100+ Definitions 92

Invincible #92

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): Invincible number ninety-two uses the defeat of an alien invasion by the Guardians of the Globe as preface to the events that Robot and Monster Girl experienced within the dimension of the Flaxan empire.

Invincible #92 (I#92): A flashback reveals that when the two heroes entered the Flaxan realm, they swiftly discovered they were alone and surrendered.  They were imprisoned for interrogation and experimentation.  The comic flashes forward to the present and the final page has Monster Girl shouting that she and Robot spent 700 years in the Flaxan dimension.

L-FL: Superheroes experience time differently; their temporal sense stretches and contracts due to their experiences encountered by way of their powers.

I#92: I’ll never forget that.

100+ Definitions 91

Invincible #91

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL):  Viewpoints flutter through the 91^st issue with more zeal than grunge asserted in 1991.

Invincible #91 (I#91): The plethora of viewpoints begins with Atom Eve talking with Thragg regarding Invincible’s location, then a shift to Bulletproof and his girlfriend talking bed.  The next shift in view shows readers Mark Grayson (Invincible) talking to Dinosaurus’s alterego.  The view shifts again to Oliver, Tech Jacket and Allen the Alien fighting a space entity.

L-FL: Atom Eve appears to assist the three in the fight, then swings by to recruit Bulletproof  (much to the dismay of his girlfriend) and they group travels to Dinosaurus’s secret layer, where Invincible talks with Dinosaurus.

I#91: And of course, a fight breaks out between the heroes and Dinosaurus.  Invincible tries his best to halt the fisticuffs, but after punching Allen the Alien in the back of the head, Mark’s super strength coupled with the decreased invulnerability causes his ulna and  radius to burst through his skin and his shoulder to dislocate.

L-FL: Ouch. Superhero can be defined as one who can find or create links between individuals by noticing similarities between his loved ones and villainous allies.  This link appears when Invincible notes how Oliver, his brother, possesses a similarly cavalier regard to human life.

I#91: Mark!!

100+ Definitions 90

Invincible #90

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): Ninety issues into the Invincible comic book has Bulletproof, in Invincible’s costume, defeats the supervillain The Walking Dread, Allen the Alien and Oliver fly off to visit TechJacket while Invincible continues fighting the Scourge virus.

Invincible #90 (I#90): The story also has Thragg attempting to kill Invincible in order to obscure the secret of Invincible’s bloodline.  Dinosaurus fights Thragg, gets beaten badly, but manages to transport his partner to back to his secret base.

L-FL: The definition of superhero that spills from these panels is that a superhero has allies willing to place themselves in situations of great pain in order to aid their friend.

I#90: Dinosaurus?

100+ Definitions 89

Invincible #89

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): The plot of issue 89 involves Invincible battling the Scourge virus on the last Viltrumite spaceship located, where else, on the dark side of the moon.

Invincible #89 (I#89): The issue also includes the superhero Bulletproof adopting the costume and identity of Invincible to help the business prospects of Invincible Inc.  He also hits on Atom Eve. 

L-FL: While Invincible battles the virus, the Guardians of the Globe, Atom Eve, Allen the Alien wait in the Viltrumite ship to learn of Mark Grayson’s recovery.  Dinosaurus actively lends a claw in researching for a cure.

I#89: A revelation, that leads to the death of the discovering scientist—never cool, regarding Nolan and Mark links them  to the lost son of Argall, the heir to the Viltrumite throne.

L-FL: Superheroes have their identity irreplaceably linked to their costumes to the point where the costume becomes a symbol that surpasses the individual within the costume.

I#89: I always did like that costume.

100+ Definitions 88

Invincible #88

Invincible #88  (I#88): All-out superhero fist flinging action in SPACE proliferates the panels of this sense stunning story! 

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): Yeah, it’s another fight-heavy issue.  Of the 20 pages, 16 are filled with heroes opposing other heroes verbally and physically.

I#88: Invincible battles his brother Oliver (who is attempting to release the Scourge virus in Earth’s atmosphere) and suffers a face-full exposure to the virus.  The issue ends with Invincible’s eyes and nose bleeding.

L-FL: The definition of superhero falling from these panels is a being willing concerned with the safety of others before his own safety.

I#88:  With that, I’m fine.

100+ Definitions 87

Invincible #87

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): A return to Earth and Invincible’s alliance with Dinosaurus (a well-intentioned amoral eco-terrorist/warrior).  The two work together to defeat Omnipotus.  Dinosaurus decapitates the villain with his teeth, not witty banter.

