While the first few episodes of WandaVision led us to believe that S.W.O.R.D. has been keeping track of Wanda, episode five confirms the fact that it is Vision they are truly interested in. When Monica Rambeau begins to get in Director Tyler Hayward’s way after he considers Wanda a terrorist, he sends her and Jimmy Woo away; only for the pair to escape in order to find out what’s truly going on. In episode six, Monica and Jimmy discover that S.W.O.R.D. wasn’t trying to decommission Vision like Hayward initially said, they were trying to bring him back online. But what does S.W.O.R.D. actually want with him?
S.W.O.R.D., which was started by Maria Rambeau sometime after the events of Captain Marvel, stands for Sentient World Observation and Response Department. Initially, it was focused on extra-terrestrial threats and space exploration, but has since “shifted away from manned missions and refocused on robotics, nanotech, AI” and “sentient weapons,” as Hayward tells Monica in episode four. In episode five, we learn that Wanda stole Vision’s body from S.W.O.R.D. nine days before the events of WandaVision, with S.W.O.R.D. having taken the synthezoid apart which was strictly against Vision’s wishes to not be used as a weapon.
The idea that S.W.O.R.D. is working to bring Vision back online without the mind stone follows the “Vision Quest” story arc in the Marvel Comics. In the comics, rather than being brought to life by the mind stone, Vision was originally brought to life by Ultron using a superhero named Wonder Man’s brain patterns. After Vision’s death, Hank Pym was able to bring him back to life without Wonder Man, who refused to let his brain patterns be copied once again. While Vision was restored, he now functioned on pure logic and no longer felt human emotion. This was represented by his new all-white color scheme and the fact he no longer felt anything for Scarlet Witch.
Then, there’s the question of whether or not Ultron could be a part of S.W.O.R.D.’s plan. In the comics, he’s been known for coming back and in the MCU, he certainly did a number on all of our heroes. Technically, he is also a sentient weapon and would fall under S.W.O.R.D.’s expertise. There’s still a Mark Hamill-level cameo left for WandaVision, maybe it has something to do with the evil robot voiced by James Spader? Granted, we’re probably way off base with this one but . . . you never know what’s going to happen in the Marvel Universe.
On WandaVision, Vision has already proven that he has no recollection of his life prior to WestView. It’s also been shown that he cannot exist in his current form outside of the Hex’s boundaries. If S.W.O.R.D. is able to get their hands on Vision and recreate him without feeling, he could be their perfect sentient weapon. Even if they’re not able to get Vision back online, he could be the key to more efficient sentient weapons in their future, as Hayward commented that many of his staff “lost their nerve” after the snap. What we do know, is that we’ll miss the emotional and caring version of Vision if the “Vision Quest” arc is where WandaVision is headed.
