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Guardians of the Galaxy (2008)
Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3: War of Kings, Book 2
The guns of the Kree and the Shi'Ar have thundered - and there will hell to pay! Star-Lord's Guardians spring into desperate action in an attempt to stop the planet-shattering battle, but will either side listen? If they don't, the walls of the galaxy will disintegrate! It's more mind-blowing cosmic heroics from the book that made CBR.com rave "if comics were movies, this would be the one people would be talking about all summer!"
Collecting: Guardians of the Galaxy 13-19 & Marvel Spotlight: War of Kings
Collecting: Guardians of the Galaxy 13-19 & Marvel Spotlight: War of Kings
144 pages, Hardcover
First published November 25, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
October 28, 2019
4.5 stars
Oh. My. God!
Shit gets real in this volume!
In the last volume, Phyla made a deal with the Devil...or, more accurately, the Dragon of the Moon..in order to restore Heather to life. Since then, she's taken up a new name, Martyr.
And, to go along with the new name, she also seems to have a bit of a new personality. Aevil crazy one.
But Phyla isn't the only one who makes some iffy deals...
There is just so much cool packed into this volume, I don't even know where to start! The Guardians are split into groups and sent in different directions in an attempt to stop the Shi'ar and Inhumans (now leading the Kree) from ripping the fabric of time with their War.
Star-Lord tries to talk sense into Medusa and Black Bolt, while Adam Warlock takes on Emperor Vulcan.
*lots of crazy shit happens*
Time and space are coming apart, and half of the Guardians are sent into the future to figure out where it all started, and the other half are left to figure out how to stop it now that it's begun.
*insert MORE crazy shit happening*
THAT ENDING!
Oh my God! I'd love to finish this review, but I need to find out what happened!
PS -
Since I read this as digital issues, I didn't get to read Marvel Spotlight: War of Kings. So sad I missed out on it!
Get this review and more at:
Oh. My. God!
Shit gets real in this volume!
In the last volume, Phyla made a deal with the Devil...or, more accurately, the Dragon of the Moon..in order to restore Heather to life. Since then, she's taken up a new name, Martyr.
And, to go along with the new name, she also seems to have a bit of a new personality. A
But Phyla isn't the only one who makes some iffy deals...
There is just so much cool packed into this volume, I don't even know where to start! The Guardians are split into groups and sent in different directions in an attempt to stop the Shi'ar and Inhumans (now leading the Kree) from ripping the fabric of time with their War.
Star-Lord tries to talk sense into Medusa and Black Bolt, while Adam Warlock takes on Emperor Vulcan.
*lots of crazy shit happens*
Time and space are coming apart, and half of the Guardians are sent into the future to figure out where it all started, and the other half are left to figure out how to stop it now that it's begun.
*insert MORE crazy shit happening*
THAT ENDING!
Oh my God! I'd love to finish this review, but I need to find out what happened!
PS -
Since I read this as digital issues, I didn't get to read Marvel Spotlight: War of Kings. So sad I missed out on it!
Get this review and more at:
March 16, 2014
“It’s spawning organisms from pustules on its tentacles!”
“That sentence combined so many of my least favorite words.” - Rocket Raccoon
The Guardians of the Galaxy have been trying to stop an interstellar war between the Shi’ar and the Kree not just because war kinda sucks, but because the fabric of the universe is in a fragile state following recent events so having two powerful and incredibly advanced races cutting loose on each other seems like a recipe for disaster.
As the Guardians scramble to end the conflict and save the universe, they find themselves in some very timey-wimey predicaments involving fighting giant creatures from other universes and dealing with alternate timelines. Trying to save existence also comes at a terrible cost.
I’m generally not a fan of the big comic crossovers, and I haven’t read any of the other stuff regarding War of the Kings, but I enjoyed the hell out of this story. For once the bigger events and the on-going stories from GotG dovetailed nicely to create one great tale. The cosmic craziness, the humor, the fun characters, the action and then the surprisingly powerful ending combine to make this one of the better Marvel stories I’ve read.
My only complaint comes from he artwork. Most of the book is done in a more ‘realistic’ style, but some portions were done by a different artist and are very cartoony. The two styles don’t mesh well together and I think the final part of the story would have been better served by not looking like it was a comedy on Cartoon Network.
