Richard Jones (Earth-616)/Expanded History

Preface

A number the incidents recounted of Rick Jones's life during his early involvement with the Hulk and the Avengers are stated to have occurred in specific years relative to the era of publication. However, the Earth-616 universe operates on a Sliding Timescale, these events could not have occurred in the times they appeared due to the fact that it would drastically age the character. Most of these references are in relation to his involvement with the Teen Brigade and the sort of technology they used. As such, any references of these kind will be generalized in body of this page, but explained in more detail in the Reference section of this page.

Early Life

Rick being beaten at Tempest House

Not much is known about the early life of Richard "Rick" Jones. He was orphaned at a young age, although the cause of his parents death is unknown. The only relationship between Rick and his parents that has been revealed to date is the relationship with his father. It was from Rick's father where Rick developed a love for music and played guitar. After his death, the guitar owned by Rick's father was Rick's only possession from his childhood. Rick's father also taught him that no matter what, "the music never dies". Following the death of his father, Rick was placed in orphanage after orphanage. His rebellious nature landed him in Tempest Town, a orphanage for troubled teenagers. There Rick lived in substandard conditions and was frequently abused by the administrators, however, Rick refused to give up. At the age of sixteen Rick confronted headmaster regarding his organization skimming government funding and leaving the children with little to get by on. In response to these accusations, the headmaster smashed Rick's prized guitar and then had his assistant Mr. Macon beat Rick before sending him back to the room with the other boys. Having grown fed up his treatment at Tempest House, Rick tried to convince the other boys to run away with him, but they were too afraid to do so. Unwilling to stay, Rick used a metal bed post to smash the window and pry the bars of the room open, narrowly escaping another beating from Mr. Macon to do so.

Rick then spent the next few months travelling from state to state and job to job. He never established himself anywhere and became a loner of sorts. Eventually he found himself in New Mexico where his fate would change forever.

The Birth of the Hulk

Bruce Banner sacrificing his life to save Rick Jones from the gamma bomb

While living in the southwest, Rick had at least met some acquaintances his own age. One day the other teens were talking about a new bomb that was being tested by the military and Rick boasted that he was unafraid of any bomb testing and accepted a dare to go out on the test site and play his harmonica.

Rick drove his car up within close proximity of the military's new Gamma Bomb that was invented by scientist Bruce Banner. Ignorant to the danger, Rick was playing his harmonica near ground zero, moments away from being atomized by the bomb test. Spotting the boy out near the bomb, Banner asked his assistant Igor Starsky to delay the countdown. Banner was unaware that Starsky was really a Russian spy and when Bruce left to pull the boy to safety he did nothing to delay the countdown, hoping to recover the plans for Banner's Gamma Bomb and turn it over to his superiors. Bruce managed to get to Rick in time and pushed him into a lead lined trench that ultimately saved his life. Banner was not so lucky as the bomb went off bombarding him with a lethal dose of gamma rays, but miraculously Banner survived.

This moment in history was also subject to a brief disruption in history, thanks to damage to the timeline that occurred many years in the future. Thanks to interference of Zarrko the Tomorrow Man a time traveller from the future world of Earth-6297 who conspired with his fellow Chonanarchists to create a a more powerful Hulk monster by manipulating the future Hulk to go back in time to that era guided by a Recording Observation Bot containing Bruce Banner's mind. Sure enough the R.O.B. containing the future Banner's mind attempted to prevent his past self from becoming the Hulk. This in turn left the future Hulk in the path of the Gamma Bomb mutating him further. The R.O.B. unit transferred his memories into his past self, and Rick watched helplessly as Banner set time right erasing all the events that transpired and putting Banner, the Hulk, and Rick back on their fated course.

Rick and Bruce were picked up by the military and placed in quarantine where they were expected to die of radiation poisoning. While Rick was fine, Banner was far from it and that evening when the sun went down Banner transformed into a massive grey skinned brute that became commonly known as the Hulk. The Hulk smashed out of the quarantine and headed for his cabin. Feeling indebted to Bruce for saving his life, Rick followed after the Hulk to make sure that nobody got hurt. The Hulk fought through the military and made a path to the cabin owned by Bruce Banner where he caught Igor trying to steal the Gamma Bomb plans. Igor proved no match for the Hulk who easily subdued him. When the sun began to rise, the Hulk reverted back into Bruce Banner, and Rick covered for Bruce keeping his identity as the Hulk a secret from the military when they arrived. Thus began the long partnership between the Hulk and Rick Jones. It was through this partnership that Rick also met General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, Banner's employer in the Air Force and later the Hulks greatest adversary, and his daughter Betty who formed a romance with Banner despite the late revelations that he was the Hulk.

Sidekick of the Hulk

Rick Jones and the Grey Hulk

The following night Rick accompanied Bruce out into the desert so that if Banner transformed into the Hulk again he would not harm anyone. As with the previous night as soon as the sun went down, Bruce transformed into the Hulk once again. When Betty happened upon Rick and the Hulk she quickly fainted. The pair were then captured by the Gargoyle a gamma mutated Russian agent that was tipped off to the existence of the Hulk by Igor after he was captured by the Air Force. Using mind control pellets, the Gargoyle took Jones and the Hulk prisoner and smuggled them into Russia. Crossing over to the light side of the Earth caused the Hulk to revert the Hulk back into Banner. Upon this discovery, the Gargoyle spirited both Banner and Rick to his lab where he convinced Banner to use his scientific know-how to change the Gargoyle back to normal. Thankful for Banner's help, the former Gargoyle sacrificed his life so that the pair could escape back to the United States.

