Over the past two decades, the landscape of cinema has forever been changed by the monumental introduction of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. From hopeful beginnings with "Iron Man" hitting the screen back in 2007, the MCU has become an institution all of its own and even dived into TV streaming with numerous spin-off-shows such as "Loki" and "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier," which have been received to great acclaim.
This season, everyone’s favorite goofball heroes are coming to the small screen with their signature brand of off-beat comedy for The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.
The Guardians So Far
It was in 2014 that the world was first introduced to Peter Quill, the brash space adventurer also known as Star Lord. When Quill steals a mysterious orb, he arouses the interest the of super villain Ronan, whose ideology threatens the entire universe. Realizing he has landed in hot water, Quill must form a shaky alliance with a mismatched crew including a talking raccoon and a sentient tree in order to have a hope in hell of dodging the threat.
In the second installment, now that the crew have defeated Ronan, Quill must go on a much deeper journey to find out who he really is and where he comes from. A botched mission sees the Guardians saved by the Celestial being Ego, who reveals himself as Quinn’s father. Finally, he has the person who’s been missing all his life. However, things aren’t as they seem, and Star Lord discovers Ego is trying to execute a malicious plan and actually caused the brain tumor that killed Quill’s mother. Faced with the unpleasant truth, he must band together with his friends to face his biggest challenge yet.
Watch The Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special On Disney+
What Makes The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, Special
In the "Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special," Drax and Mantis find out how Christmas had been ruined for Quill as a child and decide to find a way to help him fall in love with the holiday again with a special present. After running through some ideas, they come up with the perfect gift, Quill’s childhood hero, actor Kevin Bacon.
The special then follows Mantis and Drax as they navigate their way through Hollywood to find and clumsily kidnap the iconic actor for their dear friend. The special is both written and directed by Guardians head creative, James Gunn, continuing with his unique comic take on the superhero genre.
How The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special Fits Into Canon
Contrary to initial assumptions, long-term director James Gunn took to Twitter ahead of releasing the special to announce that "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" will fit into the cannon. The special will take place between the Guardians' appearance in "Thor: Love and Thunder" and "Guardians Vol. 3," adding to the Guardians' universe with some surprising revelations in store.
"The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" will be the first, specific Christmas special released by Marvel Studios as they trial this new content idea. This follows on from their debut, one-off Halloween special "Werewolf by Night" that premiered earlier this year, which introduced us to a new character, Jack Russel, rather than continuing on from a film franchise. This may well signal a whole new way of working for those at Marvel depending on the success of these specials and once again innovate the landscape of television.
Where to watch The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special
With a run time of 44 minutes and starring all your favorite MCU stars such as Chris Pratt and the voice talents of Bradley Cooper, "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" has a 12-plus rating is available to stream on Disney Plus.
