In the ever-evolving landscape of comics, there are simply some things that should not have happened. In Retcon This!, we examine some of the more questionable aspects of our beloved characters’ sordid histories.

No, I’m not calling for a rewrite on The Good Book. Rather, a new look at a character who’s been in a few bad ones. Bennet du Paris is a failed experiment in awesome that had such potential and went so far awry. But to figure out just what went wrong, we have to take a look back at his character’s past to see where he lost his way.

Debuting in the Fatal Attractions crossover, Exodus was the herald of Magneto, sent to gather mutants worthy of a life free from strife on Avalon, Magneto’s orbital base. All the good little mutants of the world, being mistrusting of Magneto as they were, engaged in battle with Exodus and were given a taste of his abilities. It wasn’t, however, until the subsequent Bloodties crossover that the heroes discovered the full scope of  Exodus’ power, which is to say that it was seemingly limitless. Ultimately, Exodus was brought down by the Black Knight of the Avengers… a character he’d be shown to have a history with, later.

Of course, this wouldn’t be the last we’d see of Exodus. He’d appear at random intervals, sometimes devoutly devoted to Magneto, other times interested in nothing but his own ascension. We’d get his origin, convoluted in and of itself, wherein we learned 700 years ago he was a Crusader alongside the Black Knight of that time period. After seeking out the legend of Apocalypse, however, his mutant powers were revealed and he was pitted against his former friend, now possessed by the Black Knight of our time… you know, the one who we’d already seen defeat him. Well, the Black Knight would once again get the better of him, this time convincing him to betray Apocalypse. For this, the ancient mutant sealed Exodus away in the Swiss Alps, where he’d eventually be freed by Magneto and resultantly pledge himself to the Master of Magnetism’s cause.

Are you following this? The Black Knight defeats Exodus, herald of Magneto, then goes back in time and convinces Exodus to turn on Apocalypse, which leads him… that’s right! To eventually become the herald of Magneto. It’s a causality loop that doesn’t end there, because this wouldn’t be the last time the two tangled.

Exodus would be repeatedly misused in the years to come… first leading a Brotherhood of Evil Mutants that included Juggernaut (not a mutant) and which had no distinct agenda besides attacking the X-Men. Later, he’d throw in with Mr. Sinister for no apparent reason but once again attacking the X-Men. The problem with either of these plots is that Exodus’s character had been too distinctly developed to use him as “random villainous team leader.” He was too established as his own man for either of these turns to make any sense.

Finally, Exodus would get a chance to shine, if but for a moment, when after Messiah Complex he stole away the body of Xavier in an attempt to reshape the mutant leader’s mind. Presented with a depowered Magneto and an uninterested Xavier, Exodus prepared to once again wage war, until Xavier made an impassioned plea - with so few mutants remaining on Earth, why fight amongst themselves? It was a time for all mutants to unite. And then the Utopia story took over the book and Exodus was left behind. He and his team have been MIA since.

Clearly, what Bennet du Paris lacks is a clear place within the Marvel Universe. After an exciting debut, he was squandered. Too powerful to openly fight the X-Men very often, he’s instead left as more of a political character. Yet, thanks to Xavier and Magneto always having represented the opposing viewpoints, there was never really a place for Exodus. He was, perhaps, at his best in the wake of Xavier’s mindwiping of Magneto. Exodus positioned himself as a prophet of the comatose master of magnetism, but was in fact only attempting to cement his own power base. This revealed not only the falsehood of his fealty to Magneto, but the direction of his own ambition as well. Sadly, none of this went anywhere, and Exodus seems too often a samurai without a master.

Fortunately, there are ample solutions to Exodus’ predicament. The least retconny? Upon the inevitable return of the Sentry/Void, position Exodus as an asset against the power of Robert Reynolds. The two have demonstrated nearly equal levels of power, and to have The Void’s first rampage upon his return halted by Exodus would certainly earn Bennet some cred, and might help establish a place in the 616 for Bob, as well. However, to make Exodus little more than an enforcer against another powerhouse would be selling him short. No, my plans for Paris are far grander.

Didja click the link? No? Boooo! Long story short, bring Exodus back to his roots (sort of) as a servant of Apocalypse. But don’t merely bend his will to serve Apocalypse now. That would give the character a future, but do nothing to clean up his wishy-washy, here-today-gone-tomorrow past. No, I propose you reveal him to have been a pawn of Apocalypse this whole time, his every action having been part of Apocalypse’s tests to determine who would be fit to serve him and who would need to be culled. It elevates Apocalypse as a mastermind, it explains Exodus’s shifting allegiances and long absences, and most of all, it gives the Uncanny X-Force an adversary worthy of their combined might; one equally capable of taking the best (or worst) they have to offer and dishing it right back out.

Or, you could just keep have him pinballing around the 616 with no clear motivation, serving as a lackey to whomever will have him. I hear Dr. Doom may be hiring soon.