The following night, Banner changed into the Hulk once again -- this time a Hulk with green skin -- and Rick was able to calm him down and stop his rampage. The following morning Rick accompanied Bruce out into the desert where they found a cave which Banner set up a secret lab as well as an isolated chamber where the Hulk could be held at night. Rick promised Bruce that he would stay in the cave with him to make sure that the Hulk never got out. The completion of this secret lab coincided with the arrival of the aliens known as Tribbitites, who kidnapped both Bruce and Rick, seeking to exploit Banner's intelligence for their planned invasion of Earth. Aboard the alien vessel above the Earth, the Tribbitites tried to use Rick as a hostage to force Bruce to work for them. When Banner refused to do so the aliens found Rick of no use and returned him safely to Earth. Rick then went to go and warn the military that Banner was their prisoner. However, when the alien ship crossed over to the dark side of the Earth, Banner turned into the Hulk again and incapacitated the ship. It crashed back on the light side in New Mexico and when Banner was recovered from the wreckage in human form, he was accused of being a traitor and thrown in the stockade. Rick stayed by Banner's side until the evening when he turned into the Hulk again and went on a rampage. Rick followed the military to the home of General Ross, there Rick failed to stop the Hulk from kidnapping Betty and escaping. Tracking the Hulk back to Banner's cabin, Rick kept the Hulk calm until sunrise. Back to normal, Bruce had Rick assist him in using his Gamma Ray Cannon to repel the invaders. Rick kept the military at bay with a fire-hose while Bruce used the device, saving the Earth and clearing his good name.

Mentally controlling the Hulk

Each night thereafter, Rick underwent the duty of locking Bruce in the isolation chamber in his secret lab each night. One evening as Rick was heading home after his nightly task he was stopped by the military and brought to General Ross. Ross convinced Rick that it was his civic duty to lure the Hulk into a new rocket that the Air Force was testing out. Rick complied even though it betrayed the Hulk's trust. Rick soon realized to his horror that the military had no intention of bringing the Hulk back to Earth and so he tried to bring the rocket down himself. At that very moment the rocket passed through Cosmic Rays and this caused feedback through the rocket and into the control panel on Earth, jolting Rick. Rick went to where the rocket had crashed and was surprised to find that the Hulk now obeyed his vocal commands. However, Rick soon discovered that this control only occurred while he was awake and if he ever slept the Hulk would be free to rampage again, forcing Rick to keep ever vigilant and keep the Hulk locked up in his isolation room. After a particularly exhausting evening, Rick decided to take in some entertainment and decided to go to a circus that was visiting town. Unknown to him this circus was run by the Circus of Crime. When their leader the Ringmaster put the crowd under his hypnotic control in order to rob them, Rick was barely able to send out a mental distress to the Hulk to come rescue him. The Hulk then smashed the Circus of Crime's operations, freeing their slaves. When the military arrived on the scene, Rick then commanded the Hulk to take them away to safety. Rick soon found it harder and harder to keep the Hulk under control as he was no longer changing back into Bruce Banner. This also made the military suspicious and they apprehended Jones to try and learn where Banner was. Rick was unable to betray Bruce's secret, and he commanded the Hulk to come and rescue him. Escaping back to Banner's secret lab, Rick took a gamble and used a Gamma Ray Projector, succeeding in returning Banner back to human form. Although Banner was restored to normal he was greatly weakened. Another jolt of Gamma Rays produced a different effect: Banner transformed into the Hulk but still maintained his mind -- all be it he was more cruel and prone to violence. Rick accompanied the Hulk as he saved a family from a house fire before returning to normal. This started a new pattern of care for Rick Jones -- he could accompany the Hulk on his various battles, looked after the weakened Bruce Banner each time he returned to human form, and frequently helped Banner cover for his absences from the military while the Hulk. Rick next accompanied the Hulk to accept a challenge by an apparent alien calling himself Mongu, but the Hulk easily revealed this as a Russian trick to try and capture the Hulk. Later Rick accompanied the Hulk to the realm of Subterranea to rescue Betty from the long-lived and former Grecian ruler Tyrannus. While the Hulk battled Tyrannus and his legions, Rick freed Betty and they soon escaped the underground realm. Rick also accompanied the Hulk to the Asian principality of Lhasa, where the Hulk clashed with communist warlord General Fang.

Rick Jones meets the Human Torch, and is not impressed by his showing off

Back in the United States, the Hulk was being blamed for acts of sabotage around the base, but Rick and Bruce insisted that someone -- whom they dubbed the Wreacker -- was responsible. Nonetheless, General Ross enlisted the aid of the Fantastic Four to capture the Hulk at all costs. During the briefing, a scientist named Karl Kort dropped his wallet after an altercation with the Human Torch. The Torch gave the wallet over to Jones to return to Kort. As Rick was going to do so, he noticed a card sticking out and examined it and was shocked to find it was a membership to a communist organization. Just as Rick made this discovery, Karl knocked him out and took him prisoner. Eventually, after a clash between the Hulk and the FF, the real saboteur was revealed and Rick was rescued.

