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Guardians of the Galaxy (2008) #1-2
Стражи Галактики. Том 1
ГАЛАКТИКА В БЕДЕ – ЕЙ НУЖНЫ ГЕРОИ!
И на этот клич, конечно же, отзовутся... ходячее дерево и енот-милитарист?! Откройте для себя комикс легендарных Дэна Абнетта и Энди Леннинга, вдохновивший фильм «Стражи Галактики»! Звездный Лорд собирает новых Стражей Галактики, самых сильных (и самых странных) защитников космоса, которых когда-либо видела наша вселенная! Реактивный Енот, Дракс Разрушитель, Грут, Гамора, Адам Варлок, Мантис, новый Квазар, космическая собака-телепат Космо – все они готовы не просто до последнего биться за спасение нашей галактики, но еще и делать это на стиле! Сейчас их ждет неожиданное вторжение Стражей Галактики из будущего, коварный удар в спину от скруллов во время Секретного Вторжения, а также столкновение с Вселенской Церковью Истины, бадунами и королем Негативной Зоны Бластааром!
И на этот клич, конечно же, отзовутся... ходячее дерево и енот-милитарист?! Откройте для себя комикс легендарных Дэна Абнетта и Энди Леннинга, вдохновивший фильм «Стражи Галактики»! Звездный Лорд собирает новых Стражей Галактики, самых сильных (и самых странных) защитников космоса, которых когда-либо видела наша вселенная! Реактивный Енот, Дракс Разрушитель, Грут, Гамора, Адам Варлок, Мантис, новый Квазар, космическая собака-телепат Космо – все они готовы не просто до последнего биться за спасение нашей галактики, но еще и делать это на стиле! Сейчас их ждет неожиданное вторжение Стражей Галактики из будущего, коварный удар в спину от скруллов во время Секретного Вторжения, а также столкновение с Вселенской Церковью Истины, бадунами и королем Негативной Зоны Бластааром!
296 pages, Paperback
First published August 5, 2014
68 people are currently reading
523 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 110 reviews
February 7, 2017
Holy Pama! That was an entertained ride!
This TPB edition is the first volume of two, containing the issues from #1 to #12 inclusive, and it's a tie-in edition to the film, since previously this series was published in 4 volumes, instead on only two now.
Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Illustrators: Clint Langley (covers), Paul Pelletier (1-7), Brad Walker (8-10), Wes Craig (11-12) with the assistance of Carlos Magno (9).
THEY ARE... WHO??!
One question, though... who are you again?
Haven't you heard? We're the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Riiiiight.
I have to be bluntly honest... while I was aware that Marvel had certain comic team named "Guardians of the Galaxy", beyond that, I hadn't the slighted idea of what was about, in its now "classic" 70's incarnation or this more modern 2008's version, and if wasn't for the film, I'd never picked this TPB. Not because, I'd think that it was bad, I just didn't feel any need to read it.
The film was blowing awesome, so I thought that it wouldn't hurt to give a chance to the printed material, choosing the one closer to the movie version, at least in its roster and physical appearance.
I wasn't looking for any similarities between the film and comic book.
I just wanted to read something related to this "super-hero" team, and certainly this was a great option!
THE USUAL SUSPECTS
Maybe you still are wondering who the heck are they, so...
Star-Lord
Real name: Peter Jason Quill
Origin: Half Terran, half Spartoi. Male
Powers and skills: None
Role: Team Leader
Rocket Racoon
Origin: Evolved Talking Mammal. Male racoon
Powers and skills: Tactical and demolitions expertise
Gamora
Origin: Zen Whoberian. Female
Powers and skills: Enhanced biology (including healing factor) and advanced combat skills, acomplished assassin... and the most dangerous woman in the universe!
Drax, the Destroyer
Real Name: Arthur Sampson Douglas
Origin: Ex-Human. Male
Powers and skills: Enhanced biology and advanced combat skills, including specialy in the use of knives
Groot
Origin: Flora colossus. Tree
Powers and skills: Regeneration, control over trees, genius-level intelect
Adam Warlock
Origin: Cosmic being. Male
Powers and skills: Enhanced biology and metaphysical energy manipulation
Quasar
Real Name: Phyla-Vell (daughter of Mar-Vell)
Origin: Half Eternal, half Kree. Female
Powers and skills: Possesses the Quantum Bands
Mantis
Origin: Celestial Madonna. Female
Powers and skills: Empath, telepath, pyrokinetic and even she can "see" the future.
Cosmo, the Spacedog
Origin: Uplifted Post-Canine. Male dog
Powers and skills: Telepath and telekinetic.
Role: Head of Security, Knowhere Station
There will be other members joining the team but I'd be doing some kind of spoilers, so I won't mention them here.
CHECKS AND BALANCES
You're suggesting what? A peace-keeping force?...
I'm suggesting an ass-kicking force. Tough, elite, ready to deploy the instant anything flies towards the fan.
The Nova Corps (the space law enforcement force) is no more, and the galaxy had just barely got out from two extremely deadly menaces (Annihilus and The Phalanx), so Peter Quill aka Star-Lord saw the need of forming a proactive, quick response team, able to stop any Annihilation-class threats before even they start. Also, an immediate concern is that space is "fragile" now and there are "erupting" space-time anomalies that they can very well to destroy the entire consistency of space.
The team get quarters in the highly technological advanced, massive space station, named "Knowhere" located inside of the severed head of a dead Celestial. And the station has facilities to teleport people thanks to the use of a gadget known as "passport bracelet", so the team can be anywhere in the galaxy, in an instant.
They have a clear mission, they have the means to do it, they have the powers and skills, however, also, they have a lot of egos, volatile attitudes and they barely knew each other, so the road to be a real team will be long and bumpy.
Oh, and there is the teeny weeny detail that a team named "Guardians of the Galaxy" wasn't supposed to exist... yet.
This first volume of the "reboot", from 2008, of Guardians of the Galaxy is well written, action-packed, cool science-fiction, with great characters' interaction, also unpredictable characters' evolution, and even the artwork is really good.
Maybe my only complain and/or kinda dissapointment was that while they succeded in several "small" missions, they didn't really defeat any major powerhouse villain. Several relevant enemies emerge along the stories in the volume, but none any of them is really defeated. Leaving the real conclusion of all those threats to the second volume, that certainly I will buy (what choice do I have?) but I could appreciate a sense of closure on this volume related to any big menace, even knowing that some arcs and sub-plots would be dealt in the next volume.
This TPB edition is the first volume of two, containing the issues from #1 to #12 inclusive, and it's a tie-in edition to the film, since previously this series was published in 4 volumes, instead on only two now.
Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Illustrators: Clint Langley (covers), Paul Pelletier (1-7), Brad Walker (8-10), Wes Craig (11-12) with the assistance of Carlos Magno (9).
THEY ARE... WHO??!
One question, though... who are you again?
Haven't you heard? We're the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Riiiiight.
I have to be bluntly honest... while I was aware that Marvel had certain comic team named "Guardians of the Galaxy", beyond that, I hadn't the slighted idea of what was about, in its now "classic" 70's incarnation or this more modern 2008's version, and if wasn't for the film, I'd never picked this TPB. Not because, I'd think that it was bad, I just didn't feel any need to read it.
The film was blowing awesome, so I thought that it wouldn't hurt to give a chance to the printed material, choosing the one closer to the movie version, at least in its roster and physical appearance.
I wasn't looking for any similarities between the film and comic book.
I just wanted to read something related to this "super-hero" team, and certainly this was a great option!
THE USUAL SUSPECTS
Maybe you still are wondering who the heck are they, so...
Star-Lord
Real name: Peter Jason Quill
Origin: Half Terran, half Spartoi. Male
Powers and skills: None
Role: Team Leader
Rocket Racoon
Origin: Evolved Talking Mammal. Male racoon
Powers and skills: Tactical and demolitions expertise
Gamora
Origin: Zen Whoberian. Female
Powers and skills: Enhanced biology (including healing factor) and advanced combat skills, acomplished assassin... and the most dangerous woman in the universe!
Drax, the Destroyer
Real Name: Arthur Sampson Douglas
Origin: Ex-Human. Male
Powers and skills: Enhanced biology and advanced combat skills, including specialy in the use of knives
Groot
Origin: Flora colossus. Tree
Powers and skills: Regeneration, control over trees, genius-level intelect
Adam Warlock
Origin: Cosmic being. Male
Powers and skills: Enhanced biology and metaphysical energy manipulation
Quasar
Real Name: Phyla-Vell (daughter of Mar-Vell)
Origin: Half Eternal, half Kree. Female
Powers and skills: Possesses the Quantum Bands
Mantis
Origin: Celestial Madonna. Female
Powers and skills: Empath, telepath, pyrokinetic and even she can "see" the future.
Cosmo, the Spacedog
Origin: Uplifted Post-Canine. Male dog
Powers and skills: Telepath and telekinetic.
Role: Head of Security, Knowhere Station
There will be other members joining the team but I'd be doing some kind of spoilers, so I won't mention them here.
