Invincible is an adult-animated series based on the Robert Kirkman comic book series of the same name. The story takes place in a world filled with superheroes, where Nolan “Omni-Man” Grayson is seen as the world’s greatest hero. However, the main character is his son, Mark.
Upon realizing he’s inherited his father’s powers, he becomes the superhero, Invincible. However, when a tragedy rocks the superhero community, it becomes clear things aren’t always what they appear to be and this isn’t a typical superhero story.
Invincible
- Release Date
- March 26, 2021
- Seasons
- 2
- Studio
- Amazon Studios, Image Comics, Point Grey Pictures
In addition to writing the original comics, Robert Kirkman is also the series’ creator and co-executive producer. Despite this, the animated series sometimes takes things in a different direction than the original story, from different backstories to characterizations. That said, the series usually has the comics in mind. After all, the episode titles are usually taken from the comics, even when the quote doesn’t appear in an episode. Of course, as the series goes on, more elements from the comics might be brought in. Stream Invincible on Prime Video.
10 Amber Figures Out Mark’s Secret Earlier in the Series
Mark’s first love interest in the series, Amber Bennett, is given a larger role in the series compared to the comics, where her main role was mostly to showcase how hard it is for a superhero to maintain a civilian life. In one infamous twist, Amber figures out that Mark is Invincible early on and initially resents him keeping secrets from her. Despite this, after realizing that Mark was being manipulated himself, Amber eventually reconciles with him, even getting back together with him.
Amber Had a Different Theory in the Original Story
In the comics, Amber initially suspects that Mark is secretly a drug dealer, though she starts piecing together the truth, causing Mark to eventually reveal the truth to her. Amber’s character is also fleshed out in other ways. The series gives her a passion for volunteering that wasn’t in the original comics.
9 The Flaxans Are Stronger in the Series
The Flaxans are an alien warrior race from another dimension who seek to capture slaves from other worlds. However, their portrayal in the animated series differs from the comics, where they serve as recurring villains.
Mark Even Gets a Flaxan Nemesis of Sorts
On one hand, the Flaxans are portrayed as somewhat stronger in the series, being able to take out most of the Teen Team by their second invasion, reflecting the fact that they always come back stronger. By their third visit, they have even overcome the temporal effects from leaving their dimension, which accelerates their aging, presented as their main weakness early on.
The animated series also adds a Flaxan leader, known as Commander Slash, in supplementary material. The character views Mark as his nemesis, blaming him for a facial scar. This change notably helps to personify the Flaxans and, along with their fate at the hands of Omni-Man, give viewers some sympathy for them.
8 The Invincible Name Has a Different Origin in the Comic
Mark’s superhero identity is the eponymous Invincible in both the series and the comics. After all, it’s the name of the series. However, just how Mark obtained that alias is different between the two versions.
There’s Also the Occasional Name Change
In the comics, Mark got into a fight with a school bully. The principal confronted him about this, warning him that, no matter his intentions, he isn’t “invincible.” This inspired Mark to use that as his alter-ego. In the series, it’s Omni-Man who coins the name. As he explains, many kids Mark’s age merely think of themselves as being “invincible,” claiming it makes them “careless.” However, he claims Mark is an exception to this and actually is invincible.
Other characters have different names compared to the series and comics. For example, Mark idolizes a character called Science Dog in the comics, which ultimately became Seance Dog in the series, with the character serving as a canine parody of Doctor Strange.
7 There Is More Diversity In the Series Cast
The animated adaptation of Invincible has more diversity than the original comics, which was often done to reflect the voice actors. Mark’s mother, Debbie, is presented as a Korean-American, allowing her to resemble her voice actress Sandra Oh. This also naturally makes Mark half-Korean and half-Viltrumite. For that matter, even the Viltrumites appear to be more diverse than their comic counterparts.
Characters Were Designed to Match Their Voice Actors
Amber Bennett is a blonde Caucasian in the original comics, and was likely designed to resemble Gwen Stacy from the Spider-Man comics. In the series, she is African-American and was designed to look like her voice actress, Zazie Beetz. In addition, a few characters’ genders are switched from the comics to the cartoon. Green Ghost and Shrinking Ray are changed from male to female. However, the “Atom Eve” special reveals the current Green Ghost is a successor to a male Green Ghost.
6 Cecil Has a Larger Role in the Series
Cecil Stedman, the director of the Global Defense Agency, has a larger role in the series than he does in the comics. He is introduced early on and his interactions with Mark and his family are expanded on. Both versions present a character who is willing to do some pretty ruthless things. However, the animated Cecil is usually presented as more conflicted than his comic counterpart.
His Confrontation with Omni-Man Was Also Added
Another notable change is that, despite not having any powers himself, Cecil is shown confronting Nolan in an attempt to stall him, something that doesn’t happen in the comics.
In general, as the series tends to be more comedic than the comics, Cecil is more serious and comes off as being more informed about what’s going on. Notably, in the comics, when Omni-Man leaves Earth, Cecil wants Mark to fill the void. The series reverses this, with Mark offering to work for Cecil, who thinks he isn’t ready and has to be convinced otherwise.
