< Has anyone ever written down why s/he
thinks Bobby is gay?
Sure. I write it down all the time. And I'll be glad to
do so again here.
Ahem.
Bobby Drake is a class clown. Why? Why does any child
feel the need to act out? Because that person is insecure; they feel separate, and the
only way they know to feel acceptance, to connect, is to entertain. Bobby
is this way. He makes light because that way, he doesn't have to make his sincere side,
his emotional side, vulnerable to mockery or rejection. And he's very particular about the
attention he recieves. Only passing, flippant attention, the kind caused by a prank or a
snide remark; never serious attention, which is why he has underplayed his own powers so
much.
Okay, so, why is Bobby like this?
Imagine a homosexual boy growing up in the environment in which Bobby grew. You guys know
I've taken liberties with Bobby's childhood, but it is established canon that his father
is a bigot, and that he spent a lot of Bobby's life encouraging him to "take it like
a man". He's an asshole. A redeemable asshole, as it's been shown, but a
youth-scarring asshole nonetheless.
So, we know that Bobby's was raised in that environment,
and we know how he turned out. Do we know that homosexuality was the
catalyst? Well, no, but . . .
Bobby has never been able to make a relationship with a
woman work. Not because he's not a nice guy, or a smart guy or a handsome guy. So why?
You've seen Bob in relationships. It's like he's reading from a script. He's doing what he
thinks he's supposed to do. He plays his part, and he doesn't understand
why she isn't playing hers, why it doesn't work out in the long run. Of course,
relationships like that never work out; they demand a sincerity and honesty of emotion
that Bobby simply isn't capable of with a woman.
That's even when he's inspired to try. Only when he's in
depth of lonliness will he give it a shot. Not to say that he isn't always flirting
(classic over-compensation), he just rarely acts on it. And neither did he always flirt.
That was an adaptation he learned. Remember, way back when, in Uncanny X-Men #1? When Jean
showed up, Bobby was the only one of the students that showed no physical interest in
Jean.
And, the most important reason of all for believing Bobby
Drake to be gay . . .
If there's one thing a writer of alternative fiction
enjoys, it's feeling victimized; and being mad at Marvel for not allowing poor Bobby to be
gay is as good an excuse as any. ;)
Ahem. And that's all from me. Be proud of me, Poi.
Alestar, in spades
