Invincible is arguably one of the best superhero shows of all time. It is ranked number two on IMDb’s top 100 superhero shows, and is often described as intense with the story, and brutal with the fight scenes. As a result, Invincible had a lot of hype to live up to for the latest season. And it didn’t disappoint.
The creators released the first three episodes at once, then went on to release one episode weekly on Wednesdays. The first three episodes were most likely released all at once because they were a bit more tame compared to the rest of the season, which was packed with high action in the space storyline.
One of the things the show has done best is adapting the dense lore of the comics and refining that story. Along with this, Season 4 introduced a new storyline that didn’t happen in the comics. It was in the infamous Episode 4, and it was not well received. Now, I can see why a new storyline would be introduced, and that’s because the show had a chance to extend the universe even further. However, there’s quite a lot of risk involved when straying from the already beloved comics.
I think that risk is necessary. It gives the show’s creators a chance to see what changes work and what changes don’t work from the comics. The episode was the lowest rated episode in the series, with a rating of 6.5 from IMDb. But again, it was worth trying something new in a season jam-packed with some of the highest points of Invincible’s main story.
After Episode 4, the series picked up fast. In the previous seasons, Mark was dealing with the various threats from the very powerful Viltrum Empire. In this one, the viewers got to see a lot of the build-up be satisfied from those earlier encounters, primarily because the main villain of the story was finally introduced. Thragg, the emperor of the Viltrum Empire, was nothing short of great. About 20 minutes of one episode is dedicated to his backstory and rise to power.
The season did make some other changes, like the gender swapping of the popular character Tech Jacket, who changed to a female character. In my opinion it doesn’t make that much of a difference to the overall story, so the gender swap didn’t really matter. However, some fans online found the change surprising, since Tech Jacket is male in the comics.
The finale to the season was tamer than those of Season 3 or Season 1. Honestly, it felt more like the Season 2 finale, and Season 2 was one of the least popular seasons. It doesn’t mean the finale was bad, but it was weird to focus on setting up future storylines than on giving viewers a more conclusive ending. Overall, I think this season explored change from the comics a lot more, and that’s a good thing. It also underwent the task of pausing the story at its peak in the finale from where it is in the comics. Overall, I give Season 4 a 9.5 out of 10.
