The Umbrella Academy Season 4: A Deeply Emotional End To the World As We Know It [REVIEW]

[Warning: Article contains minor spoilers for The Umbrella Academy Season 4.] Netflix’s apocalyptic adaptation of Dark Horse Comics’ The Umbrella Academy has sadly (in more ways than one) come to its epic conclusion. Though shorter in duration, and shorter on action than its preceding seasons, Season 4 nonetheless still delivers on all points that have made the series so incredibly enjoyable as a whole. When it all boils down, though, the show’s story remains at its heart one of family, with all the pain and joy that comes with it.

When last we saw the Hargreeves clan at the end of Season 3, they’d lost their powers and began to go their separate ways. Season 4 picks up years later to show us that, while they’ve all survived, none have particularly thrived. While some seem to have adjusted (Allison, Claus), others have languished (Diego, Victor). And then there’s those who’ve hit rock bottom. Put it this way, I never thought I’d use the words “Luther” and “g-string” in the same sentence. Inevitably, though, a new threat bands The Umbrella Academy back together to save the world once again. This time the threat comes by way of The Keepers, a conspiracy theory cult led by Gene and Jean Thibedeau, played with aplomb by Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally.

The Umbrella Academy Season 4 shines darkly       

We won’t give too much away. Suffice it to say that the series’ final season hits home, and hits home hard. At just six episodes long, it feels at times a bit jam-packed and rushed. Notwithstanding, the final arc of The Umbrella Academy might have felt dragged out in a typical, ten-episode season. In six episodes, though, we get some truly remarkable acting and a great deal of introspection. Aidan Gallagher (Five) and Rita Arya (Lila) are easily the standouts for this season. Each delivers a deeply raw and emotional performance as their characters come to grip with their realities, such that they are. Not to be overshadowed, however, is Elliot Page’s portrayal of Victor. Of all the Hargreeves children, Victor requires, and perhaps deserves, the greatest amount of closure. Page delivers a deeply layered performance as Victor struggles with his past and desire for acceptance.

I honestly wasn’t prepared for where Season 4 took us. Granted The Umbrella Academy is still a super hero story, but…. Season 4 proved it to be so much more.  Gut-wrenching at times, the final season takes us in many directions, much like the fractured timelines it seeks to repair. The notions of family, loyalty, disassociation, resentment, forgiveness, redemption, and acceptance all punctuate Season 4, often in wholly unexpected ways. If you’re triggered by tales of family trauma, well, this show wouldn’t really have been for you in the first place. Those of us who’ve struggled with any of the above may find this season in particular emotionally heavy. In terms of storytelling, however, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

The Hargreeves unite one last time

In the end, it is that undying, unwavering, family bond that Luther, Allison, Diego, Claus, Victor, and yes even “alternate timeline” Ben share that ultimately saves the world… again. That victory, of course, does not come without great cost. That’s to be expected, but it all works out in the end (mostly). The Umbrella Academy Season 4 serves us a satisfying, if not tearful, finale. And yes, in doing so it even addresses one of the series’ biggest, unanswered questions going all the way back to Season 1.

Sir Reginald Hargreeves put the apocalypse in motion. Unfairly, his “children” carried the burden of preventing it. The journeys they take in doing so impart upon us a surprising desire, if not need, to re-examine our own lives and truly consider what really matters. A show that can do that is an exceptional one, indeed.

Like many, I will greatly miss the dysfunction of The Umbrella Academy. To paraphrase from R.E.M., it’s the end of the world as we know it, and frankly, I don’t feel fine. This series finale is going to take some time to process.

All seasons are now streaming on Netflix.