“That sentence combined so many of my least favorite words.” - Rocket Raccoon
The Guardians of the Galaxy have been trying to stop an interstellar war between the Shi’ar and the Kree not just because war kinda sucks, but because the fabric of the universe is in a fragile state following recent events so having two powerful and incredibly advanced races cutting loose on each other seems like a recipe for disaster.
As the Guardians scramble to end the conflict and save the universe, they find themselves in some very timey-wimey predicaments involving fighting giant creatures from other universes and dealing with alternate timelines. Trying to save existence also comes at a terrible cost.
I’m generally not a fan of the big comic crossovers, and I haven’t read any of the other stuff regarding War of the Kings, but I enjoyed the hell out of this story. For once the bigger events and the on-going stories from GotG dovetailed nicely to create one great tale. The cosmic craziness, the humor, the fun characters, the action and then the surprisingly powerful ending combine to make this one of the better Marvel stories I’ve read.
My only complaint comes from he artwork. Most of the book is done in a more ‘realistic’ style, but some portions were done by a different artist and are very cartoony. The two styles don’t mesh well together and I think the final part of the story would have been better served by not looking like it was a comedy on Cartoon Network.
May 21, 2019
Amazing. My recent chronological-order-reread of Marvel's 'cosmic' books and all the dross it has contained was worth it for this volume of Guardians alone.
Abnett and Lanning pulled out all the stops on this one; this was space opera at its finest. The stakes don't get higher and this one had it all: action, jokes, bar fights, betrayal, enemies forced to work together, sacrifice, Lovecraftian horrors from beyond time and space and... and... I AM GROOT!
I'm going to have a bit of a lie down...
Abnett and Lanning pulled out all the stops on this one; this was space opera at its finest. The stakes don't get higher and this one had it all: action, jokes, bar fights, betrayal, enemies forced to work together, sacrifice, Lovecraftian horrors from beyond time and space and... and... I AM GROOT!
I'm going to have a bit of a lie down...
August 11, 2016
Space operas, in order to be successful, need to be epic. This volume of Guardians of the Galaxy was exactly that. We have a little bit of everything from Inhumans to Shi'ar Empire all the way to a Guardians of the Galaxy from the future.
The Kree are being led by Black Bolt and the Inhumans and they are waging a war against the Shi'Ar Empire led by Vulcan. As if the war itself weren't bad enough, the results of it are causing a fragile universe to teeter. The Guardians start by splitting into two teams- one to go speak with the Inhumans and one to speak with Vulcan. Neither goes as planned and an epic fracas ensues. I shall not give away any spoilers but there are some great fights in this volume. Finally the space ruputres are sealed by Adam Warlock who sacrifices himself at a terrible cost.
This issue had it all. Beautiful illustrated save for the last issue or two where some back-up artist did a less than stellar job. The writing is funny and yet brings to mind some great points about how people are willing in to engage in a war that no one wins.
If you are looking for a grand cosmic tale full of action and humor, then this is for you. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a good read. Dan Abnett's run on Guardians is better than I had expected.
The Kree are being led by Black Bolt and the Inhumans and they are waging a war against the Shi'Ar Empire led by Vulcan. As if the war itself weren't bad enough, the results of it are causing a fragile universe to teeter. The Guardians start by splitting into two teams- one to go speak with the Inhumans and one to speak with Vulcan. Neither goes as planned and an epic fracas ensues. I shall not give away any spoilers but there are some great fights in this volume. Finally the space ruputres are sealed by Adam Warlock who sacrifices himself at a terrible cost.
This issue had it all. Beautiful illustrated save for the last issue or two where some back-up artist did a less than stellar job. The writing is funny and yet brings to mind some great points about how people are willing in to engage in a war that no one wins.
If you are looking for a grand cosmic tale full of action and humor, then this is for you. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a good read. Dan Abnett's run on Guardians is better than I had expected.
April 19, 2023
Heavy metal timey wimey cosmically groovy and fun, YEAH!
Kudos to Medusa for pioneering a garment hat covers all of her skin minus her face and a Comics Code-Approved Boob Window. Couldn't her hubby Black Bolt at least hang dong or something in solidarity?
Kudos to Medusa for pioneering a garment hat covers all of her skin minus her face and a Comics Code-Approved Boob Window. Couldn't her hubby Black Bolt at least hang dong or something in solidarity?
August 13, 2023
This was just an event that required tie-ins to fully appreciate. Some storylines were cool, but they were never finished inside this volume.
November 25, 2019
Another fun romp across space and time with the Guardians crew.
