Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special post-credits scene explained

Yes, the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special does have a post-credits scene – here’s what happens.

While we caught up with James Gunn’s space bandits in Thor: Love and Thunder, it’s been a whole five years since the Guardians of the Galaxy got a Marvel project all to themselves.

Next year, they’ll make their long-awaited and final appearance (for some of them, that is) in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the third chapter of Gunn’s MCU trilogy.

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is a few things: a Phase Four capper and palette cleanser, a lovely reminder of what makes the team so beloved, and a somewhat significant moment for the Guardians – so, here’s what happens in the post-credits scene.

What happens in the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special post-credits scene?

Well, the Holiday Special may feature major emotional and narrative progression for Star-Lord and Mantis, but the post-credits scene amounts to little more than an amusing visual gag.

In the scene, we see Rocket trying to decorate Groot like a Christmas tree while Cosmo the Space Dog wags her tail. Groot – adorned in tinsel, candy canes, ribbons, and lights – looks fed up, and eventually lowers his arms, with all the decorations falling to the floor.

“Come on, Groot!” Rocket exclaims, as Cosmo lets out a sad cry. “Groot ruined Christmas again,” she says.

Cosmo and Rocket then both look into the camera, and Rocket says: “Now we gotta have another special.”

That’s it. There’s no tease for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, nor any other upcoming MCU movie for that matter. While it may seem inconsequential, the Holiday Special is a major release for Phase Four, with Gunn describing it as an “epilogue” with “a lot of big information in there.”

This information could be the Guardians purchasing Knowhere from The Collector, the formal introduction of Cosmo, Groot approaching his old size again, and Peter and Mantis being siblings.

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is available to stream now. You can sign up for Disney+ here.