History
Origins[]
Little is known of Gambit's past. He was born Remy LeBeau and raised in New Orleans. He was brought into the Thieves Guild by his brother Bobby, serving the guild loyally for many years. He began a relationship with Bella Donna, chosen of the rival Assassins Guild, and the two were eventually engaged to be wed. But Gambit grew tired of the endless feud between the Assassins and the Thieves. Realizing the guilds would never permit him and Bella Donna to be together, he left her and the guild.[2]
X-Men[]
At some point, Gambit joined the X-Men, a team of mutant heroes. He quickly became enamoured with teammate Rogue. Gambit pursued Rogue relentlessly, despite the fact that her mutant powers made her unable to touch anyone without draining their life energy.[1] Rogue was initially dismissive of Gambit, but gradually began to warm up to him.[3]
While at a mall with Storm and Rogue, they encountered Jubilee, a young mutant being pursued by Sentinels. They rescued her and brought her back to their headquarters. The X-Men soon realized that the Mutant Control Agency was giving up registered mutants to the Sentinels, which would then hunt them down. The X-Men infiltrated the agency's headquarters, and destroyed their database. Gambit participated in the assault on the agency, but the X-Men were soon overwhelmed by the arriving Sentinels. Two of their members, Beast, who was captured, and Morph, who was seemingly killed, were lost during the mission[4] Gambit and the other X-Men eventually found the Sentinel's headquarters and destroyed it.[4]
Gambit learned of rumors that the nation of Genosha was welcoming mutants. Gambit told the others of these rumors, but was initially reprimanded by Cyclops, who disapproved of him spreading unfounded rumors. Xavier interrupted the argument, and encouraged the X-Men to investigate Genosha, prompting Cyclops to send Storm, Gambit and Jubilee to investigate. The rumors turned out to be a ruse, as the Genoshans were luring mutants to their country in order to enslave them, and force them to construct a dam.[5] Jubilee attempted to orchestrate an escape, but Gambit went behind her back and told the Genoshans of her plans, allowing them to put the revolt down. Gambit learned that the dam was a front to power a Master Mold, a Sentinel capable of creating other Sentinels. He managed to escape, with the aid of Cable, who also provided him with a key to the control-collars the Genoshans were using to suppress the mutants' powers. Gambit returned to the Genoshan camp and freed Storm and Jubilee, as well as the other mutant captives. Together, they managed to destroy the dam, and the Sentinels within.[6]
Days of Future Past[]
The time-traveler Bishop came to the present in order to avert a future where the Sentinels ruled the world. He accused Gambit of betraying the X-Men by assassinating the mutant hating Senator Robert Kelly, thus bringing about this grim future.[7] The X-Men indulged Bishop's suspicions, due in no small part to Gambit's mysterious past. Bishop and Wolverine watched over Gambit while the rest of the X-Men went to avert the assassination. Gambit managed to shake the two, and headed to D.C. in order to clear his name by preventing the assassination himself. The assassin was revealed to be the shape-shifting Mystique, who hoped to pin the assassination on Gambit and the X-Men. Gambit arrived just in time to stop her from killing Kelly, but was knocked out by Bishop who decided it was safest to kill them both. Gambit was saved by Rogue, who destroyed Bishop's anchor, sending him back to his future.[8]
Kelly was instead kidnapped, first by Magneto and then by the Sentinels. With Gambit having seen the Sentinels' leader on Genosha, he reluctantly agreed to let Xavier scan his mind in order to find him. They tracked down Gyrich, and convinced him to give them the location of the Sentinels' headquarters. As the X-Men prepared to go rescue Kelly, Gambit was vehemently opposed, at first refusing to risk his life for mutantkind's greatest enemy. When all the other X-Men, including Rogue, agreed, Gambit finally relented.[3]
While the others remained on the surface as a distraction, Gambit, Wolverine, Cyclops and Jean went underground to find the Master Mold. The pairs split up, with Gambit and Wolverine going their own direction. Wolverine attempted to sacrifice himself to save Gambit, but Gambit refused to leave him behind and helped him fight off the Sentinels. Desperate not to leave anyone behind, Cyclops went after them and saved them from being caught up in the base's destruction.[3]
Mr. Sinister and a Return to New Orleans[]
