The sophomore outing of Marvel’s resident space pirates has finally arrived to the cultural zeitgeist, and it is printing money as fast as any other recent Marvel film. While it trades in a lot of the same fun and frolic as Vol. 1, it does seem hampered by the tradition of living up to the expectations set by the game changing original. There is lots of action, plenty of laughs and a lot of the same quirkiness that made Guardians of the Galaxy a household name, but at times it seems a little over long with a little ham-fisted injection of things that would normally be considered subtext.
All that being said, Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 is still a great film. After nine years, and 15 movies, Guardians of the Galaxy has proven one thing: outside of the heroics, megablockbuster action sequences and hero on hero violence, the Guardians franchise continues to be the heart and soul of the interconnected, spandex-clad, bad guy punching universe, and here’s five reasons why.
It's Directed by James Gunn
Marvel chooses its directors based on some weird algorithm that sees potential in some of the weirdest entertainment industry outsiders (keep in mind that prior to directing Winter Soldier and Civil War, the Russo brothers were most known for directing episodes of Community). James Gunn was a director who lived in his own little world making films that were weird, and out there, and unique. Given the opportunity to take of the weirder part of the comic book world he jumped in with both feet.
James Gunn truly loves the ideas and characters that he gets to play with. He regularly — more so than any director should — interacts with the fan base in an unfiltered way. If you spend even two minutes on his facebook page, you can see him responding to fans directly. He knows that these characters mean a great deal to a lot of people, and he takes great pleasure in shepherding them through their trials and tribulations. Where Joss Whedon was the nerd messiah that brought The Avengers to the big screen, James Gunn is everyone’s favorite uncle telling them bed time stories that he really loves.
It Takes Over Fans' Brains
Piggybacking off of the fact that James Gunn loves these movies more than you do, he consciously does something that most directors attempt but he excels at: he includes a billion and a half references in each film that fans spend an inordinate amount of time pouring over. Do a quick search on YouTube for Guardians of the Galaxy easter eggs and you will be greeted by almost a million videos of people trying to understand everything that he’s hidden.
There is currently a “Ready Player One” scale hunt for a final easter egg that James Gunn has sworn to take to his grave if no one figures it out. It’s become such a popular treasure hunt that regular journalism sites are weighing in as the nerdy faithful dive deep into the mystery. Some users have gone so far as to decipher the coordinates of some of the first movies establishing shots, perform a substitution cypher on those numbers to come up with a word that exposes extra information that might reveal extra easter eggs in Vol. 2. These movies have so much hidden content that some folks will be watching them for years just trying to figure everything out.
It's Fun
While not nearly as dark as their DC brethren, a lot of the Marvel movies have had a serious tone to them. Trying to get my in-laws to watch a superhero movie with me isn’t the easiest thing to do, but they LOVE Guardians of the Galaxy because even amongst all of the explosions and space weirdness they’re just downright fun movies. Really, more fun than the rest of the Marvel Universe.
From the opening credits dance routines (this time around performed by Baby Groot while a giant monster battle takes place in the background), to the irreverent humor provided by the mostly stoic Drax, these movies are packed with a level of humor normally not seen in blockbuster films.
It Expanded the MCU Scope
The future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is in the stars. With Infinity War, Inhumans and Captain Marvel on the horizon, it can easily be said that The Guardians are the ones who truly set the stage for the expansion of the scope and scale that these movies can go to. There is a never-ending pantheon of weird and wild cosmic characters that can be brought in to fight for and against the good guys.
Where Iron Man introduced us to a world where super heroes were a reality, The Guardians have shown us that the universe where these heroes exist is weirder, and more full of cosmic threats, then The Avengers could ever have known. Once Thanos has wrecked shop on the heroes of earth, you can bet that there is a greater threat lurking in the depths of the cosmos.
It Puts an Emphasis on Loss and Rebuilding
It seems a little bit weird to close with this after we’ve talked about how fun and magical these films are, but this is what truly makes these characters the soulful core of this movie universe. Every character that we’re introduced to in the Guardian’s story has experienced and overcame such great loss that they should be broken to the point of disrepair. As they find each other, and work together to save themselves, and the galaxy, they learn how to be whole again — more so than the rest of the spandex clad characters we’ve met so far.
This is where James Gunn and his films truly resonate. Tony Stark lost his parents yet ends up fighting with his best friend over it. Steve Rogers lost his future and ends up fighting an endless war because that’s all he knows how to do. The Guardians all lost everything:
Rocket was experimented on and tortured.
Drax’s family was killed by Thanos.
Groot is the only one of his kind.
Gamora’s father tortured her and her sister.
Starlord never knew his father, lost his mother, was abducted by space aliens, eventually finds his father in outerspace (and no spoilers here but like most absentee father’s he’s not all that great once you reconnect) and still manages to pull together with his friends to win the day while still smiling and being a smartass. There’s truth in there. A truth that will continue to guide these characters for years to come.
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