Marvel Teases Long-Awaited Return In Avengers: Standoff

Marvel Comics is teasing the long-awaited return of a major character in the conclusion to the currently ongoing Avengers event Avengers: Standoff.

The teaser includes a quote, "I knew this was my chance to be a hero," a star symbol, and the Avengers: Standoff – Assault on Pleasant Hill logo. The star symbol resembles the symbol of Nova, and the Standoff logo seems to suggest a return in next week's Assault on Pleasant Hill – Omega.

Could this be the return of longtime Nova Richard Rider? Rider was last seen sacrificing himself, alongside Star-Lord, to trap Thanos in the Cancerverse at the conclusion of The Thanos Imperative. During Original Sin, we learned that Nova used a Cosmic Cube to send Star-Lord home, with Thanos, unfortunately, hitching a ride. Rider has been trapped in the Cancerverse.

There could be a connection to between Nova's fate and Standoff thanks to the involvement of a Cosmic Cube. One of the key players in Standoff is Kobik, a sentient Cosmic Cube in the form of a 4-year-old girl. The cube was found in shards by S.H.I.E.L.D. and rebuilt. Could it be the same cube Rider used in the Cancerverse?

The symbol also resembles that of Quasar, so perhaps it is actually the return of Wendell Vaughn.

We'll find out in Avengers: Standoff - Assault on Pleasant Hill Omega #1, on sale April 27.