After being left on a cliffhanger for nearly a year and a half, fans of The Umbrella Academy were finally able to see what happened after the dysfunctional family’s escape from the 2019 apocalypse. Based on the Dark Horse comic series of the same name, the show follows seven (six living, one dead) adopted siblings with unique super powers as they attempt to save the world from disaster. After narrowly escaping death at the end of the first season, the group unintentionally travels back to the 1960s, only to be met with another world-ending threat. Similar to the first season, the latest release presents another intriguing storyline, an oddly perfect soundtrack, and even manages to touch on minority struggles of the 1960s.

Photo from Umbrella Academy Facebook page

In the end of the first season, Vanya Hargreeves (Ellen Page, Inception), once believed to be the only Hargreeves sibling without powers, discovers she is actually the most powerful sibling. Even though Five (Aidan Gallagher, Nicky, Ricky, Dicky and Dawn), the oldest yet physically youngest sibling, did everything in his power to prevent the nearing tragedy, the family essentially causes it on their own. Losing control of both her newly found powers and her repressed anger against her family, Vanya unintentionally destroys the moon which, in turn, hits and destroys the earth. In a last-ditch effort to save themselves, Five uses his time travel powers to bring the entire family back in time to prevent the end of the world once again.

But without proper planning, time travel is messy business. The second season begins with the seven siblings landing in the same alleyway in Dallas, Texas...at different times. It begins with Klaus (Robert Sheenan, Misfits) and Ben (Justin Min) landing in 1960, and eventually, after the rest of the siblings, Five lands smack dab in the middle of a catastrophic nuclear war on November 25th, 1963. After coincidentally meeting Hazel (Cameron Britton, Mindhunter), who happens to have a time machine briefcase to give him, Five travels back to a few days before the apocalypse to once again gather his siblings to prevent the end of the world. But, since the rest of the team has been in the 1960s from anywhere between a month to a few years, each sibling has their own new life and relationships. This complicates Five’s mission (which happens to involve traveling to Oshkosh Wisconsin in 1982), but also provides an entertaining and unique storyline for the viewers.

One of the most interesting aspects of the show that carried through to the second season is the choice of music. Though some of the song choices may seem odd, they fit in such a way that they give the show its own unique atmosphere. The first season features older hits such as They Might Be Giants’ cover of “Istanbul (not Constantinople),” “Picture Book” by the Kinks, and “Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows” by Lesley Gore. It also includes more modern tunes such as “Run Boy Run” by Woodkid and “The Walker” by Fitz and the Tantrums. The second season follows in its predecessor’s footsteps, featuring classics such as Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” and “I Was Made For Lovin’ You” by Kiss, but also newer hits, such as a “Bad Guy” cover by The Interrupters. The show manages to find a way to use music from nearly all genres and decades and bring them together to create an enticing musical experience to accompany the already captivating storyline.

While the first season handled serious topics such as Klaus’ drug and alcohol addictions, and Mr. Hargreeves’ (Colm Feore) neglect of the siblings throughout their childhood, the second season focuses on multiple other sensitive issues. Considering the time period of the most recent season, the show takes the opportunity to enlighten the audience to issues of the 1960s they may have never even thought of. When Allison (Emmy Raver-Lampman), a black woman and celebrity, finds herself in a racist and less progressive time period, she puts her charisma and leadership skills to use, joining a group of civil rights activists. Many episodes follow her journey, depicting many incidents of racism, incidents of police favoring white citizens and being violent towards black citizens, even sit-in protesters. The season also introduces a new character, a young boy named Harlan, who is non-verbal and autistic. Throughout the season, the struggles of his family and societal misunderstandings of his disability play a key role in his story. Last, but certainly not least, the show finds ways to show the prejudice and mistreatment of members of the LGBTQ+ community in the 1960s. While the show could have disregarded these historical issues entirely, it instead uses the change of setting to its advantage and doesn’t shy away from the difficult topics, allowing the audience to both educate themselves and possibly see themselves in the characters.

The long-awaited second season of ‘The Umbrella Academy’ brings with it another fascinating plot, a charming soundtrack, and doesn’t fail to take the opportunity to bring up the tough topic of minority struggles in 1960s America. Though a third season of this hit Netflix series has yet to be confirmed, hopefully this is not the last the world will see of the Hargreeves siblings on-screen.

Grade: A-

By Caitlynn Gehl

Oshkosh West Index, Volume 117 Issue I

October 2nd, 2020

Another Year, Another Apocalypse: The Umbrella Academy Returns