Guardians of the Galaxy (August 2014)
Primary Characters
Times viewed: Quite a lot, dudes
- Peter Quill/Star-Lord
- Gamora
- Rocket
- Groot
- Drax the Destroyer
- Ronan the Accuser
- Yondu
Secondary Characters
- Nebula
- Korath
- Kraglin
- Thanos
- Nova Prime
Notable Story Elements
- Ravagers
- Xandar
- Nova Corps
- Kree
- Orb/Power Stone
- Infinity Stones
- Original theatrical release
- Multiple full viewings, and partial viewings on TV
- Friday Family Movie Night sometime in the past year
- 23 Days of Marvel - March 27th, 2020
Easter Eggs
- The role and appearance of the Broker on Xandar is a reference the Trader, one of the Elders of the Universe; other Elders included the Collector (appearing here and in Infinity War), the Grandmaster (seen in Thor: Ragnarok), and Ego the Living Planet (a main character in Vol. 2); the Elders possessed the Infinity Stones (called "Gems" in the comics) for a time before Thanos gathered them
- A Dark Elf is visible in the Collector's museum, along with a cosmonaut dog and - in the credits - Howard the Duck
- The planetoid Knowhere is the head of a dead Celestial; other Celestials in their classic Marvel comics design are seen in the Collector's explanation of the Infinity Stones; in the sequel, Ego identifies himself as a Celestial, too
- The Sakaarans serving Ronan originate from Sakaar, the planet on which Hulk lands when he's banished from Earth in the comics; its setting for the Planet Hulk stories, many elements of which are used in Ragnarok
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (May 2017)
Primary Characters
Times viewed: Not quite as many, man
- Peter Quill/Star-Lord
- Gamora
- Rocket
- Groot
- Drax the Destroyer
- Yondu
- Nebula
- Ego the Living Planet
Secondary Characters
- Mantis
- Kraglin
- Meredith Quill
- Ayesha
- Stakar
- Taserface
Notable Story Elements
- Ravagers
- The Sovereign
- Celestials
- Original theatrical release
- Here and there on BluRay in the past few years
- Friday Family Movie Night sometime in the past year
- 23 Days of Marvel - March 28th, 2020
Easter Eggs
- The Sovereign are similar to the synthetic humanoid creations of a group know in the comics as the Enclave; their greatest achievement is Adam Warlock, and the birthing pod and his naming by Ayesha in the credits are definite references to him
- Howard the Duck is glimpsed again on Contraxia
- The Ravager Stakar, with his wing-like shoulder rings, is a parallel to one of the original Guardians of the Galaxy characters, Starhawk; he's accompanied by a crystal-encrusted being (Martinex), and the Ravagers that gather with him in the end credits scene, like Ving Rhames' Charlie-27, all resemble past Guardians; Yondu was one of the original Guardians as well
- It's unconfirmed anywhere I looked, but I think Korg and Miek from Ragnarok are glimpsed during the consecutive starship jumps of Rocket, Groot, Yondo, and Kraglin
- Stan Lee chats with The Watchers, telling them about of one of his multiple lives in the Marvel movies; they are the impassive observers of cosmic events, and narrators of alternate universe What If? comic stories
- Peter says to Ego with awe and starry eyes, "I can see Eternity," referencing another cosmic entity from the comics
- Among the tchotchkes placed around Yondo is the jeweled piece he gets from the Broker early in the first film
Seeing the first Guardians of the Galaxy in theater was the exclamation point on months of craziness. I'd graduated with my Masters from GVSU, moved classrooms, and we had just started the long process of settling into our new home. The first night we slept here, I tucked then 6-year-old Hope into her new bed, and jetted off to Celebration Cinema North to see it with my friend Steven. The next day, he relocated to Arizona.
Not before or since has IMAX 3D been used so effectively, though the sequel came close just with Yondu's Yaka Arrow takedown of the mutinous Ravagers.
More than any of the other MCU movies and sequels, the narrative of these two is tightly wound. Family is the ligament, and Identity and Belonging the tendons. In the first, Peter's loss of his mom and the connection he maintains with her through gifted music are established. Simply opening a parting gift 26 years later and booting up Ain't No Mountain High Enough is one of the most impactful moments of any of the Marvel films - this, not long after he takes Gamora's hand, and his teammates physically connect with him, to thwart Ronan. When Ego crushes the Walkman and the tape within in Vol. 2, it is the final severing stroke between biological father and son. Like Loki impaling Coulson, that brought out gasps in theatergoers.
Common and continuing themes abound.
Gamora's statement of, "I would be grateful to die beside my friends," is later elevated to, "I thought you already had," in reply to Peter stating, "I finally found my family, don't you understand that?"
The slow-walks of the Guardians in the first (complete with a crotch adjustment from Rocket and Gamora's casual yawn) and then the stroll of the escaped Yondu, Rocket, and Groot in the second.
