The fourth and final season of The Umbrella Academy is now on Netflix, and it concludes with another apocalypse and lots of family drama. At the end of Season 3, the Hargreeves siblings find themselves in a new reality without their superpowers.
Soon, Five (Aidan Gallagher) discovers a mysterious group trying to restore the original timeline, which will lead to an apocalypse affecting time and space.
Luther (Tom Hopper), Viktor (Elliot Page), Allison (Emmy Raver-Lampman), Diego (David Castañeda), Klaus (Robert Sheehan), Ben (Justin H. Min), and Five reunite to stop the Keepers, the secret group aiming to bring about the Cleanse.
Along the way, they uncover details about their birth and a secret that causes conflict between two Hargreeves siblings. So, what happens at the end of The Umbrella Academy?
The Secret of Ben’s Death Is Finally Revealed
One of the biggest mysteries in The Umbrella Academy is Ben’s death. Before the events of the show and the Dark Horse comic by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá, Ben died on a secret mission. In Season 4’s episode “The Cleanse,” it is revealed that Ben formed a bond with a girl named Jennifer (Victoria Sawal) during the mission.
Their closeness triggered the Cleanse. Ben, like his siblings, has marigold in his body, which reacted with durango in Jennifer, causing the Cleanse. To prevent the apocalypse, their adoptive father, Reginald (Colm Feore), fatally shoots Ben and Jennifer.
In the current timeline, the Keepers kidnap Jennifer to try and start the Cleanse. It turns out Reginald’s wife Abigail is behind the Keepers, disguising herself as their leader, Gene (Nick Offerman).
She also took the form of Jennifer’s father, Sy Grossman (David Cross), to lead the Umbrella Academy into conflict with the Keepers. Abigail created the marigold and durango particles and wants to start the Cleanse to fix the universe.
‘The Umbrella Academy’ Season 4 Has One of the Weirdest Relationships in the Show’s History
During the Hargreeves’ quest, Five and Diego’s wife Lila (Ritu Arya) find a time-traveling subway. When they return, Diego notices tension between Five and Lila.
The Season 4 episode “Six Years, Five Months, and Two Days” shows that Five and Lila were stuck in time for almost seven years and developed a romantic relationship. While this choice has split fans, showrunner Steve Blackman explained in a video interview with TVLine:
“Lila and Five are so much more similar than they want to give each other credit for…They’re constantly fighting and bickering, but they’re the most alike. So seven years together — it made sense that something would have happened… It seemed like it was worth trying, and I thought it paid off.”
Five uses the time-traveling subway again in the series finale, “End of the Beginning,” and meets alternate versions of himself. They tell him there’s only one way to stop the latest apocalypse.
‘The Umbrella Academy’ Ends With the Hargreeves Family Making the Ultimate Sacrifice
The alternate Fives tell Prime Five that marigold causes time to splinter and trigger apocalypses. Five tells his siblings they must let the Cleanse happen to restore the timeline. After saying goodbye to their families, the Hargreeves join the Cleanse and set the timeline back to normal.
“End is the Beginning” ends with the Hargreeves’ loved ones, including Diego and Lila’s children, in a park as “I Think We’re Alone Now” by Tiffany plays.
Blackman says he wanted the show to end with the Hargreeves sacrificing their lives to save the world. “I thought there was an interesting idea of ceasing to exist, to never have been known. What is a superhero if no one knows you exist? That was the philosophical question.
Can you be a superhero if no one ever knew you were a superhero? What does it mean to them? And I also thought it was an incredible sacrifice,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. Although the show ends here, fans can look forward to more tie-in material, including additional comics from Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá.
The Umbrella Academy is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.
