''The Umbrella Academy'' is an

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...

series created and written by

Gerard Way Gerard Arthur Way (born April 9, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and comic book writer. He is best known as the lead vocalist and co-founder of the rock band My Chemical Romance. He released his debut solo album, ''Hesitant Alien'', i ...

and illustrated by

Gabriel Bá Gabriel Bá (born 5 June 1976) is a People of Brazil, Brazilian comic book artist best known for his work on ''The Umbrella Academy'', ''Casanova (comics), Casanova'', and ''Daytripper (DC Comics), Daytripper''. He is the twin brother of fellow co ...

. The first six-issue limited series, '' The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite,'' was released by

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops known ...

between September 14, 2007, and February 20, 2008. It won the 2008

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

for Best Finite Series/Limited Series. A second series, '' The Umbrella Academy: Dallas'', followed in 2008. After a hiatus the series returned in 2018 with '' The Umbrella Academy: Hotel Oblivion'' released between October 3, 2018, and June 12, 2019. A television adaptation premiered on Netflix in February 2019. In 2019, Dark Horse Comics signed a collaboration with Studio71 to make a card game based on ''The Umbrella Academy''.

Synopsis

Plot summary

The titular team of ''The Umbrella Academy'' is described as a "dysfunctional family of

superheroes A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

". In the mid-20th century, at the instant of the finishing blow in a cosmic wrestling match, 43 superpowered infants are inexplicably born to random, unconnected women who showed no signs of pregnancy at the start of the day. Sir Reginald Hargreeves, a.k.a. The Monocle, an extraterrestrial disguised as a famous entrepreneur, adopts seven of the children and prepares them to save the world from an unspecified threat as the Umbrella Academy. In ''Apocalypse Suite'', the team disbands and falls out of contact until they meet on the news of Hargreeves's death, and subsequently reunite when one of their own numbers becomes a

supervillain A supervillain or supercriminal is a variant of the villainous stock character that is commonly found in American comic books, usually possessing superhuman abilities. A supervillain is the antithesis of a superhero. Supervillains are oft ...

Characters

The Academy is led by The Monocle (Sir Reginald Hargreeves), an alien disguised as a wealthy entrepreneur and world-renowned scientist. He adopts 7 of the 43 babies born that day who become the members of The Umbrella Academy, namely, Spaceboy (Luther Hargreeves), The Kraken (Diego Hargreeves), The Rumor (Allison Hargreeves), The Séance (Klaus Hargreeves), The Boy (Number Five), The Horror (Ben Hargreeves), and The White Violin (Vanya Hargreeves). ;Influences Way has stated that the biggest influence on this piece of work is his favorite writer,

Grant Morrison Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, w ...

and their work on ''

Doom Patrol Doom Patrol is a superhero team from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in ''My Greatest Adventure'' #80 (June 1963), and was created by writers Arnold Drake and Bob Haney, along with artist Bruno Premiani. Doom Patrol has appe ...

'' with

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

. He has also stated that Pat McEown of ''ZombieWorld: Champion of the Worms'' was a big influence on his work. Way has said that

Edvin Biuković Edvin Biuković (22 June 1969 – 5 December 1999) was a Croatian comics artist. Biography Biuković made his debut in 1987 with the strip ''Dokaz'' published in the third issue of Croatian magazine ''Patak''. He spent several more years wor ...

is his all-time favorite artist and that "his ''

Grendel Tales ''Grendel'' is a long-running series of comic books originally created by American author Matt Wagner. First published in 1982 by Comico, Wagner later moved publication of the series to Dark Horse. Originally a noir comic in the style of Europ ...

'' are like my bible to draw from".

Main series

Volume 1: ''Apocalypse Suite''

The Umbrella Academy is a team of superpowered children who fight evil for much of their childhoods under the tutelage of their guardian and mentor, Dr. Reginald Hargreeves. But the team breaks up, and nine years later, the estranged members are reunited by the death of the only parental figure they've ever known, and the rise of a new and terrible threat.

Volume 2: ''Dallas''

The Umbrella Academy faces a number of catastrophic events and the death of a close ally. When a new threat emerges concerning a cabal of assassins, it is up to the Academy to combat the threat, but each member is distracted with their own problems.

Volume 3: ''Hotel Oblivion''

In 2009, Gerard Way revealed the title of the third series entitled ''The Umbrella Academy: Hotel Oblivion''. It was hinted that this could be the return of Dr. Terminal, as referenced by Spaceboy saying "no one could escape from the Hotel" (in '' Apocalypse Suite'' issue No 3). Dark Horse originally announced ''Hotel Oblivion'' to be released sometime during 2010, but this did not transpire. Gerard Way commented about the uncertainty of ''The Umbrella Academys future, stating that it would be a "really long time" before a release of ''Hotel Oblivion'', as he planned to move away from comics "indefinitely" once the ''

Killjoys ''Killjoys'' is a Canadian space adventure drama series that aired on Space (now CTV Sci-Fi) in Canada. Primarily a science fiction series, ''Killjoys'' follows a trio of hard-living bounty hunters—Dutch (Hannah John-Kamen), Johnny (Aaron As ...

