Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 wastes no time in introducing Adam Warlock, with the character immediately attacking Knowhere and taking aim at Rocket. While the team eventually manages to fend him off (Nebula stabs the golden-skinned antagonist when her arm takes the form of a massive sword), Rocket is badly injured and the wounded Warlock retreats.
While he recovers, we learn that The High Evolutionary is not only responsible for creating Adam, but the entire Sovereign people!
The villain wants to retrieve Rocket so he can use the hero's brain to improve his ongoing genetic experiments (the raccoon is the only one of his creations that developed true creative thinking) and woke Adam from his cocoon too soon, resulting in him being both childish and not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer! He's a powerhouse, though, and later attacks the Guardians on Counter-Earth.
Ayesha is Adam's "mother," and when The High Evolutionary decides to raze that planet so he can start over, his fight with Gamora is interrupted when he senses she's in danger. He arrives too late and she's killed in one of the explosions, and tracks the Guardians down to his creator's ship.
While it initially appears as if Adam plans to continue his attack against the Guardians, he collapses and Groot makes the decision to save him. When he wakes up and asks Rocket why the sentient tree would do that, the racoon explains that it's because he believes everyone deserves a second chance.
This appears to change something in Adam and he eventually finds a new family with the team, joining their ranks in a mid-credits scene that officially establishes him as one of the MCU's newest heroes. Where he goes from here remains to be seen, but Will Poulter is excellent in the role.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is now playing in theaters. Read our review by clicking here.