Since we got our first glimpse of Thanos at the end of 2011’s Avengers, Marvel fans have been waiting for the epic conclusion of the cosmic saga that Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios have been constructing since 2008’s Iron Man. Now with Avengers: Infinity War, we’ll finally see the epic-scale serialized cinematic storytelling of the Marvel Cinematic Universe reach its apex in a sprawling film that will bring together more fan-favorite characters than season 7 of Game of Thrones. But even more anticipated than Jon Snow meeting Daenerys Targaryen is the inevitable encounter between Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, the Avengers, and their cosmic counterpart, the Guardians of the Galaxy.

We got our first taste of how Marvel’s premiere superhero squadron will meet up with the Guardians of the Galaxy during Marvel’s Hall panel at San Diego Comic-Con. In the Avengers: Infinity War footage, Thor is seen drifting through space until he lands with a sickening thud on the windshield of a spaceship belonging to none other than the Guardians of the Galaxy following the events of Thor: Ragnarok. This fateful encounter will put both superhero teams on a collision course with Marvel’s Mad Tyrant, the purple-skinned, Infinity Stone-crazed cosmic lunatic Thanos.

Our intrepid reporter, Jesse Gil, sat down with Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 director James Gunn and stars Pom Klementieff (“Mantis”), Dave Bautista (“Drax the Destroyer”), and Karen Gillan (“Nebula”) to find out exactly how the Guardians of the Galaxy will play into Avengers: Infinity War as well as how the relationships we saw in Vol. 2 will evolve into this epic conclusion for Marvel’s Phase III.

How do you think the Guardians of the Galaxy will factor into Avengers: Infinity War? Let us know in the comments below!

Image: Marvel Studios

Dan Casey is the senior editor of Nerdist and the author of books about Star Wars and the Avengers. Follow him on Twitter (@DanCasey).