Rick continued to try and assist the Hulk who was growing increasingly unstable. When the Hulk went to battle the alien Metal Master he refused Rick's aid and later when he was defeated and captured by the military the Hulk accused Rick of betraying him. Feeling rejected, Rick asked General Ross if he could join the military to help fight the Metal Master but was refused because he was too young to enlist. Rick tried to find solace with the few friends he had that were his own age. When they showed off their social networking equipment, Rick was inspired to use it as a tool to be a help to society. His friends also liked the idea and so they formed the Teen Brigade. When the Hulk finally broke free and returned to his lab and reverted back to Bruce Banner, Rick returned as faithful as ever. Banner then came up with a solution to beat the Metal Master and Rick enlisted the Teen Brigade to get all the equipment Bruce needed. The Teen Brigade then helped the Hulk track down Metal Master for their confrontation. Using a fake gun constructed out of plastic and wood, the Hulk convinced the Metal Master that he was using a weapon constructed out of a form of metal that the alien could not control and ordered him to leave the Earth and never to return. Rick was elated to tell the Hulk that he received a Presidential pardon, but was disturbed when the Gamma Ray Projector apparently stopped working and the Hulk change back to Bruce after becoming angry enough. This left Rick to wonder what would happen to the Hulk next time he transformed.

Uniting the Avengers

Rick tries to ease tensions between the future Avengers and his Teen Brigade

By this time Rick had developed the Teen Brigade into a nation wide network with a central hub secretly located in a warehouse in New Mexico. When the Hulk was accused of wrecking a train, Rick and his Teen Brigade attempted to use their social network to contact the Fantastic Four for assistance. However, this was all a ploy by the Asgardian trickster god Loki to defeat his step-brother Thor. Loki intercepted the message meant for the Fantastic Four and made it reach Thor. As an unforeseen side effect, the message also reached Iron Man, Ant-Man, and the Wasp who also answered the summons. When the heroes arrived, Teen Brigade thought they were attacking and were willing to defend their secret headquarters, but Rick convinced them to stand down. Rick then informed the gathered heroes of the situation and had them agree to help find the Hulk and ensure that the "attack" on the train wasn't some sort of misunderstanding. Agreeing to do so, Rick was brought to a Stark Industries facility in Sugarland, Texas to discuss matter. Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp went looking for the Hulk, while Thor -- suspecting Loki's trickery -- went to Asgard to investigate. Ultimately, the Avengers tracked down the Hulk and after a battle it was revealed that Loki was the mastermind behind the entire scheme and he was defeated. The five superheroes then decided to band together, forming the Avengers, Earth's mightiest group of heroes.

Sidekick to the Avengers

Rick sits in on the first meeting of the Avengers

Rick accompanied the Avengers as they set up operations in New York, using one of Tony Stark's mansions as their headquarters. Rick went primarily to keep the Hulk under control as his temper caused friction between the group. During one of the group's early meetings, Rick tried to convince the Hulk of the importance of signing the teams charter, but the brute easily lost his temper and stormed out of the mansion. The Hulk's membership with the team proved to be short lived thanks to the machinations of the Space Phantom, who claimed to have come to Earth to conquer it, and his first goal was to destroy the Avengers. To this end, the Space Phantom took the form of the Hulk, shunting the real Hulk into the realm of Limbo. He then went on a rampage, when Rick tried to stop the "Hulk" from causing damage, he was carried away where the Space Phantom arrogantly revealed his true identity and his intentions to Rick before changing back into the Hulk and leaving him behind. Rick rushed to the home of one of the members of the Teen Brigade to warn the Avengers of this plot, however, the Space Phantom had already attacked the group as the Space Phantom, then brought the Hulk back into Limbo, tricking his teammates into attacking him. While the Space Phantom was eventually revealed and defeated, the Hulk saw the mistrust his teammates had for him and left the group. Learning that the Avengers sought to capture the Hulk, Rick returned to the southwest to look for his friend to ensure that he didn't harm anybody. Rick then convinced the Hulk to return to Banner's secret lab and then exposed him to the Gamma Ray Projector, changing him back into Bruce Banner. As they both slept, Banner turned into the Hulk once again and he went on a rampage. Rick then went to Teen Brigade headquarters to call the Avengers for help. The Avengers went after the Hulk who battled his former teammates after forming a shaky alliance with the Sub-Mariner. Despite the Avengers' best efforts, both the Hulk and the Sub-Mariner managed to escape.

Rick meets Captain America for the first time

While on the hunt for both of their foes, the Avengers found the frozen body of the long lost World War II hero Captain America and succeeded in reviving him. Bringing Cap back to New York, the Avengers were turned into stone by a mysterious attacker, leaving Captain America to fend for himself in a world many years removed from the era he lived in. Hearing reports of someone dressed like Captain America was seen at the site where the Avengers "disappeared", Rick went out looking for him. When he found Captain America -- who was somewhat delusional since being revived, getting his first glimpses of the modern world, and getting shot stopping a mugging -- through that Rick was his old partner Bucky. Rick pleaded Cap for his help, but when Captain America dismissed his surroundings as some vivid dream, Rick dismissed him as a delusional impostor and stormed out on him. Cap then convinced Rick that he was the real Captain America by tossing his shield and agreed to help. Going back to the apartment of Rick's cousin, Rick used the internet to get a security photo of the one responsible for turning the Avengers into stone, and used social networking to get a location on him. Cap went after the attacker and was socked to find that it was really an alien creature. Captain America then had the alien free the Avengers. Upon learning that the creature was a pawn of the Sub-Mariner and helped him return to his homeworld.

