“This Was Supposed to Be Easy” is less focused on plot than last week’s episode. While it doesn’t quite recapture the balance of early Season 3, it reinforces that Invincible is at its best when prioritizing character development. Despite once again juggling too many storylines, the episode shines where it counts, allowing its themes to unfold naturally without relying on heavy-handed exposition.
Todd Williams takes over the role of Titan from Mahershala Ali, bringing back the crime boss and supervillain who hasn’t played a major role since his uneasy alliance with Mark in the first season. One of the show’s more morally complex antagonists, Titan challenges Mark’s increasingly rigid worldview. For much of the episode, we see him without his rock-like armor, balancing life as a father while maintaining order in his now-improved neighborhood. However, his fragile peace is threatened by the crime syndicate he can’t fully escape—the Order—led by Machine Head and the formidable newcomer, Mr. Liu, a metal-jawed enforcer with the power of a dragon in human form.
Several lingering plot threads converge when Multi-Paul steps back into the spotlight, attempting—but ultimately failing—at a prison escape. This sets off a chain reaction across multiple storylines. On one front, as Eve and Mark consider moving in together, they strike a deal with the prison to serve as on-call superheroes for a fee in case of another breakout. Meanwhile, Liu, determined to retrieve his right-hand man, blackmails Titan into orchestrating Multi-Paul’s escape, bringing Titan and Mark into conflict once again. Mark, who has firmly believed all season that villains belong behind bars, is forced to reconsider his stance when he realizes that Titan, despite his criminal ties, is holding his community together, especially when the alternative is a ruthless crime lord backed by the Order. This forces Mark to make a rare compromise in his otherwise rigid moral code.
Credit: Prime Video
This shift in dynamics ties into the larger question of whether Mark will leave his family and let Debbie raise Oliver—her adopted, purple-skinned, half-alien son—on her own, or if Eve will become part of their family. One night, when Oliver goes missing and throws the already-strained family dynamic into further disarray, Mark and Eve race to find him. However, they’re surprised to see Oliver simply being a typical mischievous kid at the skate park, having fun with friends and handling bullies without resorting to violence. While it’s a bit frustrating that such an important storyline was wrapped up off-screen, given that Oliver killing the Mauler Twins and seemingly targeting more bad guys was a significant plot point, it works in the context of Mark’s evolving moral compass, resolving a fitting end.
Similar to last week, the action focuses on characters working together, with their powers complementing each other, highlighting their evolving teamwork, as seen when Nolan and Allen teamed up against a Viltrumite. Specifically, Eve creates a pink energy army to hide in, and Mark swings her around like a medieval mace to defeat Liu’s dragon form. They make an excellent superhero couple (at least for now), and while the details of the Order’s plans aren’t particularly impactful, the growth in the characters’ relationships resonates strongly.
The B-plot in this episode is Rex cooking dinner for Rae. It feels out of place and underdeveloped. While this was intended to add character and humor, it ultimately feels like filler that doesn’t contribute much and appears fairly disconnected from the main story.
While the fifth episode of Invincible season 3 doesn’t give equal focus to all its subplots, it does a great job of exploring character development. Mark faces a challenge to his increasingly rigid worldview in unexpected ways, while Eve becomes a more regular part of the Grayson family, leading to interesting shifts in their dynamics.
‘Invincible’ Season 3 Episode 5 Review – “This Was Supposed to Be Easy”
While the fifth episode of Invincible season 3 doesn’t give equal focus to all its subplots, it does a great job of exploring character development.
