Tag Archive: Cullen Bunn


borg’s Best of 2020–The Best Comics and Games

Filed under: Backstage Pass, Comics & Books, Con Culture, Fantasy Realms, Retro Fix, Sci-Fi Café, Superheroes — Leave a comment
December 18, 2020

Our borg Best of 2020 list continues today with the Best in Comics and Games.  If you missed them, check out our review of the Best Books of 2020 here, the Best Movies of 2020 here, the Kick-Ass Heroines of 2020 here, and the Best in Television 2020 here.

We reviewed comics from every major publisher this year, and were pleasantly surprised with all the new characters and content available.  You’ll find both some new creators on the list this year and some fan favorites who keep making better comic books each new year.  We also include some great games and more from 2020.

Let’s get started with The Best in Comics…

Best Comic Book Series – Bounty Hunters (Marvel Comics).  Writer Ethan Sacks and artist Paolo Villanelli played with the entire Star Wars universe in a single series, bringing back the cyborg Valance and a host of our favorite bounty hunters.  The result is a great series full of action and throwbacks.

Best Sci-Fi Comic Series, Best Limited Comic Book Series, Best Interior Artwork – Strayed (Dark Horse Comics) by writer Carlos Giffoni and artist Juan Doe.   In the future a military-industrial complex reigns over all humanity and actively destroys distant alien worlds.  The galaxy’s only hope can be found through an unlikely pair: an astral-projecting cat named Lou and his human Kiara.  Honorable mention: Rogue Planet by writer Cullen Bunn and artists Andy MacDonald and Nick Filardi (Oni Press).

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Rogue Planet–Begin your next military sci-fi adventure in new series

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May 10, 2020

A military sci-fi adventure begins this month in the pages of a new Oni Press comic book series created by Cullen Bunn.  Rogue Planet is the next intergalactic journey of a crew similar to the Colonial Marines of the Alien franchise.  Similarly bloody and also set among a world of strange fantasy world elements, readers will meet a hardened team as they awake from a long-term space sleep, and step right into a horror story.  It’s not just a catchy title–their destination is a rogue planet, a planet not connected to any star or planetary system.

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Planet Comicon to celebrate 20 years with comic book legends Claremont, Starlin, Steranko, and more

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March 2, 2019

In less than four weeks pop culture convention Planet Comicon Kansas City returns, this time to celebrate its 20th year.  Even more than before the event is hosting a pantheon of nationally recognized comic book writers and artists for its seventh year in the downtown Kansas City, Missouri, venue at the giant Bartle Hall facility at the Kansas City Convention Center.  The show runs Friday, March 29 through Sunday, March 31.  Bring your stacks of comics for autographs from your favorite creators–we’ve included here only a few important and familiar books by creators scheduled to be at the event.  Attendees will see some of the biggest names and most popular character creators spanning fives decades of comics, including:

Chris Claremont, writer and creator of dozens of characters including Rogue, Mystique, Phoenix, Emma Frost, Legion, Gambit, and Captain Britain.  His classic books include a long run on Uncanny X-Men, including the popular story arcs The Dark Phoenix Saga and Days of Future Past, adapted into X-Men: Days of Future Past, multiple X-Men movies, and this summer’s coming film Dark Phoenix.

Jim Starlin, writer/artist and creator of Thanos, Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, the Master of Kung Fu, and the first graphic novel published by Marvel Comics, The Death of Captain Marvel.  His classic books include Batman: The Cult, Batman: A Death in the Family, and Cosmic Odyssey.

Jim Steranko, writer/artist known for his unique 1960s style, his work on Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., plus memorable runs on Captain America and X-Men.  He was also a creator of concept art designs for Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Fabian Nicieza, writer known for creating Deadpool in the pages of The New Mutants, and working on dozens of key superhero titles.  His classic books include New Warriors and Psi-Force.

Keith Giffen, artist and creator of Rocket the Raccoon and Lobo.  His classic books include several issues of Legion of Super-Heroes.

Kevin Eastman, writer and creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Steve McNiven, artist and creator of Marvel Comics’ Civil War.  McNiven is known for his cover art on dozens of Marvel titles.

Bob McLeod, artist and creator of The New Mutants.  (A concept that is the subject of 20th Century Fox’s last slated Marvel project, the coming late summer big-screen release The New Mutants).

