Guardians Of The Galaxy: 20 Easter Eggs & References You Must See

11. Groot Reborn

The love/hate relationship between Rocket and Groot - mainly centering on Groot's inability to say anything but the three words "I", "am" and "Groot", exclusively in that order - is actually one of the most well-drawn friendships seen in a film, despite being between a talking raccoon and a tree. That makes it all the more heartbreaking when, at the end of the film, Groot sacrifices himself to save the lives of his new friends. Rocket sobs, begging him not to protect them within a shell made of his branches, sure that it will kill him - Groot nevertheless is more than willing to do that, making sure the Guardians don't all perish as Ronan The Accuser's ship makes an emergency crash landing down on the surface of Xandar. When the dust has settled and his best pal has been reduced to a pile of broken twigs, it turns out Rocket has planted one of the surviving saplings - and, in the end credits, he comes alive as a mini-Groot in a plant pot, grooving along to the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back." Despite the tears, the death wasn't all that worrying, since these things tend to happen in the comics all the time. In fact at this point Groot might even be giving Jean Grey a run for her money for the amount of times he's died and been resurrected. In his first appearance he was eaten by termites, he's been obliterated several times since then, but he remains basically immortal so long as there's a little piece of him left that can grow back.