CHECKS AND BALANCES
You're suggesting what? A peace-keeping force?...
I'm suggesting an ass-kicking force. Tough, elite, ready to deploy the instant anything flies towards the fan.
The Nova Corps (the space law enforcement force) is no more, and the galaxy had just barely got out from two extremely deadly menaces (Annihilus and The Phalanx), so Peter Quill aka Star-Lord saw the need of forming a proactive, quick response team, able to stop any Annihilation-class threats before even they start. Also, an immediate concern is that space is "fragile" now and there are "erupting" space-time anomalies that they can very well to destroy the entire consistency of space.
The team get quarters in the highly technological advanced, massive space station, named "Knowhere" located inside of the severed head of a dead Celestial. And the station has facilities to teleport people thanks to the use of a gadget known as "passport bracelet", so the team can be anywhere in the galaxy, in an instant.
They have a clear mission, they have the means to do it, they have the powers and skills, however, also, they have a lot of egos, volatile attitudes and they barely knew each other, so the road to be a real team will be long and bumpy.
Oh, and there is the teeny weeny detail that a team named "Guardians of the Galaxy" wasn't supposed to exist... yet.
This first volume of the "reboot", from 2008, of Guardians of the Galaxy is well written, action-packed, cool science-fiction, with great characters' interaction, also unpredictable characters' evolution, and even the artwork is really good.
Maybe my only complain and/or kinda dissapointment was that while they succeded in several "small" missions, they didn't really defeat any major powerhouse villain. Several relevant enemies emerge along the stories in the volume, but none any of them is really defeated. Leaving the real conclusion of all those threats to the second volume, that certainly I will buy (what choice do I have?) but I could appreciate a sense of closure on this volume related to any big menace, even knowing that some arcs and sub-plots would be dealt in the next volume.
November 19, 2014
Not exactly the easiest place for somebody fresh from the movie to start with Guardians of the Galaxy. There's a lot (a lot) of backstory required to understand who these people are, what they're doing, and what the hell is going on. I'm slightly ahead of the curve: I know who Adam Warlock is, and I know what the Kree and Skrull are. And a few other things. Apparently, this series drew heavily on the Annihilation event that preceded it, and that I haven't read. It would have been better if I had, I think.
At any event, there's plentiful action, and the story is fairly easy to follow, even if many of the details escape me. There's some humor, though not quite as much as I'd expected after the movie. And there's Cosmo the space dog, who is kind of hilarious and kind of awesome. So there's that.
Obviously, this is being reprinted to take advantage of the movie, but I don't know if people who loved the movie are going to find what they're looking for here.
At any event, there's plentiful action, and the story is fairly easy to follow, even if many of the details escape me. There's some humor, though not quite as much as I'd expected after the movie. And there's Cosmo the space dog, who is kind of hilarious and kind of awesome. So there's that.
Obviously, this is being reprinted to take advantage of the movie, but I don't know if people who loved the movie are going to find what they're looking for here.
May 10, 2017
After absolutely loving the 2014 Marvel movie, my interest in the Guardians of the Galaxy-comics was born. There are several comic series out there including this gang of intergalactic superheroes; I decided to go for the one director James Gunn based his scripts/ideas on.
It definitely took me some time to get into this one; it's quite different from any other superhero graphic novels I read (mainly, because I only read superhero comics by DC Comics before (like Suicide Squad, Harley Quinn, The Killing Joke Batman)). But once I did get into it, which probably happend after one or two issues, I absolutely loved it and flew through it. This might be one of my favorite comic collections so far. The illustrations were colorful and awesome, the characters well worked out, the team fantastic and the humor was great.
It definitely took me some time to get into this one; it's quite different from any other superhero graphic novels I read (mainly, because I only read superhero comics by DC Comics before (like Suicide Squad, Harley Quinn, The Killing Joke Batman)). But once I did get into it, which probably happend after one or two issues, I absolutely loved it and flew through it. This might be one of my favorite comic collections so far. The illustrations were colorful and awesome, the characters well worked out, the team fantastic and the humor was great.
March 15, 2015
***Green Theme Buddy Reads Book #2 - Again, Gamora and Drax ARE Green...as is Mantis, and a whole bunch of other alien characters...there's my rationale***
This is not your Chris Pratt Guardians. This is the 2008 version, not the Bendis. I enjoyed it a lot, in the first half, but then, like the characters, it got too cosmic. "I hate that cosmic shit" This version also includes Adam Warlock and Quasar...but not the Wendell Vaughn Quasar I'm familiar with (this one is half-Kree, and possibly daughter of Captain Marvel). Mantis, a green telepath, and Cosmo, the intelligent Rusian cosmonaut Dog from the 60s...yep.
The gang is thrown into missions to save the Galaxy, haphazardly of course. There's humour thank God, and it's one of the strong points. The art is impressive as well, and the vast interesting-ness of the characters. The covers are GORGEOUS. The second half of the book goes off in side missions and not as the whole team...plus we get some time travel, and space time continuum stuff. The seat of your pants leadership style of Peter/Star-Lord is there again, and this team doesn't trust each other as much either. Rocket isn't quite as badass here, but definitely funny and aggressive. Groom kicks much ass. Warlock is a cool addition, though I recall him being a bad guy in other incarnations...?
It's very deep, got some cool stuff there, but perhaps this throws one off the deep end in terms of cosmicness...start with Bendis' more recent reboot from Marvel Now.
This is a fun book, but slows down a bit in the second half and I feel like I am missing a ton of contextual info about everyone...still worth a read, and enjoyable.
This is not your Chris Pratt Guardians. This is the 2008 version, not the Bendis. I enjoyed it a lot, in the first half, but then, like the characters, it got too cosmic. "I hate that cosmic shit" This version also includes Adam Warlock and Quasar...but not the Wendell Vaughn Quasar I'm familiar with (this one is half-Kree, and possibly daughter of Captain Marvel). Mantis, a green telepath, and Cosmo, the intelligent Rusian cosmonaut Dog from the 60s...yep.
The gang is thrown into missions to save the Galaxy, haphazardly of course. There's humour thank God, and it's one of the strong points. The art is impressive as well, and the vast interesting-ness of the characters. The covers are GORGEOUS. The second half of the book goes off in side missions and not as the whole team...plus we get some time travel, and space time continuum stuff. The seat of your pants leadership style of Peter/Star-Lord is there again, and this team doesn't trust each other as much either. Rocket isn't quite as badass here, but definitely funny and aggressive. Groom kicks much ass. Warlock is a cool addition, though I recall him being a bad guy in other incarnations...?
It's very deep, got some cool stuff there, but perhaps this throws one off the deep end in terms of cosmicness...start with Bendis' more recent reboot from Marvel Now.
This is a fun book, but slows down a bit in the second half and I feel like I am missing a ton of contextual info about everyone...still worth a read, and enjoyable.
March 4, 2015
NECESITO MÁS. Es increíble lo mucho que me gusto esta historia. Adoro a los personajes. Los comentarios de Rocket son los mejores. Me dieron muchas ganas de rever la película.
Lo súper recomiendo.
Lo súper recomiendo.
September 8, 2020
Continuing the great Marvel cosmic saga.
So I remember saying how they teased the start of the GOTG that the movie used back in conquest or somewhere. Well here they officially form.....and break up.....and get back together. 😂😂 man this book was a lot of fun. Great artwork thought out, some serious action and I loved the banter between the team. Reading this I see this is where Marvel Studios pulled a lot of stuff from for the movie. I also loved the Cosmo character. Really dug the way DNA wrote him. Even his beef with Rocket. Not only did this book tie into Secret Invasion ( which was done really well ) it also tied into Civil War which I thought was really cool as well. I highly recommend this book.
So I remember saying how they teased the start of the GOTG that the movie used back in conquest or somewhere. Well here they officially form.....and break up.....and get back together. 😂😂 man this book was a lot of fun. Great artwork thought out, some serious action and I loved the banter between the team. Reading this I see this is where Marvel Studios pulled a lot of stuff from for the movie. I also loved the Cosmo character. Really dug the way DNA wrote him. Even his beef with Rocket. Not only did this book tie into Secret Invasion ( which was done really well ) it also tied into Civil War which I thought was really cool as well. I highly recommend this book.
August 14, 2014
The "Complete Collection" contains the first twelve issues of the "restarted" GOTG series, as opposed to the 1990s series. There's some great stuff in here!
However, this is a rough intro for fans of the movie, because you'll have no idea (1) why these people are where they are or (2) who these OTHER people are, like Warlock and Phyla-Vell. Movie fans will unfortunately be better off starting with the Annihilation collections. The Star-Lord mini is almost required reading for this GOTG series.
However, this is a rough intro for fans of the movie, because you'll have no idea (1) why these people are where they are or (2) who these OTHER people are, like Warlock and Phyla-Vell. Movie fans will unfortunately be better off starting with the Annihilation collections. The Star-Lord mini is almost required reading for this GOTG series.
