The third chapter of the mercenary saga known as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Writer-Director James Gunn is ending on a high note in this latest outing of the galaxy misfits.

The film, although lengthy and unsteady at times, sends our bunch off with a bang.

Our heroes assemble to help injured Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) from the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji). High Evolutionary and Raccoon have an unsettled score from the past to settle.

Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) gathers the team of (Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan and Vin Diesel) to rescue their friend and in terms the universe.

The film as in true Marvel standard is riddled with many action sequences giving the Guardians plenty of chances to show their strength.

In true MCU nature there are plenty of special effects moments but those moments are balanced with genuine emotion. The film also gives insight into Rocket’s origin story which is extremely endearing. This creates some touching moments.

The heart and soul of Guardians has always been the camaraderie of the cast. The actors always have a great time working together and it shows. It’s truly a strength of the casting directors that assembled the rougher version of the Avengers. One can truly tell that their working relationships have turned into genuine friendship making this a bittersweet journey for them.

It’s this incorporation of friendship, family, loyalty that drives this outing. This film is also about grief on how we treat animals. These parts are a little dark and may be unsuitable for some children.

The parts of the film that will seem familiar to audiences are the over the top action. At times it may be seen as too dark. Some may not think it's well played out but the characters outweigh the flaws in the special effects. While Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is a little more somber. But the good news is it still has a villain and those who hurt our friends still must pay a severe price. 

The emotional impact of the story could be diminished because most MCU fans are conditioned to view these challenging situations with the skepticism they merit. Not here, because a lot of it is deeply touching.

It's not often that the third film in a trilogy turns out to be the best, but "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" does just that. 

Despite the unexpected darkness, Gunn concludes the series in a way that will please both die-hard followers and newcomers. It's hardly the best superhero film ever made, but it's above average.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is currently playing in theaters everywhere