DF Interview: Cullen Bunn reloads for one of his most acclaimed epics with ‘The Sixth Gun: Battle for the Six’

By Byron Brewer

In 1866, out of the ruins of the failed Confederate uprising, a race to claim six objects of unfathomable occult power began, thrusting the fate of humanity into the hands of an ordinary young woman and a hard-nosed gunslinger who, together, were our last, best hope to forestall Armageddon.

They prevailed, but at a terrible price.

But that was then—this is now. Three decades later, as the gears of a new millennium begin to grind on the cusp of the 20th century, the Six, immortal weapons of ultimate destruction, are about to be REBORN once more—as they have been countless times across the eons. This time, however, a brigade of familiar fighters lies in wait to meet the Six’s nigh-limitless power head on... in a race against a secret cabal that wishes to harness its unspeakable power to incept a new century of war, genocide and suffering.

Only one can survive to claim victory.

From Oni Press comes The Sixth Gun: Battle for the Six, a supernatural American epic reuniting original series co-creators writer Cullen Bunn (Harrow County) and artist Brian Hurtt (The Midnite Show), introducing an all-new starting point. You can always bet that if Cullen is involved, I am on the other end of the interview pen. Here’s what the scribe told me about the coming book.

Byron Brewer: Cullen, you never cease to amaze me, even in all our years of discussing these products of, as Mister Rogers used to say, the garden of your mind. So: New century, new series. Why is now a great time to return – if “return” is the correct term – to The Sixth Gun, certainly a very pivotal comic in the industry’s history of creator-owns, via the coming “Battle for the Six”?

Cullen Bunn: Brian Hurtt and I have always wanted to really dive back into the world of The Sixth Gun, but we agreed that we wouldn’t do it, not in this way, unless we had a great story to tell. We have kicked around ideas for years, but we’ve finally stumbled onto the one idea that just works. We’re excited about it, and we think readers will be excited about it, too!

Byron: In such cases as this, I usually ask if knowledge of what has come before is necessary – or advantageous, at least – for readers in approaching a book. But that question MAY be UN-necessary since you are starting out this sojourn with a one-shot prelude, a “zero issue” – The Sixth Gun: Road to the Six #0 – publishing June 4. Tell us about this one-shot and how it serves to introduce the coming miniseries.

Cullen Bunn: Prior knowledge is not needed to enjoy this series. We will be, however, throwing readers into the deep end from Page One. That’s all right. That’s what we did with the original series, too. Reading the original series might be helpful, yes, but not required. You should read it, because it’s something special, but you don’t need to.

Byron: Are there any threads from past materials that you might want to mention here that are NOT a part of the one-shot but that may be helpful to new readers approaching the three-issue “Battle for the Six”?

Cullen Bunn: Everything you need will be provided. There are very few threads that I feel like I need to tug upon, at least not at this stage of the game. Readers will be introduced to the world and the concepts surrounding the story in a natural way as we move along. You have to keep in mind, the original story presented in The Sixth Gun wrapped up. This is something new, and we’re treating it as such!

Byron: Without spoilers, can you give us basic background on the Six, including their rebirth over the eons? It always reminded me, in Marvel’s Thor, of Roy Thomas’ tale of the constant rebirth of Asgard and the Norse Gods after each occurrence of Ragnarok.

Cullen Bunn: In The Sixth Gun, we were introduced to the Six in their “modern” form–six shooters, each with its own unique power. One strikes with the force of a cannon shell. One spreads the fire of perdition. One spreads a flesh-rotting disease. One raises the dead. One allows its wielder to heal from any wound. One has the power of prophecy. The Six, when brought together under the proper circumstances, could be used as keys to destroying and recreating the world. The world has been torn down and rebuilt numerous times. In many of those instances, the Six have manifested as different types of weapons.

Byron: Introduce readers to your protagonists AND the “secret cabal” which thinks itself ready for this iteration of the Six.

Cullen Bunn: The heroes you’ll be following are the Hunting Party, a diverse group of Old West heroes who are tackling supernatural mysteries and problems. We’ve got a Buffalo Soldier who can see the dead. A lethal sharpshooter. A descendant of a shaman and a fey creature. A shapeshifting cannibal. A crossroads demon. A woman who cannot die. So… a real “interesting” group.

As for the Cabal… the less said about them, the better.

Byron: Talk about your reunion and collaboration with original series co-creator, artist Brian Hurtt.

Cullen Bunn: Brian is one of my favorite people to work with, plain and simple. He’s one of the best in the business. We’ve collaborated on several things over the years, but coming back to The Sixth Gun is really special for us.

Byron: What other goodies are almost set to pop from the Bunn factory, inside or outside comics?

Cullen Bunn: Well, I have a couple of new comics coming up in the future, but they are, as yet, unannounced. I also have a “rules light” role-playing game system that Outland Entertainment released. It’s available as a free download on their website.

Dynamic Forces would like to thank Cullen Bunn for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer our questions. The Sixth Gun: Battle for the Six #1 from Oni Press is slated to be on sale July 23!

A special one-shot prelude, The Sixth Gun: Road to the Six #0, will precede the limited series, on sale June 4!

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