Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.
The events of The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special brought a lot of laughter but left some unanswered questions as the Guardians caused mayhem on Earth.
Kraglin (Sean Gunn) tells the Guardians that the Earth tradition of Christmas is coming up and shares a story about how Yondu (voiced by Michael Rooker) ruined Christmas for young Peter (voiced by Luke Klein) long ago. With Peter Quill still depressed after the loss of Gamora, Mantis and Drax decide to do something to cheer him up. What better way to lift his spirits than to give him something he loves – beloved actor Kevin Bacon.
Hilarity ensues as Mantis (Pom Klementieff) and Drax (Dave Bautista) head to Hollywood, California, in search of the Footloose actor, who inspired Peter Quill’s (Chris Pratt) famous dance-off with Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace) in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1.
Drax – with his green skin and reddish-colored tattoos and Mantis – with the antennae on her head – don’t exactly blend in with the crowd on Earth. After passing as costumed performers in front of the famous Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, Drax ends up beating up a costumed GoBot. At one point, Mantis apologized to the man inside the costume, saying that “GoBots killed his cousin.”
After asking everyone they could find for the location of “the legendary Kevin Bacon,” they steal a map from a sales lady and proceed to stalk the award-winning actor at his home. After chasing him through the streets, they beat up six police officers and destroy a squad car, then proceed to rob a store of all its Christmas decorations.
After their reign of terror, will they be wanted or looked at as dangerous criminal aliens by authorities such as the Sentient Worlds Observation and Response Department (S.W.O.R.D) or the Department of Damage Control? Are they now fugitives on Earth?
While beating up the GoBot actor could be seen by others as part of the script for the characters on Hollywood Boulevard, it would be difficult to explain the damage to the police squad car and the injured police officers, which could alert high-level authorities, but it will most likely not be addressed in future installments.
Of course, Mantis also has incredible psychic abilities, causing people to sleep at will, reading their innermost thoughts, and even forcing them to do things they don’t want to do. While we do not know the full extent of her abilities, it would be safe to presume she can also make people forget things. While it was not shown on screen, she could have wiped the memories of the police officers.
Kevin Bacon himself is not likely to be upset when he returns to his home, but the Christmas shop owners are probably wondering who stole their entire store. For Mantis, Drax, and Kevin Bacon’s sakes, hopefully they don’t have security cameras.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is now streaming on Disney Plus.