Please click on the thumbnails for a full-size image of the costume illustrated in it.

The costume which Gambit wore in his first appearance is the one with which we most commonly associate him. Assumably, although the trenchcoat and colours would make it immensely impracticable, it was the outfit he wore when going on a pinch. It has been suggested that the colours mark his status as a master-thief and that the stripes on his legs are symbolic of Clan LeBeau, but there is little textual evidence in the books to support that fact. For all we know, Gambit is simply fond of fuschia!

However, when Gambit joined the team, he took up their generic uniform with it. At a time, everyone from Logan to Jubilee was wearing the notoriously unflattering blue-and-yellows. (The same costume was apparently dragged out of mothballs for Joseph in recent issues.) As far as anything tight could be said not to suit Gambit, it looked awful on him, and, mercifully, Marvel soon switched back to the pink and black one.

Thereafter, while other characters changed clothes more often than a production of 'Aida', Gambit's uniform remained pretty constant for a number of years with one or two minor variations in execution. The number of stripes on his legs was decreased to three in some cases, while the "webbing" of the blue circle around his neck was simplified in others.

(A Gallery of Scans is available in the NavBar, above, and you can get some idea of the variation there.)

In 2000, however, his costume took a change for the worse. The initial design called for a spandex bodysuit - complete with X across the chest - teamed with a pair of jeans. The X was, however, dropped because it cluttered up the design and stupidly provided a convenient target for would-be attackers. Besides, when a character comments on how ridiculous an aspect of a uniform is (thank you, Mercy), you know there is something wrong...

The redesign was an improvement, even if not exactly brilliant or flattering. It was cleaner, less cluttered and had better lines. It was also more traditionally superheroic in that it was a single, seamless unit. The jeans were also fortunately dropped. The trenchcoat, however, was still more than a little bizarre. If its function was to allow Gambit to blend into the crowd, why was it chunky and studded? If it wasn't, then why hinder his movements with one? (Thanks to Selkie for the scan.)

Mercifully, this costume seems to have lasted all of six months because Chris Claremont and Salva Larrocca came up with a gorgeous new design that blew us all away. In basic black, it was sleek and stylish, when teamed with Gambit's trademark trench, while being incredibly functional if he wished to sneak and blend into the dark. All in all, it took a long time for them to come up with a look worthy of the looker. :) (Thanks to Alexis for the scan.)

The relaunch of the books meant a new costume for Gambit. Similar to his previous one, if slightly simpler in terms of the detailing, it combines a black top with a blue bottom. The space-age boots are a somewhat strange touch, but no stranger than the ones that were a part of his original costume. He retains his trenchcoat, of course.