Over 40 Major Easter Eggs, Comics References, And MCU Ties In VisionQuest Episodes 3 & 4

Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for VisionQuest episodes 3 & 4

Marvel's VisionQuest continues to fire on all cylinders, featuring all kinds of awesome Easter eggs, references, and ties to the greater MCU in its newest episodes as Paul Bettany's Vision contends with threats new and old, as well as a reunion with his son, Thomas Shepard (Ruaridh Mollica).

There's so much to unpack in the newly released VisionQuest episodes 3 & 4, which see Vision and Thomas evading Paladin, facing an all-new AI threat, and reconciling with their own bizarre connection as father and son (not to mention the ongoing unease thanks to the presence of James Spader's Ultron).

Keeping all that in mind, here are all of the biggest and most exciting Easter eggs, references, and MCU ties we found after watching VisionQuest episodes 3 & 4.

The Biggest And Best Easter Eggs And MCU References in VisionQuest Episodes 3 & 4

Image credit: Dennys Ilic

Jocasta's Hood Disguise — The hood initially worn by Jocasta in VisionQuest resembles the hood briefly worn by Ultron after escaping Avengers Tower in 2015's Age of Ultron, which was in turn inspired by Ultron's "Crimson Cowl" disguise he wore in the comics before fully revealing himself (not unlike Jocasta).

Banner Is Unavailable — After being shot by adamantium bullets by Paladin, Vision confirms that only Tony Stark and Bruce Banner had the expertise to fully repair him, though Stark died in Avengers: Endgame while Banner is confirmed to be unavailable, most likely due to the events of Spider-Man: Brand New Day where he lost control after the incident with Jean Grey and then locked himself in a military bunker as revealed in the new post-credits scenes seen in Avengers: Endgame Encore.

"No More Sacrifice" — Clearly traumatized by the death of Tony Stark in Endgame, FRIDAY's cries of no more chaos or sacrifice are a direct reference to Iron Man using the Infinity Stones to end Thanos and his forces and save the world.

Fire Extinguishers — DUM-E and U use a pair of fire extinguishers after Vision's system is stabilized, hilariously mirroring their similar overzealousness in the Iron Man movies when they were just robotic arms assisting Tony Stark.

Greatest American Hero — The theme song "Believe it or Not" from the show Greatest American Hero plays while Paladin is patching himself up after facing Vision, another fun nod to old television shows (and perhaps indicating how Paladin himself likely sees himself).

Bing, Bang, Boom — Paladin is revealed to have three old Stark attack drones at his disposal, which he's named Bing, Bang, and Boom, serving as some potential set-up for the Armor Wars project, which is currently on hold, but is meant to see James Rhodes' War Machine attempting to protect Tony Stark's legacy and tech from falling into the wrong hands.

Ten Rings (Adamantium Armor) — Paladin and his handler discuss the usefulness of his adamantium body armor, which apparently came from the Ten Rings Syndicate (presumably still run by Shang-Chi's sister Xu Xialing).

Werewolf by Night — It's also revealed that Paladin once fought and was bitten by Jack Russell's Werewolf by Night, whom Paladin mentions was a perfectly reasonable guy by day.

A Brooklyn IED ("A Punishing Disagreement") — Paladin mentions a punishing disagreement with an old friend after he once took shrapnel from an IED in Brooklyn, teasing an encounter with Frank Castle's Punisher.

A Billy Club In Hell's Kitchen — Lastly, there's also mention of a billy club Paladin once took to the head in Hell's Kitchen, a clear reference to an altercation with Daredevil (Paladin debuted in the comics as a Daredevil foe).

Horton Cryo Isotope — Paladin's handler uses the drones to track the coolant leaking from Vision, which she refers to as "Horton Cryo-Isotope". This is a reference to Marvel's Dr. Phineas Horton, who created the first Synthetic Man.

"I Am Inevitable" — As FRIDAY recounts the loss of Tony Stark, we can hear Thanos' classic "I Am Inevitable" line from Avengers: Endgame.

A Quintillion Calculations — FRIDAY reveals that she's gone over a quintillion different calculations and scenarios to see if there had been any other way to achieve victory without losing Tony, vastly rivaling Doctor Strange's using the Time Stone in Infinity War to foresee all the different outcomes (14,000,605).

"I Like The Old Shows" — While watching Small Wonder, a show about a family's adopted daughter who's secretly an android created by the robotics engineer father, Thomas reveals his love for old television shows and live studio audiences, just like his mother Wanda Maximoff (hence her perfect TV fantasy in WandaVision).

"That Book About The Snap" — Thomas mentions he read about Wanda and Vision in "that book about the Snap." The only book we know about covering the vents of the Snap was the one written by Scott Lang's Ant-Man (Look Out For The Little Guy).

Alison Hogan — The human avatar FRIDAY was based on is revealed to be Alison Hogan, a woman was was apparently Howard Stark's right-hand woman and helped raise Tony Stark. One has to wonder if there's a relation to Happy Hogan, Tony's driver and eventual head of security.

Edith Marks — EDITH's human avatar is revealed to be Edith Martks, a brave chief product tester for Howard Stark and many of his earliest inventions.

