Next year, Marvel Studios’ third - and at this stage ‘final’ - Guardians of the Galaxy film will be released. Writer/director James Gunn is returning to the director’s chair for this outing. All signs seem to indicate that it will be a rather emotional send-off for this bunch of a-holes. With the Guardians’ role in the MCU wrapping up, a new rumour suggests Kevin Feige and co. have found a replacement in the form of... the Starjammers? Let’s talk about these weird characters and why you should care about them.

Created by David Cockrum in April of 1977, the Starjammers first appeared in X-Men #104. The characters were conceived as space pirates. They would perform acts of piracy and sabotage in the tradition of old English buccaneers. The Starjammers’ connection to the X-Men is actually rather cool; the father of Cyclops and Havok - Corsair - is the leader of the group. According to Cockrum, “This was not the original intention.”

To justify having the Starjammers repeatedly appear in X-Men comics, Marvel wanted Corsair to be revealed as the thought-to-be-dead father of Scott and Alex Summers. 

x-men_104_starjammersWho Are The Starjammers & Should You Care?

Despite their insanely 70s/80s vibe, the Starjammers are still a rather present and active part of the Marvel Universe; the team appeared in the recent ‘Death of Thanos’ storyline back in 2018. The Starjammers line-up is an ever-changing one, with characters like Cyclops, Havok, Korvus, Ch’od, Hepzibah, Raza Longknife (what a name) at some point being members of the team. 90s kids would be rather familiar with the team, as they appeared on the X-Men animated series during the iconic ‘Dark Phoenix’ storyline.

So, what does any of this have to do with Marvel Studios and James Gunn’s third Guardians of the Galaxy film? According to a new rumour, with the introduction of the X-Men, and the conclusion of the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios are rather keen on introducing the Starjammers as a potential “replacement,” with the characters appearing in the upcoming third film. 

starjammers_MCUStarjammers In The MCU?

Marvel Studios are known for introducing bizarre and radical concepts to the general audience and allowing the public to fall in love with them. It happened with the Guardians of the Galaxy, and it could very well happen again with the Starjammers! 

As of right now, a 9.8 grade of X-Men #104 will set you back a little over $728 (USD). On eBay, you can find countless grades ranging from 7.0 to 9.6 for anywhere from $320 (USD) to $600 (USD).

Personally speaking, I wouldn’t invest in the characters… just yet. Considering the rumour is fairly new, I would sit on it for a while. You must remember, Guardians Vol. 3 doesn’t release for just over another year, which is more than enough time for a more reliable Starjammers rumour to hit the inter-webs. 

What do you guys think? Could the Starjammers be the next Guardians of the Galaxy, or do you think I am an insane person? Time will tell!

*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance blogger and does not represent advice on behalf of GoCollect