Invincible Season 3, Episode 7 Review – “What Have I Done?”

The biggest strengths and weaknesses of Invincible play 3 collide successful “What Have I Done?” Thus far, it’s had to take betwixt crippled momentum and quality development, and obscurity is that much evident than erstwhile a squad of alt-universe Invincibles invade Chicago, wreaking havoc and forcing the Mark we cognize to combat them off. It’s a large turn, resulting successful a fistful of almighty moments, but it doesn’t person the indispensable grounding to afloat connect.

“What Have I Done?”’s main contented is its lopsided setups and payoffs. Angstrom Levy unleashing a multiversal squadron of evil Marks is simply a immense conceit, but it’s 1 that’s been relegated to a fistful of post-credit stingers frankincense far. To support against these invading villains, the GDA and the Guardians question the assistance of immoderate classic, Silver Age-style heroes who play a large portion successful the occurrence (and adjacent dice on the way, successful scenes meant to make sympathy), but these are characters we’ve ne'er seen before, whose names and personalities we ne'er learn.

Still, truthful overmuch happens successful “What Have I Done?” (and truthful overmuch of it is downright vicious and intense) that it’s hard to discount it, contempt each the missteps. A flashback shows america however Angstrom survived contempt being beaten to a literal pulp by Invincible – helium had a legion of tech-savvy surgeons astatine the acceptable successful a pouch dimension, and conscionable capable beingness successful him to conjure a portal – starring to his multi-Mark incursion each these months later.

While the Mark we cognize (let’s telephone him Mark Prime) has an awkward chat with Eve astir gathering her superhero-averse parents, each hellhole breaks escaped crossed the globe, arsenic up to 18 Invincible variants wreak havoc connected suburbs and metropolitan landmarks alike (as good arsenic 1 pesky Mummy’s tomb, a gag whose refusal to wage disconnected aft 3 seasons is really absurdly funny). Each invading Invincible has a somewhat antithetic plan – a Mohawk, an old-school bandit mask, a much Omni-Man-like costume – but each is inactive recognizably Invincible, and Steven Yeun provides conscionable capable saltation successful each vocal show to merchantability the illusion.

Mark Prime being truthful vastly outgunned is simply a amusive setup successful the vein of Dragon Ball Z. However, the mode this crippled unfolds is little exciting, fixed that the 3 superior Guardians killed by the evil Invincibles are Dupli-Kate (of whom determination are aggregate copies, truthful she can’t really die), Immortal (whose sanction says it all), and Shapesmith (whose survival, contempt being torn successful two, has a convenient explanation). There’s plentifulness of onscreen carnage this week, but it’s hard to get invested successful astir of it, since a reversal ever seems to beryllium close astir the corner. Rex appears to spontaneously detonate successful bid to instrumentality retired 1 of the Invincibles, but whether oregon not he’s genuinely dormant – and thus, whether oregon not his romanticist arc with Rae has concluded – remains uncertain. Similarly, Donald appears to person reconciled his presumption arsenic a resurrected android wholly offscreen, but who knows however agelong this acceptance volition last. It often feels similar “What Have I Done?” pulls astatine existing threads with excessively overmuch force, if lone for the involvement of convenience, and having supporting players articulation the fight.

Eve, connected the different hand, is gravely injured (it’s uncommon to spot specified a visceral fracture connected the show, truthful kudos connected that front), forcing Mark Prime to take betwixt looking aft her and tracking down his galore variants. Lucky for him, this statement is easy resolved erstwhile the evil Marks each crook connected Levy and the genius supervillain simply sends them each packing to different dimension. It’s a spot excessively expedient, fixed the galore all-is-lost moments successful the episode’s 2nd act, and excessively easy clears the way for Mark’s confrontation with Levy, which feels truncated too.

Despite Oliver’s insistence that Mark termination Levy – it seems his arc astir rejecting execution hasn’t been resolved aft each – our leader hesitates, letting him flight successful the process. At the precise least, this poses a further complication for Mark if Levy returns, since that would beryllium a nonstop result of Mark avoiding lethal force. He’s damned if helium does (by mode of Powerplex showing up again to question revenge for his past destruction), and it would look he’s besides going to beryllium damned if oregon erstwhile helium doesn’t.

However, we whitethorn not person to hold each that agelong to find retired the answer, not lone due to the fact that adjacent week’s occurrence is the play finale, but due to the fact that of the enactment connected which “What Have I Done?” ends. For each its structural wonkiness and wheel-spinning, it ends with Mark successful a much analyzable position, torn betwixt a stone and a hard spot arsenic a caller Viltrumite envoy named Conquest shows up to face him. In that moment, he’s truthful emotionally beaten down that it puts him successful a warring mood, and poised to marque rash decisions. That’s 1 hellhole of a hook for adjacent week.