The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special

This Marvel-ous treat from writer/director James Gunn proves an entertaining enough diversion regardless of the degree of your devotion to the MCU.

If “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” really is the end of Gunn’s run with Marvel, then this holiday special is a near-perfect, penultimate film from one of the superhero genre’s best.

It may not move the overall MCU narrative forward all that much, but it does deliver a sweet, if slight, morsel of holiday cheer.

And yet it all works, at least if (like me) you’re a bit of a sucker for the Guardians to begin with. It’s funny enough to provoke out-loud laughter and poignant enough to elicit that telltale sting behind the eyes, if not quite enough to draw full-on tears. Maybe it lacks the heft of a true Guardians feature or series, but it’s exactly the holiday confection you’d want from this motley crew: shiny, fluffy and just odd enough to feel personal.

Gunn’s special is a fantastic holiday present, a heartwarming reminder of how much we enjoy these characters, mixed with Gunn’s great ability to blend humor, touching moments, and friendship.

If you like your Christmas specials with laughter and delight but, ultimately, an understanding of the innate bittersweetness and melancholy that can live beneath the merriment, this is likely the special for you. And the possibilities of what Gunn seems like he’s going to aim for in his final ‘Guardians’ installment, something potentially very poignant, sad, and special.

It all ends happily, sappily ever after, as such things should. And if you wish it had upped the outrageous ante a tad, a pushed a few more Christmas-card envelopes, had a little more of the gonzo spirit that has made the Guardians of the Galaxy movies a breath of fresh franchise air, look on the bright side. No one says a single word in Wookie. Not once.