Just By Following The Comics, The MCU's X-Men Reboot Can Easily Set Up Its Guardians Of The Galaxy Replacement

Published Oct 19, 2026, 4:30 PM EDT Nicholas Raymond is an author and journalist based out of Alabama, where he proudly roots for the Alabama Crimson Tide football team. A graduate of the University of Montevallo, he has a degree in mass communication with a concentration in journalism. The MCU's X-Men reboot can easily lay the groundwork for the best-possible replacement for the Guardians of the Galaxy - and all it needs for that to happen is an accurate adaptation of one confirmed hero's origin story. Of the possible groups that could rise up in their place, none makes more sense than the one that shares a direct link to a founding member of the X-Men. Of course, the MCU does have an existing team that could theoretically take the place of Star-Lord's Guardians of the Galaxy lineup. One of the post-credits scenes for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 introduced a new iteration of the group, led by Rocket Raccoon. But it actually becoming a major player in future MCU storylines is highly unlikely. After all, all of its characters stem from James Gunn's trilogy, and any director who takes over the franchise would most assuredly prefer to add their own spin, which would require a mostly fresh roster of heroes. Such a scenario is plausible, but there's another avenue the MCU could take too, which is picking a completely different cosmic team to devote adventures to, abandoning the "Guardians of the Galaxy" moniker entirely. The Starjammers stand out as the best candidate to take on this role, and if the MCU wants to add them into the picture, the best way to pull that off is to simply adhere to Cyclops' origin story. The Introduction Of The Starjammers Is Rooted In Cyclops' Origin Story In Marvel Comics, the Starjammers are known as a team of heroic space pirates led by Corsair a.k.a Christopher Summers, the father of Cyclops. His three main teammates in the Starjammers are Raza Longknife, Hepzibah, and Ch'od. A large, green creature whose monstrous appearance contrasts heavily with his debonair way of speaking, Ch'od is the muscle of the team. Hepzibah, the group's primary female member, possesses feline characteristics and also serves as Corsair's main love interest in the comics. Similar to Black Widow, Hepzibah brings a degree of finesse to the team. Lastly, there's Raza, the hot-headed cyborg with an axe to grind against the alien race known as the Shi'ar. Through the advanced technology within his body, he has a number of tools in his arsenal he can offer them on their travels. Together, the four characters shared a long list of adventures in outer space, many of which involved team-ups with the X-Men. The Starjammers first crossed paths with the X-Men when they made their Marvel Comics debut in 1977's X-Men #107. However, the seeds for their introduction were planted far earlier, even though it wasn't done intentionally. In X-Men #48, it was revealed that Cyclops and Havok lost both of their parents in a plane crash, and that neither of their bodies were found. This detail regarding Cyclops' parents, Christopher and Katherine Summers, was used to facilitate the twist that Corsair was his biological father. It was explained later that the plane crash that robbed Cyclops of his parents was the result of an attack by the Shi'ar. The Shi'ar shot down the plane and kidnapped his mother and father. Katherine died in captivity, while Christopher was forced to fight in a gladiator pit. After escaping, he formed the Starjammers with Hepizbah, Raza, and Ch'od. The MCU Can Easily Set Up The Starjammers In The X-Men Movie Thanks to the background Marvel Comics provided the Starjammers all those years ago, the MCU won't have to do much heavy lifting at all if it wants to begin its setup for the team to make their first-ever live-action appearance. In fact, it can start as early as the 2028 X-Men movie, especially since it's already confirmed to include Cyclops. Presumably, the movie will establish backstories for each of its heroes, not unlike what Spider-Man: Brand New Day did for Jean Grey. And there's no reason why Cyclops' situation should differ considerably from his comic book counterpart. The original X-Men were all either orphans or teenagers who had good reasons for living apart from their parents, so it makes sense that just as it was with Jean, Cyclops will have a tragic past and some reason will be given for his parents' absence from his life. With that in mind, it won't be difficult for the MCU to create a framework for the Starjammers. If the movie discusses the plane crash from the source material and makes a point of not showing his father's body, the movie - in the same vein as the comic books - will have opened the door for Christopher Summers to return later as Corsair, possibly with the other three Starjammers in tow. This presents the MCU with what feels like an ideal situation. To set them up, the X-Men movie doesn't have to make room for a major detour into the cosmic corner of the MCU by introducing the Shi'ar, allot a great deal of screen time to the mystery concerning the whereabouts of Cyclops' father, nor does it have to show Corsair in the flesh. Rather, it can set up the Starjammers in a much more organic way, and that's simply by following the comics and maintaining a degree of ambiguity when it comes to the "death" of Christopher Summers. That would be enough to launch speculation about Corsair's MCU debut and build anticipation for a proper appearance from the Starjammers in a potential X-Men sequel. And depending on how that plays out, there's even potential for Corsair and his allies to headline their own MCU movie or Disney+ show. The Starjammers Is The MCU's Best Guardians Of The Galaxy Replacement By all indications, the X-Men will be the driving force of the next chapter in the MCU, hence why it's been described by many - unofficially - as "The Mutant Saga." If the centerpiece of the MCU's next string of films is the X-Men, then it feels only natural for any cosmic team it may introduce also share an intrinsic connection to mutantkind or perhaps the team specifically. That may not be necessary, per se, but it would allow for a greater feeling of interconnectedness between its various projects. The Starjammers can fill this role better than the other possible candidates to replace the Guardians of the Galaxy. Vance Astro's Guardians of the Galaxy team from the future could possibly work, especially since he's a mutant himself. But since most of its members have already appeared in Gunn's movies, it may make more sense at this point to simply add him to the Starjammers roster or find some other place for his character. Plus, a team like the Annihilators would require a great deal of setup and might not fit into the immediate plans for the MCU. The Starjammers, on the other hand, would fit neatly into X-Men crossovers or wide-scale conflicts with top-tier threats like Apocalypse, the Shi'ar race, or Exodus.