January 30, 2015
Unless like Brian Bendis' current run, stuff is actually happening in this series.
January 18, 2023
Takes a bit to find its footing. The story drags itself through a few major Marvel events before it can say what it seems it wants to.
June 23, 2015
Now this is more like it. I had sworn off the modern Guardians when it was first announced, because I worried it would erase the classic versions of the characters. This does a good job of integrating those old characters, the new ones, and other classic cosmic Marvel characters. It's a tall order to tell a story that would resonate with all those different groups of fans, and Abnett and Lanning do a great job of it. This really makes me want to track down all their other work with these characters.
August 26, 2018
Probably the best Guardians of the Galaxy I’ve read. Lots of baddies, lots of fighting, lots of fun. I really enjoyed the format, with the debrief logs. Just feels right for this team. Well done and well worth reading.
April 28, 2025
“I hate cosmic stuff. I mean I ☠️☠️☠️☠️ing HATE cosmic stuff. I just don’t get it.
Look at this. Who are THESE guys? What are they doing? Are they even GUYS? I mean, Captain America. I get Cap. I get The Falcon. I even get Iron Man.
They belong to the REGULAR world. A regular world I understand. But cosmic stuff? Captain ☠️☠️☠️☠️ing Marvel and that giant GALACTUS freak? Please.
Does it even MEAN anything? I’m just a guy from Sandhaven, Arizona. I don’t DO cosmic stuff.”
Man, this almost seems insane to come back to this and realize that it’s kind of an ertext to like…70% of MCU related stuff and a bunch of games and even more team books than people would care to admit even stretching into now (so much so that it takes Al Ewing until like…two years ago to finally go “can we do SOMETHING else?” And people stupidly went NO to some of the best GOTG stuff since THIS BUT…that’s a whole other flarkkin’ review)
But THIS…oh man, this…still just ten pound of fun in an eight pound bag. And had COMPLETELY FORGOT Brad Walker did a bunch of the middle issue. Also as I had forgotten that this does a pretty amazing Secret Invasion story that’s still a million miles away from the actual Secret Invasion.
Just the best! I love it all. I love this team, both narratively and creatively. I love how much it builds and bets on itself as this new pillar of the Marvel Cosmic publishing arm. I love that Groot is BARELY in it? It’s just the best. And still a pretty great introduction to the tangle web that is space in the marvel universe (probably all those years forging clear paths into the Imperium of Man) but yeah. Everybody should read this and War of Kings at some point. If only just to see where and how the Gunn movies got their energy.
Look at this. Who are THESE guys? What are they doing? Are they even GUYS? I mean, Captain America. I get Cap. I get The Falcon. I even get Iron Man.
They belong to the REGULAR world. A regular world I understand. But cosmic stuff? Captain ☠️☠️☠️☠️ing Marvel and that giant GALACTUS freak? Please.
Does it even MEAN anything? I’m just a guy from Sandhaven, Arizona. I don’t DO cosmic stuff.”
Man, this almost seems insane to come back to this and realize that it’s kind of an ertext to like…70% of MCU related stuff and a bunch of games and even more team books than people would care to admit even stretching into now (so much so that it takes Al Ewing until like…two years ago to finally go “can we do SOMETHING else?” And people stupidly went NO to some of the best GOTG stuff since THIS BUT…that’s a whole other flarkkin’ review)
But THIS…oh man, this…still just ten pound of fun in an eight pound bag. And had COMPLETELY FORGOT Brad Walker did a bunch of the middle issue. Also as I had forgotten that this does a pretty amazing Secret Invasion story that’s still a million miles away from the actual Secret Invasion.
Just the best! I love it all. I love this team, both narratively and creatively. I love how much it builds and bets on itself as this new pillar of the Marvel Cosmic publishing arm. I love that Groot is BARELY in it? It’s just the best. And still a pretty great introduction to the tangle web that is space in the marvel universe (probably all those years forging clear paths into the Imperium of Man) but yeah. Everybody should read this and War of Kings at some point. If only just to see where and how the Gunn movies got their energy.
May 8, 2017
La historia no está mal, el dibujo tiene momentos muy buenos, pero tengo algunos problemas con este tomo...
En primer lugar la edición... Extra superhéroes es un formato de tamaño pequeño, papel muy fino, tapa blanda... no es lo ideal para disfrutar de esta colección, que tiene grandes escenarios cósmicos, splash pages con muchos personajes...
Además esta colección tiene el problema que tienen muchas colecciones de marvel y dc, la temida continuidad... aunque en este tomo se comienza un nuevo volumen los autores no se toman apenas tiempo en presentar a los personajes, se mencionan contínuamente eventos del pasado y por regla general hay que conocer mínimamente el trasfondo del universo cósmico de marvel para enterarse de las referencias, aunque la historia principal se puede entender perfectamente... incluso hay que remontarse a la época de los guardianes de la galaxia de Valentino (de hace más de 20 años) para que algunos personajes no nos pillen fuera de juego.
Por otro lado este tomo acaba en el número 12 de la colección como podía haber acabado en cualquier otro, la historia principal queda a medias y para colmo no se ha publicado el segundo tomo, ni tiene pinta de que se vaya a publicar en un futuro próximo.
En resumen, una buena serie si se conoce mínimamente el universo cósmico de marvel y siempre teniendo en cuenta que queda a medias.
En primer lugar la edición... Extra superhéroes es un formato de tamaño pequeño, papel muy fino, tapa blanda... no es lo ideal para disfrutar de esta colección, que tiene grandes escenarios cósmicos, splash pages con muchos personajes...
Además esta colección tiene el problema que tienen muchas colecciones de marvel y dc, la temida continuidad... aunque en este tomo se comienza un nuevo volumen los autores no se toman apenas tiempo en presentar a los personajes, se mencionan contínuamente eventos del pasado y por regla general hay que conocer mínimamente el trasfondo del universo cósmico de marvel para enterarse de las referencias, aunque la historia principal se puede entender perfectamente... incluso hay que remontarse a la época de los guardianes de la galaxia de Valentino (de hace más de 20 años) para que algunos personajes no nos pillen fuera de juego.
Por otro lado este tomo acaba en el número 12 de la colección como podía haber acabado en cualquier otro, la historia principal queda a medias y para colmo no se ha publicado el segundo tomo, ni tiene pinta de que se vaya a publicar en un futuro próximo.
En resumen, una buena serie si se conoce mínimamente el universo cósmico de marvel y siempre teniendo en cuenta que queda a medias.
February 19, 2022
This had surprising amounts of depth and theme. A basic level knowledge of some cosmic characters goes a long way (especially with Adam Warlock and Quasar), but if you can make it through the first few episodes accepting the confusion, the story starts to really pick up and become relatively self-contained.
December 30, 2021
Needed more Gamora
February 21, 2017
Actual Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars
I read this chunker because I cannot get enough of these Guardians!
I do have to say that this isn't my favourite Guardian's comic collection I have read however it wasn't the worst.
PROs:
- It had an engaging plot and focused on the Guardians that usually don't get as much attention as the others these days.
- ^That being said, this was my favourite take on Drax The Destroyer. I've said previously that he lacks emotional depth and insight but I found that this had more insight on his character and personal life.
- I LOVE MANTIS!
- I'm not going to spoil anything, but Gamora slays!
- I know Ronan The Accuser was only in here for a couple of minutes, but I much preferred him in here than the movie (because the movie Ronan is literally the crappiest villain ever... mini rant XD)
CONs:
- This was my first experience reading about Adam Warlock, and I'm going to be real - he was annoying af
- The art style got on my nerves every once in a while
- Not enough Groot.
Overall, I loved visiting the Guardians once again and I'm looking forward to more <3
I read this chunker because I cannot get enough of these Guardians!
I do have to say that this isn't my favourite Guardian's comic collection I have read however it wasn't the worst.
PROs:
- It had an engaging plot and focused on the Guardians that usually don't get as much attention as the others these days.
- ^That being said, this was my favourite take on Drax The Destroyer. I've said previously that he lacks emotional depth and insight but I found that this had more insight on his character and personal life.
- I LOVE MANTIS!
- I'm not going to spoil anything, but Gamora slays!
- I know Ronan The Accuser was only in here for a couple of minutes, but I much preferred him in here than the movie (because the movie Ronan is literally the crappiest villain ever... mini rant XD)
CONs:
- This was my first experience reading about Adam Warlock, and I'm going to be real - he was annoying af
- The art style got on my nerves every once in a while
- Not enough Groot.
Overall, I loved visiting the Guardians once again and I'm looking forward to more <3
December 14, 2015
Really good, but I got one of the second printings, which mean the second 'chapter' is mixed up. Just a heads up to anyone who get a hold of one of the second print runs of this, about five or six pages into the second chapter, it jumps into the third chapter. Apparently this happened to all of the volumes in this print run (I really want to know what the quality control guy was doing that day!). But don't let that ruin it for you, it is a great read, once you get past that part!
