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| He's gonna cut somebody. |
Some say that Rocket and Groot have
the most unique background stories of the Guardians, but I disagree. For me the
guy that has the most unique story is Drax the Destroyer. I know what you’re
thinking, “A more unique story than a genetically modified raccoon and a
talking tree, surely you jest!” to which I say, “Who says ‘surely you jest’
anymore?”
That’s not the point. For a guy
that has spent a lot of time with Science Fiction, things like genetic engineering
and mobile plant life aren’t exactly new. Heck, in some circles those are cliché.
No, Drax is by far the most interesting story for me because he is the only member
of this version of Guardians of the Galaxy that is 100% human. Or at least he
used to be. Yep, of the other Guardians, the two exotic looking members are
aliens, one is a genetically engineered raccoon, and one is a half alien born
on Earth.
Drax the Destroyer was born Arthur
Douglas. Normal man, normal life, normal family. He and his family were driving
through a desert when they had the awful luck of crossing paths with Thanos.
This was Thanos’ first trip to our little blue ball, and he was nervous. So, to
make sure nobody ruined his grand entrance, he fired upon the car. Needless to
say, things probably should have ended there. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately,
Thanos’ father, Mentor, was monitoring the situation and took pity on Douglas. Mentor and
his own father, Chronos, were able to gather Douglas’ soul and implant it in a homunculus
(artificial body). The new body, made of Earth soil, was imbued with superhuman
powers. Douglas was reborn as Drax the Destroyer. His memories as Arthur
Douglas were replaced with an all-consuming hatred for, and desire to destroy,
Thanos.
 |
| I'd stay out of his way, if I were Ronan. |
As Arthur Douglas, he had your
standard human abilities. These included locomotion, communication via sounds and body language, consume
matter to restore his strength, perform labor for payment and so on. As Drax,
well, he got a few upgrades. The cosmic energy that fuels his new body serves
as his life blood, allowing him to survive indefinitely without food, water, or
even air. It makes him largely invulnerable, gives him the power to fly and
make interstellar voyages in a matter of weeks. He can fire beams of energy
from his hands. As if the other stuff wasn't enough, right?
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| I like the redesign, much more elaborate tattoos on this version. |
Like the other members of the
Guardians, he hasn’t been in much outside the comics. Ultimate Spider-man and
Lego Marvel Superheroes play him comically, like the other Guardians. They also
downplay his immense power, and hate for Thanos. Lego Marvel claims he's a hell of a saxophone player. I wasn't all that impressed.
I’m not sure how well Dave Batista
will be able to play Drax. As we all know, the transition from professional wrestler
to Hollywood actor is… an imperfect process. The only one I can think of that
transitioned well is the Rock, but he’s had a few hiccups along the way.
Remember his Disney phase? (Shudder). Hopefully, like the promos seem to
suggest, Drax won’t say too much and rely mostly on hurting things to get his character across. If he can’t
talk, he can’t ham things up.
Drax can hopefully add a bit of
dark humor, and a little more seriousness to a movie that looks like it’ll be
pretty filled with comedic bits. They will probably play him up as a melee
fighter and breaker of bones instead of a cosmic super weapon. But I don't know that for sure. I can say, just from looking at the previews and my knowledge of the individual actors that Batista is the weakest link in this team so his performance will probably be the deciding factor in whether this is a good movie or a great movie. Regardless, it’ll be
interesting to see how things play out.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drax_the_Destroyer
http://thedailybugle.wikia.com/wiki/Drax_the_Destroyer
http://www.guardiansofthegalaxygames.com/drax-the-destroyer/
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