Lila Pitts is one of the most powerful characters in The Umbrella Academy, so why isn't she included among season 2's Sparrows? Gerard Way's The Umbrella Academy begins with 43 super-powered children born miraculously in 1989. Sir Reginald Hargreeves (who was most likely involved in their conception) trails the Earth attempting to recruit these newborns for his superhero team, returning home with 7 of them. After the Hargreeves siblings spend most of The Umbrella Academy season 2 meddling with history, however, they arrive back in 2019 to find a completely different group (with the exception of Ben) in their place, renamed the "Sparrow Academy."
Included in neither incarnation of Reginald Hargreeves' super-schools is Lila Pitts. Introduced in The Umbrella Academy season 2, Lila works for The Commission, albeit not entirely through her own volition. Lila's powers are unique; she's an empath who can copy superpowers when another of the 43 kids is nearby. The more siblings are around her, the more powers she can borrow, and this means Lila would've been invaluable as a member of Sir Reginald's team - so why doesn't he pick her?
The Umbrella Academy hasn't clearly defined Sir Reginald Hargreeves' criteria for drafting superhero groups. In the premiere episode, it's implied that only 7 mothers were willing to part with their newborn children. On the other hand, the Sparrow Academy's existence suggests that Reginald deliberately avoided picking the siblings he met in 1962. Both factors probably played a part - some kids Reginald couldn't get, some he didn't want. In Lila's case, the former is most likely behind her omission. When The Umbrella Academy season 2 flashes back to Lila's life before The Handler, she appears to come from a very loving family. Try as Reginald might, he probably couldn't convince Lila's biological mother to part with her newborn daughter, no matter how surprising the birth was.
Lila hailing from a caring home would explain why she wasn't part of the original Umbrella Academy, and still wasn't picked when Reginald shuffled his team for the Sparrow Academy. Reginald probably would've loved an empath on his squad, but apparently even he wasn't dastardly enough to take one of the 43 babies without the mother's permission.
An alternative explanation might be found in Reginald's monocle. In the original Umbrella Academy comic books, the eyepiece shows Reginald a person's true worth, and he uses this ability to judge each of the 43 babies he visits. It's possible that, despite her immense power, Reginald saw something in Lila that made her unsuitable for the Umbrella Academy. After all, she committed various atrocities while under the influence of The Handler - maybe Reginald's monocle picked up on Lila's potential for evil, and he gave her a hard pass.
The truth should be revealed in The Umbrella Academy season 3. When the Hargreeves siblings return, viewers will surely learn more about Reginald (since he's alive again), as well as how the Sparrow Academy came to be, and how the 43 children were created. Reginald could explicitly address why he chose the Sparrows over the Umbrellas and, subsequently, why he left out Lila. Additionally, Lila should enjoy a significant role in The Umbrella Academy season 3, and now that she's free of The Handler, her true nature will be revealed. Will Lila Pitts prove why Sir Reginald was right to ignore her?
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April 09, 2021 at 05:26AM
