How many times can we see the end of the world before it loses all its meaning?
Slight spoilers for the third season of ‘The Umbrella Academy’
We have heard the rumor that ‘The Umbrella Academy’ is the best season of the series, but the rumors are not always to be trusted.
The third season, which Netflix will premiere in our country on June 22, it begins immediately where the second ended (for the clueless, here is the explained ending of ‘The Umbrella Academy 2’), in a new Sparrow Academy that is remarkably similar to the one our Umbrellas grew up in. Except Ben is alive. And he is an idiot.
Oh, and everyone else has been replaced by an assortment of new misfits, including ora raven woman and a floating cube named Christopherwhich is apparently hilarious if you can decipher all of its weird beeps.
That twist at the end of season two was exactly what ‘The Umbrella Academy’ needed to move forward. Because as much as we loved that second installment, there are only so many times our favorites can stop the apocalypse, right?
Well yes and no. Although the conflict with the Sparrows plays an important role in the third season, so does the apocalypse. Again. And it’s not the only repeat leaking, either. Without spoiling too much, nihilistic themes around time travel and parallel worlds continue to be explored here as wellto the point that even the characters in the series begin to notice that their lives are trapped in the same loop as always.
“Everything sucks,” one character says at one point. “None of this is real”. To which another suggests locking yourself into the things that matter in life, the things you love, as a way to find meaning once again. And to be fair, the third season does an admirable job of this.
Yes, it may seem pointless to keep stopping the apocalypse over and over again, only for the world to end once again, but still, it’s a bit cheeky of the writers to go against common sense and bring another apocalyptic threat for our heroes to deal with. But maybe it’s because they trust that, despite everything, we will be willing to spend another ten hours with our heroes.
And to be fair, they’re not entirely wrong.
After three seasons, youAll the cast members embody better than ever all the little quirks and quirks that made these characters so popular in the first place. And this is especially true in the case of Elliot Pageproducer of the Italian film about trans identity ‘Nel mio nome’, whose identity as a trans man is effortlessly incorporated into the story this time.
Among such a large and impressive cast, hOh, we should also highlight Justin H Minone of the actors who asked Netflix for a raise for the third season and that, somehow, makes this new Ben so unpleasant in counterpoint to the first, that he was adorable, and that’s a very good thing. And then, of course, there’s Emmy Raver-Lampman, who stands out with some of the toughest moments from season three, including a pivotal scene in the fifth episode that will forever change the way you look at Allison.
The new additions to the cast also fit perfectly into this world, even as the world itself is crumbling around them. Javon Walton, from the series ‘Euphoria’, will win even more fans with his participation in ‘The Umbrella Academy’, and the Sparrows are also a lot of fun to meet, not to mention their weird powers. I wish the series bothered to explore these strange abilities more.
You might think that, with such a large cast, there wouldn’t be time to give everyone their fair share, but overall, the third season juggles most of these plot lines surprisingly wellJust like previous seasons. And even with the endless familiarity of these topics, enough new answers are given and enough questions are raised to make things feel fresher.
However, the enjoyment of this season will depend largely on the ability of each one to leave behind that oppressive feeling of familiarity that permeates most of these new episodes.
Much of the initial appeal of ‘The Umbrella Academy’ series lay in its ability to innovate and oppose traditional heroics. But now, the series’ own established traditions threaten to reduce the cult appeal that ‘The Umbrella Academy’ sowed if things continue in this direction.
There are now fewer wacky, standout moments than before, and while viewers certainly want more than that from this story, it’s telling that the show’s individuality is starting to wane also in that aspect.
But, at least for now, the third season is still a lot of fun and absolutely worth it. And what is more important, there’s also scope to fix all of this when the inevitable fourth season arrives. Of course, do not pay attention to the rumors that suggest that these new episodes are better than what we saw before.
Source: Fotogramas
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
