Big Game | |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | Image Comics Dark Horse Comics (omnibus) |
Format | Limited series |
Publication date | July – November 2023 |
No. of issues | 5 |
Main character(s) |
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Creative team | |
Written by | Mark Millar |
Artist(s) | Pepe Larraz |
Letterer(s) | Clem Robins |
Colorist(s) | Giovanna Niro |
Editor(s) | Melina Mikulic Sarah Unwin |
Collected editions | |
Big Game | ISBN 978-153439-9112 |
Big Game is an American superhero comic book limited series written by Mark Millar and drawn by Pepe Larraz. Published by Image Comics, [1] the series is a crossover event between the various properties of the Millarworld multimedia franchise created by Millar, a direct sequel to Wanted by Millar and J. G. Jones, and a prequel to Empress by Millar and Stuart Immonen. The series chronicles Wesley Gibson and his protégé Matthew Anderson / Nemesis' campaign to assassinate the world's new superheroes, as Agent Galahad of Kingsman and Mindy McCready / Hit-Girl take on the forces of Gibson's Fraternity of Super-Criminals. [2] The series, originally published between July and November 2023, was subsequently collected in trade paperback former by Image Comics in December 2023, and as an omnibus with Wanted by Dark Horse Comics in 2024. [3] It was followed by a sequel, Nemesis: Rogues' Gallery , later that year. [4]
In 1986, a group of villains known as The Fraternity banded together to defeat the heroes on the Earth, while also brainwashing the entire planet into believing that the heroes never existed and were only fictional characters. In 2023, a new generation of heroes have begun to emerge following the actions of Dave Lizewski, who previously served as the hero Kick-Ass, and this drives Wesley "The Killer II" Gibson, the new leader of the Fraternity, to gather his forces, as well as his protégé Nemesis, to kill this new generation before a new age of heroes can begin again. [5]
As Edison Crane and the time-travelling Chrononauts are recruited by former hero "Bobbie Griffin" to face off against Wesley (while Crane is excavating the remnants of a prehistoric galactic empire), Agent Gary "Eggsy" Unwin of the Kingsman rescues vigilante Mindy "Hit-Girl" McCready from Fraternity assassins, and former vigilante Lizewski attempts to join the superhero team the Ambassadors. [6]
In August 2014, following the conclusion of Book Four of Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski Years , Mark Millar revealed that the majority of his Millarworld work were set in the same shared fictional universe, with the ending monologue of the series seeing Dave Lizewski make mention of the events of Wanted, Nemesis, Kingsman, and MPH , and Simon Pooni from Superior cameoing, with Millar intended to one day write a crossover between the projects. [8] By March 2015, Millar expressed interest in seeing this concept realised in a Hit-Girl/Kingsman feature film starring Mindy McCready / Hit-Girl and Gary "Eggsy" Unwin (originally London) together "in a big international adventure", [9] by September 2017 revealing that he had discussed this concept with Matthew Vaughn. [10] Following extensive development hell, the crossover, Big Game, was announced in May 2023, written by Millar, illustrated by Pepe Larraz, and serving as a direct sequel to Wanted . The story pits that series' protagonist, Wesley Gibson and his protégé Nemesis against the heroes of the Millarworld, [11] in particular Hit-Girl and Eggsy, [12] spinning-out of the events of Nemesis: Reloaded , [13] and leading into the events of Nemesis: Rogues' Gallery . [3] [4]
Issue # | Publication date | Critic rating | Critic reviews | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | July 2023 | 9.4/10 | 4 | [14] |
2 | August 2023 | 8.8/10 | 6 | [15] |
3 | September 2023 | 9.5/10 | 4 | [16] |
4 | October 2023 | 9.6/10 | 4 | [17] |
5 | November 2023 | 9.9/10 | 2 | [18] |
Overall | 9.4/10 | 20 | [19] |
Wanted is a comic book limited series created by writer Mark Millar and artist J. G. Jones. It was published by Top Cow in 2003 and 2004 as part of Millarworld. It features an amoral protagonist who discovers he is the heir to a career as a supervillain assassin in a world where such villains have secretly taken control of the planet. The Sunday Times dubbed the title "the Watchmen for super-villains."
