One of many comic book truisms is that a character’s origins will always be uncovered eventually, which is the case for Groot this week in Groot #1. Writer Dan Abnett is the mastermind behind the the MCU Guardians of the Galaxy’s looks and feels, along with Andy Lanning, and he’s getting a chance to reveal Groot’s origin story here. We know very little about Groot’s earlier days, but in this first issue, we get to see Groot’s first friends, his first encounter with an outsider, and more.
After reading this issue and talking to Abnett, it’s apparent this issue is developing Mar-Vell even more than Groot, though both are getting origin-explaining moments in this issue. Set many years prior to when we first laid eyes on the characters, they are forced into an adventure together.
This issue opens with good captions catching us up on where and when the story occurs. We get to see Groot and his friends witness their forest planet of Planet X being raized, and it’s tragic. Enter Mar-Vell, a Kree soldier who is fairly new to the job, acting as a kid of the space police force to find and stop whoever is kidnapping aliens in the galaxy.
Fire must be the scariest thing for a creature like Groot.
Credit: Marvel
Mar-Vell is an interesting character here, a bit green and still learning the ropes. A hugely important character in Marvel history, he’s also been long dead, so it’s interesting to see Abnett explore the character. He’s a person, and a complex one, it seems, who wants to do the right thing.
In fact, Mar-Vell is so intriguing he kind of steals the show, making this less of a Groot origin and adventure and more his. That’ll likely be a big negative for many, but the series is still early yet. Given Groot can’t really talk, it makes sense to pair him with Mar-Vell, but so far not a lot has been revealed about Groot we didn’t already know.
Plot-wise, this issue feels like it packs a lot of information and action in. We get to see the Kree fight off some chainsaw dinosaurs, Mar-Vell meets Groot, and more. There’s a Star Trek vibe to the Kree as well, so if you like chats on the bridge and space chatter, you’ll dig this issue. There’s a promise for a major familiar Guardians of the Galaxy character to show up next issue, which only adds to the excitement.
Artist Damian Coucerio does a good job with this issue. The Kree have a kind of retro space vibe that puts it in a different era of Marvel and also helps remind us this is a story set in the past. The chainsaw dinos are particularly cool, and the cute factor of Groot and his friends is well done. They’re borderline cartoonish and only about five inches tall, and Coucerio captures their childlike nature well.
Groot #1 is the kind of comic that’ll have you digging out your old Marvel cosmic comics and thirsty for more. Abnett and Coucerio have an interesting story at work here, exploring the earlier days of Groot, the Kree, and Mar-Vell.
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