DISCLAIMER: This recap of The Umbrella Academy Season 4 Episode 5, “Six Years, Five Months, and Two Days,” contains spoilers. Proceed at your peril.
It’s the penultimate episode of the final season of The Umbrella Academy, and boy, does it get weird. While I enjoyed most of the episode despite the rushed overarching narrative, the Lila/Five stuff put a damper on things for me. Sure, we see the inevitable buildup, but it still doesn’t sit right. I understand sh*t happens when you’re stuck with someone for several years, but the moral aspect of it is questionable. Diego and Lila are so perfect for each other. Why mess that up?
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The Umbrella Academy, “Six Years, Five Months, and Two Days”
We open with Lila (Ritu Arya) and Number Five (Aidan Gallagher) on the timeline-hopping subway train. A montage plays out, featuring the duo hitting every timeline spot on the confusing map Lila found a few episodes ago. Years pass as the pair fails to find the original timeline for October 14, 2006, the day of OG Ben’s death and infamous “Jennifer Incident.” Then, we see six years have passed. Five and Lila have grown closer during this ordeal.
Meanwhile, in the AU timeline, Klaus (Robert Sheehan) lies in Thunderbolt’s wooden coffin after Quinn buries him. He flicks on his lighter. He uses it to find the secret stash of drugs in his boot. Hey, you might as well pass the time somehow.
The Cleanse Is Here
Next, Viktor (Elliot Page) and Reginald (Colm Feore) take a little father-son road trip to find Ben and Jennifer. They quietly fight over who controls the radio, as family does. Reggie doubts they can locate Ben in time to remove his marigold. The Cleanse is inevitable at this point. They arrive at the motel in which Ben and Jennifer stayed. Viktor and Reggie see dead birds on the ground and the black liquid-covered, dead front desk employee. Reggie states that the Cleanse is already in action.
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Later, Ben (Justin H. Min) and Jennifer (Victoria Sawal) stop at a gas station. They makeout a lot. Ben believes they should hightail it out of here — maybe someplace warm, like Miami. Ben admits he has money stashed in the Caymans that the feds didn’t seize. He also proposes marriage. Damn, after one roll in the hay? He’s got it bad, folks. Ben leaves the car to get gas. Someone watching them in Reggie’s employ informs the latter that he’s got eyes on the two runaways.
So, Viktor calls the pay phone at the gas station. He urges Ben to listen to him. Viktor tells Ben to get as far away from Jennifer as possible. Otherwise, the world will end in 24 hours. Of course, Ben ignores his brother’s pleas and hangs up the phone.
Legs and Eggs
Later, CIA Deputy Director Ribbons (Martin Roach) shows Diego (David Castañeda) and Luther (Tom Hopper) around the CIA per Five’s wishes. Ribbons takes them to the bottom floor, where all the formerly good agents are put to pasture. Diego is convinced this is Covert Ops, but Luther knows what this is: legs and eggs. He compares it to when his boss moved him to Sunday brunch at the club. That’s where the “bad” dancers go. Legs and eggs, folks.
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Then, Lila and Five eat their zillionth cooked subway rat. They’ve gone to the ends of the Earth, timelines-wise, to find the right October 14, 2006. Unfortunately, they’ve come up short. Five proposes they take a few days of respite at that greenhouse in the peaceful timeline. Lila asserts this isn’t them giving up, but she would strangle a kitten for a hot bath. She agrees to the idea.
Meanwhile, at Reg King, Jean (Megan Mullally), Gene (Nick Offerman) and Denny (David Cross) sit together and chat about Ben and Jennifer. Denny knows the Thibedeaus lost them, but that’s okay. He has people hunting down the duo. Denny adds that Ben is the missing piece of the puzzle — he’s the lock; Jennifer’s the key. However, Ben also has a family; if they find the pair before the Keepers, the latter are in trouble.
Allison Kicks Ass
Next, while buried alive, Klaus encounters the ghost of Thunderbolt, Dick’s precious dog. He urges Thunderbolt to find a human above ground to help him escape. Elsewhere, Allison (Emmy Raver-Lampman) and Claire (Millie Davis) search for Klaus. Sure, he gives Allison grief, but he’s her brother. They stumble upon the Mothers of Agony headquarters. Allison uses her updated powers to knock the door down — literally. Inside, she locates Klaus’s old quarters, where he worked as a medium. Quinn (George Tchortov) barges in.
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Quinn wants Allison to replace Klaus after seeing she, too, has powers. He strikes her so hard on the head she must have (at least) a minor concussion. Thankfully, Allison gains the upper hand, using her telekinesis to throw him against the wall. She orders Quinn to tell her of Klaus’s whereabouts. When Quinn resists, Allison uses her mind to squeeze his family jewels so hard that they burst. Ouch. Also, he deserves it.
