The last five years have been an interesting period for writer-director James Gunn, the man who brought Marvel’s cosmic heroes, the Guardians of the Galaxy, to the big screen. From 2018, he was fired by Disney due to his past tweets, and although he eventually got rehired to complete his Guardians trilogy, Gunn took a DC detour and made 2021’s The Suicide Squad, which led to a spin-off television series starring John Cena’s Peacemaker. As we are looking forward to Gunn has in store with his upcoming rebooted DC Universe, starting with him writing and directing 2025’s Superman: Legacy, we finally got to see the conclusion of this current incarnation of the Guardians that we have known for a decade with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Although we have seen what the cosmic avengers were doing outside of Gunn’s direction, having appeared in the last two Avengers movies and Thor: Love and Thunder, both The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (a fun if non-essential MCU instalment) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 felt like Gunn reclaiming those characters that are rightfully his, given their source material. When you look back at the first two movies, there was always the sense that Gunn’s favorite Guardian was Rocket Racoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper), a character who has felt more like an outsider even compared to his fellow Guardians and there was always the tease of his backstory throughout. However, Rocket’s past is the central focus in Vol. 3.
As the Guardians have established their headquarters on a rebuilt Knowhere, they become targets of Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), created out of revenge by returning antagonist Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki), for previously stealing from her and to bring Rocket to his creator, the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji). Along with an alternate universe Gamora (Zoe Saldana), who has no memory of sharing the Guardians’ adventures, they all must protect Rocket as they go on one last adventure.
Although the first Guardians of the Galaxy had to introduce the cosmic side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that would play a huge role as the franchise went on, Gunn had always put a personal spin to the adventures of these characters. Whether it is humorous banter or the Awesome Mix soundtracks, all of which influenced the characters in subsequent media such as the comics and the 2021 video game. That personality, as manic as it can be as evidenced when Gunn is given a lot of creative control in Vol. 2, when it lands well, it does hit you in the emotions.
At two and a half hours long, there is a lot going on with a narrative that has too many characters, some of which appear just the sake of this being Gunn’s last Guardians outing while comic book fans might be disappointed with Will Poulter’s Adam Warlock, who quickly becomes a punchline after his initial confrontation. The tonal shifts will surprise audiences as you do have the typical comedic hijinks among the cast, though some of the jokes don’t land well. But then you have flashbacks to Rocket’s tragic backstory, where there is animal abuse and body horror. Those particular scenes not only remind you how despicable Chukwudi Iwuji plays The High Evolutionary, but only the positivity that Rocket had during those years, which was his friendship with the other experimental animals, including an anthropomorphic otter voiced by Linda Cardellini.
Although there has been a recent debate over superhero movie fatigue, in that we are so used to the spectacle of those blockbusters, some of the MCU movies are at their best when they are not driven by the plot as it’s just the characters just hanging. The Guardians movies would fall into this category as it seems that the cast is having so much fun in those roles as it is for us watching them, but they have an outlandish edge when it comes to depicting the cosmos, from the alien worlds to the very strange creatures that inhabit them. Considering the majority of the MCU has never been great at shooting digitally, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 has some of the visually dazzling imagery that is nicely contrasted its own Awesome Mix that will surely be on a music lover’s shelf.
Join the AIPT Patreon
Want to take our relationship to the next level? Become a patron today to gain access to exclusive perks, such as:
- ❌ Remove all ads on the website
- 💬 Join our Discord community, where we chat about the latest news and releases from everything we cover on AIPT
- 📗 Access to our monthly book club
- 📦 Get a physical trade paperback shipped to you every month
- 💥 And more!
