Invincible is one of the few superhero adaptations that not only hews fairly close to its source material, but also updates it in surprising ways. This week’s episode, “Give Us A Moment”, is a key example of this: not only does it feature the bloody rematch between Mark Grayson (Steven Yeun) and Conquest (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), but it also changes the reunion between his parents, Debbie (Sandra Oh) and Nolan (J.K. Simmons). While Debbie comes to an understanding with Nolan in the comics, she rightfully lays into him in the show, delivering a truly emotional moment. One of the biggest changes actually involves another character, Tech Jacket.
Created by Invincible co-creator Robert Kirkman and artist E.J. Su, Tech Jacket is the alter ego of Zach Thompson, a young boy whose life changes forever when he bonds with the Tech Jacket armor. The Tech Jacket transforms Zach into a living weapon, allowing him to protect the Earth from supervillains and cosmic threats. Invincible fans got their first glimpse at Tech Jacket in the Season 3 episode “This Is All My Fault,” but “Give Us A Moment” threw them for a loop with the reveal that Tech Jacket is now Zoe Thompson, and voiced by Zoey Deutch. As it turns out, there was a reason
The Tech Jacket Change in ‘Invincible’ Makes Zoe Feel More Distinct
While speaking to Den of Geek about “Give Us A Moment,” Robert Kirkman and Invincible showrunner Simon Racioppa discussed why they decided to gender-swap Tech Jacket. Kirkman said that the realization came when he looked at the comics and realized that Tech Jacket and Invincible share similar origins:
“When it came time to introduce Tech Jacket, I realized that if we had brought him straight to comics, he’d be very similar to Mark… We decided early on that it would be interesting to gender swap this character. We started thinking about who Zoe would be instead of Zach. There are some exciting things that come up when you change that character.”
Kirkman makes a great point, as Invincible and Tech Jacket both share the same concept of a teenage boy learning to be a superhero while wielding powers of alien origin. Tech Jacket would even come a full year before Invincible, arguably shaping the concepts that Kirkman would later refine in the latter book. The change also works, as Zoe is instantly a scene stealer. Zoey Deutch’s performance is full of hyperactive energy, which shows in Zoe’s battle against Walking Dread and her conversations with her father Dan (Bobby Moynihan). It’s also not the first time Invincible has made a major change to its supporting cast; superhero Shrinking Rae (Grey Griffin) is yet another example of the series gender-flipping a character and getting more out of them as a result.
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Tech Jacket Could Be A Breath of Fresh Air for ‘Invincible’, Especially In the Viltrumite War
Invincible has entered into what’s arguably its darkest storyline yet with the Viltrumite War. Mark, Zoe, Nolan and the rest of their allies have to battle against the remnants of the Viltrumite Empire, led by the tyrannical Grand Regent Thragg (Lee Pace). “Give Us A Moment” highlights how brutal this battle will be, especially with the carnage that Mark and Conquest inflict on each other, but Zoe’s presence could help lighten the mood. During the fight, she sticks close to Allen the Alien (Seth Rogen) and even lifts a trick from Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back to evade the Viltrumites. This leads to a hilarious argument about video games, but also provides a breather from the mayhem fans just witnessed.
Zoe also seems to form a connection with Mark’s brother Oliver (Christian Convery), as the two hang out while playing video games. Given that Oliver struggles to fit into human society, having him befriend Zoe can provide a connection outside of his family and give him a peer in the superhero community. It’s also a chance to lean more into Invincible‘s bittersweet nature, since Oliver’s rapid aging means that he could be older than Zoe in just a few years. Invincible excels at bringing moments from the comics that inspired it to life, but the change it makes with Tech Jacket is one of the best decisions the series has made to date.
