3. “Going Rogue, Part 3”

Writer: Robert Rodi
Artist: Cliff Richards

If this is what this whole series is going to be, I'm kinda down for it. Using Rogue as a vehicle for small character-centric stories. It feels incredibly current and not 14 years old. Oh god, 2004 was 14 years ago.

Anyway, in this issue, Campbell (you know, that guy Rogue could touch) takes her to the shaman who her mother and father visited before her mother disappeared. Just a shaman, not Shaman the Alpha Flight member. I know it's confusing. He's in a coma so Rogue touches him and absorbs his memories. This leads her to discover that her father was basically a cult leader and attempted to date rape her mother and the other women in the group. Rogue's mom flipped out and channeled the spirits on the other side of the void to attack all the men in the group before vanishing into the Far Banks forever.

Rogue is disturbed by this revelation about her father but before that can sink in, the spirits attack again. Rogue manages to fight them off, but Campbell is gone and the shaman has died. I'm enjoying this series so far for sure, but the undeniable fact is that Rogue is the least interesting character in each issue, outshone by the bit players who she absorbs memories from. We'll see if that continues next issue though.