'' series is complete, to focus his attention on his musical career. Way expressed to return to the comics "when it's right". Later in December 2013 Way confirmed that he and

were to work on both ''Hotel Oblivion'' and the fourth installment of ''The Umbrella Academy'' during 2014. Dark Horse finally released ''Hotel Oblivion'' in 2018, with Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá returning. The first issue of ''Hotel Oblivion'' was released on October 3 the same year and the series ended with issue #7 on June 12, 2019. The series was released in full with additional material on September 17 in the same year.

Volume 4: ''Sparrow Academy''

In July 2020, Gerard Way revealed that Vol. 4 would be titled ''The Umbrella Academy: Sparrow Academy''. While this story has not yet been released in print, it is the main plot line in season three of the show.

Short stories

A first short preview story of the series was released on November 2, 2006, on the Dark Horse Comics website. The first printed story was "…But the Past Ain’t Through With You", which appeared in the 2007 Dark Horse Comics

Free Comic Book Day Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) is an annual promotional effort by the North American comic book industry to attract new readers to independent comic book stores. It usually takes place on the first Saturday of May and is often cross-promoted wit ...

issue. Another story, "Safe & Sound", was published in July 2007 in ''

Dark Horse Presents ''Dark Horse Presents'' was a comic book published by American company Dark Horse Comics from 1986. Their first published series, it was their flagship title until its September 2000 cancellation. The second incarnation was published on MySpace, r ...

'' online on MySpace.

"Mon Dieu!"

An Internet preview was released on November 2, 2006, on the Dark Horse website. The story was colored by Dan Jackson and lettered by Jason Hvam. It is included in the ''Apocalypse Suite'' collection. The story is only two pages long and contains two main characters, The Séance, appearing as an adult, and Number Five. A time-travel machine causes the Séance to briefly experience life as a Medieval French military commander.

"…But the Past Ain’t Through With You."

The first printed story of the series, the title is a line from the B-side track "Kill All Your Friends" by Way's band,

My Chemical Romance My Chemical Romance (commonly abbreviated to MCR or My Chem) is an American rock band from Newark, New Jersey. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, lead guitarist Ray Toro, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero, and bassist Mi ...

("And you can sleep in a coffin, but the past ain't through with you"). "…But the Past Ain’t Through with You", appeared in the 2007 Dark Horse Comics Free Comic Book Day issue, released on May 5. It is included in the ''Apocalypse Suite'' collection. The comic book also features the début of ''Pantheon City'' written by

Ron Marz Ron Marz (born November 17, 1965) is an American comic book writer, known for his work on titles such as ''Batman/Aliens'', ''DC vs. Marvel'', ''Green Lantern'', ''Silver Surfer'', and ''Witchblade''. Career Marz is known for his work on ''Silv ...

and illustrated by Clément Sauvé and ''Zero Killer'' written by

Arvid Nelson Arvid Nelson is an American comic book writer, best known for '' Rex Mundi''. Life and career Nelson started writing comics while at Dartmouth College, where he also converted to the Baháʼí Faith. After graduating in 1999 he became a productio ...

and illustrated by Matt Camp. The story begins with Spaceboy, The Rumour, and The Séance finding The Rumour's body in an alley. The killer seems to be the 'Murder Magician' and his Assistant, who has hypnotized everyone at a talk show. The villains are defeated and the secret is uncovered. The Rumour had been sneaking out to meet up with a juggler and lying about going to the library. Her powers created a double that went to the library; this one was taken and slain. It's revealed the Monocle worked with the Magician to kill the copy to teach Rumour 'a lesson'. At the bottom of the final page, it states "... Some of the characters you have enjoyed today may or may not be living and/or dead by the next episode", hinting that The Horror dies soon after.

"Safe & Sound"

“Safe & Sound" is an eight-page story published in the first issue of the second volume of ''

'' in July 2007. The second volume of ''

'' (an anthology comic book, which was the first comic ever published by Dark Horse) appears monthly exclusively online on the social networking website MySpace for free. The title comes from a song Gerard Way worked on with Japanese rock singer

Kyosuke Himuro is a former Japanese musician and singer-songwriter. He was lead vocalist of the rock band Boøwy from 1981 to 1988. After the band disbanded he started a successful solo career, becoming one of Japan's best-selling artists. In 2003, HMV Japan r ...

for the movie ''

Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Complete is a 2005 Japanese computer-animated film directed by Tetsuya Nomura, written by Kazushige Nojima, and produced by Yoshinori Kitase and Shinji Hashimoto. Developed by Visual Works and Square Enix, ''Advent Children'' is part of the ''Compila ...

