Social media goes wild with memes after unveiling of Space Force ‘Guardians’

Vice President Mike Pence‘s announcement on Friday that Space Force enlistees would be referred to as ‘guardians’ sparked a frenzied reaction on Twitter, where people posted hilarious memes mocking the similarities to Guardians of the Galaxy.

The director of the hit Marvel superhero film, James Gunn, even joked: ‘Can we sue this dork?’ 

Gunn tweeted in reaction to Pence’s comments. 

Pom Klementieff, the French actress who played Mantis in the second installment of Guardians of the Galaxy as well as in two Avengers films, tweeted in response to Gunn: ‘Maybe I can make them all sleep?’

To which Gunn replied: ‘Maybe for like a year or something please. Thx.’

That is a reference to Mantis’ superpowers in the comic book series, which includes putting others to sleep. 

The official Twitter feed of Guardians of the Galaxy got in on the fun, tweeting: ‘Who, us?’ 

Others posted images on social media of people laughing hysterically as well as references to the Marvel film, with some wondering if characters like Groot or Rocket Raccoon would enlist. 

Pence made the announcement at a celebratory event tracing the development of the newest branch of the military over the past year.

‘It is my honor, on behalf of the president of the United States, to announce that henceforth the men and women of the United States Space Force will be known as guardians,’ Pence said. 

‘Soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and guardians will be defending our nation for generations to come.’

President-elect Joe Biden has yet to reveal his plans for the Space Force in the next administration.

The announcement was met with scorn and derision on Twitter, but the Pentagon is deadly serious about the name, saying it was inspired by past American missions to space.

‘Today, after a yearlong process that produced hundreds of submissions and research involving space professionals and members of the general public, we can finally share with you the name by which we will be known: Guardians,’ the Space Force said in a Twitter thread.

‘The opportunity to name a force is a momentous responsibility. 

‘Guardians is a name with a long history in space operations, tracing back to the original command motto of Air Force Space Command in 1983, “Guardians of the High Frontier.” 

‘The name Guardians connects our proud heritage and culture to the important mission we execute 24/7, protecting the people and interest of the U.S. and its allies.’

The Space Force’s Twitter thread ended thusly: ‘Guardians. #SemperSupra!’

‘Sempra supra’ is the Space Force motto which means ‘always above’ in Latin.

In the tweet, the Space Force attached an image with graphics that has the word ‘guardians’ in all-capital letters.

Above the title are the words ‘heritage,’ ‘mission,’ and ‘culture.’

The Space Force describes ‘guardians’ as ‘a name chosen by space professionals, for space professionals.’

So far, two films have been released by Marvel and the Walt Disney Company, with a third slated for 2023.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration was mocked when it introduced the Space Force logo, which bore quite a resemblance to the emblem of the Starfleet command in the new Star Trek television show.

In the Star Trek franchise that began in the 1960s, Starfleet is a fictional organization controlled by the United Federation of Planets.

The Starfleet is the space force through which various species conduct deep space exploration, research, defense, peacekeeping, and diplomacy. 

Then, like now, social media roasted the administration’s efforts to beef up US defenses in space by creating a new branch of the military.

‘So now Trump’s Space Force has stolen its logo from Star Trek and its naming conventions from Guardians of the Galaxy,’ commented one Twitter user.

Another Twitter user wrote: ‘OMG, I just can’t. Life is beyond parody at this point, with their @StarTrek insignia and their @Guardians [of the Galaxy] titles…’ 

One Twitter user mocked the new name, saying that the new ‘guardians’ failed to prevent Russians from hacking sensitive US government computer systems. 

Jeff Martin, who joined the Space Force, joked that he was now Groot, the character from Guardians of the Galaxy. 

One Twitter user wondered: ‘Does that make them Guardians of the Galaxy? Are they stealing something from every Sci-Fi show/movie?’ 

One Twitter user joked that Rocket Raccoon from the Guardians films would be the new Space Force mascot. 

Another Twitter user mocked the Pentagon’s claim that the ‘Guardians’ name was ‘chosen by space professionals, for space professionals’ by posting an image of a cat. 

One Twitter user responded to the Space Force announcement by posting a meme showing a baby laughing hysterically. 

‘I’m gonna pee,’ reads the caption. 

One Twitter user joked that instead of a stimulus check from the government, all he wants for Christmas is the official ‘US Guardian’ mousepad. 

The image depicts Jesus as an astronaut. 

Another Twitter user wondered how someone in basic training would not burst out laughing if they were told to ‘act like a guardian.’ 

Another Twitter user commented: ‘I’m living in a bad Japanese cartoon from the 1970s.’ 

Another Twitter user commented that the only Guardian she recognized was Gritty, the mascot for the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team.