Publisher: Marvel Comics
Created by: Larry Hama and Paul Ryan
1st appearance: The Avengers vol. 1 #326, November 1990
Real Name: Elvin Daryl Holiday
Team Affiliations: New Warriors, Avengers, Avengers Initiative
Legal Status: U.S citizen with no criminal record
Height: 6’6 Weight: 450 lbs
Eyes: Brown Hair: Black
Relatives: Mr. Holiday (father, deceased), Mrs. Holiday (mother, deceased), Edna M. “Granny” Staples (grandmother, deceased); Andrew Chord and Dwayne Taylor/ Night Thrasher (legal guardians)
Powers: Rage has superhuman strength, resistance to injury, healing, and reflexes. His strength can also increase to limitless levels similar to the Hulk when Enraged or involved in violent activity.
Biography
Origin
Elvin was a small, weak, puny boy growing up in Brooklyn, New York. He is noted as a voracious reader who reads at the college level he also enjoys reading comic books. After meeting a boy who wanted to trade comics he traveled to an apparently white neighborhood and was set upon by a racist gang. Fleeing from the attackers he hid in a filthy drain way filled with garbage and toxic waste. When his attackers left he tried to climb out but couldn’t. That’s when fresh toxic waste was dumped and landed on him from Fisk Biochem. It smelled worst than the filth he was in already and burned.
Making his way home he was cared for by his “Granny Staples”. With her prayer and care, he recovered and grew stronger in size and stature [Avengers vol.1 #328]. Elvin now appeared to be a man in his mid-30’s. He wanted to enact revenge and vengeance on those who had wronged him but his grandmother stopped him. Sometime later he took up a mask and became the crime fighter Rage [Avengers vol.1 #328].
Life as an Avenger
Brimming with confidence he showed up at Avengers Mansion demanding to be made an Avenger. After a heated debate with Captain America about the lack of black Avengers he was attacked by the avengers who misunderstood the exchange. After leaving the mansion he broke up a drug ring before destroying the drug lord’s mansion [Avengers vol.1 #326]. Upon realizing the Avengers were in danger he raced to their side and was drawn into another dimension with them [Avengers vol.1 #327]. After the defeat of the demons in the dimension and leaving the dimension, he recounts his origin to Captain America [Avengers vol.1 #328]. When the team is re-structured he is offered membership by Captain America on the reserve Avengers team. At the press conference announcing the new team, Rage is attacked by a civilian and gets into yet another argument [Avengers vol.1 #329]. When the “Tetrarchy of Entropy” takes his grandmother hostage the Avengers help him in defeating them and saving his neighborhood [Avengers vol.1 #330-331]. Later adventures include facing Doctor Doom, or more accurately three Doombots [Avengers vol.1 #332-333], Thane Ector, and the Brethren [Avengers vol.1 #334-#339]. Rage grew increasingly unhappy with the Avengers’ lack of involvement in the community-level crime. They are drawn into conflict with the New Warriors thanks Hate-Monger [Avengers vol.1 #341]. Rage had an argument with Captain America and joined the more street-level New Warriors led by Night Thrasher. Rage ends the threat by overpowering Hate-Monger. During the conflict, it is revealed he is a teenager, 14 years old. Captain America then demoted Rage to the status of Avenger Trainee. He leaves the Avengers and allies with Night Thrasher and the New Warriors [Avengers #342].
Life as a New Warrior
Rage later helped the New Warriors on a mission that involved stealing an avenger Quinjet. After commandeering the ship he accompanied the team to “The Temple of Dragon’s breadth”. Here they faced Midnight’s fire, Smiling Tiger, and the “Folding Circle”. They later battled the sorceress Tai and lost the Qunjet in the process [New Warriors vol.1 #22-25]. When he confessed his action to the Avengers and apologized he was met with the anger of the Greek god Hercules and he was dismissed from the team by Captain America. It didn’t matter however as he was offered a spot on the New Warriors team and even given a new costume to celebrate [New Warriors vol.1 #26]. He also continued to serve his community as a local crime fighter [New Warriors vol.1 #27].
Alongside the team, he battled the “Force of Nature” supervillains [New Warriors vol.1 #28-30]. He also participated in the “Child’s Play” crossover between X-force and the New Warriors [New Warriors vol.1 #31]. Rage was pulled into the Forces of Darkness, Forces of Light crossovers [New Warriors vol.1 #32-34 and New Warriors Annual #3].
The hardest time in his life was upon him as a new gang had taken over his neighborhood and he witnessed his home blown up by a rocket launcher and his beloved grandmother died in his arms [New Warriors vol.1 #37]. As an orphan, he lived up to his code name as it was the only emotion he could feel. His powers blossomed and his strength and dexterity increased. Alongside the team, he planned to hunt down those responsible and kill them all. At the end of the conflict, he had the upper hand on the new gang leader but despite Night Thrasher’s pleading, he snapped the villains’ neck to full fill his revenge [New Warriors vol.1 #38].