Rick and the Avengers after a battle with the Hulk

While original sources state that Captain America joined the group without issue, Cap went through a rough transition period adapting to the modern era as well as dealing with resurfacing of memories surrounding his disappearance as well as security concerns from the NSA. After being awoken from a nightmare in the middle of the night, Captain America went into the kitchen of Avengers mansion where he bumped into Rick raiding the fridge. They were also joined by the Avenger's butler Edwin Jarvis. Both Rick and Jarvis expressed how Captain America's legacy inspired the both of them, before Rick left for the day. Rick next accompanied the Avengers on another mission to secure the Hulk, but he managed to elude them, fleeing to New York to get revenge against them there. The Avengers returned to New York where they fought the Hulk alongside the Fantastic Four. When the battle took the two teams to the top of a office building that was under construction, Rick tossed a gamma radiated pill into the Hulk's mouth. This caused the Hulk to revert to Bruce Banner, but he fell off the side of the building and into the Atlantic Ocean and was swept away by the currents. Rick next accompanied the Avengers in investigating strange seismic activity in the southwest, leading to a battle with the Lava Men of Subterranea who were trying to breach the surface world. During the course of the battle, Rick put himself in harms way, prompting Captain America to scold Rick for being there. However, when Cap was bound in cinders, he was freed with the help of Rick and Iron Man. Eventually the crisis passed when Thor convinced the Lava Men to cease their invasion and the Hulk was tricked into smashing the mound they were pushing to the surface.

Back in New York City, Rick and Jarvis continued to try and help Captain America acclimatize himself to the era he now found himself in. Rick brought Cap to Arlington Cemetery in Washington D.C. and the Vietnam War Memorial as well, the experiences reawakening Cap's memories that his old wartime foe Baron Zemo was responsible for the apparent death of his former partner Bucky Rick also began expressing his interest in being specifically Captain America's sidekick, but Cap refused to do so until Bucky's death was avenged. As it turned out Baron Zemo had survived all the years and learning that Captain America had been revived formed the Masters of Evil, a group of villains consisting of various foes of the Avengers. The group of villains blanketed New York with the Baron's Adhesive X. While the Avengers battled the foes, Rick and his Teen Brigade switched canisters of the adhesive with a counter-agent devised by the criminal Paste-Pot Pete, who assisted the Avengers for a lesser prison sentence. This led to the Masters defeat and the entire team was captured except for Baron Zemo who managed to escape. In the aftermath of the battle, Rick was given an Avengers membership card, although not an official member of the group, this allowed him to communicate directly with the team. During some downtime, Rick decided to continue pressing to be Captain America's official partner and got himself a costume patterned after the worn by Bucky in World War II. Instead of impressing the Captain, it deeply upset him and he ordered Rick to remove it. Cap then told Rick that he couldn't bare to have Rick as his sidekick for fear that the young man would die as Bucky did before him. Rick was powerless to stop Cap when he was manipulated by the Asgardians known as the Executioner and the Enchantress into attacking Baron Zemo alone, part of a wider scheme to defeat their foe Thor in particular and the Avengers in general. This plan failed, although Zemo allied himself with the Executioner and Enchantress as result.

Rick next joined the Avengers when they went to face the time traveller known as Kang the Conqueror. While most of the Avengers were defeated and taken prisoner, Rick and the Wasp managed to escape. While Rick and the Wasp were running for cover, suddenly Rick's ID card began giving off a warning signal that originated from the mansion. Rushing there he found Captain America's ID card hidden behind a World War II era photo of Cap that Tony Stark had in his possession. It contained a message from Cap that informed Rick that Kang had banished him back to the year 1945. With the help of Mr. Fantastic of the Fantastic Four, Cap was recovered from the past using Dr. Doom's Time-Platform, while Rick went back to Kang's ship to free the others. Rick gained access to Kang's ship when he and his Teen Brigade approached Kang and convinced him that he would like to join Kang's side. While the members of Teen Brigade pretended to assist Kang, Rick went to free the others.

Rick training under Captain America

Cap arrived just in time and assisted Rick in freeing the rest of the team. The Avengers then defeated Kang who fled back to his own era in the 30th Century of Earth-6311. Captain America personally thanked Rick for his assistance in defeating Kang and the Avengers were hailed as heroes. Rick then began training under Captain America which not only assisted in his fighting prowess, but also boosted his confidence. One day, he managed to ask a girl named Irene out on a date. Things went well until he tagged along to a house party that he wasn't invited to. Jamie, the host, made fun of Rick but at first he brushed it off. Going out for fresh air with Irene, he was about to kiss her when Jamie, completely drunk, barged in on them accusing Rick of trying to take advantage of her. When Jamie tried to take a swing at Rick, Rick fought back and easily incapacitated Jamie. Irene was horrified and scolded Rick for beating Jamie up because he was drunk and then told Rick that she didn't want to see him any more. Feeling rejected, Rick left the party.

