Yes, yes, alright. Director James Gunn and his cast and crew also bid a heartfelt farewell to the characters who have been with fans for nearly a decade in the best Marvel film in years.

Through teamwork and the power of family, Guardians of the Galaxy frees themselves from the clutches of the High Evolutionary (voiced by Chukwudi Iwuji) and his creatures, and manages to save the other beings being experimented on with the High Evolutionary’s process, returning them to their homes on Nowhere based on their leadership.

After this final epic adventure together, the Guardians of the Galaxy spoke heart-to-heart about what they want from life, from themselves, and from each other. Saving the universe more than once – and seeing just how close the universe has come to ending all those times – puts a lot of things in perspective.

While Gamora (Zoe Saldana) has no relation to the Guardians anymore (a result of time travel), she accepts her affection for the team as she goes back to the space pirates before they head back to their spacefaring ways. Drax (Dave Bautista) and Nebula (Karen Gillan) say they will stay on Nowhere and lead the new colony. Mantis (Pom Klementieff) tells the group she will go where they go.

This is a large number of retired parents! But have these heroes really reached the end of the road?

Mid-credit scene introduces a new protector of the Galaxy roster

The mid-credit scene opens with Rocket and his guardians with the new roster. This rocket has telekinetic canines (voiced by Maria Bakalova), the powerful Himbo Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), Clutzy Craiglin (Sean Gunn), a very large Groot, and one of the Star Kids (a child with platinum hair who may or may not become powerful) saved from the High Evolutionary’s jail. They are roaming outside the perimeter of a village, talking about their favorite songs. Before Rocket praises “Come and Get Your Love” by Redbone, new parents arrive.

After the song starts playing through the rocket, a foreign animal invasion occurs in the village, and before a storm of war approaches, the parents give us a group superhero pose, as the tune plays.

The scene operates on two levels. Primarily, it establishes the new Guardians roster, which Rocket has taken charge of. Heavy hitters like Peter Quill, Gamora, and Drax have departed. The same is true for new hires like Nebula and Mantis. However, they have been replaced by heavy hitters, as Adam Warlock and Cosmo both have superpowers, and Kraglin has mastered the hot pink, city-controlled arrow used by Star-Lord’s adoptive father Yondu. In terms of personality, Warlock’s intellectual density is not unlike Drax’s, while Cosmo’s cute-but-powerful personality is reminiscent of Mantis. Kraglin is still a comedian, and Groot is still Groot, but bigger.

This new team of guardians can work with the same dynamism as the original team.

The wild card is an unnamed star kid. It appears that the child has some powers (they glow), but before we see them fight, the scene cuts.

During the film, we learn that the High Evolutionary has tampered with the genes of these children and made them extremely intelligent. We also see a High Evolutionary study, as he runs tirelessly on a hamster wheel. However, we don’t know what real powers he has, if any.

According to the credits associated with the movie, they are billed as “Star Kids”. This is a term that doesn’t directly reference comic books – it features a character named Star-Child, a race called the Zebra Kids that are part of a plot by the High Evolutionary, and some parent-characters whose uniforms bear the symbol of a star – but perhaps we’ll get a full picture of the kids’ powers in a future film.

Rocket’s love for the song is also noteworthy. Parent-fans will immediately recognize “Come and Get Your Love” as the song that played over the opening scene of the original 2014 Guardians of the Galaxy movie.

When Peter Quill steals the Infinity Stone from the planet Morag, the song is playing on his Walkman. Rocket playing the song is not only a tribute to Quill but also a nod to the introduction he gave the Guardians of the Galaxy in the first film.

Peter Quill and his grandfather were reunited

The final scene credits show us a glimpse of Peter Quill’s reunion with his grandfather (Greg Henry). They had last seen each other in 1988, and after spending all these years apart, they finally became a family again. And just like we do with our families after a long time, Peter and his grandpa have breakfast together and complain.

The first passage is in Hindi and talks about Peter Quill’s reunion with his grandfather. The second passage is in English and talks about Peter Quill discussing with his grandfather about a neighbour who he wants to ask to cut his lawn. They agree, and in a call back to a gag in the film, they decide not to start it themselves.

The scene ends with a title card that says “The Mythic Star-Lord will return,” but there is no specific date for this.

While Star-Lord will return in a future film, it is unclear whether he will reunite with the other guardians or not. No official announcements have been made about upcoming solo films for either Gamora or Peter Quill, but if Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is as big a hit as its predecessors, don’t expect Marvel to let them dance off into the sunset just yet.