Rocket Raccoon will use his ingenuity to turn Groot into a literal living weapon when the two team up as intergalactic bounty hunters in Marvel's upcoming Heroes Reborn event. The 90s event series is making a modern comeback in May and the arc is already receiving its own minor hints through several variant covers released consecutively from the House of Ideas. While the original Heroes Reborn storyline may have focused heavily on the Avengers and the X-Men among other superheroes, Marvel will be bringing aboard a few members of their principal group of space misfits, the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Writer Jason Aaron (Mighty Thor, Punisher Max) and collaborating artist Ed McGuinness (Spider-Man/Deadpool, Guardians of the Galaxy) are preparing to rock the Marvel Universe wide open with Heroes Reborn, the largest event series to date beginning this spring. As the title implies, the original 1996 Heroes Reborn saw an abundance of Marvel's heroes return to Earth following their untimely "deaths" at the hands of the mighty mutant entity Onslaught. However, this modern reboot of Heroes Reborn will not center on Earth 616's main incarnation of superheroes but focus on alternate incarnations of the heroes existing from a different world. A series of newly released variant covers highlighting the various characters who will factor into the upcoming event, spotlights a familiar pair of space misfits in their roles as intergalactic bounty hunters. At the center of the variant for writer Al Ewing and Juan Frigeri's April issue of Guardians of the Galaxy #13 are fan favorite Guardians, Rocket and Groot.
In the Carlos Pacheco (Fantastic Four, Starjammers) cover promoting the upcoming event, mainstay Guardian Rocket Raccoon appropriately showcases his skill as a master tactician in his modification of Groot from ordinary Flora Colossus to literal living weapon. The exact motive behind Rocket's newest weapon has yet to be revealed but may be hinted at in the description for Heroes Reborn #4. The fourth issue of the new saga will see Rocket face off against cosmic foe Spectrum, which may require the anthropomorphic creature to call upon a new weapon to take down this massive threat. With Rocket's intellect and Groot's ferocity, the duo will be even more of a threat for Spectrum and any other obstacle in the galaxy.
While these alternate variations of Rocket and Groot may share certain characteristics with their main Earth-616 counterparts, there are a few key differences existing on the cover which stand out. Rocket sporting a stylish new eyepatch as well as a jacket similar to the character's live action Avengers Endgame design, while Groot is more or less designed in the the same style as 616 Groot minus his own body.
Marvel's original Heroes Reborn served as a solid revamp of the Marvel Universe following the disappearance of several of Marvel's mainstay superheroes, from The Avengers to the X-Men. Because they were relatively obscure characters at the time, Rocket and Groot did not factor into the original Heroes Reborn series. Given the massive success of the blockbuster Guardians of the Galaxy films and modern comic runs, the two fan favorites are logical participants for this upcoming event series. Now that Rocket Raccoon has a weapon in Groot himself, the two Guardians of the Galaxy members will make for a formidable pair of intergalactic bounty hunters.
The launch of Marvel Comics newest event, Heroes Reborn #1, will hit comic shelves and digital outlets in May.