Invincible Universe: Battle Beast, Vol. 1: Heart of Glory

Invincible Universe: Battle Beast

by Robert Kirkman, Ryan Ottley (Cover Art), Annalisa Leoni (Cover Art)

Superstars ROBERT KIRKMAN and RYAN OTTLEY return to the INVINCIBLE UNIVERSE with the first-ever BATTLE BEAST series!

FROM THE PAGES OF INVINCIBLE & THE HIT ANIMATED SERIES ON PRIME VIDEO!

Cursed with an unquenchable thirst for violence that threatens his family and those he loves, BATTLE BEAST searches the universe for the one warrior mightier than him...so that he may die before harming anyone else.

But even in a universe of mighty Viltrumites like Invincible and Omni-Man, can anyone stop the galaxy’s deadliest warrior?

Superstars ROBERT KIRKMAN and RYAN OTTLEY present the most demanded Invincible story of all time, revealing the secret story of Battle Beast that’s perfect for long-time fans (no spoilers!) and new readers alike.

Collects Battle Beast #1-6 and content from Skybound X #25

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Comic Book, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics, Aliens

Kindle Edition

Published November 12, 2025

About the author

Robert Kirkman is an American comic book writer best known for his work on The Walking Dead, Invincible for Image Comics, as well as Ultimate X-Men and Marvel Zombies for Marvel Comics. He has also collaborated with Image Comics co-founder Todd McFarlane on the series Haunt. He is one of the five partners of Image Comics, and the only one of the five who was not one of the original co-founders of that publisher.

Robert Kirkman's first comic books were self-published under his own Funk-o-Tron label. Along with childhood friend Tony Moore, Kirkman created Battle Pope which was published in late 2001. Battle Pope ran for over 2 years along with other Funk-o-Tron published books such as InkPunks and Double Take.

In July of 2002, Robert's first work for another company began, with a 4-part SuperPatriot series for Image, along with Battle Pope backup story artist Cory Walker. Robert's creator-owned projects followed shortly thereafter, including Tech Jacket, Invincible and Walking Dead.

Reviews

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well damn, this was way better than I thought it was.

I love Invincible, it's one of my favorite comics of all time. Especially for the superhero genre. And while I miss Mark as our main lead, we got the insane, fiesty, BATTLE BEAST (Thokk) in the building.

This is the story of Battle Beast over the years in Invincible after he beat Mark and all his buddies up. He leaves his home world of Dornn because of an unquenchable thirst for combat, which he views as a curse. This sets him on a journey to find the one warrior mightier than him, hoping for a glorious death in battle.

So we know he doesn't die, but showing how he became stronger, more vicious, was a joy to watch. His savage moments are both fucked up and brutal. We see him defeat powerful foes like the Colossus of Emsiu as he searches the galaxy. Some crazy badass fights, some sick kills, and some hilarious dialogue (especially from his reluctant Ship's A.I.) make this a joy to read.

I do feel the side cast kind of just feels okay. The companion who joins him, saved from the Colossus's world, was just okay. But Battle Beast himself was a delight.

A 4 out of 5.

[FrontalNerdaty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A prequel series is a tough story to run sometimes, more so if the fate of that character is well established. However Kirkman and Ottley have risen to the challenge and presented a tale that’s enjoyable without changing what’s to come.
Whilst Battle Beast is the title of the book Kirkman mostly gives his story via other characters. BB is always the main star but he’s light on exposition which is thankfully handled by other characters. BB could be one note but Kirkman writes him akin to how Thor is handled in the MCU wherein we’re laughing with and not at the character.
Ottley’s art has never been better and the violence and gore are extremely well done.

4/5

[chvang · Rating 3 out of 5]

Battle Beast is rescued. Battle Beast kills his rescuers. Battle Beast uses their ship to hunt Big Bad Guy. Battle Beast kills Bog Bad Guy. Battle Beast is disappointed. Battle Beast goes.off to kill Bigger Bad Guy.

The battles are okay. The art is mediocre.

Mid. 3 stars. I dont recommend it.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bloody journey from planet to planet as Battle Beast tries to get himself killed...

[Shaun Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Invincible Universe: Battle Beast Vol. 1 Heart of Glory collects issues 1-6 of the Image Comics series written by Robert Kirkman, art by Ryan Ottley, and colors by

Set immediately after the events of Battle Beast’s first appearance in Invincible #19 where BB destroys the Guardians of the Globe in an epic fight, BB returns to his captured space ship after another disappointing battle. All BB seeks is a death from a worthy challenger to snuff the violent and raging fire burning in his soul. The space ship’s computer AI mourns the crew that BB killed in his takeover. The computer AI and Battle Beast make a pact for the AI to scour their databases for a being who is strong enough to finally kill Battle Beast.

