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No.
Why have you done this?
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This is from season one of Invincible.
It showcases a new level of action choreography
for American animation, which has propelled
the show into the reputation of being the bloodiest superhero
TV show on the block.
The show is both a love letter to
and a deconstruction of everything
great about superhero stories.
However, if this show had been greenlit 10 years ago,
more than likely, it would have been completely unrecognizable,
which is why we need more animation
to follow in its footsteps.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
I will burn this planet down before I
spend another minute living among these animals.
[END PLAYBACK]
Before we get too deep into today's episode,
please be sure to like, comment, and subscribe to Nerdstalgic
to stay up-to-date with everything we have going on.
Also, this is your spoiler warning
for all things Invincible.
Invincible, the comic book series,
was first published in 2003 by Image Comics.
The book, initially co-created by Robert Kirkman and Cory
Walker, and later illustrated by Ryan Ottley,
ran for a total of 144 issues.
This is a gargantuan feat for any indie comic, let alone
one made by, at the time, relatively unknown creators.
The story follows Mark Grayson, the son
of a Superman analog named Omni-Man,
as he attempts to navigate the gap between being
a teenager and an adult with the added complication of newly
burgeoning superpowers.
On the surface, this book is an amalgam
of every trope and cliché present in teen superhero
comics.
But unlike its contemporaries, Invincible actually has
a tone, voice, and ambience all its own
because here's the twist, it's hyperviolent.
I always loved drawing very dynamic violence
when I was a kid.
I mean, the red crayon would be the first to go.
If you're a longtime fan of the property,
you probably thought we were going
to talk about Omni-Man's dark secret, that he's a villain.
While that twist is inarguably what
saved the book from cancellation and what
propelled its eventual TV adaptation to success,
that's not the true secret sauce that separates Invincible
from the rest of the crowd.
It's the fact that Kirkman, Ottley, and Walker always
pushed the characters and stories into arenas
that a typical Marvel or DC comic never
would have had the creative license to attempt.
Despite being the inarguable kid brother to The Walking Dead,
Invincible has had Hollywood interests circling almost
from the beginning of its run.
However, it wasn't until The Walking Dead blew up
on the small screen that things got serious.
After the creation of multiple spinoff shows,
it was announced that Amazon Studios had struck a deal
with Kirkman to move all the development of his film and TV
projects over there, ending his overall deal at AMC.
And it was off the back of this deal
that two Invincible related announcements were announced,
an animated TV show created and showrun
by Kirkman and a live action film
to be written and directed by Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen.
It's said that the perpetually in-development live action
feature is going to be significantly
different from the comics, allowing the TV show,
currently punching its way through the airwaves,
to be a more direct adaptation.
Perhaps the most important aspect
of this adaptations boundary pushing approach to narrative
is the fact that all the original creators
are involved in the show.
Kirkman is the head honcho.
And both Ottley and Walker are producers and work
as character designers on the show.
Just look at the anatomy and the style of the animation.
It's so deeply rooted in the way Cory Walker breaks down
the human form.
The maturity and humanity on display in the series
is a direct reflection of the fact
that the people telling the story
are deeply invested in the characters
and understand them on an intimate level.
You don't have to explain the source material to them.
They made it.
However, it's the fact that the same thing that
helped the comic break out in 2003
is the same thing that enabled the show
to really draw attention in 2021 when it premiered, the show's
approach to hyperviolence.
Whether it be Omni-Man fighting the Guardians of the Globe
and quickly dispatching all of them,
or Omni-Man literally using Mark's body
to end an entire subway train car full of people,
it's safe to say that Invincible earns its TV-MA rating.
And to state the obvious, this is
both the reason for the show's success
and a huge new precedent for American animation.
If Invincible had been produced 15 years ago,
it would have been watered down into being
a straight ahead, after school animated TV
show aimed at 6 to 11-year-olds.
