Guardians of the Galaxy # 1 Chew Variant 2023 NM-

Guardians of the Galaxy # 1 April 12, 2023 (Volume 7) launched a "Space Western" relaunch for the team, moving away from their traditional high-sci-fi aesthetic to a grittier, frontier-focused tone. 

"A Town Called Solitude"

The story jumps one year into the future following a mysterious betrayal that shattered the team. 

• The Setting: The Guardians arrive at a ramshackle colony town called Solitude on the planet Galilee IV, located in the lawless Manifold Territories.
• The Mission: Initially appearing as rough outlaws, the team—consisting of Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Nebula, and Mantis—is actually there to force a planetary evacuation.
• The Conflict: After a violent shootout with a local army of former soldiers, the team successfully evacuates the town's residents just as an unstoppable cosmic force arrives.
• The Reveal: The extinction event is revealed to be "Grootfall"—their former teammate Groot has transformed into a massive, celestial-sized planet-killer that consumes worlds into a hive mind. 

• Western Aesthetic: The issue features heavy western tropes, including Star-Lord riding an alien "horse" with a poncho and duster, and Mantis acting as an undercover "dance hall girl".
• Mysterious Gap: The story intentionally omits the "missing year" of history, leaving the fate of Rocket Raccoon and the cause of Groot's transformation as central mysteries for the arc.
• Character Shift: The team is depicted as hardened and desperate "desperados" rather than the optimistic peacekeepers of the previous run. 

• Writers: Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly.
• Artist: Kev Walker.
• Colorist: Matt Hollingsworth.
• Letterer: Cory Petit.