Invincible Season 3's Dragon Villain Explained: Origin, Powers & How He Survives

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Invincible season 3, episodes 1-5, and the Invincible comic series.Mister Liu has been a minor part of Invincible's story throughout the first two seasons, but season 3 finally gave him a chance to shine by showing the dragon villain's full potential. After the hype behind Battle Beast's Invincible season 3 return, the show wasted no time enhancing other menacing villains, as Mister Liu's episode 5 appearance was a strong reminder of the threats still lingering on Earth. Although the Viltrumites will undoubtedly be Mark and Earth's other heroes' biggest challenge, characters like Liu still shouldn't be underestimated, and his confrontation with the protagonist proves that.

Other than a background cameo in season 1, Liu hasn't had a real chance to showcase his powers, but his attempt to break Multi-Paul out of prison in season 3 changed that. The antagonist transformed into a dragon and caused chaos, highlighting his undeniable strength. Unfortunately, the show has yet to reveal how and why he has those powers, nor has it given much insight into his unique look. However, the comics provide a lot of these answers and uncover Liu's true capabilities as a villain, meaning fans can have a better understanding of just how menacing he is.

How Invincible's Mister Liu Can Transform Into A Dragon

Liu Volunteered To Become Bound With The Dragon That Destroyed His Home

After Titan failed to break Multi-Paul out of prison, Mister Liu took matters into his own hands by turning into a dragon, but Prime Video's show hasn't offered much explanation on how he's able to do this. His fight against Omni-Man in season 1 offered no context about why he can transform, while his run-in with Titan in season 3 only confirmed that he can go from his human form into a dragon. Luckily, the comics explain the origins of his powers in detail, as the source material reveals they come from the tragic destruction of his home in China.

After a powerful dragon wreaked havoc on his village and killed his family, it was eventually stopped by various sorcerers, who revealed the creature could only be contained by being bound to a human soul. Liu volunteered having lost seemingly everything, which gave him the power to transform into this dragon and adopt its strength, causing his human body to fall into an unconscious state every time he uses the ability. As he got older, Liu needed cybernetic modifications to prolong his life so that the dragon could be contained, causing him to grow increasingly bitter and ruthless.

Liu's ability to transform into a dragon on command makes him one of Earth's biggest threats, proving he'll be difficult to stop.

While he may not be much of a physical threat in his human body, he still holds a lot of influence in the criminal underworld, and the fact that he can essentially become an unstoppable dragon highlights why he has so much respect from the Order. With Invincible season 3 already making Doc Seismic stronger than before, having more intimidating villains is the last thing the show's heroes need, and Liu's ability to transform into a dragon on command makes him one of Earth's biggest threats, proving he'll be difficult to stop.

What Mister Liu's Dragon Powers & Strength Level Are

In His Dragon Form, Liu Can Go Toe-To-Toe With Powerful Viltrumites

Mister Liu in his dragon form - Invincible

Although Liu may not look very intimidating at first glance, his dragon powers are some of the strongest in the show. Alongside being able to fly and breathe fire, the dragon's mass and weight can destroy entire villages, while its sharp teeth are capable of wounding even the most resilient of fighters, as his run-in with Mark proved. Together, Mark and Eve were able to hold their own with Liu's dragon form, but the protagonist was close to defeat without Eve after attempting to save civilians nearly cost him his life during the prison battle.

Mark Grayson looking scary with blood covering him next to a young Omni-Man in Invincible

One Of Invincible's Strongest Characters Hasn't Even Shown Their Full Power Yet

Invincible has introduced a plethora of powerful characters, but one of the show's strongest fighters has kept their full potential hidden.

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Additionally, Liu went toe-to-toe with Omni-Man in season 1 and lived to tell the tale, indicating that even Viltrumites can't take down a threat of Liu's caliber easily. His human form remains a weakness, as Machine Head was able to shoot his unconscious body, which stopped the dragon in its tracks. Still, looking purely at his strengths and abilities as a dragon, Liu is among Invincible's most powerful characters and seems to have plenty of durability. Therefore, his supposed death could have been a blessing in disguise, but season 3, episode 5, revealed he actually survived Machine Head's bullet.

How Mister Liu Is Still Alive After Fighting Invincible

The Villain Seemed To Be Resurrected By His Bodyguard

Mister Liu's bodyguard releasing a dragon spirit into Liu's injured body in Invincible season 3

Having already fought with Omni-Man, Liu had another scrap with the Nolan family when he faced Invincible and Atom Eve, yet he managed to survive once again. The battle was actually going in his favor towards the end, as he had Mark severely wounded, but with Machine Head shooting his unguarded body, it seemed like the villain was done for. Machine Head seized his operation with Titan managing to keep hold of the city and exit the Order, but the antagonists overlooked one crucial detail, as Liu somehow survived thanks to his trusted bodyguard.

Invincible Season 3 Episodes	Release Date
Episode 1: "You're Not Laughing Now"	February 6, 2025
Episode 2: "A Deal With The Devil"	February 6, 2025
Episode 3: "You Want A Real Costume, Right?"	February 6, 2025
Episode 4: "You Were My Hero"	February 13, 2025
Episode 5: "This Was Supposed To Be Easy"	February 20, 2025
Episode 6: "All I Can Say Is I'm Sorry"	February 27, 2025
Episode 7: "What Have I Done?"	March 6, 2025
Episode 8: "I Thought You'd Never Shut Up"	March 13, 2025

Although Machine Head, Titan, and Isotope devised a plan that saw the bodyguard being dropped from the sky, the enforcer seemed to also possess some sort of dragon ability based on episode 5's ending. Despite last seeing the character fall from the sky, Liu's bodyguard appears at the end of the episode with an injured arm, cleaning his employer's body before letting out his own dragon spirit which enters Liu. How this process works and the origins of the bodyguard remain unexplained, but the dragon's soul seems to resurrect Mister Liu, meaning he will likely be out for revenge.

Invincible has still left the precise details of Liu and his bodyguard's survival a bit of a mystery, but their dragon-based powers undeniably played a role in their survival, making their involvement going forward all the more interesting.