Michael Rosenbaum Is Playing Martinex In 'Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2'

Warning: The following article contains potential spoilers for Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol.2

After the world premiere of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2, we finally learned who Michael Rosenbaum plays in the movie — but it wasn't easy to spot him due to his CGI enhanced appearance.

In #GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2, Rosenbaum is portraying Martinex T'Naga, a character who bears more than a passing resemblance to Iceman from the X-Men. As a result of this, it's hard to see Rosenbaum due to the CGI that James Gunn used to create his appearance. However, whether you spotted him or not, it seems likely that Rosenbaum's character may be set up for an expanded role in Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol.3, which has already been confirmed with James Gunn in the directing chair once more.

Martinex's leader, Stakar formed a team at the end of the film, so there's definitely room for this new character to enjoy a more expanded role in the MCU. Whether he appears in GOTG3 remains to be seen though, but for now, check out this brief breakdown of Martinex T'Naga's comic origins.

Comic Book Origins Of Martinex

In the comics, Martinex is a native of Pluto. As a Pluvian, he was born with a body formed of a crystal like substance, providing him with enhanced strength and the ability to project energy blasts.

When Pluto was attacked by the Badoon, Martinex fled the planet in search of help. During his escape, Martinex found Vance Astro, Charlie-27, Aleta, Starhawk, Yondu, and Nikki, who joined together to become the first iteration of the #GuardiansOfTheGalaxy.

After surviving the Badoon invasion and forming a team, the Guardians took the fight right to them. The newly formed Guardians didn't waste any time taking down Badoon outposts throughout the star systems.

Eventually, the Guardians battle with the Badoon reached Earth and it was there that their conflict reached its climax, when Martinex himself executed their leader, Koord. With a win over the Badoon, the Guardians of the Galaxy then set their sights on other villains like Michael Korvac, who would one day become one of their greatest foes.

At one point, Martinex underwent a strange physical transformation, which led to him taking a leave from the Guardians in order to form a new team who would become known as the Galactic Guardians. Martinex would go on to lead several incarnations of this team, acting somewhat like an intergalactic version of Nick Fury, recruiting heroes in space.

How Much Of The Comics Will Influence Martinex In The MCU?

After reviewing Martinex's comic origins closely, it doesn't seem like many elements from the comics will be incorporated into the MCU. However, we do know that Martinex will be an ally to Stakar in GOTG2, so there's also a good chance that he'll be allied with Yondu at some point as well.

On the other hand though, Martinex's allegiance to Stakar could also result in conflict between him and Yondu. In that scenario, there would be more friction between the Guardians, much like there is in the comics. After all, most iterations of the Guardians don't work well together at first, so this isn't outside the realms of possibility.

As for the potential in Stakar / Martinex's team to encounter the Badoon, that matter is another factor still undetermined. In the comics, the Guardians' main goal was to stop the Badoon, but we haven't seen them yet in the MCU as Fox owns the rights to the onscreen portrayal. If a deal can be negotiated though, then there's a chance that The Badoon may be saved for GOTG3, which seems plausible after seeing Stakar and his Guardians cohorts were seen together at the end of GOTG2.

Whether any of this comes to pass or not, the events of GOTG2 seems to imply that Martinex and Stakar will form a team similar to the original Guardians from Marvel comics. The introduction of characters such as Charlie-27, Aleta, and Mainframe adds more evidence towards the possibility of this team forming sometime between now and the events of #GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol3.

What do you think about Michael Rosenbaum playing Martinex in Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 opens in theaters on May 5, 2017.

Source: CNET