This article contains spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 Lylla and Rocket have been tied together since 1982, but Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 finally delivered the otter’s emotional story to a mainstream audience. Lylla was first introduced to the Marvel Universe within The Incredible Hulk #271 comic, in which she was a prominent part of Rocket’s life, and his love interest. During the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie in 2014, Lylla's name briefly appears among Rocket’s known associates, giving her introduction to the MCU quite a build-up.
Lylla’s MCU debut has been a long-time coming, but James Gunn handled the character perfectly, delivering a powerful and memorable message to audiences. Although Lylla’s fate was tragic, her story has re-opened crucial discourse in relation to animal rights.
What happens to Lylla?
Alongside Rocket, Teefs, and Floor, Lylla was experimented on by the High Evolutionary. Undoubtedly, the High Evolutionary is one of the most terrifying villains in the entire MCU. He experiments on living creatures, genetically modifying, and mutilating them. The High Evolutionary believes that he is enhancing the animals’ intelligence, with the end game of creating a ‘perfect utopia’. Whilst Lylla, Rocket, Teefs, and Floor believe that they are going to live in this utopia, it’s ultimately revealed that the High Evolutionary was always planning on slaughtering these animals once he finished experimenting on them.
During their time in the High Evolutionary’s captivity, Lylla and Rocket formed an unbreakable bond, dreaming of their life together outside of the laboratory. Once Rocket discovers that they are being kept for slaughter, the raccoon attempts to free his group of friends. Whilst Rocket successfully breaks Lylla out of her cage, the pair only get to enjoy a few seconds of freedom together. In a horrifying scene, Lylla is shot by the High Evolutionary, killing her instantly and changing Rocket’s life forever.
Whilst these scenes of animal cruelty are immensely hard to watch, James Gunn uses Lylla’s character to deliver an important message.
Why did Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 have such an important message?
It’s rather unexpected for a Marvel movie to contain such distressing scenes of animal cruelty. In this respect, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 has divided its audience. Some viewers argue that the movie’s portrayal of animal cruelty was unnecessary, and that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3simply went too far in its depiction of animal testing.
On the other hand, the movie has been widely praised for tackling such a difficult topic, with PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) dubbing Gunn’s creation as an “animal rights masterpiece”. The organization proceeded to state that Gunn has helped to “put a face, a name, and a personality on the millions of vulnerable animals being cycled through laboratories as we speak”.
In an interview with the Direct, Miriam Shor, who played Recorder Vim, defended Gunn’s decision to incorporate Rocket’s tragic backstory into the movie. The actor dubbed the movie as “pretty triumphant for animal lovers”. The fact that Gunn utilized his platform to vocalize these prominent issues is a victory for animal rights activists. Because of Guardian of the Galaxy Vol.3’s status as a mainstream piece of media, the movie has been responsible for re-opening discourse in relation to big companies that are still testing their products on animals.
Although Lylla’s story is hard to watch, her character is essential in representing animal rights issues in our society. By depicting Lylla as a likable and unique character, Gunn has helped to individualize the thousands of animals currently trapped in laboratories, which is why PETA dubbed the film as “the best animal rights film of the year”.
Over the past few years, the MCU has been under fire for its meaningless plots and inability to build up substantial stakes. However, through its depiction of crucial animal rights issues, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 refused to fall victim to the ongoing ‘Marvel fatigue’ phenomenon. Instead, Gunn has created a hugely significant piece of media, which has re-opened discussions in relation to animal testing. Without Lylla, this would’ve been incredibly difficult to achieve.