Cherish what you have … for you never know when it will be taken from you.
Creative Staff:
Writer: Joe Brusha
Artwork: Marc Rosete
Colors: Walter Pereyra
Letters: Fabio Amelia
What They Say:
Rick Murphy is a regular guy who’s starting a new family and new career as a Philadelphia police officer. But when the rookie cop stumbles onto the wrong case, it triggers a horrific tragedy as his life comes crumbling down around him. Devastated and broken, Rick is given the chance to seek vengeance on those who have destroyed his life. Now, with a dark and mysterious power at his fingertips, Rick can seek the vengeance he thirsts for, but will the darkness ultimately be too much for him to control?
Content (please note that portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Rick Murphy is a rookie cop fresh out of the academy, but he has ambitions to help as many people as he can. While his partner may think that he is overreaching his bounds, he does admire this trainee. When he finally goes home after a long shift to his expecting wife, they discuss their future together and he expresses his desire to continue this job; he feels that he was destined to serve and that now that he has settled in, everything is falling into place. However, as they settle down to bed, there are darker, more sinister forces at work within Philadelphia, ones which will not allow a peaceful night’s rest.
When a riot breaks out in a construction site downtown, all reserve forces are called in for reinforcements. As Murphy and his colleague arrive, the conflict has been inflamed to a full-scale disturbance. They are directed to clean up duty, but as one of the protesters breaks away, they give chase. However, when he tries to loose them in a series of warehouses, the pair stumble upon a scene of looters. The thieves start shooting and his mentor is killed on the scene, allowing the frightened recruit to run. In a panic, Rick calls his wife to warn her of the danger, but it seems that his career might not last for much longer, if the corruption within this city has spread this deeply.
In Summary:
While I was reading Death Force, the first thing that sprang to mind was the RoboCop franchise: a policeman trying to prove himself also named Murphy, a corrupt central government with ties to the underworld and after his death, the chance to right the wrongs done to him and the city. The equivalences are uncanny but the introduction of a supernatural element does differ this story from the popular science fiction series. Writer Joe Busha is making this tale more intriguing by setting it within the current timeline and also including the fantastical component of some otherworldly being showing an interest in Rick. Hopefully this will set the series apart from your typical revenge genre and make it a book which readers will look forward to seeing what happens to the characters.
Speaking of making a reader want to read a book, it was artistic genius to have Marc Rosete open the series with a scowling Talon – his caustic actions in dealing with an unsatisfied customer powerfully sets the stage for the rest of the book. And to make his illustrations even more intense, Walter Pereyra beautifully colors the scenes with a profound vigor in which each page has an emotional investment and yet neither could have alone. While Rosete’s artwork is able to address the surface fluidity within each panel to make the story flow, it is Pereyra’s mastery of the palette which allows the synergy of both medium to complete the picture. Every skillfully drawn image enlightens us to this tragic tale and as it unfolds, this artistic team brings to light his ultimate fate through a dance of blood and carnage.
The fate of Rick Murphy has been set and his future is in the hands of Brusha, Rosete, and Pereyra as they unravel the mysteries of Death Force. While it may seem that he has met his end, the gruesome image painted on his deathbed dictates otherwise as we await what that skeletal hand has in store. The stage is set and all of the actors are in the wings with bated breath as we anticipate the next act in this harrowing tale.
Grade: B
Rating: For Mature Readers
Released By: Zenescope
Release Date: June 1st, 2016
MSRP: $3.99
