Super Hero Of The Week, 7/2/12

Super Hero Of The Week: 

Ultimate Nick Fury (Marvel Comics)

General Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury is a fictional character published by Marvel Comics. A reinterpretation of the character Nick Fury, one of the most notable differences between the two is that the mainstream Nick Fury is an Italian American colonel with graying brown hair, while this Nick Fury is a bald African American general, whose likeness specifically based upon that of actor Samuel L. Jackson (with the actor's permission). Jackson has since taken up the role in several Marvel movies set in the established Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in brief post-credits scenes in Iron Man and Thor; two scenes in Captain America: The First Avenger; and in a supporting role in Iron Man 2. He reprised his role as Fury in The Avengers, as a main character in that film. This Nick Fury has a substantial presence in all the Ultimate Marvel comics, appearing first in Ultimate Marvel Team-Up and Ultimate X-Men and later reappearing regularly in Ultimate Spider-Man and finally securing a regular, recurring role as the General of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the leader of the Ultimates, a re-imagining of the Avengers.

First appearance: Ultimate Marvel Team-Up #5 (August 2001)

Alter ego: 
Nicholas Fury

Abilities:
Genius level strategist, Slowed or Halted aging from the Super Soldier Serum
Skilled and experienced soldier
Skilled with many weapons and fighting techniques
Healing factor
Superhuman strength, speed, and agility.

