Rocket Raccoon & Groot - Film Theory - Brian Manton

Ref:
http://www.elementsofcinema.com/editing/kuleshov-effect.html



1.
Wide shot. Inside the Guardians' space ship.
Rocket addresses the reader, looking out of the panel, and gestures towards Groot, who stands to the right of the panel.
The other members of the crew are playing poker in the background and paying no attention.

Rocket:     My sesquipedalian friend here is going to help me demonstrate the Kuleshov Effect.

2.
Rocket holds up a pizza box with one slice of pizza left.

3.
Medium shot of Groot with an inscrutable expression.

Groot:     I am Groot.

4.
Rocket holds up the centerfold of an alien porn mag, all purple skin and tentacles. The page is torn, the more provocative section of the image gone.

5.
Medium shot of Groot with an inscrutable expression.

Groot:     I am Groot.

6.
Rocket holds up a chainsaw.

7.
Medium shot of Groot with an inscrutable expression.

Groot:     I am Groot.

8.
Wide.
Rocket starts the chainsaw and brandishes it at Groot. Groot steps backwards, but smiles.
The other crew members stand up from their poker game, startled.

Rocket:     This clearly demonstrates that someone has been going through my locker again!

Rocket Raccoon & Groot - Stakeout - Ryan K Lindsay

PAGE 1 - 5 PANELS

1. Rocket stands in front of a suburban house at night.

Caption: This place looks nice, right? Splendid family inside, two cars in the garage, 815 channels on the widescreen tv.

2. Rocket walks across the front yard.

Caption: Yeah, right.
Caption: You wouldn't believe the evil we tracked here.

3. Rocket looks down the side of the house, there's a slight path leading out the back.

Caption: If I told you what was really here you'd leave your home straight away and take off for the hills.
Caption: It's better you never realise what's most likely in your neighbourhood, too.

4. Rocket looks up at the big tree up the side of the house. We can tell it's actually Groot, incognito.

Caption: The evidence we need is finally where we can get it.

5. Rocket looks down at the bins out the back.

Caption: But it feels like someone is taking the piss out of me.
Rocket: [sigh]

Rocket Raccoon & Groot - Three's Company - Grant McLaughlin

Three rows of panels. Rows one and two each take up a quarter of the page and each have two panels. The third row is a single panel that takes up the remaining half of the page.

1 – A forest on Earth. Rocket Raccoon is talking with two regular raccoons. They look kind of bored.

ROCKET: ...and so that's when I busted out my rocket skates --

2 – The regular raccoons have grown tired of Rocket and start scurrying away. Rocket reacts in surprise, yelling at them not to go.

ROCKET: Hey! Where are you going?! Come back!

3 – Rocket stands in the same position, watching as they run off. They move further away. No dialogue.

4 – Rocket turns back towards the reader, putting his hands in his pockets and kicking at the ground in an “aw shucks” kind of pose. It's kind of hard to tell, but it looks like he might be on the verge of tears. The raccoons are quite far away at this point.

ROCKET: Whatever. I don't need those flarks. They were terrible conversationalists. I'll be fine on my own. Besides...

5 – Slight switch in perspective. Elsewhere in the forest. Groot is standing beside a big redwood tree. Groot is offering a bouquet of flowers to said tree. The bouquet is clearly picked from the surrounding woods, with clumps of dirt apparent at their base. Groot looks quite bashful (at least as bashful as an extraterrestrial plant monster can). Groot's speech bubble is sprinkled with little hearts. Rocket is far off in the background, although he is still visible.

GROOT: I AM GROOT!

CAPTION (ROCKET): I-it's not like my best bud has abandoned me for some tawdry gal pal.

Rocket Raccoon and Groot in "Let Go" by Danial Carroll

PANEL ONE, WIDE
Groot sits by a small stone grave on a grassy hill. The gravestone reads, "Rocket Racoon". Around him are all the Marvel cosmic characters as well as various other anthropomorphic creatures. They all look sad.

CAPTION: 2020

CAPTION: The oldest tree on Earth is around 5000 years old.


PANEL TWO, WIDE
Same shot, except that Groot is on his own. The grave is partially overgrown with greenery and moss. So is Groot.

CAPTION: 2270

CAPTION: With such a life-span, time has a much different meaning.


PANEL THREE, WIDE
Same shot again, except the gravestone has partially decayed and crumbled.

CAPTION: 2770

CAPTION: Though one fact remains...


PANEL FOUR, WIDE
The grave stone has now completely crumbled and the grassy hill is no longer grassy. Groot has risen and is walking away, though still looking a little sad.

CAPTION: 3770

CAPTION: There comes a time when you just have to let go.

GROOT/WHISPER: I am... Groot.

Rocket Raccoon & Groot - The Ballad of Groot - Rol Hirst

In response to Ben's post...

Panel One.

Close on Rocket Raccoon (head only). He’s holding a microphone, talking straight to the camera.

Rocket: Laydeez and gentlemen… Ovoids, H’ylthri and Poppupians… please put your hands, claws, flippers, twigs and sphincters together for our next performer…

Panel Two.

Pull out to reveal Rocket Raccoon is on a stage in the corner of a packed space-bar (think Star Wars Cantina). A variety of alien races sit at tables before him, drinking a disgusting array of space cocktails. Behind him, on the stage, Groot sits on a stool, holding an acoustic guitar.

Rocket: Direct from Planet X, via the Negative Zone, Monster Island and the Pine Barrens of New Jersey…

Rocket: This is ‘The Ballad of Groot’!

Panel Three.

Rocket flies off stage left while Groot starts playing the guitar.

Mellifluous musical notes drift out across the audience.

Panel Four.

