Out of all the shows I’ve watched in recent years, the comic book adaptation of “Invincible” is the most popular. The shared interest in Invincible’s story and the show’s bizarre meme culture has made it the most watched show on Amazon Prime. The series, independent from the Marvel and DC franchises I grew up on, is a gritty narrative of the dark side of being a superhero.
Mark Grayson (Steven Yeun), better known as Invincible, is the half-human, half-Viltrumite superhero who inherited his super strength and flight abilities from his Viltrumite father, Omni-Man, also known as Nolan Grayson (J.K. Simmons). Invincible deals with constant cycles of low and high-level threats, including the alien warrior race, the Viltrum Empire, which seeks to conquer the universe, the genius inter-dimensional traveller Angstrom Levy (Sterling K. Brown) and conflicts with some of Viltrum’s strongest warriors.
Season four follows Invincible, Omni-Man, Grayson’s brother Oliver (Christian Convery), Allen the Alien (Seth Rogen), Tech Jacket (Zoey Deutch), Thaedus (Peter Cullen) and more as they declare war on all remaining Viltrumites.
The quality of the animation in “Invincible” is a highly discussed topic among the fanbase. . Viewers have consistently called out the show’s underwhelming animation. In comparison to other shows, “Invincible” is far below the standard, with some scenes appearing as a PNG moving across the screen
That saidI do respect that more effort was put into the fight scenes. The rematch between Invincible and Conquest (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is one of the most memorable scenes, with Conquest rearranging Invincible’s insides right before his death as if he’s opening a present on Christmas Day. This season also included impact frames, which had never been done in previous seasons. Impact frames are quick, flashy frames that emphasize certain impacts in action scenes. These frames helped convey the unquantifiable force behind the heroes and villains.
No one received more impact frames than Grand Regent Thragg (Lee Pace). The introduction of Thragg was undoubtedly the best part of season four. The menacing leader of the Viltrum Empire is the most powerful opponent Invincible has faced thus far. His feats include slapping Oliver’s mouth and arm off, stopping a full-strength punch from Invincible with only his forehead and channeling the wind before punching Omni-Man into the atmosphere.
Omni-Man’s redemption arc was another one of my favorite parts of season four. Omni-Man was the main villain of season one, originally sent to Earth to conquer it on behalf of the Viltrum Empire. After killing thousands of humans and aliens from other planets, Omni-Man seeks to make amends by helping find powerful weapons and turning on the Viltrumites. I appreciated how some were unwilling to forgive him — like his ex-wife Debbie Grayson (Sandra Oh) — and that some might never.
After destroying Viltrum and being severely wounded by Thragg, Invincible and Omni-Man return to Earth, fearing the remaining Viltrumites had fled the planet. In this epilogue-style finale with minimal action, Invincible deals with PTSD from his fight with Thragg. His sudden panic attacks scattered throughout the episode, where he sees Thragg kill his loved ones, were genuinely frightening for viewers and showed his trauma firsthand.
At the end of the episode, Invincible re-encounters Thragg. He tells Invincible the Viltrumites are actually among the humans and offers him an ultimatum: allow them to stay on Earth or witness the planet's total destruction. The intriguing cliffhanger was a climactic end to an exciting season.
While season four was action-packed, it left out what was happening back on Earth. Before Invincible went to space, his superhero girlfriend Atom Eve (Gillian Jacobs) learned she was pregnant, but decided not to tell him. It’s only in the season finale that Invincible learns Eve was pregnant and had an abortion. Debbie also tells the family that she broke up with her boyfriend, Paul (Cliff Curtis), off-screen. By skipping months of events on Earth, the show ended up making these surprises feel forced.
To keep ratings high, season five — releasing in Feb. 2027— must address the poor animation and major plot holes. The show’s creator and comic co-creator, Robert Kirkman, teased that the series could last up to nine seasons.
Whichever direction the series goes, I can’t wait to see if Mark Grayson truly is invincible.
