Well that was a lot!
Prime Video’s hit animated series Invincible, based on the comic series of the same name from The Walking Dead’s Robert Kirkman, has come to a dramatic end following a cliffhanger mid-season break.
Centring around Mark’s evolving family dynamics following his return to Earth with his younger half brother Oliver, a Thraxan-Viltrumite hybrid, season 2 part 2 culminates in a tense showdown with returning antagonist Angstrom Levy in the Grayson household.
Meanwhile, fan favourite Allan the Alien made a welcome recovery and return, linking up with Mark’s father Omni-Man on a Viltrumite prisoner ship, with a daring rescue mission in mind.
With the show renewed for at least another season – and Kirkman hoping for seven to eight seasons in total – here’s everything you need to know about that action-packed Invincible ending and how it sets up a major event for season 3.
What happens to Mark and his family?
Following the shock cliffhanger in the penultimate episode I’m Not Going Anywhere, which sees a returned Angstrom Levy holding Deborah and Oliver Grayson hostage, Mark rushes back to try and save his family.
Angstrom then attempts to enact his revenge for his disfigurement by breaking Debbie’s arm and sending Mark through a series of dangerous dimensions via portals to try and “soften him up” for their eventual showdown.
Revealing his newly enhanced super strength, Angstrom battles Mark through a series of portals until they end up in a deserted wasteland. Enraged by Angstrom further threatening his family, Mark enters a shocking frenzy and beats him to a bloody pulp.
Trapped in the wasteland dimension, covered in blood and believing this is the first time he’s intentionally killed someone, Mark breaks down and exclaims: “I thought you were stronger.”
He’s eventually saved by an older version of Atom Eve, Robot and the Guardians of the Globe via another dimensional portal, as they explain that Mark murdered Angstrom 20 years ago in their reality and then went missing. Before Mark returns to his reality, the older Atom confesses her true feelings for him, explaining “tell her you love her, or don’t tell her you love her. Just tell her something so she can go on with her life.”
With Debbie and Oliver safe with Cecil and the Global Defense Agency, Mark returns to their dimension and the organisation begins the rebuilding of their family home. The mother and son then share an emotional heart-to-heart as Debbie confesses that she thought they were close to a version of normal.
Haunted by what’s happened with his dad, what he did to Angstrom Levy and the evil variants of himself, Mark questions whether he’s crossed a line. He reveals that he’s going to quit college and that he has to get better and be better, and that he must learn how to control himself.
We then see Mark and Atom sharing a potentially tender moment overlooking the city, as Mark is seemingly about to reveal his true feelings for her. However, he disappointingly pulls away, further fuelling the will they/won’t they arc.
What happens to Angstrom Levy and is he dead?
Despite having his body augmented by the best surgeons from other realities, Angstrom Levy is no match for an enraged Invincible and he quickly gets his head beaten to a bloody pulp.
However, this happens conveniently offscreen, and you know what that tends to mean in superhero stories!
While fighting Mark in the finale, he promises that “it’ll never be over until you’ve paid for everything you’ve done”. Considering all that he’s been through, with the finale featuring key flashbacks to a multitude of tragic memories from the various versions of Angstrom, you can certainly believe that he’ll be back to enact his revenge.
Remember the post-credit scene in season 2 episode 2 where Angstrom visited a captured Mark variant in a different reality to gain information? Expect that to play a key role if Robert Kirkman and co decide to adapt the comic book event known as the Invincible War in a future series.
But first, the build-up to the next major event – the war with the Viltrumites!
What happens to Allen and Nolan and how this sets up season 3
Following the reveal that the Coalition of Planets’ leader Thaedus is actually a secret Viltrumite and the first to rebel against his kind, he sends a stronger Allen on a mission to recruit the sympathetic Mark to their cause. Despite rejecting the initial call-up, Mark shares that he’s uncovered key information from his father’s books about how certain items located throughout space can hurt Viltrumites, with a brief mention of Space Racer. This alien possesses a gun which fires indestructible blasts that will shoot through anything – handy!
On his way back to share the new leads with Thaedus, Allen discovers the Viltrumite prison and gets himself incarcerated in an attempt to save Nolan from execution at the hands of General Kregg.
Despite initially accepting his fate, Nolan reveals to Allen that he feels deep shame and regret for his actions, especially on Earth. “I deserve death and yet, I think I miss my wife,” he comments, signifying the start of Nolan’s redemption arc.
These two are key players in the coming war between the Coalition of Planets and the Viltrum empire, which is a major event in the comics. Their friendship leads to Nolan joining the Coalition and the pair subsequently track down and collect the various weapons for their cause, helping the Coalition immensely.