S03.E02: World's Biggest Ball of Twine

[formerlyfreedom]

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With their Number One missing, the Sparrows take a hostage. Allison makes a painful discovery. Klaus takes Five on an eye-opening road trip.

Dropping Wednesday, June 22, 2022.

[HelloooKitty]

Well, they dealt with Vanya- Viktor pretty quickly and efficiently

the bigger question is why Diego inexplicably has a haircut the next morning. 

Edited June 22, 2022 by HelloooKitty

[PurpleTentacle]

51 minutes ago, HelloooKitty said:

Well, they dealt with Vanya- Viktor pretty quickly and efficiently

I'm just glad that Elliot finally got out of that horrible wig. Who made that and thought it was okay let alone fit for HD TV?

[HelloooKitty]

Yes! When he went in for the haircut, it legitimately  looked like it was falling off the back of his head- I know Elliot has a super high forehead, but that looked… off. 

[formerlyfreedom]

6 hours ago, HelloooKitty said:

the bigger question is why Diego inexplicably has a haircut the next morning. 

THANK YOU! I thought I was losing it!

[redpencil]

12 hours ago, HelloooKitty said:

Well, they dealt with Vanya- Viktor pretty quickly and efficiently

the bigger question is why Diego inexplicably has a haircut the next morning. 

I just assumed he got a haircut at the same barber Viktor went to. They did specifically have the cube apparently insult his hair during the fight in the first episode.

[Anela]

I liked Diego's kid having his back, in the store. 

So, they've nixed the romance with Allison, and Sloane is Luther's new love interest. 

Did Sissy die on their birthdays, because of the grandfather paradox? I can't make out what the cube is saying, so maybe I should put subtitles on. 

[MrPissyPuppy]

4 hours ago, Anela said:

Did Sissy die on their birthdays, because of the grandfather paradox? I can't make out what the cube is saying, so maybe I should put subtitles on. 

Sadly, subtitles don't help with whatever the cube is saying.

[redpencil]

I only know the cube apparently said something about Diego's hair (or at least Diego thought it did) because he responded with something about how his hair was appropriate for the time period (the 60s). I did have to turn on subtitles to make out what Diego had said though.

[supposebly]

So, the red ball disappears animals?

[ItCouldBeWorse]

The others may be cash-poor, but Allison had the wherewithal to fly and cab back and forth to California.

Why were Klaus and #5 driving a car with the driving wheel on the right side?  They were in Pennsylvania, not England.

Did anyone make out the countries of origin of any of "The Kennedy Six" in the book Viktor was reading?  It looked like Vanya was Russian and Diego was Cuban.

[Cthulhudrew]

2 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

The others may be cash-poor, but Allison had the wherewithal to fly and cab back and forth to California.

I initially had the same thought, but it later occurred to me she could have "heard a rumor" she got a free flight/taxi. Why she didn't use her power to get them hotel rooms, though? Not sure.

[tennisgurl]

They really dealt with Vanya/Victor quickly and with minimal drama, pretty impressively. Almost as impressive as how quickly Diego can get his hair cut and beard shaved.

I am disappointed that we don't get to meet the alternate versions of the Umbrella's who never got adopted by Reginald, but all of their mothers dying is certainly an interesting idea. No shock here, the gang went and broke time, yet again. 

I am serious doubts about this kid being Diego's, he looks absolutely nothing like neither Lila or Diego. 

Poor Allison, finding out your kid no longer exists, and so soon after leaving her husband behind in the 60s, is a hard pill to swallow, especially as she never got a chance to make up with her after the rumor mess. 

This shows soundtrack is so random, but in the best way possible. 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

13 hours ago, Cthulhudrew said:

I initially had the same thought, but it later occurred to me she could have "heard a rumor" she got a free flight/taxi. Why she didn't use her power to get them hotel rooms, though? Not sure.

Allison's power is really underused.  It seems to wear off fairly quickly though, so if she used it a lot, then I guess she'd become the target for another throat slashing. And if used for hotel rooms, they would be evicted after a short while.

Edited June 24, 2022 by ItCouldBeWorse

[iMonrey]

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Why were Klaus and #5 driving a car with the driving wheel on the right side?  They were in Pennsylvania, not England.

I noticed that too. Do they film this series in the UK? They were also on the wrong side of the road.

