I feel really perturbed...on the one hand, it's lovely that the movies created so many new Rocket fans, but on the other, so many people think the character was invented for the movie, or in fact that the movie character resembles the actual character much at all. It's kind of an odd situation for pre-existing fans of the character, from the earlier comics, given that Rocket was violently and abruptly dramatically changed to forcibly align with the movie version which, as mentioned, barely resembled the comics version at all personality-wise.

the MCU is different from the comics and the comics are treated more as inspiration than true origin stories.

most marvel characters are a lot more interesting in the movies than they are in the comics. i'll use Thanos from the recent movie as an example. instead of trying to impress Lady Death by killing half the universe because she wont accept his love. He instead wants to kill half the universe in order to prevent intelligent life from destroying itself via overpopulation and not have the ruination occur that happened on his home planet Titan. Instead of being a lovestruck asshole hes an "the ends justifies the means" self righteous asshole which makes him more relatable.

comics Rocket is such a huge asshole that his ex-girlfriends get together to form an army that want to kill him. Seeing a solo movie with rockets exes hunting him down would be funny, it really doesnt fit the MCU narrative. not to say Amalya might not appear in future films or comics. i just dont expect to see her leading an army of exes after rocket. nor do i expect to see rocket beating up his exes in a fistfight.

the movies are different from the comics and so even if you read them before you dont know what exactly is going to happen. so its still a breathe of fresh air, a new take on an old character. movie rocket is far more charming than comics rocket which is why i think there is a huge fanbase for him.

I'm going to disagree with you, because your assessment of comics Rocket and every example you listed about him is solely post-MCU, after Bendis took over and freely admitted he actually didn't bother reading any of the material that came before, and the character overnight changed personality so violently that for a while in the Rocket fandom we had theories he was actually a clone or alternate universe sort of thing. As such I stand by what I said.

I am well aware of comic Rocket have read most of the comics he's appeared in, including his original Mini. This headcanon list applies to MCU Rocket only and some of is "out there" or AU stuff. I doubt we're ever going to see Rocket's back scars again or have their health effects examined, there just isn't time in the movies.

I myself miss old Space Sheriff Rocket from his mini. It was probably too cartoony for current comic readers so they changed him to a grizzled war veteran in Annihilation and the character has changed with every subsequent writer, too. Some are better than others but I still miss Ranger Rocket.

To be clear I didn't mean that as a critique of you, per se, but more just a general observation/musing overall. It's a strange time to be a long-term Guardians fan.

With that said though, yes, characters naturally change some from writer to writer, but well...there's a reason Superman fans see the "Bendis is coming" ads from DC as a threat. I don't disagree with you on the topic of the sheriff version (I can live without the version that showed up with the Hulk in his very very first appearance though) but even after he moved on from that in the comics he still made references to it here and there and acknowledged it as part of himself. The modern comic version insists, aggressively, that several things he said and did in the past never happened. It's rather jarring.

Welp, there goes my good mood

Nice work thought.

The title says there are 15 items when there are actually 16.

That's why the title is 15 depressing and one relatively cheerful. 15 +1 = 16.

Whoops, didn't catch that before. My bad.

Trying to get over the Peter Parker part now we got dis... ;;

I'd like to see #1 explored in an adult context...sounds interesting.

I doubt it makes him feel THAT good, heh. Wouldn't want him spasming in a corner every time he hits a target. Though the idea he might get addicted to battle or tinkering or piloting is interesting.

That's what I meant. I mean, getting your pleasure centers crossed with your programmed skills? Sounds real interesting.

I think they did it in a low key way. He IS sort of addicted to battle, piloting and tinkering. They are three things that make him really happy. If that was reinforced by a wire into his pleasure center he'd get used to doing those things voluntarily. "Just as planned."

Poor little woodland creature.

I still say that Rocket's memory of his creation, like Wolverine's, is probably half artificial. The Halfworld stuff is just fantasy, and Rocket was made as part of the Weapon X program, probably as a precursor to Wolverine. I imagine the researcher in Canada saying 'we're out of chimps and slaves. Go outside and get me something I can test these skeletal enhancements on."

That's a reasonable idea. Marvel Earth has crazy supertech in some areas. However, if they bothered to give him some false memories why not paint over his memories of being tortured into existence? He'd be a lot more compliant with some good memories.

For the same reason it didn't work for Wolverine. They also didn't have to.... He only needed to be *so* compliant If you take the game as canon, they pretty much kill experimental subjects at will.

Also, he's probably not a wirehead. Have you read The Terminal Man?

Hmm - check me on this - Mantis never does touch Rocket, does she?

Not in the movies, no. She does in one of my stories. I'm thinking about doing a "Raccoon X" story based on the idea that he was made by Weapon X. 'Rocket: In the beginning' almost got called Raccoon X.

I really do appreciate how much thought you've put into Rocket's characterization. And how articulately you share those thoughts.

For some reason Rocket fascinates me. I've never had PTSD or known anyone who had it yet I've written over 50,000 words of fiction about a tormented PTSD victim. Who happens to be a cute raccoon, admittedly. 83

And he'll most likely live a long and happy life, now with people to care for him and burning desire to protect them (and though he'll never admit it, be protected by them), and maybe, if I can be allowed to speculate here, somebody who can REALLY love him, in a way even more intimate and of a kind he's still never experienced.

The thrust of many of my Sad Rocket stories is him coming to trust the Guardians. And the long one is about him meeting and falling in love with Lylla.