Mark Millar is a Scottish comic book writer who first came to prominence with a run on the superhero series The Authority, published by DC Comics' Wildstorm imprint. Millar has written extensively for Marvel Comics, including runs on The Ultimates, which has been called "the comic book of the decade" by Time magazine and described as a major inspiration for the 2012 film The Avengers by its screenwriter Zak Penn, X-Men, Fantastic Four and Avengers for Marvel's Ultimate imprint, as well as Marvel Knights Spider-Man and Wolverine. In 2006, Millar wrote the Civil War mini-series that served as the centrepiece for the eponymous company-wide crossover storyline and later inspired the Marvel Studios film Captain America: Civil War. The "Old Man Logan" storyline, published as part of Millar's run on Wolverine, served as the inspiration for the 2017 film Logan.
Prodigy is a British comic book series created by Mark Millar and Rafael Albuquerque, who respectively write and illustrate the first volume, and published by Image Comics. The title was announced near the end of 2018 as the second comic book collaboration between Mark Millar and Netflix, after the company acquired the Millarworld imprint of creator-owned titles in the summer of 2017, and to be adapted as a film exclusive to the streaming service, along with other of the imprint's comic book series. The first volume ran for six issues from December 2018 to June 2019, and a trade paperback collecting the series, subtitled The Evil Earth, was released the following month.
Millarworld Limited is an imprint of comic books published by Scottish comic book writer Mark Millar as a creator-owned line, featuring characters created by him in a shared fictional universe, the Millarworld. These characters include Wesley Gibson, Kick-Ass, Hit-Girl, Eggsy Unwin, Nemesis, Duke McQueen, Edison Crane, and others, while the events of The Unfunnies, Jupiter's Legacy, and Supercrooks exist as popular fiction within the world of the Millarworld. The imprint was launched in 2003 with the publication of the miniseries Wanted, followed by Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski Years, Kingsman, War Heroes, and The Magic Order, and later the crossover series Big Game. While the majority of series in the line are written by Millar himself, the series Kingsman, Kick-Ass – The New Girl and Hit-Girl feature new writers from their second volumes onward, after Millar wrote the series' first volumes.
Kick-Ass is a 2010 superhero black comedy film directed by Matthew Vaughn from a screenplay by Jane Goldman and Vaughn. It is based on the Marvel Comics' comic book of the same name by Mark Millar and John Romita Jr, and is the first film in the Kick-Ass franchise.
Hit-Girl is an antihero appearing in the Millarworld shared fictional universe, published by Marvel Comics under the company's imprint Icon Comics and later Image Comics, one of the titular characters of the Hit-Girl & Kick-Ass franchise. The character was created by artist John Romita Jr. and writer Mark Millar. She is a young and effective vigilante, trained by her father Damon McCready from an early age to be a costumed superhero and assassin, introduced in Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski Years as a supporting character and ultimate co-protagonist, along with Dave Lizewski. She featured in her own self-titled comic book series, Hit-Girl, published from 2018 to 2020 by Image Comics. She returned in the 2023 miniseries Big Game, becoming a Kingsman agent and killing Wesley Gibson.
Millar & McNiven's Nemesis is a creator-owned comic book limited series written by Mark Millar, drawn by Steve McNiven and published by the Icon Comics imprint of Marvel Comics.
Superior is a creator-owned comic book series written by Mark Millar and illustrated by Leinil Francis Yu, following a young boy with multiple sclerosis who sells his soul to become a superhero. Set in the Millarworld, it is published by Marvel Comics under the company's Icon imprint, from October 2010 to March 2012. The series' protagonist, Simon Pooni, would return in Kick-Ass: The Dave Lizewski Years – Book Four in 2014, Superior: Symptoms in 2017, and Big Game in 2023.
