Why does Doom bring Wanda back? VisionQuest finale post-credits scene hides the ‘real’ reason

*Warning: Spoilers ahead for VisionQuest episode 8*

A lot goes down in the VisionQuest season finale, and yes, that includes the return of none other than Wanda Maximoff, aka the Scarlet Witch. And it’s all thanks to a rather sinister post-credits scene involving Doctor Doom.

The final episode of the Marvel series, ‘Forever’, brings Vision’s (Paul Bettany) story to a wild conclusion. For starters, our theory was right: the mysterious Client is Virgil Horton (James Spader), aka the grandson of Phineas Horton, aka the creator of the original Human Torch.

Unfortunately for Virgil, his plan to control humanity using nanobots doesn’t exactly work out. After he shoots Jocasta (T’Nia Miller), Ultron (also James Spader) breaks free and kills him. And he does so in gruesome fashion: by bear-hugging him so tight that his innards burst out. 

But Virgil’s death doesn’t mean the danger is over. Far from it. Ultron vows revenge on humanity after Jocasta’s death. He takes control of the nanobots himself, only he’s got a much worse plan: wiping out humanity, starting with London.

To stop him, Vision traps them both inside UltraVision, a sitcom he’s created within his own mind. Yes, just like Wanda did in WandaVision. His hope is to convince Ultron to change his mind, but it doesn’t quite go to plan. 

Eventually, Vision reveals that keeping the simulation running will burn out both of their cores. At the prospect of them both dying, Ultron eventually agrees to stop the nanobots. And he seemingly sacrifices himself in the process, although the first post-credits scene reveals he survives. 

As for Vision, his plan has worked a little too well, and his core burns out too. Luckily, Billy Maximoff (Joe Locke) finally arrives! He reunites with his brother Tommy (Ruaridh Mollica) and, together, they use their powers to bring their dad back to life.

And after everything they’ve been through, Vision and his sons are finally reunited. Well, almost. There’s still one rather important person missing: Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen).

When Tommy asks whether they’ll ever see their mum again, Vision doesn’t rule it out. And, as it turns out, he has a very good reason to be hopeful.

The VisionQuest finale has a second post-credits scene, and it might just be one of the biggest teases for Avengers: Doomsday we’ve had yet.

Why does Doctor Doom bring Wanda back in the VisionQuest post-credits scene?

Well, Doctor Doom makes his intentions pretty clear. He wants Wanda’s powers for himself. But there’s actually a Marvel Comics storyline that could explain exactly what he’s planning.

First, let’s rewind to the last time we saw Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen), in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

After being corrupted by the Darkhold and going to some pretty extreme lengths to reunite with her children, Wanda eventually realises what she’s become. She destroys the Darkhold temple on Mount Wundagore, bringing the entire structure crashing down on top of herself.

Her apparent death has been hanging over the MCU ever since. Agatha All Along certainly didn’t give us much reason to believe she was still alive, although we never actually saw her body.

Now, VisionQuest has finally given us an answer. The second post-credits scene takes us back to Mount Wundagore, where a mysterious hooded figure approaches Wanda beneath the rubble. And it’s none other than Victor von Doom, aka Doctor Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr.

He uses his powers to uncover Wanda before declaring, “Scarlet Witch, awaken! Your power will be mine!” Then, Wanda opens her eyes.

So, is Wanda actually alive? Well, yes. At the very least, she’s alive now. What we don’t know is whether she survived the mountain collapsing on her or whether Doom has somehow resurrected her.

And there’s another pretty big question: why does Doom want her powers?

Wanda is one of the most powerful characters in the MCU, capable of manipulating reality itself through chaos magic. We saw just how dangerous she could be in Multiverse of Madness, when she was able to dreamwalk into another universe and take control of a different version of herself.

Given that Avengers: Doomsday involves the multiverse, it’s not exactly difficult to see why Doom might want that kind of power on his side.

But here’s where things get particularly interesting. Doom has actually tried to steal Wanda’s powers before. In the Marvel Comics storyline Avengers: The Children’s Crusade, written by Allan Heinberg, Billy and Tommy set out to find their missing mother.

They eventually discover Wanda in Latveria, where she’s living with Doctor Doom and has lost her memories. Oh, and she’s also preparing to marry him. Because apparently things weren’t complicated enough.

