The King of Thieves - Gambit Appreciation 2022

[BobbysWorld]

Anyway, as I said at the start, what got me thinking down this road was the two specific cards Remy used in this issue and how he used them/the effect they had....and how that made me rethink just how extensive Howard's Tarot knowledge and research is. And how much thought and focus she's put into the specific effects of each of Remy's 'charged up' Tarot cards.

Because those two cards might SEEM to have been underwhelming, or not anything all that special or different from his usual card attacks...but that's not actually true. Instead, I'd argue there's a chance they were just MEANT to appear as nothing particularly different or significant as opposed to his usual explosions....while gradually building towards more dramatic or obvious 'spells' - so that once Remy does reach the point of using those, and its undeniable that his new deck is basically his spellbook.....suddenly his previous 'card tricks' would look totally different in hindsight, and be some pretty decent build-up/foreshadowing.

In fact, I'd argue that since this now makes three Tarot cards or 'spells' he's used in total, with the Wheel of Fortune being the first one back in Excalibur.....you can almost start charting a clear trajectory in how the spells are getting more and more obvious and specifically tailored. When he used the Wheel of Fortune card first, it WASN'T clear whether that was just a one-time thing that stemmed from it being such an obviously symbolic card, and from a magically significant deck. What if it was just something unique to that one specific card? If any Tarot card had any potential magic usage, what better card than the Fortune one right? And its usage was so generic too....it was like, okay so Remy somehow charged the Fortune card in a way that gave his lock-picking attempt a little boost of good luck. Its a neat scene, but not particularly significant just on its own....you can't like, conclude anything definitive from that because the very concepts of fortune and luck and magic are so intertwined AND so inherently broad.....its like, okay, that scene's deliberately vague and what actually happened there could be interpreted any number of ways.

But then from there, we move on to the SECOND 'card trick' Remy performs with his new deck of Tarot cards/spells. And things start to come a bit more into focus.

The first of the two cards Remy used in this issue was the Four of Swords card, from the Minor Arcana.

And this is where I started to sit up and take notes. Because there are SEVENTY-EIGHT cards in the Tarot deck. 22 in the Major Arcana and 56 in the Minor Arcana. Each and every one of them has an individual interpretation and meaning that's specific JUST to that card, even the ones that are just numbered cards in the four different suits of a given deck.

And out of ALL SEVENTY-EIGHT CARDS to choose from within the Major and Minor Arcana...

The Four of Swords is a VERY specific card to pull at that specific point in the fight.

Now, as Nicopony pointed out, it didn't act like Remy's cards normally do. When he threw it, it manifested four swords that all struck the Fury in different spots, with the next panel showing that they didn't just explode on impact like his other cards do...but rather those conjured swords STAYED physically manifest, visibly sticking out of the Fury in four different spots.

And on the surface, that's something new alright....but it can easily be interpreted as just a visual/aesthetic gimmick. A change of pace from how Remy's attacks normally appear, but in the end, still just a variation of the same thing he does when he turns playing cards into bombs to throw at his enemies. Its like, okay, its clear now that there's something new about how Remy's powers interact with the cards he's pulling from this deck, this is definitely more specific than the Wheel of Fortune's generalized 'luck' effect....but is it really THAT significant a difference? Isn't it still just another version of Remy's traditional projectile attack? What separates this from the times Remy's used a rifle or shotgun instead of cards, in various AUs like the Age of Apocalypse or Age of X?

Well, at first glance, nothing. What we saw was what we got, right? Remy pulled the Four of Swords, charged it, threw it, and it turned into four swords before hitting the Fury. But was 'hitting the Fury' ALL that the swords did? Because if the only thing that was different from usual with THAT particular card was it summoned four blades when Remy charged and threw it, if it was solely the obvious physical attack it appeared as, with the twist of it hitting the Fury as swords instead of an explosion being something new, but still mostly just being a visual/aesthetic change of pace...

Why even bother with the Four of Swords card in the first place? Why not go straight for the higher cards in the deck, the Nine of Swords, Ten of Swords, get the most blades possible involved? Maybe it was just the first thing he grabbed and he didn't have time to be picky, but he had enough time and focus to be deliberate in grabbing a Swords card in the first place, surely it wouldn't have been that much harder to just grab the Nine or Ten of Swords card instead, right?

