'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3' review: A bold, touching farewell to the MCU's most personal series

James Gunn's goodbye to his rag-tag team of misfits is as funny and heartfelt as we've come to expect

The first Guardians of the Galaxy was a risk. Marvel took a bunch of minor comic book heroes and gave them a big-screen outing helmed by a Troma alum best known for two extremely dark comedies. But it paid off brilliantly. The Guardians movies injected a bold, chaotic personality into the MCU that shimmers, even against the rest of its hits.

Through several movies, the Guardians have endured devastating wars and even more devastating parental issues that tugged at audiences' heartstrings, even as they forced entire theatres to double over in laughter.

Volume 3 starts with our titular crew in a rare moment of rest. The Guardians have a new, stable home in Knowhere, and Rocket Raccoon listens to Peter Quill's cassette. But Peter isn't doing too good. Losing the love of his life, Gamora, and watching an alternate-universe version take her place has driven him to drink. But a compassionate Nebula (think of how shocking that would sound in the first movie) is there to care for her newfound family. This relative peace is suddenly broken when the powerful Adam Warlock attacks the group, injuring Rocket.

As he bleeds out, his friends discover that a killswitch is embedded in his body, preventing them from operating. To save their friend, The Guardians must confront the High Evolutionary, whose experiments created Rocket in the first place.

Guardians has always balanced goofy oddball comedy and moments of surprising darkness and sadness. Volume 3 turns it into a complete emotional rollercoaster, delving deep into Rocket's tragic backstory. Murder runs rampant throughout this entry, and the personal stakes have never been higher. Anyone who struggles with watching depictions of animal cruelty is warned.

But, a minor spoiler, it ends as many beloved movies about family do – with a dance-off.

The trilogy of Guardians movies has been a keen source of hope and happiness. No matter how desperate things become, we end these movies with a climax that gives us a warm and fuzzy feeling. The third movie is no different. It just delves further into the dark before it shows you the light. It's well deserving of the high ratings from critics and audiences and a welcome return to form after the recent stumbles of the MCU.

But Volume 3 is also a goodbye.

Writer-director James Gunn, the Troma alum mentioned above, invested these movies with a specific energy that made them stand apart from the many other superhero flicks hitting theatres. But he nearly missed out on completing the trilogy.

Some off-colour social media jokes pushed Disney to fire Gunn from Volume 3 in 2018. DC jumped at the chance, hiring Gunn to handle The Suicide Squad. The 2021 movie and its spin-off Peacemaker were a success and DC has since tapped Gunn to lead a reboot of their superhero franchise and herald in the next adaptations of Superman, Batman, and a range of other heroes. But, before he started on that journey, Disney approved his return for one last ride with Volume 3.

The movie is a fitting farewell. It has the wacky fun, the earnest character drama, the beats of deep melancholy, the stacked soundtrack, and the unique vision that brought them together to make the series special in the first place. It's the right note to end on for Gunn, the Guardians, and everyone else who loved these movies.

This article is part of Stripe, bdnews24.com's special publication focusing on culture and society from a youth perspective.