Robert Kirkman’sInvincibleseries of superhero comics is at the height of its popularity, largely because of the success of its animated TV series adaptation on Amazon Prime. Blending nostalgic elements from millennial animated superhero shows likeJustice LeagueandX-Men Evolutionwith Kirkman’s ingenious characterization and realistic perception of a world with superheroes, theInvincibleseries is a breath of fresh air in a genre that desperately needs one.
A staple of the series is brutal fights between superpowered characters filled with blood, gore, dismemberment, and desperate violence. Viewers of the animated TV series have only just gotten a taste forInvincible’sbrilliant fights and powerful characters, withplenty more to comeas long as the show follows the comics faithfully.
This list contains heavy spoilers for Invincible across the comics and animated series!
8Invincible vs. Omni-Man
The Very First All-Viltrumite Fight in the Series is Shockingly Intense
The climactic fight inInvincibleseason one takes place between Invincible and Omni-Man, and it is by far one of the most brutal fights The context of this fight as a father battling his own son, and how early into the series it happens that makes it such a sucker punch for viewers. The fight itself is a one-sided affair, with Invincible getting the life beaten out of him by his father. But the conversations that take place between him and Omni-Man are absolute kickers.
Omni-Man isn’t holding back as much as he normally does, with little regard for collateral damage, and at one point, holds Invincible stationary in front of a train, leading to the deaths and dismemberment of most passengers in it as he’s forced to helplessly watch his own body being used to destroy so many lives. By the end of the fight, Invincible is a mangled wreck lying on the surface of a mountain after his father just beat him to within an inch of his life, having admitted to wanting to conquer his planet and enslave its people.
An Unexpected Heavy Hitter Decimates Everyone
One of the best fights fromInvincibleseason one has Mark facing his first serious threat in the form of Battle Beast, who is part of the muscle hired by Machine Head to deal with him and Titan. This came as a shock to everyone because what was seemingly a regular fight for the main character against a bunch of street-level goons turned out to be the complete opposite. Little did they know,Battle Beast is one of the strongest charactersin the entire series, and is capable of going toe to toe against the most powerful Viltrumites. And what’s even funnier is that Machine Head, a crime syndicate boss on Earth, managed to hire him.
After defeating most of the other goons, Invincible is made short work of by Battle Beast. Just as the fiery feline warrior was about to finish him off, the new Guardians of the Globe arrived at the scene. While they’re able to defeat the other goons, Battle Beast strikes what appears to be a seemingly fatal blow to Invincible, and quickly takes down Black Samson and Monster Girl, who rush at him in retaliation. Eventually, he leaves the fight through a portal, claiming the battle is beneath him, and he was promised powerful warriors. What is particularly brutal about it is how the main character of the series takes a brutal beating, exemplary of how far out of his depth he was in the series.
6Invincible and Omni Man vs. Lucan, Thula and Vidor
Brutal Viltrumte-on-Viltrumite Action
InInvincibleSeason two, Mark is invited by a Thraxan to save their planet from a world-ending calamity, only to discover Omni-Man on the planet. Omni-Mantalks about how he has changedand needs help protecting the Thraxans and their planet from the imminently arriving Viltrumites sent to arrest him for deserting. These Viltrumites are Lucan, Thula and Vidor. Lucan is the first Viltrumite to find Invincible in a cave, protecting Omni-Man’s Thraxan wife, Andressa, and son Oliver.
Lucan very evidently proves to be too much for Invincible to handle, and Omni-Man comes to his rescue. He seemingly deals with Lucan by slashing his stomach open, leaving his entrails hanging out. Invincible and Omni Man are then faced by Thula and Vidor. While Omni-Man can hold his own against Vidor, Invincible, after briefly gaining the upper hand against Thula, is about to be killed by her. Omni Man quickly dispatches Vidor by brutally punching his skull out of shape, and then takes Thula out with aMortal Kombatfatality-esque execution, destroying her jaw with his elbow. Right after he does this, Lucan arrives on the scene, catching Omni Man off guard and breaking his spine with a vicious knee-charge. This is the first fight in the series that demonstrates the visceral brutality of Viltrumite combat.
5Thragg vs. Omni Man
When Even Omni Man is Helplessly Outmatched in a Fight
Thragg, as Grand Regent of the Viltrumites, is a ruthless leader so powerful that even Conquest fears him, completely turning down his sadistic personality around him. He was raised from birth to have superior immunity and training so that he could become the most powerful Viltrumite in history in search of the one true heir to the emperor to uphold Viltrum ideals.
InInvincible #138, Thragg leads his army of Thraxan offspring in a final charge against the Coalition of Planets. As Invincible, Omni-Man, and Allen arrive on the scene, Omni-Man immediately goes for Thragg and engages him in a fight. Despite trading blows, it’s clear to see that Omni-Man is completely outmatched here, as Thragg breaks his hand by headbutting it. Ultimately, he impales Omni Man, but Omni Man moves just at the last minute to save his heart from Thragg’s attack, only for Thragg to completely dismember his torso from his hip and pull out his heart. At this point, Thragg has proven on several occasions that he is arguably the strongest character in the series. This was his crowning moment, proving thateven Omni-Man was no match for him.
