Biography
Mesmero was originally a small time crook who posed as a stage hypnotist at high society parties. He would use his mutant powers to 'mesmerize' guests into giving him their possessions and then making them forget about them. Mesmero drew the attention of Magneto, who wanted him to hypnotize Lorna Dane into believing that she was Magneto's daughter. Mesmero successfully took control of large numbers of latent mutants, and captured Lorna Dane. Mesmero was then revealed to be the aide to Magneto, and battled the X-Men in the city of the Demi-Men. Mesmero's master was later revealed to be a robot in the form of Magneto, and a Sentinel attack resulted in Mesmero being captured by Sentinels. Much later, Mesmero had become a carnival manager and mentally compelled the X-Men to serve as carnival performers. The X-Men freed themselves from his control, and as Mesmero then attacked the X-Men, the real Magneto appeared. The Master of Magnetism overpowered Mesmero and rendered him unconscious. Magneto then stranded him in a South American jungle. Mesmero later performed in a Broadway stage show in New York City, where he battled Spider-Man. Mesmero later escaped to Canada. There, he contended with Alpha Flight and was captured by Persuasion. Mesmero later posed as a psychoanalyst to powerful clients in London. He took control of Excalibur and used them to battle Fenris. Mesmero was defeated by Lockheed the dragon and students from St. Searle's School for Young Ladies. Mesmero has encountered the X-Men on a few other occasions as well as teams such as X-Factor, and the Dark Riders. The Dark Riders intended to kill him, as they believe he was weak. Mesmero uses his powers to convince them they had thrown him off a high ledge. With Alpha Flight, Mesmero takes over the minds of the junior members and is eventually stopped by the senior ones. When Mesmero joined the latest incarnation of the Weapon X program, the Director offered to increase Mesmero's hypnotic powers. Mesmero agreed and gained the ability to control entire crowds with a mere glance, instead of a mere handful of people. To keep the public unaware of the "Neverland" mutant concentration camp, Mesmero posed as a government liaison. With this identity, he informed news reporters that "Neverland" doesn't exist nor is the government involved in abducting mutants. While he was a member of Weapon X, Mesmero visited his dying mother. He had doctors help her as much as they could and used his powers to mesmerise his mother into believing she was healthy as ever. His mother knew it was an illusion, though, and she told him that she knew shortly before she died. Subsequently, Mesmero began to lose confidence in himself which caused him to lose his powers. Mesmero was transported to Neverland upon the Director's discovery of his power loss. Brent Jackson, planning on raising a coup on Weapon X, rescued Mesmero. Mesmero spent several months in seclusion as Jackson helped him get his confidence back, and with it his powers. Ironically, Mesmero eventually lost his powers for good (along with most of the world's mutants) when the Scarlet Witch altered reality at the climax of the House of M event. Devastated and ruined, the once-great supervillain was forced into poverty. Mesmero finally achieved a personal triumph by forming a relationship with a woman who had saved his life, promising to somehow help her in turn. She put her trust in him freely and unconditionally, something he had never managed before without the aid of his powers. At this, Mesmero decided to put his past behind him and begin living as Vincent.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Hyper-Hypnosis: Mesmero is or was the most powerful hypnotic man on the planet. His powers allowed him to manipulate even the most powerful of telepaths with nothing but eye contact. Once within eye contact, the person is completely under his control until the effect fades away or Mesmero reaserts it.The exact time that he can keep a person Hypnotized is not known and can change from person to person but it can take hours to disappear.Usually the person regains conscience with litlle or no memories of the last hours. Under Mesmero’s control, the victim obeys him as much as they possibly can. In the case of mutants or super humans, they are able to use their abilities for Mesmero's purposes. He can create illusions, make a person feel or not feel pain, and even make a person think they’re injured. Mesmero can implant false memories or erase existing ones and shape a completely new personality. If he looks at a group of people, he is able to control the entire group. Mesmero’s powers were augmented by the Weapon X Program. During this time, he implanted key phrases in Sabretooth's mind to control his savageness. Phrases such as "wax off" made him become controllable while "wax on" made him a savage . This "trigger" was used by the Director of Weapon X to keep Creed on a tight leash. Mesmero also convinced Marrow he was another person and took advantage of her. She figured out it was him after awhile, and the trick never worked on her again. Vincent’s abilities were hard-wired to his personality and since he was a very self confident person, his powers were very strong. But after mother died, he lost his confidence and in turn, lost his ability to control people.
- He exhibited the ability to shoot "mutant energy blasts." Scott claimed the energy to be radio wave energy.