I saw it with my son yesterday. I went in thinking I was going to be blown away due to seeing lots of reviews and comments similar to the ones in this thread. Plus, as a child of the 80s myself it should have been right in my wheelhouse. But it really didn't hit me the same way. I'm not saying I disliked the movie; the problem is that it really made no strong impression on me one way or another.

Maybe the problem is that I'm not that familiar with this particular branch of the Marvel universe? I dunno. I do remember reading the Infinity Gauntlet series back in the day and I was excited to see Thanos. And I actually liked Ronan and Nebula in this as well.

One review I read said that it was like Star Wars but all the main characters were Han Solo. They meant it as a positive thing but I think it's actually a negative for me. Anyway I wanted to love it a lot more than I actually did. Maybe it will catch on after I see it again down the road. I hope this doesn't mean I am a cynical old man now -- I loved the Lego movie, that has to count for something!

No, I had a similar reaction. It was fun to watch but I was expecting it to be on par with Avengers and it wasn't for me. The thing I did enjoy the most about it was that there was a sci fi action movie that wasn't grim as hell and throwing buckets of gore in my face. It was refreshing. Visually it was fantastic and it does have some funny dialogue. Gotta go with Rocket as my favorite character.

The movie was just too unrealistic. There's no way, after 26 years of continuous use, that a cassette tape would still sound that good!

I only saw one direct Star Wars reference, at the beginning. How many where there?

Not really sure how common it is but there are theaters within a reasonable distance from me with Descriptive Video support. Fortunately, GotG is available in one of them! My chauffer... I mean my brother and I(and the other players in our EotE game) are going this afternoon!

If you see a girl in an IIMAX theater wearing headphones instead of 3D glasses, say hi! Be nice to the three goons sitting with, though. They're the over-protective sort...

I would certainly say 'hi' but sadly unless you're in the UK South West, it's unlikely to be my local cinema, otherwise I would brave your protectors to say 'hello' to any fellow EotE player.

I hope you enjoy it. We only get the Audio Descriptive versions in the second week where I live. I honestly think they'll struggle in this film as the dialogue is nearly non-stop. But on the plus side, much of the dialogue describes what is happening. (Especially Rocket's dialogue who even manages to slip in "We're all standing up now, standing up in a circle". I hope the AD people have the sense not to try and narrate that as well! ).

The movie was just too unrealistic. There's no way, after 26 years of continuous use, that a cassette tape would still sound that good!

If this bothers you, I think it's a trivial and supportable justification to assume that with all the FTL travel, beam weapons and materials science on display as routine events in this film, that some way of preserving a precious artefact could be found by a motivated character. A quick spray of mono-carbon coating over the tape and the cassette should do it.

I only saw one direct Star Wars reference, at the beginning. How many where there?

I didn't even notice one. Nor really do I think there should be. The point in this thread is that the movie captured much of the feel, not that it referenced it.

When Starlord was picking that lock in the second or third scene, when he withdrew his lockpick (which resembled the thingy R2 uses), the keyhole looked exactly like the eight pointed Imperial emblem (the Threat symbol).

When I first saw the trailer a few months ago I had no idea what it was about (not at all familiar with the comic book). In retrospect it was a terrible trailer, because if you weren't in the know then it just looked stupid. A raccoon with a gun? Okay, that could be funny for, like, a scene...maybe. They made the trailer for the fans.

But after reading this thread and the reviews I buckled and took my son last night. I won't say I was blown away, but it was a lot of fun, and more importantly for me, good character development and dialogue. Great lines:

I won't say the "evil" side had much of a story going for it, but revenge and power lust are the default motives that work well enough.

The movie was just too unrealistic. There's no way, after 26 years of continuous use, that a cassette tape would still sound that good!

...yeah, and those headphone cords would have broken by now...

