REVIEW: ‘Task Force Z,’ Issue #9

Task Force Z #9 is a horror comic published by DC Comics, written by Matthew Rosenberg, pencils by Eddy Barrows, inks by Eber Ferreira, colours by Adriano Lucas, and letters by Rob Leigh. After the Red Hood’s botched heist of the Batcave, he found himself saved by Batgirl. When on his next mission with the Task Force, they are reunited with an old friend that had died in an earlier issue.

The plot of this series continues to drive the mysteries deeper and bring back surprises. The very nature of the comic means that anything is possible and anyone can appear. After 9 issues the novelty of the comic remains exciting due to the constant reinvention. This issue feels huge, with so much happening inside its pages. The final part of the last issue bleeds into the start of this, maintaining continuity. This then directly leads to a huge fight with a character that some may have forgotten. Every fight in this series is pure insanity, forever bringing something new to the table. And behind that has been the Mr. Bloom plot thread. This has been rather quiet recently as the machinations and experiments have been ludicrous, actually feeling quite unsettling. But there is a moment that is deeply unsettling. The returning character is a massive surprise and is a blend of sadness and horror in their final moments.

This book is becoming more of a Bat-Family series with every issue. The number of guest stars has calmed down since the last chapter, but it is fascinating to see what Batgirl’s inclusion brings to the table. But it is the villains that provide the cannon fodder and the possible reincarnated corpses to the book. New inclusions of Victor Zsasz and Coppermouth demonstrate that the revolving door of characters keeps the series interesting. But the long-standing figures in the comic have also been brilliantly written by Rosenberg. Red Hood is completely used to the mechanics of this team, and that can make him callous and uncaring towards certain people. His relationship with Two-Face is interesting as they are working together with more ease now. And Bloom continues to be a deeply unnerving villain.

The art is fantastic again. All of the characters look remarkable and frightening. The modified versions of certain Batman villains look even more decrepit than they usually do, the inks for Ferreira helping their undead images more discernible. But even some of the human characters can be regarded as creepy due to the looks in their eyes. The fight scene is majestic in its vicious glory, every single issue containing something that makes a blockbuster action movie seem weak. What the Task Force fight is much bigger than them, demonstrating a great understanding of scale and placement of figures. 

The colours have been consistently brilliant. A lot of the characters are dark in tone, with the red of Todd’s armour being the brighter shade of the group. The vibrancy comes from elsewhere though, from gunfire or from flares. There are glimpses of red and that sickly green from the Lazarus Resin and this help to break up the silhouettes. The lettering is pivotal to providing voices to the characters. For Bloom in particular, the dripping of the bottom of the word balloons sends shivers up my spine.

Task Force Z #9 is another heavy metal edition of the zombie comic series. Every inclusion brings familiar faces into the undead world, placing them in imminent danger of being eaten. Every fight is hardcore and Rosenberg leans even further into that tone. The art can either be explosive and gory or make your skin crawl. The book’s longevity is impressive, and the next issue bodes even more excitement.

Task Force Z #9 is available where comics are sold.