Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Repeats Star-Lord Worst MCU Crime

Warning: SPOILERS for The Guardians of the Galaxy: Holiday Special ahead.James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 seems to be heading towards repeating Star-Lord's crime in Avengers: Infinity War — the moment Star-Lord let Thanos win by angering the Mad Titan. Following the MCU Phase 4 closer, Guardians of the Galaxy: Holiday Special, MCU Phase 5's GotG 3 will see the core squad facing new characters like Will Poulter's Adam Warlock and fight a new foe in Chukwudi Iwuji's High Evolutionary. On top of this, the cosmic team will also continue their search for 2014 Gamora (Zoe Saldana), who doesn't have any recollection of her past with the team and Peter Quill (Chris Pratt).

During Marvel Studios' Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, Chris Pratt teased Peter Quill's state of mind in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. The actor says that the character is still reeling from Gamora not knowing him, risking mental lapses that repeat Star-Lord Infinity War mistake and endanger the whole team. Star-Lord in Avengers: Infinity War let his emotions get the best of him during the fight against Thanos (Josh Brolin) on Titan. After realizing that the purple Titan killed Gamora, Quill broke down and attacked the villain aggressively, derailing the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy's plan to snatch the Infinity Gauntlet. This is generally cited as one of the main reasons why the Avengers lost in Infinity War. How Star-Lord let Thanos win is something audiences will never, ever forget.

MCU Still Needs To Redeem Star-Lord’s Big Infinity War Mistake

chris pratt star-lord zoe saldana gamora guardians of the galaxy vol. 3

Admittedly, It's unfair to solely pin the Thanos snap on Star-Lord's outburst in Titan. Thanos' win in Avengers: Infinity War was caused by a combination of mistakes from the Avengers, not to mention Doctor Strange's (Benedict Cumberbatch) plan of ensuring his success to be defeated in Avengers: Endgame. However, unlike other heroes who committed their fair share of slips, Star-Lord has yet to be redeemed from his actions.

Both Captain America (Chris Evans) and Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) made strategic blunders, while Thor (Chris Hemsworth) catastrophically dropped the ball when he decided to gloat than kill the Titan right away. All three of them had already compensated for their slips in Avengers: Endgame, however. Aside from participating in the final act battle between the Avengers and 2014 Thanos, they also went on a risky mission in the time heist. Star-Lord, on the other hand, only factored in the effort to undo the Blip after he was brought back from getting dusted towards the end of the film.

Unfortunately for Peter Quill, helping in the last stand against the Titan arguably wasn't enough to vindicate how Star-Lord let Thanos win. Sadly, the plot of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 may even make it worse, as Star-Lord's crime seems bound to happen again, indicating that he hasn't learned from the experience. While its effects may not be as colossal as the Blip, his mistake negatively impacting those he loves the most may be more heartbreaking to him than half of the universe turning into dust.

The GotG Holiday Special Set Up An Even Harder Star-Lord Fall

Chris Pratt as Star-lord Pom Klementieff as Mantis Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special

Now that the Guardians of the Galaxy: Holiday Special confirmed that Mantis (Pom Klementieff) is Ego the Living Planet's (Kurt Russel) daughter and Star-Lord's sister, there's one more person that Star-Lord can doom the entire universe to save. With Star-Lord bound to develop a much closer connection to Mantis due to his yearning for a sense of family, this sets up even higher stakes and a harder downfall for Star-Lord in Vol. 3 than previously thought. That said, this also lays the foundations for Mantis and other non-original team members to carve the Guardians of the Galaxy's future in the MCU on their own.

The GotG 3 Trailer Foreshadows Tragedy For Star-Lord

The Guardians of the Galaxy walk forward as fires burn behind them.

As much as there were jokes in the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 trailer, its whole tone is somber compared to previous GotG promotions, and the entire trailer is densely packed with signs of doom. Groot saying "We are Groot" once more while standing back-to-back with Star-Lord and firing guns in all directions practically screams "heroic last stand". This is further supported by Star-Lord saying, "No matter what happens next, the galaxy still needs its Guardians," and Rocket Raccoon saying that he's done running. Even Drax's supposedly funny line, when examined more closely, belies Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's tragic ending, with Drax insisting that he should at least be able to "kill one person, one stupid guy who no one loves". Drax isn't talking about Quill, but the inclusion of this incredibly specific joke reflects Star-Lord feeling sorry for himself due to the deaths of Gamora of his two father figures.

Moreover, the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 trailer song ("In The Meantime" by Spacedog) is, according to vocalist Royston Langdon, about getting through his "anxieties and fear of death." Langdon further explains that the lyrics present a "metaphor of a worldly or inner-worldly search for the end of isolation, and the acceptance of one's self is in there." Essentially, with either Gamora or Mantis in captivity by the High Evolutionary, the set-up is there for Star-Lord to once again do something incredibly stupid - and fatal this time - to save one or both. That said, an ultimate sacrifice in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 could also finally redeem Star-Lord's crime in Infinity War.

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