The Umbrella Academy is a hit Netflix series about a family of superheroes attempting to stop an impending apocalypse, yet are somehow making things worse. The show has great writing, character development, and plot throughout its first two seasons and it is looking to get more interesting in season 3.
What some people might not realize about the series is that it is based on a comic book by the same name, written by Gerard Way and illustrated by Gabriel Bá. The plot of the show and the comic are loosely related, with there being a lot of notable differences within some of the characteristics of the characters and how they look.
10 Pogo
This intelligent chimpanzee is the assistant to Reginald Hargreeves. He often functions as an advisor for the Hargreeves children but suffers an untimely death to Vanya after she goes mad with power.
Pogo’s appearance in the Netflix show is pretty much the same as his comic book counterpart. Both are chimpanzees who wear glasses and suits.
9 Hazel And Cha-Cha
Hazel and Cha-Cha primarily appear in season one where they are assassins for The Commission hired to ensure that the apocalypse happens. Both start off as sadistic killers, but Hazel defects from the agency to start a new life, while Cha-Cha continues to be a ruthless killer until her death.
Both comic Hazel and Cha-Cha are very similar to their Netflix counterparts. The big difference is that Hazel and Cha-Cha keep their bear and dog masks on in the comics, while the show depicts them taking them off during leisure time.
8 Sir Reginald Hargreeves
The wealthy adoptive father of The Umbrella Academy children is not often present in the series as he is dead at the start of the show. However, his presence still lingers on in the minds of his children as most of them are scarred by the abuse they suffered from him growing up.
The show’s Reginald looks fairly similar to his comic version. Both are old men who wear monocles and suits. Some notable differences are that the comic version has brown hair, does not sport a beard, and doesn’t often wear a top hat.
7 Ben
Ben is one of the more interesting members of the group, as he is dead at the start of the show with the only way he can interact with the living is through talking to Klaus. He has the power to release eldritch tentacles from his stomach.
In the comics, Ben appears as a withered pale man with void-like hole in his chest. He looks much older, and wears a superhero costume consisting of a cowl, cape, and has an emblem of an eye within a diamond on his chest. Additionally, some of the tentacles that appear from his stomach have faces.
6 Allison
Allison is one of the strongest members of The Umbrella Academy. With her power, she is capable of bending reality by uttering the words “I heard a rumor…” and then stating her desire.
While in the comics Allison is a white woman with semi-short purple hair, the Netflix series portrays her as a Black woman with longer hair of varying hairstyles. Her identity as a Black woman plays a significant part in her character arc within season 2, as she is protesting for racial equality during her time living in the 1960s. This is not depicted at all in the comics but was a great addition to the show.
5 Diego
Often working as a vigilante, Diego continues to fight crime even after The Umbrella Academy was disassembled. Diego has the power to alter the trajectory of anything he throws.
In the comics, Diego is a white man with semi-long blonde hair, while in the Netflix version he is a Hispanic man with dark black hair and facial hair. The comic version of Diego is typically wearing a modest superhero costume consisting of an eye mask and a black and gray horizontally striped shirt with a cross and bones emblem on his chest.
4 Klaus
Often a reluctant hero within The Umbrella Academy, Klaus functions as a comedic relief within the show. He has the ability to communicate with the dead but does not necessarily utilize his powers as often as some of the other characters do.
In the comics, Klaus has pale white skin, short black hair, and is scrawny, while the Klaus from the show is a white man with long curly black hair and some facial hair. The comic version of Klaus also often wears black sunglasses and a tan jacket.
3 Vanya
Being left out of The Umbrella Academy due to believing she didn’t have powers, Vanya often feels like an outcast in her family. However, she actually has the strong power of being able to sound waves and nearly causes the apocalypse.
Initially, comic book Vanya looks fairly similar to her Netflix version. They both were white women with black hair, with the only notable difference being that comic Vanya had short hair. However, when Vanya activates her powers in the comics her whole body becomes a pure white color including her hair and clothing.
2 Luther
The former leader of The Umbrella Academy has found himself in an identity crisis throughout these past two seasons. As the only family member who followed his dad’s orders, he grew cynical after realizing his father didn’t really care about him.
Comic Luther has some notable differences from the show’s version. For starters, the ape DNA injected into Luther is much more apparent in his comic version with his whole body beneath his head being that of a gorilla. Additionally, he has white hair in the comics and his attire consists of an eye mask and a spacesuit. Also, at a certain point in the comics, he packs on a significant amount of weight.
1 Five
Five disappeared as a child, only to return to The Umbrella Academy after Reginald Hargreeves’ funeral. He has the ability to teleport and can even travel through time. He is also the only character who actually seems to be focused on stopping the apocalypse.
The Netflix version is pretty similar to the comic version. Five is a bit paler, looks younger, and has a different hairstyle in the comics. Comic Five also occasionally sports a monocle.
