Vision has had a rough old time of it. He died in Avengers: Infinity War twice, first by his wife Wanda’s hand - at his request - in order to keep Thanos from obtaining the Infinity Stone in his head, then again by Thanos himself after the Time Stone was able to bring him back to life. Now, he’s back, back, back again in WandaVision, but is he, really? We’ve had a look at the series so far, the rest of the MCU, and trawled the comics for hints to try and answer the question: is Vision really dead?
WandaVision: Is Vision Dead?
We know for definite that he was dead, twice in fact. And currently, he appears to be alive. Vision doesn’t seem to remember anything that happened before Westview, nor does he recall being JARVIS or an Avenger. However, there has been no suggestion that it’s not the real Vision. From his personality to his love of Wanda, this Vision is the real deal.
That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s alive though. When he tried to leave the Hex, his body began to break apart in shards, being slowly pulled back into the Hex before Wanda expanded it in order to keep him captive. Does that mean he can never leave the Hex though, or just that Wanda is powerful enough to not let him? She didn’t seem aware that Vision was trying to leave until Wiccan told her, so either the failsafe for him escaping is subconscious, automatic, or not controlled by Wanda at all.
Interestingly, while Vision has no memory of his life before Westview, it’s Agnes - since revealed to be villainous Agatha Harkness - who tells Vision that he’s really dead. Clearly Agatha has been plotting something all along, so she obviously told him this for a reason. Was she telling him the truth in order to divide and conquer Vision and Wanda, or has Vision actually been resurrected, with Agatha lying to him to get inside his head? Right now, it’s anybody’s guess.
What Happened To Vision’s Body?
Vision was never really alive in the true sense of the word, he was an AI given a body by the Infinity Stone in his head. When this was ripped out, his body turned grey, and many thought it would simply disintegrate. However, WandaVision revealed that in fact SWORD took custody of the body and kept it in one of their facilities. It’s likely that a clause in the Sokovia Accords grants them this power, or else they seized on the post-Thanos chaos to take the body anyway.
He’s in Westview because Wanda broke into this facility and stole his body before she disappeared. Chronologically, this happened before the events of WandaVision began, but we don’t learn this origin until episode five.
Vision had a living will in which he stated he was never to be used as a weapon, but SWORD director Hayward has referred to him as a weapon many times. It’s likely that the hyper-militaristic Hayward disregarded Vision’s wishes and was indeed trying to weaponise his body until Wanda stole him. His caution around Vision may be a hint that SWORD had partially succeeded.
Does Vision Still Have The Mind Stone?
It definitely looks that way. Not only does his head still have the bright yellow gem nestled in it, the Mind Stone is the source of Vision’s power. He has yet to demonstrate his full strength, but we know he can transform at will and still has the ability to fly, so he’s at least in the same ballpark as the old Vision.
If he does have the Mind Stone, it is probably connected to Wanda. Hayward says Wanda stole his body, meaning whatever SWORD were doing to him, they probably couldn't resurrect him. Wanda is powerful enough to remove the Mind Stone the first time around, and her powers - in the MCU continuity, at least - come from the Infinity Stones too. If anyone has the power to manipulate them, it would be Wanda.
If the Infinity Stones are back, that could have major repercussions for the MCU going forward.