April 21, 2015
Usually, when I'm enjoying a book, it's compelling. I want to keep turning the pages, I want to follow the characters, see the story unfold and events transpire. I want answers to questions and I want new questions to intrigue and confound me. So I should probably have picked up that I wasn't enjoying Guardians of the Galaxy when it took me about a month to get through the first six issues.
I was convinced, I was just warming up to the series. But when I got to issue ten, with two left and absolutely no motivation to keep on... I think that's when I realized I don't like it. Not very much, anyway. I wasn't enjoying my time, which upsets me a lot, because I think there's a lot I should be liking in here. But... there's so many small elements, tiny things, that all build up and snowball into a huge roadblock for me. All power to you if you like this - as far as I can tell, it's pretty much the most popular version of Guardians of the Galaxy outside of the film adaptation. But I really can't say in all honesty that I liked it at all.
We'll start with the characters. The characters are possibly my biggest gripe with this volume, because, wow, I really couldn't gravitate to any single one as my favourite. They're all... I don't know, "bland" isn't the right word, but they nontheless feel very tasteless - and I mean that in the literal sense. It feels like they, well, have no taste. Like a saltine cracker or some such nothing-y biscuit or digestive. I didn't laugh at the dry-witted Rocket Raccoon. I did not swoon at the handsome, accomplished Star-Lord. I wasn't impressed by the hard-hitting Drax the Destroyer and I wasn't intrigued by the out-of-time Major Victory. The only characters I really enjoyed were Cosmo, who is a dog, and Mantis, who is a bug lady and telepath. I'm gonna love them anyway. But they're not big parts of the story, with both of them hanging back as supporting members of the crew for the majority. So it could just be that I yearned for more of them because I couldn't enjoy the company of any of the other assholes I was expected to read about.
Oh. Perhaps it goes without saying, I did enjoy Groot... marginally. Groot says "I am Groot". That's a funny joke because of reasons. But the joke is used maybe three times, so it doesn't get stale, and the timing of 'em is sort of genius in its own way, but the thing is - and this is a real clincher - Groot is a sprout for the first half of this volume, and ergo doesn't actually DO anything until the second arc. So you get half a book's worth of Groot. Conversely, you get an entire book's worth of Adam Warlock - one of the most intensely boring characters I think I've ever read. I've read other material with Adam Warlock, but the fact he's a protagonist makes him far less tolerable than when he's merely making cameo appearances. I mean... wow. Wow! He is so boring. The only thing I really like about him is that he hatches from a cocoon. Otherwise, geez, Adam Warlock. He... he is a warlock, of sorts, I'll give 'em that much. And his name is Adam. Adam Warlock? Should his name be Adam THE Warlock? No? ...look, these questions are more interesting than Adam Warlock actually is. I promise.
So there are other Guardians but blah blah blah Gamora and so on. I'd rather just get to the plot. It's... it's alright? For a comic book? (That's an awful thing to have to say, but, it's true, this is an acceptable comic book plot. Not much else to say 'bout that.) Basically, space-time is ripping itself apart. Hmmm. Okay. So. Problem here, I guess, is that it's never really explained what the actual fucking hell that means. Like, for me? As a reader? I understand that it's a bad thing, like, implicitly, because I do live in a universe and I'd probably hate for it to collapse onto me... but I don't know why an imminent collapse of THIS universe is a bad thing. Probably because I don't like any characters. See, it's important for the audience to like someone so when bad stuff is gonna happen, you can feel something. Something besides, y'know, nothing at all. Oh, and I understand, by the way, that this takes place in the Marvel Universe, but shit, you can't just say "the Marvel Universe is falling apart, oh no!" because... well, for one, it's not. There's no actual stakes here because I know that the Guardians can't fail and then the next day Spider-Man is replaced by a hellish cosmic octopus monster, or whatever. The successes and failures of the Guardians of the Galaxy won't in any way effect Daredevil in Hell's Kitchen, or Black Panther in Wakanda, or, hell, they probably won't even effect Silver Surfer or Captain Marvel, and they, too, live in space! So I need people here to sympathize with, characters for whom impending doom is a worry for me because I care. I don't much like the citizens of the Guardian's homebase, Knowhere, and that's like the major population center in this volume, so... I don't care. The universe is collapsing in on itself! ...o-oh. Oh, noooo. How... how quaint.
But hey, there's worse conceits to bring a team together! So draw on a smiley face because Star-Lord (Peter Quill) brings together Drax, Gamora, Mantis, Rocket Raccoon, Quasar, Adam Warlock, and Groot! With a base in a giant skull planet lead by Cosmo the telepathic space dog, the Guardians (formerly... unnamed) must fight to stop the anomalies that are tearing the universe apart at the seams. With time-displaced heroes from the future being leaked into the present, entire planets going missing or being cracked apart, and other such apocalyptic events shaking the foundation of the galaxy, the Guardians of the Galaxy must... guard the galaxy!
Meanwhile, the Church of Universal Truth are out to do something. I guess they want to convert the whole galaxy. Um. Okay. There are other bad guys, too. Like, there are villains the Guardians need to fight besides the fact the anomalies are literally destroying the entirety of reality. Which is kind of neat, but the Church of Universal Truth are... let me phrase this right. They're boring and weird. And I don't understand them. They... they operate on belief? So, like, they can believe that they'll be able to kill you, and that gives them the power to kill you? I... god, I don't even know, dude. It's bizarre. ...and fine, the entire THING is bizarre, there's a talking tree and an anthropomorphic raccoon and a psychic dog but there's a limit on this stuff, y'know? You can't just keep shoving wacky things in and expect that the reader will accept it because there's other wacky stuff. Groot and Rocket feel earned, Rocket has a personality like a grumpy New York cab driver and Groot's like a Hulk fella but a tree. Whatever. It has a logic to it. I can gravitate towards that on a base level, at least. The Church of Universal Truth is just strange and it comes out of nowhere in the very first chapter and I don't really understand who they are, what they do, or why they do it... again, it all comes down to that very tasteless vibe I get from this series. They're so nothing. They remind me of Captain Planet's villains! Just, like, we're basically told that they're bad and we hate them, but then... like, why? Why, Guardians of the Galaxy? Just like how I don't know why I should care about the imminent-ish threat of universal collapse, I don't know why I should care about the Church of Universal Truth completing their goal of total conversion, besides that the Guardians of the Galaxy need something to fight against. You get what I mean about this stuff feeling tasteless?
I'm trying my best not to sound too harsh, though, because I do like ridiculous sci-fi crap. I really do! There's stuff in here I really enjoy! Like I said, I like Mantis! She's fun and smart. I like Cosmo! He's fun and smart and a dog. I like the idea of Knowhere - it's very "neat," I'd say. It's a neat concept, a planet inside a giant skull. I like the ideas here. And like I said, on a base level (with the exception of Adam goddamn Warlock) I definitely understand these characters. I don't like them, but I "get" them. I like the idea of flashback issues done via debriefing logs, I like that the Guardians get their name from a man from the future who outright tells them that they called themselves Guardians of the Galaxy... really, on paper it sounds entertaining. I think a big problem, ultimately, is that there is absolutely no grounding for any of it.
It's all so elevated above Marvel's Earth-level superheroics that I feel out of my comfort zone. I've read Marvel's cosmic stuff, I like Thanos, I like Skrulls and Galactus and the Silver Surfer - Planet Hulk is one of my favourite series of all time and, hell, I don't think I'd say the cosmic storylines are much more convoluted than a typical X-Men arc. And yet, there's something very weirdly off about Guardians of the Galaxy. There are a lot of things here which are never properly explained, and they're all introduced more or less immediately. It expects you to take a lot for granted, it doesn't quite explain adequately the purpose (or point) of established characters in this new context, and it also fails to do the same for completely original characters like the time-displaced future Guardians. King Blaastaar, Ronan the Accuser, Maelstrom, Moondragon... even protagonists like Adam Warlock, Gamora, and pretty much the entirety of the citizens of Knowhere, just have no introduction, in a series where introductions are sorely needed!
There's room to let the audience just accept some things - I'll accept that there's a talking Soviet space dog, I'll accept Rocket and Groot, I'll accept things like a Skrull invasion, but so many things - SO. MANY. THINGS - are happening in this volume. It's jam-packed, and not in the usual positive sense. It's full. Bulging. The second half of this volume has I think four concurrent story threads! FOUR! And only one of them is really given much room to breathe, leaving three strands sort of gasping for air, strands that desperately need context. Explanation! I can't just extrapolate the stakes, I can't just imagine what happened between seeing a character after a time cut, I really truly do need to be told more than... nothing. "Show don't tell" is decent literary advice but when the stuff I'm being shown has no bearing on my day-to-day reality it really does bare being told at least a LITTLE. There is actually a plot thread introduced out of nowhere late in the book, and I had to flick back through pages to make sure I didn't miss a byline or editor's note to give me some kind of - any kind of - actual lead-in to it. Nope! Just all of a sudden Adam Warlock has a chosen one plot. In some prophecy that we're never told about. That would be really important to tell me before you started acting like you already had.
