The Umbrella Academy just dropped its fourth and final season on Netflix, and while many fans are upset at what they see as a slapdash ending, I'm thankful that this offbeat superhero series existed. There was nothing else quite like it anywhere.
The Umbrella Academy is about a group of siblings who fight crime as a super-powered family, only they're usually at the root of what's wrong with the world in the first place; they have a tendency of triggering apocalyptic events they then have to get themselves out of, with lots of dysfunctional banter and dance sequences in between. The show has been a mild hit since the beginning, and the fourth season debuted at number 2 on Netflix's TV charts for last week, behind A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. Since The Umbrella Academy season 4 came out late in the week, Deadline expects it to take the number one spot the week after.
The Umbrella Academy is based on a comic book illustrated by Gabriel Bá and written by Gerard Way, best known as the frontman of the band My Chemical Romance. That's a fun fact not everybody knows; cast member Aidan Gallagher (Five) only learned it after he'd booked the gig. “It made like ultimate sense,” Gallagher told Variety. “When I got the show and made that connection, I’d just channel ‘The Black Parade’ everyday on my way to set, listening to sort of get the rage and chaotic nature of Five.”
Speaking to Netflix, Way named what he'll miss most about the show. "Honestly, I really loved just all their enthusiasm. It’s a great group of people and they have fun. And because I was never standing in the way of that — on purpose, it was a choice — it got to grow into this beautiful thing that was its own thing."
"I mean, honestly, it’s a gift to be able to make art and for people to support it so you can keep making it. I never take that for granted."
The cast members will miss their camaraderie as well, with Elliot Page (Viktor Hargreeves) recalling how "odd" it felt to say goodbye after they called "cut" for the last time. “I think it didn’t even necessarily hit until later,” Page said. “To say goodbye to the cast and crew we’ve worked with for years and years, it’s definitely hard. You really become very familial.”
David Castañeda (Diego Hargreeves) was so loathe to say goodbye he tried to run away after the last scene had wrapped. “The last scene that we shot, knowing that this would be the last time we’d do this, it hadn’t really hit me. And I’m sure it will hit me as the weeks progress, but I kind of appreciate it," he said.
As for Way and Bá, they're actually working on another volume of The Umbrella Academy, which may or may not follow the template laid out by the TV show. "One of the things I think is really cool, is being very aware that the show happened and existed. So we’re actually going to do some pretty radical things in terms of where to take it after this next volume. That way, it’s not just the comic version of what you’re seeing right now," Way shared.
All four seasons of The Umbrella Academy are available to stream now on Netflix.
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