The Nova Corps was a peace keeping force based on the planet Xandar. The planet was destroyed by the space pirate known as Zorr. When Rhomann Dey Nova Prime member was dying, he chose, at random, Richard Rider to receive his powers. This was a lot for the teenaged Rider but he started a superhero career with them. Rider would often team-up with Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. In fact Rider showed so much potential that Nick Fury recruited him to help Shield against the Yellow Claw. During this time in Rider’s life he often fought Condor, Diamondhead, and the Sphinx. Even making an alliance with the villains to form The Champions of Xandar. When the Skrull Empire threatened Xandar, Rider and the Champions of Xandar went to give their aid. The Champions would lead forces of the Nova Corps against the Skrulls. The Skrull attack force was eventually defeated with a little help from the Fantastic Four and then from Rom the Spaceknight. Rider longed to return to Earth, so he agreed to give up his portion of the Nova force powers to be used on Xandar to live a normal life.

A few months later he was approached by Night Thrasher. Night Thrasher was starting a new superhero team and believed that Rider still contained the power inside him. To prove this, he threw Rider off of a rooftop. Luckily, he was right. They formed the New Warriors with other teenage superheroes and fought on many missions. Nova spent his time with the Warriors and on his own. During Rider’s absence is when Nebula attacked Xandar and destroyed the remaining portion of the planet. Along with most of it’s inhabitants.

After fighting Super-Nova, a Xandarian that had gained the rest of the Nova force and was driven mad, with the help of former Galactus’ heralds, Firelord and Air-Walker, Nova became the Centurion Prime. He was to be the guardian of Earth’s sector of space. Nova was called back to Xandar to assist the Nova Corps in fighting the Annihilation Wave. The wave destroyed Xandar and the entire corps. Nova was the only survivor and inherited the entire Nova-Force. He also gained World Mind, the Xandarian living computer that contains the record of Xandar’s history and helps Rider retain his sanity with the Nova-Force. Later, Nova discovers Drax The Destroyer and Cammi on the surface of Xandar, the only other two apparent survivors of the onslaught. They escape the planet which has been knocked out of orbit of it’s star, which between that and the damage it suffered from the Annihilation Wave is quickly becoming uninhabitable. Nova opens a gate to the planet Nycos Aristides, several light years away. The engines of their vessel cut out and they begin to fall into the atmosphere. They are saved by Quasar.

Quasar talks Nova into helping him evacuate the planet from the oncoming Annihilation Wave, despite Nova’s fears of losing control of his power. They hold their own against the wave and even attempt to kill Annihilus himself, but Quasar is killed in the process and Nova barely escapes with his life. Nova heads up a a resistance movement against the Annihilation Wave with Peter Quill ( Starlord) as his second-in-command. After losing a major battle they decide to dissolve the resistance and form a small strike team to the end of one goal, to kill Annihilus. As the final battle looms Nova is able to challenge Annihilus to single combat and as he looks like he’s about to die at Annihilus’ hands, Phyla-Vell manages to steal the Quantum-Bands Annihilus had taken upon killing Quasar, which turns the tide in Nova’s favor, and he manages to kill Annihilus.

Following the events of Annihilation, Nova becomes overwhelmed with work rushing from one crisis to the next. World Mind cautions him of over work and eventually manages to convince Nova to return to Earth for a break. Upon arrival Nova is confronted by Iron Man and SHIELD, having identified him as a Class 12 threat. After telling Nova about the Initiative and the new hero registration laws, Nova is given 24 hours to decide whether he wants to register or not.

Whilst walking around his old neighborhood, Nova is attacked by his old foe Diamondhead, seeking revenge after years in prison. Nova easily shatters his hand, but this draws the attention of the Thunderbolts, who attempt to bring him in for being an unregistered hero, unaware that Nova still has time to decide. After the fight is called off by Iron Man, Nova returns home, where he has an argument with his parents about the fight with the Thunderbolts. Shortly after this, Nova meets up with his old friend Robbie Baldwin, now known as Penance. After seeing what’s happened to him, Nova decides to leave Earth, since too much has happened since he was last there.

While responding a distress call, Nova was ambushed by a team of Skrulls. He managed to defeat them but was not prepared to face his old allied KI’rt . Thanks to him, Nova learned of the Skrull Invasion in his home planet. He traveled to Earth and arrived to witness the Skrull siege of P.E.G.A.S.U.S. facilities. Aware that his brother was in P.E.G.A.S.U.S. Project, Nova launched himself against the hordes of Skrulls, managing to stop them for a few moments with the help of Darkhawk. But things got complicated with the invaders retaliation leaving the heroes between the sword and the wall. Miracously, the scientist at P.E.G.A.S.U.S. were able to bring not only World Mind back online but Quasar as well. With no chance to win, the Skrulls decided to obliterate the facility with everyone inside. But it was Nova’s lucky day because in that exact moment, the Skrull ships were completely destroyed. Finally, the Nova Corps arrived to defend Earth.

