Space Force, the Trump Administration project so absurd and unnecessary it inspired an entire Netflix sitcom making fun of it, reached a new milestone this week.
In a press conference, Vice President Mike Pence announced the name of the Force's forthcoming troops, and it somehow makes this deeply dumb initiative even dumber: The troops will be called "Guardians."
If the first thing you think of is the Guardians of the Galaxy film franchise, you're not alone.
Folks on Twitter immediately began roasting the name, including a handful of luminaries from various Marvel films, like the franchise's director James Gunn.
But it wasn't just the name "Guardians" that rose people's hackles.
The organization's logo also seemed to many like a rip-off.
To another Marvel star—actor Jeffrey Wright who will voice the character of The Watcher in Marvel's forthcoming series What If...?—the logo looked suspiciously familiar.
But it was actor Dave Bautista—who played the character of Drax in the Guardians of the Galaxy films—who seemed to have the strongest reaction to the Space Force rollout and to the Vice President himself.
Tweeting directly at Pence, Bautista said:
"@VP is this payback for me changing my name to Super Duper Fly? Cmon dude that sh*t was funny! That fly sat on that pile of sh*t you call a head for 30 f'king minutes! How bout this! You can call me Vice President. Until the REAL Vice President steps in that is. #Traitor"
In his announcement, Pence stressed the name "Guardians" was used in space operations since 1983 and it holds special significance for the United States.
"[The name] 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."
But it's hard to argue the very notion space—you know, the infinite expanse where Earth is but one of nine planets and whatnot—is some kind of territory to be claimed as the United States is anything other than patently absurd.
Between that and the logo—which also reminded many people of Star Trek's—it's unsurprising Twitter quickly filled up with people dragging Pence and the Trump Administration.
Pence also announced the name at a ceremony celebrating the one-year anniversary of Space Force's formation.
Given Trump's presidency ends in a month, the future of the program is unknown.
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