Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol.3: Major Ways The Movie Changes The MCU
Contains spoilers for "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3"
"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" is the swan song for a crew we've loved since 2014. It's been a tough journey for these imperfect heroes, and the trailers let us know that their final ride will break our hearts. With this finale comes the departure of director James Gunn, who's off to work for the Distinguished Competition, a move that will spark a necessary fight for the betterment of both studios. Leaving with Gunn is our Drax, Dave Bautista, and Gamora, Zoe Saldana. Those are all huge changes for the MCU, but those won't be the only adjustments we'll see.
Changes to the MCU are good for its health, both on-screen and off. If there's one lesson that "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" teaches, it's that saying goodbye hurts, but it's also something we sometimes need to do for love. Let's go over some of the potential ripple effects. Remember, this all assumes you've seen the movie!
Marvel Studios knows its audience is changing
It's a big step for the House of Mouse to let their biggest tentpole projects aim for an audience that's growing up. Where "Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness" pushed the limits of horror for the MCU and "Eternals" aspired to a Merchant-Ivory style dramatic tone in places, "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" gives us a shocking amount of meaningful violence for just cause. Typically timid about these kinds of stories, it's a huge deal for Disney to get out of its own way and trust its audience to decide whether its new movie is appropriate for kids.
With the heady impact of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's" story and a natural-feeling, hilariously understated use of profanity, Disney opens the door for characters like Deadpool to be who we want them to be. There will always be all-ages Marvel content available — that's a guarantee — but, at last, we're getting stories tuned for the audience that's been here since the beginning that doesn't shy from mature content.
The MCU is growing up
A perfect happy ending is nearly impossible in real life. In fiction, the best finales come with a cost. That doesn't mean that happy endings are pie-in-the-sky. Sometimes, things aren't easy to fix in one story. "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" leads us (and the MCU) into understanding that with a tale far more personal than Thanos' snap. The Gamora that we met in "Avengers: Endgame" is not the Gamora we used to know — and she's never going to be.
The Guardians' crew experiences some tough growth in their finale, but it's Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) who has to say goodbye to a big piece of himself. Nowhere near as intrusive as he was when first courting Gamora, Quill is desperate to find what he lost in the new Gamora. It's frustrating to watch him try to connect with her. By the end of the film, Quill understands that it was never about the new Gamora's lack of memory but his unwillingness to lose anything more. This time, Quill gets to say goodbye to who Gamora was and accept her as a friend as she returns to her new family. The Ravagers love her as much as the Guardians. That's not less important. It's just different, and that's okay.
The stakes don't have to be apocalyptic
The premise of the movie is simple: One of the Guardians gets severely injured, and his adoptive family rallies to save his life. That's it. The threat of the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji) is passive to the greater galaxy. He's a gene-mutating, human-trafficking villain with a reason to be stuck on Rocket (Bradley Cooper). He's also an existential threat to the various species he creates. However, if you're not in that narrow category, he's just an awful thing that happens to somebody else.
Taking the stakes off being the literal guardians of the galaxy and letting each character shine rather than focusing on this threat makes this third outing the best of the trilogy. It's not that the High Evolutionary doesn't matter, but he matters most to this team. That lets us empathize with each character's struggle, making for a story that truly is about them. It's a great lesson for the MCU, which has struggled with hollow-feeling threat escalation since the end of the Thanos saga.
Villains don't always need nuance
The MCU loves a multi-faceted villain. Thus far, the best and biggest threats have shown off their personal sides to get us invested in their fates. Not every baddie is as deep as Thanos, much less the ever-ascendant dark horse fandom fave, Loki. The High Evolutionary, however, is just a megalomaniacal scientist who gets into a major huff because one of his "disposable" creations can think sharply enough to be better than him once in a while. He's a jackass on an ego trip, and he gets worse once Rocket kicks his face clean off his skull.
There is nothing redeemable about the High Evolutionary. Nothing to empathize with. Nothing for us to give a rip about except when he's going to get his ass handed to him. Everything we need to know is shown in his mocking disregard for his creations, the state of his lab animals, and the agony in Rocket's eyes. We don't require anything more. That's perfect for this kind of story, where the real themes are found in how everyone else reacts to him. Chukwudi Iwuji shines, and his fantastic performance as this despicable maniac makes the final showdown even better.
Infinite diversity in infinite combinations
No disrespect to the Vulcans, but the High Evolutionary's gene-shaping antics offer another way to shut down one of the broader arguments about the MCU's huge galaxy. "Why are there so many humanoid aliens in these movies?" Because every wannabe god keeps recreating us as experiments!
