Why They're Called The Sparrow Academy Instead Of Umbrella Academy

WARNING: Spoilers ahead for The Umbrella Academy season 3

Why is "Sparrow Academy" in season 3? Netflix's The Umbrella Academy begins in 1989 when 43 children with superpowers spontaneously slide out of unsuspecting wombs across the world. Seven of these tykes come to be adopted by Sir Reginald Hargreeves, who molds them into a superhero team worthy of saving the universe two times out of three, which in the wise words of Meat Loaf, ain't bad. The Umbrella Academy season 2's 1963 incident changed the timeline, and Sir Reginald picked a totally different set of adopted children in this rewritten history.

Dubbed the "Sparrow Academy," Reginald's do-over team consists of Marcus, Ben, Fei, Alphonso, Sloane, Jayme and Christopher, and the reason they got picked over the Umbrellas is simple - Sir Reginald realized how badly he messed up. When the Umbrella kids visited their future father in 1963, the meeting left such a sour taste that Reginald went forth and deliberately chose new recruits (the Umbrellas weren't born anyway, but that's another story). Only Ben remains from the original lineup, since he was merely a ghost in 1963 and not even the Monocle could see him. Sir Reginald's reasons for reinventing the Academy are understandable enough - but why did he call this new bunch his "Sparrow Academy?"

When the 1960s Sir Reginald Hargreeves encountered his children, they not only revealed their true identities, but explained about the Umbrella Academy in full, team name included. Given that his first group was an abject failure, Reginald probably felt reluctant to recycle the "Umbrella Academy" name, and any good re-branding requires a snappy new title as the first order of business. The Umbrella Academy doesn't explicitly reveal where the "Sparrow" moniker came from, but most likely represents the team's greatest strength over their Umbrella predecessors. In the animal kingdom, sparrows are notoriously social birds who cooperate in order to survive. After Reginald witnessed the shocking lack of unity among Umbrellas, he named his new superhero team after an animal that worked harmoniously as a unit.

Umbrella Academy season 3 trailer Sparrow Fei

The Umbrella Academy does, however, hint at a spookier origin for the "Sparrow Academy" name. When the Umbrella kids departed 1963, Viktor Hargreeves accidentally left young Harlan Cooper with superpowers. Fast-forward to season 3, and a grown-up Harlan describes his gifts as a psychic connection to the other 43 children (16 after he's done with them). As seen in the final moments of The Umbrella Academy season 2, Harlan was deeply fond of a wooden sparrow toy as a child. Maybe that image of a sparrow bled across the vibration connection between Harlan and Sir Reginald's new adopted children, and one of the kids suggested "Sparrow Academy" as a name for their group, subconsciously influenced by Harlan. Reginald would've happily accepted, so long as it had nothing to do with umbrellas...

Back in the real world, the Sparrow Academy's team name is directly inspired by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá's Umbrella Academy comic books. At the very end of "Hotel Oblivion," a new group of superheroes somehow connected to Grace swoop in and save the day, identifying themselves as the Sparrow Academy. Though their origin won't be revealed until The Umbrella Academy's fourth volume, the comic Sparrow Academy provides loose inspiration for the live-action Netflix series. They wear red super-suits, include a floating cube and a blob, they're considerably better at their jobs than the Umbrellas and, of course, they share the same team name.

More: Why Reginald Hargreeves Is Alive In Umbrella Academy Season 3

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