The Umbrella Academy's Finale Falls Flat on Rotten Tomatoes
The Umbrella Academy, a popular and beloved Netflix series that followed the unique story of a dysfunctional family of superheroes known as The Hargreeves, is finally wrapping up its story after four seasons. While The umbrella academy has a long-standing history of gaining positive critical reception from critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, its ending appears to be less-than-satisfying to audiences, landing with a critic score of 58% on the review aggregation website, Rotten Tomatoes.
The new season marks a series-low for the show. Previous seasons all received scores higher than 80%, earning positive critical response. Sadly, season 4 marks the first instance that The Umbrella Academy received a "rotten" score on the website. The dismal response has made some fans speculate on whether the ending met the high bar that the series had established, or if viewers felt that the series' overall tone went too dark or if the story, at the end, didn't quite meet its goal.
The Criticism for The Umbrella Academy Season 4
It's tough for fans who are passionate about The Umbrella Academy. Many critics say they found the series’ ending to be unsatisfying, a claim which is especially tough considering The Umbrella Academy's status as one of Netflix's rare successes. For many years, it's been hard to watch as numerous shows have been canceled without any real conclusion! So seeing an ending to the series might've felt like a blessing to some viewers. But then it doesn’t quite hit the mark.
There was also an overarching criticism about the new season's pace. Season 4 dropped its usual ten episodes to six, which can explain why it felt "different". Fans say it just wasn't able to give each member of the Hargreeves the screen time to fully develop the ending. With a six-year time jump to open the season, critics were already wondering if those dramatic character transformations had to be forced due to the shorter timeline, even if the new season wasn't lacking a wild storyline.
Retreading Familiar Paths: The Umbrella Academy Repeats Itself
One consistent complaint with the show was how similar season 4 was to the other seasons in the series! The premise of the whole series relied heavily on The Hargreeves' repeated attempts to save the world from various apocalypses - which was entertaining in past seasons but by season 4, it might've worn thin for some fans. It made them wonder if the story needed more dramatic, less repetitive, and perhaps, even more heart-wrenching plotlines!
With all of those critical reviews popping up, the showrunners might be wondering if the season needed to switch things up. The new season doesn't seem to have hit its stride, especially when it came to satisfying audiences. Sadly, critics are already questioning whether they did enough to create that real 'feel-good' moment at the very end that every big superhero show craves, you know? With the way those reviewers feel about the ending, the series could be left in a spot where it may never regain those top scores again.
Will Those Ratings Matter?
So what’s next for The Umbrella Academy? Sadly, we'll never get more, but with a disappointing season 4 ending, those critics aren't just expressing opinions. These scores, even with a big series like this, make some viewers reconsider watching the next seasons if the story might not wrap up so beautifully in the future. But remember, not everyone feels the same way. Some people might disagree. Some viewers will love the ending - so there will always be people who tune into the next seasons for this series. But others, it might seem as if the show was on a slow descent in popularity even when it seemed that everyone loved it.
The Netflix Universe can sometimes be a tough one to win over. If critics, the people whose job it is to give out scores for shows like these, are already criticizing the show’s ending, we’re all in a bit of a “what-if” situation. Was the final season of this show a success or a complete flop? It's always hard to tell, especially for a show like this with a long run. But one thing's clear – it might leave a big question mark over the series’ legacy, while some will always think back to those earlier seasons when The Umbrella Academy felt more exciting. Only time will tell what happens!
