow it out your ear, Wonder Man. Why shouldn't this be just what it seems? Why shouldn't we just accept the fact that we've been sold out... by my wife!!" Mockingbird: "That's what I've always liked best about you, Hawk. You always look for the logical answer in every situation."

Mockingbird is notably less smug now, more serious. There will be a handwave for her inconsistent attitude later.

The rest of the West Coast Avengers are willing to hear out Mockingbird so Hawkeye settles down into a pout.

Mockingbird admits that she let in the people who uploaded the virus into the Avengers' computer systems and that she's the one who "choreographed" Vision's kidnapping.

But in her defense, she's very sorry.

Hawkeye starts shouting again but Wanda cuts him off. She wants more context. Like now.

Mockingbird: "The only thing I can say is... I've been had!" Hawkeye: "'HAD??'"

TIME FOR FLASHBACK

Mockingbird's casual angrily lounging around outfit is a good look for her. Simmering daisy dukes.

Anyway, a guy claiming to be SHIELD special operative Frank Hampton knocks on her door to call her in to duty.

Mockingbird has been seething on the couch for so long that she's out of the loop and didn't know that SHIELD was defunct at this time. I think the Nick Fury vs SHIELD book finally got released? But point being, this ruse only worked because Mockingbird was behind the times.

Because special operative Frank Hampton went all out in this SHIELD ruse. Flying cars and smelling like what Mockingbird remembers SHIELD agents smell like.

Special operative Frank Hampton brings Mockingbird to Cameron Brock, the head of a special SHIELD project called Vigilance.

And Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock tells Mockingbird this is about the time Vision tried to take over the world, took control of every major computer system, and seized America's nuclear arsenal.

Vision was under the influence of alien computers at the time and supposedly it could never happen again. But Vigilance was formed to make absolutely, completely sure it never happens again.

As long as Vision was retired from superheroics and "playing house with the Scarlet Witch", Vigilance wasn't worried. But now that Vision has joined an Avengers team again, that puts him in contact with the Avengers' computer systems which connect to so many other different systems.

So Vigilance has had their Vision alert level raised because Hawkeye had a big argument with his wife that broke up the team, causing Vision and Scarlet Witch to join the team out of pity so it wouldn't just be Hawkeye and Wonder Man sitting by themselves.

Good fucking job, Hawkeye.

I do like that there was a recent instigating factor and that Vigilance didn't just decided to get around to getting Vision after that world takeover thing.

(Lotta exposition in this issue. Probably a really good sign that this new direction requires walls of text to pivot to.)

Anyway. Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock tells Mockingbird that they're keeping a watch on what Vision does every day but they want to be extra, super-prepared and need Mockingbird's help.

Cameron Brock: "You are in the unique position of having been both a S.H.I.E.L.D. operative and an Avenger. S.H.I.E.L.D. now wishes to make use of the knowledge you have gleaned as a member of that team toh elp in the creation of an emergency plan. A plan to guard against the eventuality of the Vision once more attempting to gain global mastery. We need your help to work out all the necessary elements involved in penetrating Avengers Compound and seizing the Vision."

Hawkeye gives her shit for agreeing to come up with anti-Vision contingencies but she argues in her defense that it was just supposed to be a contingency plan IN CASE Vision did a big whoopsie again.

And in terms of loyalty, she still saw herself as loyal to SHIELD and thought she was working for SHIELD.

So, anyway, with Mockingbird's inside knowledge of Avengers security and passwords (YOU NEVER CHANGED THEM, HAWKEYE??? FUCKS SAKE), Mockingbird kludged together a plan for a small team to infiltrate the compound and kidnap Vision without tripping any security.

(I'm super not sure how a group of normal people later explicitly stated to be kinda incompetent managed to kidnap Vision without making any kind of ruckus, especially since it was also established that Vision doesn't sleep, just lays in bed and stares at the ceiling. These two plot details do not gel well.)

Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock tells her she did a very good job, A++, better than they could have hoped. And the job is very definitely done now, be proud.

Mockingbird is a perfectionist though and she decides to tweak the plan a couple days later but finds that someone else has already added their own tweaks.