...and, I grew up with those songs, and don't really need to hear them again

It would be fairly simple with advanced tech and some skill with electronics to cobble together a tape player and repair system. That he has the system still working isn't that unrealistic given his skills as a junker/scavenger. The part that doesn't make sense is that he hasn't converted it to digital long ago. I suspect it is meant to be a comment on his character that he is connected to both concepts (the music) and the tangible (the tape and walkman). Quill would rather spend the time repairing his gear on a continuous basis than discard his connection to family.

As for the villains not being as compelling as they could be, I understand. I would have liked to see more of Ronin's backstory, but I would rather have compelling heroes. If the protagonists take time away from antagonists that's a a trade more movies need to make. Too much contemporary media fails to realize that the audience is there for the heroes, not the bad guys.

When I first saw the trailer a few months ago I had no idea what it was about (not at all familiar with the comic book). In retrospect it was a terrible trailer, because if you weren't in the know then it just looked stupid. A raccoon with a gun? Okay, that could be funny for, like, a scene...maybe. They made the trailer for the fans.

Going to have to disagree with you heavily there. I had no knowledge of the comics at all when I saw the first trailer. (This is the first one, btw. I assume this is the one you mean: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTZ2Tp9yXyM).

It pretty much instantly ensured I would see the film. I see nothing in there that isn't good independently of knowledge of the comics. It immediately captured that the characters weren't unadulterated Hollywood perfection but undercut by some real irreverence. "Who?" Perfect.

And the racoon? The moment I saw a racoon with a gun riding a tree, it just got better. And the way his boots marched in time to the "thbam-thbam-thbam" intro just before the "ahh-ahhhh-ah-ah" told me that if they put this much effort into a trailer, I wanted to see this film. It looked great.

I only saw the fuller trailers later on and they were AWFUL! Desperately trying to make the movie look like generic sci-fi hero pap.

Also, I'm pretty sure the term Rocket uses in that line is "jackass", not "idiot".

It would be fairly simple with advanced tech and some skill with electronics to cobble together a tape player and repair system. That he has the system still working isn't that unrealistic given his skills as a junker/scavenger. The part that doesn't make sense is that he hasn't converted it to digital long ago. I suspect it is meant to be a comment on his character that he is connected to both concepts (the music) and the tangible (the tape and walkman). Quill would rather spend the time repairing his gear on a continuous basis than discard his connection to family.

Color me assumptive, but I sensed sarcasm in the Force in regards to HHs 'totally unrealistic' comment.......

The movie was just too unrealistic. There's no way, after 26 years of continuous use, that a cassette tape would still sound that good!

If this bothers you...

Er...I think he was being sarcastic...at least that's how I took it.

Edit: how didn't I see 2P51's post? Durp...

Going to have to disagree with you heavily there. I had no knowledge of the comics at all when I saw the first trailer. (This is the first one, btw. I assume this is the one you mean: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTZ2Tp9yXyM).

It pretty much instantly ensured I would see the film. I see nothing in there that isn't good independently of knowledge of the comics. It immediately captured that the characters weren't unadulterated Hollywood perfection but undercut by some real irreverence.

Yep, that was the one, pretty much instantly ensured I wouldn't. Because given the general quality of movies, it's a good bet it would suck. Now that I've seen the film, reviewing that trailer confirms what a terrible trailer it is. I'm not interested in seeing a raccoon with a gun riding a tree for its own sake, in most movies that would be just a gag, and I'm not into gag "humour" (if that's what it passes for). Spewing the rap sheet and some security guy saying "what a bunch of a*holes" isn't exactly compelling dialogue and doesn't tell me why I should care.

Thankfully this thread existed and made me rethink going.

I pretty much knew from the getgo I was seeing this. I think many things like Rocket talking and Groot were kept under wraps for awhile because Bradley's and Vin's voicework they knew their contribution was so good. I am more familiar with the original Guardians but I thoroughly enjoyed this. Especially the music. And my girlfriend, who is totally unfamiliar with any of the characters and comics in general, enjoyed the movie immensely.

