Whether you love or hate the character Groot, there’s no denying his impact both in the pages of comic books and on the big screen as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Created by Stan Lee alongside Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers, the heroic tree-like creature has been entertaining audiences since its conception back in 1960. Originally introduced as an invader who would capture humans for experimentation, Groot was reimagined and presented as a hero in 2006, which would then remain his identity for the foreseeable future.
Brought to theaters via the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie, Groot was voiced by Vin Diesel and played by Krystian Godlewski via performance capture. When all was said and done on that film however, he’d been brought down to just a few inches in height, given a whole new look and christened ‘Baby Groot’. With Baby Groot the focus of some of the teasers released for the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, it looks as if the young version of the character is one that’s going to be showcased heavily, moving forward.
Marvel have moved forward another step in doing this by giving Baby Groot his own ongoing comic book series: the aptly-titled I Am Groot. You can check out the cover art for the series' first issue, below:
Announced at the ComicsPRO annual meeting in Memphis, Tennessee, Christopher Hastings who will be writing the series told Comic Book:
“I’m excited to take the very cute, very small Groot and completely remove him from the comfort zone of the Guardians of the Galaxy (which is already kind of limited, comfort wise). He’s stranded in an extremely strange land and must find a way back home, with no way for anyone to understand him.”
Flaviano will be working on the artwork for the series, whilst the cover for the first issue has been completed by Marco D’Alfonso. The official synopsis for issue 1 has also been announced, and reads:
“When the Guardians of the Galaxy get caught in a wormhole, a smaller-than-normal Groot is separated billions of light-years away from the team. Falling to a planet below, Groot discovers he is on an entirely alien and unknown world full of strange creatures and societies. Seriously underdeveloped and with nobody who can understand him, Groot will need to make the journey to the center of this world and find the way back to his family!”
Getting more Groot can only be a good thing for Marvel fans, and with Hastings in the driving seat following his work on the Adventure Time comic book series, it seems we’re in for a treat when the book hits shelves.
Of course, there’s always the chance that we could be getting too much Groot. Overexposure is real, and if we get too much of the character ahead of the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, we could all be bored of the cute little creature before long. Luckily, Marvel looks to be avoiding that with their release date.
NEXT: Baby Groot is 'A Little Jerk' in Guardians 2
I Am Groot debuts in May.
Source: Comic Book
