James Gunn has made it clear that this is the end of the line for the Guardians of the Galaxy as we know it. Not only is he leaving the Marvel fold for the confines of the DCU, but Dave Bautista has said this would be his last MCU film. We were promised a tearful goodbye to the Guardians, which led us to believe that one or more of the characters would be killed off.
Without spoiling anything, the film does bring a close to this version of the GOTG. The mid- and end-credits scenes lay out the groundwork for the franchise’s future. How fans will react to the new direction remains to be seen, but it appears Marvel Studios has its course charted to some degree.
CAPTAIN MARVEL #16
As is customary with Marvel films, there is a new character teased in the post-credits scene. We see Rocket leading his team, which includes one of the children the Guardians rescued from High Evolutionary.
It just so happens her name is Phyla, better known as Phyla-Vell from the comics. That will have her first two appearances in Captain Marvel #16 and #17 on the hot seat as buyers scour eBay for key issues.
MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #18
Marvel Studios has a reputation for lying to its audience. We can forgive them since it’s done in the interest of giving fans some surprises once the projectors start rolling. In this case, there were no lies, and no one ever said the GOTG would be done after Vol. 3.
The mid-credits scene definitely sets up the next team, and I imagine we’ll see them make sporadic appearances on the cosmic side of things before joining the fray in Secret Wars. That will put an added emphasis on grabbing the team’s first appearance in Marvel Super-Heroes #18.
MARVEL PREVIEW #4
Judging by the post-credits scene, Chris Pratt isn’t making his exit from the MCU anytime soon. Although Star-Lord makes his exit from the GOTG, at least temporarily, Marvel is quite clear that Peter Quill is here to stay. In fact, the implication from the final scene is that a Star-Lord movie or Disney Plus series is likely on the way. That will likely mean Pratt won’t be suiting up as either Green Lantern or Booster Gold in Gunn’s DCU, much to many fans’ chagrin.
However, the news should be enough to push Marvel Premiere #4 back to the top of the sales charts in the near future.
THE NEW GUARDIANS
It shouldn’t be any surprise that Marvel Studios isn’t ready to retire the GOTG title. From a business standpoint, it’s much too popular to shelve at this point. We won’t be seeing any new movies or shows anytime soon, but we will definitely see the team in the future. That will keep their key issues in the spotlight for years to come.