The fake Ultron scenario to distract the Avengers while one team uploaded the virus into the computers and another team grabbed Vision.

Another new detail that Mockingbird didn't put in her original plan was that the team that grabbed Vision would put a posthypnotic suggestion in Wanda's brain so that she'd stand around uselessly flashbacking while everyone else contributed.

Its not bad character writing! It was hypnosis!

Mockingbird went and yelled at Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock that the new additions were stupid and bad and could hurt the Avengers.

And the posthypnotic thingie could lead to disaster if the real Ultron attacked because it would definitely apply to the real Ultron because if Wanda could tell the difference, it would ruin the point.

Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock listened very carefully to Mockingbird's concerns and then said 'get arrested, dingus' and sent goons after her.

Fighting goons is what Mockingbird does best and these dudes weren't trained up to SHIELD standards. But Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock shot her in the back with a stun laser when she was distracted because Mockingbird can only be so competent or else the plot won't work.

When Mockingbird wakes up, it's in a maximum security cell that she recognized as TOTALLY KGB!

VIGILANCE IS ACTUALLY A RUSSIAN PROJECT, WHAAAAAAT??

This reveal makes Tigra growl like a cat because she's succumbing to cat instincts again, everyone, make sure you don't forget that she's succumbing to cat instincts.

Also, Russians make her mad.

Specifically, Kraven the Hunter. But probably also the whole country.

Nobody comments on Tigra going r-rrrrrOAWWR-RR-ing and Mockingbird just continues on with the exposition.

Mockingbird figures that the reasons she was originally given for why Vigilance wanted anti-Vision plans still apply to the Russians. Vision got into Russian computer systems too and probably got access to sensitive data the Russians don't want out in the wild.

OR - suggests Hank Pym - the Russians want the American data that Vision may have learned at that same time.

Either or!

If this information wasn't cleared out of his noodle, he could be like an espionage pinata. Just whack him until state secrets fall out.

Of course, I don't see any reason why Vision would keep that information. If his brain worked like a computer. WHICH IT DOESN'T.

Wonder Man asks why Mockingbird didn't come to the Avengers sooner and she admits she only escaped two hours ago.

She pulled the ol' pretend to be dead so the guard comes in the cell so she can kick him in the face.

Although, she did detour to grab her superhero uniform instead of going right to the Avengers.

Uh. That might have been a bad detour to make. Since she wound up arriving too late to help. And, y'know, CALLING AHEAD MAY HAVE BEEN A GOOD IDEA.

But nobody points those two things out. So I won't dwell on how this plot only holds together if you close your eyes and believe in it.

Scarlet Witch asks what the fuck was up with Mockingbird's attitude when she first arrived? Y'know, that smug 'ooops, did I betray the team, lol' attitude.

And Mockingbird says its because she was embarrassed at having been fooled by Vigilance and also Hawkeye still pisses her the fuck off.

Phew, weird character moment handwaved.

Also, despite Mockingbird saying she let the people in to kidnap Vision and wipe the computers, she was locked up at the time. So she's only responsible in a very indirect way.

Feels like the story is trying to walk a tightrope where Mockingbird did a whoopsie but not too directly.

It kinda works! But we're using a lot of words words words to keep balance.

Hank Pym says that they really don't need to super interrogate Mockingbird's story right now when time might be a factor.

If even a lot of her story is true, the important thing is for her to take them to the Vigilance base so they can find Vision or get a lead to find Vision.

So the West Coast Avengers minus Vision plus special guest Mockingbird take off in their QUINJET.

Mockingbird: "Wanda... I... I don't think there are enough ways I can say how truly sorry I am that this has happened. We've been friends, you and I, and now..." Scarlet Witch: "Now I am forced by circumstances to reconsider our friendship, Mockingbird. Even though I believe you when you say you were duped into assisting with the kidnapping of my husband... The fact remains that you were willing to assist in the formulation of the plan which made that kidnapping possible. And although I may understand your reasons, there is no way I can ever condone them."

This conversation is slightly too wordy for an emotional moment.

