Yahoo News Who the 'new' Gamora could be in Guardians of the Galaxy 3
Gamora hasn't had the best journey on the big screen up until this point.
In the comics, Thanos's adopted daughter lived up to her reputation as 'the most dangerous woman in the galaxy', an elite combatant who isn't afraid to make sacrifices and is unusually liberated in her sexual confidence.
On the big screen, it's a different story altogether. From Guardians of the Galaxy and its sequel, to Endgame, the MCU managed to reduce one of Marvel's most compelling characters to one of the most tired tropes in the book: a woman who is defined by the male relationships in her life.
Don't get us wrong: Zoe Saldana's take on the assassin has been solid for the most part and we've enjoyed seeing her as one of the more headstrong leaders of the ragtag cosmic crew. But fans of comic book Gamora deserve better than seeing her used ruthlessly to move the arcs of her lover (Peter Quill) and her father (Thanos) forward.
And while Avengers: Endgame did bring her back following the whole dusting debacle, it wasn't the Gamora we'd grown to know over the years, but instead the 2014 version who has yet to even form a relationship with the rest of her team. In the closing scenes, she quietly disappears after the final fight, serving as a tool of emotional distress for poor ol' Quill.
It's no wonder that the Marvel writers have once again been accused of 'fridging' the character by disregarding her narrative without consequences. By not allowing the established Gamora to return – one of the few powerful female heroes portrayed by one of the few actresses of colour within the MCU – it was like they were saying they have no qualms in tossing her story in the trash, one that's been built up over the course of several movies.
So – now that the movie industry appears to be slowly thawing after the COVID-19 deep freeze – what does the future hold for her?
Since Guardians of the Galaxy 3 is going ahead with James Gunn at the helm, the fear is that because she has to rebuild her relationship with the titular team, her arc will once again be there to serve someone else's storyline, whether that be for Quill, the newly-appointed Thor or Adam Warlock (if he ever decides to show up).
On the other side of the coin, if Gunn plays his cards right, this could be just the thing Saldana's take on the character needs if she's ever to live up to her portrayal on the page. One thing the fans don't want to see is another storyline where Quill woos Gamora and Gamora takes time to become an integral part of the cosmic crew – that's been and gone.
No, instead (we're hoping for, anyway) it could be that Guardians 3 provides her with the opportunity to prove herself as the righteous assassin that she is, one who develops in her own space to become her own fully-formed character.
If so, perhaps Marvel-heads (us included) could put the past behind them. On the big screen, the adopted Titan sadly lost much of her enthusiasm for battle to make way for her being a sensible love interest for Peter.
But the 2014 Gamora, one who's only recently seen the light regarding the actions of her adoptive father, could restore some of this fervour. In some capacity, we might even see her nope right out of the Guardians and become an antihero in her own right.
She's been both good and evil throughout the comics, one of her greatest victories being keeping reality safe alongside Adam Warlock. And as we saw in the closing credits of Guardians of the Galaxy 2, it looks like Ayesha's set to unleash Warlock in a desperate attempt to destroy the gang, meaning it's likely this character will feature somewhere within the narrative of the threequel.
Perhaps a team-up with the antagonist is a new direction her arc could take in the wake of the fallout from Endgame. Although let's just hope that Gunn has learned from his Gamora problem and doesn't waste this opportunity on making her the top point of a love triangle with the newbie and Quill.
They've done that – let's give Gamora the space to kick ass without going all gooey over some dude's advances. Now the slate's wiped clean, so to speak, she's free to be who she is in the books. They don't call her the most dangerous woman in the galaxy for nothing.
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