4Conquest vs. Invincible
The Fight That Pushed Invincible To The Brink
This fight is one for the ages and arguably one of the most popular fights amongInvinciblecomic readers. There was tons of hype in the buildup to this fight among fans who knew this was coming at the end of season 3, and it certainly delivered. Conquest is a sadistic Viltrumite, even by their standards, and also incredibly powerful. Adding this to the fact that he arrives right in the aftermath ofthe Invincible War, the tension is palpable among viewers. It’s a fight that begins with Invincible feeling pretty confident, thinking he wants an outlet for all his pent-up frustration from previous events.
Conquest quickly reminds him he’s dealing with different gravy here. For the most part in this fight, Conquest is toying with Invincible and monologuing away, about how much he enjoys inflicting pain and suffering on his opponents, pushing and provoking Invincible to react in outright anger. Throughout this fight, Conquest inflicts brutal damage on Invincible, Oliver, and Atom Eve. He nearly rips Oliver apart after knocking his teeth out, which makes for shocking viewing, considering Oliver is a child. He also destroys Atom Eve’s face with a brutal punch. All of Invincible’s limbs are broken in this fight, which ends with Invincible literally caving Conquest’s face in through repeated headbutting in an act of desperate rage.
3Invincible vs. Conquest: The Rematch
Cecil’s Mistake Comes Full Circle
No opponent has pushed Invincible to the point of complete rage like Conquest has, and he proves this a second time inInvincible #72. Despite Invincible’s orders to burn Conquest’s body, Cecil keeps Conquest alive and locked in a prison close to the Earth’s core. This proves to be a costly mistake as Conquest easily breaks out of this prison and goes straight back to Viltrum to face Thragg’s wrath and beg for another chance. He gets this chance in the form of a second confrontation with Invincible, who has now joined the Coalition of Planets in their cause to face and defeat the Viltrum Empire.
Invincible, who is unaware of Conquest’s fate, is taken aback by this and enraged with Cecil’s decision to keep Conquest alive. He immediately charges for Conquest and begins trading blows. During this fight, Oliver runs out of breath as they’re in space, and heads for the nearest planet. Conquest chases after him, ignoring Invincible, Omni-Man, and the other Viltrumites. Invincible notices this and flies after Conquest. Before Conquest can do anything to Oliver, Invincible grabs him and begins choking the air out of his lungs. Viltrumites are capable of holding their breath for a long time, so this is a desperate move. Despite Conquest pummeling away at his stomach, even impaling it and exposing Invincible’s entrails, he doesn’t let go of Conquest’s throat,eventually killing the evil Viltrumitethrough sheer determination, his own life hanging on by a thread.
2Battle Beast vs. Thragg
A Battle That Pushes the Strongest Viltrumite For Days
Battle Beast pretty much spends the entire series in search of one final “honorable battle to the death” against an opponent strong enough to defeat him, and he gets this in the form of Thragg, the Grand Regent of the Viltrumites. This fight is one that goes down in comic book folklore as one of the most iconic 1v1s ever. It also establishes Battle Beast’s true strength as one of the strongest in the series, considering hegives Thragg a run for his money. The fight goes on for multiple issues, fromInvincible #115toInvincible #120.As the story progresses in the comics, they show a break to a couple of panels to the fight in the middle, and it is a complete gore fest.
In terms of timelines, the fight goes on for several days, and almost every panel of it is absolutely brutal and bloody, from Battle Beast biting into Thragg’s skull, to Thragg violently uppercutting Battle Beast’s jaw. The fight culminates in Thragg ripping Battle Beast’s heart out of his exposed wound, which he had inflicted upon himself before the fight began to “even the odds” as Thragg was wounded by a Rognar.
1Invincible vs. Thragg
A Hardcore Battle on the Surface of the Sun
The final battle between Invincible and Thragg is by far the most epic one in the series, with plenty of action and gorgeous visuals. What stands out about it is that it takes place on the surface of the sun. And it also has the perfect emotional catalyst as Thragg has just killed Omni-Man, Invincible’s father, in brutal fashion right in front of him. Having had enough of Thragg’s violent antics, Invincible charges him and pushes him towards the Sun. Their battle rages even as their skin is melting from the Sun’s heat and radiation.
It’s brutal and torturous, especially when Invincible decides enough is enough and pushes Thragg right towards the Sun’s surface. This takes Thragg by surprise as he did not believe Invincible would resort to such drastic measures and sacrifice himself to kill Thragg. He tries to punch Invincible off him and get off the Sun’s surface, only for Invincible to hold him back. Eventually, Thragg dies from an open wound, which causes the Sun’s heat to melt him faster, and Invincible is rescued by Robot, who sends his armor to enshroud his body and keep it alive long enough to be taken back to the Coalition’s base.
