As a Moments subpage, all spoilers are unmarked as per policy. You Have Been Warned.
- Although it is sad from a narrative perspective, Yondu smashing the Christmas tree in the opening scene is pure Large Ham. The obviously rotoscoped animation just makes it funnier.
- Kraglin is horrified when Yondu threatens to make him clean the toilets for a month. Not because it's utterly disgusting, but because it's another Ravager's favorite job.
- The entire premise of Mantis and Drax going to Earth to essentially kidnap Kevin Bacon as a Christmas gift for Quill, complete with Drax bursting through the glass door of Kevin's home like it was nothing and bluntly explaining just why they're taking him. Kevin is fleeing for his life while Mantis and Drax keep up, bouncing up in the air as if they were on pogo sticks while carrying a giant candy cane and inflatable elf. All while "I Want an Alien for Christmas" by Fountains of Wayne plays.
- When they ring the doorbell, Mantis announces that the two are here to see Kevin Bacon. Drax then repeats this and explains his reasoning by stating that Mantis was both quiet and mousy and that Kevin didn't hear her.
- After failing to convince Kevin to let them in, Mantis proposes a Fastball Special to get them over the gate and into his yard. Drax, being Drax, picks her up and hurls her over before she's even finished talking, much to her annoyance. Adding insult to injury, Drax simply jumps over the gate In a Single Bound, meaning that he could just have carried Mantis whilst doing that jump.
- Cosmo has difficulty using her powers to fix a building and Rocket's complain isn't helping. After getting fed up, she refuses help any further until Rocket apologizes and gives her some treats.
- One poster has Drax and Mantis looking completely drunk, covered in Christmas lights. Drax has a Santa hat and Mantis is wearing Cool Shades. It's apparently based on a scene after two spent their money getting wasted at a gay bar.
- Mantis twerking in a dance hall and wearing sunglasses. It has to be seen to be believed.
- Drax wearing a Christmas sweater of all things, along with Groot wearing tiny red antlers. Didn't Drax mention he has sensitive nipples though?
- In a meta example, the sheer fact that James Gunn was inspired to make the special by The Star Wars Holiday Special, of all things, which he unironically loved as a kid.
- Mantis states that she's afraid of telling Quill her secret (that she's his half-sister through Ego) but Drax asks if it's about her eating all those zarg-nuts. Apparently, it's a sore spot for her that she's shown screaming at Drax that he'll never let her live this down.Mantis: GET OVER THE ZARGNUTS!!!
- As they arrive on Earth, Mantis notes that people are staring at them. She asks if Drax remembered to turn on the cloaking device. Drax pauses before going "Yes"... and then slowly moves a finger to turn it on. Mantis calls him out on this.Mantis: I should have brought Groot.
- Once in Hollywood Boulevard, Mantis spots someone dressed as Captain America and squees, "STEVE!!!" before tackling him. Naturally, the cosplayer runs for his life.
- Drax and Mantis spend a good time taking pictures with tourists while in Hollywood. While Mantis has the same cheerful expression in each photo, Drax has a stoic expression in each one.
- Also, the first tourists to take pictures with them mistake Drax for Kratos, which admittedly he does resemble in a way.
- Drax beating the shit out of a man dressed as Cy-Kill. Mantis apologizes, explaining that a Go-Bot killed his cousin, and tells Drax to stop being a bigot. Which means that the GoBots and those like them exist in the MCU!
- In a meta-way, it continues Cy-Kill's Butt-Monkey status post GoBots, with him always getting killed whenever he shows up in the Transformers and now a poor cosplayer getting beaten up here.
- Mantis and Drax wandering into a gay bar, socializing with the patrons, and getting completely drunk. It's even better than it sounds.
- One of the patrons asks Drax to come dance with him and his friends. As has been previously established, Drax does not like to dance.Drax: Dancing is for people who are pathetic!
