‘The Umbrella Academy’ has been popular on Netflix since it first aired in 2019. The show, based on the comic book series created and written by Gerard Way and illustrated by Gabriel Bá, aired its third season on June 22. It centers around seven siblings, Luther (Tom Hopper), Diego (David Castañeda), Allison (Emmy Raver-Lampman), Klaus (Robert Sheehan), Five (Aidan Gallagher), Ben (Justin Min), and Viktor (Elliot Page), as they try to find their places in the world after being child superheroes.

The Umbrella Academy begins when the siblings are reunited after their father’s death. When their long-lost brother appears from the future, he tells them there are only a few short days until the end of the world, and that they are the ones who will cause it.

By the third season, the siblings have just returned to the present from the 1960s, and are now facing a paradox they have created that threatens existence. In addition to this, they are grieving what they left behind in the past and what no longer exists in this new version of this accidental present.

Unfortunately, this season was a low point in the show’s run. This season followed the same formula of the first two: the world is going to end soon and the protagonists are the only ones that can stop it. While this was interesting in the first season, by the third season it became repetitive. It felt like I was watching the same thing over again with a different setting and only slight plot changes. I was no longer on the edge of my seat to see how it would end, because it would just be resolved the same way it had been in previous seasons.

Season three was also difficult to follow at times. In the first episode, six new characters were quickly introduced, and it was hard to keep track of who was who. There also seemed to be many parts of the story that were unnecessary. There were many deaths that did not add to the plot, and felt like a lazy way to get rid of characters who were no longer important.

The season was not all bad, however. The characters were interesting, and their development in this season made their stories much more compelling. The characters had a new depth that was not seen in previous seasons, and I found myself rooting for previously unlikeable characters.

Another aspect of the characters I enjoyed was how realistic they felt, aside from their superpowers. One of the main characters, Viktor, came out as transgender this season after the actor who plays him publicly came out as transgender in December of 2020. While many of the coming out scenes felt awkward, they very accurately portrayed the often uncomfortable experience of coming out.

Ultimately, this is a great watch for anyone who enjoys a character focused show, but it may be a disappointment for a more plot focused viewer. While the plot does not offer anything new by the third season, the characters are entertaining and their development is interesting to watch over the course of the show.

Grade: B