It is simply hard to dislike the lovely character, therefore if you tell me there is someone in the universe who does not like Groot, I will never believe you. Two Groots appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and each of them captured the hearts of millions of fans just by declaring, “I am Groot.”
Whether it is the witty original Groot or the snarky baby Groot, Groot is arguably the best member of the Guardians of the Galaxy. No one can dispute the fact that Groot is the team’s true soul. I am here for the daily duty of adoring Groot. So today, let us explore this wonderfully special character’s past and discover why fans and other superheroes adore him.
All you need to know about Groot
Legendary creators of comic books Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby are responsible for Groot. Since Guardians of the Galaxy, Vin Diesel has voiced Groot in every MCU film directed by James Gunn and Nicole Perlman (2014). Groot is a tree-like, highly intelligent member of the Flora colossus species found on planet X.
Despite being very bright and strong, Groot is only able to speak in the famous “I am Groot” phrase due to his stiff acoustic organs caused by his heavyweight physiology. “Groot” means “large” in Dutch, which possibly refers to adult Groot’s size and his ability to grow in size. Groot’s criminal record in Nova Corps includes 3 counts of bodily harm, 15 counts of escape from jail, and 3 counts of mercenary activity.
He was frequently the partner of Rocket Raccoon. Their adventures took them everywhere, like traveling to The Hub, where the duo rescued a family of Scalluscs from Zade Scraggot, who planned to harvest the shells of the snail-like creatures for tiles in his bathroom. Although they had initially been hired by Sqqd’ii, under orders from Scraggot, to acquire the Scalluscs, but upon learning the cruel fate awaiting them, they instead decided to rescue them from the crime-lord.
Out of all the guardians, Groot first became associated with Rocket the raccoon and embarked on the journey of being a bounty hunter alongside the mercenary raccoon. The duo then encounters Peter Quill and Gamora, who are fighting for the possession of the power stone. Groot and Rocket try to stop the fight and capture Peter as a bounty. Unfortunately, all four are arrested by the Nova Corps and sent to the prison called Kyln. There, the four devise a plan to escape from Kyln by using a device high up on the wall.
While trying to help, Groot grows in size and plucks the device, but this sends alarms blaring throughout the prison, and the group’s plan is accelerated as they scramble to escape. They enlist the help of another inmate named Drax and manage to escape. This marks the beginning of the Guardians of the Galaxy. The group then travels to Knowhere to sell the power stone, but Rocket and Drax have an argument, causing distress.
Later, a drunk Drax calls on Ronan to fight him so that he can take revenge as Ronan had killed Drax’s family. Ronan arrives and is easily able to beat Drax and acquires the Power Stone. Groot saves Drax from death by injecting something into Drax’s chest. Rocket wants to leave and urges Groot to come along, but Drax apologizes, and Groot manages to convince Rocket, and the group embarks on their journey to help Xandar from Ronan’s attack and save the world.
The guardians battle Ronan aboard his ship, the Dark Aster, as they grapple to get the power stone from him. Rocket crashes a Ravager ship through the Dark Aster, but it hits on Xandar. Groot sacrifices himself to shield and save the rest of the Guardians. After the remaining Guardians gain control of the Power Stone and defeat Ronan, they bid a tearful goodbye to Groot.
Rocket plants a sapling cut from Groot’s body, which grows into a baby, and Rocket names him Groot after his biological father and raises the baby Groot as his own child. Many fans might be confused about both the Groots being the same character, but they are not. Rocket raises baby Groot as his own son on their ship and as a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy. Baby Groot often listens to Quill’s music and dances in his pot.
When the Sovereign hires the Guardians to protect valuables from an inter-dimensional monster, although Baby Groot accompanies them, instead of fighting the beast, he picks fights with the alien reptiles in the area. Quill’s father, Ego, approaches the guardians, so Quill, Gamora, and Drax go with Ego to his planet, while baby Groot and Rocket stay behind to guard Nebula and repair their ship.
Shortly after, the Ravagers arrive on the ship in search of Quill and end up capturing Rocket and Groot, and Nebula is freed. The Ravagers mutiny against their leader Yondu and harass Groot, going as far as stomping on him. Rocket and Yondu devise a plan to escape, and Groot is given the task of finding Yondu’s fin. Groot finally gets revenge on the Ravager, who harassed him and killed him.
They destroy the Ravager’s ship except for a breakaway quarter that they use to travel to Ego’s planet. They soon figure out Ego’s evil plan, and while Quill keeps Ego busy in combat. Rocket assembles a boy, which baby Groot manages to place in Ego’s brain, thus once again saving the world.