Also, were Mockingbird and Scarlet Witch friends? I think they interacted once. Granted, that one time they were stuck in jail together and Mockingbird came clean about her cowboy manslaughter so there's a lot of emotion tied into that one moment.

But I don't think the two had a whole lot of interaction beyond that.

When Mockingbird started moving in Avengers' circles, she started on the West Coast team while Wanda was still on the East Coast. And then Wanda and Vision retired.

I guess they were work acquaintance friends, kinda. Same job, same venn diagram of friends?

Anyway, they arrive at Vigilance HQ. An abandoned factory complex scheduled for demolition. A perfect place to set up a secret project.

Wasp suggests that the Quinjet make a low pass so she can slip out wasp-sized and reconnoiter the facility. Which current pilot Hank Pym agrees to do.

Hawkeye: "Hey, do you mind, Wasp? In case you've forgotten, I'm the one who's supposed to be West Coast chairman! I'll decide what we should do!" Wasp: "All right, Clint. What do you suggest?" Hawkeye: "Er... Well... yeah... I guess if we make a slow pass at five hundred feet an' you shrink all the way down to wasp size..." Wasp: "Good plan!"

Oof.

This is what Clint was worried about when Wasp was just guest starring. She's used to leading so he was worried she'd just trample all over him and take over.

She didn't, when she was guest starring. But now that she's joined the team off-panel, she seems to be doing it.

Say, why did she join off-panel? Will we ever learn?

Wasp does the thing she said she'd do and flies into the facility through an air vent.

Since she still has her antenna from that adventure in Hungary, she communicates with some ants to help her search.

Her antformation sources point her towards a big door labelled with a big 31 but its too tightly sealed for her to have a look inside.

Some dudes show up so she moves on to explore more of the facility.

They spot her but she's bug sized and they think she's just a bug.

But them noticing her makes her notice that these guys are super not Russian, despite Mockingbird being super convinced that Vigilance was a KGB operation.

The plot thickens.

(If its not KGB I really do wonder what the point of the fakeout was? The story shifts from 'it was SHIELD! No it was the KGB! No it wasn't!' in such a short time.)

Wasp finds the cell block that Mockingbird probably totally escaped from. There's some guards chatting about some old man they have locked up.

One of the guards says he doesn't see the point keeping an old man locked up in such miserable conditions but the other says this keeps him from going to the Avengers.

Wasp is intrigued and flies through the little sliding window thing on the door and finds DUN DUN DUN

OH MY GOSH CAN IT BE?

YES, THE REVEAL IS BEING HELD UNTIL NEXT TIME. BUT IT SURE WILL STARTLE THE CRAP OUT OF YOU!

Although Wasp is stuck in plot limbo until next time, the rest of the cast continues on.

Up in the circling Quinjet, Scarlet Witch starts having expository flashbacks again.

That post-hypnotic suggestion really fucked up her brain.

So in flashback land, Vision joined the Avengers. And then Scarlet Witch met him when she was a captive of Arkon, that dude who has movies about him that have nothing to do with anything he's ever done but seem to be Conan-esque plots even though Conan is a real dude who has also visited the Marvel universe.

Marvel is a weird place.

Vision and Scarlet Witch started feeling feelings for each other but avoided confronting those feelings as they worked together as Avengers and saved the Earth so much a lot.

But then the Celestial Madonna thing happened.

SCARLET WITCH REMEMBERS IT A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY THAN HOW IT WENT DOWN.

In her mind, the three finalists for Celestial Madonna was herself, Mantis, and Moondragon.

This is incorrect. Moondragon didn't enter the plot until after the fact. The third candidate was Agatha Harkness.

And given that the key and only characteristic of the Celestial Madonna was that she would give birth to a destiny child, it is incredibly funny that Agatha Harkness was considered a possible candidate.

Anyway.

The plot unfolds, Mantis turned out to be the Celestial Madonna. And for some reason, Vision's entire secret backstory was revealed in the middle of Mantis' big story arc.

You know, that whole thing where Ultron kidnapped Dr Phineas Horton to rebuid the dead robot Human Torch into the alive synthezoid Vision because Ultron is a big dumbo who couldn't do it on his own.

