[wp-review id=”79272″]

Fresh off of saving Xandar from Ronan The Accuser, The Guardians of the Galaxy have a new job, working for The Sovereign Race.  The Sovereign have these special batteries that are priceless and it seems that everyone wants them.  They need the crew to stop an inter-dimensional creature and in exchange, The Sovereign will give them something their very interested in.  

Rocket decides to grab some batteries for himself; causing the whole fleet to attack them but not before they’re saved by an unknown “tiny man.”  With the Milano damaged from the battle and the hard crash, they need to figure out their next move.  The tiny man lands with a women accompanying him named Mantis to explain that he is named Ego and he is Peter’s father.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Vol. 2 is written and directed by James Gunn.  It is based on the Marvel Comic book series of the same name with the core team being similar to the source material. It brings back the entire cast from the first film (minus Ronin of course due to him being blinked out of existence) and literally picks up right where the first left off.  It has all the fun of the first one and expanding the cosmic corner of the MCU.  Because you know the Guardians already, you get to see more of the characters in this with depth. Getting to know them better, you understand each character’s hangups, deeper feeling, motivations, and, to me at least, makes for a better movie.

I really enjoyed this movie and it does have a lot of the same feeling that you got from the first film.  The biggest difference would be that the first movie was about characters that didn’t get a whole lot of love before the movie became a hit.  Then the film released and the MCU captured lightening in a bottle with a huge and unexpected success.  So when you watch Vol. 2, there are some expectations that you have as a viewers like action, comedy, and an awesome soundtrack.  

Cast
Chris Pratt – Peter Quill
Zoe Saldana – Gamora
Dave Bautista – Drax
Vin Diesel – Baby Groot 
Bradley Cooper – Rocket
Michael Rooker – Yondu
Karen Gillan – Nebula
Pom Klementieff – Mantis
Kurt Russell – Ego
Elizabeth Debicki – Ayesha

VIDEO QUALITY:

4k UHD
The video is a 2160p HEVC presentation that looks gorgeous in the 4k format.  Gunn loves to use color and there are a few different planets to use various hues that keep the settings fresh.  One of the most colorful areas in the movie is while the team is on Ego’s surface.  The sky is like a Monet painting with brilliant greens with oranges and yellows.  

Also, there are a lot of moments where the there are an array or rainbow colors like with the inter-dimensional monster at the beginning and the introduction to Ego’s surface.  The textures of both the CGI creatures and the people wearing practical effects look amazing.  You can make out the individual scars and lines on Yondu’s face.  The blacks are impressive and inky, creating some very nice contrasting.  

Blu-ray
As for the Blu-ray, the transfer is a 1080p presentation and it looks amazing in its own right.  The coloring standout with plenty of separated colors and a wide palette like the 4k.  The coloring looks like it is pushing the limits of the format.  You also get as much clarity as Blu-ray can handle.  

AUDIO QUALITY:

4k UHD
The audio on the 4k UHD disc is a Dolby Atmos mix.  With the mix having the “overhead” movement of the sound, the audio is immersive.  Another thing that Gunn likes to have on screen are battles where there is a lot going on and not just what’s happening on screen.  Of course, the attack of The Sovereign fleet have sound field movement with sweeping audio that seems like it is literally coming from everywhere but in the end fight, Quill goes looking for tape.  You can hear him move over the back left as he asks the team for tape of some kind.  The LFEs are powerful with the big explosions and vehicles showing their presence.  

Blu-ray
The audio on the Blu-ray is a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 mix.  This is a strong audio track with a lot of the same qualities as the UHD disc minus what you get with the Atmos speaker placement. The effects are clean and clearly separated in the home theater with sweeping audio as well.  The music comes through well with no distortion or worry that it is overpowering the effects or dialogue.  Overall, this is an excellent track and on par for the MCU films.

SUPPLEMENTS & PACKAGING

-Visionary Intro: This quick little intro to the film from director James Gunn.

-Bonus Round: The Making of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Vol. 2: This is a good 4-part making-of about the movie.
In the Director’s Chair with James Gunn: This a quick look at the first film’s unforeseen success and how they had to make sure to do the same style of film without going too far off of the rails.
Reunion Tour: The Music of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Vol. 2: This featurette discusses the ever-so-important soundtrack that helps bring movie from the series to life.
Living Planets and Talking Trees: The Visual Effects of Vol. 2: This is a featurette about the visual effects in the movie.
Showtime: The Cast of Vol. 2: The cast discusses the cast and how they fit so well.

-Music Video: Guardians Inferno by The Sneepers Ft. David Hasselhoff:  This is amazing and a must watch…that’s all I can say.  

-Gag Reel

-Deleted Scenes

Disc Details
2-disc set w/1 4k UHD and I Blu-ray
Digital copy

Running Time
136 mins

Edition Ratings
Rated PG-13

Region Coding
Region Free

-4k UHD
Video Resolution
2160p HEVC / H.265
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1

Audio Mixes
English Dolby Atmos
English Dolby TrueHD 7.1
English Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
French Dolby Digital Plus 5.1

Subtitles
English
English SDH
French
German
Japanese
Spanish
Cantonese
Mandarin

-Blu-ray
Video Resolution
1080p AVC MPEG-4
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1

Audio Mixes
English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
French Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1

Subtitles
English SDH
French
Spanish

THE BOTTOM LINE:

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Vol. 2 has everything that a fan of the franchise and the books would expect to see on screen.  Like I said, you get to delve deeper into these established characters to understand their motivations better.  I really like when that kind of opportunity presents itself because I feel like it makes the movie that much more enjoyable.  The 4k UHD is incredible with reference audio and video.  The Blu-ray is also top-notch with strong showings in both categories as well.  The extras are very good and give incite to the movie.  Overall, this is a no brainer: pick it up in whatever format that you own and enjoy.