Cameron Hodge


Cameron Hodge is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, usually as an adversary in stories featuring the X-Men. Created by writer Bob Layton and artist Jackson Guice, he first appeared as a supporting character in X-Factor #1.

Publication history

Cameron Hodge first appeared in X-Factor #1, and was created by Bob Layton and Jackson Guice. The book was a spinoff of Uncanny X-Men featuring an eponymous team composed of the original five members of the X-Men. Hodge is a founding member of X-Factor and works as the group's public relations agent. Later, under writer Louise Simonson, Hodge was revealed to be secretly acting against X-Factor as the leader of the Right (comics)|Right], an anti-mutant terrorist organization. He is decapitated in a confrontation with Angel, but his head is later revealed to have been attached to a large robotic body during the 1990 storyline "X-Tinction Agenda". Hodge is later revealed in a 1993 storyline to have merged with the extraterrestrial cybernetic race known as the Phalanx.
In 1989 an entry for Cameron Hodge was included in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89 #3, a reference book that served as a biographical encyclopedia of Marvel Comics' characters.

Fictional character biography

X-Factor and The Right

Hodge is a founding member of X-Factor and serves as its public relations agent; he is also the former college roommate of co-founder Warren Worthington III, also known as Angel. Under Hodge's plan, the members of X-Factor contact and teach young mutants while posing as professional mutant hunters.
Hodge is later revealed to have been secretly acting against X-Factor. The company's advertising campaign actually increased anti-mutant hysteria. In addition, the team suffers a series of major setbacks. After suffering severe injuries during the Mutant Massacre, Angel has his wings amputated, and then seemingly dies in a private jet explosion. Tensions arise between X-Factor members Cyclops and Marvel Girl when Cyclops sees manifestations of the Phoenix around Jean Grey. X-Factor later discovered that Hodge had orchestrated Angel's amputation and plane accident and had created holograms simulating the Phoenix Force. They also discover that Hodge had secretly been the commander of an anti-mutant terrorist group known as the Right. He had fully intended to exacerbate anti-mutant tensions through his advertising campaign.
Hodge and The Right form a pact with the extradimensional demonic entity N'astirh. In exchange for collecting mutant babies the Right needed for a spell to open up a portal from Limbo to Earth, N'astirh promises Hodge immortality and the continued existence of The Right and its work creating conflict between humans and mutants. Hodge later kidnaps and kills Candy Southern, Warren's former girlfriend. Warren is revealed to have survived the plane explosion and is transformed into Archangel by Apocalypse. Archangel invades the Right's headquarters and confronts Hodge, decapitating him.
Hodge's efforts would provide unexpected blows against his enemies. The Ani-Mator, one of his armored employees, goes on to kill Cypher, a member of the New Mutants. Another employee, Eleanor Murch, would end up becoming the powerful cyberneticist Nanny. With the assistance of Orphan-Maker, she battles the X-Men multiple times.

"X-Tinction Agenda"

During the 1990 crossover storyline "X-Tinction Agenda", Cameron Hodge is revealed to be alive. His severed head has been attached to a large robotic body, a fate Hodge says he survived as a result of the pact he made with N'astirh. Hodge has allied with the government of the island nation of Genosha, where mutants are enslaved as obedient servants. Hodge and the Genoshan government launch an attack upon the X-Men, X-Factor, and the New Mutants. During these events, Warlock is killed in the course of Hodge's experiments upon him. His captives free themselves and defeat Hodge, whose still-surviving head is buried beneath a collapsed building.

Phalanx

In a 1993 storyline, Cameron Hodge is revealed to have merged with the Phalanx, a cybernetic alien species. He is again apparently killed by Archangel. Hodge is defeated by Steven Lang when the Phalanx's human interface causes the Phalanx citadel to fall from the top of Mount Everest.

Purifiers

Cameron Hodge's remains are found in the Himalayas by a group of Purifiers. He is later revived when Bastion infects him with the transmode virus gained from one of Magus' offspring. At Cypher's behest, Warlock kills Hodge and his army of "Smileys" by absorbing their life force.

Powers and abilities

When first revealed to be a villain, Cameron Hodge was the commander of The Right, and had access to all the weaponry and resources of the organization, including a ruby quartz battle suit capable of deflecting Cyclops's optic blasts. The demonic being N'astirh granted Hodge immortality, that allowed his head to survive after being decapitated.
In his cyborg form, he had the ability to become intangible and used various special weapons. His spider/scorpionlike robot body was equipped with tentacles, a powerful stinger, plasma and laser weapons, and a molecular adhesive gun, and could also fire bolas, knives and spears of varying sizes. He also possessed a high degree of invulnerability, enough to protect him from the combined attacks of Storm, Cyclops and Jean Grey. This effect was supposedly augmented by external generators linked to his mainframe computer. When these had been destroyed, Cyclops and Havok could destroy his mechanical body, but not kill him. In addition, in his mechanical body's first appearance, it had a cardboard cutout of a man's suit and body that hung from Hodge's neck, presenting, in his mind, a more normal appearance when his attempt to absorb Warlock's techno-organic abilities had failed.
As part of the Phalanx, he had all their typical abilities, but seemingly lost his magical protection.

Other versions

"House of M"

An alternate universe version of Cameron Hodge from Earth-58163 appears in House of M. This version is a member of the Human Liberation Front, a human supremacist terrorist group, before being killed by Noriko Ashida.

Amalgam

Maxwell Hodge, a fusion of Cameron Hodge and DC Comics character Maxwell Lord, appears in the Amalgam Comics one-shot ''JLX Unleashed.''

''X-Men Forever''

An alternate universe version of Cameron Hodge appears in X-Men Forever.

In other media