It's dense, is the word I'm looking for. Hugely dense. Catastrophically dense! And it results in a particularly alienating experience. Even if I enjoyed being with these characters - which I really don't - I can't get into their weird world. It's all extremely bombastic, creative, and clever, I'm sure. It really does feel like Star Wars' cantina scene, lots of whizzing about around weird creatures and things. And despite the dry characters, there is a certain energy to the proceedings - a buzz. It's a little slice of fantasy/sci-fi that the writers and artists are probably quite passionate about. But without something for me to hold onto through the non-stop cavalcade of inanity, I can only get thrown off. Confused, groundless, and - ultimately - not entertained.
What else can I say? I found it hard to breach the thick outer membrane of this heavy comic adventure. Where I would usually find excitement of space-faring derring-do, I found an impenetrable universe of characters I couldn't identify with, plots with no tangible stakes despite sounding, on the surface, very threatening, and eventually, a mess of arcs that throw the reader around like a bull at a rodeo. I was rarely compelled by any of it, and it's disappointing because... well look around, there's a lot of positive feedback about this collection! Clearly this creative team has a lot of fans.
It's very strange. This is "my" genre. This is my kind of convoluted. This is pretty well a splattering of ideas and concepts that I enjoy on a very base level. The presentation left me cold, though, and without a protagonist to relate to, without an antagonist or obstacle to be truly fearful of, and without a story straightforward enough for me to grow fond of, I found this volume very much not to my tastes in the slightest. Disappointing, sure. I'm sure there are a great deal many people who can shrug off my criticism and enjoy themselves, but I really couldn't do it. Sigh.
There's a character later on, in a (weirdly) Civil War crossover (sort of?) - Jack Flag. Jack Flag comments that he "hates cosmic stuff". Quite possibly I'm just with him. Maybe I just can't click with Marvel's cosmic stuff. If that is the case, well, certainly I could rescind my conclusion. I don't think there's any excuse for a comic so light-hearted to be this dense with impenetrable lore. I've been reading comic books all my life - I'd hate to know how readers who are new to the medium fare when picking up this volume. I can't imagine all too well.
I was convinced, I was just warming up to the series. But when I got to issue ten, with two left and absolutely no motivation to keep on... I think that's when I realized I don't like it. Not very much, anyway. I wasn't enjoying my time, which upsets me a lot, because I think there's a lot I should be liking in here. But... there's so many small elements, tiny things, that all build up and snowball into a huge roadblock for me. All power to you if you like this - as far as I can tell, it's pretty much the most popular version of Guardians of the Galaxy outside of the film adaptation. But I really can't say in all honesty that I liked it at all.
We'll start with the characters. The characters are possibly my biggest gripe with this volume, because, wow, I really couldn't gravitate to any single one as my favourite. They're all... I don't know, "bland" isn't the right word, but they nontheless feel very tasteless - and I mean that in the literal sense. It feels like they, well, have no taste. Like a saltine cracker or some such nothing-y biscuit or digestive. I didn't laugh at the dry-witted Rocket Raccoon. I did not swoon at the handsome, accomplished Star-Lord. I wasn't impressed by the hard-hitting Drax the Destroyer and I wasn't intrigued by the out-of-time Major Victory. The only characters I really enjoyed were Cosmo, who is a dog, and Mantis, who is a bug lady and telepath. I'm gonna love them anyway. But they're not big parts of the story, with both of them hanging back as supporting members of the crew for the majority. So it could just be that I yearned for more of them because I couldn't enjoy the company of any of the other assholes I was expected to read about.
Oh. Perhaps it goes without saying, I did enjoy Groot... marginally. Groot says "I am Groot". That's a funny joke because of reasons. But the joke is used maybe three times, so it doesn't get stale, and the timing of 'em is sort of genius in its own way, but the thing is - and this is a real clincher - Groot is a sprout for the first half of this volume, and ergo doesn't actually DO anything until the second arc. So you get half a book's worth of Groot. Conversely, you get an entire book's worth of Adam Warlock - one of the most intensely boring characters I think I've ever read. I've read other material with Adam Warlock, but the fact he's a protagonist makes him far less tolerable than when he's merely making cameo appearances. I mean... wow. Wow! He is so boring. The only thing I really like about him is that he hatches from a cocoon. Otherwise, geez, Adam Warlock. He... he is a warlock, of sorts, I'll give 'em that much. And his name is Adam. Adam Warlock? Should his name be Adam THE Warlock? No? ...look, these questions are more interesting than Adam Warlock actually is. I promise.
So there are other Guardians but blah blah blah Gamora and so on. I'd rather just get to the plot. It's... it's alright? For a comic book? (That's an awful thing to have to say, but, it's true, this is an acceptable comic book plot. Not much else to say 'bout that.) Basically, space-time is ripping itself apart. Hmmm. Okay. So. Problem here, I guess, is that it's never really explained what the actual fucking hell that means. Like, for me? As a reader? I understand that it's a bad thing, like, implicitly, because I do live in a universe and I'd probably hate for it to collapse onto me... but I don't know why an imminent collapse of THIS universe is a bad thing. Probably because I don't like any characters. See, it's important for the audience to like someone so when bad stuff is gonna happen, you can feel something. Something besides, y'know, nothing at all. Oh, and I understand, by the way, that this takes place in the Marvel Universe, but shit, you can't just say "the Marvel Universe is falling apart, oh no!" because... well, for one, it's not. There's no actual stakes here because I know that the Guardians can't fail and then the next day Spider-Man is replaced by a hellish cosmic octopus monster, or whatever. The successes and failures of the Guardians of the Galaxy won't in any way effect Daredevil in Hell's Kitchen, or Black Panther in Wakanda, or, hell, they probably won't even effect Silver Surfer or Captain Marvel, and they, too, live in space! So I need people here to sympathize with, characters for whom impending doom is a worry for me because I care. I don't much like the citizens of the Guardian's homebase, Knowhere, and that's like the major population center in this volume, so... I don't care. The universe is collapsing in on itself! ...o-oh. Oh, noooo. How... how quaint.
But hey, there's worse conceits to bring a team together! So draw on a smiley face because Star-Lord (Peter Quill) brings together Drax, Gamora, Mantis, Rocket Raccoon, Quasar, Adam Warlock, and Groot! With a base in a giant skull planet lead by Cosmo the telepathic space dog, the Guardians (formerly... unnamed) must fight to stop the anomalies that are tearing the universe apart at the seams. With time-displaced heroes from the future being leaked into the present, entire planets going missing or being cracked apart, and other such apocalyptic events shaking the foundation of the galaxy, the Guardians of the Galaxy must... guard the galaxy!
Meanwhile, the Church of Universal Truth are out to do something. I guess they want to convert the whole galaxy. Um. Okay. There are other bad guys, too. Like, there are villains the Guardians need to fight besides the fact the anomalies are literally destroying the entirety of reality. Which is kind of neat, but the Church of Universal Truth are... let me phrase this right. They're boring and weird. And I don't understand them. They... they operate on belief? So, like, they can believe that they'll be able to kill you, and that gives them the power to kill you? I... god, I don't even know, dude. It's bizarre. ...and fine, the entire THING is bizarre, there's a talking tree and an anthropomorphic raccoon and a psychic dog but there's a limit on this stuff, y'know? You can't just keep shoving wacky things in and expect that the reader will accept it because there's other wacky stuff. Groot and Rocket feel earned, Rocket has a personality like a grumpy New York cab driver and Groot's like a Hulk fella but a tree. Whatever. It has a logic to it. I can gravitate towards that on a base level, at least. The Church of Universal Truth is just strange and it comes out of nowhere in the very first chapter and I don't really understand who they are, what they do, or why they do it... again, it all comes down to that very tasteless vibe I get from this series. They're so nothing. They remind me of Captain Planet's villains! Just, like, we're basically told that they're bad and we hate them, but then... like, why? Why, Guardians of the Galaxy? Just like how I don't know why I should care about the imminent-ish threat of universal collapse, I don't know why I should care about the Church of Universal Truth completing their goal of total conversion, besides that the Guardians of the Galaxy need something to fight against. You get what I mean about this stuff feeling tasteless?
I'm trying my best not to sound too harsh, though, because I do like ridiculous sci-fi crap. I really do! There's stuff in here I really enjoy! Like I said, I like Mantis! She's fun and smart. I like Cosmo! He's fun and smart and a dog. I like the idea of Knowhere - it's very "neat," I'd say. It's a neat concept, a planet inside a giant skull. I like the ideas here. And like I said, on a base level (with the exception of Adam goddamn Warlock) I definitely understand these characters. I don't like them, but I "get" them. I like the idea of flashback issues done via debriefing logs, I like that the Guardians get their name from a man from the future who outright tells them that they called themselves Guardians of the Galaxy... really, on paper it sounds entertaining. I think a big problem, ultimately, is that there is absolutely no grounding for any of it.
