Why Invincible Should Fear Thragg The Most

This article discusses the "Invincible" comics and could potentially spoil plot points for future seasons of "Invincible" on Amazon Prime Video.

Amazon's "Invincible" wrapped up its third season in spectacular fashion. The titular hero — real name Mark Grayson (voiced by Steven Yeun) — faced his most powerful foe yet in the form of Conquest (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), who almost killed him, Atom Eve (Gillian Jacobs), and Oliver Grayson (Christian Convery) in one fell swoop. Fortunately, Mark and Atom Eve were both able to realize their true potential and put him out of commission — at least, we hope he's out of commission, considering Cecil (Walton Goggins) has him locked up somewhere, which just seems like a bad idea.

For now, Conquest is out of the picture, but that doesn't mean Mark can sit back and relax, because there's still a hugely formidable villain from the comics he needs to watch out for. Creator Robert Kirkman has teased that the "Invincible" show could last for seven or eight seasons, meaning there's plenty of time for the hero to face off against the big bad of the comics and the one entity he should fear above all others — Thragg, Grand Regent of the Viltrumites.

Thragg was introduced in "Invincible Returns" #1 from Kirkman, Ryan Ottley, Cory Walker, and Rus Wooton, but he hasn't been shown at all in the animated series. That's seemingly about to change, as Kirkman has teased that Thragg's voice actor has been cast, so it seems likely he'll finally appear in Season 4. And when he does, Mark better watch out: If you thought that Invincible got beaten to a bloody pulp before, just wait until you see what Thragg can do. Here's why Mark should fear him more than anyone.

There's a reason that the creative forces behind the "Invincible" Prime Video series probably haven't found it necessary to bring in Thragg just yet: As Grand Regent of the Viltrumites, he doesn't really need to get his hands dirty if he doesn't want to. He rules over the Viltrum Empire, and so far, others like Conquest and Anissa (voiced by Shantel VanSanten) have been more than happy to pummel Mark for him. However, being a leader in this world can be precarious.

Thragg has personal reasons for ensuring neither Mark or Nolan Grayson, aka Omni-Man (J.K. Simmons), stand in his way, as revealed in "Invincible" #102. In this issue, Thragg regales Nolan with how he came to power. Before him, Argall ruled over Viltrum, and one of his many heirs (who were dispersed to avoid being found and killed by an enemy of Viltrum) was destined to ascend to the throne. Thragg assumed the position of Grand Regent following a Viltrum civil war and promised to find an heir, but never did.

However, he finds out that at least one of Argall's heirs still lives — Nolan. This is why Thragg seeks to kill him in that issue, because he doesn't want to risk the Viltrumites following Nolan instead of him. As descendants of Argall, Thragg has a very good reason for wanting to kill both Nolan and Mark — he wants to make sure that his power isn't questioned, and that makes him very dangerous.

As a Viltrumite, Thragg has all the same powers that Mark and Nolan possess. He can fly and has super strength, stamina, and speed. He can heal quickly and has already been alive for thousands of years. It may not sound all that impressive considering Nolan has those same qualities, but after seeing Thragg fight on the pages of various "Invincible" comic books, it soon becomes very clear that Thragg is the strongest of all Viltrumites. 

Viltrum is a militaristic society where all members are trained from young ages to fight and expand the empire. They're not above killing one another throughout their training if it means weeding out the weaker individuals so that the stronger ones can thrive. Thragg is no exception, and, in fact, he was bred to be the strongest Viltrumite of them all. Nolan lays this out clearly in "Invincible" #76.

In this issue, Mark and Nolan fight Thragg, and Nolan concedes that they can't beat him. He says: "In order to be made Regent, Thragg was trained from birth, tempered to be the strongest among us all... educated in all manners of combat... We simply cannot defeat him on our own." Those who watch the "Invincible" show have already seen how powerful Viltrumites can be through Nolan and Conquest. If Thragg is even stronger than them, that spells trouble for Mark.

It's easy to forget just how durable Viltrumites can be. Mark is half-Viltrumite, but he regularly deals with broken bones and blood coming out of virtually every orifice. But other Viltrumites are more equipped to take a punch, with Thragg chief among them. 

In the aforementioned "Invincible" #76, which is part of the Viltrumite War arc, Mark and Nolan battle Thragg and some of his cronies in space. Mark charges toward Thragg and punches him in the head — and the attack doesn't do anything at all. Instead, Thragg gains the upper hand on Mark very quickly, punching him through the vast, empty vacuum of space while getting both hands on either side of his head, causing Mark to... well, see the earlier comment about blood coming out of every orifice. 

