5 best shows like The Umbrella Academy

5 Best Shows like The Umbrella Academy (Image via Netflix)
5 Best Shows like The Umbrella Academy (Image via Netflix)

The Umbrella Academy has finally returned to Netflix with its third season on Wednesday, June 22, 2022. The popular series was first introduced in 2019, and the first two seasons gained worldwide acclaim. With six Emmy nominations under its belt, the show has made quite the impact.

A superhero dark-comedy series by Netflix, The Umbrella Academy follows the lives of seven characters with superhuman abilities as they try to save the world from imminent danger while figuring out their own personal dynamics as siblings. Sir Reginald Hargreeves is the eccentric billionaire who adopted seven babies and raised them to become crime-fighting vigilantes.

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The series offers the perfect mixture of humor, action and adventure as the characters travel through time to prevent a global apocalypse. If you are a fan of The Umbrella Academy and you want to experience other similar shows, look no further because we have the perfect recommendations.


Unique sci-fi and superhero shows that match up to the brilliance of The Umbrella Academy

1) Jupiter's Legacy

Jupiter's Legacy (Image via Netflix)
Jupiter's Legacy (Image via Netflix)

Adapted from the comic book by Mark Millar of the same name, Jupiter's Legacy is a Netflix original superhero series which follows a league of superheroes who have grown old after fulfilling their duties for almost a century. They decide to pass on their responsibilities to their children who have inherited their powers.

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Jupiter's Legacy is as much a tale of superheroes as it is of a family with a strict code to adhere to so they may become ideal predecessors. The series follows two separate narratives. The one in the past showcases the deeds and feats of the original heroes of The Union, while the present narrative follows the lives and relationships of the heroes and their children.

Both Jupiter's Legacy and The Umbrella Academy feature superhero families who have a strained relationship and are working through their problems in order to save the world. The first and only season of the former released on Netflix in 2021.


2) Titans

Titans (Image via DC Universe)
Titans (Image via DC Universe)

Titans is an American comic-based superhero series that follows the characters from DC Comics' Teen Titans as they come together to fight evil. Dick Grayson, formerly Robin, has left his days of being Batman's sidekick behind. However, he brings together a team of superheroes to aid Rachel Roth, a girl plagued with her inner demons, and adopts the role of a hero yet again.

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Titans features famous characters from DC Comics in the three seasons that it has aired so far. Dick Graysons's Nightwing, Jason Todd's Robin, Raven, Hawk and Dove, Starfire, Wondergirl, Beastboy, Rose Wilson, Superboy, and Krypto the Superdog have all made appearances in the show. Like other DC titles, Titans follows a darker storyline as the group fights crime in Gotham, San Francisco and Detroit.


3) Runaways

Marvel's Runaways (Image via Hulu)
Marvel's Runaways (Image via Hulu)

Runaways is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and is adapted from the comic series of the same name. The series has a total of three seasons, and it originally ran on Hulu from 2017 till 2019.

Marvel's Runaways follows six teenagers who find out that their parents are part of an organisation called PRIDE which acts as a charitable front for nefarious activities. The children decide to take action against their parents and stop these crimes. They run away from their homes and come together to fight their evil families.

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Runaways explores the relationships within a family and juxtaposes it against the responsibilities of a superhero. While the parents are no doubt in the wrong, they are shown to prioritize the well-being of their children. This is somewhat similar to how the Umbrella Academy characters regard their adoptee father, Hargreeves.


4) Legends of Tomorrow

Legends of Tomorrow (Image via The CW)
Legends of Tomorrow (Image via The CW)

Legends of Tomorrow is a DC superhero series set in The CW's Arrowverse. The series has an ensemble cast featuring DC Universe's iconic superheroes like Atom, White Canary, Captain Cold, Heat Wave, Firestorm, Hawkgirl and Hawkman, and Rip Hunter.

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The first season sees the heroes come together to form the Legends and travel through time to fight an immortal villain called Vandal Savage in order to save the world from total domination, similar to The Umbrella Academy. Legends of Tomorrow has had seven seasons till date since its release in 2016. Combining humor, action, adventure and time travel with occasional crossovers in partnership with other shows from the Arrowverse, this show is a must-watch.


5) Misfits

Misfits (Image via E4)
Misfits (Image via E4)

Misfits is a British comedy sci-fi series that originally released on E4 in 2009 before being released in the US in 2011 on Hulu. The series follows five individuals who are sentenced to community service because of their respective offences. However, they are affected by a weird electric storm one day which grants them supernatural powers.

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While Misfits is not a superhero series like the other titles in this list, it follows a group of individuals as they try to figure out what they should do with their newfound supernatural powers as they serve their time in community service. After its release in America, it quickly became one of the most-watched series on Hulu. Misfits is full of humor and drama but may not be very suitable for children.


These were some of the titles that you should definitely consider watching if you are a fan of the Netflix original series The Umbrella Academy.

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