Bedlam

Origin

Jesse was born to Nina and Kyle Aaronson, information analysts at the National Department of Security. He was the second born after his brother Chris. He became orphaned at the age of 5 after his brother Christopher used his mutant powers to drive their father insane while driving, causing him to lose control of the family car, though he would not learn of his brother’s involvement until later in life. Jesse Aaronson was then placed in foster care. Separated from his brother, Jesse became emotionally unstable and was committed to a psychiatric institution after seeing several therapists. There his mutant power manifested, and Jesse’s doctor saw his condition as a means to getting a book published by subjecting him to a series of cruel tests. Jesse was rescued by a member of the Mutant Underground Support Engine (M.U.S.E.) named Lucas Wyndham. Wyndham put the boy into the care of Dr. Derek Parsons, who cared for Jesse’s well-being and became a father figure to the boy. It was then that the truth about the Mutant underground was revealed and he began his training to become a field agent. It was here that Jesse learned how to hack systems, get sensitive information and act as a field handler.

Creation

Jesse Bedlam is one of the few character to first appear outside 616 continuity. He first appeared in Factor X issue 1 (1995), part of the Age of Apocalypse crossover. His first appearance in main Marvel 616 continuity was in X-Force 82 (1998).

Mayor Story Arcs

Meeting Domino and X-Force

At the age of 19, Jesse left the Mutant Underground to seek out his brother. He enlisted the help of mutant spy/mercenary Domino to help him in his goal. He cut a deal with Domino, agreeing to give her the location of Ekatarina Gryaznova (the Prime Sentinel who implanted her with a neural-disruption device that shorted out her mutant powers during Operation: Zero Tolerance) in return for her aid in finding Christopher. Domino agreed, but only if Jesse took her to Gryaznova first. They broke into the Aguilar Institute, but Domino was captured. Jesse escaped and sought the help of the mutant strike team X-Force.

In the end, the team managed to free Domino and seemingly kill Gryphon. In the process, Jesse also short-circuited the implants that severely diminished her mutant powers. Keeping up her end of the bargain, Domino helped Jesse to find his brother. His parents were actually information analysts at the National Security Department. They paid a visit to

his parents’ former supervisor, Dabney Saunders, who was residing in a retirement home, babbling incoherent sentences. Domino, however, discovered the orderly in charge of Saunders, informing an unidentified man about their visit.

Both Bedlam and Domino broke into the mysterious man’s home using Jesse’s power and were subsequently attacked by Magma and Paradigm. Bedlam used his powers to disrupt Paradigm’s electronics, knocking out Magma in the process. However, they were subdued by none other than Jesse’s brother, Christopher. Christopher, calling himself King Bedlam, has the power to disrupt the higher functions of the brain. Chris was tagged as a mutant at the age of six by the N.S.D. and was taken into a research center after their parents’ death. At the age of 13 he fled, destroying Saunders mind in the process. He had now founded a new team of Hellions and offered an invitation of membership to Jesse, who gladly accepted. The group’s true intentions, however, were to reanimate the Armageddon Man in order to blackmail the U.S. government into paying them one billion dollars. X-Force managed to subdue the Armageddon Man, but the New Hellions to escaped. Jesse was invited back to join X-Force, as he was feeling sad due to the fact that he had just discovered that it was his brother responsible for their parents’ death.

Selene and Counter X

Jesse stayed with the team, and went on lots more missions, including going after the new Chaos bear, fighting Selene, the Aguilar Institute, and even Magneto. When the team went on a mission to Genosha, a woman by the name of Delphi gave Jesse a memory box that contained the knowledge of a master martial artist. Jesse then became a fully trained black belt,.

When X-force became a black ops team courtesy of Pete Wisdom, Jesse stayed and learned to use his powers from a distance. Domino soon returned before the team supposedly died but reappeared to fight the new X-Statix, except for Jesse. Months later, Jesse was crucified on the lawn of the institute alongside other mutants, including Jubilee, Magma and Skin. Whether Jesse lived or died was never confirmed at the time.

Re-Appearance on Krakoa

When Charles Xavier set his plan in motion to setup the island nation of Krakoa for mutants to live peacefully and finally away from human persecution, Jesse found himself living his best life among those like him. When Reavers attacked the island to eliminate Charles Xavier, they set off bombs and attacked many of the mutants there. Jesse was unharmed but was one of the first to jump into action and help the injured.

Powers and abilities

Bio-electric Field: His mutant ability allows him to generate a bio-EM field that wreaks havoc with electrical and mechanical systems, sense and perceive energy signatures, generate electromagnetic pulses, track others by their biological em signature, and can affect the neural chemical responses of a living brain to induce states such as pain, sleep, or confusion.

Bedlam has black belt level skill in karate due to memories of a karate master given to him by a Delphi box.

Skilled in covert ops such as stealth and info gathering.

Alternate versions

Age of Apocalypse

Age of Apocalypse is Jesse’s actual debut. He appears alongside his brother in the Age of Apocalypse. In this reality, he worked for Sinister in his pens, along with his brother, who is called Terrence. He also assisted Dark Beast in his medical labs experimenting on patients. Jesse and Terrance appear to be a very happy, brotherly bunch. Sinister states that most likely either of them would die for their brother, unlike Scott and Alex. He eventually turned on Havok, in order to help Cyclops and Jean Grey to escape the pens

Earth-10003

There was a version of Bedlam seen in an alternate Earth in X-Force issue 100. It is unknown if he was a member of X-Force as well.

Other Media

Film

Deadpool 2

Bedlam appears in Deadpool 2, played by Terry Crews. He is recruited to X-Force by Deadpool alongside Domino, Zeitgeist, Vanisher, Shatterstar and a human named Peter. In the film, he has the power to manipulate electrical fields. On the team’s first mission, Bedlam’s parachute landing goes badly and he collides with a moving bus, presumably dying as a result.