This theory about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 contains spoilers (obviously). But it will still be here when you’re done watching the movie, hopefully. This theory is available as a video (above) or as a transcription (below).
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was, in my opinion, a fantastic follow-up to one of Marvel’s best movies and much better than the usual MCU sequel. But there is one aspect of the movie that has been driving me and plenty of other fans crazy with confusion, and that has to do with Ego the Living Planet, portrayed in his human form by Kurt Russell.
As you may recall, we find out in the movie that Ego is Peter Quill’s biological father, and the two share genetics that allow them to channel a powerful godlike energy. At first, Peter is thrilled about the truth of his parentage, being promised to help Ego carve out a new world of their making. But he’s instantly broken from Ego’s spell when told the full, sinister story.
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword reimagines the Arthurian legend himself as a UFC fighter trapped in a God of War video game trying to be an episode of Game of Thrones. If that doesn’t sound at all appealing to you, then perhaps the studio can re-cut this mess for you again.
Every generation gets its own rendition of the King Arthur myth, and they’re almost always perfectly reminiscent of the times they’re brought in. If Antoine Fuqua’s King Arthur was meant to capture the “gritty realism” phenomenon playing out in 2004, then Guy Ritchie’s Legend of the Sword is the inevitable backlash.
Set in an alternate mythic version of England where calendars and historical context hold no meaning, Legend of the Sword once again tells a version of the story about a born king named Arthur (played by Charlie Hunnam) who pulls the titular sword out of the stone. But rather than unite England as its new king, he has to do battle with the current king instead (his Shakespearean uncle, played by Jude Law) in an already united England. Aptly timed with 2017 England’s own political events featuring a “resistance,” Arthur forms a budding group of rebels who hatch schemes against their mage tyrant.
Considering the wealth of lore, subtext, and fantasy surrounding the multiple iterations of the King Arthur story, this new film is somehow one of the most simplistic in its myth. Arthur has daddy issues, he’s plagued by terrible memories, and he has to somehow defeat his evil uncle who wants to take over the world. His only moments of endearment come in small bursts of camaraderie found in a consistently entertaining cast of side characters. Djimon Hounsou, Aidan Gillen, and Tom Wu are clear highlights, though the rebels’ resident and nameless mage played by Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey is severely underwritten.
Not to say anyone in this film has anything close to a coherent character arc, unless it’s a vapid one in perfect servitude to the life and times of Arthur and his cut-scene sword. In order to enjoy Legend of the Sword, the audience has to be fully onboard with Ritchie’s vague, dreamlike blockbuster version of a narrative that repeats cutaway exposition editing that was unique several decades ago about three more times than what would have been effective.
Ritchie does play around with some welcome shortcuts in place of the typical montage—Arthur’s early life as a boy turned brothel manager is particularly engaging—but virtually nothing else in this movie contains anything new or interesting to say, reeking of studio interference that creeps into the script until the third act comes charging along to undo all of the goodwill mustered by the first half.
That’s why there’s probably a cult classic hiding somewhere on the cutting room floor of Legend of the Sword that plays closer to whatever Ritchie must have truly had in mind. This is a final production that has clearly been tampered with, both in its editing and script. Or Ritchie simply needs to go back to smaller projects where he can do more with less.
Grade: C+
Extra credits:
This is the first in a planned set of six movies. But it’s projected to bomb at the box office, so don’t expect to see Merlin or Lancelot marching into the Ritchieverse anytime soon.
Somehow, Merlin is the best Arthurian piece of entertainment in the last ten years.
Ripped off all of the wrong parts of Lord of the Rings, though to be fair, Legend of the Sword works well as a ballad, rather than a straightforward narrative. There’s even a moment in the movie where I thought a movie trailer had suddenly been spliced in.
Charlie Hunnam and Aidan Gillen get a few funny moments in what is their first work together since Queer as Folk.
At least it’s better than Legend of Tarzan.
