The X-Men's Rogue has a history of long and complicated romantic relationships; however, it's never stopped her from getting intimate with the Ragin' Cajun, Gambit. Even though she touches Gambit with no evident consequences, he has no immunity to her life absorption powers. Marvel fans have often pondered the question: how is it possible for Rogue to kiss her husband when she still has these absorption powers to this day?
Anna Marie's mutant gene activated during a date with a boy she had a crush on—Cody Robbins. As she felt the intense sensations of young love, she leaned in to kiss Cody but wound up draining his life and leaving him in a coma. Mystique eventually adopted and indoctrinated her into the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, where Rogue used her absorption powers for evil purposes. She permanently gained super speed, durability, and strength after draining the original Ms. Marvel's powers and memories. Carol Danvers' Kree physiology made her a powerhouse, but Rogue suffered from the memories that didn't belong to her. She eventually sought refuge with Professor Xavier and joined the X-Men in Chris Claremont and Walt Simonson's Uncanny X-Men #171.
Gambit first joined the X-Men in the 1990s. Although he gets no clear induction, he first fully appears in Claremont and Mike Collins' Uncanny X-Men #266, rescuing a young Storm from the Shadow King. Gambit and Rogue would soon enter a romantic relationship during the first few issues of Claremont, Jim Lee, and Scott Williams' infamous 1990s X-Men comics. While Kelly Thompson and Pere Pérez's Rogue & Gambit miniseries reveals that the Shadow King first had them hook up, they initially avoid any form of skin-to-skin contact in their relationship. Rogue and Gambit share their first genuine kiss during a final act of desperation in Fabian Nicieza, Andy Kubert, and Ron Garney's X-Men #41—just before the Age of Apocalypse.
After the kiss, Gambit falls into a coma, just like Cody Robbins. The kiss leaves Rogue feeling guilty. Furthermore, Rogue gains Gambit's memories, learning of his dark past, proving her physical contact with her boyfriend was a huge mistake. More significantly, she learns of his involvement with Mister Sinister when Gambit recruited the Marauders. One of the darkest moments in X-Men history was the Morlock Massacre; the Morlocks are a predominantly peaceful organization of mutants who feel safest in the tunnels of northeast America. Mister Sinister tasks Gambit to lead the Marauders into the tunnels to slaughter the refugee community of mutants. Even though he ultimately tries to stop the Marauders, Gambit's involvement in such a scheme shocks Rogue. It even causes her to leave the X-Men for a brief period of time.
Rogue's attempt at a kiss with Gambit leaves her traumatized for a long time, only adding to a fear of her powers. In Claremont and Salvadore Larroca's X-Treme X-Men #19, Rogue and Gambit lose their mutant powers after an encounter with Vargas. Losing their powers causes Rogue to get over most of her fear of intimacy, and the two temporarily retire from the X-Men. They travel on the road for a while, and while they are powerless, they still have their fair share of heroic adventures. They even come across a young mutant woman named Paint, who has the powers to tattoo skin with a mere touch. Rogue decides to mark herself with Paint's natural designs, commemorating her time as a powerless hero.
Unfortunately, this peaceful time doesn't last. The couple eventually rejoins the X-Men to take down Elias Bogan. Sage jumpstarts Gambit's powers again, and Rogue's mutant abilities come back naturally. Unfortunately, Rogue doesn't keep Ms. Marvel's Kree-based capabilities either, leaving her only with the memories of those she's drained and the powers she dreads the most. However, in Mike Carey and Scot Eaton's X-Men: Legacy #224, Professor Xavier says that the trauma of Rogue's encounter with Cody created partitions in her mind. These partitions and her fear of human contact have kept her from fully developing her powers. After tearing down the partitions, he says that she should begin to develop control over her absorption powers. Rogue tests this by kissing Gambit free from any negative side effects. The kiss is indeed a huge accomplishment, but Rogue still doesn't have complete control over her powers and would later continue to struggle with them.
Marc Guggenheim and David Marquez's X-Men: Gold #30 promised fans an X-Men wedding. Even though Kitty Pryde leaves Colossus on the altar during their long-awaited wedding day, Gambit proposes to Rogue, choosing not to waste the moment. While Kitty Pryde's cold feet disappoint longtime fans of her relationship with Colossus, the comic ends up being a pleasant surprise for Rogue and Gambit fans. The two marry in the same issue. Beast gifts Rogue a Mutant Power Dampening Collar, allowing her and Gambit to enjoy their honeymoon free from any worry. However, there is one caveat—after long periods of wearing the collar, Rogue suffers through bothersome headaches, which eventually turn into migraines.
As seen in Kelly Thompson and Jan Bazaldúa's Mr. & Mrs. X #1, Rogue's collar is probably the easiest way to keep her powers in check during her more extended periods of contact. More importantly, she finally has absolute freedom to touch anyone she wants (as long as she's willing to brave through a headache). If she ever needs to borrow someone's life force for any reason, all she has to do is remove the collar. Still, she managed to kiss Gambit during the X-Men: Legacy comics, and it never involved any collars, bracelets, or physical restrictions. So what's the ultimate secret to Rogue's mutant power; is there any way for her to control it?
Rogue never forgot Charles Xavier's advice on fear in X-Men: Legacy #224, which presents her with a new challenge in Thompson and Bazaldúa's Mr. & Mrs. X #9. In this issue, Rogue faces her demons and attempts to gain control of her power once and for all. An older Rogue talks to a young and scared version of herself, stating that only one person should have control over Rogue's draining powers, and that's Rogue. The more experienced Rogue, wearing her iconic 1990s outfit, reveals, "control was always possible, but we had to conquer our fear. Instead we kept doubling down on it." The exchange ends with the Rogues grabbing each other's arms, ready to confront her fears and fully control whatever lies next for her in the Marvel Universe.
While the Power Dampening Collar offers Rogue worry-free protection (aside from the headaches), controlling and triumphing over her fears rewards fans of the character with a redemptive and triumphant storyline. Nevertheless, dominating anxiety isn't an easy task either; it can be stressful for Rogue to control her fears. After all, fear is a regular human emotion. There are no promises that her mutant ability won't be beyond Rogue's control again. In fact, her absorption power usually grows in uncontrollable strength after long periods of nullification. It's also unlikely that Rogue will live the rest of her life free from fear. Still, it's exciting that Rogue finally has a definitive understanding of how her mutant powers work, and she has a number of options to be physically intimate with her husband, Gambit.
Luckily for Mr. and Mrs. X, Rogue isn't as restricted by her powers as she used to be. She still can't fluently tap in and out of control, but that's what Beast's Mutant Power Dampening Collar is for. While it had its rough patches, Gambit and Rogue's triumphant love story promises fans that their best X-Men moments could still be ahead of them.
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