The day has finally arrived: The Umbrella Academy Season 2 is out! And boy, is it amazing. The adaptation of Gerard Way’s Dark Horse comic series first premiered in 2019 and with it’s refreshing new take on superheroes, Netflix audiences were hooked. Season 2 only improves on its predecessor by focusing on all the things that made Season 1 so successful: the outstanding action sequences that leave your toes tingling, a killer soundtrack, well-developed fleshed out characters and the comedic but complicated family dynamic that has your heart palpitating.
At the end of the first season, we saw Five use his powers to time-travel the Hargreeves siblings back in time to escape from the impending apocalypse. However, as Five warned, time-travel is never easy and at the opening of Season 2 this is evidenced in how the siblings find themselves scattered in time around Dallas in Texas. Over a three year period, starting in 1960, some have been lost in time for three years, others only a few months.
But that’s not all, the apocalypse has followed them there and they have just 10 days to save the world before doomsday. Season 2 of The Umbrella Academy is a wild but exciting ride through history as the powered siblings find themselves desperately attempting to save the world again. And it’s just as addictive and just as brilliant as expected. The twists are bigger, the impending apocalypse is scarier and the feels – the laughter, the tears, the shock and the WTFs? – are tenfold.
What defines The Umbrella Academy as one of Netflix’s best shows is it’s characters. In Season 1, the show did a brilliant job of making viewers connect to these siblings, relating to their daddy troubles and traumatic childhoods. Season 2 only develops on this as we see each sibling navigating 1960’s Dallas in different ways. We get Allison battling the dangerous and dehumanising realities of life in the Jim Crow-era of Texas, joining and pioneering the civil rights movement. We see Diego first in a mental asylum due to his newfound desire to save JFK from his assassination, only for this to be developed as the season progresses, emphasising his need to save the day, adding both poignancy, depth and comedic genius to his character.
Then there’s Klaus who in typical Klaus fashion is the leader of a cult. Interestingly, though, Season 2 delves deeper into his love story with David who died at war as Klaus desperately tries to save him from this fate. And, of course, where there’s Klaus there’s also the pure, soft cinnamon roll that is Ben. This season, Ben feels a lot more developed as he has the ability to possess Klaus, exploring his own love story and his desire to reunite with his siblings. There’s *one* scene that will break your heart as we finally get an interaction between Ben and Vanya and see Ben’s ultimate desire to feel connected to his family and feel their love.
Even Luther and Vanya, who I did not take a liking to in Season 1 grew on me in the second instalment as Luther’s burdens are explored in more detail and Vanya, who is suffering from Amnesia following the events of Season 1 is given the chance to reset her relationship with her siblings. (Can we PLEASE talk about the adorable dance number from Vanya, Klaus and Allison!!!!) Season 2 makes you connect to these characters on another level as each sibling is given their chance to shine as audiences gain more insight into their mental and emotional states.
In addition to our regulars, we also get new characters in the new season – Lila, Sissy and Ray being the three majors. Lila, in particular, caught my eye from day one and without giving away any major spoilers, she will tug at your heart-strings with her bad-ass fight skills, humorous attitude and her emotional back story. There’s also new assassins, sent by the time-line protecting organisation known as The Commission. While we all grew to love Cha Cha and Hazel in Season 1, the new series gives us The Swedes who are sent to go execute Five and his family. However, The Umbrella Academy does a brilliant job in humanising these assassins despite their evil intentions. There’s no drawing on the typical stereotypes you would expect with such characters but rather there is again, depth and development given even to the villains.
Then there’s the sound editing and the absolutely fantastic soundtrack. Every single song adds a layer of control to the story, bringing chills to my entire body. Every time a character used their powers, the sound editing was so intricately developed and deployed that words simply cannot describe how I felt. I was speechless watching. Also, anyone who knows me knows I LOVE a good fight sequence and Season 2 pulled through with some of the most inventive, exciting fight scenes I’ve ever watched. There’s two scenes in particular that had me shouting ‘YES’ at the TV – you’ll know them when you see them.
At the heart of the show is the importance, loyalty and love for family bonds and Season 2 does an excellent job of continuing to portray this. It’s focused, it’s confident, it’s detailed and developed and it’s most definitely the most entertaining and one of the best show I’ve seen in a long while. Balancing humanity, superpowers and a complex plot that keeps pulling you back for another episode due to its compelling twists and turns, The Umbrella Academy Season 2 is a masterpiece from start to end.
And that ending? Hot damn, I can’t wait for the next season.
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