The Avengers of the 31st century needs an archer. Introduced in Marvel Super-Heroes #18 (1968) by Arnold Drake and Gene Colan, Yondu comes from the planet Centauri-IV and was part of the tribe that decided not to establish peaceful relations with the more advanced Earthling. Instead, his tribe moved to less accessible plains. centuries later, Vance Astro’s ship would land near the village. Vance would encounter Yondu during his ritual hunt. However, the pair would witness the Badoon massacring Yondu tribe and would try and escape the planet. However, because Vance’s ship was a much older version, they were captured and sent to the Badoon’s base of Earth, which they recently captured.

While in prison, the pair would meet and befriend Martinex and Charlie-27. Together they formed the Guardians of the Galaxy and would escape the Badoon. They would work together to free planet Earth from the Badoon with Yondu acting as the team’s second in command. Afterwards they would begin travelling the galaxy. Yondu would leave the Guardians to travel back to his home planet. He married, had two kids, and became the leader of his tribe. He was later tasked with travelling back in time and preventing his ancestor, also named Yondu Udonta, from ruining the fate of his race. He would meet his ancestor and while they initially fought, they would soon form a bond. When a mercenary shot at the 616 Yondu, he would jump in front of him saving his life. This would cause his ancestor to turn over a new leaf and become a hero.

The original GOTG has been a long time requested figure for Marvel Legends, with Yondu being the most requested, mostly due to his significant role in the first 2 GOTG movies. He would receive a figure as a Target Exclusive in 2023 as part of the third movies tie-in line.