May 20, 2022
Holy hell this gets dark. So Much death and carnage and for once Kang is used in a fun way that makes sense. The change of art though was extremely jarring.
February 3, 2015
Wow, this volume was good. All of the pieces Abnett & Lanning have been moving around for the entire series come to a head here, and the payoff is totally worth it. I never feel like the culmination of a million tiny threads almost never actually works out to anything good, but if writers just follow the character work and detail these guys used, maybe that'll change.
It's hard to really talk about this book without spoiling anything, since so much of it relies on set up from previous volumes, but I will say it has one of the most satisfying and surprising finales I've read in a comic in a long time. Top it off with the fact that this is all apparently a direct crossover with the War of Kings event, which I've never read and yet never once felt lost within.
I mean, this is just solid stuff. The Guardians might not function very well as a team, but somehow they get the job done in a way that uses that dynamic incredibly well. Bravo, Abnett & Lanning. I just wish this series had gone on for another few years. Or maybe I don't. Maybe it's good that it ended before it could get bad.
It's hard to really talk about this book without spoiling anything, since so much of it relies on set up from previous volumes, but I will say it has one of the most satisfying and surprising finales I've read in a comic in a long time. Top it off with the fact that this is all apparently a direct crossover with the War of Kings event, which I've never read and yet never once felt lost within.
I mean, this is just solid stuff. The Guardians might not function very well as a team, but somehow they get the job done in a way that uses that dynamic incredibly well. Bravo, Abnett & Lanning. I just wish this series had gone on for another few years. Or maybe I don't. Maybe it's good that it ended before it could get bad.
March 26, 2023
Abnett and Lanning have really found their stride here. I also enjoyed the choice to pull in Wes Craig for 3009 guardians
July 10, 2011
This was just a trip down memory lane for me. I haven't read or even thought about The Guardians of the Galaxy in about 15 years. And this is just like going back in time with Adam warlock, Jack Flag, Moondragon, Vance Astro, Drax the Destroyer (who has apparently been reincarnated as a woman) and an all-new Quasar (I said I was waiting for him to show up, only this time, he too is a woman). Most of whom I haven't seen or thought about since The Infinity Gauntlet.
And here I am like a little kid reading these Marvel space books like I'm 13 years old again, with a crossover that is different, but just as good as The Infinity Gauntlet. If you have been reading all of the Marvel garbage over the past few years with M-Day and Initiative and Dark Reign, then these types of books are a breath of fresh air. Like going from a garbage dump to a garden.
Here in these books the Guardians are reformed with new and old members to stop the War of Kings (Vulcan vs. Blackbolt vs. Havok). And for the most part, the Guardians or on the periphery, not in the heart of the war, but trying as they can to stop the war by different means than head to head combat. Which is a nice change of pace, breaking of from the main storyline but involving all of these great characters, giving them all new life.
And here I am like a little kid reading these Marvel space books like I'm 13 years old again, with a crossover that is different, but just as good as The Infinity Gauntlet. If you have been reading all of the Marvel garbage over the past few years with M-Day and Initiative and Dark Reign, then these types of books are a breath of fresh air. Like going from a garbage dump to a garden.
Here in these books the Guardians are reformed with new and old members to stop the War of Kings (Vulcan vs. Blackbolt vs. Havok). And for the most part, the Guardians or on the periphery, not in the heart of the war, but trying as they can to stop the war by different means than head to head combat. Which is a nice change of pace, breaking of from the main storyline but involving all of these great characters, giving them all new life.
August 15, 2014
El conflicto entre los Inhumanos y el Imperio Shi'ar amenaza con romper en pedazos el cosmos y producir millones de víctimas. En defensa de los inocentes, los Guardianes de la Galaxia emprenden acciones diplomáticas destinadas a la búsqueda de un tratado de paz, pero ninguno de los dos bandos está dispuesto a cejar en sus empeños.
Este fue un volumen muy intenso con un final completamente inesperado, los Guardianes salvan la Galaxia pero a un precio muy alto. Aparecen personajes como Rayo Negro y Vulcano que les complican aún más las cosas.
Este fue un volumen muy intenso con un final completamente inesperado, los Guardianes salvan la Galaxia pero a un precio muy alto. Aparecen personajes como Rayo Negro y Vulcano que les complican aún más las cosas.
May 26, 2016
I'm tearing through these GotG issues like a tear in the fabric of the galaxy. This one starts with the Guardians inexplicably getting back together after the events from volume 2. They're best together so I'm fine with that. Then the action starts. All the previous storylines slam together with a splash of comedy. So much fun. I'm off to finish this series off. I feel giddy.
