While MCU fans wait patiently for the Guardians of the Galaxy's next big-screen adventure, the intergalactic team shines in their latest theme park attraction - EPCOT's Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. This one-of-a-kind rollercoaster made its long-awaited debut in Walt Disney World over Memorial Day weekend following numerous exciting releases from its time in development over the past couple of years.
The first looks at Cosmic Rewind have shown fans a new take on the Guardians' adventures outside of the MCU as the team faces intergalactic threats in the cosmos. This also includes characters from other movies, like the massive Celestial Eson from Marvel Studios' Eternals, connecting the team to other space-based entities within Marvel's lore.
Along with any new MCU-related project like Cosmic Rewind comes loads of Easter eggs for fans to uncover, which goes far beyond simply having an Eternals character in the Guardians' latest story.
Now, within its first few days of being open to the public, a new Easter egg made its way into the public eye courtesy of Marvel's X-Men.
Guardians Ride Includes X-Men Nod
The newly-opened Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind ride at Walt Disney World's EPCOT includes an X-Men Easter egg, shown in a new video courtesy of the Amusement Insider YouTube channel.
During the queue for the ride, fans can see a display of ships on one of the walls, including one called the Starjammer. This is a nod to a ship boasting the same name from Marvel Comics, which belongs to a group also known as the Starjammers.
This team is closely tied to the X-Men thanks to leadership from a character named Corsair, whose sons are Cyclops and Havok. Havok has also been a part of the group throughout the team's history in the comics.
Other notable members include Polaris and the ever-powerful Professor X; even other power players like Carol Danvers have been associated with the Starjammers, although Danvers was operating under her Binary name rather than Captain Marvel at the time.
X-Men Shine Under Marvel Studios Umbrella
While the X-Men still have a ways to go until they make their official MCU debut, Guardians director James Gunn and Walt Disney World found a way to pay homage to their story in this new theme park attraction.
More Easter eggs will make their way into the public eye over the coming weeks as riders take in the experience, although this nod to the X-Men shows just how much Marvel is thinking about the team now that they can be used in the MCU. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness just brought Patrick Stewart's Charles Xavier in as the franchise's first true mutant, and this Easter egg continues that trend toward the mutants' full inclusion in the story.
Whether the Starjammers actually make their way into the canon Marvel Studios narrative is a mystery, especially considering that this ride is definitively outside of the MCU canon. But for now, the Easter egg comes as a fun way for fans to see what a Marvel world with the X-Men looks like as the mutants prepare for their long-awaited MCU debut.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind is now open to the public at Walt Disney World's EPCOT.
