Still Marvelous Part 1: Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3

I have said this before, but I am an easy mark for the MCU. That we have seen a dip in quality is hard to deny; but there is something interesting about these off-notes. They aren't wholly unsuccessful, very often charming, but ultimately, unsatisfying (I am thinking of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Thor: Love and Thunder as the two most recent flubs, but I have to acknowledge there are whiffs in Eternals, and even, and I write this reluctantly as I really liked the film, Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness). However, it's churlish to dismiss the hits that have come through in the recent Phase (4? 5?). 

Spider-Man: No Way Home, Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and now the third and concluding volume of the Guardians of the Galaxy are all straight up examples of what the franchise does best. 

With Guardians, James Gunn stated that this was Rocket's story all along. That came as a surprise to me, but I get it. Yes, the first two were very much about coming to terms with problematic family relationships and issues specifically between fathers and sons; but throughout, Rocket has been the one to say the things that needed saying, he's maintained the sharpest eye but also the most guarded heart.

Volume 3 is - as is well-known by now - Rocket's origin story, forged in the biotech crucible of the High Evolutionary (a strong Chukwudi Iwuji playing a grand dick of a villain), a being who claimed to aspire to creating perfect world but as Rocket said, he didn't want to make anything perfect; he just hated things the way they were. The flashbacks to Rocket's genesis as a genetically modified raccoon are heartbreaking, very much on the order of Dickensian abuse and exploitation.

As with all of Gunn's work (well, maybe not Slither or his early Troma work...), there's a genuine sense of understanding how we survive trauma and come together in times of trouble. Very often, he executes this with wit and humor but isn't afraid to give expression to genuine emotion. The beauty of the scenes in his later films where there is a heartfelt sentiment is that these expressions feel earned and really fit the characters. I don't think Gunn would ever get schmaltzy on us.

All of this is underscored from the get-go here when the Guardians realize that they can't use their med-pacs on Rocket (who was wounded during row of epic proportions with Will Poulter's Adam Warlock) because there is a kill switch embedded in him. Discovering that took the wind out of my sails before the movie really got up to steam. 

It turns out that Rocket was enhanced by the High Evolutionary using tech developed by his corporation Orgocorp. Without going into too much detail; the High Evolutionary...that's too many syllables, but he doesn't have another name...has created Counter Earth replete with beings who one supposes he thinks are the way beings should be. On his way to creating it, he Frankensteined who knows how many chimeras, many who would be brought into existence only to be wasted shortly after. Rocket, though, proved exceptional; he was a brilliant problem solver and autodidact and by god, that asshole High Evolutionary was going to use the little feller's brain to make smarter critters, after wiping Rocket away.

Before he got to that, though, Rocket had found his earlier family in Lyla, Teefs, and Floor. I need a minute. Linda Cardellini voices Lyla, a similarly modified otter to Rocket with nothing but love and it's obvious that is very much reciprocated and expanded by Rocket. But also, Teefs, a walrus (Asim Chaudhry) and Floor, a rabbit (Mikaela Hoover). They dream of freedom from their cages, particularly when Rocket adopts his name because he is drawn to, well, rockets, and that "are gonna go flying together, into the forever and beautiful sky."

It isn't long before we also see the High Evolutionary murder Lyla and Rocket mauling him afterward. Rocket is able to free Teefs and Floor from their confines but they are killed by the High Evolutionary's troops during a firefight with Rocket who is able to comandeer a spacecraft and escape.

Prior to the fight with Adam Warlock, on Knowhere, we encounter a depressed and drunken Quill who is very far from being over Gamora's loss. Rocket, Groot, Drax, Nebula, and Mantis are, of course, concerned and if I have a knock on the film, it's that it's just hard to buy Quill's descent since it seems to vanish once the action starts. And yes, seeing Rocket near death would be a rallying inspiration, but on the one hand I was kind of grateful because it's better than a long drawn-out self-pitying performance and on the other, there is the insensitive moviegoer me who really felt like telling Peter to get over it.

As it happens, 2012 Gamora has since joined the Ravagers and they assist the Guardians in infiltrating Orgocorp to secure the code to the kill switch. Oh, if only things were that easy! I'll skip ahead and just do the broad strokes; the code is gone, stolen by one Theel, the - hell, the HE - HE's henchman, who has taken it to Counter-Earth. We also find Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki) and Adam Warlock in pursuit of the Guardians since HE has threatened to destroy Sovereign (their home planet...and they are all creation of HE) if they don't kill Rocket. 