But like I said, in the Minor Arcana, even the numbered cards have individual significance. Which could translate into specific individual spells with their own unique effects.

And the Four of Swords card is specifically the card of RETREAT.

When it pops up in a reading, it signals that the person the reading is for is in danger of being over-run, overwhelmed by anxiety, stress, an attack of some kind...that now is NOT the right time for that person to push their luck or continue forward, and that they're best served by drawing back somewhere safe until they have enough time and energy to heal, recover, and prepare for a more effective push or attack of their own.

And more than that, the Four of Sword's specific symbology has it also referred to as The Effigy...its a depiction of a carved statue of a knight in repose, as if an homage to that knight having fallen in battle while fighting against the three swords hanging on the wall above/behind him, representing the dangers that threatened the people he defended, and that now decorated his tomb, put there by the people he'd saved, to remind everyone of what he'd defeated, why he'd sacrificed himself.

The Four of Swords card is about retreat, sanctuary, and BUYING TIME to allow for people to retreat TO sanctuary.

Basically, the reason Remy grabbed for the Four of Swords card, IMO, instead of something like the Eight, Nine or Ten of Swords....was because he wasn't just looking for energy blades to throw at the Furies. They might have conjured more swords, but ones with effects that were not what he was looking for. Remy grabbed and charged the card that specifically symbolizes a call for retreat, and an action taken to buy oneself or others enough time and space TO retreat safely....when he felt surrounded, thought they were in danger of being overrun, and had just been told by Rachel that they couldn't count on Betsy or the other Knights to arrive in time to help back them up.

And what ACTUALLY happened ASIDE from just the swords hitting the Fury - where rather than exploding or disappearing on impact, they visibly stuck around, still in place where they'd impacted, like a pincushion? With any magic inherent in those conjured energy blades NOT entirely spent on impact, like the energy released when his usual cards explode as soon as they hit? Almost like....the swords weren't done yet? Like any magic they were conducting, or spell they were a manifestation of, might have still been actively in use?

Well in the moments after those blades hit the Fury, and while they were stuck in it....the Fury who had just a panel previously been bending down and reaching for Remy and Rachel even WHILE they BOTH hurled attacks at it, that it seemingly just shrugged off and ignored.....

It just....paused.

Immediately AFTER the blades impacted the Fury.....and with it coincidentally not just shrugging off THAT particular attack....the Fury just so happened to choose that specific point to STOP reaching for Remy and Rachel....and then stand back up and PAUSE in its attacks in order to re-evaluate Rachel and categorize her as an anomaly. The panel before Remy's Four of Swords attack, the Fury couldn't have cared less about whatever it was picking up from Rachel and was actively on the attack. Then Rachel says help isn't coming, Remy's yelling about how they're surrounded....and he draws the card that symbolizes buying time for a retreat, throws it and conjures four swords that all hit the Fury that was actively reaching for them, and then stick out of it like pincushions while it stops pressing its attack and draws back, deprioritizing a continued assault in favor of taking the time to suddenly scan Rachel and re-categorize her.....

All of which just so happened to buy Rachel the time - and motivation - to gather herself for a turbo-charged assault of her own that took that Fury down and out.

A Wheel of Fortune card from a deck known to be magic itself, that happens to add a bit of good luck to Remy's lock-picking attempt? That's one thing. But a Four of Swords card symbolizing Retreat, the act or intent of Buying Time To Regroup, and that just so happens to conjure four blades that just so happen to result in the extremely specific act of the Fury pausing just long enough for Rachel to one-hit KO it?

Hmmm. Interesting.

And then, continuing along our trajectory of increasingly specific results from Remy charging up Tarot cards with increasingly specific interpretations or meanings....

We come to the third Tarot card Remy has used thus far:

Justice. A card from the Major Arcana.

[BobbysWorld]

Again, much like Fortune, Justice is a pretty broad concept that can be interpreted a lot of ways....and this particular card resulted in a pretty underwhelming effect. Even less specific or varied than what resulted from the Minor Arcana card Remy had JUST used. This one, when thrown, didn't appear any different from the cards Remy usually throws, and neither did the explosion that resulted. All that card seemed to do was just...blow up a Fury's head upon impact. Nothing inherently different from any other card Remy turns into a projectile bomb, right? What's new or different, let alone magical, about that?

