The following are extensive scene-by-scene recaps on season 2 of ‘Umbrella Academy’. A Netflix Superhero Drama created by Steve Blackman. Based on comics by Gabriel Ba and ‘My Chemical Romance’ Frontman: Gerard Way
We Breakdown The Whole Season Over At TheWorkprint Podcast
Season 2 is back and better than ever! We covered Season 1’s release last year, but as a special treat this time around, I’ll be recapping every single episode scene-by-scene. All for the most detailed recaps of Umbrella Academy available on the internet.
Episode 1: Right Back Where We Started
We open on the end of last season, as a blueish white beam explodes from out of Vanya (Ellen Page) shattering a chunk of the moon. The remaining debris hurls toward Earth, where a voiceover of Pogo reveals that the end of the world happened on April 1st, 2019. The only survivors: the 6 siblings who caused it. As the world ends, Five (Aidan Gallagher) teleports the team away into…
A portal, which sends the team scattered across the 1960s beginning with Klaus (Robert Sheehan) and Ben (Justin H. Min). They fall into an Alley just outside the Avon Theatre, as Bobby Darrin’s cover of ‘Somewhere Beyond the Sea’ plays in the backdrop. While searching for hints about where they are, Ben looks into a trash can and finds a movie magazine featuring Bobby Darren. The date: February 11, 1960. Dallas, Texas.
The scene cuts to nighttime, at the same Avon Theatre alleyway. This time, it’s 1961 and Allison (Emmy Raver-Lampman) has just arrived: alone. A mysterious man takes a picture of her from a second-story window. Confused, she stops at Stadtler’s diner next door, where a manager behind the counter, points to a sign emphasizing: Whites Only. Allison looks distressed at this, the bandage still over her throat reminding us she still can’t speak for herself well.
Another scene change. Another portal opens in that same dumpster in rainy Alley. Another man takes a photograph from a rooftop. Luther (Tom Hopper), arrives and screams for Allison, hoping to God that she’s okay. He’s alone, though still calls for her, along with a random bum on the street. It’s 1962.
1963, same setting, as Diego (David Castañeda) lands with cat-like grace in that same Alley. An unmanned camera snaps a picture of Diego’s arrival. Though uncertain, Diego sticks to his instincts and in typical fashion, soon stops a purse snatcher. On a glass, storefront appears a nearby TV. Diego approaches it and sees JFK giving his ‘ask what you can do for your country’ speech.
October 12, 1963. Vanya arrives at the same location. Kiss of the vampire now on the marquee at the Avon Theatre. Confused, she stumbles onto her feet and onto the road, where she’s knocked over as she’s hit by a car. A young boy and an adult woman get out of the vehicle to check up on her.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CmFiQTyD8I
Here’s what the scene looks like for those curious to see from video-to-words
November 25, 1963. In the same alley, Five finally lands onto the scene still dressed in his academy uniform. He turns toward the street, where he sees the Avon Marquee in shambles, as a red starred tank slowly wheels up across the street. It’s an all-out war. As fighter planes scramble and bomb buildings.
Suddenly, Sinatra’s ‘My Way’ begins to play, as a soviet tank launches a shell which is immediately stopped in its path by a pissed-off and levitating Vanya, her long black jacket contrasting her pale skin and glowing eyes. On the ground level, Klaus conjures an army of dead soldier ghosts to attack, as a shirtless Luther leaps to save him from an rpg; which harmlessly explodes on Luther’s back. On the roof, Ben uses his tentacles to dispatch soldiers, while Alison uses her powers to share a rumor: “That’ll blow the soldier’s minds”. Effectively causing their heads to explode. Finally, atop of a turned over police vehicle, Diego is surrounded by soldiers but dodge-flips and dispatches them with his knives.
Ultimately, an older Hazel (Cameron Britton) arrives to find Five amidst the chaos. He points to a barrage of nukes in the sky and tells him to come with him if he wants to live. Five takes his hand and the two depart. Afterwards, a mushroom cloud engulfs the family. The Titles appear.
