Comics & Literature

Why The Umbrella Academy Is Ranked In The Top 10 On Netflix

Published

3 years ago

August 20, 2020

The Umbrella Academy Netflix Top 10 — _Netflix

The Umbrella Academy is in the top 10 and isn’t all that new to Netflix. In fact, the first episode aired in February 2019. But the series – has released its second season and has started to gain a huge following.

Why the sudden hype?

The answer lies in the quirky traits of its production. Its seamless ability to reach out to the nihilistic culture which appears to have engulfed the world.

To the naïve viewer, The Umbrella Academy may seem like another superhero narrative. But the Netflix adaptation of the Dark Horse Comics stories is far from the realms of DC and Marvel.

Having thrown the most random visuals, effects, music and plotlines into a pot of connected but partly inept episodes and hoped for the best. What’s more? It seems to have worked a treat for the particular fans it calls to.

Over the past decade, many comic narratives have been adapted into a live-action series. But most of these have fallen by the wayside. Sky’s ‘The Flash’ started off with a large fanbase but quickly dissolved into an endless stream of “samey” plots. Marvels Agents of Shield appears to have run its course over time. Similarly, Supergirl, which started out as a ‘kick-ass, girl power’ series soon turned boring and repetitive. Yet, The Umbrella Academy has transformed this ‘groundhog day’ of live-action instalments on its head and shaken the genre up.

The premise

The top 10 Netflix series, based on the original comics The Umbrella Academy revolves around seven of 43 children. All who were born at the same time during the mid-20th century with no warning. All bearing extortionary superpowers. The Monocle (Sir Reginald Hargreaves) adopted seven of the marvels soon after their birth. He would train them against an unspecified threat to the world. They are all ranked by their power value and named as such. Though, after 10 years the group split, only to reunite years later.

Remarkably, the mastermind behind the original comic series is My Chemical Romance lead vocalist Gerard Way. Way has had a long history with comic writing, especially during the band’s “breakthrough” years. In an interview with the Dark Horse All-Stars panel at this year’s Comic-Con, Way recalled he “went to the School of Visual Arts in New York City”. Where he also took part in an internship with DC in his senior year. He resumed with how he completely shook-up the comic world deviating from the “continuity” of mainstream writing. Developing a plot that, as he put it, “throw[s] people right into the story.” It’s obvious that the original script lacks the usual direct approach which most comics take. For example, the concept of time is varied between scenes and not just the plot’s close relationship with time travel.

The first comic issue ‘Apocalypse Suite 1’ tells the tale of how The Umbrella Academy came to be. And how the 10-year-old siblings stop an attack on The Eiffel Tower, the plot then morphs to 20 years later, after the group have split.

Further publishes contain plots of time travelling, quite a feat for an illustrated comic. Though, for the Netflix series, it’s not just the story that reflects randomness at a whole new level. Directors Jeff F. King and Peter Hoar have created an on-screen adaption. With a range of special effects and bizarre music choices that are set to provide visual whiplash.

The show’s music selection is only one aspect to its success, and although it may seem insignificant, it sets the mood for the whole premise.

The Soundtrack

Fight scenes in superhero films are often loud, upbeat and fiercely reflect the scene’s tone. But The Umbrella Academy takes a different approach. It uses songs such as Backstreet Boys “Everybody”, completely disarming the viewer who looks upon Allison in a bloody battle with The Swedes, and Klaus attempting to push Ben out of his body, all while the popular 90s classic bops in the background. Kiss’ “I Was Made For Loving You” is another choice that reflects another fight scene between Five, Diago, Lila and The Swedes. It shouldn’t work, it should completely off-set the event, but, it only adds to the whole appeal.

On Netflix The Umbrella Academy isn’t the first to have sported some concepts of the ‘Quintin Tarantino effect’. Giving the audience visual trauma through the art of arbitrary graphics vs sounds. Deadpool is also known for this method. But this technique becomes the only goal, emulating the idea that the story has no meaningful premise. Though that isn’t quite true, the story does evolve, In fact, it advances in several different directions, then reverses back on itself.

