Quick Take
VisionQuest has revealed the true identity of the Butcherbird killer, and it’s an Avengers character with ties to Vision and Ultron in the pages of Marvel Comics.The rogue AI going after genius scientists is based on Jocasta, the “Bride of Ultron,” who first appeared in Avengers #162 from 1977.T’Nia Miller’s character is a desperate scientist who downloaded her consciousness into a robotic body, as she was dying of a serious illness.Nerdist’s Take: Although Jocasta in the comics became an Avenger, we believe the MCU version is more of a criminal than a hero… at least so far.
In episode 4-6 of VisionQuest, we get a lot more information about the serial killer with the nickname Butcherbird. They are a killer who we now know is an AI similar to Ultron. In the series, the authorities discover several wealthy and well-known AI experts murdered all across London. And at each crime scene, authorities find a signature calling card. Each body has a carved shrike (a.k.a. a butcherbird) somewhere on its body, hence the “Butcherbird” nickname in the news media. This has piqued the interest of Vision (Paul Bettany) and especially Ultron (James Spader), an avowed “true crime” enthusiast. They know this serial killer is connected to Vision’s current troubles.
The Butcherbird Serial Killer Is a Robot Body Housing the Mind of Jo Carrington
Marvel Television
At each crime scene, the Butcherbird killer has removed key biological components from each victim, like blood or an eyeball. All the murdered scientists were part of the same think tank group that, decades earlier, pioneered breakthroughs in AI technology. The one scientist missing from this targeted group is Josephine Carrington, played by T’Nia Miller. And that’s because Jo Carrington died in 2008. Vision believes that this robot murdering scientists contains an AI mind “based” on Carrington. But when they meet, she tells him, “I’m not based on her, I am her.” It appears Carrington uploaded her mind into a robotic body.
The MCU Origins of Dr. Jo Carrington, a.k.a. Jo Carrington
In episode six, we learn that Dr. Jo Carrington had a father who had a degenerative brain disease. She devoted her life to neurological science, finding ways to map human consciousness and enhance it using AI. She started a company called Markridge Biotech with several other scientists, all experts in their field. Carrington used a digital scan of her own mind to create AI, together with her colleagues, to create Proto-One, the very first AI of the modern age. She believed human emotion added to Dr. Phineas Horton’s baseline artificial life from 1939 might be enough to bridge the gap to true sentience.
Marvel Television
Carrington hoped to infuse every human with her new AI companion, to heal their diseases and never leave them truly alone. To do so, she created billions of nanobots. However, she soon became afflicted with her father’s same neurological disease. As she lay dying, her colleagues sold the AI code to Tony Stark and Stark Industries. When she died in 2008, her billions of nanobots remained locked away, only accessible via specific biometric keys of each of her former colleagues. She had the nanobots buried alongside her at her gravestone, waiting to be opened in the future.
Marvel Television
Ultron, who is, in effect, her child, nevertheless becomes infatuated with Jo Carrington, who (somehow) wound up in a robotic form like his. The two find common ground, despite their initial antagonism, and a romance begins to unfurl. Because she is technically his mother (in a way), Ultron makes the Oedipal mythological comparisons, and calls the robotic Jo Carrington “Jocasta.” Together, they plan to unleash the nonobots on mankind, “upgrading” humanity, creating a Borg-like hive mind. In the pages of Marvel Comics, however, Jocasta was a tad bit friendlier.
The Marvel Comics History of Jocasta, the Second Android Avenger
Marvel Comics
Writer and former Marvel EIC Jim Shooter and artist George Perez created Jocasta, and she first appeared in Avengers #162 in 1977. The villainous AI Ultron, one of the Avengers’ most lethal foes, designed her as his “bride,” a companion who presented as female. Together, he hoped they’d conquer the human world. Ultron used the brain patterns of heroine Janet Van Dyne, the Wasp, to give Jocasta sentience. Ultron constructed Jocasta’s body out of titanium steel. And her gave her almost identical abilities to Ultron’s other creation, the Vision, in terms of powers and computer capacity.
Marvel Comics
Unfortunately, when Jocasta realizes that her full actualization would lead to the Wasp’s death, she rebels against her maker. She helped the Avengers defeat Ultron, and became an unofficial member for several issues. Jocasta developed feelings for the Vision (who was technically her brother), but he was married to the Scarlet Witch at the time. Leaving the Avengers heartbroken, she wandered the world for many years, occasionally helping her old teammates in times of need. Sometimes, she teamed up with other heroes, like the Thing from the Fantastic Four.
Jocasta in the Modern Marvel Universe 
Marvel Comics
In more modern Marvel Comics, Jocasta joined Hank Pym’s Mighty Avengers team, and they even had a brief flirtation. This was, let’s just say, a bit awkward, as Jocasta’s personality was based on that of Pym’s ex-wife, Janet Van Dyne. To add another layer of ick, Ultron’s creator, Hank Pym, the first Ant-Man, was technically her grandfather. Given that her name is a reference to Jocasta of Greek mythology, who married her son Oedipus, it makes some kind of sense. She later became a staff member at the Avengers Academy. She still pops up from time to time, aiding the Avengers during dire world-ending threats.
The MCU Future of Jocasta in VisionQuest and Beyond
Marvel Television
In the MCU, Jocasta is not based on the brain patterns of Janet Van Dyne. Instead, her robotic body houses the mind of AI pioneer Jo Carrington. She somehow transferred her consciousness into that of the robot before dying of an undisclosed illness. The “how” and “why” of all that remains a mystery. She came looking for the final living scientist from her group, Katerina Wells (Mary McDonnell), to retrieve a biological component from her before enacting her revenge. But Ultron, in Vision’s body, tricks her into disintegrating Wells before she could. Despite their intitial antagonism, the two AIs find common ground. But could she still become a hero, as she did in the comics? We’ll have to wait and see how VisionQuest continues to unfold.
VisionQuest drops new episodes every Tuesday on Disney+.
Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.