But the existing version of it had the strength of The Walking
Dead and the prospect of a live action
feature pushing it forward, allowing Kirkman, Ottley,
and Walker to replicate the maturity, gravitas,
and humanity that they put into the books.
Just look at this scene from season one episode eight
titled Where I Come From.
We see Mark trying to save a building from collapsing.
He's single-handedly holding the building up
while also attempting to save a single mother from falling
to her death.
Then when the inevitable comes to fruition
and the building does collapse, we
find Mark on the ground holding hands
with the woman's severed arm.
And this moment isn't played for laughs.
It's traumatic, it's dark, and what it would actually
be like if something like this actually took place.
Invincible should be a call to arms
that we need for animation produced that's not strictly
aimed at children.
Look, not every show needs this over-the-top level of violence.
But it would be great if we had more animation aimed
at slightly older audiences.
In Japan, animation is produced on virtually every
subject imaginable and with every demographic possible
in mind.
In the States, we have children's shows
or 30 something bong rip theater.
And there's no in-between.
Even the aesthetics of the shows produced
have to fit a very narrow stylistic window.
And children's shows need to be safe and approachable
and usually involve rounded shapes.
And the adult shows are ugly.
Yeah, that's the best way to describe it, just usually ugly.
The American animation industry has so many
thriving and talented people.
They just need the opportunity to tell their stories.
They need the right series of events
to line up, like a live action feature
and a heavyweight celebrity coming off
one of the most successful TV franchises of all time,
in order to make something even remotely adventurous.
Where's the American version of Satoshi Kon's Millennium
Actress or the American version of Keep your Hands
Off Eizouken?
We need more shows that come from a diversity of viewpoints
with a diversity of aesthetics.
Invincible is still something that's steeped in the tropes
that Hollywood execs can recognize.
It's a superhero story at the end of the day.
But it's different enough that, if supported
the right way, which it apparently has been,
it could open the door to much more mature, engaging,
and exciting animation produced for a plethora of age ranges.
Like Guillermo Del Toro said in his Pinocchio Oscar acceptance
speech--
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
Animation is cinema.
Animation is not a genre.
And animation is ready to be taken to the next step.
[END PLAYBACK]
Animation has seen some big strides in the last few years.
But most of them have been produced
outside of the studio system or with independent backing.
Remember the Charlie Kaufman film, Anomalisa?
Yeah, that got produced because of a Kickstarter.
Same thing with Phil Tippett's, Mad God.
That was produced over decades of self-financed work
with intermittent crowdfunding campaigns.
And while the majority of innovation
is being made outside of traditional channels,
there are some highly exciting and boundary
pushing works being produced within those systems.
Just look at the Max show Scavengers Reign or the Netflix
shows Love Death and Robots or Oni Thunder God's Tale
for examples of work that doesn't look like anything
else being produced.
Like Del Toro said, animation is cinema.
And yet, for much of its history here in the US,
it's been relegated to children's entertainment.
This is highly ironic, because today, live action movies
are almost entirely animated.
Every Marvel movie, Star Wars, or Harry Potter
features actors interacting with computer animated backgrounds,
characters, and effects.
And yet, because it's photorealistic,
we don't think of them as animated
in the traditional sense.
Look at one of the most recent of Disney's live action
remakes, The Lion King.
Literally nothing in that movie is live action.
It's all CG animation.
But because it's photoreal, it bears different weight
in a different conversation.
Today, more than ever, we need bold new visions
of what the world can be to inspire hope
and faith in a better tomorrow.
If the world around us is shown in a more adventurous way,
maybe that can help us all to evolve at a more rapid pace.
Animation as a medium has limitless potential.
And shows like Invincible are leading the way,
proving that artistically adventurous projects
that take big swings can push the medium forward.
People want new experiences.
And animation is the way to give it to them.
And well, that's all we have for this episode of Nerdstalgic.
What do you think?
Are there more exciting pieces of animation out there
that we haven't covered yet?
Let us in the comments below.
And as always, please like, comment,
and subscribe for more videos just like this one.
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