Hazel and Five arrive at the street 10 days earlier. Hazel mentions he’s only there to keep a promise to Agnes, as she’d died of cancer. Revealing that the couple had a wonderful 20 years happily together. While this is being revealed, three stony-faced blonde men disembark from a bus. Two of them, toting large backpacks. Five notices their approach.
Suddenly, Hazel tells Five to run! Realizing it’s too late. He shoves hands Five his briefcase and shoves something into his pocket. A hail of bullets fire from the three blonde men. Five blinks away with the now smoking hot bullet riddled briefcase. The leader of the trio looks for him and sees smoke rising from behind a parked car, signaling the others to follow. As five peaks over, the assassins open fire. They check behind the car but find nothing but the smoking briefcase. Just above them, an overhead view sees Five laying prone and hiding on top of an adjacent store roof. The assassins leave and head around the corner, finding an unsuspecting milkman and his truck, which they procure.
Five teleports back to the Avon Theatre alley and notices a curtain closing near the top of the building. The same one that spied on his siblings. He looks up and finds a camera, tripod, and science equipment. He approaches the door of the building: revealed to be Morty’s Television and Radio shipping and receiving. Five enters and finds the name Mortimer Gussman D.D.S. etched on the door of the apartment that’s been spying. Inevitably, Five blinks inside when politeness fails and greets a startled and paranoid man. It’s evident from the newspaper clippings and decorum that the man is a conspiracy theorist. He then reveals to Five that he’s been waiting for all of them…
A flashback at Morty’s TV and AM/FM Radio store, see’s that the man’s witnessed five energy surges in the alley over the last few years. He shows Five the pictures and list of others that came this way, with Five realizing that his family is alive. The man then reveals his name: Elliot (Kevin Rankin). Five greets him, thanks him, and then asks for his help to find his family and save the world. Elliot believes in Five and shows him a clipping of a man who was recently arrested that matched the description of one of the five back alley visitors: Diego. Five takes the clipping and follows this lead.
At a mental hospital, we see Diego in group therapy setting, where everyone shares their stories and smokes cigarettes. A noticeable woman to his left, Lila (Ritu Arya), ebbs Diego on, as the group therapist Dr. Moncton, drills Diego on his evident father issues and why it drove him to always feel the need to play the hero. When asked who the real Diego is, he admits he doesn’t really know, but he’s ready. The woman besides him claps sarcastically. After the session finishes, she subtly tells him that no one is believing Diego’s bullshit and wagers a bet over Jello that Doctor Moncton isn’t buying it too. Diego agrees, just as the woman stuffs cigarettes in her mouth and nose. Diego then approaches Dr. Moncton and hints that he’s better now, stressing the need to get out as the president is going to be assassinated. The doctor thinks he’s sick. They have a brief struggle and Diego lifts the doctor’s pen from his pocket.
Later, Diego struggles to make string beads on a bracelet. Lila tries to cheer him up by offering him bacon she’d smuggled in her shoe. She tells him she can help him escape but Diego claims he’s uninterested. That he’s a lone wolf. She says she is too, then sniffs some glue. They’re interrupted by an orderly who tells Diego he has a visitor. Lila takes the bracelet Diego was working on and wraps it around her own wrist.
At the visiting room, Five greets Diego. In return, Diego tells him it’s about time. They catch up and compare what they know, as Five reads aloud from the newspaper clipping that Diego was evidently found at Lee Harvey Oswalt’s house. Diego exclaims that he’s made it his mission to stop Oswalt and save the present. Five tells him he’s not doing anything, because there’s another apocalypse to stop. Five mentions he doesn’t know where time broke, but hints that maybe, it was Diego’s attempt to save JFK. Diego interprets this as a success as this mean’s he stopped JFK from dying. Five hates this. Diego agrees to help Five if he can save Kennedy, and while they’re at it, go back in time to kill Hitler. Five tells him this is why Diego has no friends. He then reveals Diego’s plan to escape to the orderly and leaves him in the hospital, with a promise to pick him up later.
At a ranch style farmhouse, Vanya sits on the Livingroom carpet with Harlan (Justin Paul Kelly), the boy from the car. Vanya is apparently the boy’s babysitter. When asked by his recently arrived mother if Harlan had any ‘episodes’, Vanya says no, revealing the boy is mentally unstable, or even, disabled. When asked about if she had made any progress on her own identity, Vanya replies no, revealing that she has amnesia. Still, Vanya seems oddly happy here.
