In the latest episode of Invincible, Oliver and Nolan spent some long-needed quality time together while Mark recovered from his second death-match with Conquest. However, as Nolan talked with Oliver, his son said something a little concerning.
When Nolan referred to Oliver's home as Earth, he told his father otherwise, telling him, "I don't know if I'd call Earth home," and that he still felt "different from everyone else there. Even Mark." While Oliver mentioned the friends he made in Season 3 as a kid, because of his physiology, he outgrew them fast, which was "weird" for him and his former friends.
Oliver's apathy toward Earth and its people is concerning because it foreshadows an impending conflict over a decision that will determine humanity's fate forever.
Mark and Oliver Fight Over the Fate of Earth
In the comics, after the explosive destruction of the Viltrumite homeworld, the alien conquerors fled to Earth soon after, quietly settling there so they could finally breed their race out of near extinction. At the threat of Thragg and his people doing the same thing to Earth that they did to Viltrume, Nolan and Mark reluctantly allowed them to stay without a fight.
After being newly appointed the leader of the Coalition of Planets after the death of Thaedus, Allen decided it was for the best of the universe to unleash the Scoruge Virus on Earth to wipe out the Viltrumites once and for all. Nolan objected, fearing that because humans were so genetically similar to Viltrumites, the virus would kill them.
Sadly for Nolan, Oliver agreed with Allen's decision, deeming Earth an acceptable sacrifice, especially given his far more pessimistic view of humanity in the comics, going so far as to call them all "assholes," with the exception of Debbie.
Mark managed to meet them above Earth's atmosphere, but when he learned of their plan, he was willing to fight both of them to stop it. Mark even went so far as to point out to Oliver how he's "always been oddly cold toward human life in general."
After Thragg's surprise assistance, Mark and the regent were able to talk Allen out of releasing the virus. To their frustration, the Guardians of the Globe intervened, resulting in chaos as everyone fought. In the fight, Oliver took the virus from Allen in the confusion as his brother gave chase.
Mark and Oliver fought over the virus, with Invincible still the stronger of the two, but in their struggle for the device, Oliver accidentally blasted Mark in the face with the Scourge Virus, which will eventually lead to the reveal of some shocking family ties.
A More Apathetic Than Psychopathic Oliver
Given Oliver's characterization in the series so far, some comic fans actually questioned how or even if he'd make this heartless decision. Not to sugarcoat it, but Oliver had a borderline psychopathic attitude toward the people of Earth compared to his animated adaptation.
Outside of killing the Mauler twins, Oliver had been relatively subdued and far less abrasive than his comic book counterpart, even making human friends when he was a kid. So, it'll be interesting to see exactly how the show executes this conflict and justifies Oliver's sudden willingness to (potentially) kill everyone on Earth after his talk with Mark and Debbie about valuing life.
One direction the series could take is to have Oliver be simply apathetic toward humanity, rather than outright dismissive of their lives. Oliver could even twist Mark and Debbie's lessons for him, merely thinking of the bigger picture, and the death of a repopulated Viltrumite Empire could spread across the universe.