Legal problems followed since he was still a minor he was to become a ward of the state. Luckily his teammate Night thrasher worked something out for him and also had a proper burial and memorial for his grandmother [New Warriors vol.1 #39].
When the time was altered by Lady Sphinx he was drawn into conflict with her and the original Sphinx [New Warriors vol.1 #47-50].
When the team grew too large and had to be trimmed he was one of the few who made the final cut [New Warriors vol.1 #51]. He was still a member of the team when they faced the Psionix [New Warriors vol.1 #52-53]. Over time the New Warriors drifted apart and it came down to a choice of following Nova or Night Thrasher Rage chose to stay with his guardian and they began operating as a duo [New Warriors vol.1 #57]. They continued to monitor the team and later recruited the Psionix team and made it their own. When the warriors were in danger because of the villain Genecide they came to their aid [New Warriors vol.1 #63-64]. They would later rejoin the team only for it to be disbanded [New Warriors vol.1 #72-75].
Beyond the New Warriors
Around this time he finally decided to put school before heroics so he went to boarding school and became a reserve member of the Avengers once again. He would come out of “retirement” to assist the avengers on a few adventures. The first of which was facing Morgan Le Fay and her altering the timeline [Avengers #1-4, 1998]. He continued to moonlight with the New Warriors and helped Justice and Firestar decide whether they should remain with the Avengers or not. The brief reunification had them facing “Lord Templar” [Avengers #13, 1998]. He was also present during the disassembling of the Avengers [Avengers #501-503].
Recent events
He later watched as most of his former teammates were killed in the ‘Stanford Incident’ which caused the Civil war.
Rage and former teammate Justice learned that people were hunting down former New Warriors members because of the deaths caused by Nitro. They both sought out the legal services of Jennifer Walters (She-Hulk) in protecting the allies of the New Warriors. They eventually discovered that former New Warriors member Carlton LaFroyge, aka Hindsight Lad was responsible for the persecution and exposure of their teammates. Hindsight operated a website outing the identities of the twenty or so remaining Warriors; he was also operating a death pool. When John Jameson arrived, he arrested Hindsight Lad [She-Hulk Vol 2 #8].
During the civil war, he sided with Captain America’s anti-registration heroes. He was later arrested and freed and participated in the climactic battle [Civil war 1-7].
Once Captain America surrenders and is assassinated though he signs up with ‘the initiative’ [Avengers: The Initiative #1].
He later quits and joins a newly reformed New Warriors under Justice his old teammate.
Police Brutality and Jail
With the appearance of the Americops, a private police force with violent methods, Rage stood in front of an anti-Americop rally in Brooklyn, since he didn’t like their excessively violent approach toward civilians. This conflict was broadcast live on TV and watched by Captain America. Hoping to prevent the situation from getting worse, Captain America, along with his bird Redwing and trainee Falcon arrived to defuse the situation.[14] The situation escalated either way, mainly due to Rage’s willingness to fight the Americops. In order to protect Rage, Cap had Falcon remove him from the scene,[15] for which he later berated Cap.[16] The Official Digital Toolset for Dungeons & DragonsRage would then reconcile with Captain America and Falcon over a UCWF charity event.[17] When Ariella Conner, a writer and outspoken opponent of illegal immigration, visited the Empire State University, Falcon convinced Rage to join him in offering her a piece of his mind. The young heroes found themselves protecting Conner from a group of extremist students going under the name of the Bombshells.
When he was returning home from ESU, Rage tried to stop Speed Demon and Man Mountain Marko from robbing a pawn shop. Unfortunately, the villains got the drop on him and escaped through a back door right before the Americops arrived. The Americops brutalized and arrested Rage.[18]
Rage refused to accept any assistance from the Avengers or lawyers with ties to superheroes, believing that as a fighter of the African American community, he shouldn’t accept what he considered to be an easy way out. He also intended to use this opportunity to show the injustice of the judicial system. Using a surveillance system derived from his ability to communicate with birds, Captain America got footage of the robbery that could help Rage’s case and expose the Americops.[19] However, it was deemed inadmissible by Judge Roderick, and Rage was eventually convicted.[20]
Days following the handling of Elvin’s verdict, he was moved to the Z block of a state penitentiary, a special block for super-powered convicts, some of them who had been apprehended by Rage himself. Elvin was cornered by several convicts and beaten up not long after being transferred. He was left in a comatose state with extensive brain damage.
Rage-Elvin Daryll Holiday 
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