Groot unleashed on soldiers aboard the Dark Aster (his smile after he kills them kills me every time) and on his "MASCOT!" tormentor in the sequel.
Yondu's vicious but hilarious slaying of the Sakaarans who've landed on Xandar, and his aforementioned vengeance on the Ravager traitors.
Penis jokes, toilet humor.
Kevin Bacon and David Hasselhoff.
Soundtracks that have been in my vehicle now for over 5 and almost 3 years, respectively, and scores that are often background music when doing work at home and school.
There are almost innumerable other commonalities, and a great deal of polish, too. In the often-overlooked Vol. 2., the execution of those loyal to Yondu portends his own end. It says something about the design of even minor characters that when Yondu, Rocket, and Groot tear through the Ravagers, we recognize just about every one of them, and even bearded, bespectacled Jeff by name. The Chain plays both as Peter partks inamicably from Rocket, and again as he resolves to end the threat of his father and save his friends/family along with the galaxy.
Just like The Winter Soldier, I'll acknowledge that my love for these movies is tied up in that for the source material. My favorite comics through the '90s were Captain America, The Incredible Hulk, West Coast Avengers, New Warriors, and Jim Valentino's Guardians of the Galaxy. (It was Jim's son, Aaron, who created the villain Taserface.)
I especially dig the MCU translation of Yondu, who was already one of my favorite Guardians comic characters. In our basement:
On the most recent viewings, though, I loved Drax. His autistic literalism is always good for laughs, but in subdued scenes, such as when he sits with and pats Rocket or when Mantis empathically reacts to his pain and ultimate resolve, his inner world is glimpsed, too.
These aren't perfect movies, but they are some of the MCU's best and most fun. During our marathon of a-movie-a-day as a family through the COVID-19 quarantine, it's become increasingly difficult to rank them. We've settled on a standard to break up the pack: is this a movie I would watch again? The answer for both Guardians movies is, yes, and I have as much as any of the MCU movies except The Avengers, with no ends in sight.
Not before or since has IMAX 3D been used so effectively, though the sequel came close just with Yondu's Yaka Arrow takedown of the mutinous Ravagers.
More than any of the other MCU movies and sequels, the narrative of these two is tightly wound. Family is the ligament, and Identity and Belonging the tendons. In the first, Peter's loss of his mom and the connection he maintains with her through gifted music are established. Simply opening a parting gift 26 years later and booting up Ain't No Mountain High Enough is one of the most impactful moments of any of the Marvel films - this, not long after he takes Gamora's hand, and his teammates physically connect with him, to thwart Ronan. When Ego crushes the Walkman and the tape within in Vol. 2, it is the final severing stroke between biological father and son. Like Loki impaling Coulson, that brought out gasps in theatergoers.
Common and continuing themes abound.
Gamora's statement of, "I would be grateful to die beside my friends," is later elevated to, "I thought you already had," in reply to Peter stating, "I finally found my family, don't you understand that?"
The slow-walks of the Guardians in the first (complete with a crotch adjustment from Rocket and Gamora's casual yawn) and then the stroll of the escaped Yondu, Rocket, and Groot in the second.
Groot unleashed on soldiers aboard the Dark Aster (his smile after he kills them kills me every time) and on his "MASCOT!" tormentor in the sequel.
Yondu's vicious but hilarious slaying of the Sakaarans who've landed on Xandar, and his aforementioned vengeance on the Ravager traitors.
Penis jokes, toilet humor.
Kevin Bacon and David Hasselhoff.
Soundtracks that have been in my vehicle now for over 5 and almost 3 years, respectively, and scores that are often background music when doing work at home and school.
There are almost innumerable other commonalities, and a great deal of polish, too. In the often-overlooked Vol. 2., the execution of those loyal to Yondu portends his own end. It says something about the design of even minor characters that when Yondu, Rocket, and Groot tear through the Ravagers, we recognize just about every one of them, and even bearded, bespectacled Jeff by name. The Chain plays both as Peter partks inamicably from Rocket, and again as he resolves to end the threat of his father and save his friends/family along with the galaxy.
On the downside, it takes awhile for the team to come together in Guardians of the Galaxy, and then they split quite early in Vol. 2.
I especially dig the MCU translation of Yondu, who was already one of my favorite Guardians comic characters. In our basement:
These aren't perfect movies, but they are some of the MCU's best and most fun. During our marathon of a-movie-a-day as a family through the COVID-19 quarantine, it's become increasingly difficult to rank them. We've settled on a standard to break up the pack: is this a movie I would watch again? The answer for both Guardians movies is, yes, and I have as much as any of the MCU movies except The Avengers, with no ends in sight.
Ranking
- The Avengers
- Guardians of the Galaxy
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier
- Iron Man
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
- Iron Man 3
- Iron Man 2
- Captain Marvel
- Captain America: The First Avenger
- Thor
- Thor: The Dark World
- The Incredible Hulk
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