Marvel fans around the world can’t help but love Cosmo the Space Dog, the best girl in the final Guardians of the Galaxy series, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. I can’t stay. 3”.
But did you know that the psychic good dog in the movie is based on the real-life Soviet female space dog Laika?
In the comics, Cosmo the Space Dog is a Soviet male dog who is a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy and is often described as “the good boy.”
As such, comics fans were quick to notice the gender change in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), where Cosmo is female.
After James Gunn, director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. I replied that it was a Russian male dog.
Gunn provided background on the gender change and acknowledged that Cosmo is based on Laika and her tragic space voyage.
Leica’s Story she was tragic. She was a stray husky and terrier found on the streets of Moscow. And she was unintentionally launched on November 3, 1957, on a one-way mission to space aboard Sputnik her No. 2 spacecraft.
During the suicide mission, Laika’s heart rate tripled, her breathing rate quadrupled, and she was visibly frightened.
Laika reached orbit alive and orbited the Earth for about 103 minutes. However, the good girl eventually died from overheating and panic during the spacecraft’s fourth orbit.
Her remains were never recovered and the ship was destroyed upon re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere in 1958.
Laika was one of the first animals to reach space and the first to orbit the Earth. And since female dogs are smaller and more docile than male dogs, her gender was very important to this mission.
“It just goes back to the original source material.” Gunn wrote. It alludes to his decision to change Cosmo’s gender in the MCU as a tribute to Laika and her gender’s contribution to the mission’s success.
Not only is Cosmo in the MCU female, but she’s also more innocent and friendly, as opposed to her more stoic and quick-to-angry comic version.