Did The Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special Make GoBots Canon In The MCU?
*Contains spoilers for "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special"*
When it comes to "The Guardians of the Galaxy," the gags in the films they've appeared in have often been as obscure as the playlist accompanying them. Laughs have been had at the expense of seeing a raccoon kicking grass or Drax (Dave Bautista) believing he can turn invisible. It's what's made this loveable band of outcasts worth sticking with ever since they got us hooked on a feeling way back in 2014. Surprising absolutely no one, "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special," which has now finally arrived on Disney+, follows that trend only to wrap it up in a Christmas sweater, and it's a treat to see.
Between Drax and Mantis' (Pom Klementieff) mission to kidnap (cough), sorry, "gift" Quill (Chris Pratt) with one of his all-time heroes, the film sets up plenty of random laughs you don't see coming. A particular rib-tickler is another throwaway gag that comes and goes instantly but links to the history of Marvel Comics that the MCU has been pulling from since 2008. It's also the sort of gag that has just as much reason to return when "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" finally rolls around.
Drax revisits a family loss after encountering a GoBot in the Holiday Special
During their trip to Earth to snag Kevin Bacon, Drax and Mantis become tourist attractions themselves. Pulled aside for photos with star-gazing celebrity spotters, their photo session is interrupted when Drax becomes enraged seeing someone dressed in a Transformer-like outfit. Mantis quickly intervenes, apologizing to the stranger and explaining that a GoBot killed Drax's cousin. It's another out-there reference that only James Gunn could pull off in his movies and fits perfectly there. GoBots were the toy company Tonka's answer to the Transformers toy line back in the 1980s before Hasbro (the manufacturer of Transformers) bought the competitor IP in 1991 (via Fandom).
Coincidentally, it was around that same time that a long-running Transformers comic came to an end in the U.S. after it ended its run with its publisher — which, at the time, was Marvel Comics. It begs the question, given this history between now-massive movie franchises, if any effort was made to get a cameo of someone in a Bumblebee suit rather than a GoBot outfit. After all, the "Transformers" franchise is a little more well-known nowadays. Even so, the gag of referencing a forgotten toy property as the cause of death for one of Drax's family makes things a little more hilarious (sorry, Drax). But could Drax get his revenge in "The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3"?
Could Drax face off with a GoBot in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3?
Given that both here and in "Eternals," DC heroes have been mentioned, the reference to GoBots has been applied in a far more interesting aspect. The difference here is while DC Comics heroes are deemed fictional the same way as the often referenced "Star Wars" in this wild world, whereas GoBots are now technically canon in the MCU.
Could this little line that brings a laugh at Drax's expense be worth revisiting in "The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" when it arrives? It's something that could sit on the same level as the late Stan Lee breaking down all his 'appearances' in the MCU in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" or even Thor befriending a Kronan in "Thor: Ragnarok" after smashing one to pieces in "Thor: The Dark World." Seeing Drax crossing paths with GoBots like Cy-Kill, Spay-C, or (and we're not kidding) BuggyMan would be a moment so ridiculous it just might work. Hey, we've already seen Quill's dad Ego (Kurt Russell) briefly morph into Michael Knight, and we've seen Quill transform into a giant Pac-Man while fighting Ego. Is this really that much of a stretch? Go, go, go, make it happen, Gunn.