This article contains spoilers for The Umbrella Academy on Netflix.
No matter how dysfunctional, family has always been central to The Umbrella Academy. The Hargreeves siblings' story comes full circle in the series finale when they collectively realize their very existence is the source of each apocalyptic scenario in which they continue to find themselves. No matter how many times they save the world, it is doomed to end in a different but equally deadly manner. While a multiverse often doubles as a get-out-of-jail-free card to bring characters back to life, The Umbrella Academy shatters its seemingly infinite timelines to ensure the line stops here. Like the characters at the center of this adventure, the concluding episode is flawed but ultimately rewarding.
The Umbrella Academy Season 4 Ending Explained
After The Umbrella Academy picked up its final six episodes from where the last season left off, it quickly flashes forward five years. The siblings no longer have superpowers (though it doesn't take long to get them back), and a different version of their adoptive father, Reginald Hargreeves (Colm Feore), is a dominant force in this new reality. It's the same old, same old, with one big difference: Abigail Hargreeves (Liisa Repo-Martell) is alive and kicking, and has been masterminding the end of the world. Revealing Abigail as the one who synthesized the power-giving marigold and the durango that sets off this chain reaction shows her desperate desire to unravel her invention and taps into the self-sacrifice motif that is at the heart of the finale.
Fixing old mistakes is an overarching theme, eventually leading to the siblings making the collective choice to cease to exist because all of the marigold needs to be destroyed. This isn't just a case of dying but removing themselves from history, as this is the only way to eradicate the other timelines. The extremist group known as the Keepers, run by Dr. Gene (Nick Offerman) and Dr. Jean Thibedaeu (Megan Mullally), were right all along; everyone is living in the wrong reality. The Keepers were fun up to a point, as the real-life husband and wife are a welcome addition. The Easter egg artifacts and kooky behavior fit into the whimsical aspects of the series with ease, but this thread fizzles in the finale when the Cleanse is fully underway.
It is a jargon-filled final season, and sticking the landing when time travel and aliens are involved is tricky to achieve without leaning too heavily into exposition. The manner in which the big questions are addressed mostly avoids this, but the large gaps between seasons mean previous rules and plot developments are easy to forget. The Jennifer Incident is revealed to be the first time Ben (Justin H. Min) and Jennifer (Victoria Sawal) met in 2006 when the original timeline, Reginald shot them both, but killing these versions was nothing more than a bandaid on an apocalyptic wound. In the present, Ben and Jennifer find each other, and they are powerless to stop the marigold and durango inside them from merging to form what can be best described as the Cleanse monster.
At the end of it all, the siblings are consumed by the Cleanse in the mansion they used to call home, so all the timelines are destroyed except the original one. The first-ever episode proved that family comes together to mourn a death, and the series finale bookends this when unite for what becomes their collective funeral. So, even if you struggle with Umbrella Academy universe specifics, the complex relationships and strong ensemble remain the endearing beating heart that make this show appealing.
Abigail is Behind Everything
To understand everything in this closing chapter, we must rewind to the Season 1 finale when a dying Abigail first appeared on her deathbed. At this moment, a grieving Reginald released the marigold particles into the atmosphere of their in-peril home planet, eventually leading to the spontaneous births that kicked off The Umbrella Academy. Flashing back to old scenes can feel like spoon-feeding the audience, but it is helpful when the episode aired more than five years ago.
Regardless of whether creator Steve Blackman has been playing the long game or retconned details to suit the story, the minimal amount of Abigail in the previous three seasons reduces her impact because only Reginald has a deep association. Sure, it is rather sweet to see Luther (Tom Hopper) characteristically thrilled when Abigail thanks him for watching over her on the moon. Yet, it still lacks the weight of the other family connections—including the robot Grace, their actual mother figure. It is too little, too late, even if Abigail's dynamic partnership with Reginald underscores why every version of the billionaire has used diabolical methods to bring her back to life.
