Handler

The Handler
General information
Real name	Unknown
Relatives	Lila Pitts (adoptive daughter)
Affiliation	Temps Commission
Biographical information
Date of death	1963
Place of death	Dallas, Texas
Physical description
Species	Human
Gender	Female
Hair color	Blonde
Eye color	Blue
Other information
First appearance	"Number Five" (February 10, 2019)
Played by	Kate Walsh

"War. Such a fascinating concept. A temporary salve for a permanent human flaw."

—The Handler^[src]

The Handler was an egotistical and controlling member of the Temps Commission, often dealing personally with matters concerning Number Five and the apocalypse, despite not being the case leader. She was also the adoptive mother of Lila Pitts.

Biography

Early career

The Handler held a high-ranking position within the Temps Commission under the authority of the Board of Directors headed by Carmichael. She burned her rugae and had to go on a diet.

She has dealt with Number Five numerous times, including when the Temps Commission hired him. The Handler introduces herself as a member of the Commission, explaining that they do everything in their power to preserve the timeline and ensure nothing is changed. When Five asks why they do not try to avert the apocalypse, she remarks that time is fixed and that the apocalypse will always happen despite any intervention.

On one occasion, she forged Carmichael's authorization to have Five kill Lila's parents. She adopted Lila as her daughter and trained her as her operative, telling her that her parents had been killed in a robbery.

Five later betray the Temps Commission, using their resources to return to his time, eight days before the apocalypse.

Events of The Umbrella Academy

In retaliation for Five's betrayal of their deal, The Handler puts out a hit on Five, taken care of personally by Hazel and Cha Cha; Five is easily able to evade them, however, which puts The Handler in a dangerous position. Again, The Handler offers Five a deal, offering Five a managerial position within the Temps Commission; Five agrees in return for his family's safety.

Returning with Five to the Temps Commission, she introduces him to his new role as case manager. Handler follows Five even in the bathroom. She confesses to having burnt her rugae (the ridges on the hard palate), and that she is treating her burns with a liquid diet that makes her urinate frequently, so she pees in the stall left of Five; seconds later, he realizes that the files are fake. Five is quick to betray her once again; however, when The Handler realizes Five's plan, a gunfight ensues between the two, and The Handler is left scarred when Five uses explosives to escape.

The Handler later confronts Hazel and Cha-Cha as they turn against each other. Hazel shoots the Handler in the head when she threatens his lover Agnes Rofa's life. While having apparently been killed, the Handler had survived thanks to a metal plate that had been implanted at an earlier time in her life. The shooting initially left her partially paralyzed, but she managed to recover over time.

Upon her return to the Commission three months later, Carmichael informs the Handler that she had been demoted because of her failures. Unable to accept this, she plans to take over the Commission. She had Lila get close to Diego in 1963 and made a deal with Five to kill the Commission's Board of Directors.

The Handler orders the agents to attack.

After the Umbrella Academy averts the apocalypse, the Handler travels back in time to 1963 with Lila and an army of agents. Viktor takes out the agents, but the Handler sets Lila upon them while she attempts to recruit Harlan for his power. Failing, the Handler enters the barn and shoots all of the siblings, killing them aside from a mortally wounded Five. Having learned the truth, Lila confronts her mother, who kills Lila before being shot dead by the last Swedish assassin.

Remembering Reginald's advice about using his powers, Five rewinds time by a few minutes to just before the Handler enters the barn. This time, Five disarms the Handler before she can start shooting and holds her at gunpoint. Lila confronts her mother again, but before the Handler can answer her, she is shot and killed by the assassin.

Appearances

• The Umbrella Academy
  • Season One
    • "Number Five" (First appearance)
    • "The Day That Wasn't"
    • "Changes"
    • "The White Violin"
  • Season Two
    • "The Frankel Footage"
    • "The Swedish Job"
    • "The Majestic 12"
    • "Valhalla"
    • "A Light Supper"
    • "Öga for Öga"
    • "The Seven Stages"
    • "743"
    • "The End of Something"

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