April 27, 2010
While I still enjoy the loveable losers that make up this team, this installment felt way too weighed down by having to be part of a company event (crossing over with other titles etc.). Here's hoping the next installment is an improvement.
February 16, 2010
For old-school fans of Marvel (I am talking 1975-1985 readers), this was a real treat, from Adam Warlock to Bug (of the Microverse/Micronauts) to Starlord.
June 25, 2013
The War of Kings tie-in offers a slow start to the volume, but the last half really rolls and the ending is ... shocking.
October 18, 2020
Der dritte Band ist der bisherige Höhepunkt der insgesamt 4 Bände umfassende Comic-Story. Adam Warlock, der Magier bringt die Guardians dazu, in den Konflikt zwischen den von Inhumans (!) beherrschten Kree und den vom superkräftigen Diktator Vulcan angeführten Shi'ar einzugreifen, denn durch ihn wird das gesamte Universum destabilisiert. Doch damit haben sie sich mal wieder eine Aufgabe aufgehalst, die eine Nummer zu groß ist für die galaktischen Raufbolde. Gleich am am Anfang sind sie in eine Kneipenschlägerei verwickelt, ein großes ganzseitiges Panel zeigt sie in Action und darunter steht "Friedensstifter" (der Titel des ersten Heftes). Sie schaffen es nicht, um es kurz zu machen, auch wenn sie Hilfe bekommen. Die Feinde dringen bei der Verfolgung der Guardians sogar in Knowhere ein, werden dort zurückgeschlagen, aber es kommt wieder ganz anders. Der gefangen gesetzte Starhawk kommt frei und kann dank seiner Fähigkeit in vielen Universen gleichzeitig zu existieren seine in Band 1 ausgesprochene Warnung präzisieren. Die Handlung hat mit dem 1000 Jähre in der Zukunft liegenden Ende der Erde tatsächlich etwas zu tun. Ein Teil der Guardians wird dorthin versetzt und muss wieder von dort fliehen - in eine andere mögliche Zukunft um am Ende wieder in die Haupthandlunng einzugreifen.
Die 170 Seiten sind wahrlich handlungsprall. Es gibt so viele Zeitstränge, und andere Welten. Das Spiel mit den verschiedenen Realitäten, das das Marvel-Universum erlaubt wird voll ausgereizt. Dazu die Auftritte von anderen Superhelden-Gruppen wie den Inhumans und (mir weniger bekannten) Figuren aus dem Marveluniversum. Referenzen auf andere "Fantasie-Welten", flapsige Dialoge und (wie es sich für eine Space-Opera gehört) Technobabbel. Und vor allem viele, viele Ideen. Es ist gar nicht so einfach, der Story zu folgen. Aber letztendlich war es ein großer Spaß, weil sie auch großartig visualisiert wurde.
Die 170 Seiten sind wahrlich handlungsprall. Es gibt so viele Zeitstränge, und andere Welten. Das Spiel mit den verschiedenen Realitäten, das das Marvel-Universum erlaubt wird voll ausgereizt. Dazu die Auftritte von anderen Superhelden-Gruppen wie den Inhumans und (mir weniger bekannten) Figuren aus dem Marveluniversum. Referenzen auf andere "Fantasie-Welten", flapsige Dialoge und (wie es sich für eine Space-Opera gehört) Technobabbel. Und vor allem viele, viele Ideen. Es ist gar nicht so einfach, der Story zu folgen. Aber letztendlich war es ein großer Spaß, weil sie auch großartig visualisiert wurde.
September 23, 2021
So far I’ve been enjoying this run, but more than ever I feel overwhelming confusion from lack of context. I didn’t read the Annihilation event before starting all this and I didn’t read all the War of Kings crossover comics that would have made this particular volume make more sense. Just like Jack, I find myself feeling “allergic to this cosmic stuff” because there’s just SO MUCH going on here. I’m definitely going to have to do some make-up reading to fill in the gaps.
The character of Bug is also accentuating my annoyance for the way some of the female characters are drawn here. I’m trying to ignore that though 😑
Despite all that, these are some of the best comics I’ve read. And even though I’m super lost in this world of cosmic super heroes, I’m really hooked on finding out what happens next!
