Invincible Season 2 just surprised fans with a twist on the comic’s iconic meta joke about how artists create art by working smarter instead of harder.
The second season of Invincible is full of even more nods to the original comics, but they just slyly referenced the best meta-joke the comic ever pulled off.
In a sequence where Invincible, aka Mark Grayson, attends a Comic-Con, he stops to get an autograph from Filip Schaff. Mark innocently asks Filip about how hard it is to do the animation for a TV show.
What follows is an extended sequence where Filip explains all the dirty tricks behind making animation work on a budget and a deadline–obscuring a character’s mouth, moving a camera in a specific way, and more. As he does so, said tricks are on full display in an incredible, fourth-wall-breaking moment.
‘INVINCIBLE’ Season 2 makes a meta joke about the animation process “[Fight scenes] take a while but we cut corners in other places to make it manageable, ever notice when whoever’s speaking has their mouth off-camera so you don’t see their lips moving” pic.twitter.com/1zcB43d4x7
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) March 28, 2024
It’s a pretty unique update to a joke that lampshades one of the oldest tricks for making a comic book, though. The original, featured in Invincible #10, has Mark asking Filip about how he’s able to illustrate comics without ever being late.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
Filip explains that artists use a lot of tricks, specifically reusing art from panel to panel for dramatic pauses. As Filip explains this to Mark, the book deliberately re-uses several panels in question, showing the technique Mark is referring to.
The joke is a fan-favorite gag that brought attention to the practice to many new comics fans. That being said, it’s also not unique to Invincible, as artists have been using such tricks for decades.
A lot of fans loved the moment, too. User Ironable said, “Invincible actually cooked so hard with this scene,” while user ChainsawReacts said, “I knew this clip was gonna blow up when I saw it lol”
The scene remains a beloved meta-joke and a fun departure from the series’ heavy tone. Fitting, considering fans are already dreading what’s coming up next in Invincible Season 2.