Granted, this could simply be a case of Mark underestimating his enemy and not putting enough into his punches. But there are various instances throughout the comics of Thragg getting attacked by other Viltrumites, whose punches also do nothing. Thragg can catch the oncoming fists of others with ease before punching them back or dismembering his opponent. From his early appearances, it becomes abundantly clear that defeating Thragg will require more than brute force. 

"Invincible" Season 3 ends with arguably the bloodiest battle yet. Mark barely holds his own against Conquest, and Invincible only wins after Atom Eve comes back to life with new, powerful abilities to significantly weaken his opponent before Mark delivers the finishing blow. Unfortunately, Cecil keeping Conquest locked up might just be the dumbest thing he's ever done, as Conquest inevitably escapes in the comics to return to Thragg, and we get a whole new side to the character. 

Conquest is a brutal opponent. In the "Invincible" show, he even waxes poetic to Mark about how he doesn't even have a name, only a purpose. But when he sees Thragg to inform him of his failure in "Invincible Returns" #1, Conquest looks utterly pathetic. Conquest gets on his knees and begs Thragg for forgiveness and to spare him. The fact Conquest needs to ask to be spared clearly indicates Thragg could kill him easily if he wanted to. Fortunatly for Conquest, Thragg has other plans for the Viltrumite, and Mark fights him yet again.

Conquest is easily the most deranged fighter Mark has gone up against yet in the animated series. The fact that he breaks out of Cecil's holding cell and then practically prostrates himself in front of Thragg while begging for forgiveness shows how much respect the Grand Regent commands. If Mark was afraid of Conquest, this one moment is reason enough for him to be utterly terrified of Thragg. 

The "Invincible" Prime Video series has already begun Nolan's redemption arc. He left Earth following his city-leveling fight with Mark in the Season 1 finale, following the most brutal moment of the season where Nolan forces Mark's body through an oncoming train, killing all the passengers. Since then, he's fathered another child, Oliver, with a Thraxan and been imprisoned by his fellow Viltrumites. Thanks to Allen the Alien (Seth Rogen), he escapes, and, based on the comics, Nolan is going to fight alongside Mark in the future rather than against him. This includes battling Thragg and a horde of Viltrumites during the Viltrumite War, and even though Nolan has proven his might time and time again, he's no match against Thragg.

Nolan does a little better against the Grand Regent than Mark does in "Invincible" #76, but even then, he's defeated handily when Thragg impales Nolan with his arm. It's an exceptionally graphic panel, as Nolan then drifts through space with blood and organs moving everywhere. Thragg could've killed both Nolan and Mark right then and there, but he tells his Viltrumite followers not to dispatch them. The Viltrum empire is weak, after all — as Nolan revealed in "Invincible" Season 3, there are only about 50 Viltrumites left in total.

The fact that Thragg needs as many Viltrumites as he can get could be a saving grace for Nolan and Mark when the villain gets introduced to the show. One would imagine he'd have similar goals in the series, but, while Mark may not have to worry about Thragg killing him, he could still get beat up a lot worse than what we've already seen. And that's saying nothing of Mark's loved ones, who could also end up in Thragg's crosshairs. Keeping Viltrumites alive is one thing, but let's not forget that Thragg is utterly ruthless and isn't above hurting people in other ways.

From what we've seen in the "Invincible" show so far, there's only one character who might be stronger than Omni-Man and that's Battle Beast, voiced by Michael Dorn. Also known as Thokk, Battle Beast was introduced in Season 1 and easily defeated both Mark and the Guardians of the Globe. He could've killed Mark right then and there, but he lives by a strict code of honor and doesn't kill anyone he views as "beneath" him. That's basically his whole deal: He wants to fight the strongest opponents and aims to receive an honorable death at their hands. When he comes back in Season 3, Allen promises him a fight against the Viltrumites, and Battle Beast manages to kill one of them. He's captured while floating through space, and it's a good bet the show will adapt one of the most brutal fights in the comics where he dukes it out with Thragg. 

