How Invincible Proved "Bad Animation" is Meaningless

追加: 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]2026 has actually been an incredible year as far as animation is concerned.

[00:00:06]We're only about halfway through, yet we've already had entries like Maul: Shadow Lord, which is arguably the greatest thing Star Wars has ever put out in that medium. There's also things like Primal Season 3, Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3, and Fate/Strange Fake. One of the greatest shows of the decade, Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, dropped a phenomenal second season. Even newcomers on the scene have been making waves across social media with their breathtaking animation. And that, ladies and fellow fellas, is the through-line for all the shows I've mentioned so far.

[00:00:44]Regardless of your thoughts on the individual stories, it is undeniable that the studios that have undertaken said shows have most certainly delivered in the visual department, leading to the consistent and well-deserved prowess and praise. However, there's one entry this year that, in spite of the incessant lambasting across the internet for its poor animation, has managed to rival and even surpass a number of its contemporaries in ratings as well as viewership. That show, obviously, being the one and only >> [music] >> for Invincible have stayed pretty much the same across the board. So, that poses an interesting question. If a piece of animated media can look like a shadow of its former self, but still retain a substantial amount of viewership year after year, how important actually is the quality of animation for an animated show? I know this seems like a bit of a wild question, maybe inherently disrespectful, too, but it's coming from a place of genuine curiosity. The biggest complaint that rears its head with every single season post the first one is about the animation. It becomes a huge topic of conversation within that space. This most recent eight-episode adventure in particular had some of the most underwhelming action in the history of the show, which is all the more disappointing since it's probably the most battle-heavy season of the show at this point. It did have its moments, for sure. Round two of Invincible versus Conquest was well done. And a lot of the finale, despite its subdued tone in comparison to the prior episodes, had an exceptional level of refined polish for the most part. But, we've all seen the memes, like the flying dragon one. And, we all saw when Mark, Omni-Man, Oliver, and Thaddeus fought off those Viltrumites. And, we've all also probably seen that one edit that went viral. You know, the one where the lighting and shading were tweaked and it improved the quality of the visuals by like a thousand percent, which caused the discourse around the animation to spike even greater. But, ultimately, that has not stopped the second, third, fourth, and now fifth season from being produced and being in production. Now, don't get me wrong here. The implication behind my words are not laced with the intention of cancellation. I still do like Invincible a lot. I watch it every year. But, that brings me back to the question of the video. How important actually is the quality of animation for an animated show? Nobody's going to answer? Well, since nobody else will and it is my video, I'll make an attempt. I think the problem in and of itself is a difficult one to decipher because the solution is not a one-size-fits-all type of deal. Obviously, everyone would love for their favorite show to deliver a level of visual exceptionalism akin to something like a Demon Slayer or Jujutsu Kaisen, which is why more often than not, whenever a certain type of fan sees their series not looking so well animation-wise, one of the first things to come out of their mouth is I wish this was being done by Ufotable or MAPPA. Those two studios, funnily enough, have positioned themselves in a way where they can never allow something that has their name attached to it to look bad. I mean, could you imagine if this upcoming season of JJK looked anything like Invincible? Oh my gosh, the discourse would be absolutely vile.

[00:04:51]If a bar is set incredibly high and maintained for multiple seasons, then viewers will expect nothing less than that. The expectation of quality is also far different when it comes to animated media from the East, simply because of just how many prolific studios have released such breathtaking masterpieces for decades upon decades. Even in the best era of Western animation, it was never a competition for who held the crown. With that being the case, I believe that in part has made people far more willing to accept and continue watching something like an Invincible since everyone knows it's not an anime.

[00:05:31]However, while region definitely plays a role in the acceptance of quality, there are a couple of other factors to consider as well. The next one being frequency. To give Invincible some credit here, I think it was around the season two where fans were loudly raving about the wait between seasons being way too long. So, the team behind the show switched to a yearly release and have respectably managed to stick to that schedule. The cost behind the placating of such demand as more more often though is the production time is severely diminished. It's not possible to get anywhere near the heights Invincible once had while sticking to releasing a season a year. No studio in the world, west or east, would be capable of delivering that without a serious employee burn rate, which would eventually lead to a net loss of all employees and no more show. Skybound Animation has evidently gotten to a point with its scheduling that has allowed them to deliver a semi-acceptable ratio. What's also helped to make this ratio all the more acceptable is the story of Invincible itself. If this aspect of the series was not even a half as good as it actually was, season 4 wouldn't be a thing. I don't know if we'd have even made it past season 2. For all its flaws and despite some personal grievances I have with it, the story on the whole has been the central, strongest, and most consistent pillar which is keeping the entire series from collapsing in on itself. Tangentially, the voice acting being as great as it is and rich as it is helps support that very pillar. So, while the animation for Invincible may have deteriorated over time, I'd say that what we've gotten in its stead is a yearly release schedule, improved voice acting, as well as improved scripts, and a story that has continued to build on itself, making it all the more exciting for viewers who cannot wait to see where they will be taken next. With it being an animated show though, there is undoubtedly a breaking point. Acceptance is a spectrum, but a piece of media was released last year within this realm of entertainment that I think, or at least I can only hope, made everyone in the industry aware of exactly where the tolerance line is for most fans.

[00:07:54]>> [sighs and gasps] >> One Punch Man may be coming out with a part two for their third season, but the damage and the loss in viewership that it experienced after the disaster that it was part one can be described as nothing short of historic. I fully understand why it had to look at the way that it did. The behind the scenes for that season was not a good situation at all. Regardless, the public made it very clear that not only did they not care, but the product was not acceptable. The story did not matter. The comedy did not matter. The performances did not matter.

[00:08:30]The animation was so bad that any other aspect of the show was simply null to viewers. The IP is damaged goods, and nothing short of a miracle could return it to its former glory and wipe the smear from its name. So, in conclusion, while quality animation is incredibly important to the medium, it is not the end all be all. People are very clearly willing to accept a lower level visual product as long as the bar was not set too high beforehand, and other conditions, such as a quicker release, are met. There is, however, a limit to what people will accept when it comes to the deterioration of animation. But anyways, with all that said, that is actually going to do it for this one.

[00:09:13]So, thank you all very much for watching. I hope that you all enjoyed it. If you did, make sure to like, comment, and subscribe with the notifications on, and I will see you all in the next one. Peace out, everybody.

[00:09:20]This video is over, but do not fear because you can watch another one from me right here.