The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special was first announced nearly two years ago by Kevin Feige. It was there he confirmed James Gunn would be helming it, along with the third entry in the Guardians trilogy. For some fans, the idea of a holiday special might fill them with dread.
The Star Wars Holiday Special isn’t exactly held up with the same reverence as the original trilogy. However, it did give us some great moments like the introduction of Boba Fett.
For those who may have not been fans of that, don’t worry. James Gunn has done something completely different. He’s taken a Christmas story as old as time and put his irreverent spin on it. Expect big laughs as well as heartfelt moments.
It’s a bittersweet watch as we know Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 is coming and with him heading up DC, it’ll probably be the last we see of James Gunn in the MCU.
The holiday special stars Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Chris Pratt, Karen Gillan, Sean Gunn, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Maria Bakalova and Kevin Bacon.
Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special centers around the aftermath of Avengers Endgame and Thor Love and Thunder for our misfit family. Residing on Knowhere, a character who’s soon to be everyone’s favorite live-action talking dog (sorry Scooby-Doo!) joins them. Maria Bakalova provides the voice for Cosmo the Dog. Thankfully, this is only the beginning for her. I’m excited to see more of her as Cosmo in the third movie.
With the main timeline’s Gamora dead and the alternate Gamora missing, Peter Quill’s not in a good place. Finding out it’s nearly Christmas on Earth, Mantis and Drax embark on a journey to get their friend the best present they can think of. That’s right, that present is none other than Kevin Bacon himself.
We’ve seen Peter’s love for the actor over the years and now it’s paying off. Seeing Kevin Bacon play himself against these larger-than-life characters is brilliant. It’s something only James Gunn could do and get away with.
For Fox Marvel fans, it makes it even better knowing Kevin Bacon is Sebastian Shaw from X-Men: First Class.
Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is for the family. There’s so much I want to talk about but they’re spoilers and the best thing to do is to go into this knowing only the footage from the trailers. As it’s a Christmas special, the ‘awesome mix’ this time around is Christmas songs. You will know some of them but there are original songs by The Old 97s.
Make no mistake, this special is about Mantis and Drax the most. Pom Klementieff and Dave Bautista lead the ensemble with a balance of hilarity and heart. I’m glad they’re building off of these two characters after their fun dynamic in Vol 2.
Pom gives a performance that makes me hope we see more and more of her in the MCU over the years. She’s too good to let go. I’d love to see Mantis get her own special and become the Celestial Madonna.
Dave Bautista amps up the comedy with Drax. You can tell he’s having fun while playing the character. Again, he’s balancing the comedic and serious tones well. His Drax easily slips between being funny and beating someone up so well that you don’t question it when it happens.
With the focus on Drax and Mantis, I can only hope Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 continues it.
Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is one of the best things to come out of Marvel this year. Keep an eye out for some fun cameos from others James Gunn has worked with. I challenge anyone to watch this and not come out of it with a smile on their face and a warm heart.
Thank you, James Gunn, the cast, and the rest of the crew for such a beautiful addition to this wonderful universe.
