The three-episode premiere of the incredibly gruesome yet entertaining “Invincible” Season 3 crash-landed on Amazon Prime Video Feb. 6.
The episodes deliver many heart-racing moments, leaving fans’ mouths agape and keeping their fingers on the rewind button. As the story unfolds, things heat up with great animation and the show’s best storytelling so far.
Episode 1: “You’re Not Laughing Now”
After viewers were hit with Omni-Man (J.K. Simmons) revealing he may have remorse for attempting to enslave the Earth in Season 2’s finale, the plot continues to thicken in the background.
Currently, Omni-Man and our favorite one-eyed Allen the Alien (Seth Rogan) are still locked up in Viltrumite prison. The two are plotting an escape and developing an unlikely friendship. The intrigue in these story beats provides an exciting look into how things are building toward the inevitable war between the Viltrumites and the Coalition of Planets.
In the meantime, things get hot on Earth as fans remain on the edge of their seats regarding Atom Eve and Mark Grayson’s love for each other. Mark (Steven Yeun) fiddles around professing his love for Eve (Gillian Jacobs) after a Season 2 visit from a 40-year-old version of her begged him to stop leading her on.
The romantic tension unfortunately gets sidetracked by the beloved recurring character Doc Seismic (Chris Diamantopoulos), who kidnaps every superhero in America except Mark and Eve. While the two almost become defeated, Mark and Eve get saved by some unwanted and morally questionable visitors.
Mark then has words for his boss Cecil (Walton Goggins), who deployed these creatures. The episode serves as an amazing start for a season assured to be entertaining, witty and serious as events unfold into chaos.
Episode 2: “A Deal with the Devil”
“A Deal with the Devil” focuses on the backstory of the hardened Cecil Stedman. Viewers get insight and context into his mindset of not punishing superheroes who kill, instead reforming them into those who protect the earth for the Global Defense Agency.
Cecil’s story of rising to his current position runs simultaneously with the heated debate between Mark and Cecil after a disagreement in morals. Even though those cyborgs are rather ethically concerning, the argument climatically ends with Mark cutting ties with the GDA while threatening Cecil if he comes near his family.
The fight prompts more than half the show’s main super team, The Guardians of The Globe, to also break apart and leaves only a few core members left in the GDA. The inward tension among all the heroes creates a level of unease when it comes to future threats coming to Earth.
With no clear protective team or individual to help the Earth defend itself, viewers will have to patiently wait to see how the story unfolds and if the characters can pull it together.
Episode 3: “You Want a Real Costume, Right?”
The last episode was a hard hitter the second it began. Season three’s themes have mostly been a question of morality, redemption and loyalty among heroes, villains and humans.
The themes run prominent during the silent episode opening detailing a superpowered couple suffering financially and contemplating thievery to get by. Upon settling for one last heist, Invincible and his new partner defeat the couple.
The scene adds backstory to the background plot of the superpowered criminal underground, and many of these villains support their families through this lifestyle as a last resort. The scene also makes viewers think and question their morals while watching it while also providing for some great storytelling.
Morals are again in question because Mark’s physically 12-year-old half-brother, the eager Oliver (Lincoln Bodin), saves the day despite their mother’s concerns.
Oliver ends up gruesomely destroying the Mauler Twins, a pair of recurring villains throughout the series who have cloned themselves each time one of them dies. However, this time, Oliver kills both Maulers with little emotion nor remorse for the events happening.
Mark, who is a “thou shalt not kill” kind of hero, immediately has problems with this and compares him to their genocidal father. The comparison, combined with the end-credit cliffhanger of a mysterious stranger surveilling the Graysons in Oliver’s room, creates amazing intrigue for the upcoming episodes.
Fans are itching for the next episode to come out sooner. However, eager watchers can look for Invincible Season 3 to air weekly on Thursdays on Prime Video.
