Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy has become a massive hit over the past few years. While it certainly isn’t the first series to depict people with special abilities, not many have done it in such a fun manner. The various members of the Academy all have some pretty cool powers.
The same goes for the other children born in similar fashion on the same day as the Hargreeves siblings, though audiences haven’t met many of them yet. Looking at only the characters who have used their abilities in the series so far, it’s clear that some of them have cooler powers than the others.
Updated on September 11th, 2021 by Kevin Pantoja: Fans are still eagerly anticipating season 3 of The Umbrella Academy. Those loyal viewers like discussing who has the best abilities, while potential new audience members might wonder what are the powers of the Umbrella Academy in the first place. Some are tired tropes in the superhero genre, some are fresh takes on powers and even if they aren’t the strongest person on the show, they just might have the coolest or most interesting ability.
8 Luther: Super Strength
He may officially be Number One and technically the leader of the Umbrella Academy but that doesn’t mean Luther is all that interesting from an abilities standpoint. His position at the top of the team may seem understandable when you consider that his super strength is certainly something that seems beneficial from a leader.
Ultimately though, Luther’s powers are kind of bland. Characters with super strength have been littered all throughout history, so it’s nothing new and there’s not much special to it. The most interesting or unique aspect surrounding it is the fact that he’s become ape-like after an experiment by his father and his coolest scene was likely when he stopped a missile with his back.
7 Ben: Eldritch Tentacles
On paper, having tentacles burst out of your body seems like it’s not much of a superpower. It reads like it would be painful and isn’t your prototypical power. However, that’s really what makes it work as it’s something totally unexpected and it’s surprisingly violent.
Ben is already dead when the series begins so this isn’t a power that is seen often. When he uses it as a kid, the results are effective and bloody. It looks even cooler when Ben possessed Klaus and used it during the season 1 finale. The best moment with it came during the opening of season 2, as a ghost Ben busted it out to help his siblings.
6 Lila: Power Mimicry
Lila Pitts is the one character with superpowers seen so far who wasn’t a member of the Umbrella Academy. In fact, viewers didn’t know she had any abilities until the season 2 finale. It was then that she first showed off the same powers as Vanya.
Then, she displayed similar powers to that of Allison, Number Five, and every other member of the academy. That’s because her power is the ability to mimic those around her. While it’s a phenomenal skill when fighting others with powers, if she’s not around them, the ability is kind of useless.
5 Diego: Trajectory Manipulation
At least when it came to season 1, Diego was the character who exuded the highest coolness factor. He carried himself with a toughness and was out to be a hero. That dampened a bit in season 2 but the opening scene was arguably his coolest moment.
With the entire Umbrella Academy taking part in a huge fight, Diego was seen leaping off of a tank and changing the direction of various bullets being shot at him to go back at the shooters. At first, audiences only thought he could throw knives and have them curve to go wherever he wants. Now, he has branched out to use his trajectory manipulation to also stop bullets, which always looks really cool.
4 Allison: Persuasion
In terms of being dangerous, this might be the scariest power of them all. There’s a reason that Allison does everything she can to not have to use her ability. It’s that powerful and always comes with consequences. As long as she says, “I heard a rumor…,” whatever follows is something the other person has to do or will believe.
A great example of how brutal this can be came when Allison told a group of soldiers, “I heard a rumor that I blew your minds,” and their heads literally exploded. There was also when Lila used it on Allison to make her stop breathing and you can’t forget that she managed to make Vanya totally forget about her powers. The combination of its versatility and how deadly it can be makes it so cool.
3 Klaus: Connection To The Dead
When Klaus was first introduced to the show, he was seen as just a drug addict who never even wanted to use his powers. Over time, it became clear why he got hooked on drugs, owing to a terrifying childhood where he was often forced to communicate with the dead. Once Klaus gained control of his abilities, though, he became a true force.
Early signs of this were when he spoke to several spirits to get intel on Hazel and Cha-Cha and when he channeled Ben in the season 1 finale. In season 2, he was shown to be able to control an army of the dead and even became a host for Ben’s spirit at one point.
2 Vanya: Sound Manipulation
Vanya’s powers are a little more complex than this but sound is where it begins. She can seemingly absorb the sounds around her and then harnesses that energy and uses it for a handful of things. It has caused monumental damage and arguably makes her the strongest member of her family.
Simply manipulating sound on its own doesn’t seem that cool. However, it’s the fact that this ability then allows her to do things like fly and use telekinesis that puts it over the top. Those are two of the best powers ever depicted on TV and Vanya can do both of them. Vanya has also been shown to have the abilities of enhanced hearing, sound projection, power distribution, forcefield generation, and many more.
1 Number Five: Space-Time Manipulation
It almost doesn’t matter what show you’re watching or what comic book you’re reading as space-time manipulation will always be awesome. It’s what makes Number Five possibly even more powerful than Vanya. For starters, Number Five is skilled at teleportation.
He often jumps between long and short distances in the blink of an eye, which is very useful when he’s fighting someone. Of course, Number Five’s most impressive ability is that he can travel through time. He hasn’t mastered it, which has caused many problems for him, his siblings, and the planet, but if he ever does, all bets are off.
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