Marvel's most murderous robot might be about to discover the joys of family. Which is lovely, provided nobody mentions Sokovia.

⚠️ SPOILER WARNING

This article contains spoilers for VisionQuest Episodes 1–4, as well as WandaVision and Avengers: Age of Ultron. If you're not caught up, now's your chance to escape. Ultron would probably recommend it.

Ultron saving the day? I know, it sounds ridiculous. But after everything we've seen in VisionQuest, I can't help wondering whether Marvel is setting up one of its most unlikely redemption stories.

Remember when Tony Stark created Ultron to protect humanity, only for him to spend approximately five minutes on the internet and decide we all needed wiping out? Not exactly the result Tony was hoping for. Although, given the state of the internet, perhaps we shouldn't have been quite so surprised.

Well, Ultron's back in VisionQuest, and episode 4 has made one thing very clear: he's still an absolute nightmare. Taking over Vision's body isn't exactly the behaviour of someone who's been working on his personal boundaries, and I certainly wouldn't trust him with the Wi-Fi password.

But here's the thing. The more I think about where this story is going, the more I wonder whether Ultron might end up doing something none of us would have believed possible back in Age of Ultron. What if, when everything starts falling apart, he's the one who actually saves the day? Not by building another army or coming up with some elaborate plan, but by making the one choice he's always refused to make.

What if Ultron sacrifices himself to save Vision and Tommy?

The World's Most Awkward Family Reunion

One thing I love about VisionQuest is how wonderfully messy the family situation has become. Vision's trying to work out who he actually is, Tommy's got memories of a family that shouldn't really exist, and Wanda's influence is still hanging over everything. A normal family reunion would be difficult enough, but this lot would need a flowchart just to decide where everyone sits.

And then there's Ultron. Technically, he created Vision, which makes him something resembling Tommy's grandfather. Just imagine that introduction. "This is Grandad Ultron. He once tried to destroy the planet, but we're hoping he'll behave himself over dinner."

Joking aside, I think this family connection could be much more important than it first appears. Ultron has never been particularly good at accepting that other people might have their own ideas about how to live. He created Vision, and in his mind that seems to come with certain expectations. The possibility that Vision might want his own life, his own family and absolutely nothing to do with Ultron doesn't really fit into the plan.

But what if that's exactly what Ultron needs to learn? Maybe the biggest change in his character won't be deciding that humanity isn't so terrible after all. Maybe it'll be realising that caring about someone means letting them make their own choices, even when those choices have nothing to do with you. And if that lesson comes at the worst possible moment, when Vision or Tommy is in danger, things could get very interesting.

Episode 4 Hasn't Exactly Helped Ultron's Case

Now, I can already hear the objection. Ultron has literally just taken over Vision's body. That doesn't exactly scream loving father figure, does it?

And you're right. If anything, episode 4 has reminded us why Ultron was such a terrifying villain in the first place. He's clever, manipulative and completely convinced that whatever he wants is probably what's best for everyone else. It's the sort of attitude that makes him dangerous, particularly when he's sharing a mind with someone who doesn't necessarily want him there.

But weirdly, I think that's what makes this theory work. If Ultron had returned as a perfectly reasonable bloke who'd spent his imprisonment reflecting on his mistakes, there wouldn't be much of a story. We'd all be waiting for the inevitable moment when he does something heroic and somebody tells him he's changed.

Instead, he's still Ultron. He's still trying to control things, still making questionable decisions and still giving us plenty of reasons to suspect he's got another unpleasant surprise up his sleeve. Which means that if he eventually does something genuinely selfless, it'll actually mean something.

We've also got to remember that Ultron's entire existence began with a pretty twisted idea of protection. He was built to keep humanity safe, but decided that getting rid of humanity was the simplest solution. He understands the idea of protecting something; he's just spectacularly bad at understanding what that should involve. Perhaps VisionQuest is finally going to force him to work it out.

Could Tommy Be the One Who Changes Him?

This is where I think Tommy becomes especially important. Vision is Ultron's creation, whether either of them particularly likes that description or not. Tommy, however, is something Ultron never planned for. He's effectively the next generation of this increasingly bizarre family, and he's got his own problems without being dragged into Grandad's latest attempt at world domination.

Tommy's story is about finding out who he is and where he belongs. He's dealing with memories that don't quite fit his life, a family that barely makes sense and a father who's going through an identity crisis of his own. Honestly, the poor lad deserves a quiet weekend and a normal family dinner, although I suspect Marvel has other plans.

What makes him interesting to this theory is that he doesn't have to prove anything to Ultron. He's not a superior artificial intelligence or a new invention waiting to be perfected. He's simply someone Vision cares about. And that creates a situation Ultron has never been particularly comfortable with: something matters to his creation that Ultron doesn't get to control.

I keep coming back to the idea that Tommy could be the reason Ultron finally understands the difference between owning something and loving someone. Imagine Ultron watching Vision risk everything for his son, even when doing so makes absolutely no logical sense. For a machine that has always believed there's a correct answer to every problem, that must be infuriating.

But what if, eventually, he understands it? What if the moment Tommy's life is genuinely in danger, Ultron finds himself wanting to protect him too? Not because Tommy is useful or because saving him helps some elaborate plan, but simply because he's family.

