An adult comic book show with blood, guts and lots of heart
Back in 2003, long before AMC optioned The Walking Dead and made creator Robert Kirkman all kinds of TV famous, he had created a comic book called Invincible. The premise was simple. The world has superheroes. The most powerful of them all is a being named Omni-Man. His son, Mark, is nearing the age where he should also develop superpowers but isn’t quite there yet. Until that day arrives, Mark is just a normal teenage boy, an average student, and not a standout in any way.
Finally, the day arrives when Mark’s powers begin to manifest, and he is very quickly inundated into the world of being a superhero. He struggles with flying (and really struggles with landing), and his father soon takes him under his wing for training. He learns how important it is to keep his secret identity a secret. He gets his own costume and his own moniker and soon the world is introduced to Invincible.
The TV series which launched in 2021 on Amazon Prime Video is a wonderful adaptation of the comic books. There are supervillains, of course, but this is no good vs. evil story. This is way more about struggling to figure out who you are, what your role is, who you trust, and often what actions you are willing to take based on your beliefs. Mark struggles with all of it as he tries to handle the simple, human parts of everyday life.
Very early on, the viewers are introduced to the pantheon of superheroes, including the Guardians of the Globe (think this universe’s Justice League.) In a twist that sets up the entire first season, the Guardians are murdered, setting off a sequence of events that ties together the many political, superhuman, supervillain and human players. The murders are written as the long story for the season, but each smaller battle, side hero, crafty villain, or relationship struggle make the episodes stand alone and digestible. The pacing of the build-ups and reveals is incredible.
One of the greatest strengths of Invincible is the talented cast. Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead) is absolutely the underdog hero that viewers will cheer for as Mark. J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) is perfect as the stark and stern Omni-Man. Sandra Oh (Killing Eve) provides tons of depth as Mark’s mother, Debbie. From there, the list just goes on for miles: Gillian Jacobs, Zachary Quinto, Walton Goggins, Zazie Beetz, Grey Griffin, Jason Mantzoukas, Khary Payton, Clancy Brown, Mark Hamill and Seth Rogen all deliver wonderful performances.
Invincible as comic book shows go is way closer to The Boys than to Superfriends. There are tons of violence, plenty of decapitation and dismemberment, and some just bizarre character design. The show stays visually faithful to the comic book visuals illustrated by Cory Walker and Ryan Ottley. The animation style is very sleak and it very often feels like the viewers are watching a comic book. The only snag is the huge sound dynamic difference between some of the dialogue and the fight scenes.
Kirkman’s writing is a wonderful place to start. Viewers will be rooting for Mark as easily as for Peter Parker or Miles Morales. Invincible is a wonderful coming-of-age story as much as it is a superhero origin story. The first season is eight episodes long and covers 364 minutes. Definitely worth watching (and re-watching if viewers want to hunt for easter eggs.)