The following contains spoilers for The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, now streaming on Disney+.
On November 25, 2022, Disney+ released The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. The exclusive short film features the regular Guardians cast, minus Zoe Saldaña's Gamora who Peter Quill is anxiously searching the galaxy for after the events of Avengers: Endgame. The Christmas season has also typically been tough for him, as Yondu once rejected his wishes to celebrate in an incomplete memory shown near the beginning of the special. In order to cheer up Quill, Mantis and Drax head to Earth to retrieve Kevin Bacon as a present. In classic Guardians fashion, chaos ensues before the characters reunite to celebrate the beauty of the holidays.
In a recent Instagram post, James Gunn confirmed that he took inspiration for the project from the Christmas specials of the 1970s and '80s. Interestingly enough, this era birthed the most controversial moment in Star Wars history: The Star Wars Holiday Special, which Gunn "unironically loved." The infamous program follows the family of Chewbacca as they celebrate "Life Day" but are interrupted when Han Solo and Chewbacca are pursued by the Galactic Empire. While much has been said in way of criticism and defense of the special, there are several parallels between both the Guardians' and Wookies' holiday outings.
The Guardians and Star Wars Holiday Specials Explore Similar Themes and Structures
The overarching story of The Star Wars Holiday Special capitalizes on the desire of many to be home with their families for the holidays. For Chewbacca and his relatives, the intervention tactics of the Empire stand in the way of their reunion. When they do finally meet, the Wookies hold glowing orbs that transport them to the Tree of Life where they meet Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, R2-D2 and C-3PO for a celebratory speech and song. The implication here, and throughout much of the Star Wars story, is that bonds between those who are not blood relatives can be just as strong and influential as those shared between immediate family members.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special unravels these threads as well, as Mantis and Drax seek to brighten up Quill's Christmas, eventually culminating in a large celebration between the Guardians and the other inhabitants of the new Knowhere. Similarly, the Guardians regard each other as family without actually being related (for the most part). In fact, Mantis actually has to reveal to Quill that she is technically his sister since they share the same father, in a very Star Wars-esque twist of fate. He is ecstatic, but it is inferred that he values her the same, blood relative or not.
The Animated Segments in the Guardians Special Parallel Star Wars'
In the Instagram post, James Gunn specified that they rotoscoped the filmed footage of the actors in Quill's memory sequences as an homage to Ralph Bakshi's filmography. However, he also explained how this contributed to his overall tribute to the Christmas Specials from the 1970s and '80s. Similarly, The Star Wars Holiday Special features an animated detour when Chewbacca's son Lumpy is forced to watch a tape of his father's adventures while Stormtroopers raid his room. While the use of animation in the Guardians special is included primarily to highlight the difference between memory and present-day reality, it is hard not to notice the similarities in style and, even, content. This was revealed to be intentional in a tweet from Gunn who stated that he liked the mixed media approach in The Star Wars Holiday Special but wanted to improve on the overall execution of the implementation. In both instances, characters that do not otherwise appear in the specials are included. For Star Wars, it is the bounty hunter Boba Fett who partners with Chewbacca to find a cure to a mysterious virus that has infected both Han and Luke. Guardians takes a more heart-warming approach by showing Quill and Yondu's navigation of their expectations for the Christmas season.
The Guardians and Star Wars Holiday Specials also both have a slew of celebrity cameos and musical numbers performed by guests. While Star Wars invites Jefferson Starship and Diahann Carroll along for the ride, Guardians allows Kevin Bacon an honorary seat in the Old 97's to rock out to some holiday tunes. Additionally, both programs introduce side characters who are insignificant to the main storylines regarding the usual cast. The primary focus in each actually shifts away from the usual main characters to some of the side characters and featured guests. This makes both of these canonical entries excellent for the exploration of world-building inside these larger intergalactic communities. But perhaps the best thing these specials highlight is that the holiday season is a great time for acts of kindness and spending time with loved ones, Groot and Wookie alike.
To watch for similarities to The Star Wars Holiday Special, The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is now streaming on Disney+.
Source: Instagram