Nothing....until you compare it to the effects Remy's previous card attacks were having on other Furies in the pages before. He was doing minor damage at best, while Rachel and Meggan and Bei's attacks seemed to be what were actually taking the Furies down. The firepower was significantly lower with the first Fury he was battling alongside Meggan and Rachel....but then he used the Justice card, and all of a sudden, one card from him creates an explosion that's so much bigger and stronger than his previous attempts, it appears to fell one of the Furies all from just that one shot?

Something IS different about that. And I think it has to do with the nature of the Justice card's 'spell' when charged by Remy's power. As well as the little speech Remy gave RIGHT before he used that card...and which Howard DEFINITELY made a point to emphasize, while giving Remy enough breathing room to even HAVE that little speech right in the middle of a high-stakes firefight.

Because see, the Justice card in a lot of deck interpretations (they vary depending on region of origin) is specifically about KARMIC Justice. When it appears in a reading, its generally seen as portending that the recipient of the reading has a favorable chance of success at a given endeavor....IF that person is doing it for 'good/noble' reasons and with positive intentions that are meant to help others.

HOW MUCH the Justice card portends an endeavor will have the results a person is hoping for.....is entirely dependent on what the person is hoping to get out of it, why they're doing it, whether it adds a net-positive gain to the world, or whether it detracts a net-negative loss. If the person getting the reading done is doing something for selfish reasons, or with the intent of hurting someone, the Justice card coming up in that reading either portends BAD things for that person's likelihood of succeeding....or worse, suggests that their efforts are going to backfire on them, or karmic justice will see that their actions have consequences visited on them at some later point.

Basically....I'd say that if a Justice Tarot card were going to be a specific 'spell' with a particular effect....the effect I know I'd go with is that when used as a weapon by Remy, it deals out damage that's DIRECTLY PROPORTIONATE to how noble/good his actions are when using it as a weapon. The more selfless his intentions in fighting someone, the more he's doing it not in pursuit of even his own wants or agendas, but in service to a 'greater good' or the protection of others.....this would directly translate into how powerful or damaging its effects are.

And look at what Remy said directly before using the Justice card...the specific words he spoke while actively charging up the Justice card....almost like a kind of invocation. Rachel starts off by talking about what a terrible person Mad Jim is in EVERY reality, and in response, Remy says:

" -- but we can't let them do that to him....I don't want a single one'a these people to think we'd let Merlyn do that to them."

Can you think of literally ANYTHING else Remy could have said that would have more strongly conveyed his commitment to karmic justice or the very idea of protecting people from harm, even if he doesn't even like them himself? That little speech was TAILORED to his use of that specific card, and not in a vague, handwavey sort of way either. Remy pulled out the Justice card, started charging it up, announced his dedication to making sure EVERYONE knew that he was determined to protect any and all of them from being harmed, no matter who they were or what they'd done....

And then boom, he lets the Justice card fly and it visibly staggers a Fury, engulfing its entire head in an explosion that's SIGNIFICANTLY bigger than anything Remy had managed so far, and seems to take it out from just that one attack when he'd flung multiple cards at a previous Fury without it appearing to even pay him much attention.

Almost as if it being used in defense of Mad Jim Jaspers of all people was the very thing that made it so potent. As if Remy's commitment to protecting ALL mutants was the very thing that supercharged the card he threw while calling it a little of Gambit's MUTANT Justice; the fact that it was an action taken on behalf of a larger mutant community rather than in pursuit of Remy's personal agenda or wants.

That? Not a coincidence. That was a fucking SPELL.

And I think Remy KNEW it was a spell, and intended it to be one. Like I said, I'm pretty sure he's done his research on Tarot decks by now. Remy's always been good-intentioned, but he's not prone to making random speeches about the inherent goodness of the X-Men's fights to protect people.....its just not something he does. But was it out of character for him? Or was it him knowing EXACTLY what he has at his disposal now, and how to get the most bang for his buck with each and every one of his new deck of cards? Something that would be ENTIRELY in character for a master thief who never goes to work without knowing exactly what tools he has to work with?

