Invincible Season 3 Episode 4 Review
‘Invincible’ season three episode four is really two stories in one, with an Earthbound story and a space story. These stories don’t just contrast in terms of setting, but also in tone. Thankfully, this difference doesn’t give tonal whiplash to audiences, which shows the writing talent on display. Episode four also explores a bit of the fallout from the past three episodes, though this isn’t done nearly enough. Instead, audiences are ripped away from the story to watch Mark get put through another traumatising experience. Away from Earth, audiences watch an enjoyable but hollow action sequence as Allen the Alien freeing Omni-Man, with a revelation that drastically changes the odds of the wider conflict.
At the start some time is dedicated to fleshing out Shrinking Rae and Rex, where Rae is trying to live her life normally by just doing some simple shopping. It’s clear this is very important to her, and she’s not impressed by Rex’s attempts at humour. It establishes that Mark isn’t the only one who longs for a normal life, especially as they’re out of the Guardians There is some humanisation here, that power is a burden as well as joy, as Rex and Rae are forced to take care of a villain, something that clearly frustrates her when they arrive back at their new HQ.
There, Rudy is attempting to find out who the camera drone belongs to, with him and his Robot creepily finishing each other’s sentences. For key plot reasons he can’t identify the drone, which makes Mark think it belongs to Cecil. Mark even takes it in an attack on the Pentagon displaying his pure power, though leaves quickly when he realises he’s on a date. For Cecil’s part, despite the distance between Mark and him, it’s clear in his exasperated undertones he wants to keep the Graysons safe in a twisted way, as he spies on them to do so.
Mark goes on a date with Eve, which is of course interrupted as is law in the show. Though he does display some fun irritation, he;s ultimately kidnapped by Fightmaster and Dropkick as they take him to a dystopian future, to take down a mysterious but all powerful king. This king turns out to be Immortal, but one who has been driven mad by his immortality and reduced to a broken husk of a man. Voice actor Ross Marquand really sells this with howling tones of sadness and desperation, and Invincible is forced to fight him. It’s unfortunately unclear and unexplained what exactly led to this situation with Immortal, which makes it hard to connect with what’s going on.
Naturally this upsets Mark. Thankfully Eve is quick to bring him out of his despair, showing why the two are right for each other. They go on a romantic flyover, a truly wholesome moment as the music and animation convey a couple hopelessly in love. Audiences are tastefully pulled away by brief and unnecessary fake credits, and are led into the final section of the episode following Allen the Alien. There’s a half comedic voiceover to lead audiences in, but it doesn’t commit to being funny and so ends up feeling unnatural. But this more comedic tone doesn’t feel completely out of place with the trauma of the first half of the episode, thanks to the romantic flight being upbeat and naturally happy.
This shows Allen convincing Omni-Man to fight back, though he’s staunch in his views that he deserves to die, giving him a dark sense of nobility. When Omni-Man is taken to be executed, Allen breaks out to free him, though the action feels hollow and fake with Allen seemingly pretending the puny shots from bog standard guards hurt him, after audiences have just seen a montage of many high tech weapons feeling to even scratch Allen. The fight with the two Viltumites is better, especially as they pose a real threat, and Allen and Omni-Man manage to dispatch one with a brutally gruesome but equally awesome finish. Battle Beast is present, though he and the other Viltrumite just scrape at each other through space.
The end to this battle provides some shocking information, that there are only few Viltrumites left in the universe. This gives Allen hope they will be defeated, which leads audiences back to Earth quickly before the true credits. Season three episode four, while some of the fights are lacking in meaning and depth, is nonetheless enjoyable, with Rae and Rex’s relationship getting time to develop, Cecil being put on the back foot and Mark and Eve’s flourishing relationship.
