Five was the only Hagreeves sibling who was aware of the apocalypse. Most of his actions during the first season of The Umbrella Academy revolve around his attempts to prevent the destruction of the world and the death of his siblings.
His character is a witty, stubborn, irritable 58-year-old stuck in the body of his 13-year-old self. Naturally, it's an entertaining combination and a contributing factor to his show-stealing moments.
The Griddy's Doughnuts Fight
Five just want a decent cup of coffee. If saving the world from the apocalypse is his first mission, getting coffee is his second. He sits in an empty doughnut cafe, where the only other customer is a middle-aged man. The evening gets off to a rocky start when he gets mistaken for a child because he looks like one, and he can't get a cup of coffee in peace. "The kid wants coffee, black."
It ends with Five killing a group of armed assailants by stabbing them with a butterknife, using their own guns against them, and snapping their necks. He then proceeds to take out his tracking device and walk out of the building as nothing happened. The department store attack, however, leaves him shaken and fearing for his life. On the plus side, he managed to reunite with Delores.
Hearing Out His Assassin
When Five gets a visit from Hazel, he offers him a margarita. But Diego isn't as welcoming and attacks Hazel. Five watches as the two fight until he decides it's enough and knocks out Diego.
He listens to everything Hazel has to say, accepts the gun capable of clearing Diego's name as a suspect in Detective Patch's murder, and understands the struggle of the man who stands in front of him.
Run Boy Run
Five is stubborn and strongminded, pair that with a father who is controlling his life, and things get pretty tense. So when he stabs his knife into the table and gets up, directing his speech to his father, it makes a scene.
He then proceeds to ignore his father's logic and runs outside, time-traveling in bursts until he reaches the apocalypse. What awaits him is the grisly realization that he can't go back, weighed by the knowledge that half his family is dead and others are missing.
His Speech
Getting the Hargeeves siblings to come together is quite the feat. But Five needs them to get over themselves, and he delivers the truth in an attempt to bring them to their senses. "You know what else is insane? I look like a 13-year-old boy.
Klaus talks to the dead, and Luther thinks he's fooling everybody with that overcoat. Everything about us is insane. It always has been." He also tells his siblings, "who cares if dad messed us up? Are we gonna let that define us?"
Saying Goodbye To Delores
"It's okay, say it, we always were an unlikely pair. This isn't easy for me Delores, and I want you to know I cherish every single minute I ever shared with you, all twenty-three and a half million of them. A lifetime. Now, look at us, we're lucky enough we get a second one. Yeah... you're right, I do have a lot of growing up to do. I'll never forget you, Delores."
And as he left her there, he turned to a worker and said "excuse me, Miss, could you give that mannequin something new to wear? She likes sequins." Five's speech was a tear-jerker and exceptionally emotional.
Ruining The Temps Commission
Five infiltrates the Temps Commission under the guise of a willing time traveler, ready to eliminate any threats to the space-time continuum.
But what he actually does is get precious information, send missions to Hazel and Cha-Cha with instructions to kill the other, blow up The Handler with a grenade, destroy all the briefcase portals, and travel back in time.
"I'm Going Through Puberty, Twice"
Five's biggest lead has been blown up by Hazel and Cha-Cha. What does he do? He goes to the library, gets drunk, and gets right back to solving equations to prevent the apocalypse.
As Luther carries him to Diego's place, Five says " you know what's funny? I'm going through puberty, twice." This moment is just one of many funny lines Five retorts throughout the show, "I would rather chew off my own foot."
Entering Through The Time Vortex
The first episode of The Umbrella Academy was nicely made, gripping, teasing at character relationships, and full of gloom and doom. Once everything was set up, there needed to be some action.
So what's the hook? What's going to keep everyone watching? Cue the entrance of the missing Five. And it's no small entrance, it's a big blue tear in the sky, a swirling time vortex of possibility and mystery.
Explaining Time Travel
Five's back and he's ready to get the ball rolling, but he has to explain everything to his siblings, who like him, have gone through a lot since they last saw each other. He casually makes a marshmallow and peanut butter sandwich and tells his siblings some things, but doesn't give them any vital information.
"In the end, I had to project my consciousness forward into a suspended quantum state version of myself that exists across every possible instance of time." Firing back at Diego's comment about it not making sense by saying "well, it would if you were smarter."
Saving His Family's Lives
The apocalypse is happening despite all their efforts to stop it. Vanya discovered her powers. She was betrayed by Leonard, and because of Luther's decision to put her in the cell, she believes she has been betrayed by most of her siblings.
When Vanya's powers destroy the moon, pieces come hurtling to earth and time is running out. What can they do? What can any of their powers do? No strength will help, no knives, or monsters or dead people. So it's up to Five. And he saves them all.