Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 offers a rare thing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe: a satisfying ending to a trilogy. While the Guardians series will probably continue on in some fashion, writer-director James Gunn ties up this iteration of the team with the same humor and heart as the first two, but this time adds in unexpected darkness in the form of Rocket’s genuinely disturbing origin story. It’s what makes this somewhat busy but mostly lovable threequel such an emotionally rich comic book movie.

A lot has happened with the Guardians since Vol. 2 was released in 2017; the original Gamora died, a past version of Gamora survived, and Peter Quill and Mantis learned that they’re brother and sister. Yet Gunn deftly turns that tangled ball of MCU lore threads into a devilishly fun yarn. This film has all the silly dialogue and gags you’d expect but there’s a far more dramatic tone to it, which is a welcome change after the second movie had the characters breathlessly laughing at their own jokes.