Later when the Avengers took in Wonder Man, whose powers were killing him, Rick Jones and his Teen Brigade helped the Avengers in their research to find Wonder Man a cure. This turned out to be a trap set by Zemo and the Masters of Evil, but they were defeated although it seeming cost Wonder Man his life. Learning that the Hulk had been captured, Rick took a brief leave from his training with Captain America and returned to New Mexico. Using his Avengers priority card, Rick got through security and when the Hulk reverted back into Bruce Banner, Rick helped get him to safety before his double identity was exposed. Thanks to Rick's help, the Hulk was able to prevent the spy known as the Chameleon from stealing military secrets for the Leader.

Baron Zemo threatens Rick's life

Rick later accompanied Captain America on a fitness demonstration for children. The actors who were hired to fight Cap were actually Baron Zemo's Army of Assassins. With Rick's help, Cap defeated the Assassins and turned them over to the authorities, foiling Zemo's plot. Rick then accompanied the Avengers on another attempt to convince the Hulk to join them. This led to another clash with the Masters of Evil, who convinced the Hulk to join their ranks. This alliance proved short lived as the Hulk turned on Baron Zemo and his cohorts when Zemo threatened to kill Rick. The Hulk freed Rick and after the Masters fled, the Hulk escaped as well.

When the Avengers first considered asking Spider-Man into their ranks, Rick supported the move even though he had no position to vote on the matter. Later when the Avenger known as Giant-Man was a prisoner of the Mole Man in his realm of Subterranea, Rick helped the Avengers fight off Moloid invaders at Avengers Mansion.

Rick discovers the Wasp has been shot

Rick and the others failed to stop some of the Moloids from escaping to the surface world. He later accompanied Cap to Stark Industries to recover a power booster to help them dig to the center of the Earth. There they stopped a robbery, although Rick got the wind knocked out of him. This led Rick to believe that he was not Avengers material, but Cap encouraged him that some day he would. Later the Avengers rescued Giant-Man from the Mole Man. Later, when the Avengers were invited to a charity gala held by Count Nefaria, they accepted and invited Rick and his Teen Brigade to join along. The Count invited the Avengers to see his castle and Rick and his gang were asked to wait outside until the charity gala opened to the public. Unknown to them all, Nefaria was leader of the Maggia crime family and used technological means to make duplicates of the Avengers who then went out and declared war against the government. Worrying about the Avengers, Rick and his friends sneaked into the castle to look for them but ended up being captured by Nefaria's goons. When the group tried to use a communicator to contact the Avengers, Nefaria detected it and placed them in a cell lined with a gel that would immobilize them if they touched it. They were later freed by Captain America who told them to flee. While trying to find a way out of the dungeon, they ran into the Wasp who shielded them from Neferia's goons who began to shoot at them. The Avengers ultimately cleared their names and Nefaria was apprehended, but the Wasp was mortally wounded by one of the bullets and required immediate medical attention.

Rick captured by Baron Zemo

As the Wasp underwent surgery for her bullet wounds, Rick and Teen Brigade underwent more training with Captain America, until Cap was called away to deal with the a conflict between the Kallusian and Yirbek races from spilling onto Earth. Rick was later kidnapped by Baron Zemo to lure Cap back to his hideout in Brazil. There are two different accounts of this event. The original account states that Rick was captured by Zemo who pulled him aboard a ship with a tractor beam, and then placed in a glass dome outside of Zemo's headquarters. Another states that Zemo infiltrated Avengers Mansion while the Avengers were away dealing with the Masters of Evil. After Jarvis was incapacitated, Zemo kidnapped Rick and then left him tied up outside where he was tortured. In any case, Captain America went after Rick alone and freed him and in a battle against Baron Zemo, his foe was buried alive when his Death-Ray was knocked away causing an avalanche that killed him. One source states that Cap buried Baron Zemo, then the pair fought through Zemo's remaining guards, who blew up the only plane in the area stranding them in South America. Another states that Cap left Zemo's body and carried a seriously injured Rick away from the scene without further conflict. Rick and Cap faced various perils in the jungle. When they got caught in quicksand and Rick foolishly grabbed for a snake, Cap saved his life. Cap insisted that Rick would never become an Avenger. Cap also rescued Rick from a charging leopard. The pair got a jeep to the town of Turrialba. There they found a newspaper a few weeks old with a headline stating that the Avengers were inducting the bowman Hawkeye onto the team. Getting a plane to fly back to America, Rick questioned what Cap meant that he wouldn't become an Avengers. Cap once again stressed his fear that Rick might die in battle like Bucky did years before. Rick argued with Cap that he was his own person and didn't want to live under the shadow of another. They then landed at a military base where the obtained a vehicle to ride back to Avengers Mansion.

When they arrived at Avengers Mansion they found a crowd of press waiting outside. The two then found a way to sneak into the mansion around them without being seen. One account states that Cap used his acrobatics to get through another states that the pair used a secret tunnel to get to the mansion from underground. When they entered the mansion they were happily reunited with the team, but learned that Thor had already left, and that Iron Man, Giant-Man, and the Wasp were going to take a leave of absence and that Hawkeye and the mutants Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch were going to be joining the team. Rick and the other Avengers convinced Cap to stay on and lead this new line-up. Rick was present at the press conference announcing the new line-up and he convinced Cap to say the Avengers battle cry "Avengers Assemble" at the end. Rick eventually grew jealous of the new members being made official Avengers over him.

