When I first became a fan of X-Men, it was at the end of my childhood, pushing ever onward into early adolescence. It was first introduced to them by a kid on my bus who collected the X-Men trading cards. I was hooked and moved on from there. Rogue quickly became the character for me, she was sassy, sexy, unbelievably strong and yet tragically untouchable (what a great attribute for someone entering the uncomfortable world of teenage living).
Then Bryan Singer's X1 came about, I didn't have the internet yet, so the hype I heard was through peers and darnit was I excited. ROGUE was going to be in it! I got the film for my birthday on VHS and watched it. This was Rogue's origin story. The character of Rogue was handled with such dignity and grace, by the actors and director that I just fell in love with her all over again. And perhaps it resounded with me further, a character who can no longer love who she wants to for fear of losing them, as I was struggling with my sexuality (of course, how angsty!). The absolute shock of realization that things will never be the same, the fear of being close to people, the knowledge that you won't get to experience the same things that others will - and all of those things are handled clearly in the story, not just something my unconscious mind picked up on. And all of these things came to a soft resolve for her by the end of the film.
X2 came along, helmed by Bryan Singer again, and there wasn't a doubt in my mind that I wasn't going to enjoy it. I saw it and I fell further into the X-Men universe, drawn to the ever present theme of acceptance and fear and hope. Rogue has settled in, has a boyfriend with eyes only for her and she loves it. The new issues she is dealing with is how to be intimate with him and Wolverine comes flying up the drive and she smiles in delight, reminding me of the importance of the human connections we make and how the things we do affect others so completely. These characters were and are so real to me. During the raid she realizes she must help Logan, but cannot do it on her own, pleading with John and Bobby to do something, they would rather have ran away. Rogue finally gets another kiss after her first one (from X1) ended so horribly and for a brief second things seem to work out. But, like life, she is reminded that she is different and things just won't be that easy. But there is no moping about this issue, she doesn't pout over what happens with Bobby in his bedroom. She is speaking with his parents, interjecting "Bobby IS gifted." "You should see what he can do." In a sense she was defending her comfort with being a mutant and being surrounded by them. Taking a dramatic step forward, Rogue is confronted with heroic decision making in the next scene when she chooses to stop Pyro, a decision that no one else was going to make it seems. Embracing her power, she readily absorbs him and beckons the flames away. Asking later on the X-Jet, "When do we get uniforms?", speaks of her readiness to join the team of mutants, accepting what she is and wanting great things out of it. And then once again, with Bobby sitting back (not to knock on Bobby), Rogue becomes "sick of this kid's table *****!" and grabs the controls of a highly sophisticated jet, something she appears to have never done before, "piloting" it to rescue her family (the X-Men, Logan, the children). And even though this series of events leads to Jean's sacrifice (don't even get me started at how beautiful that was), Rogue is seen in the ranks of the X-Men at the end, in uniform, standing with Xavier as he tries to persuade the president to look towards a better tomorrow.
Alright, so then X3 comes along and craps all over that great setup. I understand that the short novel I just wrote was overly dramatic, it's just how I honestly feel. And the first two films really gave each character, no matter how insignifant their part may seem to anyone, a sense of dignity and a heart.
DKDetectiveElementary, Dear Robin (he/him)
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