While Groot continues playing, we pan around the audience. They are captivated by Groot’s music. The notation continues to drift through the air.

Panel Five.

Wide shot of the stage with Groot still playing the guitar, music continuing to drift across the room, the entire audience rapt. While he plays, Groot reaches out a tendril to grab the microphone stand.

Panel Six.

Having pulled the microphone closer to his face, Groot now bellows out the lyrics…

Groot: I AM GROOT!

Panel Seven.

Close on two aliens, a M’Ndavian and a Watcher, sitting at a table in the corner, staring in admiration at the stage while sipping on their cocktails.

M’Ndavian: Man, that’s, like, so deep.

Watcher: You’ve no idea… I saw how long he worked on those lyrics.

Rocket Raccoon and Groot - The Ballad of Rocket Raccoon - Ben Rosenthal

1. Rocket Raccoon crawling into a room reminiscent of the old west. His hand is reaching towards the copy of Gideon’s bible on the bedside table.

CAPTION

Rocky Raccoon checked into his room

Only to find Gideon’s bible

2. The pages of the bible are open, with Rocket Raccoon’s hand pulling out a sci-fi looking laser from its pages.

CAPTION

Rocky had come equipped with the gun,

To shoot the legs off his rival.

3. An old western saloon, but with a sci-fi twist. It is filled with numerous looking aliens, all in different types of space uniforms. However, in keeping with the sci-fi western theme, the space suits have call backs to the dress of the days of the old west. Sitting in a booth in the corner is Groot, sitting with his arm over a humanoid rabbit lady, dressed as a saloon girl.

CAPTION

His rival it seems, had broken his dreams

By stealing the girl of his fancy.

4. Rocket Raccoon has entered the saloon through the space-age looking saloon doors (perhaps made of hard-light or some such). He wears a grimace on his face.

CAPTION

Rocky burst in and grinning a grin,

5. Rocket Raccoon has taken a seat opposite Groot and his girl at the booth. He holds his laser on the table, pointed directly at Groot. Groot has one hand around the girl, the other cannot be seen under the table.

CAPTION

He said Danny Boy this is a show down.

6. Same as Panel 5, however a laser has pierced the table from underneath as Groot has fired his laser. The bolt has hit Rocket, who has a look of shock on his face.

CAPTION

But Daniel was hot, he drew first and shot

7. Same as Panel 6, however Rocket is slumped over the table, with Groot leaving the bar in the distance, his arm around the Rabbit girl.

CAPTION

And Rocky collapsed in the corner.

Da, da, da, da, da.

I’m being a little self-indulgent this week. As such, this takes place in no continuity whatsoever.

Rocket Raccoon & Groot – Would the Real Groot Please Stand Up? – MK Stangeland Jr.

Rocket Raccoon and Groot have just finished cleaning up a Badoon outpost, though the fight left Groot literally in pieces.

(7 Panels)

Panel 1: ROCKET RACCOON peers over a small ledge to where the pieces of what used to be GROOT are scattered across the ground.

ROCKET RACCOON: Groot! Buddy! Say something!

Panel 2: Small panel, close-up on the various GROOT splinters as they begin to move.

Panel 3: Like panel 2, this is a small panel. The GROOT splinters take on a humanoid form, each one resembling some form of miniature GROOT. They pick themselves up.

Panel 4: ROCKET RACCOON is thrilled to see that his friend is still alive.

ROCKET RACCOON (1): Groot!

ROCKET RACCOON (2): I knew I could count on you to…

Panel 5: ROCKET RACCOON has a worried look upon his face as he realizes just how many miniature GROOTs there really are.

ROCKET RACCOON (1): Wow…usually there’s not this many.

ROCKET RACCOON (2): So which one of you is the Groot?

Panel 6: Some of the mini GROOTs have their hands in the air.

GROOT 1: I am Groot!

GROOT 2: I am Groot!

GROOT 3: I am Groot!

Panel 7: ROCKET RACCOON is noticeably concerned as he considers the implications of his situation. Off-panel, we can ‘hear’ other GROOTs join in on the ‘I am Groot’ chorus.

ROCKET RACCOON: Flark.

(END PAGE)

Why Rocket Raccoon & Groot?

Come on, this one should have been half-obvious from the moment I said that Rocket Raccoon is my favorite comic book character. You can read up on him there if you want to basics on why he’s showing up this week. Groot, however, might not be as obvious, especially since it means that my favorite character has to share the spotlight.

But you know what? I don’t think Rocket would have it any other way.

There are some things that, while all well and good on their own, can be paired up with something else so that both become something much, much more than the sum of their parts. Like Peanut Butter and Chocolate. The exact same principal applies to Comic Book characters, sometimes in ways you might never expect. Who would have thought, when they were originally created, that Power Man and Iron Fist or Blue Beetle and Booster Gold would one day be teamed-up and become the iconic parings that they remain to this day?

Such is the case with Rocket Raccoon and Groot. And it’s amazing to think of how great a pair they’ve made in spite of how it was less than five years ago that someone got the bright idea that putting a wise-cracking raccoon and

a walking talking tree together might be a smart idea. But that’s just what happened when Keith Giffen first stuck them together for his Annihilation: Conquest – Star-Lord miniseries. And of course, I’d hate to diminish the contributions of DnA in the matter, who managed to take the concept and run with it in a way that’s allowed the Raccoon and his Tree to get their own miniseries post-Guardians of the Galaxy. One which manages to far outshine the main book they’re supposed to be a ‘backup’ story to, I might add.

I have little doubt that Rocket Raccoon and Groot still have a bright future ahead of them, and I look forward to seeing just what scripts both our regular and guest writers come up with this week that I have no doubt will provide further evidence to this effect.