In an Avengers: Endgame deleted scene, Rocket (Bradley Cooper) hilariously hints that the Guardians of the Galaxy could have beaten Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and his Chitauri army much faster. In fact, Rocket mocked the Avengers’ hard-fought triumph because he knows a crucial fact about the Chitauri that Earth’s Mightiest Heroes didn’t, which the Guardians would have capitalized on.

The Battle of New York in 2012 was the climax of The Avengers and it was also the defining moment for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes that established them as a force to be reckoned with. Their victory over the Chitauri spread the Avengers’ fame through parts of the galaxy, and Thanos (Josh Brolin), who equipped Loki with his scepter, the Mind Stone, and the Chitauri army, certainly knew who they were. In Avengers: Endgame, the desperate heroes executed several time heists to capture the Infinity Stones from particular points in their past; Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), and Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) time-traveled back to aftermath of the Battle of New York to swipe three Infinity Stones, which were all in the city at that moment in 2012. But prior to that, the Avengers made plans at their Compound to prep for their time heists, which is where Rocket learned that his new human pals aren’t quite as smart as they think they are.

In the Avengers: Endgame deleted scene titled “The Suckiest Army in the Galaxy”, Rocket and the Avengers watch footage of the Battle of New York and the foul-mouthed rodent asked how long they fought the Chitauri for. When Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) replied, “About two or three hours”, Rocket was stunned: “Hours? The Chitauri are the suckiest army in the galaxy. Why didn’t you blow up the mothership?” When Steve Rogers replied, “We didn’t know that was a thing”, the trash panda burst into laughter and mocked the Avengers until Tony buzzed him with hair clippers to shut him up. But what Rocket was really implying is that one of the toughest battles of the Avengers’ lives would have been child’s play if the Guardians of the Galaxy were fighting the Chitauri.

Along with being very funny, the deleted scene recontextualizes the Chitauri as a laughingstock throughout the galaxy for those in the know, which makes the Avengers’ victory a lot less impressive. To hear Rocket tell it, Thanos gave Loki “the suckiest army” and they nearly beat the Avengers. The Guardians of the Galaxy may possess only a fraction of the raw power the Avengers have, but because they’re well-traveled cosmic heroes who are clued into the happenings across the galaxy, Rocket is essentially bragging that the Guardians could have won the Battle of New York with a simple plan, compared to the Avengers and their hours of effort.

Ironically, the Avengers did have the means to blow up the Chitauri mothership because Iron Man carried a nuclear missile through the wormhole, but his armor lost power in deep space, which nearly killed him. If Tony had known that blowing up the mothership “was a thing”, Iron Man could have sent the nuke into the Chitauri mothership and ended the fight. All of this continues to highlight the idea of Earth as a know-nothing, backwater planet, which is how much of the MCU galaxy regards Terrans.

In light of Iron Man’s ordeal, it’s fitting that Stark ended the scene by silencing Rocket. While the trash panda was mocking the Avengers, he didn’t realize Tony was the person whose feelings he was hurting most. The sight of the Chitauri mothership and army traumatized Stark for years - Tony’s PTSD led to him building Ultron as “a suit of armor around the world” and it haunted him into Avengers: Infinity War. Rocket likely didn’t know (or care) about Stark’s pain, but now fans - and the Avengers - know that if the Guardians of the Galaxy fought the Battle of New York, it would have ended a lot quicker (at least according to Rocket).

Next: Avengers: Endgame Has A Hydra Easter Egg Nobody Caught

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