The highly anticipated second season of The Umbrella Academy hit Netflix on July 31, and it will have you screaming “oh my God” and “what the heck” at the TV more than the first season. While the premise of this season is remarkably similar to the first (save the world, duh), the character development, comedy, action and great soundtrack make up for it. Plus, we get to see more of Ben’s backstory, and that’s worth watching the 10 episodes in itself.
The Umbrella Academy follows the story of the seven Hargreeves children gifted with superpowers who were adopted by a grumpy, but wealthy old man (Colm Feore), a robot mom (Jordan Claire Robbins), and a talking monkey (Adam Godley). Sounds pretty cool, right? Well if you’ve been living under a rock or Netflix’s algorithms didn’t drop this on your recommended page, let me fill you in. Luther, Number One, (Tom Hopper) has super strength and he’s part ape after a terrible accident on the moon, Diego, Number Two, (David Castañeda) can curve the trajectory of the knives he throws, Alison, Number Three, (Emmy Raver-Lampman) can control minds with the phrase “I heard a rumor…”, Klaus, Number Four, (Robert Sheehan) has the ability to control the dead, which comes in handy considering that one of the siblings died on a mission. Number Five (Aidan Gallagher) can jump through time and space, he doesn’t have a real name because presumably he got lost in time before their mother could name him. Ben, Number Six, (Justin H. Min) can summon tentacles from his body, he is already deceased at the beginning of season one, but is seen with Klaus regularly. Finally, Vanya, Number Seven, (Ellen Page) has the power to convert sound waves into a destructive force, but for most of season one she thought she was powerless, which is where the problems began.
The first season follows the Umbrella Academy as they try to stop the apocalypse that Vanya caused, which Five came back in time to tell them about. Spoiler alert: they don’t stop it and at the end of season one we see Five attempting to jump the family back in time so they can try to stop the apocalypse again. Well, in accordance with Five’s time traveling track record, it didn’t work the way he planned and the family is split up in different times in Dallas, Texas, during the ‘60s.
In the opening scene, the five family members are fighting the Soviet army as it invades Dallas. Hazel (Cameron Britton), yes, the same Hazel that was trying to kill the Umbrella Academy last season, shows up and warns Five that this is a new apocalypse and the Soviets are nuking the United States. Hazel saves Five from the bomb and drops him back off in 1963 where he explains that they have 10 days until the nuclear war begins.
Five is tasked with finding his family members and convincing them that they need to stop the apocalypse, yet again. Except the siblings are scattered all around Dallas and none of them know that each other is there. Luther is a boxer and bodyguard for Jack Ruby, the man who killed Lee Harvey Oswald; Diego is in a mental institution because he says he needs to stop the assassination of President John F. Kennedy; Allison is married to a civil rights activist named Ray (Yasuf Gatewood); Klaus is a cult leader; and Vanya, who has amnesia, is a nanny for a farm couple.
If a family reunion wasn’t tough enough, there are also people trying to kill them… imagine that. This season, Hazel and Cha-Cha (Mary J. Blige) have been replaced by three brothers called The Swedes who are actively trying to shoot the Umbrella Academy, and anyone who gets in their way. Though it is never clear who sent them, I’m sure we can all guess (The Commission). There is also the introduction of Lila (Ritu Arya) who Diego meets at the mental hospital and insists she wants to help Diego escape. Naturally, Lila is full of secrets and suprises.
Now they do have 10 days to save the world this time, as opposed to the eight in season one, but there are virtually no clues as to what ends the world. The only thing that anyone can think of is that JFK has to be a part of it, look at the writers throwing in a bit of history for us. Trust me, this season is a whirlwind.
Season one of the dark comedy, which dropped in 2019, was a hit on Netflix, with 45 million viewers in the first month of its release. However, the show hasn’t received as much attention or award recognition as some of Netflix’s bigger shows like Dead To Me or Stranger Things. The Umbrella Academy was only nominated for two Emmys in 2019 for Outstanding Special Visual Effects and Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program. Maybe this is because people think of The Umbrella Academy as a children’s show since it was adapted from Gerard Way’s comic book; however, the series is anything but a children’s program. Every episode is action-packed with bloody and violent scenes and the storyline is complex and fast-paced. However, this season saw more publicity (and a bigger budget), which has resulted in The Umbrella Academy topping the “Top 10 in the U.S. Today” list.
The second season is cleaner, not in terms of blood because there’s still a lot of that, and follows the characters through a more complex time in their lives. Each character seems to have grown up in this season, even Klaus. And, of course, I found myself busting out laughing multiple times per episode with Klaus’ one-liners and Luther’s over-the-top actions. Even the soundtrack, somehow more outrageous than the first, has you dancing with the family while they’re fighting to “Everybody,” “Dancing with Myself” and “Renegade.” This season offers more twists and turns and leaves you guessing with every cliffhanger at the end of each episode. It is more fast-paced than the first season and jampacked with story in each 50-minute episode, but in the end, it left me wanting more.
The Umbrella Academy provides something for every viewer with its silly take on superheroes and time travel, and fans everywhere are already waiting for the release of season three. But in the meantime, can the Umbrella Academy stop the apocalypse and get back to present day? I guess you’ll have to watch the season to find out. And I recommend binging it.
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