Amazon Studios Invincible

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[Elayis]

Like The Boys, Invincible had a strong first season but diminishing returns with each subsequent one, with lots of cyclical narrative beats. There's not much depth or plot development going on, so it seems like the showrunners rely on graphic violence as a distraction. But when the show started off at maximum carnage, desensitization is inevitable. It was shocking when Nolan killed the Guardians, when Mark was eviscerated by Battle Beast and when Nolan and Mark fought. But there's nothing that can top those moments, and they were all in the first season, and it's been downhill ever since. It was intense the first time Mark got pulverized, or an entire city was leveled, but that happens almost every episode now. There was zero tension when the alternate Marks were wreaking havoc, despite the immense body count. The amount of times people have come back from what should've been fatal injuries, means violence has lost any weight or significance, and it was clear no one important was at risk.

The show has this weird dichotomy where it's both a traditional superhero tale and also plays against genre conventions (which is when it's at its best). I was close to writing off the show after the very first episode given how generic it felt. The only thing that made it interesting was the post credits scene. But when superheroics are played straight in the show it's pretty boring, which means that when all you have is subversion, then it becomes predictable and stale.

I'd still say the show is mostly fine, and certainly better than all of the MCU's small screen offerings, but it has the potential to be so much more. Invincible wants to have it both ways, the traditional superhero story where the hero lives in a world similar to ours and protects the status quo, and also have R-rated violence and language. The problem is that if superheroes really behaved like they do in the show, the story would more closely resemble something like Miracleman or Warren Ellis' Ruins. There's no logical consistency to the world of the show, and just like at the end of Man of Steel, the world basically resets after every global catastrophe, despite the tens of thousands of deaths. It's like the planet is in stasis, with superheroes having zero effect on geopolitics or the economy, which doesn't make any sense and undercuts the emotional resonance of the story.

 

[TheVileOne]

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Why is this a big deal?

 

[TheVileOne]

Everyone is losing their minds over that one IGN reviewer's 4/10 score, but I...kind of get it. I don't agree with 4/10 but like when you see bad guys surviving having their literal brain matter splattered and their faces crushed into paste and survive that good as new with barely a scratch, it's hard to take the show seriously anymore.

I kind of felt the same way about the original comics. Also for a series that is so graphically violent, it's surprisingly prudish where sex and other adult subject matter is concerned. Variety even pointed this out in an interview with Kirkman, and his answer was goofy and kind of head-scratching. It's kind of consistent with the comics, but I remember years ago Kirkman giving a very goofy answer about comic nudity as well.

‘Invincible’ Creator Robert Kirkman on Animated Nudity, Keeping Season 2 ‘Weird,’ Beating Superhero Fatigue and More

'Invincible' creator Robert Kirkman discusses how the show will escape superhero fatigue in Season 2 and his feelings about animated nudity.

variety.com

That’s kind of done for comedic effect. We got the great Paul F. Tompkins in there [as the narrator], you know: “Dear viewer, we must look away!” To a certain extent, I think it’s commentary on the American sensibility. We are a Puritan-founded nation that will allow insane violence on TV, but if you start showing nudity, it’s like, top three quarters of a buttocks and a lot of rotating sexual position so that no one’s in one position for any length of time. Also, I don’t think nudity looks great in animation.

I think part of things going back to normal so quickly in the comics is because technically Invincible is set in the shared Image Comics Universe, and the Invincible War was like a crossover event. And to be fair, there are things in superhero comics that are like big global or country-wide catastrophes and things then settle back to a routine fairly quickly like almost nothing ever happened. But I see the criticism. The Invincibles basically caused a global apocalypse. Like there's no going back to normal after an event like this. Invincible even being allowed to go back out in public with barely anyone reacting is a stretch. The only sign we see of that guilt is through Powerplex.

Realistically, after this type of event, Invincible would be viewed as a pariah and his public image would be in tatters, even if it's like oh it wasn't Mark. There's no way he'd have any peace after this. And the only real sign we get of it is through Powerplex who already hated Invincible. Even the other heroes should be looking at Invincible funny.

So for a show that likes to invert tropes, take things to a more extremely realistic conclusion, etc. there are a lot of leaps in logic and storytelling it likes to take. Like certainly, other governments and world leaders would be targeting Mark and using him as a scapegoat and calling for his head or an explanation.

 

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‘Invincible’ Creator Robert Kirkman on That Conquest Finale Fight, Surprise ‘Walking Dead’ Reunion and Mark Fighting Satan in Unused Comic Storyline

'Invincible' creator Robert Kirkman explains the Season 3 finale, including casting Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Conquest and that devil storyline

variety.com

 

[TheVileOne]

Andrew Lincoln, come on down.

 

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[legendkillin]

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Interesting at the end they say "Invincible has been cast" was there an issue with Yeun? or are they having a different voice for some of the multiverse Mark's as I don't think they all spoke?

 

[TheVileOne]

Discussing Film's Twitter has never been good at nuance.

 

[Detective Conan]

Interesting at the end they say "Invincible has been cast" was there an issue with Yeun? or are they having a different voice for some of the multiverse Mark's as I don't think they all spoke?

Don’t read much into it, that’s just them being tongue-in-cheek.

 

[TheVileOne]

Is it possibly in reference to the recent confirmation that Conquest has already been cast?

 

[chamber-music]

The invincible conquest uk drill diss track is diabolically good.

 

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[Pennywise]

 

[Pennywise]

 

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