Gambit was contacted by an old colleague from the Thieves Guild, informing him that his brother Bobby had been kidnapped by the Assassins Guild, along with the tithe needed to save the Thieves from the wrath of the X-Ternal. Gambit travelled to New Orleans to save his brother, even after learning that the Thieves intended to exchange him for Bobby and the tithe. Gambit was captured by Bella Donna, who aimed to force him to marry her, as he had promised so long ago. While she released Bobby, she had secretly exchanged the Thieves' tithe for a false one, knowing this would result in the Thieves' deaths. During the tithe offering ceremony, Gambit exposed her plan, prompting a brawl between the Thieves, Assassins and X-Men, who had come to help Gambit. Jean Grey used her powers to show the X-Ternal Bella Donna's betrayal. The X-Ternal allowed the Thieves to choose her fate. Gambit asked the X-Ternal to de-power her, but to spare her life. Telling her he was neither a thief nor an assassin, but an X-Man, Gambit returned his wedding ring to her, and left.[2]
The X-Men soon found themselves caught up in the schemes of Mr. Sinister. Sinister wished to create his own race of subservient super-mutants, and was particularly interested in the genes of X-Men Cyclops and Jean Grey. He lured Xavier from the mansion and sent brainwashed former X-Man Morph to the mansion to cause chaos, tricking Gambit into kissing a sleeping Rogue, rendering him briefly comatose.[9]
Gambit awoke in time to find Morph impersonating the Professor. Quickly growing suspicious, Gambit managed to reveal Morph's ruse. The X-Men pursued a fleeing Morph and managed to rescue the kidnapped Cyclops and Jean.[10] This was not the end of Sinister's schemes however. He managed to capture both Xavier and Magneto and brainwashed Xavier into summoning the X-Men to the Savage Land. Here, they were rendered powerless and captured by Sinister's servants.[11][12]
While tortured by Sinister's servants, Gambit confessed his love for Rogue, and the two were able to share a brief kiss. With help from Ka-Zar and the free peoples of the Savage Land, Gambit and the others were freed, and the device blocking their powers destroyed. They were able to overcome Sinister's goons and defeat him once more.[13]
Phoenix[]
After an encounter with an alien ship,[14] Professor Xavier found himself telepathically connected to an unknown alien being. Tormented by these visions, Xavier dispatched the X-Men to hijack the space shuttle Starcore. Once arriving at the space station, they encountered Erik the Red, an agent of the alien Shi'ar Empire. During their escape from the station, they were forced to pilot the shuttle through deadly radiation. Jean volunteered to pilot the shuttle, believing she could use her telekinetic powers to shield herself from the radiation.[15]
Jean successfully piloted the shuttle back to Earth, but in the process she bonded with the Phoenix, the ancient guardian of the M'kraan Crystal. She was hospitalized, struggling to understand her new power. While Jean recovered, Gambit and most of the other X-Men traveled to Muir Island to help the Professor. Here, the Professor had encountered the alien who haunted his dreams; Princess Lilandra Neramani of the Shi'ar Empire, who had stolen the M'kraan Crystal from her mad brother, Emperor D'ken.[16]
With Jean recovering just in time to come to the X-Men's aid, and transport them to Lilandra's ship.[17] The crystal was soon stolen by the Starjammers, inter-galactic pirates led by Corsair, who wished to use it to get close enough to D'ken to kill him.[17] The X-Men tracked them down, leading to a brawl with D'ken's Imperial Guard. The X-Men tried to escape, but were powerless against D'ken, who had now claimed the crystal's power. Believing this to be their last moments, Gambit and Rogue tried to share a kiss, only to be stopped when the ship was sucked into the crystal.[18]
With Jean's help, they managed to defeat D'ken, with Jean sacrificing herself to take the crystal into the Sun. To their shock, Jean survived and soon returned, now losing control of herself to the Phoenix, which had been corrupted by experiencing Jean's human emotions. Gambit tried to take Cyclops' mind off of Jean's health by taking him to see Dazzler, a mutant pop star. They were forced to rescue Dazzler from the Inner Circle Club, who tried to kidnap her.[19]
The Inner Circle Club, a group of powerful mutants, tried to take advantage of the situation by brainwashing Jean and using the powers of the Phoenix for their own gain. They managed to turn her against the X-Men, but she soon tired of their games and left, giving the X-Men the upper hand to defeat them. Their attempts at stopping Jean failed however, as she easily dispatched of them and traveled deep into space, consuming an uninhabited star-system.[20]
