MCU Phase 5 Made Infinity War’s Groot Plot Hole Worse

MCU Phase 5’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. has worsened a plot hole that started with an early Groot and Thor interaction in Avengers: Infinity War. With the MCU comprising tens of movies that share the same universe, all written and directed by a slew of different individuals, it is no surprise that some plot points have slipped through the continuity cracks. Avengers: Infinity War had a lot of juggling to do, to say the least.

The Russo brothers were tasked with bringing together every established MCU hero in a momentous Infinity Saga climax, with each one bringing their own backstories and nuances from standalone films. While seeing a series of unprecedented pair-ups was one of the movie’s most entertaining features, this task almost inevitably saw one seemingly innocuous interaction between two characters create a new plot hole. It was a goof in Infinity War that made the nature of Groot’s language a little more confusing.

Infinity War’s Groot Language Plot Hole Explained

In Avengers: Infinity War, after Thor had quite literally bumped into the Guardians, he immediately understood Groot and answered him. He then explained that he understood Groot as he took an elective in Groot’s species’ language on Asgard. This immediately contradicted what the audience knew of Groot’s language until that point: only those who established a connection with the “Flora colossus” could understand him, at least according to one of the filmmakers. The idea that Thor was able to do so after some lessons, therefore, doesn’t make much sense. The canon around Groot’s language has clearly always been complicated, even for those making the movies.

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 3 Made Thor’s Language Lessons Illogical

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 doubled down on the connection angle, however. In the final moments of the movie, the audience heard Groot saying “I love you guys,” instead of the typical “I am Groot.” The moment, as many theorized at the time, was meant to illustrate that the audience was finally close enough to Groot that they could understand him – something that Gunn himself confirmed. As the most recent movie to address the nature of Groot’s language, this pretty much invalidates Thor’s suggestion that he learned “Groot-ish” at school.

The Groot language plot hole was not lost on Gunn, however, as he responded to the confusion with a simple explanation: Thor was joking when he said it (via Twitter). While not an entirely satisfying excuse, the fact that Gunn has helmed the Guardians franchise from the beginning gives him some measure of authority on the matter. It is also not impossible to believe that Thor, a cosmic god with comprehensive knowledge of many worlds that comprise the universe, was well aware of how Groot’s language worked and sarcastically suggested he knew it–even if the delivery was a little off. Either way, an authoritative word from the director and a doubling down on the technicalities of Groot’s language in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 shows that the MCU is sticking to that justification, meaning this particular plot hole is all but filled.