This is a really fun book that doesn’t skip on over the top, barbaric, sci-fi and fantasy violence. The book is full of giant and nasty alien creatures for Battle Beast to rip limb from limb and devour. Kirkman is slowly sprinkling little moments into Battle Beast’s odyssey of death to start teasing character growth of compassion and a hero’s journey. Ottley gets to do what he does best: draw bizarre and awesome aliens in blood and guts soaked intergalactic showdowns.

[Cruze Reads Comics · Rating 3 out of 5]

Battle beast is so cool. Okay battle beast isn’t a modern masterpiece but it doesn’t have to be i enjoy just action and big fights. Battle beast is such a awesome character. he is the definiton of hell yeah he’s a big lion man starving for battles every second of the day battle beast thinks about fighting and hoping for someone to end his life and end his curse. He may be a one note character but i don’t care it’s fun to about he’s intergalactic mufasa!. The fights in this book was really fun seeing battle beast going from planet to planet finding new aliens to fight. The art was also so amazing i love ryan ottley’s art so much. this was a short review but there wasn’t a whole lot to say so i’ll give it a 3.5/5 stars

[Herrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good intro to Battle Beast, outside of the main events of Invincible. Really interesting character, but also very hard to write him. He is a powerscaling nightmare cause he is just THAT strong, that no battle (ironically enough) would be interesting. So the story does well by working around that to keep the narrative interesting.

Looking forward to read the rest of the run when it releases!

[tim]

DNF

[emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so glad Robert Kirkman is still making Invincible comics. I can't wait for V2 to come out, this was really fun.

[Patrick Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished Battle Beast Vol 1 heart of glory by Robert Kirkman & Ryan Ottley. I have missed being in the Invincible universe, since I binge read whole series back in 2019-2020. Well, I do miss Mark, the other characters it’s awesome to be in Battle Beast company and see him just search for a worthy opponent.he just wants to fight everyone and everything till he kills them or they kill him. We are not this almost has like a fantasy feel as well. Amazing art as usual, Ryan Ottley truly one of the best artists working in comics. I hope this series keeps going so I could keep reading it. I give it a four out of five stars!

[Dylan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the first issue for this online back when it came out and when I saw how quickly this TPB was released after the sixth issue I knew I had to get back into it and give it a full read.

Very pleased with it. Having read Invincible I’m familiar with Kirkman and the great art of Ottley. This is the first graphic novel I’ve read that didn’t have breaks between issues. This was slightly annoying when I started since I just wanted to read one issue then leave it, but then ended up reason a bit into the next. But once I had time to pick up and read the full thing I loved the way it flowed. I haven’t yet and don’t plan on getting into reading single issues and it’s arcs like this that make it seem like it would be hell since this all flows so nicely.

The story itself was enjoyable, Battle Beast going to fight different foes with unexpected allies along the way. There’s a good nature to him in there, explicitly stated when he mentions his restraint, and it will be interesting to see how it could develop in future arcs. Rarely a dull moment here, jumping straight in from his Invincible comic debut, to colossus, the blood games, the ambush, the witch, and finally to juggernaut. This comic is full of the action and brutality you expect going in. The cliffhanger was so cool though, with Thragg ordering that Conquest be sent to Fantania where he was maybe fight Juggernaut, and surely encounter Battle Beast. Could be how he ends up where he is when he’s next seen in the Invincible comics after his first appearance, but I guess it kind of depends how much of this they’re making.

Very enjoyable read. Cool graphic novel format with classic Kirkman invincible writing and striking Ottley art. I will be there in like 8 months when the next one is released.

[Isaiah Wofford · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started reading invincible after purchasing all 3 compendiums, the invincible universe compendium, tech jacket, the astounding wolfman, and this volume of battle beast. I looked up online about a reading order for invincible and came up with a checklist. I currently do not own capes, Brit, or patriot, or the pact so I’m not able to a 100% read of the invincible universe but I am following the reading order to the t. Currently after reading chapter 24 of invincible I was recommended to read battle beast 1-6 aka volume 1 and so I did… this story is bloody amazing. As a matter of fact it beats any thing I’ve read so far in the invincible universe, that includes : invincible 1-24, atom eve, atom eve and Rex splode, and tech jacket 1-6. That’s not to say everything I’ve read is bad btw because everything so far has been great but battle beast pacing, blood, action, plot line, unexpected character development in one volume for battle beast, and the awesome artwork puts it above the rest for me. I can’t wait to get far enough in invincible to see the art work change because that’s one thing I’ve noticed from reading the other stories outside of mainline invincible is the art work is much better. Unfortunately I’m having to read through the early issues of invincible with sub par art In my opinion before the art changes from what I hear around issue 30 something. The story of battle beast just wanting to fight someone worthy and strong enough to kill him is badass in itself but the places the story takes us is just as cool. For example meeting a computer of a crew of people battle beast killed, the computer wants to kill battle beast for avenging and help him find someone powerful enough to kill him so they both get what they want. Then they run into an prince who was swallowed by an alien who promises a being worthy enough for battle beast then running into a hag witch or tries to eat battle beast but decides to help him and then exploring an destroyed kingdom overrun by nature over the course of a thousand years. It’s just a great series already and I can’t wait for volume 2. My only complaint is with the reading order I saw online that recommended reading this after issue 24 of invincible, it in fact should’ve been recommended after battle beast is first introduced in invincible which I believe is a few issues before 24. I say this because the story of battle beast literally picks up right after his introduction. Overall 5/5 highly recommend.