''. The comic book also features stories for the series ''Sugarshock!'', written by

Joss Whedon Joseph Hill Whedon (; born June 23, 1964) is an American filmmaker, composer, and comic book writer. He is the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions, co-founder of Bellwether Pictures, and is best known as the creator of several television series: ...

and illustrated by

Fábio Moon Fábio Moon is a Brazilian comic book artist best known for his work on ''Casanova''. He is the twin brother of fellow comic book artist Gabriel Bá. Career Fábio has been writing comics for almost 15 years, and has been published in France, It ...

(Gabriel Bá's twin brother) and '' Samurai: Heaven and Earth'', written by

and illustrated by

Luke Ross Luke Ross (born Luciano Queiroz 18 July 1972) is a comic artist known for his work on books such as ''Gen13'', ''Spider-Man'', ''Green Lantern (comic book), Green Lantern'', ''Indiana Jones comic books, Indiana Jones'' and ''Captain America (vol ...

. The story begins with The Kraken on top of a moving car occupied by criminals. The credits on the page say "Safe & Sound / featuring The Kraken / Formerly of the Umbrella Academy". The cars occupants, a driver, a man in the passenger seat with a

Tommy gun The Thompson submachine gun (also known as the "Tommy Gun", "Chicago Typewriter", "Chicago Piano", “Trench Sweeper” or "Trench Broom") is a blowback-operated, air-cooled, magazine-fed selective-fire submachine gun, invented by United Stat ...

, a

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...

fortune teller in the back seat, and a little girl in the back seat are all aware that The Kraken is on top of the vehicle. After The Kraken stabs the top of the car, the fortune teller, who is holding a green

crystal ball A crystal ball, also known as an orbuculum or crystal sphere, is a crystal or glass ball and common fortune-telling object. It is generally associated with the performance of clairvoyance and scrying in particular. In more recent times, the cry ...

, orders the man in the front to shoot The Kraken, who manages to escape injury. When the girl in the back says that she wants to go home, the fortune teller tells her she can as soon as her father pays the ransom. The Kraken punches the man with the gun through the window, prompting the fortune teller to order the driver to slam the brakes. The Kraken and the man with the gun are ejected from the car, the latter going through the windshield. The driver then indiscriminately shoots at the clothing store with the Tommy gun. The Kraken emerges on top of the car (behind the fortune teller) and demands the release of the girl. She pulls out another cartomancy card with 'devil'. The driver shoots at The Kraken, who jumps towards him and punches him. The knocked-out man falls to the ground. The fortuneteller, still defiant, tells The Kraken not to produce his blade or else she will drop the green crystal ball, which she claims holds the life of the girl she is holding hostage. She claims that if it drops the girl will die. The Kraken throws his knife at the fortune teller's shoulder and she drops the crystal ball, which shatters on the ground. The fortune teller is shocked to see that the girl is still alive and is surprised by a punch delivered by The Kraken. The next scene shows the fortune teller being arrested who is hysterically saying that the girl should have died. Inspector Lupo (a character similar to

Commissioner Gordon James W. "Jim" Gordon, Sr. is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane as an ally of Batman, the character deb ...

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

) thanks The Kraken for saving the mayor's daughter. The Kraken reaches into the back seat of the fortune teller's car and produces a crystal ball, identical to the one that was destroyed. He hands it in to the Inspector and tells him that it's "Something important. Take care of it".

"Anywhere But Here"

Dark Horse released the eight-page short story on their MySpace, and is also included in the ''Dallas'' collections and the ''MySpace Dark Horse Presents Volume 2'' in 2009, collecting the online stories from ''MySpace Dark Horse Presents'' #7–12. The story takes place thirteen years ago, during the group's teenage years. The Monocle is giving a long and boring speech to Diego (The Kraken) and Vanya (The White Violin), who are in a punk rock band called Prime 8's, in which Vanya plays the guitar, Diego plays the bass guitar, and an ape called "Body" plays the drums. The Monocle dislikes the band's music and the name of their debut album ''I Don't Wanna Kill the President'', saying that this gives The Academy bad publicity. He gives Vanya a plane ticket to Paris, where she is supposed to study "real" music (classical), however, he is simply trying to separate Vanya from Diego. In his room, Diego convinces Vanya to play one last gig that night at a bar, and then with the money they would earn, they could run away from the Umbrella Academy to tour with the band. They agree to meet at the gig that night. At the bar, people are screaming to hear the Prime 8's, but Diego hasn't shown up yet. The owner of the bar demands to see the band playing at that moment or he'll send another band on, so Body decides to quit the band and say goodbye to Vanya. Vanya, upset at being let down by Diego, is walking down the street and passes by a shop selling TVs. The news is shown about a gang arrested by The Umbrella Academy, which they did with the help of Diego. Vanya walks away and gets into a taxi. The driver asks, "Going somewhere important?" Vanya answers, "Yeah, anywhere but here".

