Night of the Living Deadpool is a four issue horror miniseries published by Marvel Comics in 2014. As the title suggests, it is a Zombie Apocalypse story that happens to have Deadpool in it.
Following a chimichanga induced food coma, Deadpool awakens to a monochrome world ravaged by the remorseful undead, where his fellow super humans have all fallen and he is the last costumed adventurer alive. Now, Deadpool must survive this strange new world where, for once, his fourth wall breaking ability and irreverent wit may not be enough to save him…
The series was followed up by a sequel in 2015, Return of the Living Deadpool, where the dead have taken on another horrifying transformation…
Tropes For Night of the Living Deadpool include:
- And I Must Scream: The people turned into zombies only have their awareness and enough control to talk. Not enough to stop themselves from eating flesh.
- Apologetic Attacker: The zombies have enough awareness to know what they are doing but no control over their bodies. They can only plead for forgiveness.
- Clone by Conversion: Deadpool stops the zombies by taking a dose of the serum derived from his powers. When the zombies eat him, they transform into a copy of him, this carrying on until the majority of the horde is converted to Deadpool clones. Unfortunately, in the sequel, the Deadpool's start exploiting this by capturing humans, having them converted into zombies, then feeding the zombies their flesh to make more Deadpools.
- Darker and Edgier: Certainly Deadpool’s trademark brand of comedy is present, but this is by far an incredibly grim, melancholy story about the end of the world and even the Merc With a Mouth has trouble staying positive.
- Deliberately Monochrome: While flashbacks show a world in full color, the present day post-outbreak world is shown in black and white. Deadpool’s red suit and yellow speech balloons/narration boxes serve as a Splash of Color.
- Evil Old Folks: Deadpool encounters a gang of wandering elderly women when coming across a safe community further from civilization. And quickly learns that they intend to raze the place to the ground under a veneer of religious cleansing. Though it's mostly an excuse for them to raid the place for supplies and food. Thankfully, Deadpool puts a stop to their antics before they've had a chance to begin.
- Failed a Spot Check: Deadpool apparently missed the many glaring warning signs of the outbreak while going about his routine.
- Gone Horribly Wrong: The zombie apocalypse was started by an offshoot of A.I.M. attempting to reverse engineer Deadpool's healing factor into an immortality serum.
- Hive Mind: In the sequel the Deadpool copies are shown to have a telepathic connection and have divided into factions based on Deadpool's interests.
- Last of His Kind: Sort of. From what is shown, the other super heroes have fallen to the zombies, making Deadpool the only super powered being left on the planet.
- Our Zombies Are Different: The shambling hoards here have enough leftover consciousness to talk… but not enough to control their bodies and prevent any massacres.
- Rogue Drone: While the Deadpool copies have organized to convert more humanity into zombies to make more of themselves, one sets out to work against them. It's theorized that lone Deadpool represents Wade's noble traits.
- Shout-Out: In pure Deadpool nature, to multiple zombie media:
- The black and white presentation may be a nod to The Walking Dead. Deadpool even Slept Through the Apocalypse like Rick Grimes did.
- The montage of Deadpool missing all the signs of the coming out break may put one in mind of Shaun of the Dead.
- Among the rejected hideouts Deadpool’s posse come across in issue two are a shopping mall, a farm house, a prison, and a cabin in the woods.
- Slept Through the Apocalypse: Deadpool had WAY too many chimichangas before issue one got started.
- Wham Line: “Near as I can tell… as far as heroes go… you’re the only one left.”
- Wham Shot: Accompanying the Wham Line above, we end issue one with a shot of Captain America’s shield, bloodied and abandoned in the wreckage.