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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 picks up right where its predecessor left off both story-wise and in regard to its timeline. Just a few months or so after the a-holes saved the galaxy and became a family, Peter Quill, Drax, Gamora, Rocket, and Groot embark on a new adventure that does something most sequels don’t really do. Rather than go bigger and double down on beloved set pieces of the first film, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 goes smaller and more introspective.
Comparisons will undoubtedly be made to the first two Star Wars movies. The first Guardians was a rollicking space adventure that lampooned the hero’s journey (specifically the “chosen one” trope) and won a lot of hearts through surprise in its ensemble storytelling. It was A New Hope, but for a new generation. In the same way, director and writer James Gunn clearly crafted this follow-up to be Empire Strikes Back, but not really in terms of being “the dark one” where everything goes wrong so the third movie can wrap things up. No, Vol. 2 is very much a standalone sequel, as Dave Schilling poignantly put it in his review.
The story this time around follows the Guardians of the Galaxy taking on a big mercenary job for a group of gold-skinned “conceited douchebags,” capitalizing on their newfound fame as “one-time galaxy savers.” Thanks to some mischief from Rocket, however, the team is chased through a dangerous asteroid field (one of many clear homages to Empire that’s played for laughs) and forced to crash on a nearby planet.
The team splits up at that point (Empire, again) and gets hounded by some old favorites from the previous movie. Yondu and his Ravagers are after the Guardians again and Nebula has Gamora-sized tunnel vision, looking to settle their sibling rivalry over one last fight to the death. There are some other big developments, including Peter’s own struggle with some planet-sized daddy issues that were hinted at during the end of the first film, and there’s a subtler twist going on with Drax, who has become the de-facto heart of the crew in surprising ways, pairing up with newcomer “empath” Mantis for some of the film’s best moments.
In some ways, Vol. 2 is as much a paradox of space opera as it is a parody of it. The heroes of the film go to far fewer locations, the main threat of the film is more ambiguous this time around, and even the mixtape has been altered as a plot device. In the first Guardians, “Awesome Mix” was a clever musical tool used to illustrate moments when the team would gel together and prepare for their best moments. It was loud, fun, lively, and reflective of the movie’s tone. The music in this film truly acts as a “B-side” with some tracks that are less familiar, but also deeper. Gunn has crafted a personal story that departs from a lot of what fans loved about the first film by giving them something they might not have known they wanted.
For some, that will amount to major criticism over Vol. 2 being a massive departure from much of what worked in the first film. Yes, the humor is still there in force, but in almost every other respect, Vol. 2 tries hard to make you feel something new about these characters, the universe they inhabit, and what you’re generally looking at. I’m not sure space have ever looked so beautiful the way Gunn and his team see it, rivaling Doctor Strange for sheer insanity in its colorful vignettes of time and space. The paradox, though, is in how these characters are ultimately simpler than the intricate comic-lore heavy environment they inhabit, just as this story tends to be at times, for the better.
That’s probably Vol. 2‘s greatest asset. It exists solely to exist on its own terms, not as a crowd-pleaser or recapturing of previous success. Despite releasing in May, it still aims to be an “August movie.” It does what most sequels should aspire to accomplish in the same situation, especially when following one of Marvel’s best films, period. Vol. 2 is technically a better film and a must-watch for Marvel fans, but more importantly, it’s a great example of how successful a film can be when put in the loving hands of a trusted visionary who doesn’t really care what detractors may think.
Grade: B+
Extra Credits:
There are something like five “extra” scenes during the credits and then one at the very end. Some are pure fun while others are fantastic hints at big Marvel movies to come. The credits themselves are also good fun.
I didn’t speak much on Baby Groot, but that’s really just because he’s fittingly used as pure comic relief. It makes sense considering Baby Groot actually has the mind of a toddler, and any story arc they might have tried to force on the character would have felt forced and wasteful.
I also didn’t get into any of the film’s major flaws, and that’s honestly because they’re mostly nitpicks. The second act, for example, drags a bit and some of the twists are entirely too predictable. But it all still works enough to recommend.