Invincible #87 (I#87): Yuck.  The victory celebration thrown by the rest of the heroes (who were defeated by Omnipotus) has all the appeal of a picnic during a sharknado.

L-FL: Invincible avoids capture, visits his girlfriend, talks with the head of the Global Defense Agency explaining his new set of ethics and alliance with a violent dinosaur ecologist.

I#87: After learning his old friend Allen the Alien has entered Earth’s orbit, Invincible meets him in space.  Allen informs him of his plan to release the Scourge virus on Earth.  Invincible vehemently protests this strategy, and a fight erupts.  It ends, along with the issue’s story, when the leader of the Viltrumites, Thragg, flies into space to stand by Invincible’s side.

L-FL: All of which goes to suggest a definition of superhero as an individual able to stand against one-time friends for what the individual believes is best.

I#87: This sentiment coordinates with the ink on my pages; he has me.

100+ Definitions 86

Invincible #86

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): The 86^th issue of Invincible covers the multi-page fight between the Omni-Man and Allen the Alien…in space.

Invincible #86 (I#86): There is a lot of back-and-forth talk between the combatants weighing the potential danger of the Viltrumites against potential extinction of the human race.

L-FL: Allen wins fight, and Oliver agrees with Allen’s way of thinking over that of his father.  Given Omni-Man’s dedication to not risking the Scourge virus affecting humanity, a superhero is someone possessing faith in the future.

I#86: Nolan?

100+ Definitions 85

Invincible #85

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): Invincible writer Robert Kirkman holds the readers in suspense regarding the secret between Robot and Monster Girl and the consequences of Invincible’s alliance with Dinosaurus by shifting the focus to Omni-Man and his wife Debbie and their time on Talescria.

Invincible #85 (I#85): On Talescria, Oliver, his convalescence complete, attempts superheroics against a bank robber, but the attempt fails, and the thief is neutralized by the local police force, which is far better equipped to deal with supervillains than even Oliver.

L-FL:  After a joyous family reunion with Nolan, Debbie, and Oliver, Omni-Man (Nolan) meets with Allen the Alien.

I#85: Nolan explains to Allen that the remaining Viltrumites are on Earth as a safe haven with Nolan’s blessing.  Allen the Alien is angered by this arrangement and informs Nolan that he intends to release a stronger version of the Scourge Virus on Earth to wipeout the Viltrumites, which in turn could eradicate the human race.  A fight erupts between the two friends.

L-FL:  Superheroics are defined in this issue by Nolan’s reaction to Allen the Alien.  A superhero protects the helpless and the weak against those more powerful, even if the person is a friend and the threat dwells in a subjunctive verb tense.

I#85: I know that too.  Ready?

100+ Definitions 84

Invincible #84

Invincible #84 (I#84): So, a clichéd maxim claims that in fighting monsters, one becomes a monster, and this story has Invincible modify this idea by actively allying himself with a monster.

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): After learning of a solar array able to create massive amounts of clean energy and the employment resulting in building and maintaining the array atop the destruction of Las Vegas, just as Dinosaurus predicted, Invincible decides to free the eco-minded dinosaur and join forces with this villain to improve the world.  In this issue Mark equates the Good with cheap abundant energy and jobs.

I#84:  Consequences from these actions leads the Global Defense Agency to stand on alert and declare Invincible a fugitive.  Samantha Wilkins, Atom Eve (Invincible’s girlfriend), remains largely ignorant of her lover’s plans, but supports the theory, at least in theory.

L-FL: The 84^th attempt to explore the range of denotation in “superhero” is that a limited and unexamined understanding of good and improving the world swiftly transforms the champion into tyrant.

I#84: Yeah.  Let’s save the world.

100+ Definitions 83

Invincible #83

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL):  Villains Magmaniac and Tether Tyrant return to seek employment with Titan (a crime-lord supervillain) after attempting (and failing) at living legal and illegal lifestyles.  Magmaniac dies and Tether Tyrant cedes control of his body to the alien symbiote in the midst of sorrow at losing his best friend.

Invincible #83 (I#83): The heroes also throw a party where hints exist at some secret antics that occurred with Robot and Monster Boy during their reign of the Flaxian Empire.  The mild-mannered alter-ego of Dinosaurus also submits himself to imprisonment by the authorities.

L-FL: The definition of superhero derives from the secret held by Robot and Monster Girl.  Heroics upon a different culture on a galactic scale create a white noise of communication, where the individuals who’ve lived through such a situation remain unable to share the events and reactions with others, nor understand the events themselves and it results in them being changed in ways non comprehendible by others.

I#83: Yeah.