''Tales from the Umbrella Academy''

A spin-off series titled ''Tales from the Umbrella Academy'' was launched with a one-shot issue "Hazel and Cha-Cha Save Christmas" written by Gerard Way and Scott Allie with art by Tommy Lee Edwards on November 20, 2019. Dark Horse released a six-issue miniseries, ''You Look Like Death'', written by Gerard Way and Shaun Simon with art by I.N.J. Culbard. The first issue was released on September 16, 2020 and the miniseries ended on February 24, 2021. The hardcover edition includes an additional short story entitled "Seance" not published elsewhere.

Collected editions

''The Umbrella Academy'' is collected in

trade paperbacks A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, ...

and limited edition hardcovers. The hardcover editions have larger pages and a few more extra features.

In other media

Television

A film version of ''The Umbrella Academy'' was optioned by

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

, but never produced. ''The Umbrella Academy'' was instead developed into a television series rather than the original film, produced by Universal Cable Productions.

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

had greenlit a live-action series adaptation of ''The Umbrella Academy'' in 2017, which premiered on February 15, 2019, with

Steve Blackman Steve Blackman (born September 28, 1963) is an American martial arts instructor, bail bondsman, and former professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1997 to 2002, where he was a fr ...

serving as showrunner, and Way as an executive producer. The first season adapted the ''Apocalypse Suite'' storyline from the comics, focusing on a time-displaced Number Five traveling from the future to warn his siblings of the impending apocalypse. The series was renewed for a second season, which was released on July 31, 2020. The second season focuses on the Umbrella Academy being sent back to the early 60's but each being separated and living new lives that lead up to the assassination of

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...

. The series was renewed for a third season, premiering June 22, 2022. The third season focused on the Umbrella Academy trying to stop a paradox created by them arriving in an alternate timeline, along with a new group of superheroes called the Sparrows.

Card game

In June 2019, Dark Horse Comics announced a collaboration with Studio71 to make a card game based on ''The Umbrella Academy''.

References

External links

The Umbrella Academy
on

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

* *
The Umbrella Academy
on Myspace * Pastorek, Whitney
"Exclusive Peek: Gerard Way's 'Umbrella Academy'"
, ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

''. June 25, 2007 * Khouri, Andy
"The Umbrella Academy" #2

Comic Book Resources ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...

. September 21, 2007
MCR side projects – The Umbrella Academy

MDHP Volume 2 TPB

Interviews

Comics Bulletin Comics Bulletin was a daily website covering the American comic-book industry. History Silver Bullet Comicbooks The site was founded in January 2000 as Silver Bullet Comicbooks by its New Zealand-based publisher/editor Jason Brice. During this ...

, August 27, 2007
Gabriel Bá: Shaping Umbrella Academy's Landscape

�
Gemma Milroy
September 11, 2007

�
Gemma Milroy
November 26, 2007
The Umbrella Academy: Superhero kids in a class of their own
Sequential Tart, October 1, 2007
Umbrella Academics: Way & Allie Talk ''Umbrella Academy'' #3

, November 19, 2007
Comic Geek Speak: Episode 327 – Gerard Way Interview
Comic Geek Speak, November 16, 2007
Apocalypse Suite: Way talks Umbrella Academy

, April 22, 2008
An interview about The Umbrella Academy: Dallas

Newsarama Newsarama is an American website that publishes news, interviews, and essays about the American comic book industry. It is owned by Future US. In June 2020, Newsarama was merged with the website GamesRadar+, also owned by FutureUS. History N ...

, September 22, 2008 * Comics Done Gerard's Way: Umbrella Academy Unfurls..., Geek Monthly Magazine by PJ Hruschak, November 2008, pp. 72–74.

Reviews

Sunday Slugfest – The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite #1 (of 6) Review
an

The Umbrella Academy Dallas Spanish Review @ kopodo

Short stories

“Mon Dieu!” (Internet preview)

“Safe & Sound”

"Anywhere But Here"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Umbrella Academy, The 2007 comics debuts Comics by Gerard Way Comics adapted into television series Eisner Award winners for Best Limited Series Harvey Award winners for Best New Series Dark Horse Comics superheroes