The Hood is faced with Thanos, clutching an Infinity Gem and bargaining for the rest. Thanos tells the Hood that no mortal has ever handled the Infinity Gems and lived, but he will give the Hood anything he wants in exchange for the gems. The former crime boss petulantly calls his bluff, and soon "Thanos" drops his subterfuge and comes out as Doctor Strange. Together with the Avengers, Doctor Strange tries to wrest the gems from the Hood by force. Iron Man tackles him but Robbins uses the Reality Gem to make Iron Man disappear. Red Hulk attacks with the Power Gem, but the Hood tries to escape through all kinds of different realities, including ones populated by the Marvel Zombies and the Squadron Supreme. Eventually, he turns to face the Red Hulk, announcing that he doesn't care if reality is ripped apart or not. But as the Hood focuses on Red Hulk, he misses the fact that Iron Man has returned and now dons the Infinity Gauntlet, with nearly all the gems placed in his grip...and then he seizes Robbins' final gem, making a complete collection. The Hood scorns Iron Man and the rest of the heroes, telling them they'd all do anything to get their power back if they lost it, and that they wouldn't have done anything different if they'd come into possession of the gems. Iron Man tells him that is not true, and he uses the Gauntlet to send Robbins back to his cell at the Rykers, and then announces to the Avengers that he is going to use the Gauntlet to wish the Gauntlet and the gems out of existence. As the Avengers disperse, Steve Rogers invites the Red Hulk to join the team, after witnessing his valor in the field. Later, Iron Man meets with the rest of the Illuminati. Wishing away the Gauntlet was just a ruse, partly because Iron Man wasn't sure how the universe might respond to the destruction of the gems. The Illuminati are once again going to break apart the Gauntlet's gems and hide them, only this time, Steve Rogers is in it with them.