The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special
Year: 2022
Director: James Gunn
Starring: Kevin Bacon, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff & Chris Pratt
Runtime: 42 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 07/12/22
Director: James Gunn
Starring: Kevin Bacon, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff & Chris Pratt
Runtime: 42 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 07/12/22
The Guardians of the Galaxy films have been among the most creatively fun films in the entire MCU, with an eclectic cast of characters, colourful and intricate worlds, and two awesome soundtracks. So, when it was announced that James Gunn would be returning to direct Guardians of the Galaxy 3 as well as a Guardians Christmas Special, Marvel fans everywhere rejoiced. The first of the two offerings has arrived, direct to Disney+, a forty-five minute ‘Holiday Special’ that promises to put everyone of any species in the holiday spirit.
As Earth nears the Christmas period, the Guardians can’t help but notice that one of their ranks is looking glum. Peter/Starlord (Chris Pratt) is the only human for lightyears, and it seems like Christmas will be a lonely time of year for him. Eager to help their friend, Drax (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) hatch an ingenious plan to give him a gift he’s sure to love and spread Christmas cheer throughout the galaxy.
As Earth nears the Christmas period, the Guardians can’t help but notice that one of their ranks is looking glum. Peter/Starlord (Chris Pratt) is the only human for lightyears, and it seems like Christmas will be a lonely time of year for him. Eager to help their friend, Drax (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) hatch an ingenious plan to give him a gift he’s sure to love and spread Christmas cheer throughout the galaxy.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special can be summed up very easily, an easy way to waste forty-five minutes. It’s the perfect kind of viewing for those lazy days between Christmas and New Year where you sit around on the sofa eating yourself into oblivion and watching endless Christmas specials. But taken as a piece of the larger MCU, it’s very lacking especially when compared to the first two Guardians films.
The story concerns itself with Drax and Mantis trying to kidnap actor Kevin Bacon (playing himself) to present to Peter as a gift. Really all we get is a couple of slapstick chase sequences and then a harmonious ending where everyone holds hands, puts aside their differences, and celebrates consumerism. I wasn’t expecting anything grandiose, nor something that meaningfully progressed the MCU’s narrative, but I expected something resembling the kind of quality that the Guardians films are known for.
The humour falls flat, the only songs in it are written specifically for the special, and the majority of the Guardians are absent for almost the entire thing.
For what it is, the GotG Holiday Special is acceptable at best. Like I say, when you’re in your Boxing Day food coma and in need of some light and meaningless TV it’ll do fine. But I can’t see this being a Christmas mainstay in anyone’s household, and I feel that it’s little more than an excuse for James Gunn to have gotten everyone in a room and have a Christmas party. They clearly had more fun making it than I did watching it.
The story concerns itself with Drax and Mantis trying to kidnap actor Kevin Bacon (playing himself) to present to Peter as a gift. Really all we get is a couple of slapstick chase sequences and then a harmonious ending where everyone holds hands, puts aside their differences, and celebrates consumerism. I wasn’t expecting anything grandiose, nor something that meaningfully progressed the MCU’s narrative, but I expected something resembling the kind of quality that the Guardians films are known for.
The humour falls flat, the only songs in it are written specifically for the special, and the majority of the Guardians are absent for almost the entire thing.
For what it is, the GotG Holiday Special is acceptable at best. Like I say, when you’re in your Boxing Day food coma and in need of some light and meaningless TV it’ll do fine. But I can’t see this being a Christmas mainstay in anyone’s household, and I feel that it’s little more than an excuse for James Gunn to have gotten everyone in a room and have a Christmas party. They clearly had more fun making it than I did watching it.