Peter's pop-culture references might be dated

I assumed the entire point of Peter is that he's forever stuck in 1984

As for the film, I'm just gonna steal so much of it for my EoE game...

That was the point, but it was still both glorious and hilarious to watch.

As for stealing stuff, I can't fault you for doing so. This movie almost really is a textbook EotE adventure, from the PCs all the way down to the locations visited.

Time for name that spec for the characters I would think.....

Quill is Smuggler all the way; Scoundrel, with Thief and Pilot specs. He's arguably a better pin-up boy for the career than even Han Solo.

Gamora is Marauder with maybe some dips into Gadgeteer.

Drax is Hired Gun: Marauder and Heavy. Probably some Enforcer just for the Intimidation abilities.

Rocket is Gadgeteer/Pilot/Mechanic.

Groot's abilities seem to be about what he is, rather than what he knows.

I was thinking along similar lines.

Quill = Smuggler/Thief/Scoundrel, with his piloting chops being due to a high Agility and a few ranks in Piloting (Space)

Drax = Hired Gun/Marauder, with a couple ranks in Gunnery

Rocket = Bounty Hunter/Gadgeteer, again with ranks in Piloting (Space) and non-career ranks in Gunnery.

Groot = Groot

Gamora = this one it'd consider going outside EotE and going Spy/Infiltrator, though Bounty Hunter/Assassin works too.

I think the general trick with the MCU movies is to go into them with one simple expectation: That you're going to at least be entertained for a couple hours. Then again, that's the usual attitude I have when I got to see any movie in the theater, and it's worked pretty well; I'm probably one of the few (or so it seems) Star Wars fans that wasn't outraged by Phantom Menace (yeah, it's the weakest of the six, but I still enjoyed it).

True, this was no Avengers, but I think after more serious fare such as Winter Soldier and even Thor: Dark World, a movie that was much lighter and skewed more towards humor is a nice change of pace.

As for the bad guys not getting much development, remember that unlike Avengers (which had several movies to introduce most of the heroes) that GotG had to introduce and develop the five main 'heroes' within a two hour time frame. Pretty sure that Nebula will be back for the sequel (and given how well this film's done in the opening weekend, a sequel is pretty much assured), so there will be a chance for additional development. Ronan the Accuser didn't need a lot of development, as what we got established pretty clearly that he was a psychotic zealot that placed little value on the lives of others. Thanos it looks like is being 'saved' for later films in terms of his development, presumably to be the major villain in Avengers 3 to cap off the Phase 3 series of films.

As for stealing stuff, I can't fault you for doing so. This movie almost really is a textbook EotE adventure, from the PCs all the way down to the locations visited.

I'd totally love to build a lawless Shadowport built into a scooped out skull of a giant being. Mind you, it'd have to be an all new race, seeing that Star Wars doesn't really have a counterpart to Marvel's Celestials. Eh, it's a big galaxy - I'm sure there's giant headless space monster corpse floating around somewhere. . . .

True, this was no Avengers, but I think after more serious fare such as Winter Soldier and even Thor: Dark World, a movie that was much lighter and skewed more towards humor is a nice change of pace.

Since Cap 2 and Thor 2 went to pretty dark places, and Avengers 2 also looks to be heavy, it's a wise move to lighten the mood a bit before the next act. It's also smart to bring on some fresh blood, considering that we've had 10 movies with (more or less) the same characters. Bringing on a new batch keeps things from getting stale.

I almost died with the "Nothing goes over my head! My reflexs are too fast, I will catch it!" I didn't think having Bautista working very well, but he ended up being about perfect for the part.

Man, I'd love to be a fly on the wall at Casa El Rock this morning:

Pretty sure that Nebula will be back for the sequel (and given how well this film's done in the opening weekend, a sequel is pretty much assured), so there will be a chance for additional development.

A sequel was announced even before it officially opened.

I'd totally love to build a lawless Shadowport built into a scooped out skull of a giant being. Mind you, it'd have to be an all new race, seeing that Star Wars doesn't really have a counterpart to Marvel's Celestials. Eh, it's a big galaxy - I'm sure there's giant headless space monster corpse floating around somewhere. . . .

