Introduction to the Original Guardians of the Galaxy

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** Minor SPOILERS for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 **

As I stated in last week’s article the original 1969 Guardians of the Galaxy team gets a couple of nods in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, though with substantial reimagining.  Instead of being former heroes and protectors of the Galaxy, these characters are instead the captains of the various Ravager factions, who worked together as a team at some point in their past.  Though the team broke up years before the first Guardians of the Galaxy, at the end of the second movie the original team appears back together once more, inspired by the events of the movie.

The post-credits scene in which they all appear together (after only a couple of them appeared during the movie itself) suggests that these characters have a future ahead of them in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though what that future is remains to be seen.  So to prepare for this future (and because I want to), here is my introduction to the original Guardians of the Galaxy team and how I expect their origins to be tweaked for the MCU.

  

In the comics, these characters were all united by being the last of their species—a couple of them the last of their human offshoot species in a time period when the Earth had established colonies on several planets of its own solar system and galaxy.  Obviously, at least some of this origin will have to be reworked in the MCU.

Stakar Ogord, and Aleta Ogord a.k.a. “Starhawk”

Comic book origin:  Stakar is the son of Quasar and Ayesha (yes, that Ayesha) who was raised by a mutant couple on Arcturus IV.  After his “parents’” deaths at the hands of the anti-mutant Reavers, one of the Reavers found and adopted Stakar, choosing to raise him as his own.  Stakar and his adoptive sister Aleta became interested in the Hawk God and reanimated him.  The Hawk God transformed them so that they shared the same physical space in turns (because why not).  Starhawk was actually responsible for bringing the original Guardians team together to face the Badoon, and later joined the team.

Starhawk’s abilities (those of both Stakar and Aleta after receiving the Hawk God’s power) include light manipulation (to create both energy blasts and light constructs), as well as flight and the ability to survive in space, along with all the other typical abilities (strength, endurance, etc.).

MCU version:  Stakar in the MCU is the leader of the Ravagers, but that’s all we really know about him so far.  He has not displayed anything to indicate his possession of any of his comic book abilities, though that could come later.  Aleta, also, has not demonstrated any abilities.  My guess is that in the MCU they will have some technological method for generating energy blasts and manipulating light constructs, but I don’t expect the Hawk God to be involved.  Of course, they were able to make a talking tree work, so why shouldn’t they be able to make 2 people merging together work?

Martinex

Comic book origin:  Martinex is a scientist and the sole survivor of the Earth’s Pluvian colony (on Pluto).  Due to the conditions on Pluto, “Pluvians” have been genetically engineered to have a crystalline appearance as well as the ability to project heat and cold from their hands.

MCU version:  Thus far all we know is that they got his appearance right.  Beyond that, it’s all up in the air.  Everything about Martinex’s comic book origin works except for being from Pluto.  Considering that the Earth hasn’t tried colonizing other planets (that we know of), Martinex’s origin cannot be as an adapted human.  For the MCU version of the character, I would simply make him a member of an alien race (let’s call them “Hadaeans”) which naturally possesses the ability to project heat and cold.

Charlie-27

Comic book origin:  Charlie-27 is a soldier and pilot and, like Martinex, the sole survivor of an Earth colony – this one on Jupiter.  Consequently, he (and all Jovians) has been genetically engineered to have 11 times the muscle mass of a normal human in order to withstand Jupiter’s gravity.

MCU version:  We don’t know anything about Charlie-27 except that Ving Rhames is a large human being.  His origin, like that of Martinex, will need a bit of tweaking when it is explained.  Again as with Martinex, I would make Charlie-27 a member of an alien race (let’s call them “Zeusians”) which are naturally much stronger than normal beings.

Krugarr

Comic book origin:  Krugarr is a Lem (from the planet Lemista) who agrees to become Doctor Strange’s apprentice and succeed him as the new Sorcerer Supreme.  He assists the Guardians in a number of missions, though never as an official member of the team).

MCU version:  The only thing we know so far about Krugarr is that he does magic in much the same way that Doctor Strange depicts it.  This may mean that Marvel Studios is keeping the magic consistent (smart), but it could also suggest that Krugarr studied under the Ancient One.  To be honest, this wouldn’t be all that surprising considering her age and ability to transport anywhere in the galaxy/multiverse. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me too much to find out that the Ancient One had Sanctums all over the cosmos and multiverse where she taught many classes of students.

Mainframe

Comic book origin:  Depending on the continuity you read, Mainframe is an artificial intelligence created by Tony Stank to operate an entire planet.

MCU version:  The biggest issue with the comic book origin is the inclusion of Tony Stark.  However, this is easily corrected by giving “her” a slightly different origin with a different creator.

Not Included

Vance Astro:  Human astronaut from the twentieth century who is placed in cryo-stasis for the duration of his millennium-long trip to Alpha Centauri.  During the trip his mutant ability of psychokinesis is activated.  Following the recovery of Captain America’s shield, Vance Astro (a.k.a. Major Victory) carries it to carry on Cap’s legacy.  Considering that he’s a mutant, it’s not overly surprising that Marvel Studios would not be in a position to use him.

Nikki:  Human genetically engineered to survive conditions on Mercury, giving her the ability to withstand heat and radiation from the sun.  Considering that there are already two members of the team from Earth colonies, I can see the argument that Nikki would confuse matters.  However, she is one of the two most likely characters to appear as later additions to this team.

Replica:  Skrull and member of the Universal Church of Truth.  We don’t know where the rights are tied up with the Skrulls, but that’s a good reason to avoid them entirely!

Talon:  Inhuman sorcerer who trained under Krugarr.  If Marvel is serious about expanding its use of Inhumans in the MCU, you could do worse than adding an Inhuman member to this team after Inhumans establishes that Attilan is in space (presumably).

Conclusion

These are all the member of the original Guardians of the Galaxy who are potentially going to appear in other MCU offerings.  I am quite interested to see where this is going to go, and whether it will factor into Avengers: Infinity War, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, or some other movie.  All of these characters sound rather intriguing, especially now that we’ve seen them in live-action once.  I will have more thoughts next week on what the future may hold for both teams of Guardians of the Galaxy; the purpose of this article is just to introduce the characters.

Which of these is your favorite Guardian?  Which team do you like better?  How would you incorporate these characters into a movie?  Let me know in the comments!