I didn’t get a chance to list any of the cast above, so here they are: Chris Pratt as Peter Quill, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, Vin Diesel as Baby Groot, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Michael Rooker as Yondu Udonta, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Kurt Russell as Ego, Elizabeth Debicki as Ayesha, Chris Sullivan as Taserface, Sean Gunn as Kraglin, and Sylvester Stallone as Stakar Ogord.
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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is about to hit wide release, and the critics are already sharing their take on the Marvel sequel. To keep you unspoiled, I compiled some of the best reviews of the film and shared the numbers, especially against how they stack up against the first Guardians and other big Marvel films.
It was a great discussion featuring some interesting speculation about the future of the franchise, and we ended things by digging into a “Did you know that?” about the first Guardians of the Galaxy. For example, did you know that Guardians is the second highest-rated film in the MCU?
This week’s giveaway was a Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 shirt with the Awesome Mix as a graphic. We already have a winner, so be sure to tune in live with us every Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. (Pacific) for a chance to win. Simply like Super News on Facebook to stay connected with us for new episodes.
We give away Pixar-related goodies like shirts, books, blu-rays, and tons more. And we’re always open to new suggestions for prizes you all might be interested in! Plus, Super News has tons of other shows and live-streams for Disney, gaming, and a ton more. See you all next week!
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Comparisons between Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story have always been an inevitable result of these two movies releasing just 12 months apart. And though they’re two very different films (one is a franchise opener and the other a prequel standalone), TFA and RO are both representative of the future that is Star Wars, one of the most beloved mythologies in modern history.
Walking out of TFA, I felt a strange urge to lay some cynicism on the engaging and thrilling spectacle I had just witnessed (and I did ultimately grade it positive). And my criticism of the new trilogy’s opening chapter has been admittedly inconsistent, where at one point I heavily lamented the incomplete character design of Rey, and more recently, I praised the interesting set ups for her legacy. Let it not be said that Rey is a “simple” hero.
By comparison, my problems with RO were far more pronounced and have not budged in the slightest. Despite some great production design and third act action scenes that are anthology peaks, we were given blank slated characters I’ve all but forgotten about in just a few short months, and I’m certainly not alone.
The video above by Lessons from the Screenplay expertly lays out how my issues with both Star Wars films resulted from poor decisions via the writing. Jyn Erso is a passive character whose narrative is beholden to contrived circumstances and loose relationships with superficially interesting characters given little to do. Put simply, it’s a mess of a screenplay. And Michael Tucker manages to make better sense out of why TFA did a superior job making its characters so instantly intriguing and why it’s the better film overall, nostalgic remixing aside.
That said, I’m well aware of the many Star Wars fans who prefer RO in all of its perplexity and dark subject matter. It takes bold risks that provide a useful precedent for Star Wars films that can expand the lore in meaningful ways, not just for the sake of box office. But what makes RO unique can also be perceived as a limiting drawback, moving on from the childish wonder of this mythology (for better or worse) so that it can properly make a movie for adults. In my opinion, it overcorrected in some ways and somehow regressed in others, probably through its late reshoots.
Yes, I believe TFA is better than RO, and I’d even propose that history will remember it as the better film, as well. But I don’t believe this is what truly matters for fans of Star Wars. The takeaway is that diverse Star Wars films are being developed for differing tastes. While RO was not a film I particularly enjoyed, it is one that satisfied a group of fans yearning for something different and unusual. I don’t believe they were given the best product possible in that regard, but to be perfectly honest, neither was I with TFA.
Which is Better? Story and Plot
Star Wars: The Force Awakens is the clear winner. As supported by Michael Tucker’s visual analysis, TFA has a better structure with far fewer throwaway scenes that don’t advance the plot. Rogue One deserves some credit for its effort to be standalone and for its audacious risks, but it falters far too much when it comes to the narrative of Jyn Erso.
