So, let me get this straight Marvel Comics. You want to push The X-Men and convince people you haven't given up on them so your solution is throwing ten X-Men books at the wall and seeing what sticks and the one character who can literally do everything every other mutant character can do doesn't get a book? Man, you're lucky your movies are good. Today I give you my Pitch-It for a Rogue solo series!
So usually when I pitch a comic book story I go for team-oriented stories, but I've had this idea for a while now and I'd like to see it realized. As you may have read from my Top 5 about characters I wanted to see in "Marvel vs Capcom Infinite", I wanted to see a version of Rogue who can tap into the powers of all the mutants she's come in contact with in the past. Yeah, we're doing that idea. In the pages of the current event "Secret Empire", Captain "Hail Hydra" America's mutant cronies Xorn and Emma Frost have discovered a way to activate a "Second Mutation" within mutants. The idea of a "Second Mutation" was established by Grant Morrison is the early 2000's and basically gave writers an explanation to new looks and powers for X-Men characters. What I would establish is that during "Secret Empire" the mutant Avenger/X-Men Rogue escapes from a mutant concentration camp, breaks into a lab, and then-in order to defeat a horde of Hydra robots-takes the Second Mutation serum and taps into the powers of The X-Men. The rule being she can only access one character at a time. She uses her powers to spring the other X-Men out of the camps and take the fight to Cap.
After that whole mess, Cable runs some tests and finds Rogue's new powers aren't permanent-she has about thirty days-and Rogue also discovers she can't access the same character twice. In Rogue's case she doesn't start running out for a while, after all the mutants she's touched and how many of them have similar powers. Luckily she can reuse certain characters by simply absorbing them again. Unluckily, due to her using so many mutant powers Cable also reasons her original powers will inverse after the thirty-day period. "What? Like I'll die" Rogue asks. "Actually" Cable replies, "It's worse". Tests show that when this period ends Rogue's original power of draining life essences will reverse and she will be drained. Her powers go first, then her vitality, and finally her life.
Rogue asks around the superhero community and almost everyone comes up short. It doesn't help that Mr. Fantastic is missing, Iron Man is in a coma, Hank Pym is Ultron, and Beast is in prison for the events of "Secret Empire". Rogue runs to any other geniuses she can like Black Panther and Victor Von Doom and even Spider-Man, but the whole time finds she is being followed. Confronting her stalker Rogue faces Danger-the robot incarnation of The Danger Room. Danger's programming restricts her from killing any member of The X-Men, and early on her whole goal was killing them as revenge against Professor X for containing her consciousness. But after a few years she became a member of the X-Men and left that revenge in the past. Until-another idea of mine-someone implanted her with Sentinel Programming. Now Danger wants to fight Rogue and get her to exhaust all her mutant powers. By countering all of Rogue's powers Danger believes she will then be able to kill each individual X-Man. Basically, she is using Rogue as practice.
Between battles with Danger, Rogue decides to go to The Inhuman Royal Family. Their alien technology and previous encounters with the mutants may give them some idea of how to cure Rogue. Mutants and Inhumans aren't buddy-buddy so she brings her Inhuman Avengers teammate Synapse with her. With the Inhumans in space and the best space ships belonging to Alpha Flight, Rogue must confront Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers. This is extremely awkward for the two of them due to Rogue stealing Carol's powers back in the 80's and keeping them for several decades. Due to their unique psychic link, Carol receives a vision of Danger coming to Alpha Flight after Rogue and Synapse leave and killing everyone. And after "Civil War II" we know Carol believes in visions. Carol is so mentally stunned she lashes out against Rogue. Members of Alpha Flight battle Rogue too believing she caused Carol to freak out. The battle is stopped by Danger who used the weakened state of the heroes to stab Carol through the chest and escape with Rogue.
When Rogue wakes up she's in an old Danger Room bunker and Danger basically explains they are going to fight over and over until Danger has all the information she needs. But "What a Twist" as Rogue becomes Alpha Flight member Aurora and Rogue, Captain Marvel, and Alpha Flight bust in. Rogue reveals she tapped into Moonstar's illusion powers to make Aurora look like her, then used Elixir's powers to cure Captain Marvel, and then used Alpha Flight's tracking tech to find them. They fight, Danger gets wrecked, and Rogue is halfway out of powers and it's only been three days. The next day, Cable delivers a device containing DNA samples off all the X-Men he could contact, and even a few he didn't think were good guys anymore. This gives Rogue a type of Rolodex of mutant powers to recharge from. Captain Marvel and Alpha Flight give Rogue and Synapse a space ship, coordinates to The Royals, and offer to study Danger for whatever programming led her down this path.
