Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’s ending provides a clever solution for a potential problem involving the cosmic team’s role in Avengers: Secret Wars. After Avengers: Endgame left the bar extremely high, the MCU has been left with the responsibility of matching the epic scale of the Infinity Saga’s conclusion with Avengers: Secret Wars, which not only could gather together all past and present heroes but also their multiversal variants. However, some obstacles could arise before that happens.
The original Guardians of the Galaxy go on a final adventure together during the beginning of the MCU’s Phase 5, which barely reaches the Multiverse Saga’s midpoint. With a new Avengers team yet to take shape and the Council of Kangs’ threat looming on the horizon, the Guardians’ definitive farewell could have seemed premature, as their absence would have been deeply felt in Avengers: Secret Wars. Fortunately, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’s post-credits scene confirms that the end of the trilogy won’t take the Guardians completely out of the picture yet.
Avengers: Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars Need The Guardians of the Galaxy
Back in Phase 2, the Guardians of the Galaxy may have seemed like an odd addition to the MCU given their lack of popularity in comparison to the Avengers. But once established, it became quite clear that the Guardians were just as important as Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, as they had personal connections to Thanos and plenty of motivations to save the universe. While their link to Kang the Conqueror isn’t as strong, the Guardians of the Galaxy are still a key part of the MCU after Thanos’ defeat, and not featuring them in the Avengers’ final battle against Kang would be a disservice to the team.
GOTG 3 Proves The Original Guardians Don’t Need To Die Or Return
James Gunn has made it clear that his vision for the Guardians of the Galaxy has always taken the shape of a trilogy, which means that Guardians of the Galaxy 4 is highly unlikely. However, that doesn’t mean that the Guardians of the Galaxy will stop playing a major role in the MCU after Phase 5. Just like Tony Stark kept his role as one of the Infinity Saga’s protagonists long after Iron Man 3, the Guardians of the Galaxy can continue to evolve and influence the franchise in other movies and shows.
Cosmic MCU titles are always great opportunities to feature Rocket Raccoon’s new Guardians of the Galaxy team, but Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars can be the main movies that serve as a direct continuation to their MCU debut in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’s first post-credit scene. After all, Avengers: Infinity War already had a similar impact on the original Guardians, as they shared the spotlight with the Avengers and experienced key events like Gamora’s death and Star-Lord’s ill-advised retaliation. Likewise, characters such as Adam Warlock, Phyla, and Cosmo can perfectly develop their full-fledged character arcs throughout the next Avengers movies.