One area the series excels in is humor, so when Abigail masquerades as Dr. Gene Thibedeau (Nick Offerman) to ensure her plan goes forward, her marital bickering with Reginald is an amusing aside because her husband has no idea why this stranger is acting so combative and overly familiar.
It isn't until Abigal removes Gene's skin that Reginald realizes his wife is the mastermind behind the apocalypse plot. Everything Abigail has done is to correct her mistake when she first synthesized marigold and accidentally destroyed their home planet. It is a lot of backstory to throw at the audience in the final season when Abigail has only been drip-fed in tiny doses.
With Abigail by his side, this version of Reginald is far more empathetic to the fate of others than his counterparts, but Abigail astutely deduces that what he sees as an act of love is hubris. Heroes and villains often use love as an excuse, and The Umbrella Academy isn't reinventing the wheel when Abigail logically explains that her death was penance for what she created. What feels refreshing is the beautiful moment of marital compromise at the end of all things, demonstrating that this series is at its best when it reflects on how power and personal bonds intersect. However, the truncated season (going from 10 episodes to six) means this universe-spanning marriage rushes toward its conclusion.
Ben's Sacrifice
It is a finale full of putting other people first, which includes Ben briefly having control over his body to save Viktor (Elliot Page). The Sparrow Academy Ben has never shown consideration to the other siblings, so it is pleasantly shocking that he does just this in his final moments before the Cleanse consumes him. First, Ben shows his brother a vision of the original timeline as it should be. It is a compelling moment, but the Umbrella Academy has always struggled with what to do with Ben. In previous seasons, only Klaus (Robert Sheehan) could interact with Ben's ghost form, and Sparrow Academy Ben vibrates with combative energy. There is spikiness between all the siblings, but this version of Ben is inherently an outsider, and this season doubles down on his disdain without giving him much closure.
Again, another couple of episodes would have benefited the development of his connection to Jennifer (Victoria Sawal) and allowed Sparrow Ben to share more screen time with his siblings — even if he repeatedly insists that they aren't family. Min is excellent at showcasing Ben's spectrum of emotions, from his full-body eye roles at Luther's earnestness to his fear when The Cleanse takes over, but this performance outshines the material. Ben gets lost in the visuals of The Cleanse, which makes him rather surplus to requirements in the finale.
Lila's Surprising Love Triangle
Ritu Arya's introduction as Lila in Season 2 was a bolt of lightning, going from antagonist to valuable member of the Hargreeves family. The Umbrella Academy is an ensemble show, but Arya's command of action, emotion, and humor make her the MVP of the final season, which is evident in the finale when navigating Lila's spectrum of shame, fear, and acceptance. Lila's romance with Diego (David Castañeda) led to marriage and three children, but the regular world with no powers left the former assassin feeling restless. Arya captures Lila's weariness toward her husband through wisecracks and wide-eyed frustration, emphasizing the fractures.
Introducing a love triangle this late in the game might seem unwise, yet it also plays on an already established Five (Aidan Gallagher) and Lila bickering push-pull. The ambitious romantic big swing occurs after Lila and Five find themselves lost on the time-travel subway, eventually bubbling over into a physical connection. In the premiere, Five says he is 63 years old (due to his previous time-travel issues), and they were born on the same day before anyone wants to start getting into age gap discourse — this is similar to Claudia's relationship with Madeleine in Interview with the Vampire. The awkwardness when they return to the present in the finale is evident in how both characters are so full of physical unease.
"I didn't see that coming," says Klaus, echoing my thoughts. Having Klaus, Allison (Emmy Raver-Lampman), and Luther react from the sidelines injects some levity, and the chemistry between this cast always adds enjoyment to these moments.