In conclusion....I'm no longer sure that Howard actually IS building towards a death and resurrection/possible reinvention of Remy. At least not based on the theory that its to give her something to do with the character, or allow her to introduce some new hook to him that she actually feels inspired by and makes her WANT to write him more.

Because she's already done that. It just....took awhile to get to this point. But now we're here, and I don't think she NEEDS blank slate Remy in order to give him some new element or characterization she's more interested in.

Certainly not right after she turned his thief character into a thief/magician character and gave him his own personal spellbook with SEVENTY-EIGHT potential, individualized spells for her to invent and work into the plot whenever and wherever she wants or feels inspired to.

All that potential new playground she gave herself to play with here? I don't see her being in any hurry to throw all that away or skip to an entirely new chapter when she's only BEGUN scratching the surface of what's already in play now. Not when she's literally a mere three spells in, with another seventy-five just waiting to be invented and explored at her leisure.

Sooooo...I'm thinking all the references to one of the Knights falling or dying or being lost might be just some clever wordplay that means something else entirely, much like they keep slipping in references to 'facing and confronting Death' when they're talking about the Horseman Death, last seen in Sevalith, promising Betsy he was firmly on the side of mutants if and when Otherworld declared war on witchbreeds. Or if they're really hinting one of the cast IS going to die, all that might be about another character entirely, Remy's no longer the safe bet there for me.

After all, if I give Howard a little more credit for how well she knows the Tarot deck and is working it into things here.....Death in the Tarot deck actually just stands for change. The symbology of THAT particular card in most decks shows a king being trampled over by a Grim Reaper riding a horse....but its commonly accepted that this is meant to be interpreted as 'even kings can not stand against change; that the only REAL truth in the world is that changes comes to everything, eventually.' And we also know Absolom Mercator is going to be relevant soon....and he's an omega level mutant whose power is matter transformation, on a near limitless scale. He transcended his own death and his 'corpse' turned into a swarm of butterflies, last time we saw him. Add to that the Siege Perilous and it being in play, and the nature of its transformative magic....

When they're already employing double-speak when referring to Death the character and not the concept, is it really a given that any reference to death is actually for SURE referring to the literal concept....as opposed to its Tarot interpretation?

And lastly, in conclusion, even if there is an actual death coming...if I happened to be building towards a dramatic death where everyone is expecting a certain outcome (inevitable resurrection) with certain stakes accepted as a given (the nature of Otherworld resurrection rewriting the personalities of mutants who die there), and I wanted to throw in a twist nobody saw coming....

The character I just handed a Tarot-themed spellbook to explore is the LAST person I'd kill off.

Considering there's a good five or six cards I can think of that could all work as potential resurrection spells that would bring a dead character back in a surprise way that let me pick ANY specific stakes or unforeseeable side-effects I wanted to build into that new resurrection spell....instead of going with the obvious stakes/side-effects people have all but accepted as inevitable, just because they're the only ones currently sitting on the table in plain view.

And if, by any chance, a writer were planning to skip the expected trip to Arbor Magna and instead have someone utilize a brand-new Tarot-themed spell based on one of the Major Arcana cards like say, the Sun, Judgment, or The World.....

Well, they're kinda gonna need the one guy they tailor-made that spellbook for in the first place.

[Malachi]

I will not quote you Bobby because your posts are to Damn long

Remy has used 4 cards. Wheel of fortune for lockpicking. Another card at the ccardgame. The one that exploded and they had to run. One of the later issues of Excalibur.
Then the 2 in this issue.

I know most of the major Arcana but not so much from the minor ones. For me magic is always interesting but not the way Tini chooses to present it. And magic is so much about the presentation. Hers read more like a dissertation on magic.

So while I appreciate your passion, knowledge and effort to produce these posts I am afraid they don't make me appreciate her work much more.

It's nice that she has given the deck more thought but most of this has happened off panel. If these spells require a knowledge then we need to have some on page explanation. Or more emphasize on the effects. For instance that the fury temporarily stopped. I missed that.

