Not only is Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 my favorite film of the series, but it’s also quite possibly the best entry in the entire MCU.

I don’t think either Guardians of the Galaxy films are particularly great, but they are a heck of a lot of fun, Vol. 2 so overflowing in passionate imagination taking my eyes off of it for even a single second proved to be impossible. Gunn’s vision continues to be the most inspired of any director currently working inside of Marvel’s universe, and like a dancing Baby Groot I’m pretty sure at this point I’d jive right along to any beat he chooses to lay down next.

Guardians of the Galaxy takes the Marvel brand into new territories and does so with grandly entertaining brio, and even if all facets aren’t quite perfect they’re still strong enough to make this sci-fi adventure worthwhile.