After the Invasion was over, Nova found out that while he was sleeping, World Mind decided to gather again the Corps to help him in his mission. These new members were Fraktur, Rael, Tercel, Morrow and Qubit who proved to be a wise choice by World Mind. Although Nova was pleased with these Corps, he was still reluctant to gather the whole Nova Corps again and made a deal with World Mind to wait a little bit more before accepting more Centurions. But World Mind decided that the wait time was over, and he recruited everyone inside PEGASUS, including Nova’s brother, Robbie Rider. World Mind used the rest of the corps to search for a new host for him, they found it in Ego the living Planet. When Ego appeared right outside Earth Nova dispatched to the planet, only to find World Mind had surprised Ego the Living Planet and turned him into New Xandar.

World Mind wanted Nova to return the main reserves of the Nova Force. Nova went back to Earth but before he returned he was stopped by the Fantastic Four. He went back to return the rest of the Nova Force, but decided it wasn’t right. World Mind sent the rest of the corps to restrain him but he was too strong. Then World Mind stripped Nova of his powers and sent him back to Earth.

The Heroic Age:
Dying from overexposure to the full Nova-force, Richard asks Doctor Eve Necker from P.E.G.A.S.U.S. for help. With H.A.M.M.E.R. shutting down P.E.G.A.S.U.S., Dr. Necker tries to persuade Richard to accept help from A.I.M.. Richard refuses and walks away from her. Remorseful, Eve gives him the Quantum flask inhabited by Quasar’s consciousness so it wouldn’t fall into the wrong hands. Richard breaks the flask, and suddenly Quasar appears and offers Richard the Q uantum bands, potentially saving his life until he can regain the Nova Force. With the power of the Quantum Bands at his disposal Richard traveled to confront Ego and get back his Nova Prime powers. Once there he saw that World Mind had been corrupted by Ego and attacked him. To save World Mind he was forced to lobotomize Ego, but the backlash caused severe damage to World Mind and he was shut down but was replaced by the mind of the deceased Nova Corps member Ko-Rel. Richard returned the Quantum Bands to Quasar and took back his role as Nova Prime.

He is currently part of Steve Roger’s Secret Avengers  alongside Beast, War Machine, Steve Rogers, Valkyrie, and Moon Knight

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Tags: Annihilation Wave, Annihilus, Avengers, Avengers Line Up, Biography, I Am A Secret Avenger, Marvel, Marvel Comics, New Warriors, Nova, Nova Force, Nova Prime, P.E.G.A.S.U.S., Richard Rider, SECRET AVENGERS, Skrulls, The Heroic Age, The Nova Corps, www.IAmAnAvenger.com

Luke Cage (named Carl Lucas at birth) was raised in the slums of Harlem, New York. He spent his childhood in a gang called The Rivals, along with his friend Willis Stryker. Lucas engaged in many gang fights with The Diablos, a rival gang. He also committed petty crimes and worked for a crime lord named Sonny Caputo. Eventually, Lucas was put through the juvenile justice system and realized the pain he was causing his family. He changed his ways and in his adulthood, he joined The NYPD ( New York City Police Department) as a police officer. Willis Stryker rose through the ranks of crime. Stryker’s actions brought the anger of The Maggia, a New York crime syndicate, upon Willis. The Maggia order a hit on Willis and he was badly injured only to be saved by Carl Lucas. Stryker’s girlfriend Reva Conners grows fearful of Willis’ line of work. She breaks up with him and finds comfort in Carl Lucas. Willis then believes that Lucas is the one responsible for the break up between him and Reva. In revenge, he planted drugs in Luca’s Harlem Apartment and tipped off the cops. Lucas is then wrongly convicted and unjustly imprisoned .

While incarcerated Lucas grows angry and hateful towards Willis. He engages in jail fights and makes numerous failed escape attempts. Lucas is then transferred to a prison on the coast of Georgia. Lucas faces racism from one of the guards named Albert Rackham. Lucas then volunteers for an experiment which will shorten his sentence. Dr. Noah Burstein puts Lucas in an electrical field with and organic chemical compound. Dr. Noah later left Lucas unattended and the racist guard, Albert Rackham tampered with the controls and pushed the experiment way past it’s original intent. In the resulting accident, Lucas is granted the powers of super strength, invulnerable skin, and extreme stamina. Lucas uses his powers to escape from the prison and later makes his way back to New York City.

