# Umbrella Academy on Netflix - Spoilers
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, netflix
**Created:** [February 18, 2019, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781 "2019-02-18T18:31:03Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)
#### Post date: [February 28, 2019, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/41 "2019-02-28T01:13:38Z")
I haven’t read the last half of the thread yet to avoid spoilers about the last episode, but I just want to mention that Hazel might just become a great example of an “[Hey, It’s That Guy](https://allthetropes.fandom.com/wiki/Hey,_It%27s_That_Guy!)!” actor.
His name is [Cameron Britton](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5866359/), and when I first saw him, I thought, “Hey, is that the guy from _Mindhunter_?”, but then convinced myself he wasn’t, because he looked just different enough\*. But, it is him! This guy has some serious potential. He talks in a very understated manner, but when he wants it, just a small shift of his body just exudes a sense of menace. Amazing physical actor!
Okay, off to watch the last episode!
\*Seriously, I’m really wondering if they used camera tricks in Mindhunter to make him look taller. He’s a big guy for sure, but in that he looked _huge._
---
### Author:  [@BeagleJesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeagleJesus)
#### Post date: [February 28, 2019, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/42 "2019-02-28T13:22:21Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#):
>
> Ellen Page does a particularly good job at subtly altering her character’s demeanor as she progresses thru her relationships with Leonard and her siblings.
I thought Page did a good job slowly ramping up her emotions episode by episode right up to the point where she tried to kill her sister. At that point I thought she was way too over the top and I was ready for her to go away one way or another. That being said, I did enjoy her “I’m a badass” walk when she had the glowing eyes and was destroying everything that bothered her.
Klaus and Number 5 were my favorites by a mile.
---
### Author:  [@BeagleJesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeagleJesus)
#### Post date: [February 28, 2019, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/43 "2019-02-28T13:27:58Z")
> [@Horatius](#):
>
> I haven’t read the last half of the thread yet to avoid spoilers about the last episode, but I just want to mention that Hazel might just become a great example of an “[Hey, It’s That Guy](https://allthetropes.fandom.com/wiki/Hey,_It%27s_That_Guy!)!” actor.
>
> His name is [Cameron Britton](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5866359/), and when I first saw him, I thought, “Hey, is that the guy from _Mindhunter_?”, but then convinced myself he wasn’t, because he looked just different enough\*. But, it is him! This guy has some serious potential. He talks in a very understated manner, but when he wants it, just a small shift of his body just exudes a sense of menace. Amazing physical actor!
I thought he did an excellent job of being affable, erudite and menacing with just a few words and subtle shifts in body language.
I might have to go checkout Mindhunter
---
### Author:  [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)
#### Post date: [February 28, 2019, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/44 "2019-02-28T14:17:38Z")
It was very slow, I didn’t love it. Some of the characters and acting was pretty weak.
I actually thought the stand out of the show was Hazel. I enjoyed the music very much. They did great with that.
Vanya killed how many innocent Nannies?
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### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2019, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/45 "2019-03-02T03:05:24Z")
I just finished it. The show just kept getting better and better.
Some thoughts:
1. I don’t think the reason for the big bads to not stop the apocalypse was pretty weak. What’s the point of keeping things unchanged if you’re not going to be alive?
2. The strength of the series was that it kept the fights to a minimum. Any superhero film or TV show is best when the heroes aren’t fighting someone.
3. Those bad guys with the automatics and bug-eye masks make Imperial Stormtroopers look like crack shots.
4. Loved the homages to Pogo and to Will Eisner (in the title for each episode).
5. The timeline made no sense. Hargreaves is shown coming to America in what looked like the early 20th century, while the children were born in 1988 which put him well over 100 when he died.
6. I think Robert Sheehan has a great persona as an actor.
7. Logically, the next season should have an all-new cast, except for Number 5, who actually should be an infant at most – or even an embryo.
