[Review] Invincible Ep. 5 What Goes Up…

We’re back and navigating Invincible Season 01 Episode 05. The last episode felt like a reminder that although Mark is incredibly powerful and has adapted well to being a superhero, he still has room to grow. That episode was subtle about it. This episode decided to be about as direct as a punch in the face. To put it another way Mark’s luck finally ran out.

Compare & Contrast

The first half of this episode is beautifully crafted with these two stories running side by side. I for one fell for it hook, line, and sinker. Mark hasn’t exactly had a rough time when comparing lives with Titan. Of course Mark is like 16 maybe and Titan is a grown man with a family. I think when Mark gets to that age he will be a much different person.

Getting a closer look at Atom Eve’s family situation and it is amazing that she came out of that place as well adjusted as she seems to be. It is good to see that we get a real look into her life on the show, it opens up the world of Invincible a lot.

Mark Vs. Machinehead

With all these superheroes around, how could a crime lord like Machinehead operate? It’s pretty telling. I can only assume that he owned that penthouse suite and that the amount money he must have outlaid for that hit squad was enormous.

While I think the original team of Guardians would have fared much better it would have been a dangerous fight for that team too. It seems clear to me that Omni Man is not the only superhero who would think that street level crime is below them.

Mark is naïve but Titan is clearly a very formidable man as he managed to outmaneuver Machinehead with his upgrade. Where we also see his naivety is in thinking he can manage his relationship Amber with his heroics. Amber makes herself clear repeatedly as to how she expects to be treated, she realizes her own worth.

It is not entirely Mark’s fault as I truly believe without powers and being a normal high school student he would have made Amber the center of his life.

Plans Within Plans

Slowly we’re seeing what Robot is up to though we are far from getting the entire picture. He does seem generally concerned after the carnage of the fight but that could just be a supreme acting job on his part. The show somehow manages to juggle all these storylines without feeling too bloated.

At the end of the episode we see that the government/secret agency or whatever Cecil represents has been hard at work coming up with a way to deal with Omni Man via Mark. The researchers say that the cell samples are simply too resilient in what I assume means they are testing chemical weapons, diseases and things of that sort. A good idea given that a frontal attack against Omni Man even if it was successful would probably carry too high a price in terms of collateral damage.

Some questions to consider for the next Invincible episode:

• Will Mark give up on Amber?
• Will Debbie figure out Omni Man’s motive before everyone else?
• Do we get to see Titan again?

For more on Invincible, make sure to stay on That Hashtag Show.