Six years have passed since the Guardians of the Galaxy, under the watchful eye of director James Gunn, graced the silver screen in 2017’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Since then, we’ve seen a lot of the Guardians, but most of it was in Avengers movies — plus a Thor movie, and Gunn’s Holiday Special for Disney+.
Which is a long way of saying, if you want to go see Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 this week (and you should, we think it’s awesome), there are a lot of things you may have forgotten or missed. Never fear. We’ve seen the film and have for you this list of 11 things you should remember when you sit down in theatres this weekend.
Or, if you actually do want to do a full rewatch, here are the essentials, all available on Disney+.
- Guardians of the Galaxy
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
- Avengers: Infinity War
- Avengers: Endgame
- Thor: Love and Thunder
- The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special
No More Thor
Many moviegoers’ last glimpse of the Guardians of the Galaxy on the big screen came at the end of Avengers: Endgame. They were heading back into space and Thor was along for the ride. While that might seem like a story to be wrapped up in Vol. 3, it has actually already been handled.
The actual last time the Guardians appeared on the big screen was last year’s Thor: Love and Thunder, which concluded the shared storyline. You don’t need to see or know anything about what happened in Love and Thunder to keep up with Vol. 3 — but just know, Thor and the Guardians are no longer hanging out. He’s not in this one.
The Whole Gamora Thing
When Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 ended, Peter Quill and Gamora were an item. That continued into Avengers: Infinity War, where the team split up to try and stop Thanos from getting the Infinity Stones. However, to get the Soul Stone, Thanos was forced to sacrifice his daughter, Gamora, which Peter was obviously very, very upset about. So upset, in fact, he basically was responsible for half the galaxy being killed because he let his anger about Gamora’s death mess up the plan he and the Guardians had with Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Doctor Strange.
Nevertheless, Gamora was dead. Peter was sad. And then, due to the time travel in Avengers: Endgame, Gamora from a time BEFORE she met Peter Quill arrived. She jumped over that section of her life and ended up in the present. Peter sees this Gamora as the one who loved him — but she actually hasn’t even met him, much less had the chance to fall in love with him.
It’s that version of Gamora who helped defeat Thanos and then disappeared at the end of Avengers: Endgame. And it’s that Gamora, one that now only briefly knows Peter and the Guardians, who appears in Vol. 3.
Peter Is Heartbroken
Jumping off the last slide, Peter is obviously confused and hurt about all the Gamora stuff. He was in love, he lost that love, that love came back, but was not the same person. And, we know from the end of Avengers: Endgame, finding this Gamora was at the top of his mind. In fact, he was specifically looking for her at the end of the film before Thor interrupted. See above.
So though lots has happened between Gamora’s return in Endgame and her reemergence in Vol. 3, Peter is still heartbroken and confused about it all.
A New Home
As crucial (and admittedly a bit confusing) as the Peter and Gamora stuff is, there are a few other things that will be a little more jarring going into Vol. 3 if you aren’t caught up. Mainly, things that happened in The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.
For example, in that special (which if you haven’t seen it, we’d highly recommend watching it on Disney+) we learn that the Guardians have purchased Knowhere, the disembodied head of a Celestial where the Collector was living in the previous Guardians films. They’re now the caretakers and this is their headquarters. Pun intended.
New Members
The Holiday Special also introduced two new members to the Guardians, both of whom appear in the previous films. One is Kraglin, played by Sean Gunn. The former Ravager and Yondu disciple is attempting to be the force his former master was — but he’s doing it with the Guardians, not the Ravagers.
The second is Cosmo, the dog Russia shot into space decades ago, who is now very intelligent and, you’ll see in Vol. 3, pretty powerful too. Cosmo is voiced by Maria Bakalova.
The Sovereign
Remember the Sovereign? They’re the gold people the Guardians of the Galaxy were working for at the beginning of Vol. 2. The Guardians (but mostly Rocket) then insult the Sovereign, who later come after them, led by their leader Ayesha, played by Elizabeth Debicki.
The Sovereign are a carefully created, genetically controlled race of super people. They’re made in pods. And all of that is important to remember in Vol. 3. Who created them? Why? We’ll find out.
That Cocoon
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 had multiple end-credit scenes, but one is of the utmost importance going into Vol. 3. It’s that the Sovereign leader, Ayesha, is working on the next step in her people’s evolution. Someone called Adam who will be stronger and more beautiful than all the other Sovereign. Someone whose sole purpose will be the destruction of the Guardians. Well, that character, Adam Warlock (played by Will Poulter), plays a big role in Vol. 3.
Abilisks
We won’t say why specifically but it would be good to remember Abilisks, the massive, terrifying creatures the Guardians were hired to defeat by the Sovereign in the opening scene of Vol. 2. The Abilisks were eating very powerful batteries which the Sovereign wanted stopped. And though it wasn’t easy, the Guardians did eventually defeat one. So just keep that all in mind.
More Ravagers
Though Yondu died in Vol. 2, and Kraglin is now with the Guardians, that doesn’t mean the Ravagers themselves have stopped. In fact, it would be good to remember that Stakar, played by Sylvester Stallone, is a prominent Ravager leader.
Ravagers are the space pirates that abducted a young Peter Quill on behalf of Ego, but then decided to raise him as one of their own. They’re ruthless and driven by money.
Drax’s family
It hasn’t come up in a while but, without spoiling anything, it’s good to remember that Drax lost his family many years ago. His wife, Ovette, and his daughter Kamaria were killed on their home planet of Kylos by Ronan the Accuser, who was working for Thanos. Later, Drax’s rage over losing his family is what drove him to become “Drax the Destroyer.” And though he’s since gotten revenge on both Ronan (directly) and Thanos (indirectly), he still carries that pain with him.
Peter’s Departure
Again, we won’t spoil anything specifically, but the first few minutes of the first Guardians of the Galaxy film are worth a refresher. The year is 1988 and a young Peter Quill is in the hospital with his mum (Laura Haddock) and grandfather (Gregg Henry). Mum is very sick and says that Grandpa will take care of Peter until his Dad comes back. Then, she dies. Peter runs away crying but is then abducted by the Ravagers, leaving Earth and his family behind.
Rocket’s Past
Up until now, we don’t know how Rocket became Rocket. How does this walking, talking, incredibly smart and strong raccoon even exist? He himself knows, and the Guardians have seen that he’s somehow enhanced, but anytime anyone brings it up, he doesn’t want to talk about it. And that compartmentalisation is crucial to Vol. 3.
More Mantis
Though Mantis’ character was expanded significantly in Vol. 2 and the Avengers movies, she really got her time to shine in the Holiday Special. She formed a very strong bond with Drax (who she travelled to Earth with to kidnap Kevin Bacon), and revealed to Peter that because his father, Ego, created her, they’re technically siblings. That all plays a part in Vol. 3.