VIGILANCE

Membership: Cameron Brock, Frank Hampton, Swenson

Purpose: Eliminate threat of worldwide computer takeover posed by Vision

Affiliations: CIA, Deuxieme Bureau, KGB, MI-7, Canadian Secret Service, an unnamed Australian Intelligence agency, and presumably others; formerly posed as a division of SHIELD

Base of Operations: an abandoned factory complex scheduled for demoliton, Los Angeles, California

First Appearance: West Coast Avengers II#42 (BTS, March, 1989), West Coast Avengers II#43 (April, 1989)

History: As a result of damage to his initial control crystal caused by exposure to a null field, and interaction with the world computer of Titan, ISAAC, the Vision briefly took control of the all of the computer systems of the world. He did this in an attempt to restructure them, with himself in charge, as ISAAC controlled Titan. After removal of the defective crystal, his desire to do this again was removed.

However, the governments of the world were extremely distraught by this attempt and feared that it could happen again. Virtually every security network on Earth got together and formed the organization Vigilance in order to deactivate the Vision, and erase his memory bank and programming. Pretending to be affiliated with the organization SHIELD, they duped Mockingbird (both a former Avenger and SHIELD agent) into helping them put together an "emergency contingency plan" in case the Vision ever attempted this again. Mockingbird willingly gave them the security codes and private information to Avengers Compound. Shortly thereafter, Mockingbird re-reviewed the plans she had designed and found that there had been several dangerous alterations. When she voiced her objections, she was shot in the back with a tranquilizer dart and placed in a KGB-style maximum-security cell.

Early one morning, the West Coast Avengers were seemingly attacked by their arch-nemesis, Ultron. They eventually learned that it was a fake, and succeeded in destroying it. However, Vigilance used that opportunity to somehow abduct the Vision, and insert a computer virus into the Compound's system that traveled throughout the world, erasing all evidence of the Vision's existence.

Mockingbird escaped from Vigilance, and revealed her actions and the plans of Vigilance to her former teammates. Mockingbird led the Avengers to the facility where she had previously been held, and they broke into it, finding the Vision completely dismantled. The Avengers retook and rebuilt the components of the Vision, but his memory and accompanying emotions were absent. The Scarlet Witch caused Vigilance's warehouse to crumble into dust, but the members themselves were protected by diplomatic immunity.

Comments: Created by John Byrne.

Kurt Busiek has since revealed that the Vision never really lost his memories and emotions, or lost them for a very short time before regaining them.

Clarifications: Vigilance should not be confused with:

Cameron Brock was actually a member of the Canadian Secret Service. He served as the director of Vigilance. Brock duped Mockingbird into assisting Vigilance, and then had her imprisoned when she objected.

--West Coast Avengers II#43 (43(fb1+2), 43, 44

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frank Hampton posed as a SHIELD field agent, bringing Mockingbird to Vigilance.

--West Coast Avengers II#43 (43(fb)

 

 

 Swenson was a lower-level operative. In his effort to follow Brock's instructions to the letter, he fired on the Avengers Quinjet flying over the warehouse, thereby giving them free rein to enter by force.

--West Coast Avengers II#43

 

 

The Ultron imposter occupied the other Avengers while the Vision was abducted. The Scarlet Witch had received a post-hypnotic suggestion which prevented her hex sphere from destroying it. Ultimately, Dr.Pym suspected the truth when "Ultron" was staggered by Wonder Man's blows. Pym shrank Wonder Man down to insect size, had him enter the robot's form and then re-expanded him, causing the robot to shatter to pieces. The imposter possessed comparable strength and energy abilities to the original, but was composed on some weaker alloy than adamantium.

--West Coast Avenger II#42 ([43(fb)], 42

 

 

images: (without ads)
West Coast Avengers II#43, p21-22 (main image)
  #43, p4, pan6 (Cameron Brock)
  #43, p4, pan2 (Frank Hampton)
  #43, p16, pan3 (Swenson)
  #42, p10, pan1 (Ultron imposter)

Other appearances:
West Coast Avengers II#43-44 (April-May, 1989) - John Byrne (writer/pencils), Mike Machlan (inks), Howard Mackie (editor)

Last updated: 08/01/02

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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