Just before many of us leave for the day to celebrate the start of a new year, Marvel has given us a look at the official synopsis and first photo from Guardians of the Galaxy. If this photo looks familiar, that's because it's very similar to one of the first pieces of concept art that Marvel shared from the movie.

"An action-packed, epic space adventure, Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” expands the Marvel Cinematic Universe into the cosmos, where brash adventurer Peter Quill finds himself the object of an unrelenting bounty hunt after stealing a mysterious orb coveted by Ronan, a powerful villain with ambitions that threaten the entire universe. To evade the ever-persistent Ronan, Quill is forced into an uneasy truce with a quartet of disparate misfits — Rocket, a gun-toting raccoon, Groot, a tree-like humanoid, the deadly and enigmatic Gamora and the revenge-driven Drax the Destroyer. But when Peter discovers the true power of the orb and the menace it poses to the cosmos, he must do his best to rally his ragtag rivals for a last, desperate stand — with the galaxy’s fate in the blanace. "

Written and directed by James Gunn, the cast of Guardians of the Galaxy includes Chris Pratt as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, Lee Pace as Ronan the Accuser, Michael Rooker as Yondu, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Djimon Hounsou as Korath, Benicio del Toro as The Collector, John C. Reilly as Rhomann Dey, and Glenn Close as Nova Prime, Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, and Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket Racoon.

Guardians of the Galaxy is set for release on August 1, 2014 and expect a much better look at the movie with the release of the upcoming Captain America sequel. This photo is thanks to /Film!

Source: Marvel via /Film