And that’s not all…

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New books feature classic 1930s pulp hero, The Shadow

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May 24, 2016

DynamiteArtOfTheShadow    Shadow cover

Who knows what secrets lurk in the hearts of men?

Lamont Cranston–The Shadow.

Dynamite Comics delved into its recent series that have incorporated the popular pulp character The Shadow and compiled select images into a hardcover edition to be published later this year.   The Dynamite Art of The Shadow will feature 320 images from the past four years from Dynamite works featuring the character.  Dynamite is also releasing the trade paperback edition of one if its titles featuring The Shadow tomorrow, The Shadow: The Last Illusion.  We have previews of both for you below, after the break.

Key artists you’ll find in The Dynamite Art of The Shadow include Alex Ross (his cover is pictured above), and pictured below, the works of Francesco Francavilla, Howard Chaykin, Alex Ross, Matt Wagner, Darwyn Cooke, and John Cassaday, among dozens of other artists.

Francavilla  Chaykin

A foreword will be provided by noted Batman movies producer Michael Uslan.  “If you go with the radio version, he was invisible and had the power to cloud men’s minds,” said Uslan in his foreword.  “If you prefer the pulp version, he mastered the art of stealth in the shadows.  Either way, what a challenge to artists to attempt to bring this character to life in a visual medium like comic books!  But without a Shadow of a doubt, the deed was done and the coup was pulled off by generation after generation of artists from the 1930’s to today, building a legend of contemporary mythology in the process and making The Shadow one of the most widely known characters in pop culture history. With a line-up of interior Shadow stories by top, cutting-edge graphic storytellers, Dynamite was able to hit home run after home run with its choice of cover artists, ranging from the top painters to top traditional comic book artists to top cartoonists.”

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New bundle offers low-cost access to graphic novels from four independent publishers

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May 7, 2016

revival-vol1     ciudad-graphic-novel-cover-oni-press

Happy Free Comic Book Day!

If you can’t make it to a comic book store today, why not try some digital comics?  Four independent comic book publishers–Dynamite, Image, IDW Publishing, and Oni Press–are coming together to offer a low-cost entry into their critically acclaimed graphic novels, many reviewed here previously at borg.com.  The pay-what-you-want “Bundle of Independents” features approximately $300 worth of books by some of the comic book industry’s best creators.  Books in the bundle include titles by Howard Chaykin, Ande Parks, Garth Ennis, Greg Rucka, Andy Diggle, Peter Milligan, Jim Starlin, Jae Lee, Tim Seeley, Jeff Lemire, Dustin Nguyen, Brian Wood, Rick Remender, Joe Hill, Sam Keith, Cullen Bunn, and many others.

This bundle showcases not only some of comics’ best creators but their original creations, and sales support the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

The first tier is unlocked with a $5.00 minimum contribution, while a $12.00 minimum offers fans an additional batch of graphic novels, with even more available for a $25.00 or greater contribution.  The more readers contribute, the more it allows publishers and creators to continue to make other comics available.

Parker Hunter Cooke     MG 1

The $5.00 Tier includes eight comics and collections, valued at approximately $70:

·       The Boys Vol. 1 by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson (Dynamite Entertainment)
·       Revival, Vol. 1 by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton (Image)

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Previews–New monthlies from Micronauts and The X-Files begin tomorrow

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April 26, 2016

XFiles-01-cvr-    mic a

IDW Publishing is releasing the first issues of two new monthly series tomorrow that you’ll want to add to your comic book pull list.  And borg.com has previews for our readers of the first issue of both series, thanks to IDW Publishing (after the break below).

First up, The X-Files begins again, this time as a follow-up to the Fox TV mini-series re-launch.  The series is written by Joe Harris with art by Matthew Dow Smith and color work by Jordie Bellaire.  Keep an eye out for variant covers, too:

XFiles-01-cvrRI-     New X files variant

And the re-launch you’ve been waiting a lifetime for–Micronauts are back!  Uncanny X-Men writer Cullen Bunn will be scripting the series with artwork by David Baldeón.     Check out the great cover gallery we previewed earlier here at borg.com.

