How Monster Girl Was Cursed In Invincible (& How Her Powers Work)

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Invincible season 3, episodes 1-6.Many of Invincible's superheroes have tragic origin stories, and Monster Girl is no exception, as her powers came through an unfortunate curse. Despite having the visual appearance of a 12-year-old girl, Amanda is actually a grown woman who looks much younger due to her superpowers. She has been a part of Invincible's Guardians of the Globe alongside Teen Team and Rex Splode's new hero group, proving she has plenty of experience when it comes to saving lives. Still, this is only possible through the curse that gave Amanda her powers, which the TV series has yet to explain in depth.

Prime Video's show has made it clear that Amanda is able to transform into an ogre-like figure, which gives her enhanced strength and durability. However, this comes with a drawback, as using these powers causes her to visually de-age, hence why she appears much younger than she actually is. Thankfully, the comics give a better understanding of how Amanda became cursed alongside the drawbacks of her transformations. In addition, Invincible season 3 finally revealed Rudy's secret project, offering a potential glimpse into Monster Girl's future while explaining how she may be able to use her powers permanently.

How & When Monster Girl Was Cursed, According To The Invincible Comics

Amanda Was Cursed By Her Ex-Boyfriend's Grandmother During Her Senior Year

Monster Girl in first plane looking angry and squad in the back in Invincible

Given how faithful Invincible has stayed to the source material, it's unlikely that the show will change Monster Girl's comic origins, which explain exactly how she got her powers. Just like how Multi-Paul and Dupli-Kate gained their Invincible powers through a curse, Amanda did too, but she wasn't born with her abilities. Instead, she developed them after her ex-boyfriend's grandmother placed the curse on her while abroad in her Senior Year. Amanda dated a Romanian man, but his grandmother was incredibly strict and disapproved of their relationship, which reached a boiling point when she spotted the young couple sneaking around.

Mark looking angry and bloodied in Invincible Season 3

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In response, the grandmother cursed a strand of Amanda's hair, resulting in her gaining superpowers which she discovered on a plane. From there, she learned how to control these abilities, transforming into and out of her monster state on command. Although Invincible never explicitly states how old Monster Girl is, she seems to be in her mid-20s, highlighting how often she has used her powers. Given she became a local hero before joining Teen Team, she has presumably had her abilities for several years by the events of season 3, based on the comics' timeline.

How Monster Girl's Transformations Work In Invincible

Every Time Monster Girl Uses Her Superhuman Abilities, It Causes Her To Appear Physically Younger

Although it took her some time to control her superhero side, Monster Girl's transformations now happen on command, but with a twist. Amanda can change from her human form into the ogre-like creature that has allowed her to fight numerous villains throughout Invincible, but each time she reverts back to her human state, she physically de-ages. According to Rudy, the magic curse has a bug in it that makes her cells 24 hours younger than when she initially transforms. While this may not be noticeable right away, Amanda's frequent use of her powers has had a huge impact.

Being in her monster form allows Amanda to fight crime and take on villains that simply wouldn't be possible in her human form.

Rather than looking like a woman in her mid-20s, she appears half that age visually, presumably because she has continued to transform despite knowing the side effects. Being in her monster form allows Amanda to fight crime and take on villains that simply wouldn't be possible in her human form, showing how noble her decision to continue being a hero is. While these transformations don't alter her mentally, the younger she becomes, the harder it'll be to function normally, but season 3 looks to have finally offered a solution to Amanda's curse, without taking away her powers.

How Rudy Fixes Monster Girl's Curse In Invincible Season 3

Rudy Develops A Belt That Prevents The Curse From Making Amanda Younger

Amanda / Monster Girl participating in Rudy / Robot's experiment in Invincible

Ever since they first met, Rudy became instantly fascinated by Amanda, resulting in them growing closer and even having a borderline romantic relationship. Since then, he has taken it upon himself to try and find a solution to Amanda's curse, which he seems to have finally pulled off in Invincible season 3. Having designed a belt, Rudy explained to Monster Girl that transforming while wearing his new invention would create a digital copy of her cells, which would trick the curse into rebuilding her correctly in her human form, preventing her from de-aging as she had previously.

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

Rudy had already built himself a younger body using Rex Splode's DNA in season 1 to prevent Amanda from feeling alone, and now his latest experiment seems to have succeeded as well. Although Rudy still has some potentially dark moments to come in Invincible, his belt appeared to work when Monster Girl transformed, indicating it could be a permanent fix. Given Amanda can still age normally, she should be able to live a more normal life in Invincible thanks to Rudy's invention, proving that his genius could be a pivotal part of the series for several characters.