The Umbrella Academy Graduates To Netflix

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Spotlight:

In 1975, the Justice League of America hit ABC’s Saturday morning air waves as the Super Friends. The first, kid friendly, season saw Wendy, Marvin, and their Scooby-Doo-esc pet Wonder Dog serving as the Super Friends’ interns. The second season saw the interns suddenly replace with the shape shifting Wonder Twins; Zan, Jayna, and their pet space-monkey Gleek.

Photo Courtesy of Amazon's Affiliate Program.

Unless you were fortunate enough to have read Super Friends #7, you had no idea the original interns had gone to Ivy University (Ray Palmer’s fictional university) and Paradise Island to further their educations, and the Wonder Twins had been sent from their planet, Exxor, to learn how to be super heroes. You only knew that when they touched hands, to activate their powers, he could turn into any water construct and she could turn into any animal.

Since the end of the Saturday morning series, in 1984, the twins have made occasional appearances in Extreme Justice, Teen Titans, Young Justice, and Smallville Season 11. Now, written by Mark Russell, with art by Stephen Byrne, DC has finally given the siblings their own title.

The new incarnation depicts the twins as exiles, rather than exchange students. Yet, like their TV predecessors, they're again being shepherded by Superman, and interning in the Hall of Justice, as they try to adapt to their new planet.

Wonder Twins is a light hearted comic book geared toward kids and teens, with plenty of super hero cameos and high school hijinks.  Think Archie meets the Justice League.

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The Umbrella Academy Graduates To Netflix:

Photo Courtesy of Amazon's Affiliate Program.

On October 1, 1989, 43 women around the world give birth simultaneously, despite none of them showing any sign of pregnancy until labor began. Seven of the children are adopted by eccentric billionaire Sir Reginald Hargreeves. This is the first bit of information the audience is given as the Netflix series, based on the Dark Horse comic book series by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá, begins.

What follows is a majestically off beat super hero drama. Seeing a loosely knit team of super powered individuals who don't all get along invites comparisons to the X-Men. Yet, the grand mansion and non-human staff reminded me of SyFy’s Sanctuary.

Without revealing spoilers, it’s safe to say we meet our characters just as their lives change and they're thrust into a mystery. As soon as we start to get into the mystery, another, more ominous threat rears its head.

I’m only three episodes into the series, and so far I'm having a lot of fun with it. Not only is their plenty of high powered action, but the characters are written with layers of complexity, making them come across as believable despite their powers.

Although this is a superhero show, I’d recommend watching it when the little ones are in the other room. Violence and use of adult language makes this a show for adults and mature teens.