This weekend, moviegoers will hopefully be headed to the cinema in droves to see the latest entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, when MARVEL’s GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY is released. I’ve long-held that it’s the most “out there” of the Marvel movies thus far, and one that might be confusing to folks only familiar with the bigger name Marvel heroes like CAPTAIN AMERICA, SPIDER-MAN or THE X-MEN. By now, you’ve likely seen the marketing materials, and noticed at the forefront a little guy with a very big gun… ROCKET RACOON. Now, you might think that this character is CGI, but you’d be mistaken. While it’s true that Bradley Cooper is providing his voice this time around, Rocket is very much the real deal, and in the years prior to his service with Groot and Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), he was known to roll with yours truly. Yep, it’s time for Throwback Thursday with Rocket Racoon and The Rock Father, circa 2008!
At this point, I was about five months out from conceiving my oldest daughter, prepping the launch of my own comic book series and wearing a primitive communications device known as a “Bluetooth Headset.” Rocket entered my life as a raccoon cub – just a wee lad in need of some serious training. What? You think that Peter Quill was the influence to make Rocket into the blaster-toting badass that he’s become? Well, you’re probably right, but it was based on the foundation laid by me – the pre-Rock Father, Rock Father.
But wait! There’s more…
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Official Synopsis:
From Marvel, the studio that brought you the global blockbuster franchises of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and The Avengers, comes a new team—the Guardians of the Galaxy. An action-packed, epic space adventure, Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” expands the Marvel Cinematic Universe into the cosmos, where brash adventurer Peter Quill finds himself the object of an unrelenting bounty hunt after stealing a mysterious orb coveted by Ronan, a powerful villain with ambitions that threaten the entire universe. To evade the ever-persistent Ronan, Quill is forced into an uneasy truce with a quartet of disparate misfits—Rocket, a gun-toting raccoon, Groot, a tree-like humanoid, the deadly and enigmatic Gamora and the revenge-driven Drax the Destroyer. But when Quill discovers the true power of the orb and the menace it poses to the cosmos, he must do his best to rally his ragtag rivals for a last, desperate stand—with the galaxy’s fate in the balance.
Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy,” which first appeared in comic books in Marvel Super-Heroes, Issue #18 (Jan. 1969), stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, featuring Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket, Lee Pace, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Djimon Hounsou, with John C. Reilly, Glenn Close as Commander Rael and Benicio del Toro as The Collector.
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James Gunn is the director of the film with Kevin Feige producing, and Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jeremy Latcham, Alan Fine and Stan Lee serve as executive producers. The story is by Nicole Perlman and James Gunn, with screenplay by James Gunn. Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” is in theaters this weekend.
