It’s easy to get lost in the world these days. Ideas like good and evil are constructs to live within. However, in one fictional world, things are a little more clear. People wear costumes in the series Invincible, and when you are a champion of the people, the world sees and holds you up. It was all so clear… for a day. We jumped into the animated adult series of Invincible so we could break down our thoughts about this impressive series.
Let’s start by saying we have attended press events for this series, Eric even attended the Drive-In screening for the first two episodes. I’m not jealous. We know not everyone has had the chance to read the series, or watch the show yet, so we don’t want to spoil everything. So we will keep our review free of plot points.
That being said, let’s jump into the critique and as always base it on three categories: Story, Acting, and Overall.
STORY: 9/10
The story starts off as Mark, the first and only born half-blood son of the sole Viltrumite, an alien race, on the planet of Earth. His father is a champion of this planet, saving people under the alter-ego of Omni-Man. When Mark finally receives his own superpowers, a dream he has had since his father informed him of their alien lineage, he finds out that evil and good is not as clear-cut, and doing what’s right isn’t always easy.
From potentially ruining his romantic relationships to ditching friends for his new responsibilities, life has only gotten harder. This type of story isn’t exactly something new in the world of superheroes. The reason we rate it so high however is the series ability to include a slice of life moments that perfectly mirror the experience of humanity within the seemingly perfect world, that becomes more and more clear is simply sitting on the precipice of a disaster.
We don’t want to ruin the spoilers, hence our earlier promise, but the events in the background will constantly hang over the characters and call into question everything the main character thought they knew of the world in the powerful season finale.
ACTING: 9/10
The series has a large list of talent. Steven Yeun beautifully portrays the optimistic Mark Grayson, while J.K. Simmons perfectly presents a grizzled hardlined Omni-Man. But it’s no surprise since Yeun and Simmons are masters at their craft. They were complete perfect vocal representations of the role, and know when and if the live-action series is released, it will be hard to hear a different voice in its scenes.
While the series pulls amazing performances from Zazie Beetz, Walton Goggins, Gillian Jacobs, Zachary Quinto, Jason Mantzoukas, Clancy Brown, Mark Hamill, and Seth Rogen, the real stand out from the series is Sandra Oh, who is almost unrecognizable by voice in her performance, but delivers strong and powerful voice lines to a character who is going through a series of rough realizations, and has her life shattered.
OVERALL: 9/10
While this series rates so high, and impressive to me, It’s important to know that this is not a show for anyone under the age of at least 16, 18 if you are on the fence. The graphic nature and storylines from the series are bold and not for those in the younger age bracket. Additionally, if the story continues to pull from the comic, there will be some very extreme stories coming later in the series, and it is not easy topics to have to explain to a ten-year-old.
Conner’s Final Thought(s):
It’s amazing how Invincible straddles the line between being an adult gruesome series about superheroes, while still championing the same ideals of what it takes to be a hero. Don’t be confused by my comments, the show is still beyond gory and graphic. It is violent for sure, but the ideas of what it takes to be a hero are fully showcased in the character of Mark Grayson, AKA Invincible.
If you are looking for a series that merges the difference between a Marvel movie, and Amazon Prime’s The Boys, then I would easily place the series between the two.
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