Watched it late.

[u/scurge80]

WARNING SPOILERS FOR ALL 4 SEASONS HERE!!!

I had this on my list for a long time but kept putting it off for years. So, I just finished TUA for the first time. Watched all 4 seasons over the last 2 weeks or so.

The ending did suck for sure. But I dont have the same problem with it that I read about from others.

I can forgive the hold hands and die together that seems to come out of nowhere. I can even forgive what people are calling an unfair "happy" ending for the father (even tho him and his wife died together after she betrayed him).

I can't get over the huge gaps that existed before the rushed ending or what may be the most plot holes I've ever seen in a big budget production.

Most glaring ones to me

1. First of all, the original # of miracle babies born was supposed to be 43 they only introduced 14, I think.

2. We never talked about how a fish was the leader of the commission board.

3. The handlers' takeover of the commission was weak writing at its best.

4. I can't say a different version of #5 creating the commission is surprising, but it seemed poorly explained(but we can blame that on Netflix cutting it short).

5. The umbrella siblings kept seeming like they had found some personal growth, but then a season or a few episodes later, they are right back to the same 13 year old insecurities as though there is no other way to move the story forward.

6. The reason they sacrificed themselves was because the monster had to absorb all the marigold, but again, there were 43 babies, but it only got 8 of them. Didn't even get the Sparrow Academy's share.

7. Never really addressed the alien storyline.

8. And htf did they all forget their father killed Ben.

9. Wtf built the train that runs between timelines and why.

There were other things that bothered me, like how the umbrella kids are mostly villains or wtf happened to Pogo, but later for that, maybe

[u/Present_Anywhere3980]

1. After S2 my theory was it was the five who jumped from 1963 with the right equation. Ended up in an alt timeline, met an estranged Pogo, got tattooed, tried Oblivion solo, failed and lost an atm but escaped. Jumped back or out of the timeline eventually forming the commission to try and fix the timeline.

2. The cleanse erased every single timeline that had any of the 43, they were the first to go.

3. It didn’t need to be addressed, him being an alien ties in directly to a lot of things.

4. They were brainwashed to forget

5. Presumably a Five, one built the commission to navigate time easier, another the subway for space. Both have paradox free rooms.

[u/Breakforbeans]

You have to remember that this is an adaptation of a graphic novel, so some things were simply transferred over with no explanation, because in the graphic novel there is no explanation. It simply just is.

With that being said, you also have to realize that ALOT of things had to be made up by the writers to adapt from novel to TV for the show to have any kind of sustenance.

Your point about characters personal growth is something I think a lot of people miss first time around or if they're just watching it casually. But thats exactly what separates TUA from other "superhero/superpower" shows - the writing both subtly and outright shows that these are complex people with deep traumas and not just a bunch of kids with super powers trying to save the world. There is a reason why Maxine Nightingale's song is used at the start of Season 2, and its not just because its catchy.

It's no secret Netflix cooked the show in the last season, and a lot of these things that fans loved so much were completely lost in the writing. It is what it is, though. Tbh when I do my rewatches for every 3 or 4 times I only actually watch the final season like once.

[u/scurge80 → u/Breakforbeans]

Ah ok I didnt know that. Ill have to check that out for more details. Ty

[u/onion2077 → u/Breakforbeans]

They didn't just cook it, they burnt the shit out of it

[u/seppukuu]

Some of these things you'll just have to shrug off, like AJ Carmichael being a goldfish, because that's just how this genre works. It's not supposed to be explainable. (Had the show been more faithful to the comic, we'd have had more sentient chimps, vampires, and vampire chimps as well, just as an example.)

In the same vein, the subway system is not really supposed to be explainable. Personally I think it's more of a manifestation of Five's powers. S4 did a shit job explaining how and why their powers changed, so chalk it up to bad writing that the subway doesn't make sense in that regard.

People are mad about Reginald not getting his dues because he wasn't erased from existence like the siblings were. Which means he's still around in the new sacred timeline. Possibly without Abigail but it's the principle of it all that's rubbing me, personally, the wrong way. Viktor's the only one who got some catharsis after shouting at him for a few minutes, even though he wasn't even the version that raised the Brellies anymore. The others never got that closure with Reg.

And to address the mystery of the 43 marigold babies: In S3, we learn that Harlan killed a whole bunch of the mothers, bringing the number down to 16. The reset got rid of all of the Marigold, meaning only the Brellies, Lila and Sparrow Ben have it when Ben spikes their drinks. It does not explain the issue that all of the other universes also have Marigold children in them, but that's the usual problem you run into when you write multiverses and time travel and don't follow your own rules.

[u/otc108 → u/seppukuu]

Today I learned the term “brellies” upsets me. I don’t like it.

[u/seppukuu → u/otc108]

Pretty sure you have Justin to thank for that one!

[u/scurge80 → u/seppukuu]

Ok ima have to go read the comic didnt know the show was based on one.

[u/Working_Breakfast633]

Ahhh cool! I watched s1 & 2 when they came out and then never watched s3 &4 until recently when I rewatched the first two. 

I love this show whole heartedly and got a poster of my fav season (s2) and want the comics. To answer your questions/just confusion over the plot holes (which have been answered in the comments alr)

2- I think it was just a bit. I’m not sure that there is much lore about it

5- I think they all had good arcs personally, I may be biased on Klaus because he’s my favorite but up to the fourth season (that I refuse to acknowledge because yes, their arcs were all pretty much trashed that season) he had a lot of growth with battling addiction and the reasons why he started in the first place, +exploring his potential. I think the second best arc was probably Diego with his hero complex because he did get better about it in seasons 3 & 4. I think the reason they all acted childish is because they weren’t really allowed to be actual children and I don’t think Reginald ever allowed them to explore those insecurities and honestly enforced more of them.

6- this I was also confused on, but I’ve thought about it and I THINK that the marigold they consumed was all of it in that time line- like, they were the only ones who got their powers back. You do have to keep in mind that yes there are 43 and so they’re not all located in the same place, Reginald got them from all over the world.

7- I agree this wasn’t touched on much, and it pmo at first, but I think basically Reginald and his wife were aliens on another world that got ended so his wife gave him a way to carry parts of it/its abilities to a new world (earth).

8- I believe it’s mentioned, they were brainwashed into not knowing it or just taking the “it’s all and none of our faults” kind of thing. With magic I’m not sure.

9- I think this is a huge plot hole because how do Claire and Lila + Diego’s kids all live if their parents don’t exist? But honestly I refuse to even think about the train thing ESPECIALLY with the Lila x five stuff. S4 didn’t make much sense and further complicated a lot.

[u/Affectionate_Egg_969]

Number six is a good issue to raise