Are you serious, Grayson?
Thank you.
It's about time.
Someone murdered the Guardians of the Globe
last night, tore them limb from limb,
but Nolan was the only survivor.
Cecil Stedman. Director of the GDA.
Bow before Doc Seismic!
Your planet signed up for the program.
- Request from Urath. - Urath? This is Earth!
Come work for the GDA.
It is my pleasure to introduce
the new Guardians of the Globe.
- Black Samson. - Dupli-Kate.
- Shrinking Rae. - Oh, yeah!
Monster Girl.
Josef is finally standing still and I still can't see him!
They know who did this, and they don't care.
Which is why I'm moving back to Moscow.
Please don't lose interest in me
while I'm gone.
Go, go, go, go, go!
What does sending Mark away get us?
A chance to see what this kid can do.
Come on, guys!
I need your expertise in tissue growth
and DNA replication.
I wasn't expecting this.
I don't know if being a superhero is
what I want to do right now.
I can irrigate deserts.
Stop natural disasters.
Bring food to the starving.
You will come with me back to prison.
I am from Viltrum,
but it's not the planet I've told you about.
Our most trusted officers were each given a planet
to weaken.
I was one of those lucky few.
And now, we need to get Earth ready
to join the Viltrum empire.
I do love your mother, but she's more
like a pet to me.
I don't give a shit about Viltrum.
This is my home and I won't let you destroy it.
What will you have after 500 years?
I'd still have you…
Dad?
I've been hit harder before. Like way harder.
So arrogant.
Just like your father.
I'm trying to save lives.
Why can't you trust me?
After what Omni-Man did?
After what you did?
You!
Yep.
Immortal your way out of that.
Dad?
The Immortal lived for thousands of years
trying to make this planet better for all its people.
I thought he'd see the truth…
like you did.
I think he was trying to lead us away.
So we must be close.
People of Earth…
we know you all feel like we're the bad guys
because my dad and I took over your planet.
But you're going to be part of the Viltrum empire now.
That means no one goes hungry, no one dies from cancer,
and no one ever messes with Earth again.
Look, I didn't get it at first either.
But I came around and you will come around, too.
And in the long run, you'll thank us.
But you need to remember,
the more you resist,
the worse this gets.
We didn't destroy your cities.
You destroyed them by fighting back.
Your new Viltrumite rulers are on the way
and it's time to join us in welcoming them.
And if you still think you can stop us,
don't forget I'm…
Invincible.
People of Earth…
we know you all feel like
we're the bad guys because my dad and I
took over your planet.
You're going to be part of the Viltrum empire now.
That means no one goes hungry, no one dies from cancer,
and no one ever messes with Earth again.
Look…
I didn't get it at first either.
But I came around
…and you will come around, too.
Angstrom. Were you followed?
The Immortal led them away. We're safe.
Yeah.
That's what Rex thought, too.
Did you retrieve the null energy?
If this doesn't make Omni-Man have a bad day,
nothing will.
Oh, no.
Oh, God, no.
Told you we were close.
Hey, Eve.
You look good.
Eve!
Robot!
Get back!
Someday…
you too will die.
Sure.
But you should have died at birth.
Last chance, Eve.
You and your stupid resistance made us kill
thousands of innocent people.
Stop this,
or I stop you.
Please.
I'd rather die.
What? Eve…
I would never kill you.
But I can't let you hurt anyone else.
I'm sorry you had to do that, Mark.
She didn't leave you a choice.
She's not dead.
Just paralyzed.
Huh, so that's what you were practicing
on those protestors last week.
I couldn't figure it out.
Yeah, I've got some people who'll take care of her,
so, you know, I can visit.
Hi. Since you were all
part of the resistance, we need to kill you.
- Murderers! - Ah.
A volunteer.
Don't touch me!
Hey, buddy, you sentenced yourself to death
when you joined club resistance.
Justice…
Justice will come for you.
For all the friends we've lost to your senseless cruelty,
for all the families you've torn apart.
- You will reap what you… - Let's do this, Mark.
I missed lunch because of that riot in Bangkok.
Yep. Way ahead of you.
What the hell was that?
- A portal or something? - Eh. Who cares?
Let's finish this off.
I'm starving.
