After multiple delays and rescheduling,The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3is setting course and moving out according to an April 5th twitter update from comeback kid director James Gunn. But with MCU Phase 4 having gone through scheduling chaos in the wake of the Coronavirus, the Guardians have a challenge ahead in landing their third, and what is expected to be, final installment.
The Guardians of the GalaxyVol. 2had the Guardians coming together, not just as a team, but as a family. FromVol. 1throughEndgame, the Guardians have continuously been challenged to trust and even love each other only to have the threads yanked out in the eleventh hour. Initially,The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3was set toopen MCU Phase 4, with Timeline Alt Gamora off in the cosmos somewhere and Thor along for the ride. But with the events of COVID restructuring Phase 4’s order and James Gunn’s removal and then reinstatement as director delaying the third installment to the backend of Phase 4, bringing the team back together under thesemblance of a family is a pretty tall order.
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The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2established the theme of “chosen family” hard, landing on Quill/Star-Lord’s (Chris Pratt) sentient planet father Ego (Kurt Russell), nearly being destroyed together with countless other planets by Ego, coming together in the last hour as they realize their connection to one other is deeper than a ragtag group joined by illegal activity. This theme of “family is what you’ll fight and die for” is underlined, bolded, and encompassed by fireworks withYondu (Michael Rooker) sacrificing his lifeto save Quill after, layer by layer, revealing Quill was the son Yondu chose rather than the property he was meant to deliver.
The death of Yondu was a poignant surprise punch to the gut for viewers having initially experienced the character sneering with yellow jagged teeth and whistling to death anyone who stood in his way. In Yondu’s wake, the Guardians endedVol. 2closer than ever, bonded in understanding and a deeper trust that comes with processing trauma and fear as a unit.
Vol. 2was a perfect emotional bridge to the events ofInfinity WarandEndgamewhich saw the death of Gamora (and the introduction of her timeline alternate) that inspired the infamous Star-Lord emotional breakdown (which prevented the first attempt to remove the Gauntlet from Thanos) and the dusting of the entire team save for Rocket and Nebula. By the end ofEndgame, the Guardians are present back in reality butthe team is fractured and scene-stealer Thor is along for the rideas they jettisoned off into space to regroup forVol. 3.
There’s very little information out about the plot ofVol. 3and a lot of speculation.That Rocket will conclude his character arcby hunting down his creator seems all but confirmed along with a possible storyline that has Drax searching for the daughter mentioned in a lovely moment with Mantis inVol. 2. There are the post-credit scenes ofVol. 2featuring Adam Warlock, whose abilities in the comics are said to rival Thanos’s and the regrouping of the Guardian team headed by Stakar Ogord (Sylvester Stallone). And the scene inEndgameof Quillsearching the cosmos for Timeline Alt Gamora.
There are a lot of set-ups in play especially considering all of these breadcrumbs were dropped before the MCU release schedule was flipped around dropping Guardians from opening the slate to possibly completing it (whether or notFantastic Fourcomes to fruition to finish Phase 4 is unknown). And of course, there’s still theGuardians of the Galaxy Holiday Specialset for 2022 and, as fans of the MCU know, every release can have an effect on the universal storyline of Marvel.
This is all to say, there’s alot that can happen in the subsequent filmsahead of Guardians to send them flying further from each other. Which could be good leading up toVol. 3. As stated, the team is already fractured, a sequel that acknowledges how far their chosen family has grown apart and pulls them back together for one last ride would be a powerful finale for this iteration of the Guardians. The Guardians represent the weirdos, those in the world that don’t fit into the clear character definitions of the likes ofCaptain America and Black Widow.
The power of their story (especially in consideration of the events of 2020 in real life) is that with the right support anyone can be a hero. And after the heartbreak of Yondu’s death and the gut-punch ofInfinity WarandEndgame, The Guardians have to finish strong and together inThe Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Otherwise, what was the point of finding family in each other in the first place?
MCU Phase 4 Films kick off withBlack Widowon July 9th, 2021.
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