Over dinner, Vanya greets Carl (Stephen Bogaert), the husband of this new family. Carl talks about sales work and Vanya just nods in agreement. Hinting at the tone of 1960s men and women. Carl leaves for evening, claiming that he’s going to work to help, “Provide for this wonderful life.”
Elsewhere, in the dessert a convertible comes to a stop as the car begins to smoke from the hood. Exiting the vehicle, is Klaus. He wears an open Indian Sherwani long coat over his bare chest. Ben, who is also there as only Klaus can see him, argues that he told Klaus the engine was overheating ages ago. Ben complains he is tired of Klaus and wants him to return to his follows back in San Francisco. He then claims he has unfinished business. In reply, Klaus refuses. The two then wrestle awkwardly on the pavement, which visually, looks like Klaus is fighting himself.
Now on foot, Klaus eventually finds a roadside establishment after a long walk in the heat. He finds four men sitting on a poker table and is invited to join in. Soon after, Klaus antagonizes the players and the men up the stakes. Ben tells Klaus his opponent is bluffing, and so, Klaus raises the stakes by offering his necklace for the keys to the man’s pickup truck. It’s then revealed that the man wasn’t bluffing. Ben lied out of revenge. Having lost everything, Klaus grabs the keys and runs, stealing the man’s car in escape.
At a residential area, a black man enters a home where he’s excited to share the news about JFK’s chances and the chance for a better tomorrow to his wife. The woman, excited to hear the news, is revealed to be none other than Allison Hargreeves. She tries to convince him not to put too much faith in JFK (know he’s going to die) though they both believe change is coming. Her husband then gives her the book, ‘From Earth to Moon’, a reminder of sadly, Luther.
At that same moment, we find Luther fighting in an underground fighting pit. Dragging a match out (because you win more money if you call the right round a match ends), he looks out to a black suited man in the crowd who gives him a nod. Luther then headbutts his opponent and then lands several blows and a roundhouse kick, beating the man easily. The opponent draws a knife and Luther counters and shatters his arm. He looks again at the black-suited man, who nods in approval. Luther then gets a wad of cash which he hands to the suited man. The man then orders him to bring the car around.
At a beauty parlor, Alison’s husband Raymond Chestnut (Yusuf Gatewood) organizes a peaceful black protest that’s going to happen. The one rule that they’re to follow: Honor and Dignity at all times. Suddenly, a knock raps on the door. Allison answers it to find a Mr. Mason, who asks why these black folks are gathering. He mentions that he owns the building across the street and wants to keep things quiet. Raymond tries to close the door, but Mr. Mason wedges his foot in-between before it closes, feigning assault. Mr. Mason then takes a swing at Raymond and Allison counters and pushes Mason to the street. Mason dusts himself off and gives her a hateful look as he walks away.
Back at the farmhouse, Vanya finds the woman/mother she’s working for, Sissy (Marin Ireland), standing over the sink late at night. Sissy hides her hands behind her back and, now caught, lets out a puff revealing that she’s smoking. They laugh, then head to the barn and smoke there. The two women bond. Sissy mentions that men have sides women have secrets, at least in the 1960s. Sissy then reveals there’s a coffee can under the kitchen sink, as she believes every woman has to fend for themselves at some point. The women smile at each other.
Elsewhere, Diego wakes up in a padded cell as he’s in a straight jacket. He staggers to the door just as Daniela Andrade’s rendition of “crazy” plays in the backdrop. Diego dislocates his own shoulder to break out of the jacket, then uses the stolen pen he’d taken to pick the lock and steps out into the hallway.
At that same moment, outside, the milk truck from before pulls up along with the blonde assassins from before. One of the men assassinates the entrance guard on duty with a shotgun. They then flip switches and disconnect the power as the sanitarium darkens, and the lights flicker.