Lucas then adopted a costume and the name Luke Cage and Iron Fist formed a company called Heroes for Hire, they had an attorney named Jeryn Hogarth and the business was managed by Jennie Royce. Luke and Danny’s friendship grew and they became best friends. Luke would later date Harmony Young. Cage and Iron Fist had great amounts of success with Heroes For Hire, they then earned a reputation and fought a vast amount of criminals such as Sabretooth and the Constrictor.

Luke later has a one night stand with Jessica Jones. Cage had a crisis later when Jessica reacted to the fling, however her and Luke made peace and later worked together when Matt Murdock was accused of being Daredevil. Luke later told Jessica his feelings towards her grew and she told him she was pregnant , Cage and Jones moved in together and Jessica later became a superhuman consultant for The Daily Bugle. J. Jonah Jameson still hated Luke though, for denying the job of capturing Spider-Man previously. Shortly after, Luke is hired by Matt Murdock to accompany him to the Raft, a prison off of Ryker’s Island to visit Robert Reynolds, the Sentry. They meet with Jessica Drew and with Foggy Nelson in tow, visit Reynolds. However, during the visit Electro stages a prison break. As Spider-Man, Captain America, and Iron Man arrive to help maintain order during the ensuing riot, something unexpected happens. The New Avengers form.

Following the riot, Steve (Captain America) asks all the heroes to join, however Matt Murdock declines. Despite this, the team begins to pursue the cause of the riot, Max Dillon, Electro. After which they go to the Savage Land to find the real reason for the breakout, Karl Lykos, better known as Sauron. After a run-in with Sauron, the savage land mutates, and S.H.I.E.L.D. troopers (Led by Yelena Belova, the second Black Widow), the New Avengers have some relative downtime in which they notice the continued presence of the Young Avengers.
Next though, the New Avengers (partially) were sent to deal with Wrecker of the Wrecking Crew, who had escaped during the Raft riot. Cage, Wolverine, Spider-Woman, and Spider-Man fight Wrecker and capture him, sending him back to jail. They have no time to rest though as they go confront the Sentry in his house about why nobody remembers him, and with the help of the Fantastic 4, Namor, the Inhumans, S.H.I.E.L.D., Doctor Strange, and the X-Men, they defeat Bobs dark side, the Void. After this the complete New Avengers helps fight off a second Kree-Skrull War with the Young Avengers (The cause being Hulkling, a member of both races) and go to Japan to fight Hydra and the Hand. Upon returning from Japan, the New Avengers officially announce their team roster and Jameson bad-mouths the team for it’s members, including Cage as a convicted heroin dealer. The team however ignores this and by Luke’s wishes, visits Highland Park, Detroit on one of their off days, to help clean up a neighborhood of it’s scum and villainy. The visit is cut short though, as the team has to run off to go fight the Collective, a battle that they win.

During this time, two important things happen. The first is that Jessica has their baby, a baby girl that they name Danielle (After Danny Rand, Luke’s best friend). In addition, Luke and Jessica get married (Officiated by Stan Lee). However, the bliss was not to last, as the Senate was beginning to have talks about the Super Human Registration Act. Luke would later oppose The SHRA Act ( Super Human Registration Act ) along with Captain America and the Anti-Registration forces , Luke felt the act was like slavery and fought alongside Iron Fist, Captain America and the rest of the Secret Avengers until Captain America gave himself to the government and ended the Civil War. Luke had sent Jessica and Danielle to Canada where they would be safe from the new law.

S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Gabe Jones comes to arrest Cage and Luke fight’s his way through the S.H.I.E.L.D. forces were he and would join Captain America’s Secret Avengers . After Captain America was assassinated, Jessica returned with the baby and Luke Cage and Spider-Man got together with a group of unregistered heroes, many of which had been on the anti-registration side. From here the continued The New Avengers. The team at this point included Iron Fist, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Spider-Woman ( she was secretly the Skrull Queen ), and Doctor Strange. There base was Doctor Strange’s Sanctum. Cage’s Avengers and the Mighty Avengers fought many times in the ensuing months over registration. Luke often had trouble trusting Clint Barton due to his past of criminal activities, however Cage was later proved wrong when Clint Barton had proved himself by taking out a group of ninjas single handed.