A baffling plot point in retrospect considering. But the plot point that was given.

Now that Vision had a real past and knew where he came from (even though he had been pretty sure Ultron had built him so he had known where he had come from so again, pretty baffling plot point), he felt like a real boy enough to ask Scarlet Witch to marry him.

And she accepted.

And then they had to share their special day with Mantis getting arranged marriaged to a tree puppeting around a corpse.

Wanda is actually pretty fond of her wedding day, in a kind of 'the 70s were wild' way.

Mantis and Cotati Swordsman ascended to a higher plane of existence except we recently learned that nuh uh. And Vision and Scarlet Witch continued their Avengers lives but as man and wife.

They found that Quicksilver was a huge dick about it, refusing to give his blessing or even interact with them without yelling about wrong love.

And some suicide bombers tried to blow up Vision about robots taking all the good women, or something.

But the marriage was happy.

The two eventually wanted kids and since magic is awesome, Vision was able to dry hump twins into Wanda since she was channeling an entire mountain of magic at the time.

The narration says it was the power to warp probabilities. But at the time, it was definitely also a shit ton of magic.

All this expository flashbackery is really trying to adjust things and pretend they were always some kind of way.

It could be honest mistakes but why flashback this much if you're not trying to set some kind of record some kind of straight?

Speaking of magical babies that are totally real, the scene changes back to the West Coast Avengers Compound for a page to show the governess Wanda hired to watch her kids when she's doing Avengers stuff.

The woman, Helen Bach, puts Billy and Tommy into the bath and manages to racism about Vision all at the same time.

Multi-tasking.

Miss Bach: "Come along now, boys. You let Miss Bach get you ready for a nice new day. It looks as if your mommy and daddy have already gone out. Such a lovely couple. But what dangerous lives they lead! Still, I wouldn't like to think what sort of a world this would be without the Avengers. You're both very lucky to have such wonderful people as your parents... Although, I suppose your daddy isn't quite people, is he?"

Geez, fuck you, lady.

In minor fairness, she goes on to say that her brother-in-law said Scarlet Witch should be arrested and Vision impounded for Wanda basically marrying an appliance. And Miss Bach calls that a silly opinion.

So she's not completely awful.

John Byrne might be though. Because he shares the opinion that Vision is little better than an appliance. But that's a topic for later.

Anyway, Miss Bach takes her eyes off the kids for five seconds to fetch a towel. And when she turns back to the bathtub SHE SEES SOMETHING SO SHOCKING THAT IT HAS TO WAIT UNTIL NEXT ISSUE!

DUN DUN DUN!

Back over at the plot, the Quinjet is still circling and then the secret Vigilance base starts firing on them.

Hank Pym is aghast.

A secret KGB operation opening fire on American soil is basically a declaration of war.

Since Wasp is stuck in 'tune in next time' limbo, she hasn't told the Avengers this probably isn't the KGB, actually.

Wonder Man decides to show the Vigilance base how dumb it was to take the first shot.

He jumps out of the Quinjet and plummets towards the base, CRUMPing one of the big laser cannons on impact and ripping a huge chunk off the roof to open a way in.

Inside the base, Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock yells, asking who authorized shooting the plasma guns at the Avengers.

Except, that was kinda on him. By Brock's own order, they were programmed to fire on any aircraft that makes more than three passes over the base in a certain time frame. Anyone that's hanging out above the very secret base, basically.

Vigilance Project Head Cameron Brock yells some more because OBVIOUSLY, an exception should have been made for the Avengers!

Cameron Brock: "That's not just any aircraft! That's an Avengers Quinjet -- and the whole point of this covert masquerade was to avoid directly engaging the Avengers!" Wonder Man, casually leaning against the wall: "... If we can't get engaged, will we still be able to see each other on weekends?"

Oh, you!

The rest of the West Coast Avengers plus special guest land the Quinjet to storm the building rather than wait for Wasp or Wonder Man to come back.

Hank Pym commands Mockingbird to lead the charge since she knows the building.