Before he can escape, Diego is physically stopped by an orderly. Caught, Diego is saved by Lila, who knocks out the guard with a bedpan. She then seemingly leans in to kiss Diego, but instead, SNAPS his arm back into place. As the two round the corner to escape, they encounter the assassins, who proceed to open fire. They run, and Diego steps into the nurses’ station and flips a switch opening the doors of all the inmates. The assassins follow close but the two escape down a laundry shoot.
Diego and Lila run through the sublevels and stop at an intersection. They bump into two cops, who then hold them up. Surprisingly, Lila kicks the cop’s gun away and punches him out, in a surprisingly skillful move that impresses Diego. She takes him by the hand and they run. Shortly after, the assassins find the cops and execute them despite their protests. When they reach outside, the assassins find escaped inmates in white everywhere, and cannot tell who is whom.
Elsewhere, at a burlesque show, Luther watches in the distance as Sissy’s husband, Carl (Stephen Bogaert) tries concocting a deal with Mr. Ruby, the gangster. Still, the nearby waitress is more concerned about the ‘child’ being there, as Luther realizes who it is and sits down to talk.
At the table, Luther tells Five the dancer’s too young for him (ironic since he looks like a child). They greet and Luther reveals that much like everyone else in the family, he thought everyone was dead. Five says he understands, knowing what it’s like to be stuck in time. The camera pans over each family member and where they’re currently at in the story. Five asks Luther to return as the group needs its leader, and because the world ends again in ten days.
Luther tells Five he doesn’t give a shit.
Episode 2: The Frankel Footage
We open on a flashback to Hazel shooting The Handler (Kate Walsh) in the head at the end of last season, followed by a scene where two cleanup guys push her body onto a gurney. As they pause in front of a cremation chamber, they hear a noise, revealing that she’s in fact: alive despite being shot in the head.
Perry Como’s Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo begins to play. Three months later after recovering, The Handler reenters her old office building but learns that things are different. She finds the body of a man with a fishbowl for a head sitting in her office; as AJ — the new boss, a large goldfish in a fishbowl —smokes a cigarette through a tiny neck pipe hole that generates small gas bubbles for the fish to breathe. AJ reveals that the Handler has been demoted because of Hazel, Cha-Cha, and Number Five, atop of the 743 incident. Afterward, a short bespectacled case manager named Herb arrives, The Handler’s new supervisor. She’s assigned to Five’s old desk, which infuriates her.
At the burlesque club, Luther reveals to five that he’s the Bodyman for the owner of the club, revealed to be Mr. Jack Ruby (John Kapelos): the gangster who shot Lee Harvey Oswald. Five apologizes over the death of Pogo, the world’s end, and marooning the family in time, but asks Luther for help again, as the Umbrella Academy needs him. Luther rejects him. He then angrily reminds him that if there is a doomsday coming, its likely going to be caused by Vanya, anyway. Place a lot of the guilt of their bad situation on Five. Having to return to work, Luther escorts a drunk Carl out of the place, who drops his wallet. Five, now at the bar alone, finds the item hazel left in his pocket: a tape marked ‘Frankel Footage 11/22/63’. Intrigued, Five leaves to follow this new lead.
At the ranch house, Vanya looks over newspaper clippings seeing if anyone is looking for a missing her. Sissy says Carl needs a ride home, as he’s drunk, but Harlan wants to read a book. Vanya offers to pick Carl up so long as Sissy stays with her son.
Elsewhere, a police car passes as Diego and Lila hide. Diego snatches the clothes off a clothesline and together, they strip down and change out of their hospital clothes. He turns around and tells her that this is where they split-up, but after they dress, she pulls him close as another police car passes by. She chooses, instead, to go with Diego, as Lila smashes in and hotwires a nearby car. Telling him to get in.
Outside the Carousel Burlesque, Carl is drunk and slumped up against a phone booth. Vanya picks him up. Carl tells Vanya that she’s lucky she has a blank slate, as he regrets who he is as a person. At that moment, Luther heads outside wanting to return Carl’s dropped wallet which he’d found on the ground of the club. He spots Vanya getting in Sissy’s station wagon and cannot believe she’s there.
