| Guardians of the Galaxy | |
|---|---|
| Group publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 4 #1 (October2015) |
| Created by | Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Valerio Schiti (writer) |
| In-story information | |
| Base(s) | Knowhere |
| Member(s) | Former members Agent Venom Angela Ant-Man Bug Captain Marvel Cosmo Drax the Destroyer Jack Flag Gamora Groot Iron Man Kitty Pryde Major Victory Mantis Moondragon Quasar Rocket Raccoon Star-Lord Thing Adam Warlock |
| Roster | |
| See:List of Guardians of the Galaxy members | |
| Guardians of the Galaxy | |
| Series publication information | |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Genre | |
| Publication date | (Volume 4) October2015 – April2017 () [[in comics|]] – present |
| Number of issues | Volume 4 19 |
| Creator(s) | Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Valerio Schiti (writer) |
| Collected editions | |
| Grounded | ISBN 978-1302906702 |
TheGuardians of the Galaxy are afictionalspacefaringsuperhero team appearing inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics.Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti formed this new version of the team with an initial roster ofRocket Raccoon,Kitty Pryde,Thing,Drax the Destroyer,Agent Venom, andGroot. However,Star-Lord andGamora eventually re-joined the team, and so didAngela. This Guardians team first appeared in "Guardians of the Galaxy" Vol. 4 #1 (October 2015).
The second volume of the title was published in May 2008, written byDan Abnett andAndy Lanning and featured a new team of characters from the "Annihilation: Conquest" storyline.[1][2]
Abnett and Lanning's work on theAnnihilation: Conquest story laid the foundation for the new Guardians of the Galaxy book that they had been wanting to launch for some time.[3] EditorBill Rosemann, who had also editedAnnihilation: Conquest, provided more background: "As the planning ofAnnihilation: Conquest came together, it occurred to us that, if things went well, there would be a group of characters left standing who would make for a very interesting and fun team." It also provided the motivation the team would need, as "on the heels of two back-to-back wars, they're out to prevent any new Annihilation-size disasters from erupting."[4]
The title ran parallel withNova vol. 4, which was also written by Abnett and Lanning. The two crossed over in the storylines "War of Kings"[5][6] and "Realm of Kings".[7][8][9]Paul Pelletier pencilled the first seven issues. Brad Walker andWes Craig alternated pencilling tasks from #8 to #25.[10]
The book was cancelled in April 2010 with issue 25. Some plot threads were concluded inThe Thanos Imperative 1–6 and its two one-shots (May 2010 – Jan 2011).[11]
The team appeared reassembled inAvengers Assemble #4–8 (June–October 2012).[12]
The Guardians of the Galaxy appeared in a new series forMarvel NOW! starting with issue 0.1 written byBrian Michael Bendis and drawn bySteve McNiven. In addition to the previous Guardians,Iron Man also joins the team.[13] Later issues of the series sawAngela,[14]Agent Venom,[15] andCaptain Marvel join.[16] With the success of thefilm adaptation, spinoff books were also created as solo titles featuring Star-Lord,[17] Rocket Raccoon,[18] and Groot.[19]
Guardians of the Galaxy was relaunched as part of theAll-New, All-Different Marvel initiative with Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti returning as writer and artist respectively.[20] The series sees Peter Quill and Gamora leaving the team, and Rocket becoming the new team's self-appointed leader, also two new characters were added to the team.Kitty Pryde (taking up the mantle of Star-Lord) andthe Thing.[21] As a part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel initiative, all of the characters that were part of the feature film cast would star in their own solo series. Star-Lord appeared in a solo series written by Sam Humphries,[22] while Rocket Raccoon and Groot starred in a series written by Skottie Young.[23] and Drax and Gamora starred in solo series written by UFC fighterCM Punk,[24] and Nicole Perlman, respectively.[25]
In the aftermath of thePhalanx invasion of the Kree,Star-Lord[26] decides to form a team of interstellar heroes that will be proactive in protecting the galaxy, rather than reacting to crises as they happen. To this end, he recruitsAdam Warlock,[27]Drax the Destroyer,[28]Gamora,[28]Phyla-Vell (the newQuasar),[29]Rocket Raccoon,[30] andGroot,[30] withMantis as support staff.[31] On the recommendation of their ally,Nova, the group establishes a base of operations on the space stationKnowhere, which possesses a teleportation system with near-universal range.[32] An intelligent, telepathic dog namedCosmo the Spacedog is Knowhere's chief of security and works closely with the new team. After a confrontation with theUniversal Church of Truth,[1] the team meets a semi-amnesiac man who identifies himself asVance Astro - Major Victory of the originalGuardians of the Galaxy.[33] Astro's declaration inspires the as-yet-unnamed team to adopt the "Guardians of the Galaxy" name for their own.[34] When the team learns Star-Lord directed Mantis to telepathically coerce the heroes into joining the team, they disband.[35]
Rocket Raccoon decides to continue Star-Lord's mission and starts a search for the missing members. His new team includesBug, Mantis, Major Victory, and Groot, who is fully regrown.