It's all so elevated above Marvel's Earth-level superheroics that I feel out of my comfort zone. I've read Marvel's cosmic stuff, I like Thanos, I like Skrulls and Galactus and the Silver Surfer - Planet Hulk is one of my favourite series of all time and, hell, I don't think I'd say the cosmic storylines are much more convoluted than a typical X-Men arc. And yet, there's something very weirdly off about Guardians of the Galaxy. There are a lot of things here which are never properly explained, and they're all introduced more or less immediately. It expects you to take a lot for granted, it doesn't quite explain adequately the purpose (or point) of established characters in this new context, and it also fails to do the same for completely original characters like the time-displaced future Guardians. King Blaastaar, Ronan the Accuser, Maelstrom, Moondragon... even protagonists like Adam Warlock, Gamora, and pretty much the entirety of the citizens of Knowhere, just have no introduction, in a series where introductions are sorely needed!
There's room to let the audience just accept some things - I'll accept that there's a talking Soviet space dog, I'll accept Rocket and Groot, I'll accept things like a Skrull invasion, but so many things - SO. MANY. THINGS - are happening in this volume. It's jam-packed, and not in the usual positive sense. It's full. Bulging. The second half of this volume has I think four concurrent story threads! FOUR! And only one of them is really given much room to breathe, leaving three strands sort of gasping for air, strands that desperately need context. Explanation! I can't just extrapolate the stakes, I can't just imagine what happened between seeing a character after a time cut, I really truly do need to be told more than... nothing. "Show don't tell" is decent literary advice but when the stuff I'm being shown has no bearing on my day-to-day reality it really does bare being told at least a LITTLE. There is actually a plot thread introduced out of nowhere late in the book, and I had to flick back through pages to make sure I didn't miss a byline or editor's note to give me some kind of - any kind of - actual lead-in to it. Nope! Just all of a sudden Adam Warlock has a chosen one plot. In some prophecy that we're never told about. That would be really important to tell me before you started acting like you already had.
It's dense, is the word I'm looking for. Hugely dense. Catastrophically dense! And it results in a particularly alienating experience. Even if I enjoyed being with these characters - which I really don't - I can't get into their weird world. It's all extremely bombastic, creative, and clever, I'm sure. It really does feel like Star Wars' cantina scene, lots of whizzing about around weird creatures and things. And despite the dry characters, there is a certain energy to the proceedings - a buzz. It's a little slice of fantasy/sci-fi that the writers and artists are probably quite passionate about. But without something for me to hold onto through the non-stop cavalcade of inanity, I can only get thrown off. Confused, groundless, and - ultimately - not entertained.
What else can I say? I found it hard to breach the thick outer membrane of this heavy comic adventure. Where I would usually find excitement of space-faring derring-do, I found an impenetrable universe of characters I couldn't identify with, plots with no tangible stakes despite sounding, on the surface, very threatening, and eventually, a mess of arcs that throw the reader around like a bull at a rodeo. I was rarely compelled by any of it, and it's disappointing because... well look around, there's a lot of positive feedback about this collection! Clearly this creative team has a lot of fans.
It's very strange. This is "my" genre. This is my kind of convoluted. This is pretty well a splattering of ideas and concepts that I enjoy on a very base level. The presentation left me cold, though, and without a protagonist to relate to, without an antagonist or obstacle to be truly fearful of, and without a story straightforward enough for me to grow fond of, I found this volume very much not to my tastes in the slightest. Disappointing, sure. I'm sure there are a great deal many people who can shrug off my criticism and enjoy themselves, but I really couldn't do it. Sigh.
There's a character later on, in a (weirdly) Civil War crossover (sort of?) - Jack Flag. Jack Flag comments that he "hates cosmic stuff". Quite possibly I'm just with him. Maybe I just can't click with Marvel's cosmic stuff. If that is the case, well, certainly I could rescind my conclusion. I don't think there's any excuse for a comic so light-hearted to be this dense with impenetrable lore. I've been reading comic books all my life - I'd hate to know how readers who are new to the medium fare when picking up this volume. I can't imagine all too well.
March 26, 2019
Let me start by saying I hated this and this is a review for all the issues in this series #1-25. This entire series was so confusing and boring that I wanted to stab my own eyes out so I would have to stop reading it. Now I know that I didn’t HAVE to keep reading it, but Marvel makes it very difficult to pick up a series in the following volume and have any idea what’s going on. For instance, I didn’t read annihilation before this and had to go back and read a wiki article that summarized what happened because I was so lost when I started reading this.
The artwork in this was ATROCIOUS. I have never in my life seen art this bad in a published comic. If I ever have to look at Rocket and Groot looking like smushed bugs on a windshield again, I will blind myself as a favor. The costumes looked like they were wrinkled up messes because the artist apparently can’t draw clothing with movement any other way.
The writing was so sexist and gross. EVERY SINGLE TIME a female character was introduced, a male character had to make a comment along the lines of ‘oh but you’re hot’ *eye rolls into space begging Thanks to just kill me now* The female costumes were clearly created for the male gaze and every female character was drawn ass or boobs first like that’s all they have to project off the screen. Having a lesbian couple was cool until they killed one or the other throughout the series constantly keeping them apart. That trope is so old and disgusting.
The made up cursing was confusing and dumb, given that these characters do curse and it’s bleeped with little skulls?? Also, I personally cannot stand reading the way Cosmo and Bug’s dialogue was written. Someone please save me. The phrase ‘out of the woodwork’ was so overused throughout the whole series. There was almost too much dialogue and wording in this. It got so bogged down and the author was so long winded, I was skipping over entire chunks of it without missing a thing.
There were so many parts of this that were disgusting and I should have just put the book down when the problems first started. Brainwashing people is so many levels of not okay. I could write an entire essay on the issue of consent within this series as it applies to mind reading and changing people’s actions, but I would be here all day. The part that really got to me was the lack on consequences for their actions. Everyone splits up for less than one issue before they’re back at it again with the next problem. I also found it gross when a character joked about schizophrenia. I know this was written in a different time, but it doesn’t make any of this less true.
And finally, my personal issue with time travel. I hate it. More than any other plot device, time travel is the thing done consistently wrong. And this series really fucks it up. I have never read such a convoluted flaming pile of shit. It was fine at first, but then the author kept changing the basic constructs and it just imploded about halfway through.
The ending was rushed and pointless?? The author spent the entire series telling us the error was one thing and then the very last issue (24 issues later!!!) completely changes that!!! The issue with Magus/Adam Warlock never really gets resolved and then Thanos just comes back swinging in the last issue. WHY?? I’m so tired. On to (hopefully) better things.
The artwork in this was ATROCIOUS. I have never in my life seen art this bad in a published comic. If I ever have to look at Rocket and Groot looking like smushed bugs on a windshield again, I will blind myself as a favor. The costumes looked like they were wrinkled up messes because the artist apparently can’t draw clothing with movement any other way.
The writing was so sexist and gross. EVERY SINGLE TIME a female character was introduced, a male character had to make a comment along the lines of ‘oh but you’re hot’ *eye rolls into space begging Thanks to just kill me now* The female costumes were clearly created for the male gaze and every female character was drawn ass or boobs first like that’s all they have to project off the screen. Having a lesbian couple was cool until they killed one or the other throughout the series constantly keeping them apart. That trope is so old and disgusting.
The made up cursing was confusing and dumb, given that these characters do curse and it’s bleeped with little skulls?? Also, I personally cannot stand reading the way Cosmo and Bug’s dialogue was written. Someone please save me. The phrase ‘out of the woodwork’ was so overused throughout the whole series. There was almost too much dialogue and wording in this. It got so bogged down and the author was so long winded, I was skipping over entire chunks of it without missing a thing.
There were so many parts of this that were disgusting and I should have just put the book down when the problems first started. Brainwashing people is so many levels of not okay. I could write an entire essay on the issue of consent within this series as it applies to mind reading and changing people’s actions, but I would be here all day. The part that really got to me was the lack on consequences for their actions. Everyone splits up for less than one issue before they’re back at it again with the next problem. I also found it gross when a character joked about schizophrenia. I know this was written in a different time, but it doesn’t make any of this less true.
And finally, my personal issue with time travel. I hate it. More than any other plot device, time travel is the thing done consistently wrong. And this series really fucks it up. I have never read such a convoluted flaming pile of shit. It was fine at first, but then the author kept changing the basic constructs and it just imploded about halfway through.
The ending was rushed and pointless?? The author spent the entire series telling us the error was one thing and then the very last issue (24 issues later!!!) completely changes that!!! The issue with Magus/Adam Warlock never really gets resolved and then Thanos just comes back swinging in the last issue. WHY?? I’m so tired. On to (hopefully) better things.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 26, 2020
For mig var Guardians of the Galaxy fra 2014 min top-yndlings-absolut-favorit superhelte film. Den var så god, at jeg gik ind for at se den i biffen en ekstra gang😃
Jeg knuselsker humoren og det umage superhelteteam af skæve og gakkede karakterer😍
Galaksens Vogtere har eksisteret i Marvelverdenen siden 1969, da Stan Lee med to andre fandt på idéen. I 2008 fik tegneserien en reboot med nye superhelte - dem vi kender fra filmene.