Outside of Allison’s house, the stolen milk truck arrives into the neighborhood and the assassins prepare their attack. Inside her house, Allison and her husband are interrupted by two police who barge in, guns in hand. Raymond is arrested for assault and battery, the “crime” that Allison committed last episode when she pushed Mr. Marson. Feeling in danger, she uses her rumor power… but chooses not to, when her husband reassures that they’ll be okay. As they take Raymond away, the assassins shake his head and choose not to attack, as there’s too much attention now.
At Morty’s TV and Radio, Five hands the Frankel Film over to Elliott to develop. Elliot reveals It’ll take 5-6 hours to develop. At that moment, a 315 is called on Elliot’s police radio, meaning fugitives are on the run. Five soon realizes it’s Diego. When Elliot asks who Diego is, he calls him out:
“Imagine Batman. Then aim lower” – Five to Elliot, trying to describe Diego.
Elsewhere, at the Texas School Book depository, Diego and Lila wait to jump Lee Harvey Oswalt. Diego wants to cut off his trigger finger. Lila thinks they should just kill him. They cutely debate, and she concludes that he’s in fact, got daddy issues, reading Diego like an open book written for very dumb children. Suddenly, Five teleports in and says that they have business to do. After more arguing, Diego agrees to go so long as Lila can join too. She smiles at this demand.
At the Dallas Police jailhouse, Allison complains that she’s been waiting hours to see her husband despite the fact he’s been charged with nothing. Soon after, another man walks past Allison and is arrested revealing himself to be a former lawyer, Keechie (Dov Tiefenbach). When he arrives in the holding cell, he excitingly notices Klaus! Going down on his knees as one of his followers. Revealing that he’s given up his life to spread Klaus’ message of love and peace. Asking for wisdom, Klaus tells him:
“Don’t go chasing waterfalls. Stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to.” – Klaus to his cult followers.
Klaus leaves Keechie in a corner, then walks to the other side of holding, where he meets Raymond. They oddly bond over a mutual love of Shakespeare (which Klaus was forced to learn as a kid), but soon after, Klaus is let go by the Governor, a man he’s never met but whose cult members are apparently some wealthy influencers in town. Raymond says bye to Klaus and lets them know that he and his black friends are being held without charge, if he ever does get to meet the Governor. This shocks Klaus.
Above Morty’s, Five, Lila, and Diego arrive to find Elliott raising a rifle at them. Barking at where they found the footage he processed. Five blinks to Elliot who fires the gun up as Diego disarms him. Moments later, they tie him up while Lila paints his nails and the gang looks at the footage together. It’s revealed to be early footage of Kennedy’s assassination. As they look closely, Diego and Five stare wide-eyed at the picture and freeze it, recognizing the goateed man holding an umbrella: their father.
Elsewhere, a front door opens, and a woman where a woman with cats is greeted by the three blonde assassin men.
Back at sissy’s ranch, Harlan stares at a spinning windmill as Sissy hangs laundry. He finds Vanya and non-verbally asks to play hide and seek, then do so. Outside, Luther catches sight of Vanya in the distance, and he remembers her imprisonment, her murder of Pogo, and her great powers at the end of last year’s season. Luther drinks from a flask and then picks up his small revolver.
In the barn, Vanya looks for Harlan, with Luther following soon after. He hesitates to approach her. She’s just happy he knows who she is, as she can’t remember any of her past. Luther tells her to stop bullshitting and nearly reaches for the gun in the back of his pants. Vanya apologizes if she hurt him, reaffirming that she just wants to know things. Holding back his tears, Luther shakes his head, incredibly sad. He confesses, that he let her down and did horrible things he isn’t proud of when he could’ve just tried helping her. He lowers his guard and says sorry, just as Harlan rushes into the arms of Vanya. Soon after, Sissy finds Luther and holds a gun up to him. Luther claims he’s just there to return Carl’s wallet which he’d left at the bar. After returning it, he leaves.
Back at that house from before, the leader of the assassins cooks fish in an apron and underwear, as the two other men playfully toss a knife at each other. One of which, gets stabbed in the leg. They receive new orders from HQ addressed to: ‘The Swedes’ and have an image of Vanya, their next target. They then open the freezer to grab something, revealing the severed head of the landlady from before.