It's not clear how long the Evolutionary's been at his work in his horrific laboratories, but the film implies it's been centuries. In a nod to his comic origins, the Evolutionary is aware of and approves, generally, of humanity's development. He aspires to give his creatures not just human-level sapience but also our bipedal ability — his preferred evolutionary apex.
That puts him on the same shelf as the Celestials and the Kree, two other races fond of meddling in the affairs of developing worlds. "Eternals" showed us how Celestials seed humanoid genes across the galaxy. Meanwhile, the Kree's efforts slip in and out of sight, from "Ms. Marvel"'s mutant-reactive bangle to the maybe-canon maybe-not reveal in "Agents of SHIELD" that Kree experimentation led to the Inhuman/mutant gene. With all three factors in the mix, there are plenty of not-quite-humans to go around. It makes sense, in a comic book way, and lets us enjoy the diversity without thinking about it too hard.
The Guardians remain, but they're not what they were
We went into this movie prepared to be traumatized, and we were, but the most shocking twist is that none of our heroes dies. The film does end with some huge changes, and the new Guardians of the Galaxy look very different. Rocket Raccoon, now able to embrace who and what he is, has taken charge. Still at his side is Groot (Vin Diesel), but this young adult has grown into an absolute unit, a Sequoia among men.
Here the familiarity ends. Kraglin (Sean Gunn), who's finally made Yondu's whistling arrow his own, is back. Cosmo (Maria Bakalova), a very good dog, is primed to be the new emotional heart of the team. Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), who's still growing up, and his pet, Blurp, have a new world ahead of them. And one of the rescued white-haired girls gets a chance to join, bringing along a bit of deep lore. James Gunn identifies the new kid as Phyla-Vell (Kai Zen), who, in the comics, is an artificially designed member of the Mar-vell family. She's even held the Captain Marvel title. Phyla-Vell's been a Guardian in the comics, and here, she gets a fresh start with them as a potentially great new character for girls to grow up with. While nothing's confirmed, we can't wait to see this new team in action.
There's a brand new Adam Warlock
Comic fans in the know may be happy to tell you how the MCU's version of the Infinity Saga left out one of its key members. Adam Warlock's role in the original war against Thanos needs a lot of backstory to work, and comics make it easier to share the page among heroes. For the MCU, bringing Warlock into the story would have taken the spotlight away from a cast we've been rooting for since the first "Iron Man." Thankfully, James Gunn takes his version of Adam closer to his beginnings.
Adam Warlock has always been an artificial being, and crossing paths with the High Evolutionary in 1972 gave this powerful entity his full name. Gunn streamlines his Warlock's origin story into something that parallels Rocket's rough childhood. Adam is confused by his premature birth, eager to help, and surprised by pain. He's never truly evil, just himbo stupid and loyal to his mother, who's desperate to please the High Evolutionary. But when his emotional anchor is killed, it's up to him to decide who he's going to be. That opens up a world of possibilities for this new version of a classic character, and honestly, that's a gift to a guy that's been stuck in an infinite rut for a long time.
Farewells don't mean death
Introducing us to Old Man Steve in the final minutes of "Avengers: Endgame" opened the door for audiences to see that there are ways to send off a beloved character without a funeral. There's just enough wiggle room that we're still discussing the possibility of Chris Evans' return. That's something "Guardians of the Galaxy" is trying to avoid. While previews made us fear for that final frontier, along with clear statements from cast members who have no plans to return, their exits from the story are meaningful and well-earned.
Drax's story completes a definite arc from a bereaved family man out for blood to a foster dad to a fleet of kids that need him. Gamora's on a new path, and while she leaves on renewed good terms, she's also happy in her new home. Bringing either of them back would weaken what they earned, and we've met plenty of new spacefaring heroes who can step up. It's enough to know that Mantis (Pom Klementieff) has the choice to return on her terms and that Rocket, Cosmo (Maria Bakalova), and Groot are the sort of characters who can continue to keep an eye on the galaxy — without exhausting their performers.
Peter Quill goes home
A card hidden at the end of the credits tells us that the legendary Star-Lord will return, but right now, it's hard to square that with the adult kid who's finally getting a chance to eat sugary cereal at his grandpa's kitchen table. Peter Quill's arc is long and peppered with his brand of charming antics, but it also shows him building families and, painfully, learning how to let go. Telling Gamora goodbye allows brings closure to his mother's death years before. Like Rocket, he's stopped running away from his past.
Chris Pratt says he'll be happy to return to the galaxy if and when the right story calls for it, but it will need a reason for a new beginning. There are possible story arcs ahead that have seen his comic counterpart take a role, from helping out the Fantastic Four to meeting the still-to-be-introduced Nova. As with Adam Warlock, the future of Star-Lord is wide open. It's time for a fresh start for the Guardians of the Galaxy, and we can't wait to see what happens next.