[RunningRed NightBringer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A spinoff of the Invincible Comic.
I actually liked this, despite, or maybe because, it's a bit over the top.

Battle Beast is a cat person born with an unquenchable rage and lust for battle. His actions tamed his homeworld, ending conflict and turning it to a utopia. Knowing his presence would ruin that peace, he left to find worthy adversaries who could slake his rage and possibly end his life.

We know this cause he likes bringing this up. Several other characters feel obliged to exposit on their backstory and motivations. Like encountering NPCs in a game, or an old Arabian Nights/Canterbury Tales story where everyone the protagonists meet has to reveal the backstory the author came up with.

As I said, I found it enjoyable. Cause BattleBeast's attitude is usually "shut up, let's get to the fighting."

Something I didn't realize when I got it was this wasn't a limited series but the first arc of an ongoing series. So when I got to the last page and it wasn't wrapped up? A little shocked, but I checked Image's website to confirm more issues were coming out in 2026.

You don't have to have read Invincible to follow the story. There is a lot of blood and gore, but it's all aliens so it's not as visceral as say, a Garth Ennis comic book.

[AviChaim Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was fantastic from start to finish. I love Battle Beast, and I will read anything that features this character. This book fully embraces what it is. It is gory, grotesque, and violent, and it never hides who Battle Beast is. He is a brutal warrior driven by his thirst for a mighty battle and a glorious death, and he continues to chase that purpose without hesitation. Battle Beast knows exactly who he is, but I appreciate that this story gives us more room to explore and deepen his character, which seems to be what Kirkman is doing here.
The side characters were a lot of fun. Prince Salak, who is constantly in pieces while trying to convince Battle Beast to save his planet, added a unique dynamic. The Computer, who despises Battle Beast for killing her original flight crew and is actively looking for ways to kill him, was also a great addition and brought some entertaining tension.
Ottley’s art continues to deliver just as it did in the original series. Every panel looks incredible, and the splash pages especially stood out. I found myself lingering on them just to take in the detail and composition.
I couldn’t recommend this more.
Grade: A

[Riley Pilgrim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Invincible is one of my favorite comic series of all time. The Battle Beast series is no different-and while it's not as good as main comic series-this book is still a great read if you're a fan of Invincible. Battle Beast was one of my favorite characters in the comic, but we didn't see a lot of him. He never overstayed his welcome, and it was always a ride when he did show up. This series is basically a prequel or I guess a series showing what Battle Beast was doing when we didn't see him in the main series.

The best part of this comic is Ryan Ottley's art, and Battle Beast just ripping and tearing through all his opponents. The story here is solid, but it's mainly there to get Battle Beast from battle to battle. The story expands on universe of this series, introduces new characters, but we're mostly here to see Battle Beast. The action is amazing in this book, and I'm excited to see where this series goes; Kirkman said he wants to do this for a while--and I'm all for it.

[Trike · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a ridiculously over-the-top ultraviolent comic soaked in blood and gore and viscera and I’m here for it. Battle Beast is a goofy one-note character who is sort of an anthropomorphic lion mixed with DC’s Lobo whose only goal is to slake his overwhelming fury in bloody battle and hopefully die while doing it. As a result, Kirkman and Ottley put him through increasingly titanic battles where he eviscerates everyone and everything in his path. It’s just dumb fun set in the Invincible universe.



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[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Invincible has always been my favourite Robert Kirkman Image book, and seeing him return to the universe with Ryan Ottley in tow is just like catnip for me.

Battle Beast himself is fairly flat as a character to begin with, which is why we get some supporting characters to bounce off of him, including a very sarcastic computer, but across these first few issues we do get a glimpse behind the anger to the beast that lies within. This book could have a very short shelf-life, but Kirkman's clearly in for the long haul given how much he's seeded to start us off.