In Elliot’s apartment, Diego and Five seek out their father using a telephone book, and though they can’t find him, find the whereabouts of his business: D.S. Umbrella. They leave Elliot tied up, as Lila locks herself in the darkroom closet. When asked what’s wrong by Diego, she thinks she’s going crazy again given what she saw in that home movie. Diego reassures her she isn’t, and that there are just things we’re not meant to understand. This reassures her building more of their bond.
At the jailhouse, Ray wants to discuss the sit-in with Allison, who blames herself for making things worse when she attacked Mr. Mason. She wants Ray out. He wants to know why she said, “I heard a rumor,” finding it odd she said it twice. Together they embrace and remind each other their mottos: ‘Honor and Dignity’. But just as she exits the cell block, she sees Keechie’s tattooed hands and recognizes Klaus’ tattoos symbols. She asks Keechie about them.
Meanwhile, Klaus heads towards an abandoned mansion with a columned entrance and breaks in. He walks through the dark mansion and finds a white sheet covering all the furniture. He grabs a sheet and lies down, as Ben looks over his shoulder. We see a large portrait of Klaus hanging on a wall. Revealing that this was his mansion.
Back at the ranch house, Vanya keeps wondering how she knows Luther. Sissy gets them ice for their alcoholic drinks, and as they knock one back, she takes Vanya’s palms and reads them. She shares that she can tell Vanya is not a farmhand. That she has callouses on her fingertips that seem interesting. Their eyes meet with their fingers still touching but they stop there. The two smile at each other as they leave.
That night, Vanya dreams. She remembers sucking the life out of Luther, then awakens. Disturbed, she takes Sissy’s keys and leaves the house, as Sissy, concerned, looks out the window seeing Vanya go.
At D.S. Umbrella manufacturing, Diego and Five arrive and break into the building. As they investigate, they split-up.
Five starts down a long hallway, finding a midcentury Livingroom with a family of mannequins and mushroom clouds etched in the distance. After searching, Five finds an invitation: an invite by the consulate General of Mexico in Dallas. Five pockets it, then hears a noise and looks around. He peers into a dark corner and finds Pogo! The young chimpanzee scratches Five on the neck then jumps out through a window.
Meanwhile, Diego investigates a close-by office before hearing a noise. He sees someone leaving the building and quietly follows. Tracks the person down to a nearby factory. There, the mystery man attacks Diego, who throws a knife that for once: misses. As the man dodges (something that never happens). As they fight hand-to-hand, the mystery man counters Diego’s combat moves. Outmatched, Diego grabs some loose building Rebar and hits the man hard, bringing him to his knees. It’s revealed that the man is a young Reginald Hargreeves. In hesitation to attack his father, Diego is stabbed then stabbed in the gut by Hargreeves, who calls him an ‘amateur’.
After calling out for Pogo to join him in an escape, Hargreeves leaves Diego to bleed out and die.
Episode 3: The Swedish job
We’re in 1960’s Dallas, Texas, just outside of Stadtler’s diner. Where Klaus sits in the booth eating food having just arrived in the past. A manager throws him out on his face, where an elderly and extravagant woman helps him up and takes a liking. We notice she has a large white diamond on her hand. She offers to take care of Klaus finding him attractive. He agrees.
The scene cuts to a mansion, where Klaus’ benefactor presents him to a crowd of wealthy socialites. He impresses them by levitating into the air, revealed to be a trick by his brother, Ben. Unable to keep holding him, Klaus is dropped and the scene transitions to…
A Hippie bus, now in 1961, at the borders of Baja Mexico. Klaus has now become some sort of cult leader. Inside the bus, Ben gazes at a young woman reading a book. He’s infatuated. The camera is knocked over by an overhead tree branch into…
1962, Varanasi, India. Where Klaus emerges from the Ganges river. His benefactor and Keeche put a flower garland around his neck. Which soon leads to….
1963, San Francisco. Klaus’ followers swarm around him as he calls for ‘destiny’s children’ to look up and whistle and raise their hands into the air. Now distracted, Klaus uses this chance to crawl away and run.
At Elliot’s loft, Diego screams at a couch. Lila straddles him cauterizing his wound. She presses her soldering tool to the laceration again and he passes out in pain. Five notices Elliot still asleep, still tied up wondering why she did not untie him. Lila questions if she was supposed to?