During the events of Infinity War, we see a grown-up teenage Groot. He is like most teenagers, sassy and addicted to video games, with a rebel phase. After the Guardians rescue Thor, he reveals Thanos’ plan to them, and the Guardians split up, with Rocket and Groot accompanying Thor to Nidavellir to create a new weapon for Thor. They find a run-down Nidavellir and come across the dwarf king, Eitri.
The group works together to create Thor’s new weapon, Stormbreaker, a powerful and ancient weapon. As Thor is on the verge of death from holding the portal open to create the weapon using a star, Groot uses his own arm as the handle for Stormbreaker, and they finally finish the weapon, and Groot heals Thor as well.
Thor, Groot, and Rocket then teleport to Wakanda and engage in battle against the Outriders. When Thanos manages to use the Infinity Stones, Groot also happens to be among half of the living things to disappear. It’s a very emotional moment as Groot weakly calls out, “…. Dad?” and Rocket can do nothing but watch helplessly.
Groot is resurrected in 2023 after the remaining Avengers gather the Infinity Stones and restore all those who have been victims of the Blip. Groot then joins Rocket and the rest of the heroes in Battle against 2014 Thanos. After the battle, Groot and the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy attend Tony Stark’s funeral and then, along with Thor, return to space to do their work and guard the Galaxy. After the Battle of Earth, citizens knew of Groot, but since they did not know his actual name, he was referred to as Mr. Tree. Groot was also honored at the New Jersey AvengerCon with a section dedicated to him called Mr. Tree’s House.
What makes Groot a genuinely unique character
Groot is a compelling individual of the Flora Colossus species. He possesses many abilities which are unique to his species. Groot has extraordinary regenerative healing powers. Apparently, he has been killed three times, each time being reborn from a sprig. This is possibly a result of his botanopathy. He can grow to any size at incredible speeds, going from ordinary to the giant in some seconds.
Groot can stretch his limbs to long distances and shape them into a variety of things to be able to do any sort of task. He typically acquires the shape of a tree-humanoid but can also transform his limbs into dense vines. He can grow his limbs to unknown lengths, which allows him to have stretching powers similar in nature to those of Mr. Fantastic. This is possibly related to his cellular regeneration and botanopathy.
Groot is extremely powerful, and his tree-like structure provides him great strength. This immense strength allowed him to be able to overpower Armadillo. His hide is composed of dense wood and is highly durable, allowing him to be immune to most weapons, including gunfire and fire.
Groot’s ability of Chlorokinesis enables his power over other plants and his own body, allowing him to turn his limbs into blades or grow them in size and even heal himself from injuries. Groot also has the ability to heal others, and while the full extent of his capabilities is unknown, he was able to get rid of the Gardener of poison within a few seconds.
Groot possesses Genius-Level intellect, having received the finest education in Photonic Knowledge from the Arbor masters of Planet X. He is allegedly highly intelligent and knowledgeable in quasi-dimensional super-positional engineering.
Although the very notable weakness that Groot possesses is his language barrier. Groot’s vocal organs are not flexible, which limits him to only his trademark phrase of “I am Groot.” It makes communication very difficult with others. According to Maximus the Mad, Groot has actually been saying a number of things when he says the phrase. People who are unfamiliar with the nuances of his speech often misinterpret him as merely saying his name. Only certain people, such as Rocket Raccoon, having stayed with Groot for so long, have been able to pick up the nuances of his speech and are able to understand him.
Upcoming “I am Groot” the series!
Marvel fans have been buzzing about the upcoming I am Groot series since it was announced. Everyone is looking forward to a series centered around the adorable and loved Guardians of the Galaxy member. I am Groot will take us back to the days of Baby Groot ad his own adventures as a little sapling!
Marvel released an adorable poster showing us Groot chilling on Peter’s Walkman, wearing tiny little sunglasses, and two little alien-looking creatures observing him from afar. Maybe Groot’s getting new little friends? I am Groot is ready to hit Disney Plus on August 10th. The series is set to take place after the events of the 2014 Guardians of the Galaxy film. The fans eagerly await the cute baby Groot’s return and can’t wait to witness his little adventures!
Everyone considers Groot the heart and soul of the Guardians. There’s no doubt that the Guardians of the Galaxy would feel incomplete if It wasn’t for him. Apart from the series, Groot is set to make his return in upcoming Marvel movies, with a cameo in the soon-releasing Thor: Love and Thunder. He’s going to meet us in the forthcoming third installment of Guardians of the Galaxy.
The Guardians’ holiday release, titled Guardians of the Galaxy holiday Special on Disney Plus, is set to release this year. Groot’s adventures are far from over, and fans can rest assured that there’s going to be a lot of Groot that’s still left to be witnessed. Groot remains one of the most unique characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and is lovely in the most brilliant ways.