I think that the short answer to your question is yes as the JLCs are special edition, nicely detailed models but with rather fewer special operating features than offered with VL. Maybe the real precursor to the VL was the Acela set but as anyone will tell you, its groundbreaking operating features were problematic to the point of being a dud for many if not most people. Too ambitious a project for its time.
Going back a bit more, some people think (and I am one of them) that the TMCC operating boom cranes were Vision in all but name; very ambitious products, those, and a raft of special features.