Invincible: Where I Really Come From
April 29, 2021 7:21 PM - Season 1, Episode 8 - Subscribe

Omni-Man explains himself. Mark learns things the hard way. Debbie is devastated.

Omni-Man explains the truth about being a Viltrumite, and their plans to conquer the galaxy. Mark, in denial, attacks him, insisting he is being controlled. Omni-Man explains the hard truth and asks Mark to join him. Mark refuses, and is beaten within an inch of his life, with part of Chicago suffering collateral damage. Debbie hears the harsh truth that Nolan considers her little more than a pet. The Guardians of the Globe (new) head out to help with rescue and cleanup in Chicago. With Mark beaten and subdued, Mark tells Nolan words that bring him to a standstill. He flies into space, leaving Earth behind. Cecil sends a medical team to rescue Mark, and he spends two weeks recovering. Cecil tells Debbie they have arranged for an explanation for Nolan’s disappearance, as well as setting up an income for Debbie and Mark in Nolan’s absence. Amber visits Mark as he returns home, and William and Eve drop in. They go to Burger Mart to talk things over and Mark is called away by Cecil, to meet an approaching entity in space. Mark flies into orbit to encounter Allen, who has returned from the Council of Planets to warn him about a Viltrumite living on Earth. Mark fills him in on current events while Debbie drops in to share a drink with Art.
posted by Fleebnork (17 comments total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Apologies if the synopsis is a little clunky, I wrote it myself immediately after watching the episode.
posted by Fleebnork at 5:25 AM on April 30, 2021


That fight was quite brutal and makes me want to see an animated version of the fight between Miracleman and Kid Miracleman.

Also, Mark comes back from the hospital and his shirt is untucked.

I feel like there should be some gag where some person that's only ever drank bottled water can see all of Cecil's hidden stuff without any problem.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 5:51 AM on April 30, 2021 [2 favorites]


I don't find invulnerable super-beings punching each other super interesting when they're practically invulnerable, but Nolan using Mark as a blunt instrument to kill civilians and then beating him to a pulp was pretty brutal.

I don't remember if I posted this previously but I love the INVINCIBLE title card gimmick, and the increasing amount of blood splatters.

After the Mauler Twins resurrected The Immortal by just sticking his head back on, I did wonder if Cecil would try that too. Seems like having a hero who's a step-up more powerful than the current Guardians would be very useful.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 8:56 AM on April 30, 2021


Looks like this is the season finale.

This series is just showing what the universe would look like if Freiza didn't blow up the Saiyan home planet.
posted by paper chromatographologist at 9:52 AM on April 30, 2021 [3 favorites]


Seasons 2&3 have been confirmed which I'm very happy about.

Not a perfect show but really quite compelling characters and ideas in a saturated super hero market.
posted by slimepuppy at 10:57 AM on April 30, 2021 [3 favorites]


I hope more of the satire of superhero tropes and names shows up in later seasons. It's one of the things that made the comic fun to read.
posted by Fleebnork at 11:41 AM on April 30, 2021


Cecil must have a really good reconstructive dentist on staff.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 5:24 PM on April 30, 2021 [5 favorites]


I am so fascinated by the Mauler Twins. They're totally a couple, right? A bizarre, narcissistic couple that's not a couple, but really just the ultimate form of onanism.

Mark burned off his khakis, untucked shirt and sweater when he flew off to intercept the local space cop. So, what's the over under on him still wearing that and only that when he's in civilian form next season?
posted by ursus_comiter at 7:04 PM on April 30, 2021 [1 favorite]


Oh ho - and that's why you hire JK Simmons and lean into that delivery.
posted by mce at 7:23 PM on April 30, 2021 [2 favorites]


"Cecil must have a really good reconstructive dentist on staff."

Indeed. I thought about this a lot during the fight scene - if a Viltrumite is more or less invulnerable compared to humans, how would they even do dental surgery? Or any surgery that involves poking an IV into the body, etc.?

This is the one thing that always distracts me with superhero fare - the powers tend to be wildly variable depending on the needs of the plot, and things like the implications of their powers are usually just waved away without any explanation.

Hoping that the next season isn't too far off. Really enjoyed the first season.
posted by jzb at 6:56 AM on May 3, 2021


That fight was quite brutal and makes me want to see an animated version of the fight between Miracleman and Kid Miracleman.

My hopeful takeaway is this may hinder the chances of a Miracleman series: "It's basically Invincible, except with more sexism" may be a harder sell than otherwise.

But I'm sure that given that TV is busy catching up to the 90s in comics, there'll be plenty of room to give Alan "Child Rape is a Larf" Moore money.
posted by happyroach at 2:19 PM on May 5, 2021 [1 favorite]


But I'm sure that given that TV is busy catching up to the 90s in comics, there'll be plenty of room to give Alan "Child Rape is a Larf" Moore money.

Thankfully, most of his best work has already been adapted. Mostly badly.
posted by crossoverman at 9:39 PM on May 6, 2021


I still say that League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is the most karmically perfect adaption of a comic.
posted by happyroach at 10:54 PM on May 9, 2021


I don't really understand how omniman ended up in a coma after episode 1. It seems like everything else in the last two episodes would have been way worse than some fast punches etc?

I also don't understand why he needed a kid. He seemed to imply that if he killed his son, he'd need to spend another 2 decades raising a new kid. Why?

I agree about the power variability being confusing. It's so common that it's easy to just ignore, but... Atom Eve is a god. Like if she can stop a lava flow and grow a vineyard and fly, what could her limits even be? Why not just stop omniman's heart? Or remove his mouth and eyes? Or terraform the moon?
I guess it doesn't help to ask, though.

This was a good show that I'm not recommending to anyone because it was too brutal. I'm surprised I even watched it!
posted by Acari at 3:41 PM on May 10, 2021 [1 favorite]


Acari, all of the answers to your questions are spoilers for future seasons. (Or will be, assuming they follow the comics' story)
posted by Fleebnork at 4:29 AM on May 11, 2021 [2 favorites]


Big, belated thanks to Fleebnork for posting about each episode. I don't know if I'll have time to re-watch Season 1 in the next week or two, so these synopses were very helpful for reminding me of what the heck even happened as Season 2 finally approaches!
posted by asnider at 10:21 AM on October 25, 2023


Just finished watching S1 and the first 2 eps of S2. Never read the comics but, some thoughts:

Voice-Acting was a mixed bag. Some great names, just not always firing on 100%

The animation was Good, not Great. Reminded me a bit of the 90s X-Men cartoon, a bit. The backgrounds are where budgetary limits were most obvious -- dull, static, rushed through production, no doubt.

The brutality was... a bit much. Especially that last episode of S1. Multiple 9/11-level events, one after the other -- just emotionally exhausting.

Yeah, the power variability was a bit frustrating. Cecil says Mark is the only one who could maybe take on Omni-Man -- right after Mark just gets his ass handed to him by an evil Thundercat! Hell, just hire that guy, he took out like 5 heroes by himself, he can probably take on Omni-Man. And Omni-Man is strong enough to punch straight through other superheroes, but not Mark? I mean, I guess you could say he was pulling his punches, but still... And yeah, it seems like Atom Eve would be more than capable of turning Omni-Man into a ball of meat, but I guess there's some catch there...
posted by Saxon Kane at 12:25 PM on November 16, 2023


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