Task Force Z #7 – Matthew Rosenberg, Writer; Eddy Barrows, Penciller; Eber Ferreira, Inker; Adriano Lucas, Colorist
Ray – 8/10
Ray: As we enter the second half of this action-horror event comic, things quickly spiral out of control in the best way. The team is falling apart after the betrayal of Mr. Bloom, and that mystery villain is quickly collaborating with Geri Powers to create a new host of abominations using the Lazarus Serum. Meanwhile, Jason is having increasingly intense visions of turning on his friends and family and becoming one of the horrific revenants he leads—potentially a product of the Lazarus resin dose he got earlier in the series, or potentially the result the trauma milling around in his perpetually screwed-up mind. But with the war escalating and the enemy getting their hands on the Lazarus Serum, there’s only one option left—get some new recruits for Task Force Z. And of course, that means hunting down some villains, and in this case the “dead or alive” qualifier is a lot more literal than it usually is.
Surprisingly, this issue’s recruitments are actually pretty fun. There’s a wicked sense of humor to a lot of the action here. Copperhead winds up hunted by his old ally KGBeast. Mr. Freeze tracks down the Victim Syndicate to hunt one of their members, in those characters’ first appearance since the early days of Rebirth—but he may have his own ulterior motive. Then there’s Solomon Grundy, who gets a visit from an undead Bane that goes very differently than most were expecting. Finally, Jason Todd takes on Mr. Zsasz, one of the most irredeemable villains in Gotham, in a one-on-one fight in a junkyard. All the while, an increasingly panicked and chaotic Two-Face tries to keep things afloat as he bluffs his way into an oncoming war with the Powers corporation. Overall, it’s a fun and chaotic issue that delivers in action and disturbing visuals, and I think it’s picking up as the series goes on.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
