The Surprising Fan Group Finding Solace In The Umbrella Academy
Netflix's off-kilter superhero series The Umbrella Academy, adapted from the comics series written by Gerard Way, has thankfully survived the turmoil of the year 2020, and season 3 is officially on its way. In the show's first two seasons, fans follow the Hargreeves family, seven people all strangely born on the same day who develop unique superpowers. The Hargreeves were adopted as kids by an eccentric old man named Reginald Hargreeves (Colm Feore) who's hiding quite a few secrets of his own.
The Umbrella Academy stars Elliot Page as Vanya Hargreeves, the one sibling who sees herself as an outsider, believing that she doesn't have any powers. Filling out the cast as Vanya's siblings are Tom Hopper, David Castañeda, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Robert Sheehan, Aidan Gallagher, and Justin H. Min. The series focuses on time travel trouble and other supernatural adventures, all in the midst of a family drama centered around the adopted siblings and their shared trauma from a difficult childhood with a detached and insensitive father.
While the show certainly succeeds as an entertaining, action-packed story, many fans have established a more emotional connection with The Umbrella Academy for a variety of reasons. In particular, one surprising group of fans have really found strength in the series and its realistic depiction of the troubles adoptive family's face.
Adopted Umbrella Academy fans feel validated by the series
In a Reddit thread, fans took a moment to highlight The Umbrella Academy's depiction of the Hargreeves, and in particular, its authentic depiction of the natural issues that arise in an adoptive family. In many other TV shows and films that focus on adoption, they usually portray a picturesque experience and "glorify adoption as a beautiful thing," as user hurrypotta, who made the Reddit post, laments. Another fan, user EarthExile, relates that even for them The Umbrella Academy "is downright theraputic [sic] for adults who remember being miserable kids."
For these fans, many praised The Umbrella Academy for making them "feel validated" in the imperfection of their own experiences with adoption. Reginald, the man who adopts all the Hargreeves siblings, is definitely not fit to parent. As if to underscore his emotional unavailability, he refers to the children by a number instead of giving them actual names. Just looking at Diego (Castañeda), the experience growing up with Reginald as a father causes him a lot of issues, to say the least. Both Diego and Luther (Hopper), have an intense need to impress Reginald even after he's gone, and it greatly affects their relationship with one another. Add to that the damage that comes from being raised to be a superhero team, and there's a lot to work through.