Written by Jessica Johnson
Folks, if you’re anything like me, you love Marvel. And if you love Marvel, you probably love Guardians of the Galaxy. And if you love Guardians of the Galaxy, then you most definitely love Rocket Raccoon, the tech-savvy, trigger happy, sass-talking anthropomorphic trash panda voiced by Bradley Cooper (phew, what a mouthful!).
Rocket, who could have so easily become a silly, one-note side character, ended up being extremely well-written through the work of writer-director James Gunn. Even though growing to trust and support his Guardians gang, Rocket’s foremost alliance is with Groot, showing the more caring tendencies that he otherwise keeps hidden beneath his “tough guy” façade. We’ve also seen Rocket undergo quite a great deal of loss over the first two Guardians films, first (nearly) losing Groot, then in Vol. 2 (SPOILER) losing new friend Yondu. The movie ends with a shot of Rocket in tears, for goodness sake! While being mostly comedic and an entertaining foil to many of the other characters, he’s also very vulnerable and has suffered much tragedy.
WELL! I have a theory that ol’ Rocket’s luck might be turning around! Because I am 92.736% sure (very specific, I know) that Guardians of the Galaxy 3 will include the character Lylla the Otter, also known as Rocket’s soulmate.
WELL! I have a theory that ol’ Rocket’s luck might be turning around! Because I am 92.736% sure (very specific, I know) that Guardians of the Galaxy 3 will include the character Lylla the Otter, also known as Rocket’s soulmate.
First,some background. Lylla originally appeared in the Marvel comics, coming from Halfworld, a planet shared by humans and anthropomorphic animals. She’s the heiress to a toy empire, but her fortune changes when her parents are killed by a malicious mole who plans to take over the company and marry her. However, with the help of Rocket, Lylla defends both herself and her planet from several evil suitors, and ultimately runs away with Rocket to seek out more adventures throughout the galaxy.
Two years ago, when much speculation about Vol. 2 was going around, Gunn shot down Lylla theories in an Q&A on his Facebook, stating that he thought a romance between a raccoon and an otter was a bit...weird (I’ll give him that, but also, these are space creatures. I’ll willingly suspend my disbelief). However, some interesting developments have unfolded which are leading me to believe that Gunn has come around on his Lylla resistance. Let’s break it down!
Two years ago, when much speculation about Vol. 2 was going around, Gunn shot down Lylla theories in an Q&A on his Facebook, stating that he thought a romance between a raccoon and an otter was a bit...weird (I’ll give him that, but also, these are space creatures. I’ll willingly suspend my disbelief). However, some interesting developments have unfolded which are leading me to believe that Gunn has come around on his Lylla resistance. Let’s break it down!
Clue 1:
James Gunn is currently writing Guardians of the Galaxy 3, stating in interviews that he has been staying up all night and is thereby currently in “a weakened state.” This week, in a Facebook Live video, he stated that this new installment will “help to set up the next 10, 20 years of Marvel movies.” “It’s going to really expand the cosmic universe,” Gunn stated. “We’re going to be setting up new characters.” If he’s promising new characters, why wouldn’t Lylla be in that lineup?
Clue 2:
Back in 2015, when Gunn was still on his “Stop It, I’m Not Putting Lylla in My Movie,” soapbox, he also stated, “I think it's very important that Rocket is the only thing like him, which is the source of his sadness and loneliness. An otter girlfriend could get really cartoony really.”
Sure...BUTTTTTT...as anyone who has seen Vol. 2 knows, we’ve seen Rocket completely broken by those he’s lost. Not only is he convinced that he’s alone as a species, but he also has difficulty losing the few individuals he considers his allies. He even makes a difficult decision in Vol. 2 to leave a character behind to save the remaining Guardians team, saying that he can only handle saying goodbye to one friend. He is arguably at his lowest point by now. ...can’t we get a little light in the form of “lovely Lylla?” Pretty please?
Clue 3:
A few months ago, Gunn spoke at the E3 World Building Panel, where he admitted that he was hitting a wall in writing 3.
In the first movie there is the mugshot sequence where the characters go through and they’re going through the mugshots and having their picture taken. And the Nova Corps has information about each of the characters coming up on their machinery. Those things are something that your average viewer doesn’t see at all. But there’s a lot of background I put into those things about who they’ve worked with, where they are from, what’s going on. And it’s one of those things that I’m thinking about changing.
LE GASP! Well, there’s plenty of comic-book related Easter eggs in these mugshots, the foremost of which presents itself in what shows up when Rocket is being assessed:
See that? Lylla!! This inclusion suggests that Lylla is a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and is what originally got fans on the “MAKE MY LYLLA-ROCKET SHIP SAIL” campaign. Gunn originally insisted that this was an Easter egg only, and was only a fun little tidbit for fans of the comics, nothing more. However, if Gunn is thinking about “changing” one of those bits of information from the mugshots, could it be that perhaps Rocket and Lylla haven’t met yet and therefore are no longer “associates?” Are we about to see their love story unfold in 3?
Clue 4:
SPOTTED: James Gunn hanging out with otter babies!
As though we needed any more evidence that Gunn has got otters-on-the-brain, he posted a video from Nurtured by Nature, a nonprofit conservation site based out of Southern California that helps give children in need the opportunity to interact with exotic animals. Their main attraction? Swimming with otters!! A new litter of otter pups has been introduced to Nurtured by Nature, and I find it incredibly coincidental that James Gunn just happened to be there to help name and care for them...and also observe their behaviors...and appearances...and maybe, just maybe, get some ideas for Lylla.
One savvy fan caught on to this “coincidence” as well, and even got a response from Gunn, albeit that he’s somewhat attempting to diffuse any future Lylla rumors:
One savvy fan caught on to this “coincidence” as well, and even got a response from Gunn, albeit that he’s somewhat attempting to diffuse any future Lylla rumors:
So, that’s why I am thoroughly convinced that we’re getting Lylla in Guardians of the Galaxy 3, where perhaps we can add another strong female character to the Guardians gang, as well as see Rocket with someone who can utterly melt his rather prickly heart.
Fan art made by Wooga on DeviantArt.com
