Richard Rider is the last of the Nova Corps, has all their combined powers, and communicates instantly and constantly with the Worldmind. He’s basically freelancing, flying all over the galaxy to clean up messes left in the aftermath of the Annihilation event, but ends up in a “super gravitational event” that pulls him back to Earth.

S.H.I.E.L.D. director Iron Man detects his arrival and asks him to register but he’s reluctant to do so. Rider learns what was happening on Earth while the Annihilation Event occurred while he is reunited with some old friends and his family. He also gets reacquainted with old enemies.

Piledriver wears a jacket for a disguise, but it’s a parka. Does that count for my trenchcoat tag, below? Yes. Yes it does. It’s another example of using a coat to magically hide monstrously abnormal physical characteristics.

Nova’s new insane power level means old foes like Diamondhead are no problem for him now.

Ultimately, he finds himself up against the Thunderbolts until Iron Man steps in and forces them to stand down.

Later, he learns that Penance is actually Speedball, and Robbie Baldwin makes a pitch for Nova to join the Thunderbolts.

When that fails, Iron Man proves himself to be surprisingly reasonable…

Nova decides to leave Earth, saying that he can be of more use in outer space.

Excellent three issues. The next arc ties into the second Annihilation event, Annihilation Conquest.