Is Invincible an anime?

Invincible, the hit animated series based on the comic series by The Walking Dead’s Robert Kirkman has returned to the spotlight after the two year hiatus between season 1 and season 2. Between November 3 and November 24, four episodes have either aired or are about to air via Amazon Prime Video, with the last four slated for early-2024.

But, given Invincible’s status as an adult animation series that isn’t afraid to turn the violence and gore up to 11 on more than one occasion, some would like to know if the series is an anime. So, let’s explore this topic lightly and see if we can’t come to a consensus.

Is Invincible an anime?

I like to approach questions like this with the utmost understanding. In the past, I have said that Avatar: The Last Airbender is an anime due to its stylistic and aesthetic inspirations. But, even if I let myself be fully understanding of different viewpoints, I can’t imagine a reality where Invincible is considered an anime. It’s very clearly a Western superhero-inspired adult animation, and no matter how you twist the semantics, it would take a whole lot of mental gymnastics to qualify this one.

That said, Invincible is animated by a South Korean studio called Maven Image Platform. This studio has also contributed to such iconic series’ as Harley Quinn and Invader ZIM, but as far as we can tell, no anime. If Maven had been credited for a handful of traditional anime series’, it’d be easier to make the argument that Invincible could be considered anime.

As in the case of Avatar: The Last Airbender, however, it’s ultimately up to you. If it helps you to live your best life, then by all means consider Invincible an anime. But in this writer’s humble opinion, it’s not.