"Kindest Cut" is the fifth episode of The Umbrella Academy''s third season.
Viktor confronts Harlan and learns the specifics of his and the others' mothers' deaths: Harlan had felt them about to be born, and had attempted to reach out, but had killed their mothers through the connection. Five and Lila arrive back at the hotel; the former calls a family meeting to discuss the kugelblitz, while Diego finds Klaus's body. Meanwhile, Klaus awakens in the afterlife and sees several times he has died throughout his life. Before coming back down to earth, he meets his mother in the afterlife.
Fei objects to demanding Harlan's head, but Ben maintains that it is necessary if they want to save the world. They send one of Grace's eyes through the kugelblitz, causing a massively destructive wave. Five estimates that all existence might end in about four days. Upon learning that turning Harlan over to the Sparrows will bring peace between them, everyone except Viktor is in favor even if it means Harlan might die. Harlan asks Viktor if they can try to fix things together.
Lila and Diego kiss and make up, not noticing they've opened a mysterious door in the buffalo room, while Luther checks in on Allison. She Rumors Luther to make him want her, but flees the scene in horror and finds Viktor fleeing with Harlan. Allison volunteers to take Harlan somewhere safe, while the other brothers express their disappointment in Viktor. Klaus recognizes the tattoo on Old Five's chest as the symbol of the Mothers of Agony, a biker gang. Five heads to a strip club they operate out of and finds Pogo working there.
Tropes:
- Aspect Ratio Switch: Klaus meeting his mother in the afterlife is windowboxed in comparison to life on Earth.
- Call-Back:
- Stan comments that the (temporarily) dead Klaus is heavy. In the second season, Allison comments to Ray that people are heavier when they're dead.
- Luther compares Viktor covering for Harlan to the way he defended Leonard back in the first season.
- Carpet-Rolled Corpse: Diego tries to haul Klaus's corpse around in the fluffy white carpet he found him on.
- Circling Birdies: Discussed when Klaus learns that all the times he thought he was having near-death experiences were real deaths.Klaus: I just thought I was like one of those wacky Looney Tunes characters; like, hit me on the head with a hammer and I see some cartoon birds. And then, pop! I get back up.
- Near-Rape Experience: Allison tries to use Luther for Sex for Solace. Luther turns her down, half because he wants to be monogamous with Sloane and half because Am I Just a Toy to You?. Allison uses her Compelling Voice to make Luther stay and want her. He does; he starts kissing her and it looks like they're about to have sex on the pool table. Allison looks Luther in the face, and he's trembling, implying he's Fighting from the Inside. Then she says, "Stop." It's an Ambiguous Situation—it could alternatively be read as her realizing what she's doing and feeling bad, or getting overwhelmed by the intensity of the whole thing more generally, or because Luther's magicked fervor is too much and he's being too rough. When Allison says it, for a split-second it looks like Luther can't stop—like Allison did the spell too well and it can't be halted now (Gone Horribly Right or Be Careful What You Wish For). It's a momentary Hourglass Plot. Then she yells "STOP!", the spell is broken, and he jerks away from her. Both leave visibly shaken without another word to each other. There's a bit of Double Standard Rape: Female on Male going on (it's not framed as Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil
Moral Event Horizon) but overall the scene does play it as quite dark and fucked up.Luther: What do you even want from me? No, come on, be honest. If you had Ray and Claire back, would you even be here?
Allison: But they're not back, are they?
Luther: Yeah, and I get that you need a distraction, but you can't use me for that.
Allison: I can if I want to.
Luther: [Beat] That's not funny. - The Needs of the Many: The other siblings and Lila are in favor of Harlan's death if it means saving all of reality, while Viktor is reluctant.
- Orange/Blue Contrast: In the Viktor vs. Harlan showdown, Viktor's powers are colored blue and Harlan's are colored orange.
- Pop-Cultural Osmosis Failure: Subverted. Rachel is Amish, so when she talks with Klaus, she pretends she doesn't understand her son's talk about cartoons. She then reveals that the afterlife has TV.
- Resurrective Immortality: Turns out Klaus also has this power, reviving himself when he dies, complete with Healing Factor. In fact, this has happened dozens of times throughout his life with him mistaking these for Near Death Experiences. Even when he fell off the roof of a building as a teenager.
- Splash of Color: The "afterlife" is Deliberately Monochrome save for the yellow of Klaus's shirt and the flowers "God" has in her basket.
- Title Drop: The episode's title, "Kindest Cut", is said by Five when he tells Viktor "the kindest cut always wins", in reference to how superheroes have to make difficult decisions to save the world.
- Ungrateful Bastard: The Umbrellas save Viktor become this, as the only reason they are even able to debate giving Harlan to the Sparrows is because he saved them. They don't even consider that they have the upper hand with Harlan, and could provide the Sparrows An Offer They Can't Refuse for their assistance.
- You Are Grounded!: Played for Laughs. Lila and Diego ground Stan for the accidental murder of his uncle, and note that the only reason he got off so easily is because said uncle can come Back from the Dead.
