10 Best Costumes From the Invincible Universe, Ranked

Robert Kirkman’s critically acclaimed Image Comics series Invincible has provided some of the best stories and characters in the company’s history. The story of the titular teenage human/Viltrumite learning the hardships of having a superhero career has enamored fans for decades. It’s such an iconic series, in part, because the characters wear vibrant, striking costumes that catch readers’ eyes. Indeed, the Invincible Universe has some of the best new superhero costumes of the modern age, not only because they look cool but also because they often serve as visual metaphors for a character’s identity and development. These are the best costumes from Image Comics’ best superhero universe.

The Invincible Universe features many of the best hero and villain costumes in Image Comics.

10) Rex-Splode

Rex-Splode’s suit perfectly balances functionality and his flashiness. Given Rex-Splode’s ability to charge objects with energy to turn them into explosive weapons, his costume is outfitted with numerous pockets full of items that can be used in an instant. Unlike other superhero costumes, Rex-Splode’s suit is loose and bulky, making it look like it’s built to protect him from his own explosions. This is further enforced by Rex-Splode’s goggles, which ensure that he doesn’t close his eyes to the debris and flash from the blasts of his bombs. The red and yellow color scheme also works to help him stand out and references his destructive abilities.

9) Emperor Invincible

The Invincible series ends with the titular hero take his rightful place as the emperor of the Viltrumite Empire. As a symbol of his efforts to have the Viltrumite Empire abandon its warmongering ways, his new suit merges traditional emperor garb with the colors of his original costume. Instead of red, grey, and white like previous Viltrumite rulers, Invincible’s emperor suit is blue, gold, and white. He also refuses to grow the traditional Viltrumite mustache, signifying the Empire’s transition into a new age founded on peace, acceptance, and altruism. It’s the best merging of Invincible’s human and Viltrumite heritages, and the culmination of his character arc from a teenage superhero to the ruler of the greatest peacekeepers in the universe.

8) Conquest

Everything about Conquest’s appearance portrays who he is and what the rest of the Viltrumite Empire represents. His age, scars, and robot arm all convey his ancient age, even compared to other Viltrumites who have lived for thousands of years. Even more, the design shows how he has been through countless battles and most likely butchered billions of people across the universe. His scars reflect someone who’s emerged victorious against foes who can deal permanent damage to virtually invulnerable Viltrumites. Together, his look serves to show Conquest as a ruthless, intimidating warrior who lives for combat and bloodshed. Conquest is the pinnacle of everything the Viltrumite Empire stands for: fear, sadism, and overwhelming power.

7) Robot

Initially possessing a small, frail, and deformed body, the brilliant Robot developed humanoid drones to interact with the outside world and fight crime. Even after he grew a new body, he continued to use these drones and armor to battle opponents physically stronger than he was. Of these drone designs, the best is easily the last one that he used to conquer the world. Fitting for his turn to villainy, Robot’s newest drones sport all-black color schemes instead of the standard orange. Their size and extra plating also help convey their immense power, even capable of combating Viltrumites. They are the perfect representation of Robot’s abandonment of his humanity to become an authoritarian ruler of Earth, with both the brains and the power to enforce his rule.

6) Blue Invincible

To celebrate the hero’s 50th issue, Invincible received an all-new costume from his tailor, Art. The new suit simplifies the color scheme to just blue and black, creating a striking contrast with his original bright yellow costume. Invincible wore this costume for 20 issues in a time dubbed the “Blue Suit Era.” Like the costume itself, Invincible went through some of his darkest and most traumatic events, including his brother Oliver killing the Mauler Twins, the emergence of Powerplex, the “Invincible War,” his fight with Conquest, and murdering Rus Livingston. Invincible himself viewed the suit as a curse because, during his time wearing it, he became a much angrier person, more willing to kill. The dark aesthetic of the blue suit captures Invincible’s descent.

5) Battle Beast

To make an alien who lives only to fight worthy opponents and die gloriously in battle, artists designed Battle Beast to look as intimidating as possible. Battle Beast’s design as a towering humanoid lion-like alien with razor-sharp teeth and claws makes his strength and ferocity abundantly clear. His black, red, and yellow clothes also reflect his personality as a vicious, bloodthirsty fighter, whom his people nonetheless laud as a legendary hero and champion. The braiding of his mane also harkens back to Viking warriors who had similar philosophies on conflict and death. Add in a massive mace that can reduce enemies to smitheries, and you’ve got a recipe for a character who looks like the ultimate intergalactic gladiator and warrior.

4) Atom Eve

Invincible’s love interest, Atom Eve, is one of the most powerful humans in the series with the ability to manipulate matter down to the atomic level. She uses this power to construct herself a new costume every time it’s time to save the day. Atom Eve wears a cool body suit in light pink and a cute short cape. Her symbol is also very clever and fitting to her name, as it’s a female gender sign mixed with the design of an atom. Atom Eve has one of the more vibrant superhero costumes in the Invincible Universe, and the color perfectly matches her red hair and pink constructs.

3) Grand Regent Thragg

As the main villain of the Invincible Universe and the ruler of the Viltrumite Empire, Grand Regent Thragg has an incredibly intimidating design. Instead of the classic all-white Viltrumite uniform, Thragg is outfitted with red and grey clothing that represent his royalty and ruthlessness as a warrior and leader. His strength and leadership are further emphasized when he dons his flowing cape and fur collar, reminiscent of a king. And of course, Thragg’s design gets a significant and terrifying upgrade when he kills Battle Beast and wears his pelt like Hercules donning the Nemian Lion. Only the strongest of the Viltrumites can lead them, and Thragg’s design perfectly conveys that he’s the strongest of them all.

2) Omni-Man

When Omni-Man was first introduced, he was an obvious analog to Superman, and his suit reflected that. Posing as the mightiest hero of Earth, Omni-Man’s blue and red costume with a flowing cape harkens back to classic superhero costumes, which made his villainous reveal even more shocking. Additionally, the color palette and design make his strength clear. The giant “O” symbol is also a very striking design that became instantly iconic. In a clever hint to Omni-Man’s original intentions and loyalty, the linear space within his insignia draws a clear parallel to the symbol of the Viltrumite Empire, which consists of three lines within a circle. While Omni-Man would go on to wear many more outfits, his original outfit was always the best.

1) Invincible’s Original Costume

To become one of Image Comics’ most beloved characters, Invincible needed an equally iconic costume. The superhero tailor Art made the first suit for Invincible. The costume brilliantly incorporates the shape of the “I” logo into the chest area and the mask. The yellow, blue, and black color scheme is also masterfully balanced, helping Invincible stand out. Additional design choices like the fingerless gloves, kneepads, and eye lenses all help to make Invincible’s costume stand apart from other superhero costumes even more. While Invincible has worn many costumes over his career, he always returns to his original because it represents the hope and heroism he continuously strives for.

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