Cast

The show boasts a great cast too. So much so that you often find yourself pausing the first episode mid-scene just to hit up IMDB to work out where you may have seen them before. From Juno’s Ellen Page (Vanya) to Game of Thrones actor Tom Harper (Luther), the cast is intense, witty but above all, 100% entertaining. The show even gifts us with Mary J Blige’s acting talents.

It’s an epic show to behold, and something completely different from what we have previously seen. If Stranger Things delves into our deep sense of nostalgia, then The Umbrella Academy on Netflix is most definitely a sneak-peek at a whole realm of cinematography yet to be discovered.

It’s no wonder, then, that The Umbrella Academy has made it to Netflix’s top 10 for the whole of 2020 within the first 30 days of the second season’s release.

Alas, The Umbrella Academy has not yet been renewed for a third season. But with the comics consisting of three volumes, it’s possible that Netflix will order another series soon and the show will be back in the top 10.

How do you think season 3 will unravel? Let us know in the comments below.

Read more of our comic book articles HERE.

Read IMDB information about The Umbrella Academy HERE.

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Comics & Literature

DC Fandome 2021 – Revelations, Trailers and the future

Published

2 years ago

October 18, 2021

Sarah Casserley

At the recent virtual DC Fandome 2021 over 66 million fans tuned in across 220 countries. They listened in 12 different languages. All to find out the scoop on what’s to come for the comic book franchise, new DC revelations and even watch trailers of soon to be released films and TV shows.

But, if you weren’t one of the millions to be watching from home, below is the Film, TV and Gaming announcements and revelations that would interest any DC fan.

FILMS

Black Adam

DC Fandome 2021 started with a world exclusive trailer of Black Adam! The man himself Dwayne Johnson. Along with a host of the films other stars including Pierce Brosnan, Aldis Hodge, Quintessa Swindell and Noah Centineo. They introduce themselves and the exclusive trailer.

During the 4-minute intro below, you see Johnson excitably launch his passion project. He explains how much the Black Adam universe means to him. We are also told that the film is currently in post-production with the film being released on the 29th of July 2022.

We don’t get much information or storyline from the trailer. But Dwayne’s enthusiasm for the character and the gritty darkness of what we do get in the trailer is enough, for now, to keep us excited about this Movie.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom

During the day’s events, Jason Momoa was on hand to give fans an in-depth dive into the world of Aquaman. Firstly, apologising for the four-year wait. However, Momoa and director James Wan appeased fans with a host of behind-the-scenes clips. Plus a glimpse of some unusual conceptual art. Which included quirky looking desert creatures and giant grasshoppers.

We have also been promised by Wan that we are going to be getting a film that’s more mature, giving the audience something new, exciting and an experience we haven’t seen before. The 2-and-a-half-minute look into the sequel, below, was enough to make any fan excited for its theatrical release in December 2022.

DC’s League of Super-Pets

A fun animated adventure was also announced. DC’s League of Super-Pets will bring super-pets like Krypto and Ace the Bat-Hound to life for the first time.

In an exclusive trailer, fans were introduced to the two pups, voiced by Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart, in a light-hearted look into the film. The full movie voice by the comedy pairing along with some other famous names such as Keanu Reeves and Vanessa Bayer is set to be released next November.

The Flash

Another film trailer to hit the DC Fandome 2021 screens was The Flash. Portrayed once again by Ezra Miller and directed by Andy Muschietti. Fans were introduced to the trailer and the concept of the film, where the Flash unlocks the DC cinematic universe. He time hops back to the ’90s where Michael Keaton, reprises his role, he originated in 1989’s ‘Batman’ and 1992’s ‘Batman Returns’.

We’re elated that we get another film with Michael Keaton as Batman. Even if the storyline does sound a little farfetched. We’re sure Muschietti will get the narrative across perfectly and the film will be an instant hit. The film is due to hit cinemas in November 2022.

The Batman

The DC Fandome 2021 team knew exactly what they were doing when they left the release of the second Batman trailer to the very end of the day. Like fans around the world, we also couldn’t wait to see more of Patterson, fully suited up, showcasing his gritty take on the hero. Director Matt Reeves, Robert Pattinson (Batman) and Zoe Kravitz (Selina Kyle/ cat woman) were there to lead the trailers release.

