The trailer for the second half of Invincible Season 2 was released on February 15, and with it came the first appearance of Anissa, a highly controversial character from the source comics.
Invincible is no stranger to dealing with heavier issues, veering toward gritty realism and grounded stories throughout its first season and a half.
Beyond that, the show has remained unafraid of featuring the blood and gore one would expect of a superhero in the real world.
[ Invincible Season 2 Episode 5 Release, Story Details & Everything We Know ]
Who Is Anissa in Invincible Season 2?
Content Warning: This article includes discussion and images of sexual assault and rape.
The first trailer for Invincible Season 2 Part 2 gave fans a glimpse of Anissa, a character hated by many following an incredibly dark story from the comics where she sexually assaults Mark Grayson (Invincible).
Anissa is a Viltrumite, like Nolan Grayson (Omni-Man). As such, she has a wide range of powers, including super strength, super stamina, and flight.
She can be seen in the trailer fighting Mark in the air and on seemingly empty terrain while wearing an all-white suit. Though her appearance is brief, she is there.
Upon learning Anissa would be introduced in Invincible Season 2, several fans took to the internet to warn those unfamiliar with the comics this character is a vile person, but not often sharing why.
What Did Anissa Do To Mark In Invincible Comics?
Many of the details discussed in this section are partially adapted from descriptions in the "Robot Takes Over The World" section of Anissa's Image Comics Wiki page, to remain accurate while being sensitive to the dark subject matter.
In Invincible Vol 1 110, Anissa violently assaults and rapes Mark.
Six months before the assault, she (seemingly innocently) kissed Mark, despite her adamant refusal to engage with humans in any romantic or sexual manner. However, the goal of her fellow Viltrumites is to procreate with humans, producing children with both human and Viltrumite genes.
To contribute to the Viltrumites' mission without entirely abandoning her principal, Anissa tries to convince Mark, who is half-human and half-Viltrumite, to sleep with her. Mark declines, indicating it has at least something to do with his and Atom Eve's ongoing relationship.
Anissa attacks Mark as he tries to leave, before attempting to seduce him. Mark continues to refuse Anissa's advances, leading to a short physical fight between them in the air, which Anissa appears to enjoy.
The two crash to the ground, and Anissa begins to force herself onto Mark. Panels show Mark saying things like "leave me alone" and "I don't want this," as he explicitly refuses to consent.
Still, Anissa keeps Mark pinned down by his arms and presses her elbow to his neck. Though her actions prove this on their own, she still says "I don't care what you want," adding insult to injury and violation.
After ripping off Mark's clothes, Anissa rapes him, which she appears to enjoy. The only thing a vulnerable, nearly naked, and trapped Mark can do is lie there as it happens.
Anissa tells him that this will happen again and that he is weak for crying through this traumatic experience and the immediate aftermath. She flies away, leaving Mark alone with his thoughts.
As is the case with many victims of trauma, the psychological and emotional impact of the experience sticks with Mark in the future. The next time he sees Anissa, Mark starts shaking. It does not help that Anissa makes sure to whisper that she misses him.
Later, Mark attacks Anissa, but in doing so only furthers her attraction to him. Anissa tells Mark she wants to do what she did again, much to his horror.
Eventually, Anissa gives birth to Marky — her child with Mark. Years later, with a newfound love for Earth, Anissa comes clean to some of Mark's friends and family about what she did. She is apologetic, and in some situations regretful, but confides to Atom Eve that she does not regret what she did, since it led to Marky's birth, right before Anissa dies in battle.
How Dark Could Invincible Season 2 Get?
The footage of Anissa from the new Invincible Season 2 Part 2 trailer indicates a strong possibility of this story being adapted in the next batch of episodes.
Timecodes 1:18 and 1:23 in the trailer are particularly noteworthy. 1:18 features a shirtless Mark with his head in his hands, in a nondescript location with rocks. This moment in the trailer looks almost identical to the panel following the assault, where Anissa flies away and Mark is left traumatized and alone.
Then, 1:23 shows Mark, lying on his back on the ground, with what looks like Anissa's boot pressing down on his neck. This imagery is reminiscent of the panel where Anissa presses her elbow into Mark's neck while assaulting him.
This happens immediately before timecode 1:24, which features shots of Anissa and Mark fighting in the sky, and Anissa sending him barreling to the ground. The moments shown are the exact events that precede the assault in the comic.
With the trailer alluding to dark times ahead for Mark and his friends and family, these few blink-and-you-miss-it shots in the trailer, and the show's consistent comic accuracy, there is a lot of evidence that this story — one of Invincible's darkest and most distressing — could play into the second half of Season 2.
The first four episodes of Invincible Season 2 are available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, with Episode 5 releasing on March 14.
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