We all remember that day,
when titans touched down in Chicago.
The battle.
The devastation.
The cost in lives.
For some, the pain will never fade.
But for many others, the healing has already begun.
In only a few short weeks,
crews have been hard at work
rebuilding the city that had been so devastat…
You don't have to go back if you're not ready.
Neither do you.
I think we're both dying to get out of this house.
Hmm. Yeah.
- See you later, Mom. - You too.
Who holds a grudge this long?
I said I was sorry.
Get back from the door if you want to eat.
That's the thing.
I don't want to eat that garbage.
I want real food.
I said, "Get back."
Further.
Turn around.
- I'm not gonna… - Turn around!
You should count yourself lucky there, Pete.
We could've torn your arm off.
Smashed your head in.
Ripped out your liver.
Made your spine into a belt.
I ain't scared. You get back, too.
Or you're both going hungry.
Instead, we barely gave you a concussion.
That means we like you.
That means you're a friend.
That means when we break out of here again,
we don't kill you.
As long as you keep us in good food,
which you're currently not.
Don't try to bargain with me.
We've got security turned up to a hundred on you two.
New cameras, new guns, new doors.
New guards.
You ain't going nowhere.
- Did you…? - Oh, yeah.
I shit portals now. Didn't I mention that?
Down here, hurry!
Go, go, go, go, go.
You think, uh…?
Couldn't be worse than the salmon.
See you around, Pete.
Ugh.
Where the hell are we?
I bet he knows.
Holy shit.
What happened here?
A tragedy.
But don't worry. This isn't your world.
My name is Angstrom Levy.
Hi, Angstrom. Why'd you break us out?
And what do you want?
That's basically the same question, idiot.
I'll explain as we go.
This Earth's too dangerous to stay here for long.
Let me guess.
You can open portals between dimensions.
I mean, I don't like to brag.
But not within the same dimension.
Hmm. Why do you think that?
Because we're walking.
And because you needed to find a crater deep enough here
to reach us in the GDA's underground prison there.
Ah, you two are sharp.
You know, I was worried freeing you could be a mistake.
Still might be, if you don't tell us what you want.
I need your help with a very specific problem.
Last time we helped someone else
with their very specific problem,
it didn't work out so well for us.
Look, I'm a pacifist.
I don't hurt people, I don't kill people.
I only use my power for good.
Working with the two of you
is a real ethical and moral stretch for me,
but I don't have a choice.
There's no one else
with your scientific je ne sais quoi.
Trust me. I've looked everywhere.
Now, I can't force you to help me.
But I will leave you here forever if you don't.
Or somewhere worse.
I miss when we only worked for ourselves.
Me too.
- Is that Mark Grayson? - He's back already?
Did you hear what happened to his dad?
I feel so bad for him.
Mark…
Mark Grayson.
Todd, listen, I…
- I'm, uh, sorry your dad got exploded. - Oh.
Uh, thanks. But I don't really want to…
That sucks, man. Totally sucks.
Talk about it.
I can't imagine not ever seeing my dad again,
and my dad's a dick.
I hear your dad was an okay guy though.
And he was like, jacked, right?
I bet you wish you got those genes, huh?
Thanks, Todd. Mark appreciates it.
- Hey, you okay? - Good talk, man.
See? I'm not an asshole.
I'm not an asshole!
It's fine.
Yeah, it's fine.
But are you fine?
Todd's right.
My dad might as well be dead.
That's how it feels anyway.
Sure.
I don't get to be sad.
I'm part of the problem.
I'm the reason all those people in Chicago died.
- Wait a second… - I shouldn't be here.
I should be out there.
Making up for all my mistakes.
You didn't kill those people, Mark.
Omni-Man did.
But I didn't save them.
You stopped your dad and saved the planet.
And it almost killed you.
You don't owe anyone anything.
I'm not so sure.
Good to see you, kid.
What can I do for you?
Going back to school made me realize
it's the wrong place for me right now.
I need to be out there.
You need to start calling on me again.
Hey… hold on.
I'm better,
I'm stronger, I'm ready.
No, you're not. You're not, Mark.
What? What do you mean?
You think I haven't been watching
your early morning outings?
That's why I need you. I need to do more.