The Avengers would later rescue Echo in Japan and found out that Elektra was a Skrull impostor, Cage became very worried about the Skrulls powers to copy a person . Luke also had a theory there were more Skrulls on Earth, many of the Avengers were not sure they could trust anyone and The Team was betrayed by Spider- Woman as it was The Skrull Queen. Later The Sanctum would be raided by The Hood and his gang. Cage moved to a new location with the team and thought Jessica had abandoned him with the child. Luke and his wife Jessica got into an argument and had many disagreement’s. Luke sent the New Avengers to check out a Skrull Ship crashing landing in The Savage Land, Luke ripped open the ship and noticed many versions of heroes . The Avengers later fought The Skrulls in Central Park. Jessica helped in the effort to fight and admitted Luke was right about the Skrulls. Jarvis Skrull took Danielle Cage and vanished leaving Jessica and Luke upset.

After the intense battle ended, James Barnes ( Captain America ) called a meeting with The New Avengers at his home and offered them to use his house as a base for their operations, due to the Sanctum’s previous destruction. Luke, Jessica and Ms Marvel arrived at Bucky’s home . The Fantastic Four and Iron Fist are looking around the city for Jarvis Skrull seeing as Danielle is still missing , they raid various villain’s bases such as A.I.M., HYDRA, Electro and The Red Skull. Looking for intel on the missing baby, they later found a Skrull in a bar dressed as a S.H.I.E.L.D agent and he was later shot by another agent, Jessica felt hopeless and thought Danielle was going to get killed by Jarvis Skrull. Luke got desperate and knew he was running out of options and then asked Norman Osborn to aid in the search for their baby and Luke promised Norman he’d do anything Norman asked for. Norman later helped Luke get the baby back and Luke Cage reneged on his offer to do anything for Osborn and the New Avengers.

Osborn later tries to get some revenge on Luke and then brainwashes Iron Fist and tell him to kill Cage, due to Luke and Danny Rand’s relationship, Luke is easily able to break the brainwashing and they escape, The New Avengers are hit by the reverse engineered power drainer from Chemistro and Luke had hear pain and turns himself into Osborn for help, though he is later rescued by the New Avengers , he is taken to a secret location and it is found out Luke Has a tracker in his heart , Meanwhile , Dr Strange is able to get it out and put’s in Norman Osborn’s home. Osborn then sent a missile to the tracker and his house got destroyed.

Luke Cage helps Steve Rogers the original Captain America along with Bucky in fighting Living Laser, Nick Fury and his Secret Warriors ( The remaining remnant’s of S.H.I.E.L.D. ) to fight off the H.A.M.M.E.R. agents. Steve Rogers spoke an inspiring speech to the New Avengers, Young Avengers and Secret Warriors. He says that they are going to take back this country and put Norman’s Reign to an end. Captain America and Luke Cage along with New Avengers,Young Avengers and Secret Warriors go to Asgard to help Thor and Maria Hill in the attack Norman Osborn and his Dark Avengers along with The Thunderbolt’s had made on Asgard. Osborn had ordered his troops to fight harder until he realized The Void was out of control he was turning into a demonic form . Luke later helped The Heroes defeat The Void and end Siege Of Asgard.

The Heroic Age
After the defeat of Norman Osborn, Steve Rogers is appointed the new head of S.H.I.E.L.D. As a result, Steve appoints Luke as the new head of the Thunderbolts, given his past experience in jail. If somebody who was unjustly put in jail can stay the straight and narrow and become an Avenger, that person surely can have insights into helping others with dark pasts become the heroes they can be. After reviewing his list of options, Luke chooses Juggernaut, Moonstone, Ghost, Crossbones, Songbird, and Man-thing.

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Tags: Avengers, Avengers Line Up, Biography, Luke Cage, Marvel, Marvel Comics, The Heroic Age, Thunderbolts

Marko Djurdjevic art of a massive Avengers image featuring the full lineup of all the teams, which will be broken up into six covers for all the Avengers titles next year.

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Tags: Avengers, Avengers Academy, Avengers Line Up, Marvel Comics, Mighty Avengers, New Avengers, SECRET AVENGERS, The Heroic Age, www.IAmAnAvenger.com

The final lineup of Secret Avengers includes Steve Rogers, Sharon Carter, Black Widow, Nova, Valkyrie, Moon Knight, The Beast, War Machine and the Irredeemable Ant-Man.

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Tags: Avengers, Avengers Line Up, Beast, Black Widow, I Am A Secret Avenger, Marvel Comics, Moon Knight, Nova, SECRET AVENGERS, Secret Avengers Lineup, Sharon Carter, Steve Rogers, The Beast, The Heroic Age, Valkyrie, War Machine, www.IAmAnAvenger.com

Thor’s father Odin decides his son needs to be taught humility and consequently places Thor (without memories of godhood) into the body and memories of an existing, partially disabled human medical student, Donald Blake. After becoming a doctor and on holiday in Norway, Blake witnesses the arrival of an alien scouting party. Black flees into a cave, and after discovering Thor’s disguised hammer Mjolnir transforms into the Thunder God.