Jeg fornemmede lidt, at jeg med den her tegneserie, der hedder Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 1: Legacy kom en smule skævt ind på karaktererne og historien, som dog ellers er ny.
Der er nemlig noget baggrundshistorie, der forvirrede lidt til tider og det kunne måske have været en idé, hvis jeg havde læst Annihilation og/eller som minimum Annihilation: Conquest tegneserierne, for der bliver dette hold introduceret første gang.
Ikke desto mindre, så har jeg haft en fest med denne vildt farverige og actionmættede historie😃👏👏
Karaktermæssigt var der dog nogle ret store ændringer. Fx er Mantis og Drax noget anderledes fremstillet i filmene. Det giver god mening for filmens tone, men det var faktisk superfedt at opdage, at de har meget mere dybde i tegneserien.
Til gengæld forstod jeg mig ikke på tegnestilen af Rocket, som mere lignede en bæver end en vaskebjørn. Som karakter var han dog spot on😆👍
Jeg stødte på flere karakterer, som jeg ikke kendte. Adam Warlock er en gammel karakter, der har været med siden 1960’erne, men jeg kan ikke huske ham(hvilket efter en hurtig google søgning vist er en stor fejl!), Phyla-vell er en nyere karakter tilknyttet Captain Marvel og så er der selvfølgelig Cosmo The Spacedog😃
Gennem historien sker der flere ting og den bliver en tand ekstra forvirrende med ankomsten af fremtidens Galaksevogtere.
Jeg havde lidt svært ved at følge den røde tråd gennem hele tegneserien, men det hele er bare så actionmættet og fantastisk, at man sluger det hele råt.
Historien er fyldt til randen med masser af Marvel skurke og paralleluniverser. Alt i alt en fremragende tegneserie til Marvel fans. Nu skal jeg ud og have fundet mig næste bind - War of Kings.
Er du også begejstret for Guardians of the Galaxy og vil ud og købe tegneserien, så tjek lige omnibussen før du køber. Den har nemlig både Legacy OG War of Kings OG andre gode sager. Jeg har ikke selv set den, men den kan kun være det værd😃🤓
Jeg knuselsker humoren og det umage superhelteteam af skæve og gakkede karakterer😍
Galaksens Vogtere har eksisteret i Marvelverdenen siden 1969, da Stan Lee med to andre fandt på idéen. I 2008 fik tegneserien en reboot med nye superhelte - dem vi kender fra filmene.
Jeg fornemmede lidt, at jeg med den her tegneserie, der hedder Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 1: Legacy kom en smule skævt ind på karaktererne og historien, som dog ellers er ny.
Der er nemlig noget baggrundshistorie, der forvirrede lidt til tider og det kunne måske have været en idé, hvis jeg havde læst Annihilation og/eller som minimum Annihilation: Conquest tegneserierne, for der bliver dette hold introduceret første gang.
Ikke desto mindre, så har jeg haft en fest med denne vildt farverige og actionmættede historie😃👏👏
Karaktermæssigt var der dog nogle ret store ændringer. Fx er Mantis og Drax noget anderledes fremstillet i filmene. Det giver god mening for filmens tone, men det var faktisk superfedt at opdage, at de har meget mere dybde i tegneserien.
Til gengæld forstod jeg mig ikke på tegnestilen af Rocket, som mere lignede en bæver end en vaskebjørn. Som karakter var han dog spot on😆👍
Jeg stødte på flere karakterer, som jeg ikke kendte. Adam Warlock er en gammel karakter, der har været med siden 1960’erne, men jeg kan ikke huske ham(hvilket efter en hurtig google søgning vist er en stor fejl!), Phyla-vell er en nyere karakter tilknyttet Captain Marvel og så er der selvfølgelig Cosmo The Spacedog😃
Gennem historien sker der flere ting og den bliver en tand ekstra forvirrende med ankomsten af fremtidens Galaksevogtere.
Jeg havde lidt svært ved at følge den røde tråd gennem hele tegneserien, men det hele er bare så actionmættet og fantastisk, at man sluger det hele råt.
Historien er fyldt til randen med masser af Marvel skurke og paralleluniverser. Alt i alt en fremragende tegneserie til Marvel fans. Nu skal jeg ud og have fundet mig næste bind - War of Kings.
Er du også begejstret for Guardians of the Galaxy og vil ud og købe tegneserien, så tjek lige omnibussen før du køber. Den har nemlig både Legacy OG War of Kings OG andre gode sager. Jeg har ikke selv set den, men den kan kun være det værd😃🤓
August 31, 2022
While not the easiest place to pick-up the story, I had a lot of fun with this. The first arc is an entertaining mystery almost in the vein of a classic whodunnit, just with the added personalities of cosmic beings with big personalities and snark in excess. Abnett’s dialogue is sharp and snappy without becoming kitschy, and he gives the particularly large cast—consisting of quite a few faces I’d never encountered before—enough personality to feel distinct and developed, even for someone who doesn’t know anything about their story before this point. There are exceptions to that, of course, especially in the second arc, where some characters disappear on the sidelines and (literally, in one case) sit in a room while everyone else splits up on their own side missions.
That second arc almost lost me for those reasons. The cosmic antics were fun, but so removed from the stuff I cared about (i.e., the character dynamics) that my interest lagged for a couple of issues. An unremarkable prison break plot did little to liven things up, too. It does come around, though, and ends with a solid two-issue escapade that struck some nice emotional beats. Most of it went over my head, since those beats were obviously payoffs for storylines I know nothing about, but the setting and delivery were strong enough to sell me on the stakes and consequences. I’m eager to get into the second half of Abnett’s run and see what’s up.
Artwork is solid all around, too. It didn’t often wow me, and some of the facial work looked a little wonky occasionally. But the coloring is as vibrant as can be, the character designs distinct and enjoyable weird, and there’s a curated density to the action scenes that I liked quite a bit—really sells the chaos of a blaster-charged shootout between aliens.
That second arc almost lost me for those reasons. The cosmic antics were fun, but so removed from the stuff I cared about (i.e., the character dynamics) that my interest lagged for a couple of issues. An unremarkable prison break plot did little to liven things up, too. It does come around, though, and ends with a solid two-issue escapade that struck some nice emotional beats. Most of it went over my head, since those beats were obviously payoffs for storylines I know nothing about, but the setting and delivery were strong enough to sell me on the stakes and consequences. I’m eager to get into the second half of Abnett’s run and see what’s up.
Artwork is solid all around, too. It didn’t often wow me, and some of the facial work looked a little wonky occasionally. But the coloring is as vibrant as can be, the character designs distinct and enjoyable weird, and there’s a curated density to the action scenes that I liked quite a bit—really sells the chaos of a blaster-charged shootout between aliens.
May 12, 2025
"I hate cosmic stuff. I mean, I fucking hate cosmic stuff. I just don't get it. Look at this. Who are these guys? What are they doing? Are they even guys?
I mean, Captain America. I get cap. I get the Falcon. I even get Iron Man. They belong to a regular world. A regular world I understand.
But cosmic stuff? Captain fucking and that giant Galactus freak? Please."
Jack Flag put into words what I could not articulate when I first read a Marvel comic, which I think was "Infinity Gauntlet". I'm used to more down-to-earth heroes, like Batman. Alternate realities, universes, celestial beings - they just make my eyes roll. However, I slowly learned to just embrace the weirdness.
I just wanted to read one "Guardians of the Galaxy" story. I saw the movies, I even played the video game, it seems like an interesting bunch. As any story lover, I wanted to start with "volume 1" (whatever that is) but I couldn't find it in any of the usual outlets, so I settled for the "Marvel Select" edition (any book should do, really, if it's the first one you read). The stories are quite engaging and makes you care a bit about certain characters. However, the fact that it happens AFTER a certain event makes you want to know more about said event (which is the "Annihilation", whatever that might be) and good luck finding "Annihilation: Conquest" anywhere. I liked the book, but the fact that I can't find the other books to read anywhere makes me throw my arms up and give up (shut up with the digital editions, I don't want those).
The good part is that now I understand some references from the game
4/7,
I mean, Captain America. I get cap. I get the Falcon. I even get Iron Man. They belong to a regular world. A regular world I understand.
But cosmic stuff? Captain fucking and that giant Galactus freak? Please."
Jack Flag put into words what I could not articulate when I first read a Marvel comic, which I think was "Infinity Gauntlet". I'm used to more down-to-earth heroes, like Batman. Alternate realities, universes, celestial beings - they just make my eyes roll. However, I slowly learned to just embrace the weirdness.
I just wanted to read one "Guardians of the Galaxy" story. I saw the movies, I even played the video game, it seems like an interesting bunch. As any story lover, I wanted to start with "volume 1" (whatever that is) but I couldn't find it in any of the usual outlets, so I settled for the "Marvel Select" edition (any book should do, really, if it's the first one you read). The stories are quite engaging and makes you care a bit about certain characters. However, the fact that it happens AFTER a certain event makes you want to know more about said event (which is the "Annihilation", whatever that might be) and good luck finding "Annihilation: Conquest" anywhere. I liked the book, but the fact that I can't find the other books to read anywhere makes me throw my arms up and give up (shut up with the digital editions, I don't want those).
