MANILA, PHILIPPINES — So you’ve just watched Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 03, which is being promoted as the team’s swan song and you still want more. We’ve got you covered with this list of top-notch stories of the Guardians in both team and solo stories.
These graphic novels contain all the signature cosmic action and irreverence that you’ve come to enjoy from the movies:
Drax the Destroyer (Writer: Keith Giffen. Artist: Mitch Breitweiser) – Drax used to be a Hulk-like character – all muscle, no brain. But in this story he’s reborn as The Destroyer, an agile fighter with penchant for knives. He recovers his humanity while taking on some of the worst killers in the galaxy.
Annihilation: Conquest – Starlord (W: Giffen. A: Timothy Green II) – Even though his name is on the title, this is more a proto-Guardians story with Peter Quill joining up with outcasts on a suicide mission. It’s pivotal because it revamps Quill closer into the character that movie audiences are familiar with and unites him with Rocket Racoon and Groot for the first time.
Guardians of the Galaxy (W: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning. A: Paul Pelletier, Brad Walker, and Wes Craig) – This is the first run of this version of the Guardians. While it does include the characters we see in the movies, the creators toss in Major Victory, Quasar, Bug, Moondragon, and other cosmic heroes for a sprawling galactic epic. It’s amazing how this massive cast with all these plotlines gets juggled.
Starlord (W: Chip Zdarsky. A: Kris Anka) – Now here’s an actual solo Starlord story! After a major Marvel event, the Guardians’ ship gets destroyed and Quill finds himself stranded on Earth. Having been off-world for a long time, Quill has trouble getting used to acclimating to his surroundings. This leads to him butting heads with the villains and heroes in the Marvel universe.
Gamora (W: Nicole Perlman. A: Marco Checchetto) – A young Gamora is on the revenge-fueled quest to eradicate the Baddoon, the aliens that murdered her family and her entire race. However, the path to revenge leads her to some very unexpected places.
Rocket (W: Al Ewing. A: Adam Gorham) – It’s Ocean’s 11 in space when an old flame sets Rocket on a score of a lifetime! Forced back into the underworld life he left behind, hilarity ensues when Rocket rounds up the Technet, a bunch of aliens with the weirdest powers ever!
