Despite nearly a decade of movies featuring over a dozen epic adventures, with an exception or two, Marvel hasn’t spent much time in space. Clearly, the shape of things in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is changing, though, as Guardians of the Galaxy gave MCU fans a taste of cosmic adventure. Its forthcoming sequel will further expand the mythology in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, bringing the “perfection” of new villain Ayesha and her Sovereign people into the mix.

The latter portion of Phase 3 will also add new elements, such as Thor and Hulk’s interstellar action in Thor: Ragnarok, as well as the Avengers in Infinity War and Captain Marvel’s introduction, breaking the heavens wide open for the MCU. By the time the next phase, or whatever it's called, rolls out, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 could open the floodgates wide for Marvel's outer-space adventures.

Here are just a few of the multitude of directions it could go.

Infinity Watch

Gamora stands with Adam Warlock and members of the Infinity Watch in Marvel Comics.

Depending on how Thanos’ evil schemes go down, the Mad Titan may be off the table, particularly if he finally gets his wish and embraces Death. If he survives, is imprisoned, or (as often happens in comic books) is reborn, all bets are off – especially if Marvel decides to create the classic 1992 cosmic team-up of Infinity Watch. Although Thanos himself was an integral part of the group, the MCU often changes source material, and the team did change members on occasion. Adapting the stories from this cosmic squad would also be a perfect follow up to the Infinity Stone-focused, Phase 3-ending Avengers movies.

Following the events of the Infinity Gauntlet saga, which is lining up pretty similarly in the MCU, the Living Tribunal (basically Marvel’s stellar universal judiciary branch) determined that the stones are far too powerful to be ever combined again. It is decreed that Adam Warlock will separate the stones, entrusting each of them to a different defender, including Gamora, Drax the Destroyer (who mistook it for a jellybean and ate it), Moondragon (Drax’s comic book daughter), Pip the Troll, a humbled Thanos, and, of course, Warlock himself.

Suffice to say, things didn’t go as planned, leading to some Stone-heisting and further strife, including the Infinity War and the Infinity Crusade, both of which involved Adam Warlock being split into two beings. Also, Disney could explore the origins of the Infinity Stones, which is a fascinating story in and of itself, involving the death of gestalt entity, Nemesis. An Infinity Watch-based movie would also be a perfect way to explore the fascinating landscape of Marvel's cosmic realm. Naturally, some of these story elements may be - or already are - woven into the fabric of the third and fourth Avengers films. Even if they are, there are still a number of fascinating stories and concepts to delve into from the Infinity Watch and their adventures.

Nova Corps Movie with Richard Rider

Richard Rider and the Nova Corps

James Gunn gave the Nova Corps a solid, if slightly altered, introduction in Guardians of the Galaxy. However, their story has barely begun to scratch the surface of decades of entertaining exploits. Starring the galactic police force and their top dog, Richard Rider, Marvel needs to expand the reach of their classic space force in the next "Phase" and beyond. Several of the characters involved in the classic Nova stories have already been introduced, including Rhomann Dey, who first inducted Rider as a Corps member in the comics and is played by John C. Reilly in GOTG, and Garthan Saal, or Supernova, played by Peter Serafinowicz.

First appearing in his own ongoing series back in 1976, Rider has played a vital role in dozens of major interstellar events over the years, venturing to countless strange new worlds and battling dozens of nasty Marvel foes from Thanos to Galactus to Annihilus. His roguish, Han Solo-like attitude and dry sense of humor would also fit quite well with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in particular as a de facto member of the Guardians or leading the charge against the ills of space. His sometimes membership in the New Warriors could also lead to a fun TV-film crossover (hint, hint).

Beyond Rider himself, the Nova Corps have several different branches and a great deal of fascinating history and lore that could easily fill out a film or three, including their potential connections to Ego the Living Planet, the complexities of the Xandarian World Mind (which powers their Corps-members), and their history of selflessness in facing down the forces of universal destruction.

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The Annihilators

Cosmic heroes from Marvel Comics.

With the exception of another nifty trade (like the Fox-Marvel exchange of Ego the Living Planet for alterations to Negasonic Teenage Warhead power set), Marvel probably won’t be able to produce a movie based on the classic “Annihilation” or “Annihilation Wave” storylines, written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. That doesn’t necessarily mean the MCU couldn’t put together its own version of the Annihilators.

Originally made up of space’s finest, including Nova Richard Rider, Beta Ray Bill, Quasar, Ronan the Accuser (deceased), Gladiator (rights’ issues), and Silver Surfer (ditto), the Annihilators formed before The Thanos Imperative, as the result of several assaults from Negative Zone and other intergalactic nemeses. Despite the possibilities of a dead Thanos and a couple of unusable characters, Marvel could still recreate the squad with other cosmic heroes like Gamora, Drax, or yet-to-be-introduced characters like Captain Marvel, Moondragon, or Phyla-Vell (as Quasar or Martyr).

Plus, there are plenty of storylines Marvel could pull from, even recreating aspects of "Annihilation" with the Chitauri or the Sakaarans, or revamping the War of Kings or Realm of Kings to fit an antagonistic Kree, an rights-overhauled Skrulls, or even inventing an entirely new cosmic species or two to force the galaxy’s greatest heroes together. Either way, pulling Beta Ray Bill, Quasar, and Nova into the MCU fold – plus whomever else they’ve assembled alongside – and pitting them against insurmountable odds would keep old school fans and general audiences on the edge of their space-seats.