On Counter-Earth, the Guardians split up with the unconscious Rocket, Gamora, Drax and Mantis staying close to the ship and Quill, Groot, and Nebula on their way to Arête Labs where Theel brought the code. It's not long before thing go sideways on Counter-Earth; Adam Warlock and Ayesha arrive, Gamora saves Rocket from them, Drax has taken off to join the others at the lab who, in turn, are in danger since HE and Quill are in a stand-off and Quill points out that Counter-Earth is less than perfect since it is replete with urban strife, a drug epidemic and other, strangely familiar issues. HE then obliterates Counter-Earth and Arête turns into a spaceship with Mantis who followed Drax, Drax, and Nebula onboard thinking that they're saving Quill.

Gamora is able to save Quill and Groot and in turn, they're able to resuscitate Rocket (they got the code from Theel, obviously...or I should say, his corpse); on Arête, Drax, Nebula, and Mantis find hundreds of genetically modified human children (and the animals, as well) and in the meantime, Kraglin (Sean Gunn bringing it) and Cosmo (a very good telekinetic dog voiced by Maria Bakalova) are en route, using Knowhere as a craft to fire on Arête. The Guardians on Arête stage a rescue of the children and once Quill, Rocket, and Gamora arrive, Rocket insists on saving the animals, as well.

Rocket is met by HE who is subdued by the combined Guardians and spared. The rescue continues and Quill almost dies being the last to cross space from Arête to Knowhere but is saved by Adam Warlock who had been saved from Arëte by Groot. 

Quill leaves the Guardians and heads for Earth where we see him with his grandfather (Gregg Henry); Gamora rejoins the Ravagers; Mantis embarks on a journey of self-discovery; Drax and Nebula remain on Knowhere to raise the children; and Rocket is now captain of the Guardians, this iteration comprised of Kraglin, Groot, Cosmo, Adam, and Phyla, one of the rescued kids. 

I just sketched the big moments and look at the verbiage, won't you? However, nothing I can write is going to convey the depth of the relationships and personalities we've come to know and love. All the principles bring their A-game to this and I wondered at the Gamora-Nebula relationship since the roles are reversed; Nebula is almost downright nurturing while Gamora is still the cold-blooded daughter of Thanos. Saldana and Gillan are gems, but this time around, it's Gillan's Nebula that does the heavy lifting, having to deal with Chris Pratt's Peter Quill more directly. And she is not brooking his foolishness.

A couple of thoughts about Pratt's performance here. He actually has less to do than in previous outings, but I have to give him credit; he really is Marvel's Han Solo. I think Pratt has a way to go before he's got anything approaching Harrison Ford's range, but he delivers really heartfelt turns as Star-Lord. His goofiness is increasingly balanced out by a kind of maturity and I hope that if Feige and Co. decide to re-up Pratt, the writing is worthy of him.

Dave Bautista and Pom Klementieff are also given more room to fill out Drax and Mantis and Mantis exploding in frustration at one point is as gripping as anything else. It's out of love and standing up for herself, as well, and as she tells Drax, he's not a destroyer, he's a dad. 

Sean Gunn's Kraglin is also given more colors in his paint box and when he sees Michael Rooker as Yondu in a vision, I was welling up one more time. It's true: I will weep at the drop of a hat and James Gunn and his ensemble dropped the hat plenty of times.

It's heartening to see how well the Guardians' saga has come to completion. I'm sure that we'll see the other iteration at some point down the line, but I'm in no hurry; let them (and us) have these moments of closure. 

I am phlegmatic about the superhero genre these days, but it has established itself as very much its own niche. Done right, we get movies like this; done poorly, well, there are enough examples. What is worthwhile to consider is the variety of approaches available to the genre. The MCU is just one, seemingly the main one in most people's minds, but that's doing a disservice to what's happening in streaming with not just the Marvel shows, but other series as well, like The Boys, The Watchmen, and the Arrowverse. All of these are attempting to do something different with the tropes (and cliches) of the spandex crowd.

It all boils down to the writing and the performances. The plot stuff is often silly, though it can be gripping if the stakes are presented as existentially challenging. However, I have to admit that I mostly come back time and again, because the characters have been developed to that point where you can actually care about them and invest your time in seeing how their journeys unfold. If you can't care about the characters, there's not a lot of reason to put up with two hour plus long movies.