Rogue’s Sacrifice to Stop Galactus: Brilliant Twist or Lazy Writing?

Superhero Hype/Yahoo reports that in the pages of “Unbreakable” X-Men, as written by Gail Simone, Rogue appears to have been turned into the latest casualty in Marvel’s continued dispatchings of any character they see fit to put in the graveyard, no matter how meaningless it’s become, and even if it’s only temporary, that’s still no excuse:

Powerful as this X-Men team was, they could not hope to stand against Galactus, Not until Rogue, in as a desperate last-ditch effort, tried to drain the Power Cosmic from the Devourer of Worlds. The end result was Rogue and Galactus seemingly merging, transformed into a giant lifeless statue. By all appearances Rogue had saved Dome and the Earth at the cost of her own life.

Unfortunately, a cutaway later in Unbreakable X-Men #1 suggests that Rogue’s sacrifice may have been futile. The brief scene shows Galactus several years later in a coma on the ocean floor. Apparently Rogue was successful in draining most of his power, but his physical form manifested elsewhere on Earth. By the issue’s end, Galactus appears to be awakening, suggesting his role in the Age of Revelation is not yet concluded.

These modern “stories” are futile. Even if death’s a revolving door in science fiction (though it’s unclear if “civilian” casts are always afforded the miracle), this makes clear the obsession with turning every possible character into a sacrificial lamb for the sake of “proving” they’re capable of knocking off notable characters still stands. Now, Simone’s doing to Rogue what even Grant Morrison didn’t get to do with the southern belle mutant. And, it can serve as an example of how Simone really is an overrated scribe herself. Even her Birds of Prey run for DC was overrated, and certainly degenerated into a mess pretty fast.

This may not even be the first time the X-Men were ever portrayed as fouling up superfluously, and it certainly doesn’t do any favors for their publication history.

Originally published here