Netflix Review: 'Umbrella Academy' Season 2
I heard a rumor an exciting new adventure with the weirdest superhero team around is on Netflix.
In its first season, the Netflix series ‘The Umbrella Academy’ (based on the comics series from Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá) is about an adopted family member with incredible abilities. The dysfunctional family of seven ex-superheroes known as the Umbrella Academy have two things in common: They all were born on the same day, and they’re all working — some more than others — through the trauma of their father’s abuse.
Telling the story of seven adopted siblings with powers, reunited by the death of their militant father and trying to stop an apocalypse, the character-led series is a smart and surprisingly heartfelt take on a genre that all-to-often puts action over common sense. But with their world established and the origin stories told, season two lets loose and starts to have some fun.
After time traveling away from the apocalypse, season two jumps straight back to the action with our seven siblings scattered across the early 1960s in Dallas, Texas. My favorite part was seeing Dallas in the opening scene. Five (Aidan Gallagher and my daughter’s crush) is the last to land and find himself in the middle of a literal war zone. “What the hell did we do now,” he asks before Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way’ soundtracks the team reunited with supercharged powers and fighting together like a scene from the Avengers movie.
What makes this new round of episodes a slight improvement is splitting these siblings apart. As each of these brothers and sisters adjust to new lives in this timeline, separate from each other, some realize the version of history their experiencing is about to veer from precedent. You can follow each of their stories, have some heartfelt moments, and have some funny ones. The fight scenes are also so brilliant, as well as the music that plays in the background. You will catch yourself jamming to the beats of this season. The 10-episode run – which brings together Cold War paranoia, the plot to assassinate JFK and surreal adventure – sees the unexpected return of some season one players, plus a host of brilliant new characters. I won’t spoil who they are for those who haven’t seen season two yet.
Currently holding a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes, I highly recommend ‘The Umbrella Academy’ on Netflix. This fun adventure is something we all need during this time. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.
If you’ve seen ‘The Umbrella Academy’ season two, let me know your thoughts. -xo Mel