Guardians of the Galaxy (film)

Guardians of the Galaxy is the Live Action Adaptation of the Guardians of the Galaxy, specifically the post-2008 version of the team, and the tenth entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Far, far, away from Earth, the Nova Corps has recently signed a peace treaty with the Kree Empire, ending a thousand years of war, much to the ire of the Kree fanatic, Ronan the Accuser. In his rage, Ronan has turned to the Mad Titan Thanos for help in destroying Xandar, the Nova's capital planet. In exchange for an ancient relic, Thanos will offer his aid to Ronan.

Though Ronan's force is quite to track down Thanos' prize to the planet Morag, they didn't count on the interference of a scavenger called Star-Lord...

Tropes used in Guardians of the Galaxy include:

• Adaptation Dye Job: Earth-616's red Power Gem is now the purple Power Stone.
• Adaptation Name Change:
  • The Universal Weapon is renamed the Cosmi-Rod.
  • Thanks to Adaptation Species Change, see below, Drax is the character's true name, any mention of Arthur Douglas being Adapted Out.
• Adaptation Species Change: Drax the Destroyer was a human named Arthur Douglas in the comics. Here he's an alien.
• Adaptational Jerkass: Just about every hero. The Guardians were clear cut heroes in the comics but are much more Anti-Heroes here who came together because they would be splitting a bounty.
• Adaptational Villainy: Ronan wasn't a hero in the comics but more neatly fit into the role of a Knight Templar. Here, he's an Absolute Xenophobe who actively sought aid from Thanos.
• Adaptational Wimp:
  • The Nova Corps. In the comics, they're an army of Flying Bricks. Here, they're a Redshirt Army. In fairness, they are going up against the Power Stone.
  • The Collector. Reality Warper in the comics, Long Lived and durable guy here.
  • The Power Stone granted Nigh Invulnerability onto whomever wielded it in the comics. Here, it's just an endless battery and Ronan's toughness is entirely down to his Kree genetics.
• The Alcatraz: The Kyln.
• All There in the Manual:
  • Which Infinity Stone this was was never stated on-screen. Kevin Fiege eventually revealed that it was the Power Stone.
  • "Guardians of the Galaxy: The Art of the Movie" reveals that Drax's species is called the Kylosians.
• Ass in Ambassador: The Kree ambassador. It's implied, and more or less confirmed by the sequel, that the Kree actually support what Ronan's doing.
• Breather Episode: A lighthearted, optimistic movie after the dark, emotional Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
• Body Horror: Cybernetic upgrades don't seem to be a painless process. Those silver bits around Gamora's eyes? Pieces of her upgrades that are sticking out of her skull.
• The Cameo:
  • Rocket spies a Class-A "pre-vert" on Xandar.
  • Nathan Fillion appears as the inmate harassing the group when they first come to Knowhere.
  • A Dark Elf, a Chitauri, Cosmo, and Howard the Duck appear among the Collector's collection.
  • Eson the Searcher is the Celestial wielding the Power Stone.
• The Collector: He shows up as a don on Knowhere.
• Cool Ship:
  • The Milano.
  • The Dark Aster.
• Curb Stomp Battle: Ronan vs Drax.
• Dark and Troubled Past: Everyone but Gamora says that hers is so bad that The Alcatraz doesn't scare her.
• Death From Above: Ronan orders his forces to enact his Immolation Protocol, ramming their Necrocraft into Xandar in a low-cost version of the Kree Empire's use of this tactic.
• Decomposite Character: Thanos didn't kill Drax's family. Some random Chiaturi did that under Ronan's orders who was himself was acting under Thanos' orders.
• Didn't Think This Through: It doesn't look like Thanos realized that Ronan might have opened the Orb and discovered the Infinity Stone inside.
• Disappointed by the Motive: Thanos is incredibly unimpressed that the best thing that Ronan can think of using the Orb (holding the Power Stone) for is destroying Xandar.
• The Dreaded:
  • The people of Xandar are terrified of Ronan. When Quill mentions Ronan, the Broker kicks him out, unwilling to take the risk of Ronan hunting him down.
  • Thanos. Even the Kree fear him and Korath calls him the most powerful being in the universe, even when Ronan has the Power Stone.
• Early Installment Weirdness:
