In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Easter eggs are kind of a big deal and that is especially the case when it comes to the Guardians of the Galaxy films. Both of James Gunn‘s films contain extensive, well-hidden references but when it comes to an enduring one from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, one fan may have finally found it.
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Now, before we jump into the proposed solution user “Saurocron” has shared on Reddit, let’s explain what the Easter egg is. Back in 2017, a fan on Twitter asked Gunn who he thought created Rocket. Gunn replied not with a direct answer, but with a puzzle of sorts: “Believe it or not if you’re really really really smart this is hidden somewhere in Vol. 2. He later clarified that the most obvious answer — Rocket Raccoon’s comic creators Bill Mantlo and Keith Giffen being listed in the credits — isn’t it and for fans, that was a major “challenge accepted” moment.
This leads us to the Reddit theory. Saurocron suggests that, while fans have been looking for all sorts of visual clues ever since, the real clue may be hidden in the coordinates that appear on screen underneath location titles. Saurocron takes those coordinates and essentially creates a massive cipher key. Now, there is no doing the sheer amount of work that went into the cipher so we’re not even going to try to break it all down (you can check out the whole thing here on Reddit), but the nuts and bolts is that there is a correlation between the letters and numbers in the coordinates that could lead fans to Rocket’s creator.
Yes, could. Saurocron leaves things open for people to use the cipher to try to explore every possibility but one major contender surfaces pretty quickly, both from Saurocron and other fans commenting on the theory: the High Evolutionary. As is noted, in Annihilation: Conquest #1, the High Evolutionary (Herbert Wyndham) makes an appearance, a character who has performed genetic experiments on animals and also created the New Men. It wouldn’t be difficult to consider that the High Evolutionary could be Rocket’s creator in the MCU.
Now, before you have your mind blown by this idea and the astounding amount of work and research that went into putting together the cipher even if this has solved the Rocket Easter egg, it’s possible it may never be confirmed. Gunn’s social media has been silent since last July old tweets were dragged back into the light and ultimately led to his firing by Disney. With Gunn no longer on Guardians, that also means that any possible Easter egg payoff in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 may make its way to screen. Still, fans on the Reddit post are hopeful that Gunn will someday return to social media and let them know one way or another if they’ve solved his mystery or if there is an even deeper look required to find out who made Rocket what he is.
What do you think? Do you think the High Evolutionary is Rocket’s creator? Let us know in the comments below.