Meanwhile, Star-Lord was banished to theNegative Zone byRonan the Accuser for his actions during thePhalanx's attempted conquest of theKree empire. There, he finds himself in the middle of KingBlastaar's fight to break into 42 and use its portal to invade Earth. Star-Lord allies withJack Flag to defend the prison and contact the other Guardians for rescue. Rocket's new team successfully brings both of them back, and Flag becomes a Guardian.
Elsewhere, Drax and Phyla begin looking forCammi, but on their search they talk to a seer who tells them about anoncoming war. Phyla is able to wakeMoondragon from the dead, but loses her Quantum Bands in the process. The consequence for Phyla is that she is now the new avatar of death. They go back to Knowhere and do not follow up on the search for Cammi.
After Star-Lord's fatherJ'son visits him in a bar to tell him that it is forbidden for any alien species to visit Earth,Iron Man is attacked byBadoon appearing to attack Earth. The Guardians and their newest member Iron Man defeat the ship; however,London is still attacked.[36] The Guardians defend London and finish off the horde of Badoon but learn that, for violating the "Earth-is-off-limits" rule (the Spartax Earth Directive), they are to be placed under arrest by the King of Spartax. The Guardians manage to escape with the help of Groot, who had recently regrown after being destroyed by a Badoon ship's explosion. The team includes Star-Lord, Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, and Tony Stark. In April 2013, it was announced that Image Comics'Angela (Spawn) would join the Marvel Universe as the result of a legal battle betweenNeil Gaiman andTodd McFarlane. After appearing in the "Age of Ultron" storyline, she joined the Guardians that November.Captain Marvel andAgent Venom also subsequently joined the team.[37]
During the "Secret Wars" storyline, the Guardians of the Galaxy take part in the incursion between Earth-616 and Earth-1610. During the incursion, Rocket Raccoon and Groot are killed by the Children of Tomorrow, Star-Lord is teleported away trying to come up with a back-up plan, and Gamora and Drax the Destroyer are surrounded and confused by the corpses of their comrades.[38] During the subsequent conflict with the Beyonder-empowered Doom, Star-Lord is one of the survivors of the previous universe, piloting the 616 and Ultimate versions of Mister Fantastic in to mount a final assault on Doom's castle, and revealing that he kept a twig from Groot in his pocket until the right moment.
During the "Secret Empire" storyline, the Guardians of the Galaxy assist Captain Marvel, theUltimates, theAlpha Flight Space Program,Hyperion, andQuasar into fighting theChitauri wave. Captain America, who was brainwashed into being aHydra sleeper agent byRed Skull's clone using the powers ofKobik, activates the Planetary Defense Shield trapping them outside of Earth.[39]
| Title | Material collected | Pages | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guardians Team-Up Vol. 1: Guardians Assemble | Guardians Team-Up #1-5,Tails of Pet-Avengers #1 | 144 pages | November 2015 | 978-0785197140 |
| Guardians Team-Up Vol. 2: Unlikely Story | Guardians Team-Up #6-10,Deadpool Team-Up #883 | 136 pages | February 2016 | 978-0785199113 |
| Title | Material collected | Pages | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guardians of Knowhere | Guardians of Knowhere #1-4 andNew Avengers: Illuminati (2007) #3 | 120 pages | December 2015 | 978-0785198444 |
| Star-Lord & Kitty Pride | Star-Lord & Kitty Pride #1-3,Generation Next #1 andGuardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex Omega | 128 pages | December 2015 | 978-0785198437 |
| Title | Material collected | Pages | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guardians of the Galaxy: New Guard Vol. 1: Emperor Quill | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 4 #1-5 | 112 pages | May 2016 | 978-0785195184 |
| Guardians of the Galaxy: New Guard Vol. 2: Wanted | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 4 #6-10 | 136 pages | November 2016 | 978-0785195191 |
| Guardians of the Galaxy: New Guard Vol. 3: Civil War II | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 4 #11-14 | 112 pages | February 2017 | 978-1302903015 |
| Guardians of the Galaxy: New Guard Vol. 4: Grounded | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 4 #15-19 | 136 pages | October 2017 | 978-1302906702 |
| Title | Material collected | Pages | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guardians of the Galaxy: Guardians of Infinity | Guardians of Infinity #1-8 (A stories) | 136 pages | August 2016 | 978-0785195870 |
| Guardians of the Galaxy: Tales of the Cosmos | Guardians of Infinity #1-8 (B stories) | 136 pages | August 2016 | 978-0785195887 |
In theSecret Wars storyline, the Guardians of the Galaxy have a counterpart named the Gardiner's Men in the domain of King James' England, based on theMarvel 1602 reality. They are a troupe of performers consisting of Madam Gomorrah (Gamora), Peadar O'Cuill (Star-Lord), Arthur Dubhghlas (Drax), Goodman Root (Groot), and Aroughcun (Rocket Raccoon).[40]
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