James Gunn Pins Down Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special’s Timeline

One of the key attractions that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has is its connectivity from one film to another, one character to another. In the case of a rare holiday special MCU film, James Gunn pins down where Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special belongs in the timeline.

When asked on Twitter by a starting Marvel fan on how to start the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special while being behind on the timeline, James Gunn was quick to address in his quoted tweet. Check out their conversation below:

James Gunn says, “None are must-see, including the Guardians films. BUT the two Guardians movies, Infinity War, and Endgame all have small amounts of information in them that are referenced.”

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Of course, for those who have yet to watch the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, especially the Guardians of the Galaxy, they are bound to be confused about the references being used in the film, so the holiday special could easily kickstart them into being immersed in the Marvel world.

While James Gunn poses no urgency on having to watch the previous films for context, beginning fans would probably not enjoy the holiday special without seeing the Guardians franchise. After all, how else would they understand the inside jokes and story timeline?

On the other hand, apart from Marvel’s Werewolf By Night Halloween Special, The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is one of the rare extra films inserted into the MCU canon, so, perhaps just simply enjoying the spirit of gift-giving of the Guardians would suffice for TV entertainment. Either way, Gunn leaves this up to the viewers on whether or not they would want to watch its previous films before the holiday special.

Then again, understanding Infinity War and Endgame would require the entirety of the MCU franchise first to get to know the heroes involved.

The Holiday Special also welcomes Kevin Bacon as himself, Peter Quill’s favorite idol on earth, which could imply a recurring cameo from the actor, though no official announcements have been made about this yet.

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special will be released on November 25 on Disney Plus.

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