The Klaus Tattoo Detail You Might Have Missed On The Umbrella Academy
Television and movies are often inspired by dark true stories. In this way, it's well documented (via Vice) that Gerard Way, founder and lead singer of "My Chemical Romance" and author of "The Umbrella Academy," was inspired to create by his traumatic, first-hand experience with the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It's intriguing to see how different minds take inspiration from something dark. While both of Way's primary art forms include references to cataclysmic, world-ending destruction, at least one of them also includes a British monkey butler.
It's perhaps better to say that inspiration can come from several sources at once. That variety can be seen in "The Umbrella Academy," which feels simultaneously like "Hellboy" and "The X-Men." A fun, less subtle inspiration can be seen in Klaus Hargreeves (Robert Sheehan), aka Number Four, who wears his origins on his skin. Here's the cool tattoo detail that audiences might've missed because they were too enthralled by Klaus dancing with an urn full of his dead father's ashes.
Klaus' tattoos are a reference to Ouija boards
In a subreddit dedicated to everything "The Umbrella Academy," u/almost_famous25 posted a picture of Klaus' palm tattoos, along with a caption that read, "Fun fact about Klaus ... I just realized [he] has the Hello, Goodbye tattoos because he's a living Ouija board." For context, Klaus Hargreeves possesses (or possessed, depending on what point in the timeline that's being discussed) the ability to summon, converse with, control, and banish spirits. As the Redditor noted, the connection isn't just assumed; it's built into the character. Klaus's tattoos read "hello" and "goodbye," words that are found on every Ouija board.
Let's appreciate the off-screen moment Klaus must have experienced when he first realized that his abilities made him a sentient Ouija board. Not only did Klaus make the connection himself, but he then went to find a tattoo artist who, unless Klaus was feeling particularly chatty (a strong likelihood, all things considered), would be willing to etch the reference into his palms with zero context permanently. It's infinitely funnier to imagine him humming "Here (in You Arms)" the entire time.