Spoiler warning: This article discusses episode 2 of VisionQuest.
VisionQuest has finally given adamantium a meaningful role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In episode 2, assassin Paladin, played by Todd Stashwick, fires adamantium bullets at Vision — or White Vision — and the shots cause damage that ordinary ammunition cannot.
The episode debuted on Disney Plus on 13 October alongside the first episode. It also marks the first substantial use of adamantium in the MCU’s main timeline, several years after Disney acquired Fox and gained access to the wider X-Men mythology.
Adamantium’s comic-book origins
Adamantium is most closely associated with Wolverine. When the character first appeared in The Incredible Hulk issue 181 in 1974, his claws were described as being made from “diamond-hard adamantium”. At that stage, the claws were part of his gloves rather than extensions of his body.
Wolverine joined the new X-Men line-up in 1975. Later stories established that his skeleton had been coated in adamantium and that his claws were housed inside his forearms, emerging through his skin when deployed.
However, the fictional metal predates Wolverine. It was identified in Avengers issue 66, published in July 1969, as the substance forming Ultron’s outer shell. Roy Thomas wrote the issue, with art by Barry Windsor-Smith and Syd Shores.
That history makes adamantium’s appearance in VisionQuest especially appropriate. In Marvel Comics, Vision was originally intended to become Ultron’s final form. The MCU changed that detail: both Vision and Ultron were created using vibranium instead.
Where adamantium fits in the MCU
VisionQuest is not the first MCU production to mention adamantium. Wolverine’s claws appear throughout Deadpool & Wolverine, although most of that film takes place outside Universe 616’s “sacred timeline”. Deadpool enters the main timeline, but Wolverine does not.
The metal first appeared in the MCU’s primary timeline in Captain America: Brave New World. President Thaddeus Ross, played by Harrison Ford, explains that it was discovered on Celestial Island, a site created from the body of Tiamut the Communicator.
Tiamut was introduced in Eternals. The Celestial began emerging from Earth before Sersi, played by Gemma Chan, transformed him into stone to prevent a global catastrophe. The resulting formation became an island in the Indian Ocean.
After Tiamut’s emergence, nations competed for access to the site’s resources. Ross described adamantium as “the discovery of the millennium”, highlighting possible uses in technology, medicine and defence. He also claimed that it was even more durable than vibranium.
What happened to the first sample?
At the time of Brave New World, only one refined sample had been produced. SERPENT, a criminal organisation led by Sidewinder, played by Giancarlo Esposito, stole it from a Japanese mining operation on the island.
Sam Wilson, the new Captain America, recovered the sample early in the film. That was effectively the extent of adamantium’s role in the story, although the material may have featured more prominently in an earlier version of the film after its extensive production changes.
Some viewers have suggested that SERPENT’s weapons, including Copperhead’s blades, were made stronger with adamantium. The film never explicitly confirms that interpretation. The bullets fired at Captain America bounce from his shield without leaving marks, while Copperhead’s blades also fail to damage it, but those details alone do not establish the metal’s presence.
There is also a practical question: SERPENT would need the technology to refine and control an exceptionally difficult material. Nothing shown on screen confirms that the group had done so, making the claim about its weapons uncertain.
Paladin’s bullets change the situation
Paladin’s ammunition is less ambiguous. In episode 2, the bullets are identified as adamantium and visibly injure Vision’s vibranium body. That gives the metal a clear purpose in the MCU rather than leaving it as an important name attached to Wolverine’s history.
The development arrives seven years after Disney acquired Fox, and it connects the MCU’s established vibranium technology with one of Marvel’s most recognisable fictional materials. Paladin may not be the universe’s most powerful villain, but his ammunition finally demonstrates what adamantium can do in the main continuity.
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