Guardians of the Galaxy Vol II

For many, the prospect of 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy was a curious one. Marvel Studios took the brave decision to place alongside globally known heroes like The Hulk and Captain America a lesser known group of characters that included a jet-pack wearing raccoon and a walking, talking (albeit with limited vocabulary) tree man. James Gunn's direction, casting, story, and script created a near perfect galactic storm that turned out to be not only one of the best movies the studio has produced, but arguably a space opera to rival anything hatched from the universe of George Lucas.

2017 takes us back to Star Lord's world, and free from the shackles of having to introduce these characters again, we’re launched straight into a tree-mendous opening conflict (replete with brand new Groot grooves) that will eventually weave its slimy tentacles through the entire plot of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2. New and important characters are ably presented, and this 80s kid rejoiced at seeing 80s Kurt Russell on the big screen again. If you thought CGI young RDJ was impressive in Civil War, wait til you see what they achieve here. It’s like Snake Plissken driving a Trans Am, and it’s perfect.

The flight path this movie takes is unexpected, and its destination is surprising and unorthodox. It becomes very personal at times, yet still manages to retain galactic proportions of fun. The battles are big, and the stakes are as high as before, yet deep in its planet size heart, Guardians Vol.2 is about family, responsibility, and for some, redemption.

If Rocket could build a machine that could measure funny, he’d probably find that Vol.2 is even more hilarious than the first. Everyone's got something smart to say, at just the right/wrong time, especially Dave Bautista’s Drax, and after all, the endless bickering and verbal sparring is one of the reasons we love these characters so, because they remind us of ourselves, in all our flawed, fleshy, mortal glory.

There's a consistency that runs directly through from the first movie (do we call that Vol.1 now?), from the characterization, understanding, and portrayal of our Guardians by all the cast members, the (yet again) perfect use of popular music to punctuate important sequences, right through to Tyler Bates’ moving score (finally we have at least one marvel franchise that has a proper theme music!). It's beautiful to look at, and the finest IMAX 3D presentation I have ever seen.

Much like ‘The Best Sequel Ever Made’, Guardians Vol.2 rips apart the characters we've come to love, crashes asteroid size wedges into their relationships, and places them at opposite ends of universe. Unlike ‘The Best Sequel Ever Made’, Vol.2 doesn't leave our heroes facing an uncertain future, and we’re not left staring out at the cosmos unsure of their fates. Sacrifices have been made, and a price paid, yet predictably, at the end, the villain is defeated and our heroes have saved the day. That may be the one, single, exposed organic flaw in Vol.2s quest for immortality.