James Gunn and the Guardians Of The Galaxy: they just fit together like bad luck. However, the collaboration between director and screenwriter and the chaotic group ended with ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy Volume 3’, as Gunn moved to DC and most of the Guardians cast has already clearly said goodbye to the MCU. It will also be difficult for many Marvel fans to get involved in new adventures of these or other Guardians after Gunn’s departure.
A statement from James Gunn shows how closely connected the director and his characters are: in a detailed article in the American industry magazine Gunn is said to be “excited but also protective” about the idea of handing off the “Guardians Of The Galaxy” series to another director or screenwriter. How difficult it can be for a successor is evident from “Avengers 3: Infinity War“, where the Guardians appeared for the first time not led by Gunn.
Gunn felt that some of the Guardians’ actions did not fit into the storylines and developments he had created. : “They did some things that I wouldn’t have wanted,” Gunn said. And there are also two examples: Star-Lord, under James Gunn’s watch, could very well have shot Gamora if she asked him to. And Star-Lord wouldn’t have defeated Thanos when the Avengers simply overwhelmed him and doomed the universe.
Justified criticism of “Avengers 3”?
The latter decision in particular was repeatedly criticized by fans when ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ hit theaters in 2018. And surely, The fact that Star-Lord cannot control his emotions long enough for Spider-Man to remove the Infinity Gauntlet from Thanos’ hand may seem quite illogical. However, the leader of the Guardians has just learned that Thanos has killed his beloved Gamora.
And that brings us directly to the second scene criticized by Gunn – because the director of “GotG” is confusing the facts a bit here. Or at least that’s what it sounds like mentioned in the article:
Because Star-Lord tries to shoot Gamora in Avengers 3, after some understandable hesitation. However, soap bubbles only come out of his gun because Thanos already has the Reality Stone in his gauntlet and can use it to influence his environment as he sees fit. And as “Avengers 3” screenwriter Stephen McFeely revealed in 2018, this scene was changed at the request of James Gunn and Chris Pratt:
Gunn probably means this part of the statement as a contrast to the oft-criticized Thanos boxing scene (i.e., “I would have done the Gamora scene the same way, not the Thanos scene”). Or would he have wished that Star-Lord would immediately remember the promise he made in an earlier scene and be less hesitant to shoot Gamora in the face of the threat of Thanos and the Infinity Stones? Unfortunately, this is not apparent from the article.