Defeating the aliens, Thor shares a double life with his alter ego: treating the ill in a private practice and defending humanity for evil. Thor’s presence on Earth almost immediately attracts the attention of his step-brother and arch-foe Loki; who returns repeatedly to Earth in a bid to destroy Thor. Loki is also responsible for the emergence of three of Thor’s principal foes: the Absorbing Man; the Wrecker, and the Destroyer. On one occasion, Loki’s tactics are accidentally beneficial – although successful in using the Hulk to draw Thor into battle, it results in the formation of the superhero team the Avengers, of which Thor is a founding and longstanding member.

Thor disobeys his father and refuses to return to Asgard, an act for which he is punished on several occasions. Thor’s natural affinity for Earth is also eventually revealed to be due to the fact that he is the son of the Elder Goddess Gaea. Although Thor initially regarded himself as a “superhero” like his teammates in the Avengers, Loki’s machinations draw Thor into increasingly epic adventures.

When Odin dies in battle against Surtur, Thor becomes ruler of Asgard. The Thunder God extends his rule to Earth,. Thor marries Amora (the Enchantress), and has a son, Magni, who on reaching adulthood doubts his father’s judgment. Thor is drawn into battle with his former ally Tarene and the Destroyer (occupied by former foe Desak), and undoes that timeline via time travel. When the timeline is reset, Loki revives Surtur, who forges new uru hammers for Loki’s Storm Giant followers and begins Ragnarök. Thor learns that Ragnarok is the result of the self-styled “gods to the gods” known as Those Who Sit Above in Shadow, who feed on the cycle. Thor confronts the Norns (Fates), and after breaking the Ragnarok cycle, enters into hibernation. With his fate unknown to the Avengers, he is believed to be missing in action.

Thor’s hammer Mjolnir is eventually found on Earth and put under U.S. Army protection. When the supervillain Doctor Doom escapes from Hell, Mjolnir falls through the dimensional plane, and Doom tries unsuccessfully to claim the hammer. Mjolnir then comes into the possession of a man carrying a bag with the initials “D.B”. Donald Blake, upon touching the hammer Mjolnir, is transported to the void of non-existence in which Thor now resides. Blake explains that when Odin originally removed the Blake persona from Thor, Blake was consigned to the void that Thor now inhabits. When Thor entered that void, Blake was suddenly restored to being in New York City. Blake convinces Thor to wield Mjolnir once more, return to Earth, and renew the dual identity with Blake. Blake also reveals that Thor’s fellow Asgardians are actually not dead but hidden on Earth.

Thor rebuilds Asgard in the state of Oklahoma, learns of the events of the Civil War and is angered that Tony Stark and others used his DNA to create a Thor clone in a battle between pro and anti-registration heroes). Thor accepts an offer by Stark for Asgard to be considered a foreign embassy, with diplomatic immunity granted to its inhabitants. Thor searches for his fellow Asgardians, and restores them. The Thunder God eventually searches for his father, and locates Odin in Valhalla, waging constant battle with the fire demon Surtur. Odin advises his son that Thor must lead the Asgardians.

During the events of the Secret Invasion, Thor participates in the final battle against the Skrull forces, and is forced to sacrifice Avenger ally the Wasp. Due to a deception by Loki, Thor battles and kills his grandfather Bor, and is banished from Asgard. With Thor’s hammer Mjolnir damaged in that battle, Thor seeks out Doctor Strange, who is only able to repair the hammer by transferring the Odinforce from Thor to Mjolnir, binding the two in a symbiotic relationship. Norman Osborn now leading the Avengers attacks Asgard as a result of Loki’s manipulations which ceates a war with the Asgardians.

Thor has been confirmed to be a member of the new Avengers team lineup formed in the aftermath of the Siege in Marvels Heroic Age to debut in May 2010.

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Clint Barton was an orphan, and ran away from the orphanage as a pre-teen to join the circusas a carnival performer, where he was trained in the use of the bow and arrow by theSwordsman and Trickshot. When he discovered that his mentors were both criminals he rejected them, leading to a beating by Swordsman which left Barton badly injured and hospitalized. Years later, he saw Iron Man in action, and was inspired and decided to become a costumed hero called Hawkeye. However, there is a misunderstanding on Hawkeye’s first outing and he is believed to be a criminal, accused of theft.

On the run, the naive Hawkeye meets the Black Widow, whom he falls in love with. She tricks him into helping her to steal technology developed by Tony Stark, Iron Man’s alter ego. After several battles with Iron Man — who defeats the pair on every occasion — the Black Widow is injured and Hawkeye flees with her, deciding to go “straight” from then on. Hawkeye later “applies” for membership in the superhero team the Avengers, Hawkeye is accepted, and together with leader Captain America and mutant siblings Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch become the new team when the original members take a leave of absence. Hawkeye remains a constant in the team for many years.

