9 “Guardians of the Galaxy” Easter Eggs You May Have Missed in “I Am Groot”

The first episode of “I Am Groot,” which is called “Groot’s First Steps,” gives us a major hint at where the series falls within the MCU timeline. The show begins with Groot as a sapling. You may remember that, in “Guardians of the Galaxy,” Groot first appears as an adult, but when he sacrifices himself to save his friends, all that’s left of Groot is a broken twig. Rocket takes the twig and puts it in a potted plant, and Groot is able to sprout once again. Since this episode shows Groot waking up in his potted plant and taking his first steps, that means the show picks up shortly after the first “Guardians” movie. However, later episodes appear to take place after the second film and before “Avengers: Infinity War.”

Right beside Groot’s potted plant is a yaro root. If this plant seemed familiar, that’s because it’s part of a funny bit in the second “Guardians” film. During the movie, Nebula requests to eat the root after being captured by the Guardians aboard their ship. She says she’s hungry, but both Gamora (who is Nebula’s adopted sister) and Drax tell Nebula on separate occasions that she can’t eat the root because it isn’t ripe yet. Nebula refuses to listen and eats the yaro root anyway, only to realise the Guardians were right and the root wasn’t good to eat just yet.

Groot gets into all sorts of trouble in the series, including gettings into fights with other alien creatures and plant life. At the end of every “I Am Groot” episode, there’s a disclaimer that hilariously reassures viewers that no one was harmed while making the show. For example, the end credits for the first episode reads: “No tree creatures or plants were harmed during the making of this short.” This is because, in the episode, Groot gets replaced by a Bonsai tree, so he lashes out at the tree in jealousy. Each disclaimer is a blink-and-you ‘ll-miss-it moment during the credits sequence, but it only adds to the charm of the show.

In the third episode, we see Groot aboard the Eclector, which is a ship used by Yondu’s clan of Ravagers in “Vol. 2” that eventually gets destroyed by the end of the movie. During the film, Groot, Rocket, and Yondu are taken prisoner aboard the Eclector by the Ravagers, who stole Yondu’s arrow. Since Groot spends most of his time aboard the ship trying to retrieve the arrow (which takes him many attempts before he finally succeeds), that makes us wonder whether Groot could have found himself on the Eclector before the second movie. We hope the next season of “I Am Groot” gives us some answers.

Thanos has been popping up everywhere lately. In “Hawkeye,” Clint Barton sips from a “Thanos Was Right” coffee mug, and in “Thor: Love and Thunder,” an ice cream shop featuring Thanos’s infinity gauntlet pops up in New Asgard called “Infinity Conez.” The latest reference toward him happens during the third episode of “I Am Groot.” If you pay close attention to the book Groot reads while in the bathroom, you’ll notice its cover features a picture of Thanos. While the infinity saga is over, this scene proves traces from that era remain present in the MCU.

In that same episode, Groot encounters an alien called an Iwua that can shapeshift. Groot doesn’t like it when the Iwua impersonates him, so to be the only Groot left remaining, he challenges the alien to a dance-off. At one point, Groot starts dancing with the Iwua and leads him toward an escape door. Once the Iwua is in the perfect spot, Groot pushes the button for the door and sends the Iwua flying into space. This moment appears to reference the scene in the first “Guardians” film when Peter Quill distracts Ronan with a dance battle on Xandar. Clearly, Groot seems to have picked up some moves from his fellow Guardian.

“Guardians of the Galaxy” begins with a young Peter being abducted from Earth by Yondu and the Ravagers. As we know, he kept a few of his childhood belongings with him through the years to remind him of home, including his mother’s cassette tape.

According to screenshots taken by @Marvel_Stans on Twitter, “I Am Groot” reveals Peter also kept his backpack with him all this time. During the series’ final episode, Groot goes through an old Jansport bookbag that features various patches on the front, including one of NASA and Pac-Man (which is also a callback to the Pac-Man scene in “Vol. 2”). Inside the bag is an “Alf” comic, which was released in 1988. The year is significant considering Peter also got abducted in 1988.

“I Am Groot” ends with Groot painting a picture of the Guardians of the Galaxy. The photo, which is covered in green glitter, shows Groot wrapping his arms around Gamora, Rocket, Peter, and Drax. It appears to be a nod toward Groot’s sacrifice in the original “Guardians” movie. During the scene, an adult Groot wraps his tree branches around all his friends to protect them from falling debris on Xandar. Once they’re all inside his shield, you can see his branches grow leaves and there are sparkling lights everywhere.

According to a February 2019 tweet by “Guardians of the Galaxy” director James Gunn, the “First Groot is dead” and “Baby Groot is his son,” which means that although the original Groot is gone, the younger Groot still has memories of his father’s past.

Missed some Easter eggs? Then make sure to rewatch “I Am Groot” on Disney+.