EXCLUSIVE: Adams, Maguire & More Join Bendis for His Final GotG Issue

CBR

By Stephen Gerding

Published Mar 28, 2017

CBR has the full art team for Brian Bendis' final Guardians of the Galaxy issue, and the first look at Art Adam's contribution.

When it was announced that Brian Michael Bendis would be leaving "Guardians of the Galaxy" with April's Issue #19, Marvel Comics teased something big for the writer's finale. Bendis and Valerio Schiti were listed as the issue's main creative team, but with a double-sized farewell, more artists were slated to be called in to bid the writer goodbye.

Today, CBR has the exclusive reveal of the issue's complete art line up. As expected, Schiti will illustrate the lion's share of the issue. He's joined by Phil Noto, Andrea Sorrentino, Ed McGuinness, Art Adams (a sample of who's work can be seen below), Kevin Maguire, Mark Bagley, Sara Pichelli and Felipe Andrade. You can get a taste of the issue, including an exclusive early look at a 2-page spread illustrated by Art Adams, below.

“Thanos will be returning for my final issue of ‘Guardians,’ which is at least double-sized,” Bendis revealed earlier this year, and as you can see in Adams' art, the Mad Titan's return is an explosive one. “It’s a very big finale and it wraps up a great deal of things that characters in the book have been questing for my entire run. That includes a pretty major showdown between the Guardians and Thanos right here on Earth.”

EXCLUSIVE: Art Adams' art from "Guardians of the Galaxy" #19, with colors by Richard Isanove

"I think the amount of time that I spent on Avengers, and being the longest-running ‘Avengers’ writer ever, that I should have gone out with a big blockbuster ending," Bendis said of why he planned such an explosive end to his GotG run. "I was reminded by someone at Marvel, I’m the longest running ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ writer ever and I’m going to make the effort to go out really big, with the help of the writer who’s coming after me."

“Guardians of the Galaxy” #19, written by Brian Michale Bendis and featuring art by Valerio Schiti, Art Adams, Kevin Maguire, Ed McGuinness and a murderer's row of A-list artists, arrives in stores April 12.

Writer Gerry Duggan, artist Aaron Kuder and colorist Ive Svorcina will launch “All-New Guardians of the Galaxy” in May. The Guardians are currently involved in the “Grounded” story arc that sees the team stranded and disbanded on Earth following the events of “Civil War II.” The presence of Thanos is what will bring the cosmic misfits back together, leading into “All-New Guardians of the Galaxy.”