Cameron Hodge
AKA: The Commander
First Appearance: As himself in X-Factor 1; in monster body in New Mutants 95; as part of Phalanx in Uncanny X-Men 305
Presumed Killed In: Cable 16, not that he can really die, of course.
What's His Problem? Hodge was a normal rich guy who just happened to really hate mutants. It stemmed from jealousy over his prep-school roommate, Warren Worthington III, better known as the Angel. Cameron worshipped Warren, at least as a child. They were great friends for years, but Warren didn't realize that Hodge was becoming violently mutant-phobic. He tricked Warren and his old X-Men teammates into becoming X-Factor, a team of "human mutant-hunters." Hodge and his group, the Right, were precursors to the Friends of Humanity. His plots and organization were incredibly complicated, but they, unlike FOH, had a true purpose. The Right truly were the best anti-mutant group around.
Powers: Hodge originally just had a lot of cool anti-mutant gear, including a robot double encased in ruby quartz. After he entered into a demon-pact with N'astrih (the same demon that turned Jason Macendale into the Demogoblin) he gained immortality. Because of his demon-pact, Hodge cannot die, no matter what. Even if his head is chopped off, even if he is crushed under a building, even if he is reduced to his component molecules, he never dies. Never loses sentience, consciousness, the knowledge of who and what he is, although being reduced to this state doesn't do much to improve his state of mind.
Favorite Quote: "Hi. I'm Cameron Hodge. You, I wager, are Psylocke. Wave bye-bye to the nice lady, Wolverine. Next time you see her, assuming I leave your eyes, I doubt she'll look anywhere near as pretty." (Uncanny X-Men 272)
Heroes He Keeps Running Into: While controlling the Right, Hodge fought X-Factor, the New Mutants, and then Archangel, who played "Highlander" with his metal wings and Hodge's neck. He fought all of the X-Men during the X-Tinction Agenda, and battled them again during the Phalanx Covenant.
People Who Think He's Not So Bad: The original X-Factor liked him, before they realized he was a mutant-hating basket case. Angel was his best friend for years. His lackeys in the Right and Genosha obeyed him, and hey, doesn't everyone in the Phalanx like each other?
Most Despicable Act: While killing the New Mutant Warlock, stealing Angel's fortune and then blowing up his plane were pretty nasty things to do, Hodge is best known for giving into the Gwen Stacy Syndrome, the term coined by Our Editor for the frivalous deaths of female characters. Hodge killed Candy Southern in X-Factor 36, and then brought her back to kill her again in Uncanny 305 -- a rare GSS double-header! Hodge obsesses over Warren but hates mutants, so he kidnaps his girlfriend, tortures her, then sets it up so that when Archangel rescues her, she dies. Just your typical obsessive-love-hate-desire-rejection psychosis!
Special Thanks: To Brucha S. Meyers for some insight into Hodge's mind.
by Bobby Coakley
Cameron Hodge Sound Bytes
From X-Men: The Animated Series. All sounds in .wav format
"I'm Cameron Hodge, former liason to the Genoshan government."
