The Umbrella Academy season 2, episode 4 review: The Majestic 12

Lila Pitts, secretly working for The Handler, is assigned to protect Number Five at all costs as they, along with Diego, pay Reginald Hargreeves a visit at a gala in the fourth episode of The Umbrella Academy season 2…

The fourth episode of The Umbrella Academy season 2, “The Majestic 12””, opens with a young Lila Pitts (Anjana Vernuganan) in London, England, being discovered by The Handler (Kate Walsh) at the age of roughly four after her parents were gunned down by a Commission agent.

During a brief montage, it reveals The Handler trained Lila (Ritu Arya) to be the best at what she does through gymnastics and combat training. She was also taught many different languages as well as how to kill. Somehow, through as of yet unexplained means, The Handler and Lila made it to the 1960s in order to secure Number Five (Aidan Gallagher).

Lila, after encountering Diego Hargreeves (David Castañeda) at the asylum, clearly has a soft spot for him, but she’s quick to deny that she wouldn’t kill him. She covers by insisting that she would rather take care of Number Five for good since he poses a high-security risk to the Commission. The Handler, however, has other ideas, informing Lila that “he is worth more [to her] alive than dead.” From here, we learn that Lila was placed in the asylum to keep an eye on the Hargreeves children, but to what end? We are not quite sure.

It is explained that The Swedish operatives are the muscle that the Commission employed to dispatch the Hargreeves once and for all – possibly to prevent them from causing the timeline anymore disarray – and simply only attacked Lila as a cause to distract and not blow her cover (or so The Handler says.) Even though Lila is her adoptive daughter, I wouldn’t trust a single hair on that lady’s head, that’s for sure!

The Struggle to reach the other UA members

Luther Hargreeves (Tom Hopper) wakes up to find Vanya Hargreeves (Ellen Page) in his apartment,. This is the night after he purposefully lost a fight when he grew disappointed over the fact that Allison Hargreeves (Emmy Raver-Lampman) found happiness with someone else – her husband Raymond Chestnut (Yusuf Gatewood). Through conversing, Vanya finds out more about the first apocalypse from Luther, learning that that she ultimately caused it during the last season.

Vanya, through all the confusion and with Luther getting fired by Jack Ruby (John Kapelos) after “throwing the fight”, is forced to leave. She leaves Number Five alone and decides to return back to the farm to Sissy (Marin Ireland) and her son Harlan (Justin Paul Kelly).

The Majestic 12 and Shenanigans at the Gala

Unfortunately for Allison, who ditches Klaus Hargreeves (Robert Sheehan) to find her husband, Raymond has disappeared without a trace since the riot. However, she gets a rude awakening when she discovers he’s not only alive and well, but that’s grown suspicious of her motivations – this stems from the last episode when he saw her use her ability to control the cop that was assaulting him, ultimately saving him from a potentially fatal beating.

Under the Umbrella

Following the last episode, the fourth one gives us a chance to process what is going on with Lila and her ties to the Commission and The Handler – including what they actually want – which is best saved for subsequent episodes.

Despite it being quite action-light, this offering held our interest as it did not deviate from its focus – which is Sir Reginald Hargreeves. The revelation that he is part of The Majestic 12 actually really adds new ground as to what kind of father he was to the children.

Lila was just starting to grow on me after that devastating revelation. We know her true motives, but this writer is hoping that Diego is capable of humanizing her a little bit more – just enough to perhaps throw her off the mission. Number Five presents a complication, though; I will get to him later.

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Each of the family’s individual arcs were not only interesting but they all felt well-nuanced – particularly Allison’s and her contributions to civil rights movement in ’60s Texas. With her marriage on the line, her only tether is to Luther and her Hargreeves family.

Of all the Hargreeves children, this writer has found Number Five and Klaus to be his least favorite – although the former is especially starting to grow on me. Five is the one responsible – through orders of the Commission – in killing Lila’s parents which poses already a conflict of interest.

The problem I always had with previous episodes of The Umbrella Academy was the pacing, but here, thanks to the teleplay by Bronwyn Garrity, there is no problem as the characters of Diego, Lila and Five manage to push the main plot forward very nicely.

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What did you think of the fourth installment of The Umbrella Academy? Let us know in the comments below!

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