Star-Lord has long been an interesting character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. For one, his story has grown significantly over time, particularly with the reveal that he is effectively a demi god in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. However, there has also been some mixed feelings in the fanbase, with there even being a running joke about Star-Lord actor Chris Pratt being the “worst Chris” in the MCU (thereby comparing him to Chris Evans/Captan America and Chris Hemsworth/Thor).
Videos by ComicBook.com
Yet, Star-Lord is a solid character, and the Guardians of the Galaxy movies are all quite good—and totally hilarious, even when they’re dark. Even I have to admit there is one aspect of Star-Lord’s character in Avengers: Infinity War that I absolutely hated—but, over the last several years, I’ve surprisingly come to see it differently (and I think the fanbase, who largely remains heated about it as well, should too).
Star-Lord Basically Caused The Avengers To Lose
In Infinity War, the Guardians of the Galaxy team up with Tony Stark/Iron Man, Peter Parker/Spider-Man, and Doctor Strange, in what becomes one of the best team-ups in the heavily team-focused movie. The combination of Doctor Strange, Tony Stark, and Peter Quill’s snarky personality, along with the innocence of Peter Parker and Mantis and the hilariousness of Drax—seriously, the “Why is Gamora?” scene is one of my favorites in the entire MCU—works perfectly. Unfortunately, one incredibly frustrating moment has long cast a shadow over this otherwise great group.
Namely, in Infinity War, Star-Lord is primarily responsible for Thanos (temporarily) winning and everything that happens as a result. He even makes a joke about this in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, when he says he nearly killed half a billion people, clearly taking responsibility for Thanos’ initial win. After a brilliant plan, which saw the heroes each using their unique powers to trap Thanos and pull the Infinity Gauntlet off, Mantis learns that Thanos is mourning Gamora. At first, Star-Lord is in denial that she could really be dead.
As the truth dawns on him that the love of his life really has died, though, he becomes completely enraged. At first, he only responds verbally, but just as the Infinity Gauntlet is actually beginning to slip off Thanos’ hand, which would have given them the ability to use it and take down Thanos and his entire army, thereby ending the threat, Quill loses it, punching Thanos repeatedly and therefore waking him up. Thanos is able to pull the Infinity Gauntlet back to his hand, and the rest is history.
Fans Continue To Blame Peter Quill For This Moment
Understandably, for years, fans have been extremely resentful towards Star-Lord because of this mistake. In fact, whereas Star-Lord was once seen as a goofy, at times kind of jerk-ish character, audiences generally loved him in spite of that. That certainly changed when it came to this incident in Infinity War. Many viewers now saw Star-Lord as reckless, unintelligent, and completely selfish, and it’s actually the latter that proved to be the biggest issue for fans’ general perception of Star-Lord in the franchise.
That is, fans saw Star-Lord as someone who didn’t care about anyone but himself and therefore allowed for the murder of half of all life just because his grief felt more important to him. This undoubtedly had some impact on the reception of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and it could, in theory, have an impact on Star-Lord’s upcoming MCU appearances as well. I will also readily admit that I was among these numbers for years.
I was always incredibly frustrated and annoyed that this team almost won, but Star-Lord couldn’t handle his emotions for just a few moments more to save the entire multiverse because he was, I thought, so selfish and foolish. Surprising even myself, though. I’ve begun to see this differently. Now, I not only understand this moment and see it with more compassion but also think it was actually quite important.
This Mistake Was Actually A Very Human (And Important) Moment
Yes, it’s frustrating to watch as the Infinity Gauntlet almost comes off, only for Star-Lord’s inability to control his emotions to ruin it all. It’s even fair to blame him for a host of other devastating events that happen as a result, including the deaths of beloved characters like Vision, Black Widow, and Tony Stark. With a little bit of compassion, however, this scene actually becomes very understandable. At its core, this scene is a very human moment for Star-Lord, in which his grief consumes him and he loses control.
He’s not being maliciously selfish; he’s not thinking about the larger consequences at all. He’s just feeling that pain. And really, who among us would not react in the same way if we were standing in front of someone only to learn that they had just killed the person we loved most? Audiences have high expectations for Star-Lord and the other heroes, which makes sense given their immense power, but in all fairness, many of them are human, too, or at the very least flawed.
It’s easy to put oneself in their shoes and see that even many of their worst actions are understandable. Having done so myself, it really has made me approach this scene with more compassion. And, in addition to that, I’ve begun to recognize that this was a critically important moment for Star-Lord’s character arc, which saw him being a lot more emotional, vulnerable, and openly full of love for Gamora than he really had been thus far, and getting to see that side of him was actually nice.
(And, also, don’t you think he’s been punished enough after having to work with a version of his dead girlfriend that looks just like her but doesn’t know or love him anymore in Vol. 3?)
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
