For the second time in as many months, the back-up story in Marvel’s current big cosmic title has outshined the book’s main event. The misadventures of Guardians of the Galaxy refugees Rocket the Raccoon and Groot the sentient tree continue to point out how clunky the all-star Annihilator team really is. To be fair, how could any storyline compete with murderous interstellar clowns, tree bondage, and a varmint-infested Undergrowth Resistance?
On the other hand, the heavy “Alpha Class” hitters have finally started to gel as a team and, instead of spending their time infighting, have started to hit some bad guys. It looks like Ronan the Accuser’s marriage to Inhuman hotty Crystal (as seen in the excellent War of Kings) has done him some good as far as helping him to develop a sense of humor to go with his ass-kicking abilities.
Unfortunately, and I’m talking to you, Tan Eng Huat, along with growing a new pair of cojones, the Surfer has also sprouted a new set of ears. That’s just wrong.
Already halfway through this series, and the team has just begun to act like a team. Two more issues and this aggregation will probably go the way of the Guardians. Let’s hope that Marvel replaces it with something a little more lasting—and they put the raccoon in charge.
