Invincible Season 3’s most shocking betrayal was completely justified

If you’re a fan of Invincible, you know Cecil Stedman, the head of the Global Defense Agency, is a shady guy. 

He’s the type of person who’s willing to do anything to get the job done. Whether that means recruiting psychopathic scientists, allying himself with murderers, or spying on the superheroes he’s responsible for, there are seemingly no lines Cecil won’t cross to keep Earth safe. 

However, in Invincible Season 3, Cecil committed his biggest betrayal to date. During the second episode, it was revealed that the super spy had implanted an earpiece deep in Mark Graysons‘ head capable of producing a sound that could paralyze the young half-Viltrumite. 

The revelation that Cecil had a contingency plan in case Mark turned out to be like his father, rather understandably, pissed our titular hero off, and he swore never to work for the GDA again. To make matters worse, Cecil’s betrayal caused several Guardians of the Globe members to quit, disgusted by what they saw as their boss’s betrayal. Here’s the thing, though: Cecil was right… or at least he wasn’t wrong to do what he did. 

Mark is dangerous

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That’s potentially a controversial statement, I know. I think the show definitely portrays Cecil’s actions as treacherous, and there are plenty of lingering shots of Mark writhing in agony to hammer home the horror of what’s happening. Even Cecil’s loyal right-hand man, Donald, seems disturbed by the lengths his boss went to. 

You’re definitely meant to think Cecil has gone too far this time, but I don’t think he did. Let’s remember that in the world of Invincible, we’re just a few months on from Omni-Man and Invincible’s brawl, which leveled several city blocks and led to the deaths of hundreds if not thousands of people. 

While we’re not given an exact number of casualties, it’s clear from the way citizens talk about it that it’s comparable in scale to real-world events like 9/11. This shocking and deadly attack revealed that even Earth’s mightiest heroes and every contingency they had was nothing in the face of one determined Viltrumite. 

As the man responsible for humanity’s safety, Cecil had a duty to defend the Earth from the Viltrumites, including Mark. After all, Nolan appeared to be a hero for nearly 20 years before he betrayed Earth. Who’s to say Mark won’t do the same?

As the audience, we know Mark’s not like that, but Cecil’s not omniscient; he doesn’t know what’s going through Invincible’s head all of the time. So, he had to take steps to protect the planet.

Of course, where you fall on this will depend on whether you subscribe to utilitarian or deontological ethics. A utilitarian believes that the ends justify the means, that it doesn’t matter how you do something, just what the result is. Meanwhile, someone of a more deontological bent believes that doing bad things, even if your ultimate aim is noble, is immoral. 

No easy answers

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It’s easy for us to say as viewers that hurting Mark was wrong. Therefore, Cecil is a bad guy. But imagine if you’d lost someone in Omni-Man’s attack, and then you found out that the government had done nothing to prevent future attacks like that. You’d rightly be horrified. 

You can argue I’m being awfully cynical, but I’ve not got the monopoly on cynicism. I think Mark’s attitude toward Cecil’s attempts to rehabilitate Doctor Sinclair and Darkwing 2 proves that Mark’s position isn’t inherently an optimistic one. He presumes that bad people will always be bad, whereas Cecil believes you can be reformed. That’s a pragmatic and optimistic way of thinking. 

Ultimately, where you fall on this argument will depend on your own philosophy and beliefs. Perhaps I’ve been a bit reactionary – as there’s definitely an argument to be made that Cecil’s actions have, in fact, made a future Viltrumite attack more likely than less likely – and I do think Cecil’s actions were cruel. Yet, honestly, I can understand why a man like that, who’s seen the worst humanity (and superhumanity) has to offer, would choose to do what he did. 

Honestly, if I was in Cecil’s hundred-dollar loafers? In a world that isn’t black and white, I think I’d do the same. I admit that might make me a bad guy, but as Cecil would say, “You can be a good guy or the guy who saves the world. You can’t be both.”

Ok, that’s enough philosophical musing, let’s get to the SEO gubbins and get the hell out of here. If you like superhero shows, then you’re in luck, as we’ve ranked every Marvel show. If that’s not enough, we’ve also got a guide to every upcoming Marvel movie.