Writer: Christopher Hastings
Artist: Flaviano
Colorist: Marcio Menyz
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
I Am Groot continues with him being stuck as a sapling. It makes for an adorable Groot, but not necessarily a very helpful one. The issue starts off feeling more like a team comic since he is still with Star-Lord, Drax, Rocket, and Gamora. Later in the issue, we see a bit more of him on his own and it looks like it’ll shape up to be an interesting story.
Christopher Hastings does a nice job with the writing considering all he ever says is “I am Groot” in some form. The surrounding characters and dialogue give more of a perspective on what it is Groot is at least trying to say. Not to mention, the art from Flaviano adds so much more to Groot. His facial expression are key with his lack of a wide-ranging vocabulary.
In this issue, Rocket feels like he’s the most attached to Groot. When the two are together, there are plenty of comical moments. Groot leads the team right into an anomaly in space and he ends up left behind. He lands in a place where there are robot versions of the Guardians and his only hope for survival is a dog (also part robot) named Buddy.
It is tough determining how well this comic can do since Marvel’s struggles continue. We already have a Guardians based book and five issues of the grounded Rocket Raccoon just wrapped up last month. Groot provides some fun moments, but he might not be enough to hold up a solo comic for very long.
Verdict: Check it out. Groot is a fun character and this first issue is worth checking out to see if you want to follow along with it.