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### Author:  [@pmwgreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pmwgreen)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2019, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/46 "2019-03-02T06:35:03Z")
Well, it starts with the revelation that there are 42 strange births on one day. Then we get some deleted scenes from Grand Budapest Hotel. Then some guy who looks like they couldn’t get Neil Patrick Harris shows up and buys the baby. Then other stuff happens, mostly The Royal Tenenbaums. It was entertaining but it didn’t leave me wanting to see what happened next. It seemed like nine episodes of filler. Where are the 36 other special powers? And why did their birth happen in the first place? They have time travel, nothing is impossible. Older characters could simply be old versions of younger characters. Time paradoxes could be evoked to explain any number of strange events. There was none of that, just a lot of lame drama.
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### Author:  [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2019, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/47 "2019-03-02T16:20:23Z")
43 strange births, though you got it right when you said there were 36 others, so I’ll give you credit for a typo. 🆒
There’s a throwaway line near the end that most of the others met with less than pleasant ends. The reason for the births, just like the reasons for many zombie apocalypses, is unimportant. It’s just to get the story started. If they write enough stories about _Umbrella Academy_, sooner or later someone will come up with some stupidly, convoluted reason, because that is what always happens in comics when a past is not fully explained.
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### Author:  [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2019, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/48 "2019-03-02T16:29:26Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#):
>
> I just finished it. The show just kept getting better and better.
>
> Some thoughts:
>
> 1. I don’t think the reason for the big bads to not stop the apocalypse was pretty weak. What’s the point of keeping things unchanged if you’re not going to be alive?
What makes you think they weren’t going to stay alive? The Handler was alive and well after the apocalypse, that’s when she recruited 5. They have thousands of years of human history to play around in, as long as they do their jobs.
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### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2019, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/49 "2019-03-02T16:30:26Z")
> [@DigitalC](#):
>
> What makes you think they weren’t going to stay alive? The Handler was alive and well after the apocalypse, that’s when she recruited 5. They have thousands of years of human history to play around in, as long as they do their jobs.
But they’d have thousands more if they didn’t allow things to be destroyed.
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### Author:  [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2019, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/50 "2019-03-02T16:38:12Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#):
>
> But they’d have thousands more if they didn’t allow things to be destroyed.
No they wouldn’t, the whole time travel thing is a perk of their job which is keeping the timeline intact.
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### Author:  [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2019, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/51 "2019-03-02T20:23:48Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#):
>
> 1. The timeline made no sense. Hargreaves is shown coming to America in what looked like the early 20th century, while the children were born in 1988 which put him well over 100 when he died.
So I assume this is a reveal that he is an alien (and his race somehow related to the children being born in way that will be explained in a future series) That would also explain him being such a dick. He’s not a dick, he just doesn’t get this whole human interaction and child rearing thing.
> [@RealityChuck](#):
>
> 1. Logically, the next season should have an all-new cast, except for Number 5, who actually should be an infant at most – or even an embryo.
Why do you say that? The only reason #5 is a kid is he made a miscalculation traveling to the future/past. In fact I kinda thought they were implying it was Klaus throwing the fire extinguisher that threw him off at the last minute and caused the miscalculation.
I am really looking forward to future series (where I assume too the fates of the other 42 will be revealed), I really hope the writing team keep it together and keep up the high standard. If it reverts to usual US soap opera style TV (or just gets cancelled ☹ ) I’ll be really sad.
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### Author:  [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2019, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/52 "2019-04-01T15:28:07Z")
> [@Horatius](#):
>
> I haven’t read the last half of the thread yet to avoid spoilers about the last episode, but I just want to mention that Hazel might just become a great example of an “[Hey, It’s That Guy](https://allthetropes.fandom.com/wiki/Hey,_It%27s_That_Guy!)!” actor.
>
> His name is [Cameron Britton](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5866359/), and when I first saw him, I thought, “Hey, is that the guy from _Mindhunter_?”, but then convinced myself he wasn’t, because he looked just different enough\*. But, it is him!
