The Marvel Version Of Forrest Gump Needs To Enter The MCU
Did you know that Marvel has its own version of Forrest Gump, who has been directly involved in—or on the sidelines for—most of the major events in the Marvel Universe? He was there for the accident that created the Incredible Hulk. He was there when the Avengers first assembled. He’s been a sidekick to several of the biggest heroes in the Marvel Universe. His name is Rick Jones, and despite his impressive resume, he’s never made a single appearance in the MCU.
Rick Jones Has Been Part Of Marvel For Over 60 Years
Rick Jones made his Marvel Comics debut in Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s The Incredible Hulk #1 (1962). In true Forrest Gump fashion, Jones was out joyriding in the New Mexico desert when he accidentally drove onto the testing ground for Bruce Banner’s new gamma bomb. It was Jones’s idiocy that led to the very accident that created the Hulk.
You’d think the guy responsible for creating one of Marvel’s biggest heroes would at least get a cameo in a Marvel movie. And yet Kevin Feige hasn’t featured Rick Jones in the MCU in any capacity. Now to be fair, the two theatrical Hulk solo movies—including the one that’s part of MCU canon—have tweaked Bruce’s origin enough that Rick no longer fits into his role of gamma calamity catalyst.
Everyone’s Sidekick
However, there are plenty of other places Disney could have slipped Rick Jones into the MCU. In the comics, he’s the one who actually brings the Avengers together for the first time to fight Loki. Joss Whedon could have easily used Rick Jones instead of Phil Coulson as the person who motivates the team to come together in The Avengers.
Or if Whedon was just completely infatuated with the Coulson character, Kevin Feige could have put him in Captain Marvel. Along with the Hulk, Jones was also a sidekick to the original Captain Marvel—Mar-vell. Perhaps the best Disney could have integrated Rick Jones into the MCU would have been as Bucky.
Bucky Vs. Bucky
At one point, after Captain America was unfrozen, but before he found out that Bucky was still alive as the Winter Soldier, he gave Jones his dead friend’s superhero identity. As the new Bucky, Rick Jones could have showed up in Captain America: The Winter Soldier fighting alongside Cap. Imagine a scene where the real Bucky sees that Steve has replaced him with Rick Jones and creating all kinds of primo Superhero drama the MCU could milk for years.
Rock Star, Hacker, Superhero
It’s too late now to make Rick Jones a Forrest Gump-type character who is tangentially connected to everyone major in the MCU. However, there are still a few ways Disney could introduce the character into the MCU. Jones isn’t just a sidekick extraordinaire: there have been several times when he’s become a legitimate superhero in his own right.
Gamma-Powered Blue Chameleon
Perhaps the most famous incarnation of hero Rick is A-Bomb. It was only a matter of time before Marvel turned Rick Jones into a gamma-fueled powerhouse—it happens to every one of the Hulk’s acquaintances at one point or another. The hulkified version of Jones is called A-Bomb, and he frequently clashes with another supporting character-turned hulk alike, the Red Hulk.
A Missed Opportunity In She-Hulk
With the Red Hulk rumored to appear in both Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts, this would be the perfect time for Marvel to put Rick Jones in the MCU in his A-Bomb persona. If they had been really smart, they would have used A-Bomb in She-Hulk instead of The Abomination.
Then again, given all the backlash against She-Hulk, maybe Jones dodged a bullet there. In any case, it’s time for Marvel to include Rick Jones in the MCU. If Batroc the Leaper can make it onscreen, Rick Jones should be a no-brainer.