The Many Fives
Actors playing opposite versions of themselves is hardly revolutionary, but The Umbrella Academy takes an ambitious leap in a sequence that is visually eye-popping, and emotionally grounded to hammer home why they all must make the ultimate sacrifice. Playing Five in an illimitable time-space manipulation scenario ensures Gallagher is a deft hand in time-travel dialogue and acting alongside himself. During the big battle, a heartbroken Five ditches his siblings, blinking his way back to the time-travel subway. When he ends up in a busy deli with no one else but dozens of other Fives, he hears a hard home truth: they are the problem.
Given how paradoxical it gets during this multi-Five conversation, the root cause of this neverending cycle of saving and ending the world is surprisingly straightforward. In fact, the many Fives have tried (and then failed) to stop the apocalypse 145,412 times. But the marigold in the Hargreeves siblings is also what triggers each destructive incident. Last season, Five learned that another version of him founded the Temps Commission; here, it is confirmed that overseeing the time-space continuum was an attempt to solve the shattered timeline issue. This scene brings everything full circle, and Gallagher shines as he plays conflicting feelings, a heavy heart, and deft comic timing — and not making my head spin with all this information.
The Umbrella Academy is Wiped From History
To save the original timeline, the siblings realize they need to die. Or rather, cease to exist. By wiping themselves from history, it means Lila and Diego's extended family and Allison's daughter Claire (Millie Davis) must get on the subway to where it all began. The downside? They will have zero memory of their parents. Thinking about the different variables too much might throw up too many questions or feel too convenient, so just go with it. One non-negotiable is that everyone with a marigold in them needs to be absorbed into the giant Cleanse monster rampaging through the streets.
Lila looks set to forsake the all-or-nothing solution as she heads to the subway with her family. While it is never in doubt that she would make this personal sacrifice and get off the train, it is impossible not to get a little weepy at her gut-punch reaction.
Personal sacrifice threads throughout the season as the siblings confront what has been holding them back before they can say the ultimate goodbye. Most of these realizations occur before this last episode, which adds to our emotional connection to these complex characters and the tight familial bonds in the face of adversity.
Viktor had his showdown with Reginald, even if it wasn't the same man who bullied and restricted him. To hear any version of Reginald complement and apologize for the years of hurt is satisfying, and without this, Viktor might not have been able to let go. In their final moments, Diego tells Lila that he finally sees her, and this act of love and lack of ego contributes to the tears falling down Lila's (and my) face. Lila thanks them for "letting me be in your weird family," the only thing that takes away from this brilliant ensemble moment is Ben's absence.
This being The Umbrella Academy means it isn't overwrought with sentiment, as there are plenty of wisecracks, too, and Luther's cheesy sentimentality is playfully rebuffed. As The Cleanse consumes them, Klaus gets one final sweet and salty declaration; "I love you guys, but you are all assholes." Lila says, "F*** you" in return. It is the perfect last interaction for a family who sometimes struggles to like and understand each other but are there until the bitter end, smiling and crying through one last apocalypse together.
What About Those Flowers?
Like all good superhero stories, an end-credits scene gives the audience one final taste to theorize about. If nothing else, it reinforces that they are part of the world when eight marigold flowers bloom in the park. Even if their plan worked and they have been wiped from memory, it doesn't mean the four seasons we just watched were a waste of time. While no one else remembers Luther, Diego, Allison, Klaus, Five, Ben, Viktor, and Lila, the fact that their other family members live on means they exist in some form.
Other series finales have unraveled an entire universe by saying it was all a dream, like on Newhart or St. Elsewhere's snowglobe reveal. Meanwhile, the final Lost episode had some wrongly inferring that they were dead the whole time (they were not). Here, the final sequence shows not only Lila and Diego's family and Claire but several other figures like Grace (Jordan Claire Robbins) and The Handler (Kate Walsh) that viewers will recognize from previous season, who get to live out their lives without the chaos and violence. A normal day is how The Umbrella Academy ends its single timeline run, but even after annihilation, the Hargreeves siblings are nothing short of super.
