The Guardians are back with a bang in the last part to the trilogy, released in cinemas on Wednesday.

For hardcore Marvel fans this film brings a huge sigh of relief that the spirit and quality of the MCU didn’t die with Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame (2019). James Gunn has brought back the love for the films by creating a bittersweet, heartfelt production that will leave you singing and dancing.

Within the first five minutes you’re on the edge of your seat as a fight breaks out when an unexpected guest enters Knowhere and attempts to kidnap Rocket the raccoon. From then on the storyline flicks between Rocket’s past, when he was tested on by the High Evolutionary to become the advanced racoon that he is, and then the present time where the Guardians are travelling from planet to planet on a mission to save one of their own. It’s safe to say regardless of the challenges the Guardian’s face, they still have their hilarious one-liners and awkward moments to keep you laughing.

Even if you are not an avid watcher of the MCU this film is still bound to put a smile on your face, but if you want to understand all the characters and their stories then you should probably watch the first two Guardians of the Galaxy beforehand. Perhaps even Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019) if you want more context to references made throughout.

The choice of song for the iconic Marvel opening logo and the first scene is Radiohead’s acoustic version of ‘Creep’. Some may say an interesting choice considering its much slower pace and sadder essence compared to ‘Come and Get Your Love’ by Redbone used for the beginning of the first Guardians of the Galaxy. The whole soundtrack for volume 3 ranges across multiple decades of music instead of sticking to the 80s like the first two films, but thankfully the songs chosen are still as legendary.

Overall it’s a tough goodbye but the perfect ending to a beloved family of heroes.