Rick Jones (character)

Richard Milhouse "Rick" Jones is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been depicted as a sidekick and friend to the Hulk, Captain America, Mar-Vell / Captain Marvel, Rom the Space Knight, and Genis-Vell / Captain Marvel.

The character has been an active participant in many significant Marvel storylines, including the Kree–Skrull War and the Destiny War. Rick has acquired superpowers on numerous occasions: he was briefly transformed into a version of the Hulk in a 1986 story arc and became A-Bomb, a gamma mutate resembling a blue version of the Abomination, after being experimented on by the Intelligencia in Hulk (vol. 2). Rick later becomes a hacktivist after Doc Green, an alternate persona of Bruce Banner, removes his powers.

Rick Jones has been adapted into various media outside comics, primarily in association with the Hulk. Luke Perry voiced Rick in the animated series The Incredible Hulk (1996), which adapted his time as Hulk in the comics. Seth Green voiced Rick as A-Bomb in the animated series Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. (2013), where he is depicted as a member of the eponymous team. Green reprised the role in the Ultimate Spider-Man episode "Return to the Spider-Verse" (2016), voicing a version of Rick from the Marvel Noir universe.

Rick Jones first appeared in Hulk #1 (May 1962), and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. His A-Bomb identity first appeared in Hulk (vol. 2) #2 (February 2008), and was created by writer Jeph Loeb and artist Ed McGuinness.

Rick Jones was born in Scarsdale, Arizona. He lost his parents at a young age and grew up in an orphanage. Later, he accepted a dare to drive out to a testing ground in New Mexico as the gamma bomb designed by Bruce Banner was being tested. Banner pushed Rick into a protective trench, saving his life, but absorbing the gamma rays that transform Banner into the Hulk. Rick thus became the sole confidant of the Hulk's identity.

Rick's guilt over causing the incident (and lack of any other place to go) led him to stay close to Banner and the Hulk. In one story, he even gained mental control over Hulk. Eventually, the dangerous unpredictability of Hulk forced Rick to keep his distance.

Later, Rick formed the Teen Brigade, a loose network of teenagers with ham radios throughout the United States. The first Brigade played a role in the origin of the Avengers when the Norse god Loki tampered with the Brigade's radio transmission. Originally, the Brigade intended to bring the Fantastic Four together to battle the Hulk, but instead brought Iron Man, Ant-Man, Wasp, and Thor together to form the Avengers.

After the Hulk's departure from the team, Rick became an honorary Avenger. He alerted the team to the Hulk's presence when they began searching for him. He became close to the recently revived Captain America although his guilt led him to leave the Avengers and seek out Banner and Hulk on his own.