Thank you! I was wondering where I had seen him before, but I hadn’t bothered to look him up on imdb. His manner of speech is very distinctive, and I was sure I knew him from something else and it must have been _Mindhunter._
---
### Author:  [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)
#### Post date: [April 4, 2019, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/53 "2019-04-04T00:39:23Z")
So… why is the Umbrella Academy called the Umbrella Academy? (I’m not completely finished yet, but it’s bothering me enough I don’t care if the answer is a spoiler)
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### Author:  [@snoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snoe)
#### Post date: [April 4, 2019, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/54 "2019-04-04T21:47:32Z")
> [@Broomstick](#):
>
> So… why is the Umbrella Academy called the Umbrella Academy? (I’m not completely finished yet, but it’s bothering me enough I don’t care if the answer is a spoiler)
My very basic, not-worth-spoiling takes:
It’s a choice the professor made. Might have been to make his superhero team seem badass, might have been because he’s an alien (or something) and doesn’t get that it’s a weird choice. But it seemed to be an attempt at establishing a brand.
Oh, I guess “umbrella” implies protection. So it could be protection from any number of outside threats.
---
### Author:  [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)
#### Post date: [April 4, 2019, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/55 "2019-04-04T23:49:11Z")
> [@Broomstick](#):
>
> So… why is the Umbrella Academy called the Umbrella Academy? (I’m not completely finished yet, but it’s bothering me enough I don’t care if the answer is a spoiler)
When the professor arrived in the US he ran an umbrella factory to build his fortune.
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### Author:  [@Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nicest_of_the_Damned)
#### Post date: [April 5, 2019, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/56 "2019-04-05T02:46:17Z")
Another random question for people familiar with the source material…what was Luther’s power and why did they call him Spaceboy?
Bonus question: did Five have a “normal” name?
I enjoyed the series and somehow the music worked for me even though if I thought too hard about it there wasn’t any reason it should have. Any excuse for playing They Might Be Giants is good enough for me.
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### Author:  [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)
#### Post date: [April 5, 2019, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/57 "2019-04-05T02:48:01Z")
I must ask because I am seriously considering watching this with my 17 year old son now that we’ve burned through so many other offerings online: is this a _really_ good show or just a passably decent one?
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### Author:  [@Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nicest_of_the_Damned)
#### Post date: [April 5, 2019, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/58 "2019-04-05T02:52:33Z")
> [@griffin1977](#):
>
> So I assume this is a reveal that he is an alien (and his race somehow related to the children being born in way that will be explained in a future series)
My guess base on absolutely nothing…
Those little points of light that were released when the missiles were falling were the “spirits” or whatever that became the children.
---
### Author:  [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)
#### Post date: [April 5, 2019, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/59 "2019-04-05T03:47:01Z")
> [@Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](#):
>
> Another random question for people familiar with the source material…what was Luther’s power and why did they call him Spaceboy?
Luther was always stronger than normal. They called him Spaceboy because he spent 4 or 5 years on the moon.
> [@Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](#):
>
> Bonus question: did Five have a “normal” name?
Nope. I think they said so at one point, but I don’t recall exactly which episode.
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#):
>
> I must ask because I am seriously considering watching this with my 17 year old son now that we’ve burned through so many other offerings online: is this a _really_ good show or just a passably decent one?
I’d say it’s more than passably decent and it hasn’t yet eschewed its own potential to be _really_ good.
---
### Author:  [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)
#### Post date: [April 5, 2019, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/umbrella-academy-on-netflix-spoilers/829781/60 "2019-04-05T04:29:14Z")
A couple of days ago Gerard Way announced there will be a second session. Way is the author of the comic book and executive producer on the show.
[https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nme.com/news/tv/gerard-way-confirms-umbrella-academy-season-2-short-trailer-2470512/amp](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nme.com/news/tv/gerard-way-confirms-umbrella-academy-season-2-short-trailer-2470512/amp)
For the non-fans Gerard Way was also the lead singer for My Chemical Romance. I was unaware that he also wrote on the Spiderverse comic and created the Peni Parker character.
It was also his version of Hazy Shade of Winter in the last episode.
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