The good part is that now I understand some references from the game
4/7,
October 7, 2021
Well into this book, a single sentence in a double page splash had me laughing out loud when I read it. This is really all you need to know about this collection. It is Dan Abnett, doing what he does so well, and letting the Guardians do what they do so well. (Which is, in a totally dysfunctional way, going about saving the universe!) There is Peter Quill, hyping his nom de guerre, Starlord, to an audience that is as uninterested in that as they are to his team name. We have Drax, well, destroying, Gamorora getting pissed at everyone and everything, Mantis messing with your head, Cosmo trying to keep order, Groot, in a totally unexpected departure stating, "I am Groot," and some other team members (There are some surprises here) pitching in. As always, at stake is life as we know it. There is plenty of action, some real first class baddies, and lots of irreverence. Oh wait, I did not mention Rocket the Racoon. Well, I did say irreverence so I guess I did!
The Guardians face off against the Church of Universal Truth, the Skrulls, the Skree, in the form of Ronan the Accuser, Blastaar in the Negative Zone, Maelstrom (Who I think would give Loki a run for his money) and more! This is a jam packed selection of goodness that is well deserving of its place in the Marvel select line. My only real criticism is that the story did not go on for another volume. The art work is excellent, every character is given a chance to shine, and the production values, as always, are first rate. A worthy addition to your collection.
The Guardians face off against the Church of Universal Truth, the Skrulls, the Skree, in the form of Ronan the Accuser, Blastaar in the Negative Zone, Maelstrom (Who I think would give Loki a run for his money) and more! This is a jam packed selection of goodness that is well deserving of its place in the Marvel select line. My only real criticism is that the story did not go on for another volume. The art work is excellent, every character is given a chance to shine, and the production values, as always, are first rate. A worthy addition to your collection.
December 28, 2017
I admit, I read this album for the dog. In my continued search for dog characters in SF setting, I heard of Cosmo, telepathic etc. dog, who sometimes assists The Guardians of the Galaxy. I found him, and the rest of the album to be a fun little romp with little depth, but then again what more to expect from something that has Dan Abnett involved.
The Guardians are reeling from losses from earlier adventures, but still keep in the business of trying to keep the Galaxy spinning. Mostly they do this by detecting rips in its fabric from their base (where Cosmo resides along side a healthy other inhabitants) inside a torn-off head of a sentinel, and shooting, beating and slicing etc. the ones causing the tears into smithereens. In between they of course fight among themselves.
Dan Abnett and Dan Lanning manage to keep the ball rolling, i.e. the Guardians in constant action. They try to be clever at times, but this cleverness rarely rises above mediocre. This term also applies to the art, which is fine as far as your basic superhero comics look goes, but offers nothing spectacular. But this can hardly be faulted on individual artists (which there are plenty: there are combined 13 pencilers, inkers and colorists who have contributed to this album), but to the script they were using.
The Guardians are reeling from losses from earlier adventures, but still keep in the business of trying to keep the Galaxy spinning. Mostly they do this by detecting rips in its fabric from their base (where Cosmo resides along side a healthy other inhabitants) inside a torn-off head of a sentinel, and shooting, beating and slicing etc. the ones causing the tears into smithereens. In between they of course fight among themselves.
Dan Abnett and Dan Lanning manage to keep the ball rolling, i.e. the Guardians in constant action. They try to be clever at times, but this cleverness rarely rises above mediocre. This term also applies to the art, which is fine as far as your basic superhero comics look goes, but offers nothing spectacular. But this can hardly be faulted on individual artists (which there are plenty: there are combined 13 pencilers, inkers and colorists who have contributed to this album), but to the script they were using.
May 7, 2022
Read both volume 1-2 of this series before but wanting to re-read to finally finish up Abnett cosmic run.
So the first half is basically the guardians getting together while dealing with the church of crazy fucks. And it's fun arc for sure, has some solid moments, but it def feels like it's getting the band together and not fully there. It's really the second half the series explodes into goodness with a lot of great/funny moments.
Starlord is a standout here in the second half but get a lot of great heart to heart moments with Drax too. And one thing I love about the guardians here is strong female characters like Gamora and Phyla-Vell who both not only hold their own but get great character moments.
I loved the ending of building a team up again, even have Rick Flagg's dumb ass join them. I'm excited to finally read the second half for the first time!
A 4 out of 5.
So the first half is basically the guardians getting together while dealing with the church of crazy fucks. And it's fun arc for sure, has some solid moments, but it def feels like it's getting the band together and not fully there. It's really the second half the series explodes into goodness with a lot of great/funny moments.
Starlord is a standout here in the second half but get a lot of great heart to heart moments with Drax too. And one thing I love about the guardians here is strong female characters like Gamora and Phyla-Vell who both not only hold their own but get great character moments.
I loved the ending of building a team up again, even have Rick Flagg's dumb ass join them. I'm excited to finally read the second half for the first time!
A 4 out of 5.
August 22, 2019
Every graphic novel collector should own this book. This is where the exciting Guardians of the Galaxy team/roster came to be. I admit I'm not really a fan of the Marvel cosmic story side until I read the whole Annihilation event run and started looking up for more space related titles by Abnett and Lanning. This came up with the highest recommendation and yes it did not disappoint. I loved the characters, especially the version of Star Lord and Drax who were very unlike their movie counter parts. The humor, action and suspense are all on superb level. Too bad I cannot rate this higher than 4 because of the cliffhanger ending and this book cannot stand on its own with the second volume. Still a great read anyway!
April 14, 2023
Dużo. Dużo akcji, dużo kolorów, dużo postaci, dużo kosmosu. Wątki, które w pełni ogarniają chyba tylko twórcy. Filmy o "Strażnikach..." przyzwyczaiły mnie do lekkiej komedii, tymczasem komiks jest zupełnie inny. Było kilka zabawnych momentów, ale ogólnie historia jest cięższa i bardziej zakręcona.
Podobał mi się pomysł, że drużynie superbohaterów ciężko ze sobą współpracować. Każdy z członków jest inny, występują licznie nieporozumienia pomiędzy nimi. Drażniło mnie, że w poszczególnych rozdziałach zmieniał się styl rysunków, inny z grupy rysowników obejmował kontrolę.
Polecam przede wszystkim fanom Marvela. Sprawdzę drugą część, ale nie sądzę, żeby cała historia została mi na dłużej w pamięci.
Podobał mi się pomysł, że drużynie superbohaterów ciężko ze sobą współpracować. Każdy z członków jest inny, występują licznie nieporozumienia pomiędzy nimi. Drażniło mnie, że w poszczególnych rozdziałach zmieniał się styl rysunków, inny z grupy rysowników obejmował kontrolę.
Polecam przede wszystkim fanom Marvela. Sprawdzę drugą część, ale nie sądzę, żeby cała historia została mi na dłużej w pamięci.
November 24, 2020
This is a nice return to all the characters after Annihilation Conquest where most of the characters first joined together as a team. DnA, the architects for the Annihilation crossovers, do a great job of getting everyone together again and it's a well balanced team of characters.
There's some neat ideas: Major Victory and Starhawk from the original Guardians showing up; Pete & Mantis' meddling; Adam Warlock's foreshadowing of an oncoming cataclysmic event; Blastaar rearing his ugly mug again, and; the new status quo for Phylla. Marvel recently also reprinted these 12 issues for it's Select Edition of hardcovers. It's an interesting choice as the issues here suffer from having a little too much set-up for future plot threads and the story presented does require background knowledge of Annihilation and Adam Warlock. The rotating art teams in the second half of the book (3 artists over 5 issues) doesn't help for consistency also.
It at least thankfully also has a Secret Invasion crossover that feels non-intrusive to the overall narrative.
There's some neat ideas: Major Victory and Starhawk from the original Guardians showing up; Pete & Mantis' meddling; Adam Warlock's foreshadowing of an oncoming cataclysmic event; Blastaar rearing his ugly mug again, and; the new status quo for Phylla. Marvel recently also reprinted these 12 issues for it's Select Edition of hardcovers. It's an interesting choice as the issues here suffer from having a little too much set-up for future plot threads and the story presented does require background knowledge of Annihilation and Adam Warlock. The rotating art teams in the second half of the book (3 artists over 5 issues) doesn't help for consistency also.
It at least thankfully also has a Secret Invasion crossover that feels non-intrusive to the overall narrative.
July 12, 2022
This book jumps right into the action, and keeps the intensity up. It is very exciting, at least for the first half. After the first six issues it slows down, but it still wasn't bad. I liked the "mission debrief" panels that were interspersed with the action. I felt the talking head points added a bit of comedy and lightness to the story, and I haven't seen that technique used in comic before. I would recommend this to fans of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, even if they don't recognize some of the characters.
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