She runs right into some dude with a machine gun but he stops to quip "Say 'good night,' Gracie" and that quip time gives Scarlet Witch the chance to alter probability so all the bullets in the gun turn out to be duds.

The guy pulls the trigger to no effect and Mockingbird kicks his face in the face.

Mockingbird: "'Good night,' Gracie..."

Past dude with a machine gun, the West Coast Avengers find a big locked door.

This is a huge obstacle, clearly. Sure, Hank could shrink the door or grow a tool to take care of it. Tigra could just rip through it. And Scarlet Witch could turn it into bubbles with a gesture, probably. But the important thing is that this is something Hawkeye can handle.

And he's felt so superfluous in this issue.

So he just goes ahead and takes the W for himself.

WITH HIS DOOR PIERCING BUZZSAW ARROW.

Dr Pym: "Nice work, Hawkeye. But now we're going to need to split up if we're to search this place efficiently." Hawkeye: Well that was fun. I was in charge again for about half a second there.

Hm. Now that Hawkeye is complaining internally about it, I am noticing a certain.

Monica Rambeau-esque leadership undermining going on for Hawkeye.

Hank Pym is making all the leadership decisions and Hawkeye is relegated to awkwardly telling people to do something they've already decided to do.

It's not a leadership challenge. Hawkeye is actively being undermined as leader.

I feel like his time in charge is coming to a close. And shot in the dark: the guy that's already acting like he's in charge will wind up in charge.

If that happens, I don't mind conceptually. We're 43 issues in and the Avengers have always had a more fluid leadership than the X-Men or Fantastic Four. Maybe it is time for some one else to take over.

The way it's being written is pretty ham-fisted though. There's something coming up that's a pretty natural reason for Hawkeye to quit his leadership role and it doesn't require him being made a weak leader in the run-up.

Some offense intended, Hank Pym taking over is maybe the most boring option. He's had his chance multiple times.

Scarlet Witch would be my preference but I'm not sure yet how this all is going to shake out for her, except vague knowledge that it won't be great.

Hmm. Wonder Man maybe? He wanted to be leader a while ago but he got over that immature arrogance. So what if he actually did become leader now that he's not agitating for it? Could be interesting.

Anyway.

Hawkeye and the dude that's going to steal his job head off in one direction, Tigra in another, and Scarlet Witch and Mockingbird in the third.

Scarlet Witch explicitly chooses to pair up with Mockingbird because she thinks her knowledge of the base gives her the best chance of finding Vision.

The two women find one of the "techno-squad boys" and Mockingbird puts him in a chokehold and demands he tell them where Vision is.

Also, the guy has a British accent and Mockingbird demands he drop it. I guess because she still thinks this place is super Russian.

The guy: "Not bloody likely!"

He's probably actually British? Or, the comic-book version of British where they talk like no British person does?

The guy refuses to talk so Mockingbird casually mentions that as an ex-SHIELD agent, she knows fifty-seven ways to kill a dude and all but one of them hurt like hell.

Then she tortures him a little off-panel where we can't see it.

The guy spills the beans that Vision is in Section 31. News that Mockingbird reacts to with some alarm. She demands and gets the passcode as Osiris, which she reacts to with MORE alarm.

She runs off towards Section 31, yelling that they may be too late.

When she and Scarlet Wanda arrive at Section 31 (the big locked door Wasp couldn't get into, btw), Mockingbird warns her that what they find may not be pretty.

Understatement.

MASSIVE. Understatement.

Do you know your Egyptian mythology? Remember what happened to Osiris?

Mockingbird: "You... wanted to find your husband, Wanda..."

Mockingbird: "There he is...!!"

There was definitely a gentler way to do that reveal, Bobbi.

Geez.

If this was meat instead of synthezoid parts, you couldn't print it.

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#avengers #essential avengers #west coast avengers #Vigilance #THE RUSSIANS or maybe not who knows #Hank Pym #Dr Pym #Hawkeye #Mockingbird #Tigra #Wonder Man #the Wasp #the Vision #he's around #Scarlet Witch #has a really bad day #prejudiced governess

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