So I was right in guessing they had never been born in this timeline and that explains the lower number of miraculous births mentioned in the previous episode versus the first season. And obviously it's not an accident if all their mothers died on the same day. I'm hoping we eventually learn more about Reginald, where he's from, and what caused these spontaneous births. Maybe it all ties into the big glowing fireball in the basement. Grace said he "created them all." 

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I am serious doubts about this kid being Diego's, he looks absolutely nothing like neither Lila or Diego. 

I'm not sure that means anything. Too often shows and movies don't bother to cast children that look like they could actually be the offspring of the adults playing their parents. 

Quote

They really dealt with Vanya/Victor quickly and with minimal drama, pretty impressively. 

I think I would have preferred some sort of timey-wimey/alternate reality explanation for the change. This show really lends itself to that, especially this alternate timeline story. I'm not sure it's the kind of show that lends itself to dealing with serious topics very well.

[chaifan]

I'm glad I wasn't the only one who caught that the car was right hand drive and they were driving on the "wrong" side of the road.  I couldn't make out what kind of car it was.   But...

where did the car come from in the first place?  Where did the gang find money to pay for everything - clothes, food, car, gas, etc. etc. etc.?  I know it's a silly detail that has no bearing on the show, but it could be explained away in a line or two.  Allison could have "rumored" someone into losing a high stakes poker game, or handing over their winning lottery ticket, or something of the sort. 

I normally abhor child actors, but I'm enjoying Stanley.  Diego needs a bit more depth, and this is providing good material for him. 

I liked how they transitioned Vanya, and I agree the wig was horrible!  But I also think Viktor's haircut is horrible.  He looks at a "classic hair cuts" poster for inspiration, and comes out with that???  blech.  I think it would have been funny if he couldn't decide, and just went with 5's cut/style.

I'm wishing I re[watched at least the last few episodes of Season 2, because I'm a bit lost on some of the details. 

[Ohiopirate02]

2 hours ago, chaifan said:

I liked how they transitioned Vanya, and I agree the wig was horrible!  But I also think Viktor's haircut is horrible.  He looks at a "classic hair cuts" poster for inspiration, and comes out with that???  blech.  I think it would have been funny if he couldn't decide, and just went with 5's cut/style.

Someone in the hair and makeup department decided to give Viktor Elliott Page's hairstyle.  If you Google images of Elliott,  you will see it's nearly the same.  

[peachmangosteen]

13 hours ago, chaifan said:

where did the car come from in the first place? 

Someone here said something about one of the cars at least being a Hotel Obsidian car.

[Stardancer Supreme]

On 6/22/2022 at 2:46 PM, HelloooKitty said:

Well, they dealt with Vanya- Viktor pretty quickly and efficiently

the bigger question is why Diego inexplicably has a haircut the next morning. 

And how did Victor pay for his haircut? I'll fanwank that Diego cut his own hair with one of his knives. I'm sure they are sharp enough.

Luther's watch must have been vintage in order for them to stay in the Hotel Obsidian.  I was wondering where the hell Five and Klaus got that car until I saw the hotel logo in it.

The Umbrellas always have a way to separate from each other before the apocalypse is discovered.

Why didn't Diego get that hitting Alphonso caused injury to himself?  Alison figured that out in one hit.

Now if Fei could dispatch her birds to see for her and there are cameras everywhere at Sparrow Academy, why hasn't anyone noticed Marcus going into the basement after meeting with Vanya? 

I forgot what Lila's power was! She can mimic any powers she sees.  What can Stanley do? He proved to be as proficient with blades as his daddy.

Luther is in love with another "sister".  Too funny.

Jayme's venom is still gross.

Christopher can't sense the cosmic waves emanating from the basement into the city?  These Sparrows might not be better than the Umbrellas when it comes to sussing things out. 

Edited June 28, 2022 by Stardancer Supreme

[chaifan]

2 hours ago, Stardancer Supreme said:

Why didn't Diego get that hitting Alphonso caused injury to himself?  Alison figured that out in one hit.

But it doesn't seem consistent.  At first I thought it was maybe just hits to the face that rebounded back on the other person, but then Stanley took the cut to the leg.  But when Diego was fighting Alphonso it didn't seem that each and every punch he landed on Alphonso also affected him, it was just some of the hits. 