The Thanos Imperative/Cancerverse

Speaking of the Annihilators and the Thanos Imperative, the MCU version of Marvel Cosmic would be remiss if it skipped out on this intense modern classic, even without Thanos. Of course, you just can’t keep a Mad Titan down – especially seeing as Death loves messing with his head. Whether or not he's an integral part of the storyline, Feige and company could certainly fudge things and adapt this fascinating and intense epic.

For those unfamiliar, the Cancerverse is a realm where Death holds no dominion. Nothing ever dies and its inhabitants are all creepy, inverse, red-eyed counterparts to the heroes in our universe. The chaos begins when reverse Adam Warlock, the Magus, discovers The Fault, a rift between the standard Marvel Universe and the Cancerverse. Naturally, he's all about conquering our universe and expanding his undying realm. He and his Revengers (yep, evil undying Avengers) try to take over, before Star-Lord, Nova, Drax, and yes, even Thanos, seal the rift at the cost of their lives.

Guardians 2 already sets up one potential element from the Cancerverse, the Many-Angled Ones, which The Sovereignty purportedly hires the team to battle. Presuming that these Cthuloid critters are still related to it, the gnarly, undying realm could already be headed to the big screen. Marvel may even use elements of the modern classic in the final two Avengers films or use it as the official team breaker-upper at the conclusion to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

If not, hopefully "The Thanos Imperative" will work its way into the next wave of films somehow.

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The Magus Saga

Warlock vs Magus

James Gunn and Kevin Feige made it pretty clear that, although Marvel Biggie Adam Warlock was “one character too many” for Guardians 2, he's hovering around in the wings, waiting for his entry into the MCU. It's conceivable he could even drop by during Avengers: Infinity War or its Gauntlet-y sequel – seeing as he played a major role in several Infinity Gem (now Stone) epics. His role may start out small, but Warlock could wind up a major player in the next era of the MCU.

Adam Warlock was designed by the mad genetic scientists of the Enclave, right here on Earth. However, the artificially created “perfect human” didn’t stick around to help his creators in their unpleasantly petty planetary conquest. While seeking a purpose in the greater universe, he encounters both Thanos and his evil futuristic self, the Magus – the founder and leader of the conquest-hungry Universal Church of Truth.

Warped by his time with cosmic beings Lord Order and Master Chaos, Magus is essentially driven mad by dark knowledge and relying on the Soul Stone way too much – something which is still hiding somewhere in the MCU. Warlock defeats his future self by, in essence, killing himself in the future. Of course, the Magus/Warlock's classic tale is merely one of many Marvel could choose from, since Magus and Warlock pop up at numerous points in comic continuity. The dualistic duo's most significant potential contribution to the MCU, could be taking possession of the Infinity Gauntlet and defeating Thanos (see Infinity Watch).

Honestly, anything big Marvel has planned for their cosmic sector would benefit from Warlock’s participation. Given the Infinity Stone-basis for Phase 3's end, it would actually be a little shocking if the "He" didn’t play some role. However, Marvel could be playing their cards close to the chest with regard to Warlock, and the next era of films could have a sizable role for him, as well as his evil alter ego. Plus, thanks to their character ownership issues, the MCU is a little shy on major villains these days.

The Ultimates

Photon, Blue Marvel, Captain Marvel, Black Panther, and America Chavez.

One of the House of Ideas' most recent superhero squads, the Ultimates, first turned up in Marvel’s gritty Ultimate Universe – the one that gave us a Sam L. Jackson-inspired Nick Fury Jr. and Miles Morales, among others. In that realm, they were, more or less, the Avengers for their alternative realm. After the Secret Wars collapsed the multiverse, the team made the jump to the prime Marvel Universe, albeit in a reformatted fashion. The "All-New All-Different" lineup consisted of several omega-level butt-kickers like Captain Marvel, Black Panther, Ms. America Chavez, Blue Marvel, and Spectrum.

When a galactic-scale problem comes along, they use their cosmic-level powers (and the power of science) to whip it into shape. In the post-Thanos MCU, the Ultimates would be the perfect Avengers-style complement to Marvel's interstellar segment. Their headquarters, the Triskelion, already exists in current continuity, introduced in the Avengers and is currently being used by the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Assembling the multiversal response squad would be relatively easy, as Feige and crew simply need to introduce a few more key characters, with some, like Captain Marvel, already on their way.

Unfortunately, thanks to film rights, they won’t be able to team up with a reborn Galactus The Life Bringer (one of their most esoteric storylines to date). Nevertheless, the team has a great deal of potential in the post-Phase 3 MCU – particularly the manifold worlds introduced by Doctor Strange – and could easily be one of Marvel’s most dynamic and thought-provoking superhero teams to date.

Given the solid early reviews and a probable impressive performance at the box office, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and its all-but inevitable sequel is poised to usher in a broader universe for Marvel. Even though their full spectrum of possibilities is somewhat stunted, due to several prime alien species and characters residing in the hands of Fox and Sony, the MCU still has a vast array of interstellar exploits available to them, particularly now that Captain Marvel and the Guardians franchise are about to break the space race wide open.

As Kevin Feige has alluded to, the Marvel Multiverse is a many-splendored thing. The future, whether as intricately interwoven as Phases I-3 or more loosely organized, offers infinite possibilities for fantastic comic book-based adventures with a distinctively cosmic flavor.

Next: Guardians of the Galaxy 4 Would Feature Very Different Team

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