If you’ve seen either of the Guardians of the Galaxy films, you should be aware that Gamora is not someone to be taken lightly. She’s known as Most Dangerous Woman in the Galaxy for a reason. Now you can learn how she earned that reputation in a brand new untold tale from Guardians of the Galaxy co-screenwriter Nicole Perlman.
Once upon a time, Gamora was Thanos‘ heartless pet assassin and favourite adopted daughter. Today, she is the backbone of the Guardians of the Galaxy, putting her life on the line to defend the innocent throughout the universe. What was it that transformed her from being used as a tool of her oppressor, to a champion of the powerless?
One of Gamora’s defining characteristics is her intense hatred for her adopted father The Mad Titan – Thanos – and her life’s mission to put him to death. Perlman takes us back to the years when she still considered Thanos her father whilst keeping the story in Marvel Cinematic Universe continuity established by the presence of Nebula as Gamora’s stepsister. The early scenes with Thanos alongside the flashbacks and hints sprinkled throughout are wonderfully twisted with the Mad Titan obviously proud and protective of his adopted daughter, but only to the extent of her usefullness as his weapon. This is particularly emphasised through the dynamic between Thanos, Gamora and Nebula with the latter regularly mocked or dismissed by Thanos because she does not have the same level of intellect and skill in his eyes as Gamora. The resulting resentment that Nebula has towards Gamora over this (despite Gamora’s clear resentment of her situation) is what kicks the main plot of the story into action when she informs Gamora that a member of the Badoon Brotherhood (the species that killed her family) has escaped from Gamora’s recent Thanos authorised slaughter.
Beyond her clear unhappiness as Thanos’ weapon of choice and her resentment of her upbringing (being locked in dark rooms, forced to excecute others and watching your stepsister getting cybernetic enhancements will do that to you), the main theme of this story arc is Gamora’s struggle with whether she wants to be the thoughtless killer motivated by vengeance as she was brought up to be or if she wants to make her own independent decisions. Perlman does an excellent job handling this through the character of L’Wit – a daughter of one of the Brother Royal of the Badoon’s harem. Having been spared death by her exile as a baby to the planet Ubilex, she finds herself a target of Gamora when she discovers that there is a surviving member of the Badoon’s royal bloodline. It is the struggles that Gamora has over whether to kill L’Wit or go against her instincts that provide some of the best moments.
Marco Checchetto is a great choice on the art front. Having a diverse experience with Marvel that ranges from the gritty stuff in Daredevil and The Punisher to space adventure in the various Star Wars titles he has contributed, he is an ideal choice with the various alien species and fight scenes all popping off the page, and the scenes with Thanos and Nebula nailing the dark tone and twisted relationship the characters share.
This is a perfect choice for any Guardians of the Galaxy fans looking to further explore the Gamora character and it is an easily accessible read for anyone coming off the film that might not be as familiar with the character’s comic history.
Gamora: Momento Mori is out now from Marvel
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Post by Leo