At that moment, Vanya drives Sissy’s station wagon travels down a dark highway. She sees bright headlights in the distance and stops when she sees the milk truck. She grips the steering wheel uneasy, as the milkman/assassin pauses in front of her car. He grabs his gun, just as the other two assassins try flanking her. Vanya hits the accelerator and drives the car into a ditch. The Swedes, with flashlights, run after her and so Vanya hides in some nearby cornfields, crouching to hide and stay still. It’s tense and Vanya runs as the assassins close-in with machine gunfire. Eventually, Vanya finds herself at the leader’s feet, who tries shooting her, but Vanya summons her powers instinctively: stopping the bullet mid-air as she sends everyone flying backward with a huge shockwave. Vanya disappears into the cornfield.
At Elliot’s, a red light goes off, as one of his atmospheric radars was readjusted by Five to alert them to the presence of unique soundwaves. Hearing the trigger, Five follows the signal to the cornfields, where he finds Vanya. She’s surprised to learn she has a brother. He convinces her to join him and they find the large crop circle with a crater in the center. Revealing Vanya’s vast powers.
In the early morning at a boarding house for solitary men, Luther leaves his room to shadowbox. Three young men run along too. As he jogs, he thinks he sees Allison and trips, but it is revealed not to be her. Later at the club, Luther visits Jack but it’s evident he’s distracted. He wants to find Allison, as he realizes now that she may still be alive. Jack offers to help.
Elsewhere, Allison gets out of a taxi as she rings the door of Klaus’ mansion. She finds him lounging in his dirty backyard pool, where Klaus sits atop of a pink floatie. She takes off her heels and hugs him and the two catch up, both realizing they’re not the only ones alive. Klaus reveals that he started a cult. Allison reveals that she’s a civil rights organizer and had gotten married to a man named Raymond Chestnut, whom Klaus remembers in jail. It’s revealed that she hasn’t used her power since her throat was slashed, something fine by Allison, as likes that she earned this life without her powers.
Elsewhere, The Handler walks the street dressed in wide sunglasses and a white veil. She enters a pet store and meets a boy, then whispers in the boy’s ear and causes him to wet himself. With a pleasant smile, she gazes at a fish tank, where a small toy treasure chest opens and closes with something tiny inside.
At the beauty parlor, the owner, Odessa (Raven Dauda) asks Allison when Ray is getting out as they might want to postpone the sit-in. Allison says they should do it, or at the least, vote on it. She reasons that they should continue as they’ve been organizing the sit-in for months, and when JFK arrives, most of the attention will be on them, regardless if Ray is there or not. Odessa gives her support. They vote and the majority of the activists agree to continue.
At the jailhouse, Ben haunts a guard by throwing his sandwich against a wall as he inputs on the nearby typewriter, this message:
“Free Chestnut Or… Die.”
Soon after, Klaus celebrates Raymond’s freedom by calling him brother, which Ray mistakenly thinks means in a friendship way, though Klaus means quite literally. Revealing that he’s Allison’s brother.
At a diner, Five and Vanya grab a coffee, and Five tells her the truth about her history, though conveniently excludes that she’s the cause of the apocalypse — blaming it instead on an asteroid instead (a half-truth). Vanya is utterly shellshocked, though more so, because of the news that the end of the world followed them here. Immediately, she calls Sissy, who’s at that moment, struggling to keep Harlan calm. He bites her arm. She holds him until he calms. Afterward, Sissy answers the phone, relieved to hear that Vanya is okay. Five hangs up their phone call, telling Vanya that they need to stick together, reminding her that the most important thing is to stop the end of the world. She follows Five.
At Elliot’s loft, Diego rises from bed in his underwear. Lila offers Diego Elliot’s Tuna mold food, but he refuses and wants to keep going to work on stopping the JFK plot, believing now, that his father is involved. Lila stops him. He asks her why she followed him, and she mentions she thought he was leaving, as everyone in her life leaves or dies — which she thought was what happened to Diego when she first found him. She reveals that she first found her parents dead when she was four. She also reveals that for some reason, she doesn’t hate him, unlike the way she hates most people. He kisses her. She slaps him. He’s confused. She passionately kisses him back. He winces in pain asking her to be gentle. She says: never. Love is made, much to a nearby Elliot’s disgust, who just wants to play with his Jell-O Tuna Mold.
