Cullen Bunn has found great success lately both in creator-owned comic and in the realm of the Big 2. With “The Sixth Gun” wrapping up this year, many were likely afraid that there wouldn’t be a book to fill the void. Luckily, we’ll all have “Hellbreak” to look forward to.
“Hellbreak” teams Bunn with artist Brian Churilla and colorist Dave Stewart as they take the readers to Hell and back with the Orpheus Team, a group of badass mercenaries who rescue lost souls from Hell. No two trips to Hell are the same and no mission is simple, but they’re the best at what they do.
Read on as we chat with Bunn about an ever-changing Hell, the mythological Orpheus, teaming up with Oni once again, and much more. “Hellbreak” is still available for preorder with the code JAN151526.
“Hellbreak” is your upcoming book from Oni, with artist Brian Churilla. I’ve seen it pitched before as something like “BPRD” meets Ocean’s Eleven. While that’s the short of it, what’s “Hellbreak” really all about?
Cullen Bunn: In “Hellbreak” the infernal realm has been shattered into a number of fragments. Each one represents a unique (and uniquely awful) vision of Hell. Some fragments might be endless caverns populated by horrible creatures. Others might be war-torn battlefields where the combatants are not allowed to die. Others might be labyrinthine torture mazes.
Now, in our world, demons occasionally possess the living. When this happens, the host’s soul is cast out and lost in one of these Hells. An exorcist might be able to exorcise the demonic presence, but the human soul must be retrieved to truly save the person.
That’s where the Kerberos Corporation and the Orpheus Team comes in. Kerberos has developed the technology to breach the veil between Earth and Hell. Orpheus Team consists of a group of hard-edge mercs who invade Hell to rescue these lost souls.
“Hellbreak” has been in the works for quite some time, from what I understand. I think when the covers were getting revealed, it was said that Brian was working on issue 6 or so. How far along are you guys now? How is it working for such a long time on something like this, and only now seeing the first issue get ready to hit shops when you’re probably almost ten issues in yourself?
CB: I think Brian is currently working on issue 9 of the series, and the book has been in development for much longer. I pitched this book years ago, but time was needed to find the right collaborators and position the book for its strongest release. It’s a nice feeling to be this far ahead, but I know from experience that the lead time dwindles quickly! That means I’ve got to keep the scripts coming!
This book is being billed as your big creator-owned follow up to “Sixth Gun”, which ends this year. While they’re very separate stories, as you’re coming off of “Sixth Gun” is there any expectations going into “Hellbreak” in your mind or in the audience’s mind, you think?
CB: I’m not sure, actually. The two books are quite different in terms of story, tone, and scope, but I think the balance of action, world-building, and character development reflects many of the same writing sensibilities I displayed with “The Sixth Gun.” I try to take my time in layering in aspects of the characters and the bigger picture story. And, as with “The Sixth Gun,” I’ve tried to make each issue stand well on its own and as part of a bigger arc. My hope is that the book is a strong “monthly read” as well as each issue building into something bigger.
One of the more interesting aspects of the world of “Hellbreak” is the nature of Hell. Each time the men and women of Orpheus Team journey to Hell, it’s different. In the first issue, we’re treated to something resembling a terrifying European aristocracy. As the story progresses, how many other kinds of Hells can we expect to see and are we ever going to find out just how the constantly changing Hell works?
CB: Readers will be seeing many, many Hells. We see one in the first issue. In issues 2 through 5, we see another, and so on and so forth. I think in those first 9 issues, we see four different Hells, with many, many more to come.
Continued belowI do reveal bits and pieces about how Hell works and how our heroes are able to access Hell. That kind of world-building is something I really enjoy. It takes time, though. I give you bits and pieces over the course of the series.
In the first issue, we’re introduced to the men and women that comprise Orpheus Team, all dangerous and capable people with their own individual jobs to do. Rescuing lost souls from Hell isn’t exactly something you hear about on Career Day. How did the individuals of Orpheus Team come together for their current assignments?
CB: The team members have pretty diverse backgrounds. All of them were, however, the best in their fields when they were recruited by Kerberos to be part of Orpheus Team. As the series unfolds, we’ll be seeing more about how this team was brought together.
One of the exciting things about “Hellbreak” #1 is the $1 standard cover, which unlocks variant covers depending on how many issues of the standard cover that retailers order. While a comic for $1 is super exciting and hopefully helps sell a huge number of that issue, how are you planning to keep that momentum going forward and keep the readers interested?
CB: We’ll continue to promote the book as much as possible and post additional content online and such, but the best thing we can do is tell the best stories possible. We think the characters, world, and mysteries we’re presenting will keep readers coming back. With “The Sixth Gun” I hear a lot of people say they wish they had started reading the book monthly from the beginning. With “Hellbreak” readers have the chance to hop onto something exciting from the very first issue!
“Hellbreak” deals with man’s fascination with Hell and the afterlife, and somehow defeating it, as evidenced by name dropping of such Greek mythological references as Kerberos and Orpheus. What made this such an interesting starting point for the series?
CB: The story of Orpheus is particularly interesting to me. It shows how one mortal almost bested the forces of the underworld. He lost everything, though, because of a human failing. That’s the kind of danger our team faces with every mission into Hell.
I’ll likely be showing other “real world” myths and legends of Hell in coming issues. At the same time, I’ll be introducing some of my own.
“Hellbreak” marks just the latest in a line of you teaming up with Oni for a creator-owned book, after “Sixth Gun”, the recent “Terrible Lizard”, and others. What’s made you come back time and again to work with the publisher?
The folks at Oni have been great partners ever since my first professional comic work. They are a big part of who I am as a creator, and I hope to continue working with them for years to come.
