It’s no surprise, then, that writer and director James Gunn has brought plenty of swagger with him the second time around, and it’s right on display the very moment the movie begins. From the soundtrack choices to the production design to the script, there’s barely a single moment where this film isn’t delighting your senses. We won’t make you wait for the one-line verdict: if you loved the first one, you’re going to love this one too. Set just months after the first Guardians movie, the gang are getting by as heroes for hire, living up to their reputation as troublemakers-turned-galactic saviours. But of course, word travels fast, and when they’re not making more trouble for themselves, trouble is now actively finding them. Rest assured that saving the universe hasn’t made them any smarter or more pious. If anything, it’s had the opposite effect. With the character groundwork done in the first, the sequel spends a lot of time pulling its main cast apart and giving them obstacles that challenge who they are. Quill remains the focal point of the story, but everyone gets an arc, and an unexpected thematic thread develops. It’s a film about parenthood and responsibility, and how you might reconcile your adopted family with your biological one. There’s a lot to unpack, and it seems to me that those ideas will reveal themselves on subsequent viewings. It shows just how comfortable and complete these characters are, and that gives Gunn the freedom to work with them in fun ways. In The Avengers everyone in the team can land a note-perfect wisecrack. In Guardians, the comedy comes more out of how their screwed up personalities spark off one another. Even the romantic subplots, as conventional as the very idea seems, are so idiosyncratically hilarious that they’re in danger of undercutting the actual emotion. This is usually the point where we’d start complaining that Marvel has failed to find a decent villain yet again, but for a change that’s not really the case. The actual villain is revealed quite late in the day, and until then a selection of sympathetic antagonists give the team meaningful things to fight against, with actual stakes. It goes without saying that there’s no Loki-challenger here (we’re starting to think there never will be one) but at least there’s no Ronan/Malekith/Ultron either. Maybe that’s just because I’ve had more time with it. Certainly, the sequel is as funny as the original, and as well-crafted, and as certain of its ability to entertain. But it’s also more of the same, for better or worse. The final set piece in particular steers perilously close to Marvel-by-numbers. Unlike Marvel’s best – and for me, I’m thinking specifically of Avengers, Iron Man 3 and the first Guardians – Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 broadly feels stuff we’ve seen before. That’s why, even at its heights, it’s meeting, rather than exceeding expectations. Still, when expectations are so high that’s arguably a feat in itself, especially since not a frame of the movie qualifies as a disappointment. After the apparent risk of the first movie, this one is something of a victory lap. Cameos, in-jokes, references and textual winks get piled on top of great characters, story, music and visuals. The experience of watching Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 is one of unreserved joy, and news that Gunn is directing a third comes as absolutely no surprise. Based on this, we’d pre-order our tickets today if we could.
