The real meaning behind the Guardians of the Galaxy's post-credits scene.

The Easter egg within the Easter egg.

So here's hoping most of you have seen GotG and loved it as much as I did. In fact, I'm gonna watch it again soon. Spoilers below.

static.comicvine.com

Anyways, if you've seen it, then you've also probably seen the post-credits scene. I still don't understand how people watch a Marvel/X-Men movie without staying until the end. I mean, don't they know already by now??? That said, if you did wait for it, then you were also probably disappointed at what appeared. Everybody was expecting a real good tease about what the next GotG movie would be about, or at least for any other Marvel movie in the continuity. Because, that's how it's been up til now right? 

Instead, viewers were left with a nothing scene, of The Collector (Benicio Del Toro) in the wake of his destroyed lair. Whatever living thing he had in his collection have been released and this includes Cosmo the Spacedog, and the surprise appearance, Howard the Duck, who is actually also a Marvel character. 

Howard the Duck, as he appears in GotG - www.businessinsider.com

The inclusion of Howard the Duck is nothing more than a fun cameo, or tribute of sorts. Why? Simply because one of the artists who created the Guardians, also was involved in originating Howard the Duck. 

The real question is, is that the only message they were trying to convey? Everybody thank Emergency Awesome, because that's where I learned about the following. 

Of course, we don't have a video to look at that scene again, right now. But there is footage of the post-credits scene from Thor: The Dark World.

The picture is small, so you might want to view it on full screen. You only need to see the first 10 seconds of the clip. Notice the yellow/brown-ish thingy that the 3 characters walk past? That's the subject we shall talk about. 

That thingy, has been confirmed to be the cocoon, of a character named Adam Warlock. I'm not gonna do a character bio on him, but Warlock himself, is a really big character in the Marvel Universe. 

Comparison of Adam Warlock's cocoon, film vs comics - www.ign.com

So now we know, The Collector, has in his possession, Adam Warlock - a Messiah-like figure, a very important character in Marvel.

Now, back to the post-credits of GotG, I'm sure nobody can remember what appears, frame for frame, but basically, The Collector was sitting among his ruins and Cosmo licks his face. Apparently, in the background of this scene, the cocoon appears to be broken, and Adam Warlock is assumed to be running free in the galaxy. This presents us with an intriguing scenario that Warlock is now a free agent, able to appear in any Marvel movie from now. Most probably, that's going to be GotG 2 in 2017. 

Adam Warlock - marvel.wikia.com

It's impossible to predict how it may play out, but should Adam Warlock appear, it would be easy to connect him to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as his back story involves the Soul Gem. As it is formally explained in GotG, the Infinity Gems/Stones will play an important part in the story. There are also evil versions of him, so Marvel may opt to use him as a bit of a wild card, with Adam not being on any clear side. 

Adam Warlock is mostly associated with story arcs which include Thanos (played by Josh Brolin in films) and the Infinity Gauntlet. We all know that is roughly where Marvel is heading with all this: a film where Thanos has gathered the Infinity Stones/Gems and the Infinity Gauntlet, and threatens existence itself. 

Josh Brolin teasing the Infinity Gauntlet at Marvel's SDCC 2014 panel. - www.ibtimes.co.uk

If this happens, it will be an adaptation of the Infinity Gauntlet comic, in which Adam Warlock plays a pivotal role. So really, there is a big chance, we'll be seeing Adam Warlock on screen some time from now. 

So instead of a direct tease, Marvel left this one for viewers to spot and find out. That, or maybe they're just undecided over what's really going to happen next. Adam Warlock is a fairly powerful character whose powers involve cosmic energy. The MCU has not seen characters of such levels yet (Thor has been massively downgraded to not overshadow the other Earth heroes), but with Thanos lurking, it's only a matter of time until Marvel goes beyond godlike and the action gets a massive upgrade. 

We won't know until it happens but until then, here are some things we can expect.

Evil version of Adam Warlock fighting Gamora - toylab.blogspot.com

Adam Warlock (centre) lining up with other characters from the GotG comics - news.comicui.com

Oh, and as a bonus Josh and Germaine were telling me the other day, how they thought the planet Xandar reminded them of Singapore's Gardens By The Bay. Turns out, they are right! Good spot! Read the article here. 

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[REVIEW] Guardians of the Galaxy

Alright, alright. Geek talk. [Mild spoilers]

In contrast to the more grim affairs of Thor and Capts, I really liked the fun vibe they brought on to this space opera epic. I can't remember the last time I watched a space/sci-fi flick that wasn't all dark and gloomy.

Marvel is a lot better in incorporating humour in films than their DC and Fox counterparts, but sometimes it does seem as if they try too hard. For Guardians though, it didn't seem forced and out of place. In fact, it was genuinely funny. It was almost like they were making fun of other superhero movies for being overly serious.

They took situations where you're supposed to have an intense cliche moment, and just totally break the tension by doing something unexpected and hilarious. Star-Lord trying to distract Ronan at a climactic scene by dancing, pretty much sealed the deal for me.

From the moment Chris Pratt was casted as Star-Lord, I knew this movie was going to be full of humour and wit. If they wanted to make a more serious movie, they could have easily casted someone more bad-ass looking. I even had fears that I wouldn't be able to take the character seriously (because I've gotten familiar with Pratt from Parks and Recreation where his character is a total retard), but Chris Pratt really pulls it off. He was funny, he was cool, and he wins you over by showing many times that his character is full of heart, honour and responsibility, despite what your first impression of him may have been.

Gamora, Drax, Groot and Rocket all had distinctive features about themselves, and I feel that they did well to establish these traits in such a short time. Batista should be relieved that he has a good showing here, after the mess that was The Man With The Iron Fist.

                                      

Rocket has got to be the most awesome character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) so far. He wasn't CGI. He was alive. They should start giving accolades to CGI characters and give the first one to Rocket.

I loved the retro feel of the movie, and the 70s soundtrack (listen to Awesome Mix Vol.1 here!) must have been a good throwback to the parents who watched the film, while their children watched in awe of CGI characters Groot and Rocket. Basically, Marvel made a film for everybody.

The only issue anybody probably has would be the villain. We have been spoiled with some really excellent villains in recent years: Heath Ledger as The Joker, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Tom Hardy as Bane, even the most recent Winter Soldier, all have set the bar really high for future thug wannabes. It's not fair to compare, but if we had a more daunting villain, we could have had a perfect movie. That said, Ronan wasn't a bad character, I just felt he wasn't given much.

The action scenes were good but perhaps not as slick as Avengers/Iron Man/Winter Solider. Just my preference. I was hoping they would make Drax do a Batista Bomb but unfortunately they did not go there. There's still plenty of action though, so no worries there.

It's really exciting to think about where Marvel is heading with all this. Who would be the ones to face Thanos at the end of it all? How will the Infinity Gems be gathered? Could an Avengers/Guardians crossover be possible? Personally, I don't think so. At least not at the full extent of it, cuz that would be too big a stunt to pull off.

It would be interesting though, to see Peter Quill reconnect with Earth and meet its mightiest heroes. Or, maybe Iron Man joining the Guardians, since he's already done that in the comics? There have been instances where The Hulk was shipped to outer space, but we'll see.

Is Guardians my favourite Marvel film so far? Maybe. Avengers HAD to be good while Guardians had every reason to pale in comparison, but it definitely did not. Amazing how in just one movie, I started to care about these characters more than I did for The Avengers (I care for Coulson, though) after multiple movies.

Whatever the case is, I just know, saving the galaxy has never been this fun. The Guardians have got me hooked on a feeling. 'Nuff said.

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