Hawkeye then meets former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Barbara “Bobbi” Morse, codenamed Mockingbird. She is investigating the company Cross Technological Enterprises, which employs Hawkeye as a security consultant. Hawkeye and Mockingbird fall in love and elope immediately after. At the direction of then-Avengers chair Vision, Hawkeye and Mockingbird establish the team the West Coast Avengers. The robot Ultron kidnaps Mockingbird and copies her brain patterns to create a “wife” —Alkhema. Although Mockingbird is rescued, she is killed soon afterwards by the demon Mephisto. Embittered by Mockingbird’s death, Hawkeye leaves the West Coast Avengers.

Barton rejoins the Avengers, and after several adventures resigns to assume leadership of the first generation of the Thunderbolts, who have broken away from the influence of Baron Helmut Zemo. Hawkeye trains the team in the fashion of former teammate Captain America, and shapes the team into a cohesive fighting unit. Hawkeye eventually leaves the team and rejoins the Avengers once more. Hawkeye eventually dies during the chaos caused by the breakdown of the Scarlet Witch, sacrificing himself to destroy a Kree spaceship and save his teammates.

When the Scarlet Witch inadvertently alters reality, Hawkeye is resurrected with no memory of previous events. When a young mutant named Layla Miller gives several heroes – including Hawkeye – the ability to remember, he is horrified at the Scarlet Witch’s actions. Hawkeye shoots Wanda in the back with an arrow, and in retaliation one of her recreated children wipes him from existence. When the Scarlet Witch’s reality is eventually undone, Hawkeye is still presumed dead.

Unknown to the Avengers, Hawkeye is resurrected once reality was restored, and seeks out Doctor Strange, who offers Hawkeye shelter while he comes to terms with his new life. On the advice of Dr. Strange, Hawkeye eventually travels to Wundagore Mountain and finds theScarlet Witch living a normal life with no memory of her past and apparently without mutant abilities. Once Hawkeye discovers that Captain America has apparently been killed, he confronts Tony Stark, who offers him Captain America’s shield and costume. As Iron Man, Stark accompanies Barton — now dressed as Captain America — on patrol. They meet the new Hawkeye, Kate Bishop, defeating the supervillain Firebrand. Barton confronts Bishop about her assumption of the Hawkeye mantle. Unaware of his true identity, Bishop berates Barton and states that she adopted Hawkeye’s name to honor him, and that if Hawkeye were alive, she would adopt another name. She also affirms that the “real” Captain America gave her the name Hawkeye and his old bow as a tribute to his dead friend. Bishop’s words convince Barton to return the shield and costume to Stark, and condemn him for his role in the Civil War.

Barton returns to speak with Dr. Strange, and to protect himself from recognition adopts the identity of Ronin and joins the New Avengers During the Secret Invasion an alien Skrull ship crashing in the Savage Land, with Barton battling Skrulls impersonating Mockingbird and himself. He is reunited with the real Mockingbird during a final battle with the Skrulls. Barton rekindles their relationship. During the Dark Reign storyline, Barton publicly denounces Norman Osborn who has taken over leadership of the Avengers

Hawkeye has been confirmed to be a member of the new Avengers team lineup formed in the aftermath of the Siege in Marvels Heroic Age to debut in May 2010.

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Born to Howard Anthony Stark and Maria Collins Carbonell Stark, Anthony Edward “Tony” Stark was born with extremely high intelligence. At the age of 15 Stark entered the undergraduate electrical engineering program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where he graduated at the top of his class. At the age of 21 he inherited Stark Enterprises when his parents were killed in a car accident.

During an East Asian conflict, Stark Enterprises developed mini-transistors that Tony thought would help the war effort. While checking on his plant, which had been plagued by sabotage, Tony was injured by exploding shrapnel and captured by warlord Wong Chu. Chu forced Tony and another captive, famed physicist Ho Yinsen, to create weapons for him. All the while the lethal bit of shrapnel was slowly working towards Tony’s heart. Tony and Yinsen created an iron suit that would keep Tony alive and allow them to escape. During the escape Yinsen was killed, sacrificing himself to allow Tony time to change for the first time to Iron Man. Iron Man made short work of Chu and his men.

Tony worked to improve the Iron Man armor and made Iron Man Tony Stark’s personal bodyguard to disguise his identity. In his early years Tony Stark became the corporate sponsor of the superhero group the Avengers and as Iron Man help found the group with Thor, Ant-Man, the Wasp, and the Hulk.