It's only been a month, Mark.
Focus on your mom,
your grades, your girlfriend.
You want to go to college with Amber, right?
You can't do that if you don't graduate.
I can save lives.
You did. You saved a ton of them.
But you also went through an emotional tumble dryer
and I need to know your head's stopped spinning
before I let you back in the game.
So no. Not yet.
You can't stop me.
I don't need your permission to be a superhero.
You know who else said that to me?
I'm not my dad.
I'm not my dad!
Take some time off, kid.
Some real time off.
You need it.
Jesus.
This thing still going on?
It's not going well, sir.
The Guardians could use some help.
They could really use…
Invincible.
I'm not making the same mistake I made with Nolan.
There's only one way this kid goes back out there,
and that's on a very short leash.
That's for stepping on my favorite bar,
you piece of shit!
Don't call me that!
I'm the Giant.
And I want to be president of America.
And an astronaut.
Oh…!
Um, those are…
very specific requests.
Based on his speech patterns and vocabulary,
the Giant seems to have the mental capacity
of an eight-year-old.
An eight-year-old what?
Explains the astronaut part.
Hey!
Maybe we can buy him some comics or something.
I don't care how old he is.
He needs to go down. Now.
That's an excellent suggestion, Samson.
There's a multilevel parking garage
beneath this intersection.
I will detonate stress points in the concrete
and drop the Giant into it.
We can neutralize him there without endangering…
…civilians.
Rudy!
- You okay? - I'm-I'm not sure.
Rex! Blow up Rudy's charges.
Come on!
Why are you so mean to me?
Why you do that?
- What happened? - I don't know.
I couldn't move. My heart was racing.
I was all sweaty…
Why are you laughing?
That's fear.
Before, all this was just a video game for you.
Now you're here, in person, playing for real.
It's a big difference.
Don't worry. You'll get used to it.
Just like the first time you used the toilet.
Sure. I'm a genius.
But I'm not the right kind of genius.
Recognize this?
That's one of our somatic encoders.
- But bigger. - I hadn't noticed.
Exactly.
I based it off your design.
It reads, copies, and writes human minds.
- Except… - You can't get it working.
I bet you can't.
What's this thing seat? A hundred?
Yes, a hundred, but…
The connectome buffers crash out.
I thought I had enough.
Hmm. That's not gonna cut it.
You'll need twice as many processing units.
This is exactly why I broke you both out of prison.
How long to get it working?
Not long. But two questions first.
One, what do you need it for?
Two, what's in it for us?
And no more bullshit about
stranding us in some other dimension.
Sure, sure.
Instead, let me appeal to your philanthropic nature.
Huh. Go on.
There's an infinite number of dimensions.
And I was born with the ability
to access all of them.
You must have been a fun kid to babysit.
Some differ from ours in the smallest way.
Others couldn't be more different.
Remember that world-changing battle
between Omni-Man and Invincible a month ago?
In most other dimensions,
they teamed up and took over the planet.
- You're kidding. - And we're the bad guys.
Now what's important is that each dimension has
something unique and valuable.
Shakespeares we've never read.
Technologies beyond our understanding.
New ways of thinking.
Philosophies of peace.
All our problems…
famine, war, climate change,
cancer, have been solved somewhere else.
And I can be the conduit of that knowledge.
A Prometheus who raises the bar for everyone
by sharing what works.
I'll help our world first, of course,
then everywhere else.
I can save billions upon trillions of lives.
Sounds like fun.
But saving lives isn't really our jam.
To do this,
I need deep knowledge of those other dimensions.
Good thing we've always been inquisitive.
We've always been?
Meet the family.
I did not see that coming.
'Cause you're the clone.
They're all alternate versions of me,
and I've gathered ten times more in safe houses
scattered across other dimensions.
They don't have my ability
but they have something almost as valuable…
Intimate local knowledge of their home dimensions
that will help me figure out what they do best
and how to get it here.
Which brings us back to you.
I need to copy all their know-how and put it in here.
Why not just ask them questions?
Because only someone who can see the whole puzzle
can put it together.
Help me do this and I'll give you
any single dimension you want,
as long as you promise not to hurt anyone.
We want one with no superheroes.
Good food.
