OMD's Pop-culture corner: Channing Tatum and the evolution of opinion

Less than 12 hours removed from sitting in the splash zone at Magic Mike XXL at the Alamo Drafthouse, I have to marvel not only at how well the film succeeds at what it has set out to do but also at how completely my opinion of Channing Tatum has changed over the past five years or so.

If someone came up to me and asked my opinion about Channing Tatum sometime in 2008 or so, I'd have looked at you quizzically with no idea about whom you were speaking. By 2011, I was ready for him to go away. Then came Haywire, which inarguably changed the course of his career. A couple Jump Streets and Magic Mikes later combined with a hilarious, self-effacing cameo in This is the End and suddenly I find myself looking to his next projects with at least a modicum of eagerness.

Whether it is the unexpected discovery of the goofy, self-deprecating (and surprising) charisma of Channing Tatum or something else entirely, who surprised you by winning your heart over after an initial bad impression?