The X-Men set a trap for her, with Xavier managing to repress the Phoenix with Jean's help. However, the Phoenix's actions in deep space had attracted the attention of the Shi'ar, who came to Earth to apprehend her. Desperate to save Jean's life, Xavier invoked the right to trial by combat, pitting the X-Men against Lilandra's Imperial Guard.[21] The X-Men failed, but the battle unleashed the Phoenix. Desperate not to succumb to its influence, Jean chose to end her own life before the Phoenix could threaten the universe. Released and purified by Jean's death, the Phoenix offered to resurrect her, with each of the X-Men giving a part of their life essence. With Jean resurrected and the Phoenix gone, the X-Men returned home.[22]
Vacation[]
After the harrowing events related to Jean's possession by the Phoenix, Gambit and Rogue decided to go on vacation to the alps. To Gambit's chagrin, Wolverine also tagged along. After hearing rumours of a demon in a nearby village, the trio decided to investigate. On the way there, Gambit's poor skiing skills caused him to accidentally unleash an avalanche. With Gambit hurt, they found refuge in a nearby monastery, the home of the "demon", who was in fact a mutant nicknamed Nightcrawler.[23]
One of the monks, Brother Reinhart, resented Nightcrawler and wanted to be rid of the strangers. He tried to attack Gambit in his sleep, only to be driven off by Rogue. Reinhart riled up the nearby villagers to attack the monastery, burning it to the ground. However, Reinhart realized the error of his ways after Nightcrawler saved him. With the danger averted, Gambit, Rogue and Wolverine continued their vacation in Paris.[23]
Gambit and Rogue's budding relationship was complicated by the return of her childhood love Cody Robbins, who had found a way for the two to touch. Gambit was suspicious of Cody, leading to an argument with Rogue. Gambit was proven right in the end, as Cody was working with the alien Brood, who wished to assimilate the X-Men in order to gain access to their mutant powers. After Gambit, Storm and Beast were captured, Rogue turned on Cody and freed them together with Wolverine. With Cody fully transformed into a Brood, Gambit convinced Rogue to leave him behind.[24]
Sanctuary[]
When Magneto created Asteroid M, a sanctuary for mutants in Earth orbit, Professor X and Beast resolved to speak with him. Gambit mused that perhaps those who had joined Magneto were right to leave the Earth, but told Rogue that he would never consider leaving her. However, upon learning that a friend of his had joined up with Magneto, Gambit asked to accompany them.[25]
Magneto invited them onto Asteroid M as his guests. He was reunited with his friend Byron, while Xavier in turn was reunited with his former lover Amelia Voght, who had angrily left him years prior when he chose the X-Men over her. Magneto had by this point grown reliant on Fabian Cortez, a mutant with the ability to boost the powers of others. Cortez was even more radical than Magneto, and wished to destroy humanity at any cost, whereas Magneto wished for mutantkind to be left alone. Cortez attempted to assassinate Magneto, ejecting his quarters into space and blamed the X-Men.[25]
Gambit volunteered to stay behind and hold Magneto's Acolytes off to buy Xavier and Beast time to escape. Refusing to confess to Magneto murder, Gambit was imprisoned and tortured. Amelia soon began to grow suspicious of Cortez and began sympathizing with Gambit. After secretly visiting him in his cell, she began to believe his claims that Cortez had killed Magneto. She revealed the truth to the other Acolytes, just in time to stop them from going through with his plan of launching nuclear missiles onto Earth. As the X-Men staged a rescue, Gambit was brought back to safety.[26] After this harrowing adventure, he and Rogue took some time away from the X-Men together.[27]
While Gambit and Rogue were ostensibly in a relationship by this point, Rogue did not want to make things official, which Gambit respected.[28]
Hidden Agendas[]
After learning of a teenager named Sam Guthrie from a small town in Kentucky, Rogue decided to go investigate. She learned that a government agent had been trying to recruit him. Beast's attempts to investigate the agent led to dead ends, but did reveal an office building that was seemingly owned by no one. Gambit was charged with using his burglarly skills to break into the building and learn more. Upon entering the building, he realized that it had been a trap and he was captured by the agents.
