Warning! Spoilers for Marvel’s Ultimates #8 ahead!
Marvel’sUltimateline of comics just introduced a radical reinterpretation of theGuardians of the Galaxy, but in the process, the publisher highlighted the very issue that has plagued the fan-favorite franchise over the past several years. In a sense, Marvel’sGuardianshave been a victim of their own success, but the latest incarnation of the team shows that there is a simple solution to this problem.
The Ultimates#8 – written by Deniz Camp, with art by Juan Frigeri – centers around the arrival of the 61st-century Guardians of the Galaxy on present-day Earth, where they reveal Ultimates member America Chavez is one of their members.
The team’s roster takesUltimateMarvel’s reinvention of familiar charactersto the next level, offering a staggeringly creative new take on heroes like Captain Marvel and Star-Lord. Even more crucially, itemphasizes the near-limitless potential of theGuardiansconcept, as long as the publisher is willing to stray from what MCU fans recognize.
Marvel Offers Fans A Glimpse At The Future Of The Guardians Of The Galaxy – Offering An Easy Fix To An Ongoing Problem
The Ultimates#8 – Written By Deniz Camp; Art By Juan Frigeri; Color By Federico Blee; Lettering By Travis Lanham; Main Cover By Dike Ruan & Neeraj Menon (Color)
In 2014,James Gunn’s firstGuardians of the Galaxyfilmtook a lesser-known Marvel Comics superteam and turned them into MCU A-listers, elevating the central cast of Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax the Destroyer, Rocket Racoon, and Groot to an unexpected level of mainstream appeal. Of course, what hardcore Marvel fans know, but what more casual enthusiasts might be surprised to learn, is that this line-up first appeared together as the Guardians just a few years earlier, in 2008. In the decade-plus since their cinematic adaptation, this roster has become synonymous with the franchise – for better or worse.
[Ultimates] author Deniz Camp has done a remarkable job of highlighting the scope of the ambitious stories that the Guardians are capable of having as they traverse time and space.
That is why it is exciting news for Marvel readers thatUltimates#8 establishes an entirely new version of the squad, who are completely unlike their on-screen counterparts. This new team offers a solution to Marvel’s ongoing problem withGuardians of the Galaxy, which is that the franchise has become overly-fixated on replicating the success of the MCU team, rather than pushing the book in new directions, and taking new exciting changes with the team’s premise, which is one of Marvel’s most exciting.
The Ultimates#8 is a self-contained issue, which introduces theUltimateGuardians, and by the end of the issue, features them leaving Earth once more, in order to continue their mission, while the Ultimates continue theirs. It is a perfect set-up for an ongoingUltimate Guardiansseries, but even if that doesn’t materialize, in the span of a single issue, author Deniz Camp has done a remarkable job of highlighting the scope of the ambitious stories that the Guardians are capable of having as they traverse time and space.
The New Ultimate Guardians Are A Refreshing Reinterpretation Of The Cosmic Marvel Hero Team
If Any Marvel Franchise Ever Needed A Reboot, It’sGuardians
It is worth keeping in mind thatGuardians of the Galaxypredated the incarnationof the team made famous by the Marvel Cinematic Universe by decades; the originalGuardianstitle was published in 1969, and there have been multiple different rosters over the years. In a way,the MCU version has become “stuck” as the default for the team, butUltimates#8 eschews that by putting together a line-up that is deliberately unfamiliar, even in the cases where the characters are the “same,” as with Star-Lord.
Marvel Gifts Its Original Guardians of the Galaxy Squad a Perfect Tribute (And an Overdue Explanation)
Not many readers remember the original Guardians of the Galaxy, but a new cameo has reintroduced them for a universe where everything has changed
Of course, Marvel has incentive to generate synergy between its comic and film franchises; this is why the comic versions of characters, from Agatha Harkness to Red Hulk, undergo revivals on the page whenever they make an impactful appearance on screen. That said,Guardians of the Galaxyis perhaps the most potent example of the potential downside to this strategy, which is that careful curation of MCU characters can turn into hesitation to take franchises in new directions. It is a form of narrative stasis that is ultimately long-term harmful to properties likeGuardians.
Marvel’s New Guardians Already Have A Rich History & Detailed Backstory – Highlight The Scope The Franchise Can Easily Achieve
The Ultimates#8 Raises Hopes For AnUltimate GuardiansSeries
The Ultimates#8 is the stand-out issue of the book’s run so far, and what makes it particularly engaging is the way that it packs in so much lore and backstory for this new, futuristic Guardians team, with their adventures portrayed as appropriately epic and Universe-spanning. It is safe to say that the issue adheres to the classic show business adage of “always leave them wanting more”; that is,it is hard to imagine a reader coming away from the issue not eagerly wanting to follow the further adventures of theUltimateGuardians.
Sorry, Krypto: Marvel Just Made Cosmo the Best Superhero Dog With a Guardians of the Galaxy Reveal.
While Krypto may be the best known dog character in comics, Marvel makes a strong case for Guardians of the Galaxy’s Cosmo taking the title.
Ultimates#8 is akin “proof of concept” for a new era ofGuardians of the Galaxy– one that could be at the forefront ofMarvel’s increasingly stacked roster of cosmic heroes and villains. Right now, the franchise is lagging behind, adhering to an outdated conception of the team that, though it worked on screen, and flourished for what it was, is ready to given way to a different conception of the franchise.Guardianscould, essentially, be whatJonathan Hickman’sG.O.D.S.seriesattempted to be, but arguably didn’t quite achieve: a new way of exploring the Marvel Universe.
Marvel’s Writers Need To Have Free Reign To Deliver The Next Great Guardians Of The Galaxy Story
Marvel, It’s Time To Move On From The MCU Version Of The Team
IfUltimates#8 offered readers a reminder of what an uninhibitedGuardiansstory can look like, perhaps the best illustration of the franchise’s limitations came in the form of Al Ewing’s 2020-2021Guardiansrun. Over the past several years, Ewing has steadily gained a reputation as one of Marvel’s most envelope-pushing writers, and while hisGuardiansbook certainly featured its share of wild swings, it did not approach the same levels of transcendent cosmic storytelling thathe has achieved in series likeDefenders, Immortal Hulk, andImmortal Thor.
Only by letting its ambitious creators explore new variations on that premise, such as Ultimate Marvel just demonstrated, can the next golden era of Guardians of the Galaxy be discovered.
Deniz Camp’sUltimates#8 actually includes at least one shout-out to Ewing’sGuardiansrun, in the form of a potentialdirect connection betweenUltimateStar-Lord and Peter Quill. Moreover, the issue is gloriously reminiscent of Ewing’s work, and will have fans of the author clamoring to know what he could do with aGuardiansbook completely of his own design, with a roster and plot of his own choosing. While he did solid work with the characters he was given, his work was necessarily limited, and that is never the best condition for Al Ewing to operate within.
Much ofGuardians of the Galaxy’scinematic success can be attributed to the style and tone of James Gunn’s take on the franchise, and the chemistry between the film’s cast members. However, it shouldn’t be taken for granted that the core premise of the series – heroes that can go anywhere, and do anything, among Marvel’s cosmos – is still an important factor in the appeal. Only by letting its ambitious creators explore new variations on that premise, such asUltimate Marveljust demonstrated, can the next golden era ofGuardians of the Galaxybe discovered.
Guardians of the Galaxy
Cast
Guardians of the Galaxy is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, featuring Chris Pratt as Peter Quill. Abducted from Earth as a child, Quill navigates intergalactic adventures, becoming entwined in a conflict centered on a powerful orb coveted by Ronan the Accuser.