Return to the Hulk

When Bruce Banner was accused of being a traitor to his country, Rick came running to his aid, visiting him in his cell at Desert Base. There Rick met Major Glenn Talbot the security officer assigned to investigate Banner's supposed subversive activity. When the stress of this confrontation made Bruce begin to transform into the Hulk, Rick secretly slipped him a tranquillizer to prevent a transformation into the Hulk and keep his double-identity as secret. Later Bruce was forced to test his Absorbatron device with Talbot. Rick used his Avengers priority status to meet with the President of the United States and confided Banner's double identity to the Commander-in-Chief. The President agreed to help clear Banner of all charges and keep his double identity a secret to prevent enemy nations from trying to capture Banner and learn how to create their own versions of the Hulk. However the Leader attacked the test, prompting Banner to transform into the Hulk and he was captured. Rick went back to Banner's old lab to try and find something to help his friend, and picked up a signal from his radio which he was able to track to the Leader's hideout. The military also followed the signal, seeking Banner with orders to shoot to kill. By the time they entered the base the Leader was defeated and fled, and the Hulk had reverted back into Bruce Banner. Rick tried to convince General Ross to change his orders to shoot to kill, but was too late to stop soldiers from shooting his friend, seemingly killing Banner.

Rick carrying Bruce Banner's supposedly lifeless body

While the military were distracted, Rick absconded with Banner's lifeless body and brought it back to his secret lab. There Rick exposed Banners' body to gamma rays which transformed him back into the Hulk. This time, the Hulk retained Banner's mind, but Bruce realized to his horror that he would have to remain the Hulk otherwise the bullet in his skull would kill him the next time he reverted back into human form. Later when the Hulk battled one of the Leader's giant Humanoids, Rick overheard that the military believed the Hulk was in league with the Humanoid and planned to use their massive "Sunday Punch" atomic missile and rushed off to warn his friend. Rick got to the Hulk in time and his friend carried Rick to safety as the missile detonated, but the force of the blast knocked Rick out and the Hulk used mouth-to-mouth to revive him. The pair then fled back to Banner's secret lab, but they were followed by the military. Not wishing Rick to be harmed, the Hulk forced Rick to leave. When the military blew up the secret lab, Rick was left to believe the Hulk was dead. Knowing that Jones had some secret he was hiding, General Ross demanded that Rick but he refused. Ross then ordered Jones to be locked up. Unaware that the Hulk was still alive, Rick was locked in a military cell and demanded to speak to the to the President of the United States but was refused. As it turned out the Hulk was still alive and hearing Rick's pleas to talk to the President while using the so-called Ultimate Machine went to Washington D.C. There he was blasted by an experimental T-Gun and seemingly atomized.

Rick Jones reveals the identity of the Hulk

Rick was once more brought before General Ross to answer questions they had about Bruce Banner. Rick still refused to talk. General Ross then secretly assigned Major Talbot to follow Jones and learn the truth. Haunted by the memory of the Hulk, Rick went back to the ruins of Banner's secret lab where he gave into his emotions. Confronted by Major Talbot, Rick was convinced to reveal the Hulk's double identity to get over the grief. The two returned to Desert Base, unaware that he Hulk was materializing behind them. Rick also confided this secret to Betty Ross, who found Rick's claims hard to believe. Soon the Hulk resurfaced and was captured by the military with the help of Banner's replacement Professor Konrad Zaxon, much to the protest of Rick. However, the Hulk later managed to escape captivity again. Later when the heroic X-Men were recruited by the FBI to hunt down the Hulk in the northwest, Rick convinced them that the Hulk was a hounded victim. The X-Men let the Hulk go when their leader Professor X learned that the military intended to weaponize the Hulk. Shortly thereafter Rick, Betty and Major Talbot were captured by Tyrannus who sought to use the Hulk to defeat his foe the Mole Man and recover his lost Fountain of Youth. The Hulk went to battle against the Mole Man's forces and the Fountain of Youth was destroyed in the process, Seeing his empire crumble, the rapidly ageing Tyrannus let his prisoners go free. On the surface they were recovered by the military, but they were soon attacked by Boomerang who was hired by the terrorist organization known as the Secret Empire. Boomerang then kidnapped Betty Ross in for the purposes of using her as a hostage to obtain the military's new Orion Missile. When General Ross learned of Betty's kidnapping, Rick suggested they get the Hulk to help but his idea was refused. When Ross mobilized a military force to find Boomerang and his daughter, Rick sneaked aboard a personnel carrier to make sure the Hulk didn't get harmed. The Hulk ultimately saved Betty and when he went out to look for food he was attacked by the military. Rick convinced the Hulk to stop fighting back, the Hulk then took both Rick and General Ross to his daughter. But when Betty tried to console the Hulk, he grew frustrated and bounded away.

