The Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special Reminds Us That DC Comics Exist In The MCU
Spoilers follow for "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special."
Just because you've settled in for an hour of MCU-fueled fun does not mean you can escape the grasp of DC Comics. At this point, the two comic-inspired blockbuster franchises are tied together. Wherever one goes, the other will follow — especially because Marvel is so wonderfully unafraid of dropping references to their biggest competitor.
The latest from Marvel Studios has once again confirmed what we already suspected: that DC characters also exist in the MCU. Just not in the way that you're probably hoping.
"The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" sees the intergalactic squad trying to uncover the meaning of Christmas. Namely, Drax and Mantis are hoping to give Peter Quill the best Christmas ever by delivering the perfect gift: actual human actor, Kevin Bacon. It's not the most morally sound present, but their hearts are in the right place. Mostly.
After a bumpy kidnapping, the duo makes a startling realization: they have not captured a folksy hero worthy of legends, songs, and epic tales. Instead, Drax and Mantis are horrified to discover that there is an actor in their midst. Ironically, their solution is for him to "pretend" he's an actual hero. Clearly an improv artist at heart, Bacon uses that prompt to do the worst Batman impression ever, saying, "Hello. I'm the Batman. I mean, hello. I'm Bruce Wayne."
And just like that, the Caped Crusader has become a canon element in the MCU.
Welcome to the MCU (again), Batman
To be clear, Batman is not a hero who can swoop down and face the Avengers in battle. Gotham still isn't a real place and the Joker can't wreak havoc on the MCU's world. In the MCU, DC is still a comic book company and Batman is one of its characters.
Fittingly, Drax is confused by the references and asks Bacon who Bruce Wayne even is — but he never actually gets an answer. Hopefully, someone will get him a copy of "Year One," or maybe Peter Quill can explain it on their next journey across the galaxy.
This is far from the first instance of DC comics being referenced in the MCU. In "Eternals," Phastos' son misidentified Ikaris as Superman (but besides being a flying alien with laser eyes, the eternal has little in common with DC's Boy Scout). The same film also features another Batman wink: Kingo's valet Karun (aka the MVP of the movie) is jokingly referred to as his "Alfred." There are a couple of other easter eggs too — like the fact that Peter Parker's high school nemesis Flash Thompson pens an autobiography called "Flashpoint," a jab at The Flash storyline that's due to hit screens at some point next year.
As for the other way around, DC has far less of these joking winks. Since the DC films tend towards a darker less jokey tone, this makes sense. There's no time for quips in "The Batman" because RBats is too busy brooding. And even in the funnier films ("Shazam" and "The Suicide Squad"), the heroes are too busy making jokes about their grimdark pasts to jest over comic books. The closest I recall DC getting is with "The LEGO Batman Movie," when we learn that the passcode to the Batcave is "Iron Man sucks." But even that still counts for something!
James Gunn, master of the multiverse
It's fitting that this reminder should come from a special helmed by James Gunn. The filmmaker has already crossed the aisle big time, by directing projects for both Marvel and DC in recent years. He has "The Suicide Squad," "Peacemaker" and the entire "Guardians of the Galaxy" franchise under his belt. And if you've kept an eye on the news, you know there's more to come.
Gunn has gone from directing to getting the top job. He was recently named as co-head of DC Studios, alongside Peter Safran. This means his days at Marvel are likely coming to an end, so who better to drop a wink and a nod to DC than him? For all we know, this is Gunn's strategic way of bridging the two universes together for a *gasp* crossover event. After all, this is the same man who once floated the idea of a Harley Quinn and Groot movie. Nothing is impossible.
Anyway, all it takes is a couple of Batman jokes to create a paradox. Consider this: if DC Comics exists in the MCU, then does the DCEU also exist? If so, then is James Gunn canonically the head of the DC Studios that exists in the MCU? If so, then James Gunn has found a way to exist in both the DC Universe (a la "Harley Quinn") AND the MCU? If so, does he get some kind of award for pulling this off? If these two properties ever do a crossover on the big screen, will James Gunn be the uniting factor? In the same way that Coulson helped to hold the Avengers together, could James Gunn be the one to unite the heroes of DC and Marvel? And most importantly, dear reader, have I fallen so far down this rabbit hole that I've stopped making sense?
"The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" is now streaming on Disney+.