Tony later revealed to the world that he was Iron Man. After this revelation he took the post as the President’s Secretary of Defense to monitor the use of his technology by the United States Military. He was subsequently forced to step down from the position when the Scarlet Witch went out of control and killed members of the Avengers, forcing them to disband. Tony publicly stated that he would no longer be Iron Man but that there would always be one. Though of course Tony continued to be Iron Man while maintaining a secret identity. More recently, Tony injected himself with a Nanotech virus that integrated many of his suits functions with his own biological systems.

Learning of the government’s plans to instigate a Superhuman Registration Act that would force super-powered individuals to reveal their identities to the government and register as licensed agents. Many superpowered individuals opposed to registration rally behind Captain America, leading to a destructive “superhero civil war” that ends with Captain America standing down to prevent further collateral damage. Stark is appointed the new director of S.H.I.E.L.D., and he organizes a new government-sanctioned group of Avengers.

Tony Stark is confronted in the hospital by Spider-Woman, holding the corpse of a Skrull posing as Elektra. Becoming keenly aware of the upcoming invasion of the Skrulls. Tony becomes discredited and publicly vilified after his inability to anticipate or prevent a secret infiltration and invasion of Earth by the shape-shifting alien Skrull race, and by the Skrull disabling of his StarkTech technology, which had a virtual monopoly on worldwide defense. After the invasion, the U.S. government removes him as head of S.H.I.E.L.D. and disbands the Avengers, handing control of the Initiative over toNorman Osborn.

With his Extremis powers failing, Stark uploads a virus to destroy all records of the Registration Act, thus preventing Osborn from learning the identities of his fellow heroes and anything that Osborn could possibly exploit, including repulsor generators. The only copy of that database remaining is in Stark’s brain, which he is trying to delete bit by bit while on the run in one of his extra armors. As Norman Osborn has him hunted as a fugitive, Stark travels worldwide on his quest to wipe out his mental database, going so far as to inflict brain damage on himself. Stark goes into a vegetative state, A holographic message stored in Pepper’s armor reveals that Stark had developed a means of ‘rebooting’ his mind from his current state prior to his destruction of the database.

Stark has been confirmed to be a member of the new Avengers team lineup formed in the aftermath of the Siege in Marvels Heroic Age to debut in May 2010.

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Tags: Avengers, Avengers Line Up, Biography, I Am An Avenger, Marvel Comics, The Heroic Age

Jessica Drew is the daughter of Jonathan Drew, research partner to Dr. Herbert Edgar Wyndham. When young Jessica suffered uranium poisoning in 1931, Dr. Drew was forced to inject her with his untested spider serum and seal her in a genetic accelerator. In stasis for decades, her aging greatly slowed, she awoke with no memories of her own past. Briefly cared for by the Evolutionary’s cow-woman assistant Bova, Jessica sought human company in a nearby village where she accidentally killed her first lover with her new bioelectric powers. Fleeing a vengeful mob, she was rescued by Count Otto Vermis, who molded her into the terrorist organization Hydra’s newest assassin. As Arachne, she fought S.H.I.E.L.D. directorNick Fury, who revealed Vermis as a cold-blooded killer. Jessica learned HYDRA’s true nature. She quit HYDRA and turned on them

Now going by the name Spider-Woman, Jessica used her new identity to track down her father’s killer, starting her search in London. During this time, Jessica was recaptured by HYDRA and brainwashed into working for them again. This brought her into direct conflict with Ben Grimm. After HYDRA’s brainwashing was reversed, she battled magical elements alongside the Thing and Modred the Mystic.

Jessica to relocate with him to Los Angeles where she began her career as a costumed crime fighter. Jessica also tracked down her father’s murderers. Jessica was pursued at this time by S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Jerry Hunt. In her early days as Spider-Woman, Jessica chose to keep her presence in Los Angeles a secret. Jessica chose to become a bounty hunter. She worked closely with former FBI specialist, Scotty McDowell, who later became the Hornet.

A villainess going by the name of Spider-Woman, stole her powers. One day, a HYDRA agent known as Connely attacked her and offered her powers back if she would rejoin S.H.I.E.L.D. as a double agent. Knowing Connely would kill her if she said no, Jessica agreed and contacted Nick Fury, who confronted her securely and urged her to accept the offer. He told Jessica that he would feed her limited info until S.H.I.E.L.D. could analyze the HYDRA cell and then use the info to take it down. Jessica’s double-agent status is a cause for a great deal of mistrust between herself and other characters. After Nick Fury is ousted as head of S.H.I.E.L.D., Jessica is confronted by the new director, Maria Hill, about her loyalties. Jessica remains loyal to Fury rather than the leadership in S.H.I.E.L.D. Jessica also has conflicts with her teammates in the Avengers because of her divided loyalties.