The agency was using cybernetic implants to create mind-controlled mutant soldiers, and planned to do the same with Gambit. Xavier and Beast rescued him and met up with Rogue to save Sam. The X-Men were able to protect Sam and his family from the agency and the townsfolk. Gambit was flattered to learn that Rogue had used the alias "Ms. LeBeau" while visiting the town.[29]
Graduation Day[]
Despite Gambit and the X-Men's struggle to promote peace between mutantkind and humanity, tensions between the two species continued to escalate. During a televised debate against anti-mutant bigot Henry Gyrich, Professor Xavier was outed as a mutant and attacked with a weapon that caused him to lose control of his telepathic powers. Near death from the attack, Cyclops, Beast and Wolverine rushed him back to the mansion.[30]
Despite the best attempts of his students, no medical technology on Earth was enough to save Xavier's life, and even with help from Jean, the Professor was too weak to contact his Shi'ar lover Empress Lilandra in order to request her help. The televised attack against Xavier drove many mutants into believing that all their lives were at stake. This heightened tension was utilized by Magneto, who began raising an army of mutants to seize control of the world.[30]
Desperate to ease tensions and stop Magneto, Cyclops, Jean and Wolverine traveled to Genosha to confront Magneto, while Gambit and the others remained by the Professor's side. In the resulting battle, Magneto's magnetic powers inadvertently super-charged Jean's telepathy. The battle halted after Scott told Magneto that the Professor was dying. At Jean's suggestion, Magneto agreed to return with them to save Xavier's life. Boosted by Magneto, Xavier was able to telepathically contact Lilandra. As Xavier briefly awoke from his coma, he gave parting words to all the gathered X-Men, asking Gambit how often the scoundrel must prove himself a hero before he believes it himself. As the Shi'ar arrived to take Xavier away, he entrusted the X-Men with his spirit.[30]
Return to Genosha[]
In the months that followed, the X-Men found new acceptance from the world and a sanction from the United Nations, as tensions between mutants and humans de-escalated. The team was joined by Bishop, who had been stranded in the past, and continued their fight for human and mutant coexistence.[31]
The team was soon thrown into disarray when the last will of Xavier revealed that he had left the mansion and the team to Magneto. Magneto assumed leadership of the X-Men, resisting their demands that he prove himself, and instead demanding their loyalty. When the U.N. learned of his location, they sent a taskforce to arrest him. Magneto agreed to come peacefully in order to stand trial for his crimes.[32] While Magneto won his freedom, the trial was invaded by the Friends of Humanity who sought to de-power Magneto as revenge for his crimes. Instead, Storm sacrificed herself and lost her powers, leaving the X-Men.[32]
Gambit was unaware that Magneto and Rogue had shared a romantic past, which both had kept hidden for years and made possible by the fact that Magneto's powers allowed him and Rogue to touch each other. With the two now teammates, they began spending more and more time together, arousing Gambit's suspicions.[32] When the new mutant nation of Genosha was recognized by the United Nations, Magneto, Rogue and Gambit traveled there to attend a celebration.[28]
Magneto was offered the position of chancellor, Genosha's head of government, and accepted on the condition that Rogue also be given a position on the council. Rogue decided to accept Magneto's offer, and told Gambit of her and Magneto's past. Unable to cope with not being able to touch him, Rogue decided to end their relationship. While hurt, Gambit told her that they would still be friends.[28]
During the banquet, Magneto and Rogue shared a sensual dance and a kiss, prompting Gambit to leave. The festivities were soon interrupted by the arrival of a giant Sentinel which began laying waste to the island. Gambit, Rogue and Magneto rallied to fight the Sentinel, pushing their way to the bay to rescue trapped Morlocks. After Magneto seemingly died protecting the Morlocks, a furious Rogue tried to blindly attack the Sentinel. Gambit saved her by pushing her out of the way, and launched his own attack.[28]
The Sentinel impaled him, but with his dying breath, he unleashed his powers, charging the entire Sentinel and destroying it. Gambit's burned body was cradled by a heartbroken Rogue, who unbeknownst to Gambit had ultimately rejected Magneto for him after their dance.[28] Gambit was buried on the grounds of the mansion, in a ceremony attended by both the X-Men and his old friends from the Thieves Guild.[33]Attributes
Powers
- Kinetic Energy Charging: Gambits mutation allows him to charge any object he touches with kinetic energy, making them incredibly powerful and potentially explosive.
Paraphernalia
Equipment
Weapons
Notes
- Gambit was voiced by Chris Potter and later Tony Daniels in X-Men: The Animated Series, and by A. J. LoCascio in X-Men '97.
Trivia
- At some point in his past, Gambit encountered Ghost Rider.[3]
- He also guest starred in Spider-Man in the 1990s in the fourth and fifth episodes of Season 2, along with the rest of the X-Men.
See Also
- 66 appearance(s) of Remy LeBeau (Earth-92131)
- 4 minor appearance(s) of Remy LeBeau (Earth-92131)
- 4 mention(s) of Remy LeBeau (Earth-92131)
- 49 image(s) of Remy LeBeau (Earth-92131)
- 4 quotation(s) by or about Remy LeBeau (Earth-92131)
- 1 victim(s) killed by Remy LeBeau (Earth-92131)
Links and References
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 X-Men: The Animated Series S1E09
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 X-Men: The Animated Series S2E06
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 X-Men: The Animated Series S1E13
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 X-Men: The Animated Series S1E02
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S1E06
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S1E07
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S1E11
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S1E12
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S2E01
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S2E02
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S2E11
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S2E12
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S2E13
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E02
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E03
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E04
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 X-Men: The Animated Series S3E05
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E06
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E11
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E12
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E13
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S3E14
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 X-Men: The Animated Series S3E18
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S4E14
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 X-Men: The Animated Series S4E06
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S4E07
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S4E04
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 28.3 28.4 X-Men '97 S1E05
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S5E13
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 X-Men: The Animated Series S5E14
- ↑ X-Men '97 S1E01
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 32.2 X-Men '97 S1E02
- ↑ X-Men '97 S1E07
- ↑ X-Men: The Animated Series S1E01, on Sentinel's HUD