All hail and praise unto Victoria Groce! She was the champion of the Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament! Her victory also meant that the interminable "tournaments" of this season were finally over.
On Wednesday, we were back for the first time in 10 months to regular Jeopardy with a returning champion and two new contestants. And lo, there was much rejoicing.
Even though the game was a bit of a snooze.
There's just no pleasing me, is there?
On to the Touchbase!
This week I'm going to write about Invincible.
If you're thinking, "Oh just what the world needs! Another movie or TV show based on a comic book super hero!", this show is a counter argument to the phenomenon of "super hero fatigue".
The story of Mark Grayson as he grapples with the responsibilities of young adulthood and his role as super powered hero Invincible makes for compelling viewing. Trying to make something of being a college student and having a steady girlfriend (Amber) is in conflict with his role as Invincible.
Halfway through season 2, Mark is stuck on the planet Thraxa for months. Back on Earth, that is a long time for Amber and his friend & roommate William to cover for him.
And there's the shit that went down on Thraxa. This is where Mark's father Nolan (Omni-Man) wound up after leaving Earth in season 1. Having failed the Viltrumites in conquering Earth like he was supposed to and not subjugating Thraxa either, Nolan is in the crosshairs of an invading Viltrumite force to collect Nolan and make him pay for his crimes of NOT enslaving other races.
Messed up bunch, these Viltrumites.
Nolan has also settled down with a Thraxian female and produced a son.
Say hello to Oliver, Mark's half-brother.
The Viltrumites show up, blow up a bunch of Thraxa 'cause they're in the neighborhood and beat the unholy shit out of Nolan and Mark. As they drag Nolan away to meet this fate (death), they give Mark a parting instruction:
Finish what Mark's dad was suppose to do and conquer Earth already. Or else.
Because Oliver is not safe on Thraxa, Mark takes his baby brother home to Earth. Gee, wonder how his mom will take this development?
"Hey, Mom! Remember how you and I thought Dad was a super hero but he's really a planet conquering super villain? Well, funny thing about that. Oh, this purple baby? Yeah, Dad had sex with a purple alien insectoid and this is my step brother. Whoa! Mom, you should pour yourself a glass of wine and not drink from the whole bottle."
Don't let the clean lines and bright colors of the animation fool you. This show can get gruesomely ugly. Just like in The Boys, we see the consequences in Invincible when super strong fists punch all too human flesh: people 'SPLODE!
When super powered people punch super powered people, those results are not pretty either.
One thing about the animation. The artists take time to shade around the crotch to provide some realism to suggest the folds of trousers or shorts. The effect is everyone looks like they peed themselves. Or that could just be me. I'm weird.
Back to the story...
Despite everything, Debbie throws herself into the role of being a mom to Oliver. Thraxians age faster than humans so Oliver has quickly moved from infant to toddler. But their unusual but idyllic life is upturned when Angstrom Levy shows up to use Mark's mom and brother as leverage for his revenge on Invincible.
Levy has the power to warp through space and time and has seen a multiverse where on every single Earth, Mark Grayson has taken up his father's work to subjugate and terrorize the population of Earth.
Angstrom Levy decides Invincible has to die. Even though he's the one version of Mark Grayson who is determined NOT to follow Nolan's path.
After terrorizing and torturing Debbie, Mark finally has enough and beats the living hell out of Angstrom Levy until he is a puddle of goo.
And now, Mark is worried he is on the path of turning into his father.
And that is not all the shit that's going down on this series. Atom Eve, Rex Plode, the rest of the Guardians of the Globe, Cecil Stedman and his Global Defense Agency (GDA), hostile alien squids from Mars and yes, the Viltrumites are still coming.
There's a hell of a lot to explore in season 3. I hope the producers don't make us wait as long as they did for season 2.
A lot of what makes this show work is the voice work with Steven Yeun (Mark) Sandra Oh (Debbie), J. K. Simmons (Nolan) and Walton Goggins (Cecil) delivering dramatic but natural sounding performances.
Invincible kicks all sorts of ass. It's the comic book super hero TV show that both delivers on AND defies the expectations you might have for such a show.
Before I wrap up this week's Touchbase, some Star Trek news:
- Even before we get to see season 3, Brave New Worlds has been renewed for a 4th season!
- Alas, the Great Koala of the Galaxy giveth and also taketh away. The upcoming 5th season of Lower Decks will be the final season. Fun show and all but I think it may have played out it's string long enough.
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