Avengers #280
Faithful Servant
Recovering in the hospital after being brutally beaten during the siege on Avengers Mansion, Jarvis gets an update on his condition from his doctor.[1] While most of Jarvis’ injuries are healing, the doctor reports that he will have suffered 90% vision loss in his left eye due to a severed optic nerve and he isn’t certain that the Avengers butler won’t walk away from this without permanent brain damage. The doctor suggests that Edwin find a safer line of work once he gets out of the hospital. Jarvis — the memories of Mister Hyde’s beating still fresh in his mind — is visited by his employer, Tony Stark. Tony assures Jarvis that all of his medical expenses will be taken care of and that he can rely on a full pension once he gets out of the hospital. Tony is very apologetic, but Edwin assures him he has nothing to apologize for. Tony has to go, but tells Jarvis to think over his offer.
After his experiences, Jarvis wonders if he’ll ever be safe again and wonders what the Avengers will do after suffering such a heavy defeat. As he thinks about how much the Avengers have endured, his mind flashes back to the early days not long after the Avengers were founded. Tony Stark had come to the mansion to tell the staff that the property was going to sever as a headquarters for the team. Everyone was horrified to discover that the Hulk would be hanging around the mansion and quit on the spot for their own safety. Jarvis, devoted to his role as a butler, made preparations for the team’s first meeting all by himself. This impressed Iron Man, but Jarvis assured the hero that he was just doing his job.[2] Jarvis was at the door to greet Thor, but fainted when the Hulk came calling next. Revived by the Wasp with some smelling salts, she had Jarvis give her a tour of the mansion while the men discussed the Avengers charter. It was at this time that Jarvis noticed the love that Ant-Man and the Wasp had for each other. Reflecting back on this now, Jarvis can’t help but think how their marriage ended in divorce not long after Hank Pym — then Yellowjacket — disgraced himself from the Avengers. Janet Van Dyne has been visiting him now and while she has rose from a casual member to team leader, he can see the weight of leadership hanging heavy on her shoulders as she blames herself for the Masters of Evil’s attack on the mansion, because it happened on her watch.[3]
This gets Edwin thinking about the turbulent nature of the Avengers, that dates back to the first time the team changed their roster. Jarvis remembers how jarring it was when the founding members all decided to take a break from the Avengers, leaving Captain America to form a new roster. Jarvis had issue with the new members — Hawkeye, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch — as they were all former criminals. Certainly, “Cap’s Kooky Quartet” as they were known in the media, was a younger untested team.[4] Jarvis was witness to a lot of spats between this new team, particularly between Hawkeye and Captain America, as the archer didn’t think Cap was a suitable leader. Jarvis really got to know Captain America during this time and encouraged him to move past the death of his wartime partner, Bucky Barnes, and to be more social with his teammates outside of missions.[5] Jarvis also thinks of how much this rough-and-tumble group have grown over the years: Hawkeye is now the leader of the new West Coast Avengers,[6] and the Scarlet Witch got married to the Vision and they now have two twin children of their own.[7] Unfortunately, Quicksilver did not fare as well as the others, as he is now roaming the world having lost his mind.[8]
That Quicksilver is now considered a traitor reminds Jarvis of the time he himself betrayed the Avengers. It was some time ago when his mother needed to undergo an expensive form of chemotherapy to treat her illness. At the time, Tony Stark was offering to pay the medical bills, giving Jarvis peace of mind. However, on his way home one night he was ambushed by Ultron, the mad robot that was determined to destroy the Avengers. The robot hypnotized Jarvis into thinking he wasn’t getting financial aid from Stark and manipulated him into leaking the secrets of the Avengers security systems to the Masters of Evil for the money he now desperately thought he needed. Although Edwin’s betrayal was revealed, he later gave the Black Knight the information needed to save the team. The Avengers were quite forgiving since Jarvis only betrayed the team in order to save his own mother. However, not everyone fully forgave him, particularly the Wasp who snubbed him for quite some time afterward. It wasn’t until many months later that Jarvis’ memories returned and he realized that he was brainwashed by Ultron.[9]
Thoughts of Ultron lead to Jarvis recollecting another person who found himself manipulated by the robot, the Vision.[10] Jarvis recalls how unnerving and inhuman the android acted when he first arrived but the pair formed a bond over their mutual love of poetry. It was Jarvis who first noticed the growing romance between the Vision and the Scarlet Witch, and when the android came to Edwin for advice, he encouraged the Vision to follow through with his feelings.[11] However, this relationship wasn’t without troubles of its own, such as when the Swordsman and his companion the Mantis came to live at the mansion. Jarvis disapproved of Mantis’ infatuation with the Vision, but this didn’t stop her from trying to throw herself at the android. Ultimately, she learned that she truly did love the Swordsman, but not before he sacrificed his life to save her.[12] The Swordsman’s death bothered Jarvis a lot, particularly since he couldn’t find a next of kin to contact.