And a population that thinks we're gods.
Mark, I'm home.
Debbie…
I've been waiting for you.
Olga.
Eh. The backdoor was open,
so I let myself in.
You like stroganoff, yes?
The roads,
the weather, coffee shops…
Oh, and pizza.
There is no good pizza in Moscow.
None. It's all for shit.
Italy. That's where you need to go for pizza.
I know, it's obvious, but it's true.
I was, I was there just last year with…
with Nolan.
That is why I came to visit.
Want to hear something crazy?
When I saw you with that knife, I thought…
Really? I would never.
Too obvious. Poison would be much better.
I know Nolan lied to you.
You were hurt as badly as I was.
Both our husbands died that night.
You can be sad and angry at the same time.
That's how I felt after burying Josef.
Nolan killed so many people.
He almost killed Mark.
Said I didn't matter. That I was a pet.
Twenty years.
Twenty years and I was a goddamn fucking pet!
He was a bastard.
The worst kind.
But he's gone now.
I-I… I'm sorry. I'm fine.
I just…
ugh, I needed that.
I don't have anyone to talk to, so…
I keep it all inside and it's, it's like acid
eating me away until I'm hollow.
I have to go back to Moscow in a few days,
but, uh…
What's this?
Something that helped me.
Hey, Mom.
Oh, hi, Olga.
It's good to see you, Mark.
Uh, I'm gonna go to my room.
Olga made dinner.
I already ate.
You can't help him
until you help yourself.
I'm fine.
Really, Olga, I'm fine.
Ongoing, repeated fuck-ups
of monumental proportions.
That's a little harsh, Cecil.
That was the nice way of saying it, Kate.
Don't push me.
You're slow. Unprepared.
Undisciplined.
Take-downs take too long and the public pays the price.
Hey! We put our necks on the line
- every single day… - Shut up, Rex.
This isn't about you.
We've done an analysis of your last 15 engagements
and narrowed it down to a failure of leadership.
Phew. Off the hook.
Oh. Uh… sorry.
I'm still adjusting to my new body.
And I'm instituting a change.
The Immortal is now in charge.
A couple thousand years of experience
should turn things around.
Nice entrance.
Whoa! Was he waiting for his cue?
You were, weren't you?
Like, just over there or something.
Did you work it out in advance?
I mean, it looked effortless
but I feel like a lot of preparation went into it.
It's also obvious the team needs more muscle.
Meet Bulletproof.
Hey.
Amazing. Ho, ho!
It's just a whole afternoon of new friends.
And… what do you do?
I mean, other than have the most obvious name ever.
Bulletproof?
I do everything you wish you could.
And that's rich coming from a guy called Rex Splode.
You think up that grade-school shit yourself,
or did somebody help you with that?
I…
came up with it.
Yeah, I figured.
Come on, man, I know your type.
Be better.
I-I was trying to be bett…
New training schedules are in your lockers.
First session is in 30 minutes.
Dismissed.
I still want you on the team, Rudy.
You good with that?
This was not the outcome I desired.
But yes, of course. I understand.
Good man. I knew I could count on you.
Screw him. He's making a big mistake.
No.
Cecil's right.
My leadership has been suboptimal and that's a problem.
And like any problem, it needs to be fixed.
Hey, stranger.
Eh.
Otherwise, life out in the woods is good.
Maybe a little lonely, but I don't mind.
Sounds nice.
- So… - So?
So this is where you tell me how you are.
I don't know.
Okay, I guess.
When was the last time you went out as…
Invincible?
Yesterday morning, but…
I'm just flying around like an idiot.
And I can't stop thinking…
when I was a kid, I always wanted to be my dad…
What if that happens?
What if I become him and I don't even know it?
You're not your dad, Mark.
We all know that.
The whole world knows that.
Cecil doesn't.
So prove him wrong.
We tracked them down to a warehouse near the harbor.
We don't know what they're building in there yet,
but it's big, sir.
Let's find out before they turn it on.
- Get me the Immortal. - Director…
- Mark, it's not a good… - I'll work for you.
I'll follow orders. I'll let you make all the calls.
Just put me back out there.
Sir, energy levels just went off the chart.
Someone get this kid an earpiece.