Gambit given his history with the guilds and New Orleans might be knowledgeable in tarot enough to know the more subtle differences and interpretations. We readers don't. We need some on page explanation. Or we just go like I did: Oh he sent four cards instead of 1. Well that is the common artistic interpretation often enough. Send 3 or 4 cards while throwing.

[BobbysWorld]

I will not quote you Bobby because your posts are to Damn long

Remy has used 4 cards. Wheel of fortune for lockpicking. Another card at the ccardgame. The one that exploded and they had to run. One of the later issues of Excalibur.
Then the 2 in this issue.

I know most of the major Arcana but not so much from the minor ones. For me magic is always interesting but not the way Tini chooses to present it. And magic is so much about the presentation. Hers read more like a dissertation on magic.

So while I appreciate your passion, knowledge and effort to produce these posts I am afraid they don't make me appreciate her work much more.

It's nice that she has given the deck more thought but most of this has happened off panel. If these spells require a knowledge then we need to have some on page explanation. Or more emphasize on the effects. For instance that the fury temporarily stopped. I missed that.

Gambit given his history with the guilds and New Orleans might be knowledgeable in tarot enough to know the more subtle differences and interpretations. We readers don't. We need some on page explanation. Or we just go like I did: Oh he sent four cards instead of 1. Well that is the common artistic interpretation often enough. Send 3 or 4 cards while throwing.

Oh that's fair, lol. I'm not actually trying to change anyone's mind on Howard, that ship sailed long ago and I have other criticisms of her writing in general anyway. This was just me changing my mind on where I think she's going with this specific plot point, and expanding on why I think that and where I see possible foreshadowing. But don't get me wrong. I can appreciate this aspect of the story (or my assumption/hopes for it anyway) while still being a judgmental dick about other aspects. I contain multitudes, and three/fourths of them are assholes.

[Malachi]

Oh that's fair, lol. I'm not actually trying to change anyone's mind on Howard, that ship sailed long ago and I have other criticisms of her writing in general anyway. This was just me changing my mind on where I think she's going with this specific plot point, and expanding on why I think that and where I see possible foreshadowing. But don't get me wrong. I can appreciate this aspect of the story (or my assumption/hopes for it anyway) while still being a judgmental dick about other aspects. I contain multitudes, and three/fourths of them are assholes.

Yes the part of me not changing my mind is also a knee jerk reaction. I am set in my ways. She can't win me back now. But I try to stay open enough so I can acknowledge my own faults and biases.

I had actually missed your first post when I wrote that reply. They where after all quite long and I can't seem to fault myself for thinking two where all of it

As to your reasoning behind death or not for Gambit I am a bit torn. While it would make less sense to off him and reinvent(witch is after all the part we are mostly discussing when we say dead) it would be a shame to introduce something new just to remove it. I have seen in other media a reinvention to be more suitable for a newly introduced element like a tarot deck. I think it's Manga where I have seen this before. So I am a bit torn. You make sense but can we expect Marvel and Tini to do the same?

[NicoPony]

I will not quote you Bobby because your posts are to Damn long

Remy has used 4 cards. Wheel of fortune for lockpicking. Another card at the ccardgame. The one that exploded and they had to run. One of the later issues of Excalibur.
Then the 2 in this issue.

I know most of the major Arcana but not so much from the minor ones. For me magic is always interesting but not the way Tini chooses to present it. And magic is so much about the presentation. Hers read more like a dissertation on magic.

So while I appreciate your passion, knowledge and effort to produce these posts I am afraid they don't make me appreciate her work much more.

It's nice that she has given the deck more thought but most of this has happened off panel. If these spells require a knowledge then we need to have some on page explanation. Or more emphasize on the effects. For instance that the fury temporarily stopped. I missed that.

Gambit given his history with the guilds and New Orleans might be knowledgeable in tarot enough to know the more subtle differences and interpretations. We readers don't. We need some on page explanation. Or we just go like I did: Oh he sent four cards instead of 1. Well that is the common artistic interpretation often enough. Send 3 or 4 cards while throwing.

I remember the card game. I believe he played The World, which is supposed to be a successful conclusion card. Maybe that’s why he played it, and not because he’s an idiot who thinks it wouldn’t be completely obvious to everyone that he’s playing with cards from a completely different deck. If so, he’s still an idiot for blowing up a really useful spell card over a dumb card game.