  • Thanos is described as more or less a generic Evil Overlord/Galactic Conqueror which later films would show is, while not outright inaccurate, a gross oversimplification of his character and motivations, as everyone knows that he cuts populations in half. Likewise, he's rendered in an extremely comic accurate look; even down to his armor; nothing like the towering, ripped, giant of Infinity War or Endgame.
  • As part of the above, Gamora is stated to be the Last of Her Kind but it would later be revealed that her race, while halved, was still alive. Even her statement of Thanos killing her parents in front of her could only be considered Metaphorically True at best.
  • Maybe for the Power Stone. As mentioned above, in this movie it's treated as just a battery. In the climax of Endgame, Thanos uses it to punch away Captain Marvel. It's not clear however if Thanos got a physical upgrade from the Stone or if it was part of the "Takes One to Kill One" criteria of the Stones.
• Evil Gloating: Deconstructed. All this really does is give the good guys a chance to reload.
• Evil Is Hammy: RONAN THE ACCUSER!
• Fantastic Racism: Ronan towards the Xandarians. In his twisted mind, genocide is tantamount to "curing" Xandar.
• Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: Rocket is horribly blunt in saying that Drax's vendetta doesn't grant him the right to put other people in danger.
• Half-Human Hybrid: Much to Peter's shock, the Nova's bio-scan of him reveals non-Terran genetics in his makeup.
• Ham-to-Ham Combat: The Other vs Ronan. Ronan wins.
• Hubworld:
  • Xandar. Capital of the Nova Empire and inhabited by a multitude of species.
  • Knowhere. A decapitated Celestial that acts as a Wretched Hive.
• Human Aliens: The Xandarians.
• Innocuously Important Episode: This film is a Breather Episode after the heavy events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and before Avengers: Age of Ultron, being totally disconnected from anything happening on Earth. But it also introduces Thanos, Nebula, and Gamora, as well as providing the backstory of the Infinity Stones, all major to Avengers: Infinity War.
• Locked Out of the Loop: Thanos never told Ronan that the Orb was the container for the Power Stone.
• MacGuffin: The Orb. Peter outright compares it to the Ark of the Covenant, the Maltese Falcon, and a glowing briefcase.
• Moral Myopia: Ronan's vendetta against the Xandarians is motivated by him losing his grandfather and father in the Kree/Nova war. He has no issue killing any Xandarian he comes across.
• Mr. Exposition: The Collector reveals the past of the Infinity Stones.
• Mr. Fanservice: Peter changing into his prison scrubs.
• Only Known by Their Nickname:
  • Peter is quite insistent that people only refer to him as Star-Lord. He's over the moon when Korath does so.
  • Everyone just refers to the MacGuffin as "the Orb" even after they discover the Infinity Stone inside.
• Outliving One's Offspring:
  • Jason Quill watched his daughter Meredith die right in front of him.
  • Drax's planet was invaded by Ronan under Thanos' command. While Drax was part of the lucky 50% that got to live, his wife and daughter were in the other half.
• Reality Ensues:
  • Quill, Gamora, Groot and Rocket get into a brawl in the middle of a city. The police arrive very quickly to arrest them.
  • As Gamora realizes, she may be one of Thanos' generals, but the sheer number of inmates that want her dead means she has to stick with the Guardians for the sake of survival.
• Space Opera
• The Unfavourite: Thanos outright refers to Gamora as his favourite in front of Nebula.
• Vile Villain, Saccharine Show: Ronan is one of the vilest, cruelest, and outright sadistic characters in the MCU. Everything else wouldn't be out of place in a Saturday morning cartoon.
• Wants a Prize For Basic Decency: Yondu loves reminding Peter that he protected the young Terran from being eaten by the other Ravagers. Peter calls bullshit on this because normal people don't even think about eating someone else, much less asking that others be grateful for this.
• The Worf Effect: Per Word of God, the Other was brought back solely so Ronan could casually kill the guy who scared Loki shitless.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: When Ronan discovers the Power Stone, he notes that he has no need for Thanos anymore and swears to kill him once he razes Xandar.