Inspired by the misfit team in Grant Morrison’s Doom Patrol, My Chemical Romance co-founder Gerard Way created a six-issue limited series centered around a “dysfunctional family of superheroes.” This Eisner Award winning series has recently been adapted into a live-action series on Netflix. But just how much do you know about The Umbrella Academy?
Published by Dark Horse Comics in 2007, The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite originally takes place in an alternate timeline where John F. Kennedy was never assassinated. During the mid-20th century, 43 unconnected women who showed no signs of pregnancy when the day began, inexplicably gave birth to superpowered infants. Sir Reginald Hargreeves, a/k/a The Monocle, adopts seven of the children and forms the Umbrella Academy. The children were initially nameless and called by numbers based on their usefulness. Under the tutelage of their guardian and mentor, the children spent their childhood fighting evil. Unbeknownst to them, their adoptive father was actually an alien who was training the children to save the world from an unspecified threat. Eventually the children name themselves, Luther (#1), Diego (#2), Allison (#3), Klaus (#4), Number Five (#5), Ben (#6) and Vanya (#7).
After the disappearance of Number Five and the death of Ben, the Umbrella Academy disbanded and failed to stay in touch with each other. Luther was the only member who remained at the family home and continued to go on solo missions. During a failed mission, Luther was badly injured and his human head was transplanted onto the body of a Martian Gorilla. Following Hargreeves’ death, the children reunite at the academy for his funeral. While there, the children are stunned to discover Number Five, who disappeared 20 years earlier, still physically aged 10. Number Five reveals that he accidentally travelled to the future, witnessed the apocalypse, and has spent the last 60 years trying to return to warn the rest. Reforming the Umbrella Academy, the superhero team works to prevent the apocalypse.
The first series won the 2008 Eisner Award for Best Finite Series/Limited Series and has since spawned two additional series, The Umbrella Academy: Dallas and The Umbrella Academy: Hotel Oblivion. A fourth series is currently in development with several short stories having been released over the years. Outside of comics, the debut season of The Umbrella Academy is streaming on Netflix.
The series stars Ellen Page as Vanya, Mary J. Blige as Cha-Cha, Tom Hopper as Luther, Cameron Britton as Hazel, Robert Sheehan as Klaus, Emmy Raver-Lampman as Allison, Adam Godley as Pogo, Aidan Gallagher as Number Five, David Castañeda as Diego, John Magaro as Leonard Peabody, Ashley Madekwe as Detective Patch, and Colm Feore as Sir Reginald Hargreeves.