At the club, Luther is given Allison’s address from his boss. He goes and visits the residential street she lives on, but before knocking on her door, finds Raymond. Learning that he is her husband. Which breaks his heart. Later, now inside the house, Luther struggles to form words as he eats some of the candies meant for Allison. Luther forces a brief smile after learning about a few details about Allison’s marriage for a year, then straightens himself, leaves, and tells Ray to just tell Allison he wants to talk.
Outside of a hardware store, Klaus gets out of a car and tells Ben to wait for him outside. As Klaus enters alone, a young man in an apron emerges, revealing himself to be Dave, Klaus’s boyfriend from his period stuck in Vietnam. He asks for paint, as Klaus remembers the Vietnam war and his final moments with Dave. He exits, sad, and reveals to Ben that he wants to try and convince Dave not to Enlist to save him from dying in Vietnam. Ben agrees to this plan, so long as Klaus can handle it. Just then, police cars pass by, and Klaus immediately thinks of Allison.
At Stadtler’s, Allison sits with her allies and starts their sit-down protest. Odessa joins her, as do the other members of their party. After time passes in their lengthy peaceful sit-in, a patron pours sugar on each of them, as a late Ray joins and sits down next to Allison but refuses to take her hand. He reveals that he’s upset over all the revelations today about her brothers and the life she’s not telling him about.
Later, at the fight ring, Luther is beaten up badly. He’s gestured to finish the fight, and so he beats his opponent repeatedly, sending his teeth flying. Coincidentally, Five and Vanya find Luther in the crowd and see him fight; Yet, remembering Allison’s wedding photos, Luther gets distracted and intentionally takes blows to the face again-and-again.
Outside Stadtler’s, black protestors gather at the street chanting, “No more back door!” as a line of cops stand at the ready for a riot. Inside Stadtler’s, white patrons chant: “Get out!”. When Allison asks what’s wrong, Ray reveals he learned about Klaus, but also, Luther, both who claim to be her brother.
At that moment, the diner manager pushes over Allison’s coffee spilling it over her lap which forces her to stand and bump into a cop. They take this as hostility and pin down both Allison and Ray, with the police, proceeding to beat Ray repeatedly. In the chaos, more cops enter and all the black protestors standing peacefully are arrested.
Ray is dragged onto the street. Allison runs out after Ray in the chaos, as the cops force the protestors to disperse. Allison rushes over to Ray, who is being savagely beaten but is stopped by a white man. She breaks loose and then uses her powers on the cop, forcing him to walk away. Afterward, she drops down to help Ray, who stares up at her: horrified. He wants to know what she said to that cop to get him to leave. It’s obvious he doesn’t trust her. Klaus arrives and pulls Allison away.
Back at the ring, Luther begs the fighter to hit him. He receives a powerful uppercut to the chin, as Luther soars into the air. Soon after, Jack pushes through the crowd. Luther’s eyes roll back as he’s on his back, he smiles, seeing the full moon in the broken skylight.
The camera transitions back at the alley window outside the Avon Theatre, where beneath the moonlight, we see Diego and Lina snuggled together in bed after sleeping together. With her back to him, she puts her clothes on and carefully gets her things. She then sneaks out.
Later, Lila enters the pet store and wanders to the large fish tank. She reaches for the small treasure chest finding a key with the tag: 217. She takes the key, and exits the shop, and then walks down a busy sidewalk as police cars pass her on the street. Eventually, she enters room 217 and jumps on the bed. Suddenly, the handler emerges from the bathroom. But to Lila, she’s not The Handler…
She’s mom.
Thoughts on Episodes 1-3:
Honestly, this season just really hits the ground running. I like it a lot, and think it’s even better than last year’s in that it feels like there’s more of a sense of direction rather than just fun character moments. I’d give it a solid 9/10 so far.
I’ll also be recapping every episode this season so feel free to drop in if you feel like you missed something, and feel free to like/comment below if you think something was missed.
