This is a significant step down compared with what came before. Abnett and Laning’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” was about big themes and ideas. DnA were writing a religious allegory/satire involving The Universal Church of Truth long before it occurred to Jason Aaron to pursue a similar concept in “Thor.” DnA were exploring the idea of a reality without death in the Cancerverse, and showing that such a reality might not be so great. Instead of those story drivers, Brian Michael Bendis gives us a Star-lord with daddy issues, a theme that we have seen a great deal of with characters like Tony Stark and Thor. If Bendis has something original and interesting to say about father and son relationships, the idea might be worth pursuing, but so far there isn’t a whole lot that is intriguing about Peter Quill and his dad – just standard abandonment issues. Because of course, Star-lord’s dad should have hung around to nurture his son even when he had a galactic war to fight as the King of Spartax. I do give Bendis credit for having the wit to make Star-lord’s father admit to envy of his son’s female associations. Steve McNiven is the kind of artist who just doesn’t make art that is ever any less than four or five star work, which is why I am sure he got this high profile assignment. The images of Peter Quill glaring at his father from under a mop of blond hair are a lot more eloquent than any of the dialogue that Bendis writes for the character. Unfortunately, the space age, futuristic costumes are a significant come down from the previous Guardians uniforms. I would not expect Gamora’s physics defying green outfit to survive this iteration, but the former group costumes with their gray, Soviet military-style chic were attractive, and fit the tone of the team. Star-lord’s old metallic helmet looked like it might have been ingeniously cobbled together out of spare parts, but it appeared to be practical. Now, the team looks like a group of motocross drivers.