James Rhodes, or Rhodey for short, was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a child, he suffered racist abuse and was sent to a juvenile correctional facility for defending his friend Glenda Sandoval from bullies. He later joined the Marines and became a skilled pilot and an aviation engineer. He met Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, in Southeast Asia when enemy forces shot down their helicopters. They teamed up to escape and became close friends. Stark offered Rhodes a job as his pilot and confidant at Stark Industries.

Rhodes first wore the Iron Man armor in 1983, when Stark struggled with alcoholism and needed someone to take his place as a superhero. Rhodes continued to wear the armor for several years until it started to affect his mental health due to a lack of proper calibration. He gave up the armor and returned to Stark Industries, where he helped Stark recover from his addiction and reclaim his role as Iron Man.

In 1992, after Stark was seemingly killed by his rival Obadiah Stane, Rhodes inherited a new armor that Stark had secretly designed for him. He reluctantly became Iron Man again but soon discovered that Stark had faked his death and was working on a new body for himself. Feeling betrayed, Rhodes cut ties with Stark and adopted a new identity as War Machine, a more militaristic and aggressive hero. He also joined Force Works, a spin-off team of the Avengers.

As War Machine, Rhodes has been involved in many important events in the Marvel Universe, such as:

– The Crossing: A crossover event where it was revealed that Stark had been brainwashed by Kang the Conqueror and had killed several Avengers. Rhodes teamed up with a teenage version of Stark from an alternate timeline to stop him.
– Civil War: A crossover event where superheroes were divided over the Superhuman Registration Act, a law that required them to reveal their identities and work for the government. Rhodes sided with Iron Man and the pro-registration faction but later regretted his decision when he saw how it affected his friends.
– Secret Invasion: A crossover event where it was revealed that many superheroes had been replaced by shape-shifting aliens called Skrulls. Rhodes led a team of Initiative recruits to fight against them.
– Dark Reign: A crossover event where Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin, took over the superhero community and formed his version of the Avengers. Rhodes opposed him and started his team of renegade heroes.
– Heroic Age: A crossover event where the superhero community was restored to its former glory after Osborn’s downfall. Rhodes rejoined the Avengers and became the director of Worldwatch, an organization that monitored global threats.
– Avengers vs. X-Men: A crossover event where the Avengers and the X-Men clashed over the fate of the Phoenix Force, a cosmic entity that possessed five mutants. Rhodes sided with the Avengers and fought against the Cyclops.
– Civil War II: A crossover event where superheroes were divided over using Ulysses Cain, an Inhuman who could predict future events. Rhodes sided with Captain Marvel and the pro-Ulysses faction but was killed by Thanos during a mission.

Here are some interesting trivia about War Machine that you may not know:

– He has a degree in aviation engineering from MIT.
– He has a son named Terrence Rhodes with his ex-wife Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel.
– He once became a cyborg after losing his limbs in an explosion, but later regained his human body thanks to Stark’s technology.
– He once became Iron Patriot, a patriotic version of Iron Man, after Osborn’s Dark Reign ended.
– He once cheated death when Stark used biomechanical enhancements to revive him after Thanos killed him.

War Machine has appeared in various media outside of comics, such as:

– Movies: He is portrayed by Don Cheadle in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where he is a colonel in the US Air Force and a member of the Avengers. He first appeared in Iron Man 2 (2010) and has since appeared in several other films, such as Avengers: Endgame (2019).
– TV Shows: He has appeared in several animated shows, such as Iron Man: Armored Adventures (2008-2012), where he is voiced by Daniel Bacon, and Avengers Assemble (2013-2019), where Bumper Robinson voices him.
– Video Games: He has appeared in several video games, such as Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (2006), where he is voiced by Terrence Carson, and Marvel’s Avengers (2020), where Phil LaMarr voices him.