Wait, Is Mantis A Captain America Fangirl In The Marvel Cinematic Universe?
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is absolutely obsessed with Steve Rogers. It's been years since we last saw the star-spangled man disappear into the past, share a dance with Peggy Carter, and then reemerge as a Joe Biden lookalike. And even so, we've never really been rid of him. At first, it was just because we couldn't make sense of what his ending implied – has Steve always been Peggy's mysterious husband? Did he disrupt the timeline by popping back to the past? Is he also a secret US President?! but even after Timeline-Gate was settled, Steve's presence has lingered. Chris Evans may not have plans to return, but the MCU still refuses to let the supersoldier go.
Since Steve quietly exited the present, his life has been celebrated via museum exhibits, a broadway musical, and — the wildest of them all — the addition of Cap's shield to New York's Statue of Liberty. Even when he's not being heralded, Steve is being mentioned: "She-Hulk" dedicated a chunk of its pilot to uncovering the mystery of Steve's pre-Peggy love life. The results were very entertaining. But Steve's highest honor yet comes courtesy of "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special," where we learn that the Steve Rogers fanbase is not just limited to Earthlings.
Spoilers for "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" are below.
In which Mantis attacks a (fake) Avenger
The newly arrived "Guardians of the Galaxy" holiday special sees Mantis (Pom Klementieff) and Drax (Dave Bautista) enacting a grandmaster plan to save Christmas for Peter Quill. And by grandmaster plan, I mean a hair-brained scheme that is dangerously cooked up by Drax himself, an intergalactic warrior with absolutely 0 understanding of the legalities of kidnapping. So without a care in the world, the two journey to Earth and wander Hollywood in search of Kevin Bacon. While they eventually hunt, find, and kidnap the poor guy, they first kick things off by wreaking havoc on the streets of Los Angeles. Their primary victims? Street performers.
It's there that Drax attacks a man dressed as a robot, hinting at the existence of GoBots in the MCU. But the more important revelation comes when Mantis reacts to a performer dressed as Steve Rogers' Captain America. Mantis takes one look at the dude, shrieks Steve's name, and launches herself at the poor, unprepared actor. The man immediately flees the scene in a panic — which is fair. But all things considered, he ought to be prepared for occasional tackling if he's gonna walk around LA dressed as an Avenger.
This is how we learn that Mantis, like so many others, is a big fan of the world's first Avenger. Who would've thought that an American-based hero would have such mass appeal?
The latest MCU fangirl has arrived
As a woman who still owns multiple Captain America Pop figures, I know a fangirl when I see one. Those were the hand flaps of a Steve Rogers megafan — Mantis leapt onto him for a hug and everything, with enough intensity to send the performer running for his life.
Is it just me, or is Phase 4 tracking the rise of fangirls? Kate Bishop, Kamala Khan, RiRi Williams, and now Mantis have all made it clear that they love keeping up with Earth's Mightiest Defenders. Something that feels especially bittersweet as each of the OG heroes step back to make room for the new generation. Even Jennifer Walters (aka She-Hulk) revealed herself to be invested in the dirty details of Steve Rogers' life, pestering Bruce Banner with questions about his avenging coworker. But this makes sense for the characters who grew up on an Earth defended by the Avengers. So what's the deal with Mantis, the sheltered celestial hybrid who grew up under Ego's thumb?
It might surprise you to learn that there are quite a few possibilities. The easiest among them is that Mantis has simply met Steve Rogers before. Onscreen, we've seen him interact with a couple of different Guardians — most notably his very charming intro to Groot. Sure, we never actually see Steve "kick names and take ass" with Mantis, but he had ample opportunity.
Investigating the secret friendship of Mantis and Steve Rogers
During the climactic Infinity Saga finale, Mantis was one of many heroes to gather behind Cap when he famously called for the Avengers to assemble. I sincerely doubt she had a lot of time to bond with him while they fended off Thanos' army, though. As for their second opportunity to chat, Tony Stark's funeral hardly seems like the place to form a brief friendship. But then again, who knows how long Steve hung around before effing off into the past. Maybe the whole Avneging crew got shawarma together for old times' sake!
But here's the thing I can't let go — when Mantis charges at fake-Captain America, she calls him Steve. She knows him on a first-name basis. How is that possible? My personal suspicion is that Mantis' love of Steve has nothing to do with knowing him personally. The same way that she and Drax came to love Kevin Bacon through second-hand stories, Mantis may only know Steve through the eyes of his friends.
There's still time to make this friendship canon
Between movies, Mantis spent tons of time hanging out with the squad's honorary Guardian of the Galaxy, Thor. Surely he's told them stories about Steve, his only friend cool enough to lift his hammer! Or perhaps she heard tell of him through Rocket, who spent 5 years getting to know the man in the post-blip era, as they navigated life with only half the universe's population.
Or maybe the power of cultural osmosis has worked its magic and Mantis is just another excitable fan of the first Avenger. All I know is that James Gunn has now planted the seed of this friendship and someone is gonna have to answer for that. If there is any justice in this world, then someone will immediately find a way to get Mantis and the real Steve Rogers in a room together, so they can hug and forge the most endearing friendship of all time. Maybe a Steve and Mantis buddy-comedy is the "perfect" script that could compel Chris Evans to return.
"The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" is now streaming on Disney+.