"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" review

Do you even need much of a rating for this one?

At this point, Marvel has boiled down the quality control of their universe to a science that is almost impossible to churn out an unmitigated stinker.

This is the first year any MCU project has seen a unanimous critical panning of any sort thanks to the release of “Iron Fist” on Netflix and even then, it was a mildly controversial property produced by a highly controversial showrunner in the division of production that isn’t run by Kevin Feige himself i.e. the reason this experiment managed to pay off to begin with had nothing to do with its weakest installment.

Even when they’re heavily flawed, they manage to always insure that they function well on a crowd-pleasing level above all else and though a worthwhile argument can be made that the consistently growing rhythm that they’re falling into of a “good but not great” flat line of quality is gradually erring them towards the side of predictably dull, it’s just too hard to deny that at the end of the day, their products are still solidly diverting romps that are well constructed as movies.

Such is the case with “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” sequel to the 2014 surprise hit of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following the continuing adventures of the titular team of space faring mercenaries after discovering Star Lord’s (Chris Pratt) paternal ancestry.

The discovery in question leads the team to briefly split up as Star Lord, Gamora (Zoe Saldana), and Drax (Dave Bautista) investigate the stranger claiming to be the human hybrid outlaw’s father, while Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) and Groot (Vin Diesel) are left attempting to repair their ship while finding themselves at the heart of a civil war between two factions of outlaws chasing a bounty placed on the heads of the team.

If that sounds a tad bit scattershot as far as plot summaries go, that’s because “Vol. 2’s” actual plot when broken down on a moment to moment recollection is a bit murky.

Where the first film carried the task of keeping the group together while establishing motivation for why they should stick together, this outing forgoes a strong central threat in favor of delving into the quirks that attract these characters toward one another via pressing and studying their reactions to events that can shake up their own internal status quo.

What happens to Star Lord’s team when he discovers his heritage and a potential higher calling that may pull him away from them i.e. does he choose his blood family or the family that he’s fallen into? Is Rocket aware that as funny as his antics are for an audience to watch, the patience that his friends have for the consequences can wear thin?

Meanwhile, Gamora questions how much she needs to provide emotionally for a family dynamic that’s actually healthy as opposed to the environment that she was raised in while Drax’s bluntness becomes less of a one note vehicle for comedy and more of a multifaceted perspective on the world around him.

“Vol. 2” tackles a lot of material set up from the first film’s mere existence and a chaotic plot structure that could have benefited from about a few minutes of trimming becomes the biggest hit the film takes to really fit it all in, culminating in a twist reveal regarding the villain that makes him far less compelling and drags the film down into routine blockbuster climax territory, mitigated only by its own effectively unrelenting sense of humor.

It doesn’t help either that the slated future appearance of the characters in the upcoming “Avengers: Infinity War” places some limitations on exactly where they’re allowed to end up by the movie’s conclusion.

All of this may make “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” seem rather sloppy but the film is actually very well made, opting more to choose its battles then evening out bits that are less important in the grand scheme of things and what this movie all about is its characters.

The roster here is just as charming as it was in 2014 and the time spent with them for this entry is meaningful and riotous.

From the sharp dialogue and repertoire the cast share with one another to the unapologetically absurd visualizations of the film’s set pieces paced at a rock solid clip, this is the hardest and most frequent that I have laughed in a movie theater in almost a year.

However in all of the comedy put on display front and center, the film never forgets to be emotional and serious when it’s legitimately called for whether it chooses to diffuse the tension with an organically placed joke or not.

Director James Gunn knows full well that what made the first film good (not necessarily great but damn good) was that it left everybody dying to be able to just bond with these characters once more and in sacrificing the opportunity for a needlessly grander and more traditional narrative, he’s done just that with a movie that retains the scope of the original while giving it a more intimate focus.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” is likely to be remembered as a victim of its own franchise’s success. With the proverbial new car smell of the series wearing off, there’s no denying that it’s not quite as fresh as its predecessor.

For what it’s worth however, it’s still a damn fun ride that I probably enjoyed slightly more than the original.

7 Cosmic Coonskins out of 10