5 Debbie Gets a Larger Arc in the Series
In the comics, Mark’s mother, Debbie, learns about her husband Omni-Man’s true nature once her son does. However, the series portrays Debbie as being more suspicious of what’s going on after finding Nolan’s uniform. She is shown realizing the truth and even confronting Nolan about it.
After All, Debbie’s Influence Saved the World
The series also explores how Debbie copes with the truth more in-depth than in the comics. In the original, Debbie briefly befriends a woman named Claire Bono, the wife of a superhero named Superpatriot.
The series replaces her with Olga, a pre-established character, who helps her join the support group for the spouses of superheroes when the revelation takes Debbie to a dark place. Debbie soon comes to the realization that her influence is what led to Mark being a good person, sparing the world from enslavement from the Viltrumites.
4 The Viltrumites Are Even More Sadistic
The Viltrumites are a race of highly advanced humanoid aliens who seek to expand the Viltrum Empire. Omni-Man became the Earth’s greatest hero, all to help them occupy the planet. While an antagonistic threat is both versions of the story, the Viltrumites come off as openly more sadistic in the series than in the comics.
Mark at Least Got 100 Years in the Comics
When General Kregg is introduced in the comics, he gives Mark a century to assimilate the Earth, feeling that Omni-Man is to blame for Mark fighting against the Viltrumites. In the series, Kregg attacks Mark and threatens the lives of millions of people. That said, even in the series, Kregg does try to remain calm and even wishes Mark good luck. The Viltrumites also tend to Mark’s injuries in the original story, but don’t show such mercy in the animation.
This change can be seen in other individual Viltrumites. Thula was shown as relatively quiet in the original comics, rarely showing anger, but appeared to be more bloodthirsty in the animated adaptation. She is also shown being part of the Viltrumites hunting down Nolan for leaving Earth, despite being introduced in the comics after that event.
3 Some Characters Are Cut or Have Reduced Roles
A few characters and storylines from the comics are cut from the animated series. One notable villain was David Hiles, one of Mark’s teachers. Once a military weapons engineer, the character kidnapped students and strapped bombs onto them, wanting revenge on young people for being too frivolous with their time. He ultimately made himself into a living bomb in the hopes of taking down Mark and Atom Eve, who both survived after Mark threw the teacher into the sky. The storyline is downplayed to a news event in the animated series.
Some Characters Simply Appear Later Than Before
Some characters are similarly given reduced roles or appear later than they did when compared to the comics. Bulletproof, a member of the Guardians of the Globe, initially appeared to be cut from the series, despite appearing early on, but eventually was introduced by the second season.
At times, this was done because storylines were condensed. As Omni-Man killed Aquarus, an Atlantean prince, Mark is tasked with marrying the Atlantean queen Aquaria, his widow. It eventually turns out that the law requiring this has long been abolished. This is not the case in the comics, where Mark has to manipulate things so that the queen marries her advisor, Lethan, who is in love with her.
2 Omni-Man Gets More Ruthless Early On in the Series
One of the series’ most famous developments is that Nolan Grayson, Mark’s father and the superhero, Omni-Man, is really a Viltrumite scout sent to Earth to prepare the planet for an ensuing invasion and will anything to ensure the occupation happens. He is also behind the murder of the Guardians of the Globe.
Nolan Doesn’t Mind Getting His Hands Dirty
While this twist appears in both versions of the series, Nolan does a better job at hiding his true colors in the comics than the series and appears to be more ruthless. His slaughter of the Guardians of the Globe is much cleaner in the original story, while the series plays up the gore. While the results are the same in both, it makes it seem Nolan has less emotional attachments to them than originally.
Later, when trying to convince Mark to come to his side, Nolan is willing to kill people to prove his point. While there is collateral damage in the comics, the series has him actively try to destroy as many people as possible.
1 Omni-Man Is Also Sometimes More Sympathetic in the Series
Despite being portrayed as more sadistic in the series early on, Nolan gets a bit more sympathy during his redemption arc in the second season. In the comics, Nolan tries to find a new planet to offer the Viltrumites after leaving Earth. He gradually forgets his role before the Thraxan ruler. In the animated series, Nolan is invited to join the Thraxan world after saving one of their ships.
Read My Books, Mark…
As in the comics, Nolan is eventually captured by the Viltrumites. As he is taken away, he tells Mark to read his books. This line is given greater context in the animated adaptation, as he tells Mark, “Don’t forget the good I did,” effectively telling Mark to see there is some good in him. It’s also been noted that the fight with the Viltrumites features less blood than in the comics, possibly reflecting a more peaceful tone overall.
While this becomes more prominent in the second season, some viewers feel that even the first season occasionally gave Nolan more sympathy than the comics. For example, as Debbie’s relationship with Nolan is also given more focus, the animated version of Omni-Man claiming he only sees her as a “pet” comes off as less genuine, as if he’s trying to convince himself.