Kick-Ass is the name of three fictional characters serving as the title characters and the protagonists of the Kick-Ass series, published by Marvel Comics under the company’s imprint Icon Comics, and by Image Comics, all created by artist John Romita Jr. and writer Mark Millar. The first Kick-Ass, the protagonist of Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski YearsDavid "Dave" Lizewski, is an initially 15-year-old high school student and comic book fan whose dreams inspire him to become a real-life superhero dubbed "Kick-Ass", partnering and later training under Mindy McCready / Hit-Girl. The second Kick-Ass, a supporting character in Hit-Girl, Paul McQue, is an initially 12-year-old middle school student bullied at school, whom Mindy recruits after Dave's retirement. The third Kick-Ass, the villain protagonist of Kick-Ass – The New Girl, Patience Lee, is an Afghanistan war veteran and single mother who dons the Kick-Ass costume and mantle to steal money from various crime bosses for her family, before becoming a crime boss/supervillain herself, leading to Mindy hunting her down in Kick-Ass vs. Hit-Girl. In Big Game, Dave comes out of retirement after being granted real superpowers by the Magic Order to take on the joint forces of a time-travelling alien armada from the past and Wesley Gibson's Fraternity of Super-Criminals, before joining the superhero team The Ambassadors as Codename: America.
Kick-Ass 2 is a 2013 black comedy superhero film written and directed by Jeff Wadlow, based on the Marvel Comics graphic novels Book Two and Book Three of Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski Years by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr., and serving as a sequel to 2010's Kick-Ass. It is the second film in the Kick-Ass franchise, and stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Chloë Grace Moretz, and Jim Carrey, with the former trio reprising their roles from the first film. The film follows Dave Lizewski / Kick-Ass (Taylor-Johnson), who joins a vigilante team called "Justice Forever", while Mindy Macready / Hit Girl (Moretz) attempts to live a normal life, and Chris D'Amico (Mintz-Plasse) taking up the mantle of The Motherfucker and forming a supervillain team to take revenge on Kick-Ass.
Hit-Girl is a creator-owned comic book sequel series to Kick-Ass: The Dave Lizewski Years, created by Mark Millar and illustrated by John Romita Jr., part of the Kick-Ass franchise and set in the Millarworld. The series was published by Image Comics from 2018 to 2020. The title, featuring a successive change of writers and artists for each four-issue story arc, follows Mindy McCready / Hit-Girl leaving the United States to carry on her fight for justice on a worldwide scale, depicting events mentioned in the epilogue of Book Four of The Dave Lizewski Years.
Kingsman is a British multimedia franchise consisting of spy comic books, films, and video games that follow the missions of Agent Galahad of Kingsman, a fictional secret service organization. The franchise is based on the comic book series created by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons, a 2012 Marvel Comics release set in the Millarworld shared universe which is based on a concept by Millar and Matthew Vaughn. It has garnered success both financially and critically.
Kingsman is an American comic book series that debuted in 2012 with the first graphic novel, subtitled The Secret Service. Three sequels, subtitled Mum's the Word, The Big Exit, and The Red Diamond, followed in 2016, 2017, and 2018 respectively. The series, following the recruitment of Gary London, into a secret spy organization by his uncle, Jack London, and his subsequent world-saving adventures, was initially published simply as The Secret Service before being rebranded following the release of the first film adaptation of the series. The series was created by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons from a concept by Millar and an uncredited Matthew Vaughn, and set in Millar's shared universe, the Millarworld, with the celebrity kidnappings taking place in the first volume being referenced in Kick Ass: The Dave Lizewski Years Book Four, leading into the 2023 crossover event Big Game.
Empress is a creator-owned comic book limited series written by Mark Millar, illustrated by Stuart Immonen and published by the Icon Comics imprint of Marvel Comics in 2016. Set in the Millarworld, the series follows Queen Emporia, Empress of the Royal Empire that ruled Earth 65 million years ago, as she decides to leave her husband King Morax along with their three children.
Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski Years is a creator-owned comic book series written by Mark Millar and illustrated by John Romita Jr. The first instalment of the Kick-Ass franchise, it was initially published by Marvel Comics under the company's Icon imprint and republished under Image Comics. Set in the Millarworld, the series primarily tells the story of Dave Lizewski, a teenager who sets out to become a real life superhero. His actions are publicized on the Internet and inspire other people. He gets caught up with ruthless vigilantes Big Daddy and Mindy "Hit-Girl" McCready, who are on a mission to take down the Genovesecrime family. Two stand-alone sequel series, Hit-Girl and Kick-Ass – The New Girl, respectively following Mindy and new villain protagonist Patience Lee, began publication in February 2018, before jointly concluding with the crossover miniseries Kick-Ass vs. Hit-Girl in March 2021. A further crossover, Big Game, was published from July to November 2023, following a now mid-20s Mindy as she teams up with Kingsman agent Eggsy Unwin against Wesley Gibson, while Dave is granted superpowers by the Magic Order.
Kick-Ass is a media franchise based on the adventures of superheroes of the same name, created by Mark Millar and John Romita Jr. Set in the Millarworld, it began in 2008 with Marvel's Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski Years, followed by the anthology Millarworld Annual from 2016 to 2017, two stand-alone sequel series, Kick-Ass – The New Girl and Hit-Girl, from 2018 to 2020, and two crossover series, Kick-Ass vs. Hit-Girl and Big Game, in 2020 and 2023. In the series, Hit-Girl is a young vigilante going around the world stopping crime in violent ways, while Kick-Ass has had three people take the mantle, a hero, a sidekick, and a villain.
MPH is a British heist-action-thriller comic book limited series written by Mark Millar and illustrated by Duncan Fegredo. Published by Image Comics, the series is set in the Millarworld, with its events being first referenced in 2014's Kick-Ass: The Dave Lizewski Years – Book Four. Described as "The Fast and the Furious without cars", the series follows a group of early-20s criminals who on discovering a drug that gives them super-speed, use it to go on a series of grand heists, while pursued by a government agency with a mysterious speedster of their own. The series, originally published between May 21, 2014, and February 18, 2015, was collected as a graphic novel on April 22, 2015. Characters from the series would later return in the miniseries Big Game in 2023. Receiving a generally positive critical reception, both a comic book sequel and feature film adaptation of the series has been in development hell since its initial publication.
Chrononauts is a British comic book series created by Mark Millar and Sean Murphy, published by Image Comics, and set in the Millarworld. Described as "Apollo 13 meets The Time Machine", the title was announced near the end of 2014, with the first volume running for four issues from March to June 2015. Two sequels followed: the four-issue Chrononauts: Futureshock and the five-issue Big Game, with a further series to be published by Dark Horse Comics. A one-shot, Chrononauts: Prom Night, written by Shaun Brill and illustrated by Conor Hughes, was also published in 2017.
Kick-Ass – The New Girl, titled Kick-Ass vs. Hit-Girl for its fourth and final volume, is an American superhero crime comic book limited series written by Mark Millar and Steve Niles, and illustrated by John Romita Jr. and Marcelo Frusin. Published by Image Comics, the series is a stand-alone sequel/spin-off to the Icon Comics series Kick-Ass – The Dave Lizewski Years by Millar and Romita Jr., and the second series in the franchise, set in the Millarworld. The first three volumes follow villain protagonist and former soldier Patience Lee as she takes up the Kick-Ass mantle to become "boss of all bosses" of Albuquerque, New Mexico, while the fourth volume follows Mindy McCready / Hit-Girl as she travels to Albuquerque to kill Patience. The series, published from February 14, 2018 to March 17, 2021, was followed by Big Game, written by Millar and illustrated by Pepe Larraz.