Nicholas Fury fought for the United States in World War II. During the invasion of Sicily, he, along with Private Fisk and Canadian paratrooper Corporal Howlett, attempted to loot a house. American military police arrived to arrest them, and all three were subdued. Fisk was grazed by a bullet, while Fury was imprisoned in an unknown location alongside several other black men, and Howlett, despite protests that he was Canadian, was also shipped to an unknown location.[6] Fury was selected to be the next test subject for Project: Rebirth, as his blood work most closely matched that of Subject #22, the most successful of the previous test subjects. He was injected with a serum that gave him super-strength, which he used to free himself and the other prisoners, who then escaped. The scientists who were working on him let him escape, deciding that they have all the information that they needed for now.[7]
After attending college in India, Fury enlisted in the U.S. military, where he was deployed into various conflicts such as theKosovo Wars. He was later assigned to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Weapon X program in the original Gulf War. While transporting Wolverine in his adamantium cage, an Iraqi guerrilla ambush killed his team and inadvertently freed Wolverine from his prison. After slaughtering the Iraqi guards, Wolverine discovered Fury, the only survivor of the ambush, and transported him back through the desert to the Allied forces. Although Wolverine was summarily subdued and re-imprisoned by his handlers, a bond between the two men was formed.[8] The next day, Fury, already mostly healed, is confronted by General Thaddeus Ross. The General had discovered much was unusual about Fury and questioned him at length, prompting him to reexamine where he was going in life.[9]
Years later, the X-Men were abducted and imprisoned by the Weapon X program. This program was overseen at the time by Wraith, who had previously staged a coup against General Ross. This coup had prevented Ross from dismantling the Weapon X program altogether. Wolverine, the only X-Man who eludes capture, later asks Fury for help in freeing the other X-Men and bringing down the Weapon X program. During the operation, which also involves the Brotherhood of Mutants, Wraith was about to kill one of the X-Men and is shot dead by Fury.[8]
Fury is summarily promoted to General and resumes the duties of the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. He was tasked with forming a team to battle posthuman threats and resurrecting theSuper-Soldier program, two objectives that resulted in the formation of the Ultimates. Fury operates as the commander of the team, at times leading them into action, though he often shares duties with the revived World War II Captain America. Nick Fury is also responsible for monitoring posthumans who are not affiliated with the U.S. Military, including Peter Parkerand the X-Men.[10]
Nick Fury lost his right arm in a battle against the Liberators in The Ultimates (Vol. 2). However, in story arcs that appear to be set after this, he has two arms, including issue #107 ofUltimate Spider-Man. The Ultimate Secrets guide claims that Fury replaced his right arm with a bionic one.
Nick Fury has also been involved in the Ultimate Spider-Man comics. In them, he meets Peter after Norman Osborn returns. He states that S.H.I.E.L.D. was able to figure out who Peter was because of the security shots of the OZ Spider biting Peter, as well as Dr. Octopus screaming that Peter Parker is Spider-Man while in jail. Nick Fury has been watching Peter and informs him that, due to his illegal genetically altered status, he will become the property of S.H.I.E.L.D. when he turns eighteen. Although Fury wants him to be part of the Ultimates, this may have changed because the Ultimates broke apart. Peter and Fury's relationship became strained after the Hobgoblin arc. Peter punches Fury for ignoring his questions for why Harry became the Hobgoblin. At that point, Fury told one of his scientists that he wanted to know everything about OZ and that it was time for Peter Parker to lose his spider powers. This follows on to the Ultimate Clone Saga, in which it is revealed by Fury that the Tinkerer's Spider-Slayers were developed to handle Peter if and when he ever went insane. Mary Jane Watson, realizing how far Fury will go to bring Peter to kneel before him, lies to Fury and convinces him that Peter would never expose all of the dark secrets Peter has learned about Fury's plans for the Ultimate Marvel Universe's super-powered beings. This convinced Fury to let Peter keep his powers and to leave Peter alone.[11]
Fury was judged to be at least partially responsible for the devastation of much of Earth-31916 along with Emil Burbank. Burbank had sought a means to defeat the Hyperion of that universe. An alien organism, unleashed in an attempt to achieve this, spread throughout the United States, causing widespread devastation. A probe sent by Reed Richards provided evidence that an "invasion from another universe" was responsible. The Squadron Supreme was dispatched to the Ultimate Universe in order to arrest Richards so that he could stand trial for his "crimes". A lengthy battle ensued between the Squadron on one side and the Ultimates, Spider-Man, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four on the other. Richards, believing himself to be responsible when the Squadron produced his probe as evidence, surrendered himself. Fury was unwilling to accept this and convinced Thor to create a bridge to Earth-31916, through which the Helicarrier was able to travel. Once there, another battle between the Squadron and the Ultimate Universe heroes began. Spider-Man learns that Fury had an ulterior motive - the retrieval of the probes and their data, and had conspired with Doctor Doom to do so. In addition, Fury had brought insurance in the form of the Hulk. It took the combined power of the Ultimate Universe heroes, the Earth-31916 Squadron Supreme, and their counterparts from Earth-712 to defeat the Hulk, but Doom had proven to be simply aDoombot. To stop the fighting, the Ultimates agreed to turn over Fury to the Earth-31916 Squadron and to allow Power Princess to return with them to their universe. Fury tries to convince them that they are making a mistake, but his pleas are ignored.[12]
Fury is seen still stranded in Earth-31916 in Squadron Supreme (Vol. 2) #1. He has apparently fulfilled the prophecy made by Hyperion in Ultimate Power #9: "Given the strength of our military industrial complex, Fury would have risen here to even greater heights than your homeworld." [13]
Fury returns to the Ultimate Universe in Ultimatum #4 and is instrumental in defeating Magneto. Jean Grey telepathically relays the information discovered by Fury in Ultimate Originsthat mutants are not the next stage in human evolution, but are in fact the result of experimentation done by humans. This revelation causes Magneto to reverse the damage done to the Earth's magnetic poles.
Following the events of Ultimatum, Fury is informed by Hawkeye about how Captain America discovered the secret of the Red Skull. Fury asks head of S.H.I.E.L.D. Carol Danvers for permission to start up a "death squad" in order to catch the Red Skull and Cap, which he then carries out with the help of Hawkeye, Gregory Stark, and the rest of the Ultimate Avengers.
In Ultimate Comics: Avengers Fury returned to S.H.I.E.L.D. again. After learning that Captain America went rogue after discovering that the Red Skull was his biological son, Fury re-activated "Project Avenger" and recruited a team of questionable super humans to find Captain America.[14] Following Captain America's capture, Fury briefed the Avengers of AIM's purpose of creating the Cosmic Cube to build their visioned utopia and readied his team to thwart the organization's plans.
Fury guided his team of Avengers from headquarters, with the secret intent to go ahead with "Plan B", which is detonate a nuclear warhead that was built into War Machines armor by Gregory Stark in case the mission failed.
Captain America managed to arrive at the location of the battle between the Red Skull and the Avengers and teleported the jet to the exact location where the Skull was standing, impaling him through the chest with one of the rods that protrudes from its nose. The Red Skull was taken to a hospital and kept alive long enough for Gail, his mother, to say her goodbyes. Skull explained to Fury that all he wanted to do with the Cosmic Cube was turn back time and prevent his father, Steve Rogers, from being lost during the war so that he could grow up with him and lead a normal life, rather than the one he was given. Petra, dressed as a doctor, then entered the room and shot Red Skull in the head, killing him.
A short time later, Fury is fixing his damaged prosthetic arm while speaking with Gregory Stark. Gregory concludes that it was in fact Fury himself who hired the Red Skull to come out of retirement, in some sort of plot to resurrect Project Avengers, securing him a position in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s employment and eventually regaining his old title as Director. Fury told him that was how he got the job the first time, and expects the same outcome this time as well.
In "Ultimate Enemy", approximately six months after Ultimatum, Fury is Black OPS and is "Off the Grid". He was enjoying a meal while under cover when the restaurant he was at was attacked by a creature with energy powers. Fury manages to hold the creature at bay until Spider-Man and Human Torch arrive at the scene to investigate. The creature vanishes after a short battle with the three of them. Peter is surprised to see Fury alive, as he has not seen him for months.[15]
Nick breaks into the Triskelion and confronts Carol Danvers in the ladies' room and points a gun to her head, exclaiming that she is the only person who knew he was alive and would have motive to have him killed. The two fight before being interrupted by a female S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, informing Danvers that an attack has been made in Queens, which Fury knows is where the Parker residence is located. Simultaneously, the two order a Battalion of Hulkbuster agents to get to Queens to intercept the attacker.

Via Wikipedia