Vol 3 First Audience Reactions

It’s the bittersweet, powerful end of an era as Guardians of the Galaxy franchise director James Gunn—who’s now the co-head of DC Studios—bows out of Marvel. But he’s leaving on an excellently high note, as the first social media reactions to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (which opens May 5) suggest.

Stars like Chris Pratt (Star-Lord), Zoe Saldaña (Gamora), and Dave Bautista (Drax) have all confirmed this is a farewell of sorts to the Guardians as we know them. It’s been no secret that Vol. 3 also marks the Marvel end for some of our favorite players who won’t be reprising their roles again; we’re still waiting to see if there will be a new set of Guardians for any future encores. Fingers crossed for Karen Gillan (Nebula), Pom Klementieff (Mantis), Sean Gunn (Kraglin), and Vin Diesel (Groot) to survive the deadpool.

While we don’t know and won’t share who said goodbye, we’re anticipating lots of tears and emotions like the ones below! Here are the reactions from various screenings held today for Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3, the long awaited farewell to the most endearing bunch of A-holes we’ve met in the MCU. First up, of course, is io9’s very own Germain Lussier:

But here’s just a few more reactions rolling in so far tonight:

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 hits theaters May 5. Check back in with io9 later today for our full review of the movie!

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water.