- Mantis' first drink. She orders a shot and laps some of it up like a cat while holding the shot glass in both hands, then pounds the rest and orders another. And another. And another...
- One of the patrons asks Drax to come dance with him and his friends. As has been previously established, Drax does not like to dance.
- A drunk, depressed Mantis can't believe none of their new homies knows where Kevin Bacon is.
- After having spent all their money at the bar, a storekeeper gives them a “Tour of the Stars” map, but demands the $40 for it. Mantis just uses her powers on her to give the map to them for free... and also all of her money.
- Drax and Mantis attempt to take Christmas decorations (an elf and a candy cane, respectively) from the Bacon house as souvenirs. When they start chasing Kevin, Drax complains that he forgot his elf in the house and notes that Mantis got to keep her "small man", causing her to express disbelief that he thinks the candy cane is man-shaped.
- After Drax flips a police cruiser, Mantis scolds him in the same tone she might use if he'd taken the last cookie without asking. Then she gives her candy cane to the cops trapped in the car by way of an apology before asking them if they think it looks like a man. When one of the dazed and slightly terrified officers says it doesn't, she grouses about Drax being stupid.
- Rocket's gift is Bucky's Vibranium arm continuing the Running Gag of him wanting other people's prosthetic limbs. One has to wonder how Nebula was able to convince the man who was once the Winter Soldier to give up his arm for the meaning of Christmas, and that's assuming he gave it up willingly...
- According to James Gunn, Nebula did indeed go to Earth and tear it off of Bucky.
- According to James Gunn, Nebula did indeed go to Earth and tear it off of Bucky.
- Mantis and Drax's disgusted reactions upon learning that Kevin Bacon is not a great hero as they believed:Mantis: HE'S AN ACTOR! HE'S NEVER ACTUALLY SAVED ANYONE!
Drax: BUT ACTORS ARE REPUGNANT!- Then there's what Drax said about the actor when he "gifts" Kevin to Peter.
Drax: [enthusiastic] It's Kevin Bacon! He's not a loser, he's great, we don't hate him at all.- Even better is the incredibly obvious fact that Mantis and Drax are played by professional actors. Pom Klementieff and Dave Bautista are insulting their own careers!
- And then there's Nebula snarking that apparently not all actors are complete pieces of shit at the end of the special.
- Mantis uses her powers to make Kevin Bacon pretend to be a hero. Turns out Kevin's idea of a hero is an English private about to storm the beaches on D-Day and he puts on an atrocious Cockney accent. Her second attempt makes him pretend to be Batman, complete with gravelly voice. She ends up telling him to be himself, just less sucky.
- The Old 97's song at the beginning of the special, which get quite a few details about Santa Claus amusingly wrong. Peter, of course, has many vocal and facial reactions to these mistaken details, several of which consist of the word "no".Santa is a furry freak with epic superpowers!
He flies to every human home in under fourteen hours!
He’s a master burglar, (Peter: "No?")
A pro at picking locks, (Peter: "No.")
If you don’t leave milk and cookies out,
He will put dung in your socks!
Peter: "That is not part of the lore, at all..."If you act nicely through the night and don't jump on your bed,
Santa comes with sugar plums and hurls them at your head,
But if you're on his naughty list, he shoots missiles at your toes,
He might just roast your chestnuts with his powerful flamethrowers!
Peter: "No! He doesn't have a flamethrower!"He's compelled his creepy elves to do his every wish,
One sought to be a dentist, now he's sleeping with the fish,
Mrs. Claus, she works the pole, plans her man's demise, (Peter: "NO!")
Soon the elves will all rise up and stab out Santa's eyes!- The appalled look on Peter’s face when the lyrics imply that Mrs. Claus is a pole dancer.
- The audience can be seen visibly expressing their disapproval at the awful music, except for Groot, who's dancing happily to the tune.
- When the singers state the Earthlings are weird, Peter concedes that that much is true.
