Writers: Matthew Rosenberg
Art: Eddy Barrows
Inks: Eber Ferreira
Colors: Adriano Lucas
Letters: Rob Leigh
Publisher: DC
Price: $4.99
Release Date: 10/26/2021
Reviewer: Soycornholio
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Task Force Z:
DC decided to hit everyone with a one, two punch for October. Written by Matthew Rosenberg, Task Force Z #1 is the zombie answer to Rosenberg’s (with James Tynion) other horror esque comic, DC vs. Vampires. In Task Force Z, a group of undead characters from the DC Universe, band together (lead by the amazing Red Hood) to try and bring down criminals! Let’s take a peek!
*Spoiler Free *
A Frosty Beginning:
Task Force Z was originally started as one of the secondary stories in a Batman comic. Going into this, I expected full-on zombies vs. zombies. What I got was the complete opposite. Red Hood aka Jason Todd is always a delight to read. He is the bad boy of the Bat-Family. Having him lead a group of undead villains seems like the perfect way to establish a new team. In the first issue, there were a lot of characters. I mean to the point where I was questioning the addition of some of them. Besides the main roster, there was a random lady who was knitting in Jason’s room, a random doctor, and a “director.” Too many characters for issue number 1.
Red Hood:
I am a sucker for a good Red Hood story. I expect Jason Todd to continuously be the wise-cracking hard as nails hero that he was originally portrayed as. Honestly, Jason saved this story. He comes off as the good boy who must lead a group of monsters to defeat the bad guys. He does believe that he is working with a bunch of monsters. The best part is him feeding Bane a “monster edible” to calm him down. I love it.
Black Label:
This is my biggest annoyance with Task Force Z #1. This comic should have had been under the Black Label banner. There is an undead superhero team led by the “broken” Bat-child. This would have had been perfect if there was actual adult language. I feel as if the lack of cursing is holding this story back. It is geared towards adults but is available to kids. DC must do a better job of picking which comics should be under the Black Label.
Final Thoughts:
I was expecting so much more from this comic. I feel as if Task Force Z #1 ran in place for the duration of its first issue. There was not any real take-off. Now, I have faith in the characters. How can you have a bad storyline with Jason Todd or a zombie Man-Bat? If you are a fan of zombies and horror, this comic is NOT for you. It does not deliver on that end. Now, what it does deliver on, is pure Red Hood one-liners and a mystery that will payout throughout the next handful of comics.