And no one draws senseless violence and carnage like Ryan Ottley. Just beautiful in its disgusting-ness.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection follows Battle Beast's adventures after his first encounter with Invincible and the Guardians of the Globe as he searches for an adversary who can defeat him in battle. Thokk (AKA Battle Beast) united the factions and brough peace to the planet Dornn through his limitless rage and an unquenchable thirst for combat, which is now a curse which he fears will cause him to hurt his friends and family. The art was great and the supporting characters made this a fun, if ultraviolent, adventure as they try to help Battle Beast while serving their own agendas. I received a free ARC of this compilation from the publisher.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well you get exactly what you expect from a side story like this. If you want Battle Beast ripping and tearing all the aliens then you'll have a great time. This does try to drive home the motivation of a character like him, as simple as a raging berserker can be. But this story fundamentally is going to be too basic to have any depth. Hopefully you don't expect any. It's bloody, violent, and the OG team is back fleshing out more of the character. it's great for what it is, but it's very plain, and the whiney prince got on my nerves a bit.

[Joey Ware · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you watch invincible and wonder whatever happened between seeing Battle Beast and then him reappearing this is the story that answers that question. The artwork in this is so vibrant with its use of reds and purples. The ending does its job and leaves you wanting more(this is still a current ongoing). My only real nitpick would be there is so much going on at once it is hard sometimes to tell what’s going on. If you watch Invincible, read Invincible, or do both, this is definitely must read and I am eager to see how it progresses.

[Drew Woodworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good time. Battle Beast does what Battle Beast does, and Ryan Ottley hasn't lost a step in drawing over the top bloody action sequences. In fact, I think he has evolved a little and has gotten better. Kirkman keeps the tale moving just enough to keep some stakes in there. However, he can get a bit wordy for an action book. There's a very talkative computer and then he adds a very talkative alien to the mix. It's a fun dichotomy, but not sure we needed two extremely vocal companions for Battle Beast to interact with.

[Harry Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good. So short. Looking forward to more. The dark fantasy elements in the invincible universe are so cool. The expansive vistas on the planet are truly top level art work. I love the villains character designs so decrepit and aggressive and brutal.

Some of the wildlife on the planet reminded me of the scavengers reign series.

As someone that wasn't going to read this because Battle Beast is a caricature in the animated series it's absolutely worth your time if you felt the same way.

[Elijah Medina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this as a gift due to being a fan of the Amazon animated series of Invincible. I have not read the original comics of Invincible but this volume 1 does not disappoint as it shows off the vicious character of Battle Beast.
The art is gruesome and shows off the notable artistic styles shown in various Kirkman works.
I enjoyed how they develop the perspective of the mighty Battle Beast and I can’t wait to see how they grow this character in future issues with more intense combat!

[Josh Cleverplacehölder · Rating 5 out of 5]

It doesn’t get much more straightforward than this: Battle Beast is seeking someone worthy to battle and, hopefully, kill him. But to no avail. And as he’s a 7’ cat, he eats his kills. Whether you find this gross, twisted, or hilarious (or perhaps all three?) depends on you. But if you think the gore in Invincible is a lot, you ain’t seen nothing yet!

[Daniel Pineda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Battle beast is easily one of my favorite characters in the invincible universe, so this first volume absolutely satisfies the craving to read more. The story starts after his first appearance in invincible with the order, so not exactly a deep dive into his background but still very entertaining nonetheless

[Edward Correa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
El arte es épico, con colores increíbles y escenarios maravillosamente detallados a pesar de una línea gruesa que normalmente no se asocia con este detalle. La historia es interesante y divertida. EL único detalle que podría criticarle es que los personajes son un poco planos, pero en general es una lectura que vale la pena.

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Battle Beast is a great lighthearted comic that isn't isn't trying to change the world. The art by Ryan Ottley is the best it's ever been with meaningful insight into a character that I was honestly not the biggest fan of. I changed my mind after reading this of course and am very excited for what comes next for Battle Beast.

[Mee Too · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this in issue format and by the end of issue 1 i was really uncertain by the middle of #3 i knew i was hooked! Cant wait for the next volume.

Its like if Lion-O behaved like Conan and venom. Buddy gives zero 🖕🏽’s 😆

3.8⭐️✨⭐️

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book has striking plot resemblance to Predator: Badlands and that's not a bad thing at all, because they're both pretty great. they were obviously made in parallel and released at the same time independently, but it's pretty funny how similar they ended up being.

[Keegan Schueler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome return to the invincible universe in the modern age of comics. From the art to the adventure this is a great story to be told and is an interesting character to follow on his raging battle journey.