It is later revealed, however, that the Jessica who has joined the Avengers and is acting as a double-agent under the command of Nick Fury is not Jessica Drew at all, but instead a skrull imposter. When she went undercover to regain her lost powers, she was ambushed by the Skrulls and replaced by their current Queen Veranke, who took her place in the New Avengers and assumed her role as Fury’s spy, in preparation for the upcoming Invasion. In the conclusion to Secret Invasion, Jessica is revealed to be alive when Iron Man finds a Skrull ship in orbit with all the replaced heroes.Carol Danvers runs up to her and gives her a hug. Unaware of Queen Veranke’s actions, Jessica asks why the other heroes have been giving her strange looks.

the aftermath of Secret Invasion, Jessica is invited by Wolverine to join the New Avengers, having nowhere else to go. She’s the one who informs the other Avengers that S.H.I.E.L.D. no longer exists and later helps search for Luke and Jessica Jones’s baby, Danielle. Along with Iron Fist, they attack a HYDRA base to see if the Skrull Jarvis has contacted any Earth villains seeking a way to leave New York, possibly Earth. She attempts to bait the Dark Avengers into a fight with the New Avengers; however, Norman Osborn realizes it’s a trick and sends the Hood’s gang instead, leaving her feeling responsible for the setup. She is one of the last to fall when Chemistro draws them out into a trap meant for Osborn and his Dark Avengers, which drains them of their powers.

Jessica has been confirmed to be on the membership roster for the new Avengers lineup to debut in May 2010

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As a young boy, James Buchanan Barnes lost his father (a soldier during WWII), and was adopted by Camp Lehigh as their mascot, and given the nickname “Bucky”. It was here that he learned the identity of Captain America. He underwent rigorous training and was assigned to be Cap’s sidekick, accompanying him on many adventures, and the two often worked with the original Invaders. However, on a final mission against Baron Zemo, Bucky and Cap hopped on an experimental drone plane in an attempt to disarm a bomb. The bomb detonated, dropping Cap in the North Atlantic, where he would later be found and thawed out by the Avengers. American forces never found Bucky’s body, and he was presumed dead. Unbeknownst to the Americans, he was found and revived by Russian General Vasily Karpov.

When Barnes awoke, he had no memory of his identity, which gave Karpov an opportunity to reprogram Barnes as a Soviet assassin called the Winter Soldier. He was sent all across the globe, committing political assassinations with huge effects on the Cold War. However, his memory implantation caused mental instability, and he was kept in stasis between missions to prevent rebellion.

In the present day, the Winter Soldier seemingly kills the Red Skull and Jack Monroe (Nomad) under orders from former Soviet general Aleksander Lukin (Karpov’s former protégé). The Soldier launches a terrorist attack on Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, killing hundreds, and charges the Cosmic Cube which Lukin sent him to retrieve. He kidnaps Sharon Carter, an agent of the international espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D. and an erstwhile paramour of Steve Rogers (Captain America). Upon her rescue, Carter tells Captain America the Soldier looked like Bucky. S.H.I.E.L.D. chief Nick Fury confirms the Winter Soldier’s existence, but cannot ascertain his identity.

Barnes learns from executive directorTony Stark that Steve Rogers had left Stark a letter asking him to watch over Barnes, and the mantle of Captain America should continue. Barnes agrees to become the new Captain America, but only if Stark guarantees him complete autonomy. As this arrangement is illegal under the Superhuman Registration Act, Stark keeps his support of the new Captain America secret. As Captain America, Barnes wears a new costume, laced with adamantium, and carries a pistol and a combat knife. He and his allies succeed in aborting the Skull’s plans, and Barnes saves the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates from assassination, winning public applause. He also restarts his relationship with Black Widow

n the aftermath of Secret Invasion, Barnes joins the New Avengers and offers his home as a base of operations. He later participates in the search for Luke and Jessica’s child, Danielle.He was considered a possible team leader but he turned it down because he didn’t have the proper team experience.

Leading up to Siege, Barnes is shown still as Captain America talking with Steve Rogers, who is in a dark body suit and standing next to him. In Invincible Iron Man #21 Rogers is back in costume and seen alongside Barnes, who is still in his own Captain America costume. The two are helping restore Tony Stark’s mind by using the shield as a conduit for Thor’s lightning.

Barnes has been confirmed to be a member of the new Avengers team formed in the aftermath of the Siege in Marvels Heroic Age.

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Tags: Avengers, Avengers Line Up, Biography, Black Widow, Bucky, Captain America, I Am An Avenger, James Barnes, Marvel Comics, The Heroic Age