Rick later accompanied the military to Florida where they intended to test the Orion Missile. He later learned that the Hulk was in a rampage in New York and took a job delivering a car to New York. Unknown to him, his employer was a spy named Gorki who had a secret device hidden in the trunk. When Rick arrived in New York he found the Hulk trying to fight off the police and helped him escape. Getting to cover, the pair were shocked when the Gorki activated the device in his trunk, a massive robot that was programmed to divert the Orion Missile and sent it on a collision course with New York. The Hulk managed to diver the missile but he was blamed for redirecting it by the authorities. Fishing the Hulk out of the Hudson River, Rick hid the Hulk in an abandoned warehouse, leaving him alone there to find some food. The Hulk however went out and ended up battling the Leader's Hulk-Killer Humanoid after the military foolishly activated it and it went on a rampage. During the battle Gorki's involvement in the Orion Missile debacle was revealed and the military realized the Hulk was a hero. With the Hulk weakening, Rick tried to pull him out of the battle but was knocked aside by the Hulk-Killer. The Hulk meanwhile reverted back to Bruce Banner long enough to build a device that destroyed the Hulk-Killer. Although the Hulk was hailed as a hero, his foe the Boomerang was present to try and get revenge against the Hulk. Rick tried to warn General Ross, but it was too late, Boomerang secretly attacked the Hulk causing him to go on a rampage. Rick tried to convince the Hulk to calm down, but the green brute angrily swept Rick aside and fled the scene. With the Hulk on the loose, Rick expressed his concerns that the military would kill the Hulk, General Ross assured Rick that he would try to apprehend the Hulk at all costs, but couldn't promise not to destroy the beast.

Later when the gamma spawned brute known as the Abomination beat the Hulk near to death and kidnapped Betty, Rick came to his aid. Suggesting that the military doctors use Banner's Gamma Electrodes, they saved the Hulk. When the Hulk went on a rampage again, Rick tried to calm the brute but the Hulk swatted him aside. Not willing to give up, Rick begged the Hulk to help save Betty, prompting a transformation back into Bruce Banner. With Rick's help, Banner set up a device to draw the Abomination back to the base with Betty and he was defeated by the Hulk. Not long after this, Banner went into hiding and Rick called on Teen Brigade to try and find him, a search which continued for days without results.

The Hulk seriously injures Rick while under the control of the Puppet Master

The Hulk resurfaced and was briefly fooled into siding with and later dismantled the Lords of the Living Lightning terrorist organization, destroying their secret mountain base and being buried alive. Rick went to the site of the ruined base to plead to the military to dig the Hulk out. This proved unnecessary as the Hulk soon broke his way out. However, they were unaware that the Hulk was under the control of the Puppet Master. When Rick tried to talk to the Hulk, he swatted Rick aside under the Puppet Master's orders with enough force to injure Rick. As the Hulk bounded away, General Ross vowed to get the Hulk once and for all.

After recovering from his injuries, Rick briefly was joined the military's view that the Hulk was a menace. He appeared on television with General Ross and Major Talbot to talk about the threat that the Hulk possessed. Returning to his apartment in New York, Rick found Bruce Banner waiting there. Rick tried to shoot Bruce, but couldn't bring himself to do it when suddenly Banner was attacked by the Space Parasite, a battle that ended with the supposed death of the Space Parasite and the Hulk being captured by the military. Learning that Banner was being transported to JFK Airport, he rushed there to try and help just in time to witness the Hulk battling the Rhino. Rick then witnessed as the Hulk seemingly slew the Rhino and fled with Betty. Rick and Major Talbot then went to the Baxter Building headquarters of the Fantastic Four. There they were given a device created by Mr. Fantastic that could supposedly revert the Hulk back into Bruce Banner for good. They later found the Hulk battling another radiation spawned monster that became known as the Missing Link. When the Hulk seemingly slew the Missing Link, Major Talbot blasted the Hulk with the device turning him back into human form. However the Missing Link was still alive and broke free the rubble it was buried under. As Rick and Major Talbot fled the Missing Link, Banner was transformed back into the Hulk by the creatures radiation and the battle began, attracting the authorities along attacked both monsters.

Sidekick of Captain America

Rick finally becomes Captain America's new partner and takes on the identity of Bucky

At one point the Hulk was separated by the Missing Link and the authorities chased after him. This also led to a clash with Captain America as well. When Rick came to the Hulk's aid, he was injured when rubble from a crumbling building fell on him and the Hulk fled. Cap rescued Rick from the rubble and brought him back to Avengers Mansion to recover from his injuries. Coming to, Rick found his replica of Bucky's costume and once again proposed that he become Captain America's partner again. At first Cap rejected the idea, but eventually decided it was time to put Bucky's memory to rest and take Rick up as his new partner. The two were quickly called to action when alarms warned them of agents of the Hydra terrorist organization and their leader Madame Hydra were active in New York City's sewers. During the course of the battle Rick disobeyed Cap's orders putting him at risk and the pair narrowly escaped the battle with their lives. Cap had to allow Madame Hydra escape in order to save Rick's life. At the end of the battle Captain America scolded Rick for acting recklessly, warning him that if he wants to be the new Bucky he has big shoes to fill. Finally achieving his goal of being Captain America's sidekick, Rick soon began to feel inadequate and that he couldn't muster up to Bucky's legacy. During this period Captain America's civilian identity was public knowledge, making him an open target for Hydra forces. During a training session with Rick, the constant mention of the previous Bucky made Rick feel inadequate and he cut training short. Later that day, Hydra agents dropped off a gas laced message for Captain America, but it was opened by Rick instead. Although Captain America tried to stop them, the Hydra agents managed to escape with Rick as their prisoner. Playing possum, Rick overheard Madame Hydra's plans to lead Captain America into a ambush, Rick broke free and came to aid Captain America only to see Cap seemingly get shot to death diving into the Hudson River. When the police searched the water for Cap's body all they found was his bullet riddled uniform and a latex mask moulded after Steve Roger's face, leaving everyone to believe that Steve Rogers was merely a false identity.