- At the lyric, "What the heck's a turtle-dove?", Peter screws his face in confusion, as though he doesn't know what a turtle-dove is, either.
- At the end, Kevin Bacon mentions seeing everyone for Easter. Given how the song was, it is anyone's idea of just how lost in translation the concept of Easter would be.
- Drax mentions he hated Kraglin's story, as it’s a story where everyone lived.
- If you pay attention during the scene where everyone opens their presents from Groot, you'll notice that Kraglin received a diorama featuring a smaller version of himself... which is holding a smaller version of the diorama, which itself is holding an even smaller version of the diorama, and so on. Yes, somehow, Groot became skilled enough with arts and crafts to create a Droste Image!
- Cosmo's idea of a gift for Kraglin: a dead orloni, which she caught herself (because she is a dog, after all). Wrapped in a ribbon. And being a dog, she's absolutely pleased with herself for it, while Kraglin is totally disgusted.
- Nebula's response to Drax finding the opening story hilarious, slowly shaking her head at him in disapproval.
- When Kevin Bacon is shown at home, what classic Christmas film is he watching on TV with a huge smile? Santa Claus Conquers the Martians.
- The moment where Peter realizes just what Drax and Mantis have done when his box starts shaking, and his face starts to sink.Peter: [turning to Mantis] What'd you do!?
Mantis: What?
Peter: [yelling] What did you do!?- Not to mention the way he says: "This is HUMAN TRAFFICKING!"
- Really the entire exchange in general.
Mantis: [confused by Peter's Freak Out] We got you Kevin Bacon as a present?
Peter: [deadpanned and exasperated] You got me a human being as a present?
Rocket: What better gift for the guy who has everything than an actual living human person?
Peter: This isn't a Christmas gift! This is.....This is human trafficking!!
Drax: [excited] Yes!
Mantis: It was mostly Drax's idea.
Drax: [smiling] It was.- Seeing how calm and excited Kevin is despite the situation, Peter immediately figures out Mantis put him under a trance, followed by this bit.
Peter: You used your powers on him, didn't you.
Mantis: [sheepishly] Maybe, I can't remember.
Peter: [Suddenly Shouting] Get Kevin Bacon out of the trance, NOW!- The fact that Rocket comments and chuckles a bit on the idea of presenting Kevin Bacon as a present to Peter, implies that when Drax and Mantis told him about it, he thought that it was Actually Pretty Funny, and went along with it just to see Peter's reaction to the whole thing.
- When Mantis removes Kevin from the trance and he starts screaming, everyone is caught off guard by him suddenly screaming when he was chill a minute ago, while Peter just nods in acceptance since he knew this would be how an abducted human would react, likely comparing it to his own experience when Yondu abducted him.
- Afterward, Groot tries to claim he thought the whole thing was a bad idea. Peter points out this doesn't work when he saw Groot wheel the box with Kevin in it out right in front of him.
- When Kevin was understandably freaked out by being abducted, Rocket assured that they won’t hurt him. But once Kevin said “That’s a talking raccoon.”? Rocket immediately leaps at Kevin with the intent of ripping him to shreds but luckily, Groot got a hold of him.Rocket: I'LL KILL YOU! DON'T EVER CALL ME THAT!!
- There's a "Travel by map" montage of Mantis and Drax meeting up with multiple stars on their way to Kevin Bacon. One of them is of John Cena — imagine the confrontation he must've had when he met up with an alien that reminded him of a wrestler he fought in the past!
- After Kevin runs off after finding out he's literally been abducted by aliens, Peter tells Nebula to catch him (specifying not to use lethal force). She then shouts "You can't outrun me, Bacon!" in a gravelly voice off-screen.
- In the post-credit scene, Rocket and Cosmo are trying to decorate Groot as a Christmas tree, only for him to lower his arms and send all the lights and ornaments crashing to the ground. Cosmo complains that he's ruined Christmas, while Rocket sighs and looks at the camera while declaring that they'll just have to do another special.
