9 questions I have after watching Guardians of the Galaxy 2

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is the biggest movie event of the summer, and the latest entry in the all-powerful Marvel Cinematic Universe. As films go, it’s fairly easy to follow, but as with most Marvel outings it leaves plenty of questions deliberately unanswered. Why? So they can be picked up in the already confirmed third movie, or in forthcoming blockbusters like Avengers: Infinity War. Sometimes, though, this film leaves questions unanswered to let fans discuss their own theories at their own pace. When Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’s end credits rolled, and all five end-credit sequences had played, these were the questions I was left with… 

Needless to say, there are weapons grade spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy 2 ahead.

1. Where is Nebula going next?

Yes, I know she’s off to find Thanos and try to break him into tiny pieces, just like she tells Kraglin half way through the movie. But the where, when, and how remains a complete mystery. We already know Nebula is part of the Infinity War cast (along with other members of the Guardians team), and that Thanos is the big bad in that movie, so her story of revenge will likely play out there. Infinity War takes place four years after Guardians of the Galaxy 2, which gives us a firm timescale for Nebula tracking down her dastardly daddy. Where will it take place? We don’t know for sure, but filming for Avengers is taking place in Scotland - both in Edinburgh, Glasgow, and the Highlands. Rolling hills and deep, cold rivers? Interesting.

2. Why didn’t Rocket and Kraglin just wait in orbit to pick up Quill and Yondu?

This seemed like a bit of a strange move to be honest. Sure, it’s a convenient narrative device: Yondu gets a noble death, his Ravager buddies all forgive him, and we get loads of pretty fireworks at the end of the movie. Surely, though, Rocket would have known where and when Quill and Yondu would have emerged from the planet. Being the ‘best pilot in the galaxy’, I’m pretty sure he could have picked them up before Yondu died too. Yes, yes, Yondu needed to die in order to gain redemption among his fellow Ravagers, and the movie needed a more powerful ending than just ‘Ego blows up’, but I can’t help but think - practically - his death could have been avoided.

3. Who are the other Ravagers in the end credit sequences?

So, Ving Rhames and Michelle Yeoh show up right at the end of the movie, playing two new Ravager captains, who show up for Yondu’s funeral. They’re also in one of the end-credit scenes too, speaking to Sylvester Stallone’s character, Stakar. Rhames and Yeoh play Charlie-27 and Aleta Ogord, respectively, who are characters from the Guardians of the Galaxy comics. Charlie-27 is actually from 1000 years in the future (according to Guardians comic lore), and his childhood on Jupiter’s rings granted him super-human strength.

He has time travelled with Thor and the Silver Surfer, which would explain his presence in the Guardians timeline. He’s very likely to be in Guardians 3, along with Aleta Ogord. Ogord is also from the 30th century Marvel timeline, and is Stakar’s sister, so it makes sense that she’s in for Guardians 3 too. Speaking to 12DOVE, Karen Gillen (Nebula) says “I want them to have their own spin-off, and cause havoc somewhere in the galaxy. Then we all have to go in and take care of it.”

4. What happens to all Ego’s seeds on the other worlds? And that blue goo? Did it all just fade to dust?

Ego is gone. His body crumbled to dust, and his planet is blown into tiny pieces. However, what we don’t know is this… did the same happen to all the seeds he planted on the worlds he wanted to absorb? And what happens to that weird blue mass that started to spread over each world as he drained power from Peter. Has that all disappeared too? What even was it? Some kind of terraforming juice that wiped out life and sucked it into Ego’s central power core? This is by far the haziest part of the whole ‘Ego taking over the galaxy plot’, and the movie could have benefitted from a few more shots of what happens AFTER Ego actually dies. For now, all we have is speculation… perhaps it’ll tie-in to another Marvel movie.

5. Why did Ego have trouble sleeping?

It’s never really explained why Ego has trouble sleeping. While that seems like a minor point, it’s the whole reason he decided to keep Mantis around. So that suggests his sleep trouble is a big deal. It’s likely to be more than a mere conscience for all the children he’s killed - given that Ego is looking to wipe out most of the life in the galaxy, a few sprogs here and there seems like nothing. Perhaps it’s simply that he has too much to control, and his mind needs calming from all the activity. It definitely creates another very convenient plot device late in the movie, where Mantis is able to buy time for the Guardians by sending Ego to sleep while they plant the bomb...

6. If he had to, would Peter Quill still be able to handle an Infinity Stone?

No, probably not. It’s very clear that Quill has lost all his celestial powers by killing his father, so he likely wouldn’t be able to handle an Infinity Stone as he did in the original movie. Shame. The reason that may be important is that the stones play a big part in Infinity War, which takes place years after Guardians 2. Star Lord had better keep his hands off those things, then, unless by some weird quirk of the MCU he’s able to hold them because he has done so previously. But as for his godlike powers? Gone.

7. Will Mantis and Kraglin join the Guardians?

These two are both integral to the way Guardians 2 ends, and very likeable characters. Plus, they’re still alive… Will they become additions to the actual Guardians of the Galaxy team? James Gunn has already said that the team will change after Guardians 3. I’d say Mantis is the strongest candidate - being an empath she does have otherworldly powers that add an extra dimension to the team, and her relationship with Drax is something we need to see more of. Kraglin less so. While he’s a great character, and we see him practicing with Yondu’s fin at the end of the movie, he doesn’t bring anything special to the mix. Unless he’s a like-for-like replacement for Yondu, hence the fin, in which case… welcome aboard!

8. Where did Yondu get his fin and arrow from? Coz it looks like it can be passed on…

Speaking of which, where did Yondu get that fin / Yaka arrow combo? Unless you’re super into the lore you probably don’t know how it works. According to the comics, Yondu is a Centaurian - a species able to control special Yaka arrows via whistling. In the movies, the fin itself is a way of producing the whistling noises (he may not be able to do it naturally) he needs to control the arrow - so there’s the slight change to his character. Aside from giving Yondu a cool new haircut in Guardians 2, it’s also a way to pass that role on to Kraglin, who can use the tech to control the arrow.

9. So… who is the better pilot? Rocket or Quill?

It’s not for us to say, but here is what the actual Guardians of the Galaxy said when we interviewed them…

Karen Gillen (Nebula): "Rocket. No, now I’m second-guessing myself… It’s Star Lord!"

Michael Rooker (Yondu): "Rocket. Actually, Yondu is better than both of them."

Pom Klementieff (Mantis): "Quill."

Zoe Saldana (Gamora): "I think it’s Quill. Rocket should stick to making bombs and other stuff like that. Quill is such a good pilot."