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Cover gallery–Micronauts to return from the Microverse this Spring

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January 24, 2016

mic a    mic c

Derived from a licensed Japanese line of toys called the Micromen, which themselves were small-sized versions of a 12-inch action figure called Henshin Cyborg, Micronauts toys took America by storm in the late 1970s.  A Microverse of humanoids, borgs, and robotoids, a civilization of 3.75-inch retro-Kenner sized action figures, ships, and accessories from the Mego toy company before there were Kenner action figures, were loved by a generation of kids.  That is, before Kenner drove Mego out of the market.

But not before Micronauts became two classic Marvel comic book series.  Featuring stories by Bill Mantlo and art by Michael Golden, over time the series would include art by the likes of plenty of comic book greats: Howard Chaykin, Steve Ditko, Rich Buckler, Pat Broderick, Val Mayerik, Keith Giffen, Greg LaRocque, Gil Kane, Luke McDonnell, Mike Vosburg, Jackson Butch Guice and Kelley Jones.  Micronauts and their characters would be woven into the rest of the Marvel Universe in other series, interacting with Star-Lord from Guardians of the Galaxy, the Wasp, Doctor Doom and the Fantastic Four, Nightcrawler, Alpha Flight, Cable, the X-Men, and Thanos.  As recently as last year its Microverse concept was included in the screenplay for the Ant-Man movie, renamed the Quantum Realm for the final cut of the film.

mic e    mic f

Uncanny X-Men writer Cullen Bunn will be scripting the series with artwork by David Baldeón.  Check out six covers offered for issue #1 (above and below) drawn by Baldéon, J.H. Williams III, Butch Guice, Gabriel Rodriguez, and Michael Golden.  The sixth cover features the classic action figure of Baron Karza.  If you think he looks like a copy of Darth Vader, think again.  Karza was created before Star Wars was released.

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Comic Book Wednesday previews: Masks 2, Reanimator, Jungle Girl, Sleepy Hollow

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April 8, 2015

Sleepy_Hollow_Origins_001_B_WonderCon_Variant   JGSea3-01-Cov-A-Cho

Plenty of new titles are hitting comic book store shelves today.  We have previews for you of four series with good jumping-on points.  From BOOM! Studios, check out the new Sleepy Hollow: Origins series, which takes a look back at the early days of Crane and Abbie (and some other familiar “faces” from the show).  From Dynamite Comics, a new Masks series begins, as well as the Frankensteinian series Reanimator, and the return of Frank Cho’s Jungle Girl with the new Season Three.

Masks2-Cov-A-Guice   Reanimator01-Cov-D-Mangum

Sleepy Hollow: Origins, Issue #1 is written by Mike Johnson with art by Matias Bergara.

Masks 2, Issue #1 is written by Cullen Bunn with art by Eman Casallos.

Jungle Girl Season Three, Issue #1 is written by Frank Cho and Doug Murray, with art by Jack Jadson.

Reanimator, Issue #1 is written by Keith Davidsen with art by Randy Valiente.

You’ll also find some great variant covers for these issues, shown above and below, including Jae Lee covers, a new Francesco Francavilla horror cover, a Tim Seeley cover, and a Frank Cho cover.  Check out previews for all four of these new titles after the break, courtesy of BOOM! Studios and Dynamite Comics:

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First look–Miss Fury, The Shadow and other classic heroes come together again for Masks 2

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January 26, 2015

Masks 2 Ish 1 Hardman cover    Masks 2 Ish 1 Butch Guice cover

The sequel to one of the most successful independent comic book mini-series is coming soon from Dynamite Comics.  Masks 2 continues the retro mash-up of classic characters began in the original Masks series scripted by Chris Roberson with interior art by Alex Ross.  This time around writer Cullen Bunn and artist Eman Cassalos will be taking the adventures further with The Shadow, Green Hornet and Kato, Black Bat, Zorro, Miss Fury, and many others.

The Dynamite licensed characters from the comic book Golden Age will star in a story that will shift these superheroes through parallel worlds, with characters even meeting themselves in different timelines.

Masks 2 Ish 1 Worley cover    Masks 2 Ish 1 jae lee cover

Several artists will provide variant covers for the mini-series’ first issue, including Sean Chen, Butch Guice, Robert Hack, Gabriel Hardman, Jae Lee, and Colton Worley.

Masks 2 Ish 1 Hack cover    Masks 2 Ish 1 Chen cover

Check out this preview of some of the interior art for Masks 2, Issue #1:

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