I know. Ultron developing grandfatherly instincts wasn't exactly on my Marvel bingo card either.

And Then There's Jocasta...

As if the family tree wasn't complicated enough, episode 4 has also brought Jocasta into the picture through the Butcherbird revelation. For anyone familiar with Marvel Comics, that's a name that immediately raises a few eyebrows.

In the comics, Jocasta is an artificial intelligence created by Ultron, and her history involves his rather questionable attempts to recreate human relationships. Apparently, creating an artificial son wasn't enough; Ultron also thought his personal life could benefit from a software update.

Now, I don't think we should assume the series is going to follow Jocasta's comic-book story exactly. Marvel has never been shy about changing things, and there's still plenty we don't know about where this particular storyline is heading.

But her arrival does make me wonder whether VisionQuest is deliberately surrounding Ultron with examples of artificial beings who have become something more than he intended. Vision certainly didn't turn out the way Ultron planned, and Jocasta's comic history raises similar questions about whether a creator should have any say over what their creation becomes.

Maybe that's the real lesson Ultron needs to learn. He can create life, manipulate it and even try to take control of it, but none of that means he gets to decide what that life is worth. And if Vision, Tommy and Jocasta all end up forcing him to confront that uncomfortable truth, I can imagine him being absolutely furious about it.

Which, knowing Ultron, would probably be our first clue that he was starting to understand.

What If Ultron Has to Delete Himself?

Here's where my theory gets a little more specific, because I don't think Ultron's sacrifice would necessarily involve a dramatic fight or another exploding robot. We've already seen enough of those over the years, and Ultron has a rather annoying habit of surviving things that should probably have finished him off.

Instead, I keep thinking about the Mindspace and the fact that Ultron's consciousness has survived inside Vision. What if the final threat somehow puts Vision's mind at risk? Or what if saving Tommy requires a decision that Vision simply can't make without destroying himself?

Imagine Ultron realising that there's only one way to save them, and that it involves permanently erasing the surviving version of his own consciousness. No backup, no spare robot body and no convenient escape route hidden somewhere in the internet. For once, he wouldn't be able to outsmart the consequences.

That's the version of this theory I really like. Ultron has always been obsessed with survival, control and proving that his way is the right way. What could be a bigger change than willingly giving all of that up for somebody else?

And let's face it, even if he did decide to sacrifice himself, he'd probably spend his final few moments explaining why his solution was vastly superior to anything the rest of them could have come up with. Some habits are harder to delete than others.

Of course, we haven't been given evidence that this exact situation will happen. There are plenty of directions the series could take, and Marvel might have something completely different planned. But the Mindspace provides an interesting way for a sacrifice to carry real consequences, particularly for someone whose physical destruction has never necessarily meant the end.

Does Ultron Actually Deserve Redemption?

This is the awkward part, because we're talking about someone who nearly destroyed the world. It's not as though Ultron can save Tommy, apologise for the whole Sokovia business and expect everyone to welcome him back with a commemorative Avengers mug.

And I don't think the series needs to forgive him. In fact, I'd rather it didn't.

What makes this idea interesting isn't the possibility that Ultron was secretly a good guy all along. He wasn't. We've seen what he's capable of, and episode 4 has done nothing to suggest he's suddenly become trustworthy.

But I do think someone can make a good choice without becoming a good person. Ultron doesn't need to undo everything he's done or convince everyone that he's changed. He just needs to reach a moment where he has the chance to save himself, as he's always tried to do, and decide that someone else matters more.

For me, that would be a much better ending than simply watching Vision defeat Ultron again. We've already seen them on opposite sides of a fight. Watching Ultron finally make the sort of choice Vision would make, especially when it costs him everything, would say far more about how their relationship has changed.

Why I Think Ultron Might Surprise Us

The more I think about VisionQuest, the more I like the idea that we're watching three generations of a family trying to work out what they mean to one another. Vision wants to understand who he is, Tommy wants to understand where he belongs, and Ultron still seems determined to prove that he's the cleverest person in the room.

But perhaps that's what makes the potential ending so appealing. Ultron began as something designed to protect humanity, only to become one of its greatest threats. If his story eventually ends with him choosing to protect Vision and Tommy at the cost of his own existence, it would bring everything full circle in a way I genuinely wouldn't have expected when he first appeared.

I'm not predicting that Ultron suddenly becomes lovely, starts dispensing fatherly advice and gets invited to Christmas dinner. That would be a bit much, even for Marvel. I think he'll remain arrogant, unpredictable and incredibly difficult right up until the moment that matters.

But when that moment comes, I wonder whether he'll finally do something that has nothing to do with being the smartest, strongest or most powerful intelligence around. Something he can't gain anything from, because he won't be there to enjoy the result.

He might simply choose to save his family.

And for the artificial intelligence that once thought wiping out humanity was the answer to everything, that could be the most human thing Ultron has ever done.

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About VisionQuest

VisionQuest is a Marvel Television series on Disney+, continuing Vision's story following WandaVision and Agatha All Along. The series follows Vision as he explores his identity, encounters the artificial intelligences within his consciousness and reconnects with the family he once knew.

It stars Paul Bettany as Vision, James Spader as Ultron and Ruaridh Mollica as Tommy Shepherd, with Terry Matalas serving as showrunner.