Look no further than Ep V. Sure the Exogorth does not have the creepy human shape to it, but it can still do what you need it to do.

I'd totally love to build a lawless Shadowport built into a scooped out skull of a giant being. Mind you, it'd have to be an all new race, seeing that Star Wars doesn't really have a counterpart to Marvel's Celestials. Eh, it's a big galaxy - I'm sure there's giant headless space monster corpse floating around somewhere. . . .

Yeah, that skull idea was brilliant, one of the highlights for me. And the SW-EU does mention Celestials, nobody knows what they were like, but apparently they made Centerpoint Station.

@2P51 - Fan wish list, yeah? I wish it were real though!

Okay - I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that there's a superhero called the Black Panther, and that this has nothing to do with Hewey Newton et al. Because if I'm wrong, that's going to a very weird movie to fit into the series. Verrrrry weird.

Yep, that was the one, pretty much instantly ensured I wouldn't. Because given the general quality of movies, it's a good bet it would suck. Now that I've seen the film, reviewing that trailer confirms what a terrible trailer it is. I'm not interested in seeing a raccoon with a gun riding a tree for its own sake, in most movies that would be just a gag, and I'm not into gag "humour" (if that's what it passes for). Spewing the rap sheet and some security guy saying "what a bunch of a*holes" isn't exactly compelling dialogue and doesn't tell me why I should care.

Thankfully this thread existed and made me rethink going.

Well all I can say is that I'm completely thrown by your thinking that's a bad trailer. To me it captures the tone of the movie extraordinarily well. It also told me almost immediately that this film would NOT be like most other films - the way it makes obvious that the heroes are not being backed up by general Hollywood hero-freebies. (By which I mean the way heroes in such movies always get automatic cachet by others in-universe just because they're the heroes to us), that there was a significant degree of irreverence in and toward the characters, that it didn't take itself too seriously andif the trailer itself makes me laugh so much... I genuinely don't get why a racoon on a tree says cheap gag to me. I saw it and thought it looked great. It never occurred to me that it was going to be a throw away laugh - it seemed obvious from the police line-up that the racoon was going to be a main character. If the film had been some sort of Disney movie, then a talking racoon might have said: "comedy side-kick" to me, but in this there was nothing to suggest he would be to me.

Not writing so much to argue, it's just one of those cases where I genuinely cannot get where you're coming from. The trailer has the feel of the movie down pretty much perfectly, to me.

Black Panther.

Look no further than Ep V. Sure the Exogorth does not have the creepy human shape to it, but it can still do what you need it to do.

*facepalm*

Space Slugs! Of course - what the hell was I thinking. Duh. Mind you, now that I think about it - I had an idea similar, ages and ages ago - small band of pirates setting up their base (carefully) in a slug, to confuse the sensors and cut operating costs on heat and insulation. Not quite the scope and size of Knowhere, but same idea.

. . . . and now of course I look like Johhny-Come-Lately.

@2P51 - Fan wish list, yeah? I wish it were real though!

I dont think for Avengers 3 that they'll go Civil War - Spider Man's moral center was too important to the story arc. Pull that out and it's not nearly as good a story. Also, they've spent too much time setting up the Infinity Gauntlet to push it back to Avengers 4. Once we get Ultron out of the way, that'll probably the next story.

Okay - I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that there's a superhero called the Black Panther, and that this has nothing to do with Hewey Newton et al. Because if I'm wrong, that's going to a very weird movie to fit into the series. Verrrrry weird.

Nope - wrong dude.

Mind you, if they're going to go the Angry Black Dude route, I'd MUCH rather see Power Man get a movie. And then make it a blaxploitation period piece, full of funky seventies. Like Black Dynamite, but serious.

Hey, if Disney can take a risk with GotG and make it work, why not dream big!

Also: this needs to be a thing, STAT: