Robert Kirkman suggests that the mid-season and post-season breaks of Invincible Season 2 may be necessary for viewers' well-being.
In an interview with Collider, Kirkman explained, "The fourth episode, I think people are gonna be exhausted. So I'm happy about the break, which I think most people will be unhappy about, but that's fine. You need the time, you need to rest. But I think that each episode builds, so by the time you get to the fourth episode, you're like, 'How is this all happening? It’s crazy.' He teased that the question of how Invincible will top the end of Season 1 was child's play, with "people that have read the comics laugh[ing]" at that question.
"So yeah, we're getting to the bigger stuff," Kirkman continued. "Cory [Walker], Ryan [Ottley] and I were working on the comic for 16 years, and we really tried to maintain a sense of escalation through the 144-issue run. And that's one of the things that we really painstakingly paid attention to. So as we get deeper into this, I mean, Season 2, Episode 4 is an insane, huge episode, but Season 2, Episode 8 tops it. And when you guys see [Season 3, Episode 8]? Whoo," Kirkman laughed.
It was difficult for many cartoon-only viewers to imagine how Invincible could grow in stakes after Season 1's tumultuous end. Titled "Where I Really Come From," the finale revealed that Nolan actually came to Earth to prepare it for an invasion by the Viltrumite Empire. Nolan beats Mark in a bloody battle in brutally graphic detail, barely holding himself back from killing his own son. Season 2, Episode 2's recent premiere provided some insight into how the emotional stakes could resonate harder, with changes from the comics serving to make Mark and the other villains far more layered.
The constant cat-and-mouse game of how Invincible tops itself may be what many fans were looking for. While Season 1 was successful, 2 years on from its premiere, Season 2 viewership has tripled its predecessor. Executive producer of the series Marge Dean revealed that Amazon barely did any marketing for the series, likely seeing it as a risk. As Invincible Season 2 opens to a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score, it appears that Kirkman, Walker and Ottley's risk paid off.
Amazon Prime Video streams Invincible, which is described as follows: "The story revolves around 18-year-old Mark Grayson, who’s just like every other guy his age—except his father is (or was) the most powerful superhero on the planet. Still reeling from Nolan’s betrayal in Season One, Mark struggles to rebuild his life as he faces a host of new threats, all while battling his greatest fear - that he might become his father without even knowing it."
Invincible Season 2 premiered on Nov. 3, 2023.
Source: Collider