WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Taskmaster #2 by Jed MacKay, Alessandro Vitti, Guru-eFX, and VC's Joe Sabino, on sale now
Taskmaster is a fearsome force in the Marvel Universe. While he may lack the supernatural powers of someone like Thor, he can still be a major threat if given the opportunity. His ability to mimic any physical action he's seen performed makes him incredibly adaptable, but it's ruthless nature and killer instinct that allows him to score unexpected victories.
This is how the mercenary just earned a decisive victory over the Hyperion belonging to the current incarnation of the Squadron Supreme. Taskmaster even comes close to killing the nigh-indestructible man, proving how dangerous he really is.
As part of his mission to confront some of Marvel's top spies so he can replicate their movements, Taskmaster is forced to ambush Phil Coulson. Although the mission is nominally a quick success, Coulson calls upon Hyperion for backup. This sends Taskmaster on the run, terrified by the sheer power of one of Marvel's Superman-stand ins. When Hyperion arrives, he quickly pummels Taskmaster, fracturing multiple bones and bruising many of his organs. None of his weapons even faze Hyperion, and Taskmaster is quickly left a stumbling and bloody mess from the beating. But after lulling Hyperion into a state of confidence on how well this fight is going, Taskmaster is able to stealthily shoot a boomerang arrow -- carrying a sample of Argonite Radiation, the one substance that weakens Hyperion.
Once the arrow strikes him, Hyperion is forced to the ground, screaming in pain. But instead of fleeing as Fury orders him to, Taskmaster indulges in his gruesome impulses and attacks Hyperion. He continues kicking and punching the weakened figure before placing his knife at Hyperion's throat, with the full intention to kill him. It's only Fury reminding Taskmaster that he's supposed to be a "professional" that keeps Taskmaster carrying out the murder, as it would leave the mercenary on the run for the rest of his life. Taskmaster makes sure to tell Hyperion that the only reason he's alive is that he has somewhere else to be -- which is an incredibly ruthless and brutal thing to remind one of the single most powerful forces on the planet.
Taskmaster has an impressive history of fighting impressive enemies and defeating them: his first appearance saw him take on the Avengers alone and manage to escape. He's defeated heroes like Elektra and Spider-Woman, stalemated Captain America, and easily outpaced figured like Spider-Man -- although he's also been defeated by figures like Spider-Man in the past. He's even one of the few figures who's come close to actually killing Deadpool, although he and Bullseye decided against it after realizing the low place Deadpool is in at the time.
But defeating Hyperion -- even if it almost killed him -- is perhaps one of his most impressive victories ever. It's also a nice reminder that at the end of the day, Taskmaster is a killer. He's murdered for money, and he's casually slain opponents when they get in his way. No hero can ever forget just how dangerous Taskmaster really is -- otherwise, they risk getting brought down if they ever encounter him and underestimate him.