Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3

As surely as the holiday season comes and goes, a new slate of trailers for the year’s Marvel Cinematic Universe instalments appear in theatres. Among these is the third (and, it seems, final) instalment of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, which has always had music (and classic rock in particular) heavily figure in its aesthetic—right down to its title scheme. In the case of this trailer, the choice of music serves for this aesthetic continuity and cohesion. However, it also promotes the thematic arcs and possibilities of character development that Volume 3 promises to explore, especially in the areas of self-love, acceptance, and solidarity.

Rather than using a series of songs to demarcate the flow of the trailer, the only song used this time around is “In the Meantime” by Spacehog (from their 1996 debut, Resident Alien). There’s an intertextual relationship between the song and narrative on screen that becomes increasingly evident: just as the narrative dialogue expounds on discovery and acceptance of one’s self, these are also the themes on which Spacehog lead singer Royston Langdon has professed “In the Meantime” to be about. Moreover, it’s worth mentioning that as a mid-90s single it likely continues to be nostalgically on-point for the broader demographic Guardians movies likely attract, and at least in keeping with its emphasis on classic rock in its soundtrack.

At the mid-point, the soundtrack pauses for Rocket’s one-liner (“Pete, I’m done running”), and the cock of his gun leads to the date title card (“this summer”) in tandem with a more densely orchestrated, trailerized version of “In the Meantime”. The thematic relationship between the song and the characters’ sentiments becomes clearer as Rocket’s monologue is juxtaposed against the lyrics of the song. “We love the all of you,” Langdon sings, as Rocket intones about how (supposedly, his team) will “all fly away together, one last time, into the forever and beautiful sky”. These viewpoints stand in counterpoint, with Rocket’s nihilism effecting melding with the sublimity of Langdon’s message. This expression of the nearly ineffable is followed up in Guardians fashion with the utterance of “we are Groot”—a statement of solidarity made much more powerful knowing that we’ve only ever heard “I am Groot” until now. The gunshots serving as a synch point to the music at 1:35 further underscore the momentousness of the occasion.

Following the main title card reveal with a brief reprise of the chorus at 1:39, a brief comedic sketch with Peter and Drax round things out with a bit of the comedy that the _Guardians_franchise is known for. This is as if to assuage and remind the audience that there will indeed still be plenty of it in this final instalment, besides the promise of diving further than ever before into the backstories of its protagonists.

— Curtis Perry