GOTG Holiday Special Fixed A Phase 4 Guardians Plot Hole

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.

Marvel’s Phase 4 created an odd Guardians of the Galaxy plot hole, but now The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special has fixed it. The MCU’s next special presentation following Werewolf by Night, the GOTG Holiday Special sees Mantis and Drax trying to find Peter Quill the most perfect Christmas present, Kevin Bacon. Despite the low-stakes canon adventure, the GOTG Holiday Special has added more backstory to Starlord and Mantis, retconned Yondu and Quill’s past, and recontextualized how well the people of Earth really know the Guardians of the Galaxy following the events of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

During Ms. Marvel’s AvengersCon, it was possible to notice a lot of Guardians of the Galaxy-related elements in the fictional fan event. There were a few Gamora and Drax cosplayers, a Peter Quill documentary series named A Pay to All Planets: The Peter Quill Star-Boy Story on display, a Rocket Raccoon statue, and a “Mr. Tree” house. The problem, however, is that the Guardians of the Galaxy being known on Earth simply does not work, not even after Endgame. The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special has now retconned Ms. Marvel’s AvengersCon mistake by having Mantis and Drax, who flew to Earth to find Kevin Bacon, being completely unknown by the Terrans.

Ms. Marvel GOTG Plot-Hole Explained

While the MCU has treated the Avengers as celebrities in-universe for a while now, having several references to the Guardians of the Galaxy at Ms. Marvel’s AvengersCon was a significant plot hole. The Guardians of the Galaxy barely spent any time on Earth, the only exception being Rocket and Nebula, who seemingly remained on Earth after the snap. In Endgame, after Hulk’s snap, the Guardians of the Galaxy all went to Earth to fight Thanos but left the planet right after Tony Stark’s funeral. There is no logical window for the Guardians to have become famous on Earth, not to mention how 2014 Gamora wasn’t even with the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Even if Endgame’s Battle of Earth had been fully recorded and made public, it would still be impossible for the people of Earth to even contextualize who some of those superheroes were. There was nothing to suggest that Rocket and five other heroes were part of a group named Guardians of the Galaxy, nor that Gamora was once part of the group. It also does not make sense when and how Peter Quill would ever produce a documentary between the Battle of Earth and Tony Stark’s funeral. While a few easter eggs are always fun to see, Ms. Marvel’s AvengersCon’s Guardians of the Galaxy references pushed it too far.

How GOTG Holiday Special Fixed Ms. Marvel's Mistake

Drax and Mantis walking along the sidewalk in The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special very much retcons Ms. Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy references. For example, no one knows who Drax and Mantis are when the Guardians go to the Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles, which obviously breaks what Ms. Marvel had established with hundreds of people showing their love for the Guardians in Jersey City. In The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, one of the people who gets to see Drax up close thinks he is God of War’s Kratos. Though it’s a significant MCU retcon, it makes more sense for the Guardians of the Galaxy to be strangers to the people of Earth rather than celebrities.

Next: Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special Cast & Cameo Guide