Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Initial Rotten Tomatoes Score Is Promising

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's initial Rotten Tomatoes score is looking very promising after the first wave of reviews has washed in. At the time of writing this, Guardians of the Galaxy 3 has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 86% with over 70 reviews having been submitted. 

For comparison, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 ended up with a RT score of 85%, while the first Guardians of the Galaxy film retain the highest score at 92%. Compared to their recent film from the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 sits well above the low-end score (47%) that Eternals and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania both set; it currently sits just above Black Panther: Wakanda Forever's 84% score – a film that many considered the best that Marvel has put out in Phase 4 and Phase 5, following Avengers: Endgame. 

It's not exactly surprising that Guardians of the Galaxy 3 is sitting this pretty on the Rotten Tomatoes score meter: A lot of Marvel fans have been hoping (if not betting) that James Gunn's Guardians threequel will be a much-needed return to top-quality Marvel movie experiences. As the finale to the Guardians of the Galaxy Trilogy, Vol. 3 already has a level of "event film" appeal built into it – even if it doesn't have the biggest ties to the larger MCU. 

That all said, some fans may actually walk away more nervous than enthused, due to the fact that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's score is not that far off from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. The second film has been somewhat divisive in terms of how fans compare it to the first Guardians of the Galaxy, and it can often fall to the middling section of MCU movie ranking lists. It will be interesting to see if Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 gets the same kind of reception. 

In ComicBook.com's review of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, critic Patrick Cavanaugh says the following: 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is the culmination of everything James Gunn has been building toward with these characters, warts and all. The adventure is the most abjectly emotional, as it goes for the jugular with not only Rocket's story, but the destination that many other characters arrive at, while the filmmaker also manages to put his mark on a studio known for regurgitating formulaic adventures packed with overwhelming sameness. The introduction of arbitrary supporting characters and inconsequential villains is yet another reminder of the Marvel machine, and while there's plenty of side quests and self-aggrandizing, the impact of Rocket's emotional arc is one of the most powerful we've seen in the entire MCU, the inventiveness of action sequences, and a cathartic third act manage to send the trilogy out on a high note.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 has a release date of May 5th.