But then he’s also holding this card on a variant cover and it’s a bad one. Like one of the worst.

I agree, Remy probably knows his tarot or cartomancy from his upbringing. And it’s true, Howard is not going to explain anything. A data page could clear it up, but meh. I’m like you Mal, I don’t need a dissertation.

BobQ does a better job showing Gambit’s powers than the last artist. Anything To drew in regards to Gambit’s powers I was like: hunh? What just happened?

I at least caught the blade thing from just that one panel posted. Didn’t read KoX2, didn’t seek it out. Sad to say, cool new magic powers aren’t enough of a draw when the personalities of the characters are so blah.

Appreciate BW’s in depth theory on what is in the cards for Remy’s future.

[Gripstir]

Great theory BobbysWorld.

Yeah I’m definitely torn. He’s either being primed for a promotion in the group or the removal of the group. It’s good to have some suspense.

And yeah gambit does have ties to tarot already. I would have liked a more fictionalized version but it’s whatever

[Romy134]

Whoa when I read your first post and turned the page haha. But yeah in one of Tini's interviews she specially said she was realllllly into tarot cards. I love the way you laid out each of the cards meninges and how Gambit used them to great effect. But like others have said Tini seems to never want to explain anything. She stated many times she wants us to fill in the gap, and I think you can lose readers that way. One thing I hope is that Gambit somehow keeps his new powers outside of Otherworld going forward.

As for Gambit dying I'm still 50/50 its going to happen... Well 70/30 that it will.. But what throws me off is that they seem to be hinting so much. This is my first real stretch of doing month to month reading of comics so I'm new to this. But do they ever tease deaths so open handily? I'm sure Death of Wolverine was clear as day, but was Jeans death tease liked this? Also if Gambit does die do you think he will be the one using the siege perilous? I've never read any issues with it so I don't even know what it is/does.

BTW have any of the KOX crew gotten outfits or have been previewed at the Gala? Maybe they wont even go? But Gambits get resurrected in Krakoa? This is so confusing.

[K7P5V]

As for Gambit dying I'm still 50/50 its going to happen... Well 70/30 that it will.. But what throws me off is that they seem to be hinting so much. This is my first real stretch of doing month to month reading of comics so I'm new to this. But do they ever tease deaths so open handily? I'm sure Death of Wolverine was clear as day, but was Jeans death tease liked this? Also if Gambit does die do you think he will be the one using the siege perilous? I've never read any issues with it so I don't even know what it is/does.

Since you mentioned The Siege Perilous, it reminded me of all the hints/teases about Allison being the one to perish...





But instead, it was Rogue who got sent away

[anyajenkins]

I adore your theory Bobby’sWorld, and will be very sad if it doesn’t happen (which unfortunately is still very possible… *sigh*)

[AppleJ]

WOW BobbysWorld! Thank you for that incredibly thorough dissertation.

You make some excellent points! Also it was great to get an in depth explanation/analysis on the meanings of the tarot cards. Thanks for that.

I have to echo other people's sentiments that getting more insight/explanation in the comic itself from Tini would have gone a long way though.

I do agree with your opinion that Tini is neither a huge fan of Gambit nor particularly a major hater of Gambit. I agree she probably is more generally apathetic towards him as a specific character, but probably very interested in him for the general character class that he represents (thief/rogue) and the fact that he could be used in this way to do something interesting with tarot cards specifically. In other words, a popular character that checked the right boxes. I have no doubt she is more well read on tarot than on Gambit. That very much tracks. And I also agree she probably has no major interest in making him a focus of her upcoming storylines.

On the other side of things though, we are getting heavy handed hints in various books and in solicts that he is in danger and his appearance at the Gala is doubtful. I think you're right that Death is referencing Horseman Death.

I'm hoping the hints towards an Otherworld death is just a red herring meant to increase tension for readers, misdirect and create drama. If you consider they did a dramatic mystery with Wanda's murder for last year's Gala and before that with the X-Men: Gold wedding switcheroo, it seems like an elevated bait and switch situation is quite likely. But I still don't think Remy comes out totally unscathed. Destiny knows something ... or at least she wants Rogue to think she does. Perhaps Gambit will only appear to be killed in Otherworld? Maybe he uses a tarot card spell to escape last minute, but gets lost or trapped? Or he goes through the Seige Perilous, which is nearly as bad/risky as an Otherworld death reset.