The character of Bug is also accentuating my annoyance for the way some of the female characters are drawn here. I’m trying to ignore that though 😑
Despite all that, these are some of the best comics I’ve read. And even though I’m super lost in this world of cosmic super heroes, I’m really hooked on finding out what happens next!
June 17, 2017
This book truly was cut in half. The parts dealing with the War Of Kings were phenomenal but the parts involving future/alternate Guardians were less than stellar. Abnett and Lanning do their normal cosmic craziness and superb dialogue but there was too much reliance on time-hopping. One time would have been sufficient. The shocks and turns were usually undone too quickly. The art by Brad Walker was fantastic but Wesley Craig's was too cartoony and unfinished. Overall, another good entry in the series that could have been better if streamlined.
January 22, 2019
It becomes plainly apparent, when reading this volume, how the MCU Guardians came to be.
James Gunn was obviously influenced heavily by Abnett and Lanning's run. The ridiculousness of the stories; the playful banter between the crew; even the characterizations, which were changed for a movie-friendly audience, are still here.
This series of stories finds the book at its height, and is a must read not just within the scope of the event, but for fans of the movies as well. No false notes, and a real blast throughout.
James Gunn was obviously influenced heavily by Abnett and Lanning's run. The ridiculousness of the stories; the playful banter between the crew; even the characterizations, which were changed for a movie-friendly audience, are still here.
This series of stories finds the book at its height, and is a must read not just within the scope of the event, but for fans of the movies as well. No false notes, and a real blast throughout.
December 28, 2019
This book is amazing. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. It is so well written. This book almost made me cry at the end. "It didn't come cheap"- Drax. Well, no, it didn't. What an epic conclusion to this War of Kings story arc of the Guardians with time travelling and epic battles. Although I didn't like the future time artwork, it was not that bad to give this book a star less rating. Really if you are catched up on everything that is going on so far, this is a really worthy conclusion. Nothing but praise from me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 28, 2022
I wasn't a huge fan of Guardians of the galaxy even after watching the movies.
But recently i got a chance to play the game on my PS4.
And guess what, i just loved it .
So i started to look into their history and came accross these books by Dan Abnett, and i can assure it was worth the wait for me.
These books are soo good , the team dynamic the mysterious aspects and the whole loads of cosmic stuff.
I was glad that i invested my time in these gems.
My favorite is GAMORA , she's soo good , hot and strong and i love her
But recently i got a chance to play the game on my PS4.
And guess what, i just loved it .
So i started to look into their history and came accross these books by Dan Abnett, and i can assure it was worth the wait for me.
These books are soo good , the team dynamic the mysterious aspects and the whole loads of cosmic stuff.
I was glad that i invested my time in these gems.
My favorite is GAMORA , she's soo good , hot and strong and i love her
October 22, 2022
This book was kind of all over the place. I felt like a bit of the humor from earlier volumes was missing here. I haven't read anything else from the War of Kings event, but I didn't feel like I was missing too much.
August 5, 2023
Wow, I am not a MARVEL fan but I have enjoyed all the Guardians of the galaxy trades I've read
Just awesome. Always with the Guardians so far had there been enough fighting, madness, sadness and great all around story telling and characters. Among the fantastic art and fun way the story is told, even at its darkest times can sometimes turn right into one of the funnier moments in the story. Again just all around great and highly recommend any fan of comics, graphic novels, trades whatever people want to call them these days, all these are worth reading.
Just awesome. Always with the Guardians so far had there been enough fighting, madness, sadness and great all around story telling and characters. Among the fantastic art and fun way the story is told, even at its darkest times can sometimes turn right into one of the funnier moments in the story. Again just all around great and highly recommend any fan of comics, graphic novels, trades whatever people want to call them these days, all these are worth reading.
November 5, 2019
The Kree go against the Shi'Ar empire in this epic volume of the Guardians of the Galaxy. The inclusion of the inhumans as well as black bolt and the future Guardians make the scale as epic as it can get. Great cosmic adventure with an all star cast.
August 12, 2017
I don't know how you can hate cosmic stuff
July 3, 2019
This is really how not to do unwanted alien pregnancy storylines.
December 3, 2019
So cool that Bug (from the Micronauts) is in this also enjoyed the guest appearance of the original Yondo. Groot's conversation with Maximus was also brilliant.
December 8, 2020
A good addition to the War of Kings event as a whole. Looking forward to Magus wrecking the Guardians next.
February 1, 2022
star knocked off because quill is ugly in issue #16. otherwise this volume kicks ass
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews