There are few safer bets in the world than giving James Gunn the majority of creative freedom on a comic book project. From Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy films to Peacemaker to The Suicide Squad to what will no doubt be the phoenix moment of the decade in his upcoming DC Universe reboot, Gunn simply doesn’t miss when it comes to the capes.
What’s even more impressive, perhaps, is that he’s managed to have such a record even when he was under the final word of Marvel, which we’re beginning to suspect owns the rights to the third act of every Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, where the Hollywood suits quickly become the target audience, CGI army fights and all.
But, as the folks on r/marvelstudios were happy to point out, such restrictions were no match for the ever-flexible Guardians of the Galaxy gaffer, who fans believe has already gifted us with the greatest ending of any MCU film out there.
Indeed, it’s no easy task to deny how deftly the ending of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was handled, nor is it any easier to deny its place as the crème de la crème of MCU endings thanks to its heart-shattering wrap-up of an already pristine father-son story. Plenty of responders were all too happy to pay respect to the history of waterworks associated with this particular conclusion.
We’ll keep the details under wraps in case you’re catching up on the previous Guardians films before Vol. 3 releases, but rest assured that you’re in for one of the most emotionally-destructive treats the franchise has to offer; a treat that, Groot willing, just may be surpassed by Gunn’s MCU swansong in the next couple of weeks.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will release to theaters on May 5.