Rick mourning the apparent death of Captain America

Thinking that his partner was dead, Rick was greatly upset and could not bring himself to talk about it with the other Avengers. Rick was also too upset to go and view a ceremony being held for Cap at a local funeral parlour. This turned out to be a Hydra trap and the Avengers, and SHIELD director Nick Fury were captured and placed in coffins. Spotting the funeral car leaving the home, Rick found it suspicious and followed it to Dearcliff Cemetery. There Rick was caught by Hydra agents, but before they could execute him Captain America turned up alive and well and the pair fought off the forces of Hydra. The battle ended with Madame Hydra seemingly getting blown up. The pair were attacked by more Hydra agents and they followed them to their secret hideout in the ruins of a demolished tenement on the lower eastside of Manhattan. There they were tested by the Supreme Hydra who used various high tech weapons to test Captain America. Ultimately, Cap and Rick bested all these traps and confronted the Supreme Hydra. The Supreme Hydra was unmasked and revealed to be the Space Phantom. The Space Phantom revealed that he was testing Cap as a physical specimen to have the mind of the android Avenger known as the Vision transferred into Captain America's body. Needing the Captain to be in a happy state of the mind, the Space Phantom used his mental powers to wipe the memory of Captain America's secret identity from the world. Then in order to continue his plot at a later time, he wiped the memories of their encounter from the minds of both Captain America and Rick before returning them to the cemetery. With the Avengers and Nick Fury recovered, Captain America revealed that he faked his death to make his identity secret again and walked off to assume a new and private civilian identity.

Rick later accompanied Captain America on a mission to rescue his girlfriend, SHIELD agent Sharon Carter, who was a prisoner of the terrorist organization known as AIM. The two battled the Walking Stiletto device. After the pair destroyed the robot and SHIELD rounded up the AIM agents. Captain America's false civilian identity cut him off from Rick and the others, but this new alter-ego did not keep him safe from his old foe the Red Skull who attacked him with the Cosmic Cube. Not hearing from Cap in a while Rick went to Sharon Carter, and the Avengers to try to locate him. When they were unable to help, he turned to his old friend in Teen Brigade to keep an eye out for him. Unknown to Rick, the Red Skull then used the Cosmic Cube to swap bodies with Captain America. While the authorities were hunting for Captain America trapped in the Red Skull's body, the Skull based in Cap's celebrity status while watching his foes torment through the Cosmic Cube. When the Teen Brigade located "Cap", Bucky tried to meet with him but the Skull angrily told Rick to go away and that he would call him when he needed him, but not to hold his breath on it. Completely crushed by this rejection, Rick decided to give up being Captain America's sidekick and tore up his mask. However Rick did try one last time to try to appeal to "Cap" but was smacked across the face by the Skull who told him that Captain America needed nobody. Finally giving up, Rick returned to Avengers Mansion and packed up his things, ditched his Avengers priority card and went thumbing to find a new direction in his life.

Partner of Captain Marvel

Rick trades places with Captain Marvel for the first time

Unknown to Rick, his progress was being monitored by the Kree soldier Captain Mar-Vell who was trapped in the Negative Zone while trying to return to Earth to get revenge on his former commanding officer Yon-Rogg who was responsible for murdering his lover Nurse Una. Using a simulacrum of Captain America, Mar-Vell lured Rick to a hidden cave where the Kree Nega-Bands were hidden. Revealing himself to Rick, he explained how he was trapped and that by banging the Nega-Bands together would cause Rick and Captain Marvel to temporarily switch places. When Rick did so, he and Captain Marvel switched places, with Rick being placed in status in the Negative Zone. Mar-Vell was then attacked by Yon-Rogg, and the two battled each other. Yon-Rogg managed to escape, and when Mar-Vell switched places with Rick again, there was a merger of sorts and Rick also became devoted to getting revenge against Yon-Rogg. After rescuing a driver who fell asleep at the wheel as Captain Marvel, Rick resumed his usual place and stopped in a café. Not liking the music that was being played, Rick paid the musician to let him play a song and he reconnected with his musical talents. After beating up a heckler who also called him chicken, Rick met music promoter Mordecai P. Boggs who offered to represent Rick. The cynical Jones turned down the offer and went on his way. Letting Captain Marvel take over, they managed to track Yon-Rogg to a nearby cave where he was holding Mar-Vell's ally Carol Danvers prisoner. Using the Kree Psyche-Magnitron, Yon-Rogg summoned a Mandroid to attack. Mar-Vell easily destroyed the Mandroid. During the course of the battle the Psyche-Magnitron was damaged and Mar-Vell got Carol Danvers to safety as it exploded, killing Yon-Rogg. Completely exhausted, Mar-Vell switched back to Rick Jones and he passed out.

After turning Carol over to a hospital, Rick returned to New York and begun looking for a job and a place to stay. Eventually he answered a classified ad by famous psychologist Cornelius Webb who was looking to hire someone for his latest experiment and offered free lodging in his high-tech highrise apartment, Minos Towers. As it turned out, the experiment was using a series of illusions to frighten the tenants of the building. Rick with Captain Marvel's help kept people calm and realizing that Webb was responsible and Captain Marvel confronted him. When trapped in an electrified field, Captain Marvel was rescued when concentration camp survivor Jacob Weiss sacrificed his life to destroy Webb's device. Webb went into a fugue state when having to confront his test subjects as anything more as a number. Rick then turned Webb over to the authorities.