It may be an avenue to finally take him off Excalibur/KoX? I just hope he gets moved after this.

[NicoPony]

I’ve come back to thinking that Gambit bites it. I tried to rally… but he’s the only member of Excalibur with a Gala look. It could be he dies in Otherworld (the only ticket to outta that shithole) and is resurrected on Krakoa in time to crash the party.

[Mutant101]

I’ve come back to thinking that Gambit bites it. I tried to rally… but he’s the only member of Excalibur with a Gala look. It could be he dies in Otherworld (the only ticket to outta that shithole) and is resurrected on Krakoa in time to crash the party.

I think the Gala is just for Duggan X-Men, other book will not cover the story.So since Rogue is there, Gambit is a must .

[thjan]

Man am I tired of waiting for Gambit content! Oh, how nice it would be to be a Cyclops, Jean, Wolverine, Storm, or Emma Frost super fan right now(or pretty much always really). I really hate how isolated Tini Howard has kept Gambit throughout the Krakoan era, but most especially since this relaunch. There is no sign of any of Excalibur's team in the Eternals event and there is the question of whether he will be at the Gala at all even though Dauterman did a design for him(and no sign of the rest of Excalibur at the Gala either that I have noticed). I want to see him fighting the Eternals(in smart ways since they are honestly out of most mutants' league). I want him interacting with the Arakki mutants! I mean how fun would it be seeing them underestimate Gambit and seeing him charm and trick some of them while getting into shenanigans on Arrako while visiting Storm or something. Also, I would love to see him fight some them as well. I have come to accept that Marvel is never going to let Gambit beat any real big name characters in a fight, whether villain or hero, so the Arakki mutants who are known to be tough would be a perfect opportunity to show him pull off some great feats and have some cool fights that show him in a good light. But oh no, can't have that. Howard absolutely must have him in her title and in Otherworld mostly twiddling his thumbs while Betsy or Rictor or a guest star does all the real work.

It is just all getting so tiring. I know a lot of Marvel writers and editors do not care for him that much, but since when does that matter in a business? Gambit is one of the most popular X-Men(makes top 10 on most fan lists) and one of their most popular characters period. Marvel should try to take advantage of his name recognition and popularity more often than they do. Ah anyway sorry for the rant. Just impatiently awaiting the delayed Gambit solo by Claremont here and wanted to vent.

[K7P5V]

Man am I tired of waiting for Gambit content! Oh, how nice it would be to be a Cyclops, Jean, Wolverine, Storm, or Emma Frost super fan right now(or pretty much always really). I really hate how isolated Tini Howard has kept Gambit throughout the Krakoan era, but most especially since this relaunch. There is no sign of any of Excalibur's team in the Eternals event and there is the question of whether he will be at the Gala at all even though Dauterman did a design for him(and no sign of the rest of Excalibur at the Gala either that I have noticed). I want to see him fighting the Eternals(in smart ways since they are honestly out of most mutants' league). I want him interacting with the Arakki mutants! I mean how fun would it be seeing them underestimate Gambit and seeing him charm and trick some of them while getting into shenanigans on Arrako while visiting Storm or something. Also, I would love to see him fight some them as well. I have come to accept that Marvel is never going to let Gambit beat any real big name characters in a fight, whether villain or hero, so the Arakki mutants who are known to be tough would be a perfect opportunity to show him pull off some great feats and have some cool fights that show him in a good light. But oh no, can't have that. Howard absolutely must have him in her title and in Otherworld mostly twiddling his thumbs while Betsy or Rictor or a guest star does all the real work.

It is just all getting so tiring. I know a lot of Marvel writers and editors do not care for him that much, but since when does that matter in a business? Gambit is one of the most popular X-Men(makes top 10 on most fan lists) and one of their most popular characters period. Marvel should try to take advantage of his name recognition and popularity more often than they do. Ah anyway sorry for the rant. Just impatiently awaiting the delayed Gambit solo by Claremont here and wanted to vent.

Now you're talking! Would love to see the return of Remy's persuasion/charm powers (XD)