The following contains MAJOR SPOILERS for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
While the Marvel Cinematic Universe has kept us up to date on a regular basis with most of its heroes, it's been three years since we last touched base with The Guardians of the Galaxy. They've been an entirely separate entity up to this point, but we finally got to catch up with some of our favorite movie heroes when the sequel arrived this weekend.
The first movie left us with many questions, the sequel gave us a few answers. Many just filled in questions that we had about the backstory of numerous characters, while others have interesting implications about where the Guardians may go from here. Here are eight things we learned following Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
Who Star-Lord's Father Is
Technically, this question was answered prior to the movie itself, as the reveal was in the trailers, but it was still a big question that we had after the first movie that officially saw its answer in the sequel. We knew that Peter Quill's father was somebody from outer space, but now we know that the specific spaceman was Ego, the Living Planet, played by Kurt Russell. It's a significant departure from the answer in the comics, though clearly, the reasons for the change were all based on the rest of the story.
Peter Quill Has, Or Had, Cosmic Powers
The Guardians of the Galaxy showed how powerful they were as a team at the end of the first movie when they successfully held back the power of an Infinity Stone. We knew that Peter Quill's ability to do that was due to his genetic makeup, but in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, we learned that Peter's abilities went far beyond that. He actually had the same ability to create objects that his father Ego had. While the implication was that without the planet Ego created, Peter's powers are now gone, the truth is that Peter is still half-celestial, and thus we can't be sure that he doesn't still have some power inside.
Ego Killed Peter's Mom
While we learned that Ego did a lot of reproducing in an attempt to create somebody capable of helping him with his plan, Ego repeatedly tells Peter that he loved his mother. It's a really lovely thing to hear. However, we then discover that Ego apparently loved Meredith Quill so much, that he felt the only way to be sure he would stay focused on his task, was to give her a brain tumor so she would die. We're fairly certain the entire audience wanted to do the same thing to Ego that Peter did, unload a pair of blasters in his face without giving it a second thought.
Yondu's History With the Ravagers
Not every answer that we got in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 even came from a question that we actually had. Most people probably never wondered about the larger Ravager collective beyond Yondu and his group, or even wondered if such a thing existed. As it turns out, it does, and most of them didn't like Yondu much. Apparently, his decision to work as a de facto child trafficker for Ego put him on the opposing side of the Ravager code. While he realized later what he had done and regretted the decision, the Ravagers hold a grudge, and Yondu was still banished from all Ravager factions for his actions. Though in the end, amends were made.
Why Yondu Didn't Turn Over Peter As A Child
It's not until the very end of the original Guardians of the Galaxy that we learn that Yondu was actually hired by Peter Quill's father to bring the boy to him. Peter has always been of the understanding that Yondu found him useful, and that's why he decided to keep him around. Once we learn what Ego's true motives were, however, we also learn that Yondu discovered what was happening to the kids he was delivering, and then made the decision that he had to stop. It's the moment at which we truly see the man's heart.
Stan Lee Is A Watcher, Or At Least Works With Them
One of the more entertaining fan theories regarding Stan Lee's cameos in Marvel films has been that he is, in fact, playing the exact same character each time. In this theory, Lee is a Watcher, one of Marvel's collection of intergalactic observers who record the events of the Marvel Universe without ever getting involved. During Lee's expected cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, we see the Marvel creator conversing with a group of these Watchers. He's telling him about the time he was a FedEx man, a reference to his cameo at the end of Captain America: Civil War. However, the statement also implies there have been other "times" for him as well. It's not clear if Lee is actually a Watcher, as he doesn't look like them, but clearly, there's a relationship.
Why Nebula Is A Cyborg
We know that Nebula, unlike Gamora, was the biological daughter of Thanos, but even before she lost her hand at the end of the first film, she seemed to have a lot more cybernetic parts than her father does. In the new film, we learned why that was. Thanos used to have his two daughters fight each other on a regular basis. Gamora would always win. Whenever this happened, Thanos would replace part of her body with robotics, in the belief that this would make her a better fighter, but it never seemed to work. It explains why Nebula was so willing to lose her arm previously. It also explains why she really wants to kill her dad and kick the crap out of her sister.
Ayesha Creates Adam Warlock
While nearly all of the post-credits sequences in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 were played for laughs, one of them was much more serious. One of the key characters that is incredibly important to the Infinity Gauntlet comic book storyline, but was so far unseen in the MCU was Adam Warlock. At the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, we see Ayesha, despondent at the Sovereign's defeat by the Guardians, has a new plan to prevent such things from happening again. We see a sarcophagus-like device which is actually a Sovereign birthing pod. It's currently building the next generation of Sovereign citizen. Namely, a being Ayesha decides to call Adam. Whether Adam will become a key player in Avengers: Infinity War, or whether we won't see him until Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is unknown, but one way or another, he's coming.
