The third season of The Umbrella Academy will arrive on Netflix in June 2022. The first two seasons have proved to be one of the streamer’s greatest comic-book-inspired successes, so there’s a great deal of anticipation for the return of its premier superhero team.
The show was adapted from the intermittent comic series created by Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba and released by Dark Horse Comics between 2007-8 and 2018-19. Netflix’s adaptation, show-run by Steve Blackman, has arguably surpassed its source material.
The Umbrella Academy’s inspirations and influences are evident in several comic book teams, including Marvel’s X-Men and DC’s Doom Patrol. But part of The Umbrella Academy’s appeal is that it comes from an alternative to the Big Two of Comics. The third-largest publisher in the United States, Dark Horse and their Entertainment division may not compete with DC and Marvel for the number of their adaptations they’ve brought to Netflix and other streamers, but the Umbrella Academy shows why it’s sometimes worth picking the underdog.
The Umbrella Academy tells the story of seven adopted siblings, each born with unique superpowers, who reunite after the death of their father only to uncover dark secrets that threaten the world. The dysfunctional family unit must confront the past, a superteam their eccentric father pushed them into, and apocalyptic danger.
It’s a superhero series, there’s no doubt about that. But The Umbrella Academy is also about family and responsibility. Having seen the super-siblings through two cataclysmic seasons, fans are itching to see what awaits them the third time around.
If you’re waiting patiently for the show’s return, here are shows that could fill that gap in your viewing schedule. Superpowers and a sense of family are a given, although the less conventional, the better.
Jupiter’s Legacy (2021)
A short-lived opening series from Millarworld, the comic imprint created by comic legend Mark Millar that’s now Netflix owned. Jupiter’s Legacy wasn’t the opening statement they hoped for, but there will be plenty more to come from this universe, so it’s worth considering jumping on board.
Jupiter Legacy features a group of humans gifted extraordinary powers on a mysterious island who become world protectors only to face the ultimate challenge — passing that responsibility on to the next generation.
Raising Dion (2019 – present)
Raising Dion puts family first as the widow Nicole struggles to raise her son and keep him away from prying eyes in Georgia when he begins to manifest powers. It’s full of drama, with its super-powered elements secondary to its family struggles. Adapted from the comic by Dennis Liu, a second season was released in February 2022.
Ultraman (2019 – present)
Family is at the center of this anime update of the Japanese Ultraman phenomenon. Fifty years after Shin Hayata saved the world as the human host for Ultraman, the mantle falls to his son Shinjiro to continue the legacy. Serving epic adventures for an iconic hero, this engrossing series streams on Netflix.
Watchmen (2019)
Eyebrows rose when Lost alumni Damon Lindelof announced a TV continuation of what many see as the Holy Grail of comics. DC Comics’ attempts to extend the Watchmen story on the page have met mixed results, but Lindelof’s adaptation surprised everyone.
Watchmen is a dazzling achievement, from its cast to writing and production. The odds of a series of this quality emerging seemed impossible, especially given a notoriously skeptical fanbase. But this culturally and socially charged limited series, set 34 years after the original story, is essential viewing.
Heroes (2006 – 2010)
Heroes was a phenomenon when it arrived in 2010 with one of the finest debut seasons in genre TV history. Drawing together superpowered humans from across the globe, Heroes served up fantastic drama, palpable tension, incredibly dark moments, and is also credited for having one of the greatest catchphrases in TV history — “Save the cheerleader, save the world.
But nothing lasts forever. The show’s life was cut short surprisingly early despite an enjoyable return to form in its third season. It didn’t have the powers to overcome the major WGA writers’ strike as well as the poor creative decisions taken during its second year. The belated revival Heroes Reborn showed how badly the concept could have gone, but the original run is worth catching.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997 – 2003)
It’s impossible to ignore one of the most influential fantasy shows. The series was about many things, but at its heart it was the story of a strong woman, fighting life as much as demonic forces, with the support of her family. The self-titled Scooby gang that assembles around Buffy is a dysfunctional family in its own right. The pithy dialogue, the format-breaking episodes, and some of the most compelling drama seen in genre TV made it a template for many shows that followed.
The Tick (2016 – 2019)
Ticks have many lives if Ben Edlund’s creation is anything to go by. The creator has brought three wildly different versions of the character to the screen, an animation in 1994, a short-lived live-action series in 2001, and this Amazon Prime series in 2016.
The latter was almost inevitably cut off at its peak, but there is a lot to enjoy in its short segments of genuinely funny superhero antics. Peter Serafinowicz is excellently cast as Tick, the almost invulnerable and ludicrously outlandish superhero who befriends Griffin Newman’s nervous Arthur Everest. Before Arthur knows it, he’s dragged into a darkly comic superheroic struggle as Tick’s side-kick — or is it all in his mind?
Legion (2017 – 2019)
The X-Men was a major inspiration for The Umbrella Academy, so it makes sense that a hit mutant TV show made this list. Legion cleverly kept its X-Men credentials under its hat for three seasons during Fox’s diverse treatment of its Marvel properties late in its ownership (see also Days of Future Past and Logan).
Dan Stevens leads a captivating cast as David Haller, A.K.A Legion, the mutant diagnosed with schizophrenia as a youngster. You’ll know what to expect if you’re familiar with other Noah Hawley series, like Fargo. Legion is as brilliantly surreal and daring as superhero shows get.
Misfits (2009 – 2013)
An enjoyable oddity from the UK’s Channel 4, Misfits was a comedy-drama that saw a group of young offenders working in a community service program gaining supernatural powers from an electrical storm. The twist is that each power reflects their personalities and gives them an immediate new perspective on life. You’ll see many familiar faces get their break in this sharply scripted show.
The Boys (2019 – present)
If there’s anything like a rivalry on this list, it’s got to be between Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy and Amazon Prime’s The Boys. Two comic properties at the top of their game, each securing loyal fan bases on the rival streamers.
The Boys is a darker tale, following not the heroes — if that’s the right word — but a team of vigilantes dedicated to taking down any super-powered individuals who abuse their abilities. Led by the reckless yet daring Billy Butcher played by Karl Urban, the Boys have their work cut out. Like the Garth Ennis-scripted original comic, it’s cynical, irreverent, and highly watchable.
Preacher (2016 – 2019)
Another adaptation of a Garth Ennis comic, Preacher brought the comic’s profane, bloody and violent supernatural fun to TV for four seasons. Expect visually stunning and unpredictable antics as the mismatched trio of Dominic Cooper’s super-powered Jesse Custer, Joseph Gilgun’s Irish vampire Proinsias Cassidy, and Ruth Negga’s wild Tulip O’Hare set out on a road trip to find God.
Doom Patrol (2019 – present)
An obvious influence on The Umbrella Academy, Gerard Way went on to bring the Doom Patrol comic under his DC imprint. A twist of fate meant adaptations of both comic series reached screens in the same year.
DC’s underestimated superteam of misfits is one of its oldest, dating back to 1963. They’ve never achieved mainstream success because, well, they’re just a bit too weird. But that makes for brilliant comics and TV. Doom Patrol brings out the anguish and trauma at the heart of an odd collection of superheroes brought together by The Chief, Niles Caulder. You’ll get wrapped up in the bizarre tales of Negative Man, Elasti-Woman, Crazy Jane, and the most out-there version of Justice League member Cyborg you’ll ever meet. And that’s just the beginning.
While the new season of The Umbrella Academy is due to arrive on June 22, 2022, the above-mentioned list of meticulously selected shows will undoubtedly make it easier to wait for the much-anticipated third season.