Character/Marvel

Rose O'Hara

Wolverine: The Origin

Rose O'Hara first appeared in Wolverine #166 (2001-09), published by Marvel. 52 appearances are indexed across 34 series.

Rose O'Hara was the redheaded Irish girl who came to live at the Howlett mansion after her parents died. She, James Howlett (Logan), and Dog Logan were all childhood friends, but as they aged, Rose and James had a falling out with Dog. Dog had increasingly aggressive unrequited feelings for Rose, which culminated in rape attempts on his part. The incidents caused James' father to fire Dog's father (who had been a groundskeeper on the estate), increasing the bad blood between the parents and the children. Dog's father wants him to hold up the Howletts at gunpoint, and after some escalation of the circumstances, Dog's father ends up killing James' father. In response, James kills Dog's father and wounds Dog. Rose and James go on the run, and Dog tells the police they were responsible for the whole thing. They travel into Canada and settle in a small mining community, where they pose as cousins. Over the course of a few years, James falls in love with Rose, but she has fallen in love with the mining foreman, Smitty. They plan to marry, but then Dog shows up, having tracked them to their community, and tries to attack James. Rose gets in the way and accidentally falls onto James' claws, killing her. James is so upset by her death that he retreats into the woods, unable to cope with the guilt of having killed his first love.