The Cold Grip of The Vision!

As most of us know, the Vision--an android with powers of intangibility as well as control over his mass and density--also possesses a rather devastating ability that gives him quite an advantage in a fight against even the most determined (or, in some cases, overconfident) foe:  the power to drop a man where he stands.

(Hyperion isn't conscious to answer the Vision's question, but dropping to the ground like a sack of potatoes speaks volumes.)

Yet it took some time for this ability to develop into the technique we're familiar with today; in fact, at times there seemed to be doubt as to whether we would continue to see it used at all. The Vision was already a powerful asset to the Avengers; this would make him practically invincible, depending on how vulnerable his opponent is to the use of his power in this manner. If he's successfully dealing with powerhouses like Hyperion, his writers would have to be very creative about how often the character would deploy this power, and under what circumstances.

Which brings us to a very disrupting

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Marvel Trivia Question

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What was the evolution of the Vision's power of "disruption"?

When the Vision demonstrated an ability to disrupt the physical and internal cohesion of living beings, the effect first took the form of intense disorientation and loss of stability, combined with a feeling of extreme cold. If memory serves, the first to experience such disruption was an unlucky S.H.I.E.L.D. sentry who was on duty when the Vision, under the control of Ultron, invaded the spy agency's helicarrier in order to steal a test cylinder of the new, impenetrable metal known as adamantium. As we'll see, the Vision's invasive attack gives new meaning to the phrase, "up close and personal."

What a cop-out, eh? "...walk through something that isn't..". That could mean anything.

Nor were the Avengers kept ignorant of the Vision's new power for long, when the android moved to attack their headquarters and use the same technique on first the Wasp, and then Henry Pym.

"...fight like a man??" You've got some nerve, Pym.

Once the Vision regains his faculties, he never attacks his opponents in this way again--but he works at the technique, until, gradually, he can achieve a similar yet more painful effect--and, in time, with a greater degree of control. The first real test came during a battle in Earth's past, when the Avengers faced a team of heroes who would become known as the Invaders--and the risk had to be taken in order to end the battle quickly and decisively.

From there, it seemed like writer Roy Thomas was uncertain how to proceed with this ability. The Vision appeared to have the procedure down pat with Red Wolf, the technique now resembling the familiar gesture of plunging his fist into his foe and partially solidifying it to cause the person intense pain and subsequent unconsciousness.

Yet when a small team of Avengers faced a Sentry of the Kree as well as an entranced Goliath, it was as if the procedure had been filed under USE ONLY IN EXTREME EMERGENCIES and was considered far too dangerous to use on humans otherwise.

As we know, that caution evaporated, as the Vision went on to use this tactic frequently and without reservation.

It also became evident that the Vision could simply stun his victims (if severely), presumably depending on the amount of time he remained solid within their body.

More often than not, however, the Vision would come up against an opponent that could either withstand or nullify this advantage. Sometimes the writer would attempt to satisfy our curiosity and explain why it didn't succeed, with explanations ranging from plausible to a bit of a stretch.

While at times it just, well, didn't work, leaving us all hanging and wondering why.

Of course, zombies are going to muck up the rules for anybody.