The Swordsman’s attempts at redemption makes Jarvis think about Moondragon, another former Avenger who abused her power to force an entire planet into peace at the expense of their own free will.[13] Thinking of all the many people who were once Avengers, Jarvis has a hard time keeping track of them all, but what he does know is that even the briefest memberships were individuals with complex lives.[14] When the team was under scrutiny of Henry Gyrich, Jarvis did his best to comply with the NSA agent’s demands to lessen the burden on his charges.[15] Although Jarvis strove to be as helpful as possible, he can’t help but think of all the times he was a liability, which leads to him reliving the trauma from Mister Hyde’s beating.[16] Contemplating resignation, he thinks about the time recently when he almost went through with it when Tony Stark spiraled into alcoholism. However, he stuck by Tony and helped him beat alcoholism not once, but twice.[17]
However, Jarvis can’t help but think about how the Avengers have rise up to every challenge and formed new lives when their old ones were up ended. He decides that it would be too easy to focus only on the negative and take the easy way out. While he was seriously hurt, he knew the risks of the job when he took it and that his charges deal with danger every day and never give up. Jarvis finally makes up his mind and makes a call to Tony Stark to inform him after he completes his rehabilitation he intends to return to work, telling Tony that things can’t really go on without him.
Recurring Characters
Edwin Jarvis, Tony Stark, (in flashback) Avengers (Iron Man, Thor, Ant-Man/Giant-Man/Goliath, Wasp, the Hulk, Captain America, Hawkeye/Goliath, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Hawkeye, Black Panther, Black Knight, Vision, Swordsman, Mantis), Ultron, Henry Gyrich
Continuity Notes
Avengers Mansion was attacked by the Masters of Evil and Jarvis was savagely beaten in an effort to break Captain America. See Avengers #273-277. Of particular note, Jarvis is stated as having lost 90% of his vision in one eye. This will force Jarvis to wear an eyepatch from this moment on until his eye full heals in Avengers #317.
This takes place shortly after the team first formed back in Avengers #1.
Jarvis glosses over details of the failed Pym marriage. Hank and Janet got married in Avengers #60. After a troubled marriage, the couple were divorced after Hank struck her in issue #213. The incident led to his being court-martialed and kicked out of the Avengers.
The original Avengers took a leave of absence in Avengers #16. Prior to joining the team, Hawkeye got sucked into the spy game by the Black Widow leading to clashes with Iron Man, while Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch were former members of Magneto’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. See Tales of Suspense #57, 60 and 64 as well as X-Men #4-7.
Bucky was seemingly killed in the explosion that sent Captain America into suspended animation for decades, as seen in Avengers #4. What nobody knows at this time is that Bucky survived and was transformed into the Russian assassin known as the Winter Soldier. Captain America won’t learn the truth until Captain America (vol. 5) #14.
When the Vision ordered the creation of a new west coast branch of the Avengers in issue #243, he appointed Hawkeye to be the leader of that team.
At the time of this story, Wanda had just given birth to twins — William and Thomas — in Vision and the Scarlet Witch (vol. 2) #12.
Quicksilver recently betrayed the Avengers in West Coast Avengers Annual #1, in apparent response to his wife Crystal having an affair in Vision and the Scarlet Witch (vol. 2) #10. In reality, Pietro was driven insane by Maximus, as we’ll learn in X-Factor Annual #2.
The Masters of Evil manipulated Jarvis into betraying the Avengers in Avengers #54-55.
The first sign that the Vision and the Scarlet Witch were falling in love with one another happened in Avengers #91. The two finally got together in issue #108.
Swordsman and Mantis joined the Avengers in issue #112 until the Swordsman’s death in Giant-Size Avengers #2. The Swordsman wanted to atone for a life of crime.
Moondragon enslaved the entire world of Bi-Bani until the Avengers liberated them. See Avengers #219-220.
The Avengers that Jarvis thinks about here are:
Hercules, who had been associated with the Avengers since Avengers #38, getting official membership in issue #45 before leaving in issue #50. He briefly returned to the ranks in issue #98-100. More recently he rejoined the team, his lengthiest stint yet from issue #249 until he was knocked into a coma by the Masters of Evil in issue #274. Unknown to Jarvis, he was returned to Olympus last issue and will remain there after the Avengers battle with the gods in issue #285.
The Beast: Hank McCoy joined the team in issue #137, gaining official status in issue #151. He remained a mainstay on the team until issue #211.
Falcon reluctantly joined the team in Avengers #181 so the team could fill a representation quota imposed on them by Henry Gyrich. When this demand was lifted, Falcon left the team in issue #194.
Hellcat is also pictured. She palled around with the Avengers from issue #144, but opted not to join the team when offered in issue #151.
Lastly, there is Ms. Marvel who became issue #175 and took a reserve role in issue #181. He later left the team under the mental control of her rapist, Marcus Immortus in issue #200. When she returned to Earth circa Avengers Annual #10, she wanted nothing to do with the team anymore as she felt they had abandoned her.
Gyrich was the team’s NSA liaison from Avengers #181 until Raymond Sikorski took over the role in issue #235. Until issue #191, Gyrich forced the Avengers to comply with his strict demands until they won the right to greater autonomy.
Jarvis recounted the times he was tied up by Yellowjacket and the Circus of Crime, this was in issues #59-60.
Tony has fallen off the wagon on two occasions. The first in Iron Man #127-128, in which Jarvis did resign only to come back and help Tony get back on his feet. The more recent instance lasted from Iron Man #167 through 182.