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Guardians of the Galaxy portrays a team of misfits who inadvertently become heroes with Peter Quill as their leader, holding the impressive moniker of Star-Lord. Peter’s love for Gamora, the friendship between Rocket and Groot, and the rapport between Drax and Mantis – all contribute to a mosaic of loving ties.
However, each member of this accidentally-found family has a biological family too. And Peter Quill’s bloodline has been of interest both in comics and in MCU. While the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie spoke about Peter’s relationship with his mother, Meredith Quill, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 revealed Ego the Living Planet as his father.
While Ego the Living Planet is Peter’s father in MCU, Marvel Comics has had first Jason, and then, J’Son as Peter’s father. As such, retconning and alternate storylines are quite common in the Marvel world. While the animated series on the Guardians on Disney XD retained J’Son as Star-Lord’s father, James Gunn decided to have Ego in the place.
Peter Quill’s father in Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics has two versions of Star-Lord’s father. One is Jason of Spartax and the other is Emperor J’Son of Spartax. Beyond just names, there are other differences between the two characters.
Jason, created by Chris Claremont and John Byrne in the 1970s, was an alien humanoid prince whose spaceship crashed on Earth and he got romantically involved with Meredith Quill. Peter Quill was born after Jason left to fulfill his duties towards his people, the Spartoi. An adult Peter meets his dad and inherits the role of the Spartax Emperor from him.
The other storyline created by Brian Michael Bendis in 2013, brought J’Son with similar initial events of meeting Meredith. However, J’Son left Meredith behind for her safety since his planet was getting attacked by alien conquerors, the Badoon.
Emperor J’Son became power-hungry and a danger to Earth. When J’Son met his son, he wanted Peter to join him in his totalitarian moves. However, Peter Quill refused making his dad furious. In return, J’Son tried to attack and kill the members of the Guardians of the Galaxy but Carol Danvers saved them.
Star-Lord encouraged the people of Spartax to revolt against their emperor forcing J’Son to go into hiding. A disgraced J’Son indulged in all kinds of crime using the moniker of Mister Knife including attempts at getting his son killed. When he got power from the celestial Black Vortex, Captain Marvel, the Guardians and the X-Men came together to defeat him and trap him within amber.
The MCU version of Peter Quill’s father
The reason why movies have Ego the Living Planet as Star-Lord’s father is that it emphasizes the expanse of the story. It gives a wider spread to the impact of a galaxy-hopping son’s rejection of an egoistic all-consuming father.
Moreover, Gunn had referred to J’Son as being similar to Star Wars and lacking scope of narrative distinctness. While Ego’s father figure explains some of Star-Lord’s powers, his rejection of anything connected to his father leaves galaxy-wide repercussions.
Gunn’s version of the Guardian’s leader is also different from the comic versions. Moreover, in the comic books, Peter Quill formed the Guardians of the Galaxy with a purpose in mind. In the older version, he wanted to avenge his mother’s death, while in the newer version, he wanted to protect Earth. However, Gunn’s hero accidentally becomes a Guardian.
The older comic version of Peter Quill was more reckless and hot-headed and wouldn’t mind killing aliens responsible for his mother’s death. Brian’s version of the comic book Peter has a stronger moral stature. While he inherits qualities from his father including the title of Star-Lord, he refuses gruesome killings to honour his mother’s memory.
Gunn’s Peter refuses to have anything to do with his all-powerful father. Instead, he prefers to remain humble and human. He also treats the Guardians as his family and follows his heart.
While James Gunn has given viewers his final movie on the Guardians, a new team may helm the MCU projects further. Star-Lord and his team will continue their camaraderie interspersed with righteous battles. Peter Quill’s story inspires fans to pay attention to love and values irrespective of who one’s father or forefathers are.
