555 | French-Kissing Rocket Raccoon →
Primary topic this episode: the books we read this week! Other topics include Lou calling Slim a dog, MARVEL HAS JOINED CU, some of our MARVEL CU PICKS, the last time Slim cried, Raccoon love, pulling Batman’s strings, constantly on cocaine, dead bodies in your trunk, whiny Luke, your letters, and some actual news that nearly led to real crying OK.
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Written by Sam Humphries @samhumphries
Art by Javier Garrón with colors by Antonio Fabela
We are never, ever, ever getting back together… Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead… Breaking up is hard to do… You get the idea. Somewhere off-page in Star-Lord #6, Peter Quill definitely made himself an “Awesome Mix” tape of breakup songs. But he’s fine. Really. At least, he spends a good deal of effort trying to convince Gamora of this. And she’s not buying it because, let’s face it, he’s moping around in a stained bathrobe and underpants with baby Groots on them and he’s not okay.
Neither is Kitty Pryde. She’s trying to bury her feelings in busywork so unnecessary it just magnifies her sadness. Rocket possesses about as much sensitivity as his namesake, so if he notices you’re having a hard time, you know you’re really having a hard time.
The side-by-side horizontal panels depicting the parallel conversations Peter and Kitty are having with Gamora and Rocket – insisting that the other is a jerk but it’s fine because they’re moving on – are pretty funny but also painfully familiar to anyone who ever experienced a bad breakup. And we’ve all been there, right? You stare at your phone, think back on all the memories, and then you’re texting. With smiley emoji. Uh-oh. Next thing you know you’re back looking for comfort and finding instead only the strife that drove you apart in the first place.
Sometimes a couple is better off apart, but I can’t believe that’s true for Peter and Kitty. (Come on, you guys, Star-Lord Squared! It writes itself!) Sometimes it takes a crisis to remind you why you’re better off together, and if there’s one thing you can count on in Marvel’s cosmic universe, it’s a crisis. Thanks, Tony Stark. Wait, what? Plot twist! I won’t say any more because spoilers are definitely grounds for breaking up with someone. You’re just going to have to read it and find out!
Tia
Vasiliou is a Digital Editor at comiXology.
Her breakup song of choice is Hilary Duff’s “So Yesterday.”
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY INFINITE COMIC #2
OUT TODAY! DIGITAL FIRST!
What’s worse than being trapped within Rocket’s pocket-dimension vial? Realizing you’re not alone! What strange creature stalks the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY?
Check it out HERE!
What If? Infinity - Guardians of the Galaxy #1
What if the Guardians of the Galaxy found out the Illuminati were hiding Thanos? Thanos is the most wanted man in the universe and for years he was secretly being held by the Illuminati. The Guardians of the Galaxy just found out and they are ****** off.
AWESOME first day at WonderCon! Great panel with break out Submit creators Joshua Fialkov, Jason Brubaker, Elliott Blake, Jody Houser!
Also spotted some AMAAAZING cosplay through out the day hoping to see more tomorrow. Follow us on twitter to catch all our updates throughout the rest of the weekend at WonderCon!
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Mike Isenberg recommends Rocket Raccoon (2014-) #5
From the trailers alone it was pretty clear that this past summer’s Guardians of the Galaxy film was going to launch at least one of its main characters into stardom in a major way. Of course I’m referring to that furry little foul-mouthed ball of violence, Rocket Raccoon. So it came as little surprise when Marvel announced that, a month before the movie’s release, they’d be giving everyone’s soon-to-be-favorite Procyonid his own spin-off comic series.
We’re now five issues into the series, and Rocket Raccoon (2014-) has continued to impress and entertain each month. Drawn and written by the ever-talented Skottie Young (skottieyoung), the book is funny, exciting, and irreverent. Young’s art is dynamic and animated as ever, and gorgeously complimented by Jean-François Beaulieu’s beautiful coloring work. The characters are all lively and lovable, the action sequences are all fluid and intense, and the humor is all just mature enough to give adults some good unexpected chuckles without going so far that kids couldn’t enjoy this book as well. Boiled down to a single word, this book is FUN.
Issue #5 sees Rocket and Groot taking a well-deserved break after the craziness of opening story-arc reached its conclusion last month. The book opens with the two Guardians relaxing around a campfire, telling stories to a group of what appear to be extra-terrestrial cub scouts. The bulk of the issue consists of one such story, as told to the campers by Groot.
Of course, Groot’s three-word vocabulary isn’t particularly well-suited to storytelling. So every word of the story—every line of dialogue, every sign in the background, and even every sound effect—is portrayed as Groot would have said it himself: “I am Groot.” It’s an entertaining conceit that’s executed extremely well; the story is fast paced and exciting, and the fact that Skottie Young and Jake Parker (co-credited with art on this issue) have pulled it off without the gimmick getting stale shows just how much fun it’s possible to have with these characters.
For anyone looking for a book to put a smile on your face, Rocket Racoon (2014-) is pure distilled fun. Full of gorgeous artwork, irreverent humor, and crazy action, this book is definitely recommended.
For more of Skottie Young’s fantastic art, check out his Marvel Oz books, starting with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Also take a look at the Special Edition of Rocket Raccoon #1, which includes full-page thumbnails, inks, and colored versions of every page in the comic. (Have I overused the word “gorgeous” in this review yet? Because it’s gorgeous.)
And if you’re looking for more Rocket Raccoon, you can’t go wrong with the Rocket and Groot Ultimate Collection
[Read Rocket Raccoon (2014-) #5]
Mike Isenberg is an Associate Production Coordinator at comiXology, and the co-writer of First Law Of Mad Science. He lives in Harlem with his cats, Tesla and Edison
