Stan Lee has enjoyed cameos in a ton of Marvel live-action movies including all the films
so far in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a bunch of Fox's X-Men and Fantastic Four movies,
Sony's Spider-Man movies, and, of course, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is no exception.
Yippee-ki-yay, movie lovers, it's Jan here, and having seen Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.
2, I can tell you that his appearance in the new movie is not only very funny, but it may
also be a huge confirmation of a popular fan theory about who Stan Lee really is in the
Marvel movie multiverse.
By the way, my Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 giveaway is running on this video, so for
a chance to win, make sure you're subscribed and leave a comment about the movie below.
I'll have full details on the prizes at the end of the video.
Obviously, spoilers lie ahead for both Stan Lee's cameo and one of the post-credits scenes
in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, however there are no spoilers for the rest of the
movie.
If you prefer a spoiler-free video, you can tap in the top-right for my Guardians 2 movie
review.
So, if you haven't seen the movie yet, here's what happens.
Stan "The Man" appears on a moon dressed in an old-style space suit chatting to three
Watchers.
After he complains about being so rudely interrupted, he says "at that time I was a Federal Express
Man", a reference to his brilliant "Tony Stank" line in Captain America: Civil War.
The three characters standing around Stan Lee are dressed like Watchers, an alien race
in Marvel's comics.
As their name suggests, the Watchers' purpose is to observe and record events throughout
the universe with a strict policy of non-intervention.
Because Stan Lee has appeared in so many of Marvel's adaptations, a popular fan theory
suggests that Stan Lee is actually a Watcher turning up in Marvel movies and TV shows where
he watches or observes events in a cameo role.
In fact, the theory suggests that Stan Lee's character is specifically the watcher Uatu,
a character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1963 for Fantastic Four #13.
Uatu was the Watcher who monitored events on Earth and its Solar System, however, he
has on occasions broken the Watchers' code of non-interference and actually intervened
in events.
Watchers are supposed to be neutral and only chronicle the events they are observing and
so Uatu's interventions have sometimes landed him in hot water.
If Stan Lee's character is Uatu, it could explain why he has sometimes got involved.
For example, he tried to pull up Thor's hammer in the first Thor movie, in Spider-Man 2 he
saved a woman from falling debris, and in The Incredible Hulk he was inadvertently key
to how events unfolded as he fell ill from gamma sickness after drinking soda contaminated
with the Hulk's blood.
On many other occasions, though, Stan Lee pops up as a bit of comedic relief generally
not affecting the plot of the movie.
So, could Stan Lee be the crucial element that connects up all of the movies and TV
shows in Marvel's live-action multiverse?
Placing Stan Lee in a scene with a group of watchers in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
seems to make this a real possibility.
I mean Stan Lee isn't dressed like a Watcher, but why is he there in outer space talking
to a group of other Watchers where he seems to be telling them all about his stories and
his recent escapade on earth in Captain America: Civil War?
Maybe because he's reporting back to the other Watchers.
By the way it's also interesting that the Watchers have now appeared in a Marvel Studios
film, as it's previously been thought that the rights to the Watchers or Uatu might have
been with 20th Century Fox given that the character of Uatu first appeared in a Fantastic
Four comic and Fox own the film rights to the Fantastic Four.
If this is the case, it'll be interesting to see if Marvel Studios did a trade or exchange
of rights for another character, like they did with Ego The Living Planet for Guardians
Vol. 2.
But if you thought that was it, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 gives us a second scene
with Stan Lee right at the end of the credits.
In the post-credits scene, the Watchers walk off leaving Stan "The Man" by himself while
he pleads for them not to leave, saying "I thought you were going to give me a ride"
and he also adds that he's still got more stories to tell.
That last remark is obviously a meta-joke because Stan Lee, of course, had a hand in
creating many of Marvel's much-loved characters, but it could also add fuel to the argument
that he wants to tell them about all his other cameos in the Marvel movie multiverse.
Still, it's funny how the other Watchers don't seem very interested or impressed with Stan
at all!
Now, what do you think about Stan Lee's cameo and post-credits scene in Guardians Vol. 2?
Do you think it proves he's really been a Watcher all along?
Or is Marvel just joking around with a fan theory?
Or maybe you have your own theory about Stan Lee's role in the Marvel movies.
Don't forget to comment and subscribe to enter my Guardians 2 giveaway.
The prizes include two awesome hardback books from DK, Guardians of the Galaxy: The Ultimate
Guide to the Cosmic Outlaws, which takes an in-depth look at iconic characters, issues
and storylines from the comics.
And I've also got a selection of three very cool Guardians Funko Pop vinyl figures.
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Thanks for watching and see you next time.
Yippee-ki-yay, movie lovers!