10 Reasons to Read Invincible by Robert Kirkman
The world of comic books is huge. sometimes, you want to kick back and read something fun and different when it comes to superheroes. Invincible is the best superhero comic in the universe. Interested? Read on to find out more about Image comics’ INVINCIBLE.
10) The Publisher
1992 was a special year for comic books. Several freelance writers and illustrators were growing tired of the Big Two- Marvel and DC’s work for hire practices and felt they were not sufficiently rewarded for their work.
Seven major freelance artists and creators had enough and walked out of their respective companies.
Erik Larsen, Jim Lee, Whilce Portacio, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri, Jim Lee and Jim Valentino established Image comics which would become a haven for creator owned properties and the third largest comic book publisher in the industry.
If you have any doubts, look no further than their live action adaptations- The Walking Dead, Spawn, Powers, Happy, The Crow, I Kill Giants, The Old Guard, Wanted, Kick-Ass I and II, the upcoming Mark Millar projects and so on.
9) The Writer
Robert Kirkman writes amazing stories about zombies. Period.
Kirkman created the Marvel Zombies Universe among other things but ultimately left the company saying he did not have the best of experiences. He moved to image comics and was made a partner and has his own Skybound Studios from which he operates.
Robert Kirkman wrote the Walking Dead in 2003 and its massive success contributed to the well-loved television show. The beloved series ended abruptly in 2019 with a total of 193 issues by Kirkman with art by Charlie Adlard
Robert Kirkman also writes amazing superhero comics. He is the creator and writer for all 144 issues of “the greatest superhero comic in the universe”, Invincible. The series was co-created with Cory Walker who was then replaced by Ryan Ottley. The series was a love letter to superhero comics and loved by fans as well as critics.
8) The Setting
Image comics does have its own superhero universe albeit a less popular one than the big two. Characters such as Spawn, Savage Dragon and super teams like Youngblood have all crossed over with each other in stories.
Invincible is no exception, even debuting in one of Kirkman’s series, Techjacket.
7) The Main Characters
Say hello to the Grayson family. They look seemingly ordinary on the outside. Nolan Grayson, a novelist is married to Deborah Grayson and they have a teenage son, Mark, the protagonist of the series.
Here’s the twist: Mark’s dad is a ridiculously powered alien. As earth’s mightiest hero, Omni man, he battles threats on a regular basis. He reveals his origins to Mark as a child- he was part of an alien species called the Viltrumites. He then drops a bombshell on little Mark: Viltruimites gain powers by the time they are adolescents leaving little Mark excited at the prospect of flight.
Cut to Mark as a teenager and he’s just discovering his powers. The story starts off as all about homework, acne, girls and superpowers.
Until the big twist:
Mark witnesses his father in conflict with a hero called the Immortal and watches his father rip him to shreds. Nolan pauses. He begins to narrate how the Viltrumites, the strongest warriors in the galaxy will be coming to take over earth and turn it into their vision of the perfect society.
Father and son engage in earth-shattering fisticuffs. Nolan pulverizes Mark into unconsciousness but realizes he loves him too much to kill him and flies away.
A broken Mark Grayson starts to rebuild his life and legacy and protects the world as Invincible.
6) The Supporting Cast
One of the series’ biggest positives is the number of supporting characters and the impact they leave on both Mark and the reader.
His mother Deborah and his half-brother Oliver who are an integral part of his life. His father’s government contact Cecil Stedman is both mentor as well as obstacle at times, plucking mark out of some very sticky situations.
The rest of the Teen Team based on DC’s teen titans and its members, the loudmouth Rex Splode, the twins Dupli-Kate and Multi-Paul, Robot-the hero turned supervillain. Monster Girl and Atom Eve (more on her later) all leave an impression on Mark. It isn’t just Mark’s story that gets told, but theirs as well.
And who could forget Allen the Alien, who he shares an amazing bromance with.
5) The Rogues
Anyone knows a good story is defined by how good or how memorable its villains are. Invincible is no slouch when it comes to his rogue’s gallery. For instance, we have
Battle Beast and the Viltrumite Super Warrior Thragg the scourge of galaxies vs superpowered Freddie Mercury
To Angstrom Levy, a dimension hopping mad scientist who causes invincible the most pain, one of his greatest foes
Anissa and Conquest, super- strong Viltrumite warriors:
And even alternate Invincibles
4) The Romance
Mark Grayson and Atom Eve are relationship goals.
Samantha Eve Wilkins aka Atom Eve was a product of a government project while developing a weapon.
This relationship was special because of the dynamic they shared. From teammates to friends, to lovers to husband and wife and eventually parents. The series sees Mark and Eve dealing with pregnancy, weight loss, superheroics, and parenthood. Atom eve is no damsel in distress, reconstructing her own body on the brink of death. Their dynamic is one of equals, doing away with the damsel in distress trope
3) The Artwork
The artwork is nothing short of stunning. Period. Cory Walker who worked on the initial issues beautifully contrasted simple panels and settings with large battle scenes. Then came Ryan Ottley who stamped his authority on the series. With very simple lines reminiscent of animation movies and bright, shiny colors, Ottley and Kirkman redefined superhero storytelling. Ottley’s colors meant for brighter comics, contrasted with the massive levels of gore-filled details in battle scenes. The series, unlike most superhero comics, ended (here’s looking at you Doctor Manhattan). What was even more surprising was that it ended on a happy note with some unresolved threads, but a happy ending nonetheless.
2) The Animated TV Series
It was recently announced that Amazon Studios were getting ready to launch an animated Invincible series leaving fans both happy and waiting with bated breath. The cast? Steven Yeun voicing Mark Grayson and JK Simmons as Omni man. Other members of the all-star powerhouse cast include Seth Rogen, Mark Hamill, Zazie beets, Zachary Quinto and Sandra Oh among others.
1) The Movie
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the mad masterminds of comic book properties such as The Green Hornet, The Boys and Preacher announced that they had plans of adapting the series to screen. Given their success with the genre owing to The Boys and Preacher, fans are confident that Rogen and Goldberg will do justice to the fan-favorite series.