So what now? Will The Inhumans help Rogue? Who programmed Danger to be a mutant-killing machine? Will she reactivate? Will Rogue survive the next twenty-something days? I don't know, haven't given it further thought, but I think this type of book would really help The X-Men in general. You'll notice this story involves characters other than The X-Men, but current X-Men books are pretty segregated to mutant-only characters. If any character is going to represent mutant-kind and be a bridge between mutants and non-mutants it should be Rogue. Being able to absorb anybody's abilities and knowledge basically makes Rogue a encyclopedia of individuals. And I like the idea of giving Rogue so much power she's like a mutant Superman. It's all these powers and the rules of them and her time limit that makes her story much more compelling than any other current X-Men. And upon further story-telling Rogue could easily become the most important mutant of our era. Move over, Logan. Rogue is the top-dog now.
Thanks for reading.
After that whole mess, Cable runs some tests and finds Rogue's new powers aren't permanent-she has about thirty days-and Rogue also discovers she can't access the same character twice. In Rogue's case she doesn't start running out for a while, after all the mutants she's touched and how many of them have similar powers. Luckily she can reuse certain characters by simply absorbing them again. Unluckily, due to her using so many mutant powers Cable also reasons her original powers will inverse after the thirty-day period. "What? Like I'll die" Rogue asks. "Actually" Cable replies, "It's worse". Tests show that when this period ends Rogue's original power of draining life essences will reverse and she will be drained. Her powers go first, then her vitality, and finally her life.
Rogue asks around the superhero community and almost everyone comes up short. It doesn't help that Mr. Fantastic is missing, Iron Man is in a coma, Hank Pym is Ultron, and Beast is in prison for the events of "Secret Empire". Rogue runs to any other geniuses she can like Black Panther and Victor Von Doom and even Spider-Man, but the whole time finds she is being followed. Confronting her stalker Rogue faces Danger-the robot incarnation of The Danger Room. Danger's programming restricts her from killing any member of The X-Men, and early on her whole goal was killing them as revenge against Professor X for containing her consciousness. But after a few years she became a member of the X-Men and left that revenge in the past. Until-another idea of mine-someone implanted her with Sentinel Programming. Now Danger wants to fight Rogue and get her to exhaust all her mutant powers. By countering all of Rogue's powers Danger believes she will then be able to kill each individual X-Man. Basically, she is using Rogue as practice.
Between battles with Danger, Rogue decides to go to The Inhuman Royal Family. Their alien technology and previous encounters with the mutants may give them some idea of how to cure Rogue. Mutants and Inhumans aren't buddy-buddy so she brings her Inhuman Avengers teammate Synapse with her. With the Inhumans in space and the best space ships belonging to Alpha Flight, Rogue must confront Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers. This is extremely awkward for the two of them due to Rogue stealing Carol's powers back in the 80's and keeping them for several decades. Due to their unique psychic link, Carol receives a vision of Danger coming to Alpha Flight after Rogue and Synapse leave and killing everyone. And after "Civil War II" we know Carol believes in visions. Carol is so mentally stunned she lashes out against Rogue. Members of Alpha Flight battle Rogue too believing she caused Carol to freak out. The battle is stopped by Danger who used the weakened state of the heroes to stab Carol through the chest and escape with Rogue.
When Rogue wakes up she's in an old Danger Room bunker and Danger basically explains they are going to fight over and over until Danger has all the information she needs. But "What a Twist" as Rogue becomes Alpha Flight member Aurora and Rogue, Captain Marvel, and Alpha Flight bust in. Rogue reveals she tapped into Moonstar's illusion powers to make Aurora look like her, then used Elixir's powers to cure Captain Marvel, and then used Alpha Flight's tracking tech to find them. They fight, Danger gets wrecked, and Rogue is halfway out of powers and it's only been three days. The next day, Cable delivers a device containing DNA samples off all the X-Men he could contact, and even a few he didn't think were good guys anymore. This gives Rogue a type of Rolodex of mutant powers to recharge from. Captain Marvel and Alpha Flight give Rogue and Synapse a space ship, coordinates to The Royals, and offer to study Danger for whatever programming led her down this path.
So what now? Will The Inhumans help Rogue? Who programmed Danger to be a mutant-killing machine? Will she reactivate? Will Rogue survive the next twenty-something days? I don't know, haven't given it further thought, but I think this type of book would really help The X-Men in general. You'll notice this story involves characters other than The X-Men, but current X-Men books are pretty segregated to mutant-only characters. If any character is going to represent mutant-kind and be a bridge between mutants and non-mutants it should be Rogue. Being able to absorb anybody's abilities and knowledge basically makes Rogue a encyclopedia of individuals. And I like the idea of giving Rogue so much power she's like a mutant Superman. It's all these powers and the rules of them and her time limit that makes her story much more compelling than any other current X-Men. And upon further story-telling Rogue could easily become the most important mutant of our era. Move over, Logan. Rogue is the top-dog now.
Thanks for reading.
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