It's an intense battle that spans several issues. At one point, Thragg gets disemboweled by some aliens and Battle Beast refuses to fight an opponent who has been weakened outside of the fight. The answer? Battle Beast chooses to also disembowel himself to make it fair. Their duel wages on for days, and even though Battle Beast gets some good shots in, it's Thragg who ultimately emerges victorious, giving Battle Beast the death he always wanted. To show his dominance, Thragg wears Battle Beast's pelt. This is somewhat arrogant, but, more than anything, it's a testament to how strong Thragg is. Battle Beast could've killed Mark, so the fact that Thragg kills the alien warrior proves how much of a challenge Mark will have. 

Thragg is the Grand Regent of the Viltrumites not solely because he's the strongest among them. He's a leader, so he knows when to keep a level head and see the forest among the trees. He might technically lose the Viltrumite War in the comics, surrendering to Mark and Nolan, but it's all for a greater purpose.

In "Invincible" #77, Thragg offers the two a truce. He'll spare Earth and will no longer attack any of the planet's citizens. However, this comes at the price of the remaining Viltrumites (37 at this point in the comics) living among humans to interbreed with them. He knows the necessity of fleshing out the Viltrumite ranks across the ensuing millennia, and Mark is incredibly hesitant to take this deal, knowing that the Viltrum Empire will just be an even greater threat in the future if they do nothing now. But that's the harsh reality of Thragg's offer. 

Mark can't win either way in this scenario. If he refuses Thragg's offer, the remaining Viltrumites under his command will annihilate Earth. Even if Mark, Nolan, and the planet's other heroes manage to kill a few of them, humanity would likely go extinct. There's no way for Mark to win at this point in time, so he takes the best offer he can get, thereby ending the Viltrumite War but on terms he's not happy with. It's proof of Thragg's true power. Yes, he's incredibly strong, but he's also a strategic mastermind. His plans span centuries, so even when he shows mercy, it's often in service of some larger goal that's more important to him.

Thragg may have spared Mark and Nolan during the Viltrumite War, but don't go thinking he's a softie. Following his exile after Nolan is revealed to be the true heir to the Viltrum throne, Thragg lands on Thraxa. This is the planet Nolan went to in "Invincible" Season 2 where he mates with Andressa (Rhea Seehorn), and the two have Oliver together as a Viltrumite/Thraxan hybrid. In the comics, Thragg takes Nolan's idea to a disturbing new degree. 

Thragg effectively mates with as many Thraxan women as he can. And since Thraxan DNA allows offspring to age rapidly, he quickly amasses an army of children at his disposal. Since he's been deposed as the Viltrumite Grand Regent, he can at least rule over these new additions to the Viltrumite legacy. And Thragg raises his children as they would on Viltrum, sacrificing many of them so that only the strongest survive. And once the time finally comes for him to attack Mark again, he uses his children as shields, with numerous offspring dying as a result. 

Even Thragg's children with names aren't safe. Thragg has a pair of twins — Onaan and Ursaal — and the trio go to take on Mark and Eve. When Thragg has Terra, Mark and Eve's daughter, cornered, Mark threatens Onaan's life. Thragg insists Mark doesn't kill people, but he's come a long way since his no-killing days, with Mark crushing Onaan's neck. Part of the old Viltrumite code is not to get hung up on emotional connections, even children, and Thragg barely mourns his son's death after the battle. If Thragg's brutality extends to his children, no one is truly safe. 

This might be the biggest comic spoiler of them all, so scroll on to the next article if you don't want to know how Mark's feud with Thragg turns out...

Mark does end up killing Thragg at the end of the "Invincible" storyline, but Thragg certainly caused a lot of destruction during his tenure. From being the Grand Regent to an exiled leader seeking to carve a new legacy for Viltrum all on his own, Thragg proves himself one of the most powerful forces in the "Invincible" universe, and Mark only defeats him with a little help.

Mark and Thragg fight in a sun's core, causing both of them to gradually lose their skin. It's not long until they're both just masses of muscle and tissue punching each other. But Mark takes on less sun damage than Thragg thanks to one of Robot's suits of armors going into the sun and encompassing Mark, protecting him from the sun for a little bit while Thragg takes on more damage. Mark eventually kills Thragg, but he would've died in the sun as well if Allen didn't come to save him in the final moments while Thragg's body disintegrates from the heat. 

Mark kills Thragg with help from Robot and he only survives himself thanks to Allen. It's a team effort, which plays into the overarching themes of "Invincible" that emotional connections do, in fact, make you stronger rather than weaker. But considering everything Thragg does before his death, there's a good reason why Mark should be afraid of him going into "Invincible" Season 4 and beyond. If the show does last for seven or even eight seasons, that's a lot of time for Thragg to do some serious harm.