[andromeda331]

I liked the way they handled Vanya/Viktor. They did a good job.

I like Sloane and Luther. They were cute together.

I like Stanley. He really takes after Deigo

Ben wondering why Luther wasn't in charge if he was number one. Oh Ben, that's so not how the Umbrella Academy operates. I do love Luther saying it was more of a free-for-all and thinking if Marcus was kidnapped by his siblings he'd be the last to know.

I loved Klaus and Five's road trip. Poor Klaus with the Amish. That Amish guy could calm down a little. So all their mothers were killed before they were born? That's interesting.

How exactly is Robot Grace able to worship that thing in the basement. 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 6/28/2022 at 12:02 AM, chaifan said:

But it doesn't seem consistent.  At first I thought it was maybe just hits to the face that rebounded back on the other person, but then Stanley took the cut to the leg.  But when Diego was fighting Alphonso it didn't seem that each and every punch he landed on Alphonso also affected him, it was just some of the hits. 

https://screenrant.com/alphonso-powers-explained-sparrow-umbrella-academy/

[Quark]

Only two episodes in and I'm already finding the characters of The Umbrella Academy more likeable than the entirety of last season.

Course, that could be because the Sparrow Academy aren't particularly nice.

[dargosmydaddy]

Do we trust Sloane? Am I being too cynical thinking she seems too nice to be believed?

Was everyone so swear-y in previous seasons? It's been awhile, but I feel like the answer is "no."

So how did Klaus know that the name he found was his mother? Did I miss something in that scene (i.e. a note from Reginald that specifically matched her to Klaus)? Because if he was just going on the assumption that a German last name goes with a German first name... that seems like a big conclusion to jump to. Luther is also a German name (and he certainly looks more stereotypically German than Klaus), and Five doesn't even have a name, so he could be German. (Which leads to the question of who named the kids, which I seem to remember being a conversation in the season one thread... If they were named immediately by Reginald, why doesn't Five have a name? If they named themselves, why were their names so spot-on to their apparent heritage, even in cases where they would have no way of knowing, like Vanya and Klaus? Also why doesn't Ben's name follow this trend? Originally I figured he was Asian-American, but episode one shows he was born in Korea... why doesn't he have a Korean name?)

I know I'm overthinking this... This show is made for the advice "just roll with it"...

Overall I'm not enjoying this season as much as the previous one, but it's early yet so I'm hoping it gets better. And I'm not not enjoying it, as evidenced by the fact that I'm always bummed when the credits start rolling. (I'm sticking to one episode per night.)

[Paloma]

6 hours ago, dargosmydaddy said:

So how did Klaus know that the name he found was his mother? Did I miss something in that scene (i.e. a note from Reginald that specifically matched her to Klaus)? Because if he was just going on the assumption that a German last name goes with a German first name... that seems like a big conclusion to jump to. Luther is also a German name (and he certainly looks more stereotypically German than Klaus), and Five doesn't even have a name, so he could be German. (Which leads to the question of who named the kids, which I seem to remember being a conversation in the season one thread... If they were named immediately by Reginald, why doesn't Five have a name? If they named themselves, why were their names so spot-on to their apparent heritage, even in cases where they would have no way of knowing, like Vanya and Klaus? Also why doesn't Ben's name follow this trend? Originally I figured he was Asian-American, but episode one shows he was born in Korea... why doesn't he have a Korean name?)

I don't know why Klaus assumed that name was his mother, but I do recall something being said in the season one thread (and maybe even in the show itself in season one) about the names being given by Grace ("Mom"). I don't remember if anyone said when she gave them names--it couldn't have been until they were at least 4, since that's when Grace joined the household after Vanya got rid of the last nanny. Reginald only referred to them by number, although it's possible he gave them names for birth certificates when he got them as babies. Also, I think at least some of the birth mothers may have planned to keep the babies despite the crazy circumstances of their birth, and they may have had the babies long enough to name them (since Reginald couldn't have found them all at once). So Reginald may have kept the names already given, though that doesn't explain Ben or Five. If Reginald gave names to those that didn't already have them for birth certificates, that could explain Ben (I doubt that Reginald would have cared about matching names to origin). But Five's name, or lack of one, is still a mystery--possibly related to his involvement in time travel. 

