Amazon Prime Video’s Invincible has made massive strides in only its first season. A large part of the series’ success relies on its ability to consistently subvert the tropes established by similar properties in the medium. Since its premiere, Invincible has done to the superhero genre what Scream did to slasher films when released in 1996.
The aptly named Scream was a self-aware horror film, unlike anything most slasher fans had seen at the time. The film still had a masked killer terrorizing teenagers, but it called out the strategies that had been overplayed in other genre films. From the idea of a final girl to the killer’s final scare, Scream used every trick in the slasher book. However, what made the film stand out was how the hero, Sidney, turned those tropes against the killer.
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From the first few moments of Invincible, it’s clear that the series is taking some of the best strategies from Scream and stretching them out in TV format. For example, the opening of Scream sets up Drew Barrymore’s character to be the unexpected victim as she falls for each trope in the genre. Invincible similarly does this with the introduction of the Guardians of the Globe, a team of heroes that mirror the Justice League. It seems clear that these are the characters to follow and look up to, but by the end of the episode, Omni-Man brutally murders each of them.
Invincible continued the strategy of turning established ideas against the viewer in Season 1, Episode 4, “That Actually Hurt.” The episode shows Mark helping another superpowered individual fight for his freedom from the crime lord, Machine Head. As more villains and the new Guardians of the Globe appear, it seems like a classic hero brawl where the D-list villains get beaten. Instead, most of the heroes, including Mark, are beaten within an inch of their lives, and the villains come out on top.
The reason that both Invincible and Scream have been so successful in their genres is that they came at a time when superheroes and slashers were around every corner. As audiences became more aware of how things worked in these genres, a project with a more meta approach helped keep things fresh. With this style, nothing can be assumed and surprises can come at any moment.
Like Scream, Invincible rides the line between subversion and deconstruction. But by leaning into the fundamentals of what makes these genres great, like an iconic villain or superhero action, the projects never risk being deconstructed to the point that it’s barely recognizable. As horror adapted, so did Scream, and its multiple sequels made sure to call out the modern ideas of the medium. Similarly, as the superhero genre continues to evolve, Invincible can pull from even more to adapt and subvert.
Invincible stars Steven Yeun, J.K. Simmons, Sandra Oh, Seth Rogen, Gillian Jacobs, Andrew Rannells, Zazie Beetz, Mark Hamill, Walton Goggins, Jason Mantzoukas, Mae Whitman, Chris Diamantopoulos, Melise, Kevin Michael Richardson, Khary Payton, Grey Griffin and Max Burkholder. The series is produced by Skybound, and executive produced by Robert Kirkman, Simon Racioppa, David Alpert and Catherine Winder. The first season is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
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