The world of Invincible is that of your traditional hero, but with the uber-realistic effect that human beings are not physically suited to exist in a world of superpowered beings. Whether it be the slightest touch breaking bones, or the hyper realistic way they view and present collateral damage.
This show does a great job creating cause and effect within this world.
So when Amazon told us that we could preview Part 1’s four-episode section of season 2, we jumped at the chance. As always, our review is broken down by story, acting, and overall. So let’s jump into it.
Story 10/10
The story picks up slightly differently than we remember from last season, as Invincible and his father tear through the heroes of this world, and dominate wherever they go. A lone man is able to sneak through their onslaught by escaping into a different realm. This is the impetus for one of the major villains of this season. A man tortured and destroyed by Invincible and Omni-Man who wants to find a way to bring peace to all worlds. Using his ability to travel between dimensions, he gathers all other alternative versions of himself. His massive plan is to take all the memories of the alternate hims and merge their memories with his, so that he can find out how each world did it better and bring those advancements to the whole Multiverse. On the other side of things, the Viltrumite race threat still looms over Earth and any other world that would dare challenge them.
Back to our World and dimension, Mark Grayson is dealing with the echoes and bruises left over from his fight with Omni-Man, his father. The lives lost Chicago way heavily upon him as he carries each of them as if they were his own fault. Back in his home, his mother deals with an insane amount of grief, as well. A lot of these early episodes are dealing with the trauma left over from the events during the season one finale.
More resilient than his mother, Invincible teams up once again with Cecil, with hope that missions and heroic endeavors will help free his mind from the horrors of Chicago. However, no matter how much Mark appears to be keeping it together on the outside, his choices are very much still being affected by his falling out with his father.
I really love how powerful and passionately they have shown the journeys of Mark and his mother this season. They can’t help but feel as if they are real. I’m sure this is in no part just on the hands of the writers, but also the presentation by actors Sandra Oh and Steven Yeun.
Acting 10/10
There is just such a level of depth to this season in it’s character development and the voice acting performed. The characters are able to take the words and emotions presented on the animation and give it depth and volume with painful and tortured representation helped even by the addition of their choice in music.
This season, or at least the first part, is about regret, grief, acceptance, and the pain we put into the world. There are just levels and multitudes that are able to be presented in this medium by Steven Yeun, J.K. Simmons, Sandra Oh, and Gillian Jacobs, that you normally would not expect from an animated series, but is presented so beautifully by their talented work.
People who come to Invisible season 2 expecting to see just brutal beat-em-up and action-packed animated sequences will be shocked to realize that there is just so much more heart and pain behind this season, and how could they not be in those positions with the first season’s conclusion.
Overall 10/10
If you’re looking for something deeper, then Invincible is definitely your show. If you still want action, displays of savagery, and hyper realistic representation of injuries within a superhero world then Invincible still has you covered on that front as well. All in all, it’s just a great show and I’m glad that it’s back and can’t wait for part two.
Conner’s Final Thoughts
People like to compare and contrast Invincible to Amazon’s other show The Boys. This is simply because of the hyper-graphic and violent nature of both series. What I will specifically say about Invincible, that The Boys can not match, is the pure heroism and heart that exists within Invincible that The Boys just doesn’t have.
The Boys is just a fun and dark frolic into an anti-hero exterior with a hyper-violent core.
Both shows are great, but it’s clear which one will leave you feeling hopeful. While this season of Invicible does touch down on some more darker and visceral emotions than prior years, there still is an underlying vein of hope and heroism that endures.
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