The Umbrella Academy has garnered criticism for falling into the "Silent Asian" trope, but the series still has a chance to fix the issue in season 3. Based on the comic book series by Gerard Way, the Netflix series follows the superpowered Hargreeves siblings - together they make up the Umbrella Academy, a crime-fighting team adopted and raised by the late Reginald Hargreeves. Justin H. Min portrays Ben Hargreeves, aka "The Horror" or Number Six, but his presence throughout the first two seasons has added to a well-known cliche in Hollywood.
As one of the 43 special children born on October 1, 1989, Ben was adopted by Sir Reginald to make up his academy of kids with special abilities. Ben, in particular, had the power to summon a tentacled creature from his body. The character died during a mission years before the events of The Umbrella Academy season 1, but he's still present as a ghost that regularly communicates with his brother, Klaus. After serving as a recurring figure by following around Klaus in season 1, Ben appears in a larger capacity by finding a way to possess his sibling's body in season 2.
Despite Ben's increased role in the follow-up season, the character still has limited dialogue. This has since been called out by Mulan star Jimmy Wong, who took issue with prominent Asian characters having zero or limited dialogue in popular TV shows and movies. Wong pointed at Ben from The Umbrella Academy as well as Karen Fukuhara's mute superhero Kimiko in The Boys as two examples of the continuous "Silent Asian" trope. There's been a common cliche among Hollywood projects that make Asian characters silent as a way to portray them as dark and mysterious in nature. Based on the current story direction, The Umbrella Academy season 3 has the opportunity to give Min's character more of a voice.
How The Umbrella Academy Season 3 Can Fix Their Ben Issue
After the Hargreeves siblings find themselves trapped in 1960s Dallas through Number Five's time travel mishap, the group get back to the present day timeline. The 2019 they return to in the final moments of season 2, however, is an altered version of the world they once knew. For example, Reginald is alive and well, and rather than forming the Umbrella Academy, he started a new team called the Sparrow Academy. Ben is also revealed to be alive in this altered timeline. Since he's no longer a ghost heading into season 3, Ben can be presented as a genuine character that won't be stuck in a quiet realm that only Klaus can tap into. This will essentially put an end to the "Silent Asian" trope as Ben can finally serve as a primary figure in the series.
It's no question that The Umbrella Academy comic book series and Netflix adaptation values diversity. That said, representation should still be a priority among the story development of the characters. While some programs lose sight of that fact, The Umbrella Academy has the opportunity to make amends by giving all of their core characters some agency in season 3. In doing so, the series can stand apart from the rest by giving an Asian character the same valuable screen time as fellow cast members.