Avengers: Infinity War’s rushed approach to the romance between Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) and Gamora (Zoe Saldana) is a big problem for their story and Gamora’s character development. The first two Guardians of the Galaxy movies established a complex character and relationship arc for Gamora and Star-Lord, but Infinity War took it in the wrong direction when it united them with the other heroes of the MCU for the fight against Thanos (Josh Brolin).

There were concerns when Avengers: Infinity War was in production that its massive cast would pose a narrative obstacle. There was always a risk that using a such a long list of characters could result in some being underutilized, mishandled, completely overlooked, or saved for later. When Infinity War released, numerous criticisms followed in terms of how the characters were used. It was said that Captain America (Chris Evans) was limited to a supporting character with only five minutes of screen time, Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) didn’t make a single appearance, and the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) was wasted in favor of his human counterpart.

Related: Infinity War: Why None Of The Original Avengers Disappeared In Thanos' Snap

There were also issues with the handling of the Guardians of the Galaxy, even though James Gunn had been involved in the writing of the script to ensure that the characters were done justice. Not all were pleased with Star-Lord’s mistake that cost them their victory against Thanos in the Battle of Titan, but what is perhaps a much more substantial problem is how his romantic subplot with Gamora was handled. It wasn't a major factor in the film, but how it was done had an unfortunate, negative effect on Gamora’s character that Marvel may not be able to fix in a future MCU installment. Here’s what went wrong with Star-Lord and Gamora in Avengers: Infinity War.

Star-Lord & Gamora Relationship in Guardians of the Galaxy 1 & 2

A cold-blooded assassin and a childish rogue were certainly an unlikely pair in Guardians of the Galaxy, and that’s part of what made them so interesting. The adopted daughter of Thanos, Gamora’s upbringing presented obvious obstacles to the two of them getting together, as Gamora's character arc is more about dealing with her troubled relationship with her sister and obvious issues with having a genocidal maniac as a father figure. Though Thanos secretly loved Gamora as a daughter, the childhood he provided her was far from pleasant, as he trained her into a hardened killer, but Gamora maintained a conscience, which is why she broke away from him. In Guardians of the Galaxy, the womanizing Star-Lord is instantly attracted to Gamora, and he tries to seduce her early on - though his charms predictably failed to work on her. But before the movie’s end, Star-Lord’s humanity was able to create some cracks in Gamora’s icy shell. This was shown in scenes such as the one where Star-Lord connected with Gamora through his mother’s 70s music.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 continues their love story, but doesn't ultimately make them a couple, despite the fact that the movie establishes a romantic connection between the two. What held them back was constant bickering, Star-Lord’s childishness, and Gamora’s own reluctance to have a romantic relationship. But even though Gamora eventually admitted that they shared “an unspoken thing” and slow danced with Star-Lord, their story ended in a way that made it clear that the obstacles standing in their way aren’t gone yet. They both still have a lot of baggage when it comes to their respective families, and by the film's conclusion, neither is emotionally ready for a romantic relationship.

Infinity War Rushes Star-Lord & Gamora's Romance

Gamora and Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy

Star-Lord and Gamora’s MCU romance culminated in a kiss in Avengers: Infinity War after Gamora made him promise to kill her to keep Thanos from gaining the location of the Soul Stone. The relationship between Star-Lord and Gamora was central to how the conflict with Thanos would unfold, since Star-Lord’s love for Gamora was the main reason why he fumbled their one opportunity to take the Infinity Gauntlet. In order to set-up Star-Lord's passionate assault on Thanos, Avengers: Infinity War included Star-Lord and Gamora's kiss in the film's first act, but this is rushed and unneeded. The love that motivates Star-Lord on Titan doesn't need to be culminated in a kiss, and discerning audiences don't need such an obvious physical manifestation of their relationship in order to justify his actions later in the film.

Related: MCU: How & Why Thanos Looks Different In Each Movie

When explaining why Gamora didn’t kiss Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, James Gunn said that this “is not who Gamora is. She is not someone who is going to just give in to the moment of a lustful, passionate moment” [via ComicBook]. It’s true that this would have seemed contrary to Gamora’s character if it happened in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and the same should apply to Avengers: Infinity War - even if she was concerned that this was her last adventure with Quill. All of the careful character work that Gunn established in his second Guardians film falls by the wayside in a cliched, obvious moment in Infinity War.

Perhaps the biggest problem with this is that an Avengers movie was the wrong place for Marvel to include such a big moment. It could have been properly built up to if it was used in a Guardians of the Galaxy movie, where both Star-Lord and Gamora would be central characters with a significant amount of screen time devoted to each of them. That way, the kiss could have felt more real and organic and much less disjointed.

Is This Problem Fixable?

Star-Lord in the opening scene of Guardians of the Galaxy

The number of characters in Avengers: Infinity War created quite a few problems, but in most cases, they weren’t issues that couldn’t be solved. For example, Marvel fixed its Hawkeye and Captain America problems by giving them both plenty to do in Avengers: Endgame. However, a solution won’t be so easy to find for Star-Lord and Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Their kiss was an ending to their MCU romance, since that version of Gamora was killed by Thanos on Vormir.

Gamora is indeed returning in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, but it’s important to keep in mind that she isn’t the same person who was in love with Star-Lord. That Gamora is dead and won’t be coming back. The new Gamora is a character from the timeline that was created by the Avengers’ decision to meddle with the timestream in Avengers: Endgame. The 2014 Gamora never became a Guardian and doesn’t have a profound or meaningful connection to Star-Lord. So in a sense, Marvel will be starting over with her character when the Guardians go looking for her in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Whatever develops between Star-Lord and this Gamora will be an all-new dynamic, since it won’t be building off feelings that Gamora developed for him in the first movies. What this essentially means that Marvel is unlikely to provide a satisfying conclusion to the original Gamora’s MCU arc because that story has already ended in Avengers: Infinity War.

More: Guardians of the Galaxy 4: Predicting The Next MCU Team (After Vol. 3)

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