The difference between the Umbrellas and the Sparrows, according to ‘The Umbrella Academy’ creator

Showrunner Steve Blackman has a lot of moving parts to supervise in the hit Netflix show The Umbrella Academy. Now that the show is in its third season, it’s moved beyond its original premise of mystery into something much more.

There’s the mysterious Kugelblitz trying to eradicate existence and of course the new academy in town – The Sparrows. In an interview with Collider, Blackman explained some of the differences between the old OG academy and this new mysterious one. In a way, the two groups are opposites of each other, he said.

The way I saw it in my mind [is] the Umbrellas are families that don’t know how to be superheroes and the Sparrows are superheroes that don’t know how to be a family, so they really come from quite a different place. The Umbrellas broke up when they were young. They never quite made it as superheroes. They’ve come back together, and they’re trying to become a family and in some ways over three seasons, they’ve done that. The Sparrows, on the other hand, have excelled and [are] at the top of their game as superheroes, but the family dynamics have completely broken down.

This premise is a great way to expand on the show’s theme of the importance of family as opposed to just being soldiers and superheroes. Each group highlights the shortcomings of the opposite group. The contrast, Blackman said, was 100 per cent. intentional.

I did want to juxtapose those two different ideas of which is really better? Ultimately, it’s better to have family than to be the best superheroes in town. That’s the message of the story. But you see that in some weird ways, the Sparrows are craving family desperately because they don’t really have that in each other. They’re just a well-oiled machine, like soldiers, but not close and not understanding anymore of each other. They’re the perfected group, but clearly, it’s not right.

Speaking of personal journeys and family, Blackman also touched on Viktor’s storyline this season and how it was affected by Elliot Page’s personal journey – something that we covered in more depth here.

Like many people, I was unfamiliar with what it means to be transgender, and I learned so much filming this past season, still have a lot to learn, obviously, but I’m excited for fans to see Viktor’s story unfold during Season 3 because I think it’s important to see a positive story.

The third season of The Umbrella Academy is now streaming on Netflix.