Granted the jury is still out if Patterson can pull of the dark knight or not but we have to admit we are excited to see him in action. We also have a sneaky suspicion that for the first time in a film setting since Michelle Pfeifferthey may have nailed the casting for Selina Kyle with Zoe Kravitz. We don’t have long left to find all this out though, as after a few Covid related interruptions Batman is now set to be released in theatres on March 4th, 2022.

Injustice and Catwoman: Hunted

If some of these DC film releases seem a little far away, fear not because we were also made aware that two animated films will be released quite soon. With Injustice’s release this October and an anime-inspired animated DC offering in the form of Catwoman on February the 8th 2022, both the feature-length animations will be available on digital, 4K and Blu-ray. To take a sneak peak of Catwoman: Hunted you can watch the trailer below.

RETURNING TV

When it came to the TV side of the DC world there were a lot of announcements and trailers mainly around continuing shows such as, Titans, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow and Stargirl along with the more anticipated trailers for:

Batwoman

Has been renewed for another season, despite the departure of Ruby Rose. The new trailer showcased its new Batwoman – Ryan Wilder played by Javicia Leslie.

Doom Patrol

Is set to be returning for a fourth season. During the announcement followers of the show were treated to a wonderfully odd and endearing mid-season trailer.

The Flash

Is set for yet another inter-universe team up as The Flash team takes on a deadly mission against the ‘Armageddon’ villains. Which could decide the fate of humankind. The villainous gang is headed up by Tony Cuttan as Despero, Arrowverse’s Tom Cavanagh as Eobard Thawne/Reverse Flash and Neal McDonough as Damien Darhk.

NEW TV

Peacemaker

First seen in this summer’s ‘The Suicide Squad’ Movie, John Cena’s comedic take of the Peacemaker is set to have its own HBO Max show. The fun and quirky trailer to the first series premiered at the event. Along with a behind the scenes look at the making of the series. It shows that director James Gunn is staying true to his unique, comedic style. The Trailer also shows the other great actors involved in the series including the hilarious ‘Orange is the New Black’ star Danielle Brooks, Christopher Heyerdahl, Robert Patrick and Jennifer Holland. This eight-episode series is set to be released on 13 January.

The Sandman

Viewers of the event didn’t find out much about this Netflix offering. But we did get glimpses of Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer Morningstar. Wwhich let’s be honest along with the announcement that this is actually happening, is enough to get most of us DC fans excited about its release. There is no release date yet but I’m sure over the coming months there will be more announcements about this extraordinarily dark and forbidding series.

NAOMI

Based on the comic book series of the same name created by Brian Michael Bendis, David F. Walker and Jamal Campbell. The TV adaptation of the story was announced with a one-minute ten-second trailer. This superhero drama is based around a comic book-loving teenager who discovers she has superpowers. Her curiosity leads her onto a journey into the Multiverse in search of answers. We haven’t got a definitive release date yet, but we have been promised it will be in 2022.

GAMES

Suicide squad: Kill the Justice League

Since the announcement of this game at last year’s Fandome we haven’t had much information or even any gameplay footage. However, at this year’s event, we did get quite an in-depth trailer and a little look at the storyline. In this game, the player gets a choice of playing Harley Quinn, King Shark, Captain Boomerang or Deadshot. As they take on a new mission against an alien threat that has brainwashed the Justice League. There is still no hint to a release date or even a gameplay trailer, but we have been assured 2022 will be full of hints about the game and hopefully a conclusive release date.

Gotham Knights

Another game trailer that was released at the Fandome, that excited fans across the world was Gotham Knights. Continuing its Arkham-style adventures, Games Montreal has been working hard on the narrative and gameplay functions of this game. This game, in particular, was supposed to be released sometime in 2021 but it was delayed and we have now got a 2022 release time frame.

In this game you get to play a number of characters including Batgirl, Nightwing, Robin, and Red Hood in an open-world action online RPG in order to uncover secrets and take down the Court of Owls.

So there you have it, some of the top DC new from the Fandome 2021. What do you think about all the new announcements? What are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments below..

Read our review of DC’s The Suicide Squad HERE.