Guardians of the Galaxy
I may be an outlier in thinking the Guardians of the Galaxy movies only got better as they went, but I’d argue that the first is the least of the three. Star-Lord and friends’ intergalactic adventures benefit from having one director in James Gunn across all three films, the same cast whose chemistry only grew stronger with each installment, and a clear arc for its heroes that didn’t have to bend to the whims of the MCU’s overarching storyline. The first movie effectively brings five heroes together who should have wanted nothing to do with one another and makes you believe they could become more tight-knit than any other team in Marvel’s catalog. That being said, its villain is forgettable and I don’t think the movie is as funny as it thinks it is. But hey, it led to the other two films which are some of the best in the MCU. — Kenneth Shepard