At the same time, Diego learns the truth about where Ribbons put him and Luther. It’s a pencil-pushing job, not Covert Ops. Legs and eggs, baby. He tries to call Lila’s family to speak to her; however, he learns she’s not with her family. Speaking of Lila, we see her with Five in the greenhouse. They’ve been there for a while now. After some flirting, they kiss. Ugh. This moment. I felt the narrative building to this point, but I still despise it. Lila and Diego are so good together. Plus, the real-life age gap is off-putting, to say the least.
Bye-Bye, Denny
Later, at Reg King, Gene pulls Denny aside and orders him to leave. Denny’s getting too close to Jean. Gene even points a pistol at Denny. Sure enough, his threatening is successful: Denny departs.
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Next, Luther snoops around the CIA for files on the Keepers. Once inside an office, he starts rummaging through filing cabinets. Unfortunately, Luther breaks a few of those cabinets due to his inordinate strength. Ribbons confronts Luther after finding the latter in search mode. We see an inverted umbrella tattooed on his wrist. Ribbons is a Keeper. Ribbons escorts Luther to the bottom floor, but on the elevator, he sends them up. Some agents get on with them and proceed to attack Luther.
Thankfully, by the time Luther arrives on the bottom floor, he’s prevailed, beating the snot out of said agents. An injured Ribbons calls for backup. Diego and Luther fight off the horde as the backup barges into the room. As expected, Diego boasts a tearaway suit he borrowed from Luther, our favorite professional dancer. This moment cracks me up. Luther is also free of his tearaway pants. They successfully defeat the CIA agents, proving they’d be more than capable on the field. (Of course, not without the help of the office-bound former agents and a good needle drop.)
The Journal
Later, Five returns from the outside with a gift for Lila: a bracelet. She loves it. At the same time, Ben and Jennifer are bound for Florida. Jennifer isn’t looking so hot. She’s hearing a resonance frequency, and the red, glowing patches intermittently pop up on her face. Five scours the subway station for more clues that could lead to the original October 14, 2006. He discovers a journal he wrote (although he doesn’t remember/hasn’t done it yet). The journal contains codes and the key to finding the correct timeline and getting home. However, when Lila arrives at the station, Five pockets the journal, keeping it from her.
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Pet Cemetery
Next, Allison and Claire arrive at the pet cemetery where Klaus is buried. Klaus starts banging on the lid to indicate his location. Allison hears a dog barking (Thunderbolt’s ghost). The pair finds Thunderbolt’s grave, and Allison starts digging. Finally, Klaus punches through the wooden lid and emerges into the sunlight. He embraces Allison and Claire. As they leave, he thanks Thunderbolt’s spirit for his assistance.
While Lila and Five have dinner (more strawberries!), he finally shows her the journal. Five confesses he’s kept it from her for five months. Lila realizes this is the key to getting home. Lila prepares to leave. Five tries to persuade her to stay, claiming there might not be a home to go to. The Cleanse could’ve wiped everything out for all they know. Lila believes their romance is a mistake. After all, she’s married to his brother with three kids. What they did resulted from abject loneliness after being stuck together for six years. Lila tells Five he can stay, but she’s going home.
Heal the Daddy Trauma
Then, Viktor and Reggie stop after spotting two overturned, burning vehicles blocking their path. Suddenly, they’re beset by, presumably, Keepers from the Thibedeaus (or Denny’s crew). Viktor orders Reggie to head to their car. He uses his explosive powers to fight off their attackers. At one point, Viktor takes a bullet in the arm. He scrambles back to the car after blasting away the baddies. More enemies fire on them, but our duo speeds away. Reggie compliments Viktor, stating the latter is more of a hero than his siblings. OG Reggie was wrong to mistreat Viktor. Aw. Viktor’s healing his daddy trauma.
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Elsewhere, Ben pulls up to a department store and helps Jennifer inside so she can lie down. An agent of the Keepers reports on their location to the Thibedeaus. Ben tries to call for an ambulance, but Jennifer vanishes into a fitting room. He lies down on a cushion with her. They embrace. Jennifer tearfully admits she’s scared as the red, glowing patches resurface on her face. Ben’s face also glows similarly.
Plot Twist!
Later, Gene grabs his gun when he sees Denny return to Reg King. However, before Gene can fire on Denny, Denny stabs him with a tentacle. Denny’s face vanishes, and Abigail Hargreeves appears in its place. She’s been Denny this whole time. After killing Gene, Abigail takes on his face. Fake Gene heads inside with mint chocolate chip ice cream. Jean admits her surprise — typically, mint chocolate chip gives Gene the runs.
Next, the Keeper/Reg King employee discloses that one of their teams has found Ben and Jennifer. Gene tells Jean, “It’s time to put out the call.” Jean orders the RK employee to “play the song.” How ominous.
RELATED: Read our recaps for The Umbrella Academy
The Umbrella Academy Seasons 1-4 are now streaming on Netflix.
Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: ALLISON HARGREEVES
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What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events.
Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet.
Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium.
Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
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