Power's stable. Neural matrices spinning up.
Buffers ready and networked.
You know who else could have pulled this off?
No one in a million different dimensions.
Boom.
That's right.
You two are about to change the world.
All of them.
Open your portals and we'll connect
to the other nine machines.
Trans-dimensional interconnects are stable.
Bringing them online.
One thousand minds, synchronized.
Your throne.
We're doing a ton of processing
behind the scenes so you'll remember that you're you
and not them.
Even though you'll have everyone's memories.
It's a first for us.
But that means, once we start the process…
It's impossible to stop.
At these power levels,
severe brain damage would be the least of your problems.
I understand.
I'm ready.
- Let's ride the lighting. - Nice.
I… I am large.
And I contain multitudes.
Locked and stable. We're laughing.
Don't say that.
Why not?
That's why, you idiot.
Uh…
Spit it out, kid.
Okay, there's like a giant mechanical Christmas tree
with, like,
a bunch of the same guy sitting on it,
and some portals,
- and the Maulers, and… - It doesn't matter.
Just stop them.
Hey, shut it down, or I take it down.
Make us.
You have no idea how much I wanted you to say that.
Uh… wait!
Invincible, you don't understand.
Stop fighting and listen to me!
He's stronger than he looks.
Maybe. No way he lives up to his name.
He's definitely not… invincible.
Stop.
This is for the greater good.
Yeah? I've heard that before.
Then I'm sorry.
Maulers, help your brothers.
- You were using other us's? - You said we were special.
Stop him, but don't kill him.
Oh, we're gonna do both.
Shut up and enjoy the show.
No. That's enough. I said stop.
Quit whining, we're almost done.
I won't build my utopia with blood.
Ah…!
Stop. There's too much power.
You'll kill us all!
- Are you injured? - Huh.
I guess he really is…
invincible.
No, no, no.
Not again.
Hey! Hey, hey, buddy.
This was the Maulers, okay?
And apparently,
lots of them.
Look, I don't know what they were up to, but…
I'd say you stopped it pretty fucking spectacularly.
I can't believe I'm saying this,
but listen to Rex.
There were other people here.
And even the Maulers didn't deserve this.
Everyone here did this to themselves.
Whatever they were planning, you stopped them.
This is what happens when you follow my orders.
We did good today, do you understand me?
Head home.
We'll handle the cleanup and try to puzzle out
what they were up to.
Immortal, check the site for survivors
- and report back to me. - Understood.
Mom?
Mom.
Mom…
Mm. Huh?
Oh, my God. Mark!
It's okay.
- I'm fine. - What happened?
I'm working for Cecil now.
I stopped the Maulers, but… things exploded.
Are you okay?
What?
No, I'm just, uh… tired.
Oh, I must have accidentally…
Have you eaten?
- No, I guess I forgot. - I'll make dinner.
No, you don't have to. I can order.
I want to.
Okay. That would be nice.
Some mail came for you.
You first.
No way, you first.
Okay, same time.
"Congratulations on being accepted to Upstate University,
Ms. Bennett?"
Ms. Bennett. Wait, this is yours!
What do you want it to say?
I want it to say that we're going to college together.
I don't believe you.
Mm.
Okay…
I believe you now.
Oh, my God.
I got in. I got in!
I guess I get to keep my superhero boyfriend after all.
I guess you do.
Oh.
Hey, Immortal.
Um…
Thanks for the support today.
I-I don't know if you heard, but I'm working for Cecil now.
So, you know, if you need some help
or want to team up, just give me a…
Cecil thinks you're on our side.
I'm not so sure.
I'll be watching you.
I told him not to take off the damn helmet!
Brother?
Is that you?
How are you even breathing?
What…?
What did he do to me?
You did that to yourself.
And this to me.
He did this. Made me a freak.
He ruined everything!
He killed so many…
people I knew. People I loved.
Millions died because of him.
Your brain's scrambled.
You've lost track of what memories are yours
and which come from the others.
They're all my memories!
All of them!
You need a hospital.
No.
I need revenge.
I need to make him pay!
I won't rest
until I've killed…!
Fine. Go.
Don't worry about me.
Just had half my body melted helping you mutilate yourself.
That's the last time I work for anyone else ever!