Although Phase One movies like Iron Man and The Avengers had comic relief in spades, the first overtly comedic entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy. Perhaps the Guardians’ funniest member is Rocket, voiced by Bradley Cooper.
Cooper has said that his performance as Rocket was inspired by Joe Pesci’s Oscar-winning portrayal of fast-talking hothead Tommy DeVito in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas. His delivery of every line in this role – whether it’s a comedic moment or a dramatic moment – is pitch-perfect. So, we’ve compiled the trash panda’s most hysterical moments from the MCU so far.
Trying To Buy Bucky’s Arm
Thor’s triumphant arrival in Wakanda with Rocket and Groot is one of the most spectacular moments in Avengers: Infinity War. As they join the battle, they mingle with the other Avengers. Rocket sees Bucky Barnes shooting at the Outriders with an assault rifle and asks him how much he’s selling the gun for.
When Bucky tells him it’s not for sale, Rocket asks for a price on his bionic Hydra arm instead. Bucky walks off, but a determined Rocket says, “Oh, I’ll get that arm.”
“Spit It Out!”
After the adult-sized Groot spent the first Guardians movie taking care of Rocket, Rocket spent the second one taking care of the baby-sized Groot. This is clear from the opening scene, in which Baby Groot dances around the arena of combat to “Mr. Blue Sky” while his teammates desperately fend off an interdimensional beast.
At one point, Rocket spots Groot trying to eat a fly and rushes over to tell him to spit it out, fearing he’ll choke on it.
Making Fun Of Taserface’s Name
Taserface is a real character from the comics, and James Gunn clearly doesn’t think he has a very cool name. When Rocket is kidnapped by the Ravagers and tied to a chair, Taserface declares himself to be the new captain and outlines what he’s going to do to Rocket.
As Rocket mercilessly rips into his name, Taserface decides to kill him first, and Rocket cracks, “Well, dying is certainly better than living an entire life as a moronic sh*thead who thinks Taserface is a cool name.”
“You Wanna Go To Space, Puppy?”
Although he’s the character who comes up with the “Time Heist” plan that ultimately saves the world, Scott Lang finds himself hopelessly out of his depth in Avengers: Endgame. All the other Avengers have been to space or battled with aliens or saved entire planets from destruction.
When Scott falls behind in a discussion about the Infinity Stones’ historical whereabouts, Rocket sarcastically says, “Oh, look, it’s like a little puppy, all happy and everything. You wanna go to space, puppy? I’ll take you to space!”
Stealing Vorker’s Eye
All of the Guardians are fans of practical jokes, but they each have a very different sense of humor. Rocket, for example, gets a kick out of stealing people’s prosthetic body parts. Part of his plan to break out of the Kyln involved taking someone’s leg, just because he thought it would be funny.
When Groot brings Vorker’s eye to an imprisoned Rocket and Yondu, mistaking it for Yondu’s fin, Rocket decides to hold onto it. A hysterical Rocket explains, “He’s gonna wake up tomorrow…and he’s not gonna know…where his eye is!”
“I Would Very Much Like To Go There, Please.”
When Thor bumps into the Benatar while he floats through space from the wreckage of his own ship, the Guardians of the Galaxy bring him aboard and ask who he is. He explains that he’s going to Nidavellir to get a Thanos-killing weapon forged, and he needs to take their escape pod to get there.
Rocket excitedly explains, “That place is a legend. They make the most powerful, horrific weapons to ever torment the universe. I would very much like to go there, please.”
“He Don’t Know Talkin’ Good Like Me And You.”
When Peter Quill first meets Groot, he’s confused by the fact that all he ever says is, “I am Groot.” No matter what he asks him, that’s the response.
So, Rocket explains Groot’s language to Quill: “Well, he don’t know talkin’ good like me and you, so his vocabulistics is limited to ‘I’ and ‘am’ and ‘Groot,’ exclusively in that order.”
Beating Up Grass
One of Rocket’s biggest issues is his anger. It’s been the focal point of some of Rocket’s darkest moments from the MCU, but it’s also been the source of a couple of hilarious gags, like this one.
At one point in the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie, Rocket gets so frustrated that he starts kicking the heck out of some grass. As he does so, he realizes the ridiculousness of what he’s doing and cries out, “You’re makin’ me beat up grass!”
“Bunch Of Jackasses, Standing In A Circle.”
When Peter Quill galvanizes the Guardians of the Galaxy in their first solo movie, making them truly a team for the first time as he inspires them to join the fight against Ronan and liberate Xandar from his evil reign, Rocket is the most reluctant to stand up.
Gamora, Drax, and Groot all stand up alongside Quill, but Rocket is unwilling to do it. When Rocket finally stands up with the others, he says, “Well, now, I’m standing. Happy? We’re all standing. Bunch of jackasses, standing in a circle.”
Trying To Explain The Detonator To Groot
In the final battle of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, the team figures out how to kill Ego. They need to get an atomic bomb into the core of his planet to blow him into oblivion.
The only snag is that Baby Groot is the only one who’s small enough to get the bomb down to Ego’s core, and he’s a baby, so it’s tough to communicate with him. As Rocket tries to explain the detonator to him, he continually thinks he’s supposed to press the button that will kill them all instantly.