However, the real connection to VisionQuest comes later, when Wanda begins remembering what happened to her. It’s revealed that after losing her children, she went to Doom for help bringing them back. Together, they attempted to harness a powerful mystical energy known as the Life Force.

Unfortunately, the magic overwhelmed Wanda, giving her extraordinary reality-altering abilities and contributing to the events of Avengers Disassembled and House of M.

Later, Wanda asks Doom to help her use the Life Force to restore the powers of mutants who lost them. But during the spell, Doom steals the Life Force for himself, becoming incredibly powerful in the process.

Sound familiar? In the VisionQuest post-credits scene, Doom literally tells Wanda that her power will be his. So it’s entirely possible Marvel is borrowing from The Children’s Crusade, with Doom planning to exploit her chaos magic for his own purposes.

There’s also a rather obvious parallel between the comics and the finale. Billy and Tommy have finally found each other, but their mother is still missing. Meanwhile, Wanda has ended up in the hands of Doctor Doom.

Could the brothers eventually have to rescue her from him, just like they do in the comics? Of course, this is all just speculation at this stage and it’s likely Doomsday will blend multiple storylines. But the similarities are certainly hard to ignore.

Why doesn’t Wanda reunite with Vision, Billy and Tommy in the finale?

Interestingly, Wanda was originally considered for a much bigger role in VisionQuest. And that included a family reunion. But showrunner Terry Matalas has explained why that didn’t happen.

Speaking to TheWrap, Matalas said, “Listen, the Wanda conversation was constant, and if we felt strong enough about it, we would have done it. But the second it – and there were pages written of an element of things. There’s a couple of them, but it always consumed the story in a way that detracted from Vision’s in a way.

“When you introduce Wanda again, it needs to be her story, instead of her coming in and out of this other thing.”

And this makes sense when you look at the events of the show. Throughout VisionQuest, Vision has been struggling to accept the grief and memories of his former life. His transformation back into Red Vision comes when he finally acknowledges everything he’s lost – including Wanda.

Bringing her back into the main storyline could have undermined his journey. Instead, the finale gives Vision his reunion with Billy and Tommy, while saving Wanda’s return for a separate scene.

Matalas also told TV Guide that Wanda’s future and the answers to these questions “are above my pay grade.” 

And if Doom really does have plans to control Wanda, their long-awaited family reunion might be a little further down the line. 

Will Wanda be in Avengers: Doomsday after the VisionQuest ending?

Well, it’s looking a lot more likely now. Although Marvel hasn’t officially confirmed Elizabeth Olsen as part of the Avengers: Doomsday cast, the VisionQuest post-credits scene is a pretty enormous clue.

After all, Doctor Doom is the main villain of the upcoming Avengers film, and he’s just been shown bringing Wanda back while declaring that he wants her powers. It would be a rather strange development to introduce immediately before Doomsday if it wasn’t going to have some significance.

There’s also the possibility that Wanda could be connected to Doom’s mysterious Latverian witches, who have already sparked speculation about the film. Could she end up fighting alongside him, either willingly or because he’s controlling her?

That would certainly fit with The Children’s Crusade, where Doom exploits Wanda’s powers and her missing memories. But it’s worth remembering that the post-credits scene doesn’t actually show Wanda agreeing to help him. For all we know, she could be about to become one of his biggest enemies.

Olsen herself has repeatedly insisted that she doesn’t know anything about Avengers: Doomsday or its sequel, Secret Wars. During an appearance at C2E2 earlier this year, she was asked about the upcoming MCU films and replied, “I know nothing.”

Previously, while promoting Eternity, Olsen also told The Playlist that she had no idea when or how Wanda would return. “I want to see [her] return in this role,” she said, adding, “I just have no idea how or when, for sure.”

Now, obviously, Marvel actors have a bit of a history of keeping major surprises secret. Remember Andrew Garfield insisting he wasn’t returning for Spider-Man: No Way Home?

This doesn’t mean Olsen was necessarily hiding anything when she made those comments. But after the VisionQuest finale, it’s difficult to imagine Wanda’s story ending with her simply waking up beneath Mount Wundagore.

And if Marvel really is taking inspiration from The Children’s Crusade, her return could have huge consequences for Doom, Vision and their children.

For now, we’ll have to wait until Avengers: Doomsday arrives on December 18 to find out what Doom intends to do with the Scarlet Witch. But one thing’s for sure: Wanda’s story is far from over.

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Featured image credit: Disney