Action
Rogue One wins by a slim margin, here, only because it goes all the way with its willingness to depict new and exciting set pieces (Darth Vader’s infamous hallway scene and the Star Destroyer crash, for example). The Force Awakens also has incredible action sequences, of course, and the final lightsaber fight might have cinched this category if not for the simultaneously forgettable Rogue Squadron battle on Starkiller Base. If Rogue One had missed a step with its space battles, then Poe Dameron would have won this just on his one-shot alone.
Characters
The Force Awakens takes this category by a landslide, despite some interesting ideas set forth through characters like K-2SO and Chirrut. Despite seeing Rogue One more recently, I had to search engine those names, which probably speaks volumes.
Villains
The Force Awakens also wins this one for a few significant reasons. Yes, Darth Vader gets one great 30 second scene, but it’s countered by a frankly awful scene between him and another character (complete with a Force dad joke), as well as some shoddy CGI for Tarkin and a wildly complacent Krennic who gets almost zero payoff. Kylo Ren is ultimately the fresher and more compelling villain, balanced well with Snoke and Hux for good measure.
Score
This one’s a tie. The Force Awakens is mostly ho-hum save for Rey’s Theme and the Jedi Steps, but it’s about the same for Rogue One. Neither soundtrack truly stands out with their own Imperial March or Duel of the Fates.
Design (Cinematography, Special Effects, Production Design)
Another tie. Both movies had huge tasks ahead of them. Rogue One had to recapture an established aesthetic with the same amount of detail, while also dabbling in its own inventive ideas. It succeeded on all counts. The Force Awakens, by comparison, contributed a fresher take that reasonably jumped forward in time while also setting the standard for practical effects in a new era of Star Wars films. Neither film quite cracked the uncanny valley (Maz, Tarkin, Rathtars, Leia, etc.), but they made comparable strides.
Conclusion
The only category where Rogue One truly shines is in its action, and even then, it’s by a slim margin. Everything else it accomplishes is either in step with The Force Awakens or a bit worse, especially when it comes to its writing. This is why I firmly believe the subject matter is what truly counts for fans who differ on which film is “better.” For fans of darker material, it’s no contest, while others who prefer the campy mythology and operatic lightsaber battles will undoubtedly point to TFA as the better film.
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In The Circle, our world of disruptive technology from social media to search engines has been conveniently consolidated into one uber-corporation called, you guessed it, The Circle, a simple name for what is strangely a shallow, unimaginative invention representative of what our near-future might be ruled by. Sharing through technology. Although…isn’t that already a reality?
Rather than take us through the implications of our world’s current affair with technology, the fictitious Circle and its inner leaders want to remove all privacy from the world in an effort to create true transparency. If you’re wondering “why” they want to do that, well, this movie clearly wasn’t made for your curious mind. “Sharing is caring” the employees echo to their leader, Eamonn Bailey (Tom Hanks), who advocates a master plan that has all of the absurdity of a 70s paranoia thriller without any of the logic or intelligence.
I had to go it alone on this week’s live episode of The Pixar Detectives, and it was a strange episode even by normal standards. Of course, I went through the entirety of the Cars 3 trailer to note the details and story developments we’re starting to see. But I also spent quite a bit of time lamenting what appears to be a very “safe” Pixar film without much of a compelling story, based on what we’ve seen so far.
The show kicked off with some interesting Pixar Theory material, specifically regarding an internal employee theory at Pixar about where the cars in Cars actually come from, and guess what? They’re not a bunch of insects.
This week’s giveaway is an Incredibles t-shirt I’ve worn a few times on the show. We already have a winner, so be sure to tune in live with us every Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. (Pacific) for a chance to win. Simply like Super News on Facebook to stay connected with us for new episodes.
We give away Pixar-related goodies like shirts, books, blu-rays, and tons more. And we’re always open to new suggestions for prizes you all might be interested in! Plus, Super News has tons of other shows and live-streams for Disney, gaming, and a ton more. See you all next week!
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