WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Taskmaster #2, by Jed MacKay, Alessandro Vitti, Guru-eFX and VC's Joe Sabino, on sale now.
When he was first introduced to the comic books after a fan-favorite run as a staple in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Phil Coulson was one of the biggest fans of the world's extensive superhero community. A lifetime career man with S.H.I.E.L.D., Coulson grew up admiring superheroes before working alongside them himself as a reliable, valuable ally. However, after enduring his own life, death, and resurrection cycle, Coulson's new lease on life was notably darker, now opposing many of the very heroes he once idolized. And as Nick Fury sets his sets on his former comrade-in-arms, the intelligence officer's grand plan has been revealed: Subtly targeting the public through comic books.
Growing up as a studious kid that extensively cataloged the public knowledge surrounding each of the Marvel Universe's heroes and villains, Coulson joined S.H.I.E.L.D. and worked with Nick Fury's son. During the 2017 crossover event Secret Empire, Coulson began to suspect Captain America of his dark turn into a member of Hydra. To maintain his cover, the brainwashed Steve Rogers had Deadpool assassinate Coulson, with the murder carried out right before Hydra launched their grand plan to conquer the world. Mephisto brought Coulson back to life, with the formerly good-hearted secret agent now actively working against the Avengers to discredit them in the public eye.
Back working for the government, Coulson assembled the Squadron Supreme of America, a federally sponsored team of superheroes designed to supplant the Avengers for the title of Earth's Mightiest Heroes. With the government now viewing the Avengers as an anti-American team thanks to Coulson's influence, the team and its individual heroes star in their own line of comic books to help continue their mission to win the hearts and minds of the American public. And while on a routine trip to the comic book shop to see how well the Squadron Supreme comics are selling, Coulson finds himself targeted by Marvel's master mercenary: Taskmaster.
With Taskmaster framed for the murder of Maria Hill, the mercenary was rescued by Fury and given a special assignment to clear his name: Observe and learn how to replicate the specific movements of three different figures around the globe to gain access to a top-secret database left over by the defunct organization H.A.M.M.E.R. Coulson is the first target on Taskmaster's list and he intercepts him at the comic shop, overhearing that the Squadron Supreme comics have all been proving incredibly popular with the public. Before Taskmaster can glean any more information, he's exposed by Coulson with his own sense of toxic fandom and gatekeeping exposing the mercenary as a fake fan for preferring Alpha Flight over the Squadron Supreme in a tongue-in-cheek exchange.
Coulson's public relations push to promote the Squadron Supreme as America's heroes have extended beyond glad-handing with politicians and his team making public appearances to now move into full corporate propaganda as the stars in their own comic books, befitting Coulson's fanboy origins. The operative's slavish devotion to his own fandom routine made him a predictable mark for Taskmaster but it also helped expose the mercenary as he trailed the operative while undercover.
Phil Coulson may have come back to life darker and more of an adversary to the Avengers but one thing that can't be changed through life and death is the character's deep love of comic books.