[LvHmBirth]

12 hours ago, dargosmydaddy said:

So how did Klaus know that the name he found was his mother? Did I miss something in that scene (i.e. a note from Reginald that specifically matched her to Klaus)?

The canceled check stub says it's for "(1) Nine pound infant boy hereinafter referred to as NUMBER 4"

[Paloma]

51 minutes ago, LvHmBirth said:

13 hours ago, dargosmydaddy said:

So how did Klaus know that the name he found was his mother? Did I miss something in that scene (i.e. a note from Reginald that specifically matched her to Klaus)?

The canceled check stub says it's for "(1) Nine pound infant boy hereinafter referred to as NUMBER 4"

Thanks, I forgot about that line. And notice that it says NUMBER 4 rather than a name, which seems to indicate that he was not named at birth (or that whatever name his mother gave him was not used by Reginald).

[dargosmydaddy]

On 7/7/2022 at 12:30 PM, LvHmBirth said:

The canceled check stub says it's for "(1) Nine pound infant boy hereinafter referred to as NUMBER 4"

Thank you! One mystery down!

Meant to post this with yesterday's musings, but is there actually a condition that causes smelly pus to randomly squirt from someone's ear, that can be treated by OTC medication from the drug store? That just seemed so random to me... At first I thought Stan was faking it in order to get out with Diego, or that maybe it had something to do with some kind of power, but he seemed legit in finding his medicine.

Also, aren't the Amish well-known for not being photographed? Yet Klaus's aunt had a photo of Rachel paper clipped in her book.

Edited July 10, 2022 by dargosmydaddy

[chaifan]

On 7/3/2022 at 3:07 AM, ItCouldBeWorse said:

https://screenrant.com/alphonso-powers-explained-sparrow-umbrella-academy/

Interesting article, but it seems to be just the opinion of a random tv reviewer, not anyone connected to the show.  So this is all just this guy's opinion on how he sees Alphonso's powers. 

[Guest]

On 7/6/2022 at 9:21 PM, dargosmydaddy said:

Which leads to the question of who named the kids, which I seem to remember being a conversation in the season one thread... If they were named immediately by Reginald, why doesn't Five have a name? If they named themselves, why were their names so spot-on to their apparent heritage, even in cases where they would have no way of knowing, like Vanya and Klaus? Also why doesn't Ben's name follow this trend? Originally I figured he was Asian-American, but episode one shows he was born in Korea... why doesn't he have a Korean name?

At Reginald’s funeral Diego says that Grace named them. The names are probably representative of their heritage because she knew where they were from. The most common theory I’ve seen about Five is that he didn’t want a name or rejected the name he was given.
For Ben, I don’t know if it was deliberate or not, but him not having a Korean name is more common to the Asian experience at the time. Where an Asian name is Americanized or the person chooses a new name because many can’t be bothered to learn how to correctly say Asian names. 

On 6/27/2022 at 6:46 PM, Stardancer Supreme said:

I forgot what Lila's power was! She can mimic any powers she sees.

Thank you for posting that. I completely forgot her power and could only remember her using Five’s power. I was completely confused at the end. 

[andromeda331]

On 7/21/2022 at 11:03 PM, Dani said:

At Reginald’s funeral Diego says that Grace named them. The names are probably representative of their heritage because she knew where they were from. The most common theory I’ve seen about Five is that he didn’t want a name or rejected the name he was given.
For Ben, I don’t know if it was deliberate or not, but him not having a Korean name is more common to the Asian experience at the time. Where an Asian name is Americanized or the person chooses a new name because many can’t be bothered to learn how to correctly say Asian names. 

Thank you for posting that. I completely forgot her power and could only remember her using Five’s power. I was completely confused at the end. 

That's what I've always heard about where their names came from but wished it was in the story. Or even just one person asking Five why his name as Five? 

[ahisma]

On 6/26/2022 at 9:01 AM, iMonrey said:

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Why were Klaus and #5 driving a car with the driving wheel on the right side?  They were in Pennsylvania, not England.

I noticed that too. Do they film this series in the UK? They were also on the wrong side of the road.

No, they were driving on the right side of the road. I think the car being right-hand drive was just an affectation of the hotel. 

With Callum Rennie and Julian Richings, my guess is that they filmed in Vancouver or Toronto. Perfect casting for the kind of offbeat sensibility of the show!