Why is Donald alive in Invincible season 2? Details explored

Invincible returned with the second part of Season 2 after almost a four-month hiatus. The second part premiered on Amazon Prime Video on March 14, 2024.

The acclaimed superhero animated series is based on the comics created by Robert Kirkman, Cory Walker, and Ryan Ottley. The series features a stellar voice cast with actors like Steven Yeun, J.K. Simmons, Seth Rogen, Gillian Jacobs, and Sandra Oh among others.

Season 2 of Invincible followed up on the events of the exciting first season. One of the most shocking discoveries in the second season was the return of Global Defense Agency (GDA) agent Donald Ferguson (voiced by Chris Diamantopoulos).

Donald was supposed to have been killed in action in the events of the first season and returned in the second season without any explanation. It is expected that the mystery behind Donald's return will be uncovered as the second season unfolds.

There are only a few clues hinted at in the episodes that have been released so far, with GDA playing a major role in Donald being alive, as he is now an android.

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Why was Debbie surprised to see Donald in Invincible Season 2?

Donald Ferguson was the somber but efficient right-hand man to the director of the GDA, Cecil Stedman (Walton Goggins). He was an integral character throughout the first season and even helped Cecil uncover any clues that would prove his suspicion about Omni-Man (J.K. Simmons) killing the entire Guardians of the Globe.

However, it was established very clearly in the final episode of season 1 of Invincible that Donald gets killed by Omni-Man. In Season 2, Donald returned to work with Cecil Stedman with no explanation, after having his back broken and sliced open by Omni-Man (and then heroically attempting to suicide bomb himself to kill him to no avail).

Debbie (Sandra Oh) is especially surprised to see Donald in the second episode of Season 2. She knew that Donald blew himself up trying to stop Omni-Man, but he appeared hale and hearty with no memory of the incident. This shocked Debbie, who suspects Cecil of having something to do with Donald's return.

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Is Donald a clone?

A still from Season 2 (image via Prime Video)

As the events of Invincible unfold in Season 2, Donald uncovers that he is an android. He is not a clone, but his body is completely mechanical. After his death, the GDA preserved his brain and transferred it into a state-of-the-art mechanical body.

Donald's memory of his death was wiped away, so that he would not know that he was an android. However, the latest episode of Invincible saw Cecil finally reveal the truth to a very disappointed Donald.

Donald's transformation might have been due to the usage of D.A. Sinclair's technology, shown in the first season. Sinclair was conducting human trials and turning them into ReAnimen (mechanical zombie-like creatures). However, this is a speculation, and the complete details about Donald's revival have not been explored in the series yet.

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Does Donald have superpowers?

In the series, Donald only recently discovered that he is an android. He is significantly tougher than his human form since he has a mechanical body. A strong blade pierced his skin but it got bent in the process, as shown in part one of Season 2. His android body makes him more resistant than before.

While the series has not explored Donald's powers yet, in the Invincible comics Donald can repair himself and also weaponize parts of his body to neutralize enemies.

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Stay tuned for upcoming episodes of Invincible Season 2, streaming only on Amazon Prime Video.