Raised By Paladins — A glimpse into Paladin's MCU backstory reveals he's not a traditional Paladin by blood, but was adopted by his precessor and inducted into the bounty hunter legacy, not unlike Din Djarin's Mandalorian in the Star Wars galaxy.

A Digital Exorcism — EDITH hilariously uses the "Vision Testament of the Programmer’s Bible" to exorcise Jocasta from Vision's mind, featuring all the cadence and visuals of a spiritual exorcism. The cherry on top is of course Ulton's "The power of code compels you!".

Terry Matalas Cameo — In a television interview with CEO Katerina Wells, the interviewer is played by VisionQuest showrunner Terry Matalas as a fun yet brief cameo.

Remembrance Day — The events of VisionQuest episode 4 seemingly take place on Remembrance Day, commemorating Ultron's attack and the Battle of Sokovia in Age of Ultron.

Ultron’s Love Of True Crime — Ultron describing Jocasta's murders as the "Butcherbird Killer" does bring to mind Raymond "Red" Reddington from The Blacklist, the only other character James Spader has played since 2015 besides Ultron himself.

“Get A Grip, Don’t Believe The Blip” — The shirt Thomas gets for Vision is yet another example of unique rhetoric from some members of the MCU's public who either don't fully subscribe to the events of Avengers: Endgame as they happened, or believe that the half of the population who were brought back should have stayed gone, like the "Thanos Was Right" sentiments seen in Hawkeye.

Sybil — While describing the other AI programs in his head to Thomas, Vision is referred to by Ultron as "Sybil", a reference to the 1973 book and famous case of DID involving Shirley Ardell Mason who was diagnosed with 16 distinct personalities.

Fab Four — Thomas refers to Vision's fellow AI as the Fab Four, the classic nickname for The Beatles.

Markridge Biotech — The AI company that sold to Stark Industries is Markridge Biotech, the same name as the company from 12 Monkeys (also from showrunner Terry Matalas).

Sir Jabba The Mutt — The name of the dog/password used by Vision and Ultron is of course a fun reference to Star Wars' Jabba the Hutt, the major galactic crime lord who was killed by Princess Leia in Return of the Jedi.

Pheromone Levels — Vision commenting on Thomas spiking pheromone levels while meeting with Lisa evokes an obvious comparision to Michael Bay's first Transformers movie when Sam Witwicky and Mikaela first meet the Autobots (and Ratchet does the same thing to Sam).

Fluent In All Dialects —It's not hard to draw a parallel between Vision proudly confirming his fluency in all kinds of language and dialect and Star Wars' C-3PO.

"I Am What I Am" — When asked about his own human avatar, Ultron replies "I Am what I Am" which is how God described himself to Moses in the book of Exodus, speaking to Ultron's own god complex while perhaps teasing a connection to Dr. Phineas Horton as well, the father or god of AI in the MCU.

Family Ties/Who’s The Boss? — Vision mentions two more classic sitcoms whie infiltrating the Markridge Biotech gala at the end of VisionQuest episode 4.

"You're Unbearably Naive" — Ultron repeats his final line in 2015's Age of Ultron to Vision, right before Jocasta's attack at the gala.

"A Suit of Armor Around The World" — Katerina's speech echoes Tony Stark's original dream for Ultron in the second Avengers movie, wanting a suit of armor around the world to keep it safe from future threats beyond Earth.

Doctor Phineas Horton —Doctor Phineas Horton full name is confirmed at the end of VisionQuest episode 4, a pioneer in the field of AI and the "great-grandfather" of robotics.

JIM — Horton is confirmed to have created JIM, the first Synthetic Man who held the source code for all future AI programs in the MCU. In the comics, his full name was Jim Hammond aka The Human Torch, which is fire powers being intentional rather than the result of flawed design.

Gepetto — Katerina refers to Horton as a real-life Gepetto who perhaps built JIM because he wanted a son, further supporting the idea that Ultron's human avatar is in fact Horton himself.

The Mind Stone’s Purpose — Through the tragic origins of JIM who couldn't process complex human emotions, Vision reveals that the power of the Mind Stone was crucial when it came to successfully bridging the mind and the heart as was never seen before with AI in the MCU.

"Peace In Our Time" — Jocasta echoes the same words said by both Tony Stark and Ultron in 2015's Age of Ultron, the core goal Ultron was meant to bring about...though not by causing an extinction-level event to rid the world of humanity.

"I Had Strings, But Now I’m Free" — After Vision gives Ultron control of his body, we see the genocidal AI taking hold of a ship's helm in the Vision Residence's attic before repeating what is arguably his first and most famous lines from 2015's Age of Ultron, reciting the classic song lyrics from Pinnochhio (and further supporting the aforementioned Horton as Ultron's human avatar theory).

New episodes of VisionQuest release Tuesday nights on Disney+ from Marvel Studios.

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  The Vision

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  Ultron

Rebooted after the events that restored his body, Vision has gone into hiding from the people who want to weaponize him. Now searching for purpose, he consults the artificial intelligence personalities embedded in his programming, but a bounty on his head forces him to go on the run with Thomas Shepherd, a mysterious boy who may be the reincarnation of his son.