It is only fitting that we examine each of The Umbrella Academy’s siblings in order to keep up with the worldwide The Umbrella Academy fever that has swept fans since the release of season 3 on Netflix. Luther Hargreeves, one of The Academy’s most capable and composed members, will be profiled in this video. Numerous nicknames for Luther include Number 1 and Spaceboy.
He is the leader of this not-so-happy bunch of superheroes by virtue of being Number 1. As a result, with enormous power also comes great responsibility, and as the show demonstrates, he carries himself with a strong head. But this is his story, and it has a rather interesting premise.
Who is Luther Hargreeves?
On October 1st, 1989, the Umbrella Academy members and wealthy industrialist Sir Reginald Hargreeves adopted “Number One.” He was likewise a miracle baby who was born to a mom who had never before displayed any pregnancy symptoms. Reginald put Luther and the other Umbrella kids through arduous training to become young superheroes while they were being nurtured by their artificial mother Grace.
Since Sir Reginald evaluated the kids according to their particular usefulness, Luther was Hargreeves’ Number One and therefore served as the Umbrella Academy’s captain. To be honest, Luther joyfully accepted his position as leader. He was pretty darn good. He was the only person to remain at the Academy after everyone else had departed when Ben died and Five vanished, becoming stuck in the future. His devotion to their adopted father was unwavering. He did, however, experience severe depression as a result of not having the other men in his father’s service.
Then he was given a solo mission to neutralize a biological threat. However, Luther suffered a serious injury while carrying out this mission, necessitating the use of a special serum by Sir Reginald to save his life because of the fatal injuries he had otherwise suffered. This serum however turned him into a being that was half man and half ape. Luther’s muscle bulk and strength significantly increased as a result of the serum induced ape-like physiology.
He had a thin but muscular build and was already 6’5″ tall before receiving the experimental serum. He has grown much wider and thicker since using the serum, with a huge, hulking upper body and leathery, hairy skin. He regularly covers his ape-like features by donning high-necked shirts and fingerless gloves.
Reginald sent Luther to the moon after Luther’s unintentional transformation into a monstrous creature. Thus, in an effort to help him focus and take his mind off of recent happenings, Sir Reginald dispatched Luther to the moon to purportedly keep an eye out for threats from space, where he spent four years alone in isolation while sending monthly updates to his father. He lost himself in social isolation, loneliness, and sadness during the entire four years he remained by himself on the moon.
When Sir Reginald passes away, Luther is called back to Earth and comes to suspect their father was killed. As the situation develops, Luther learns that Sir Reginald actually never read any one of the reports he sent across from his duration on the moon. This makes him think that his father sent him far away just to get him out of the way. As a result, Luther begins to feel like a failure and that he was expelled because he wasn’t a good enough Number One, which dealt a severe blow to his self-confidence.
When it comes to his personality, Luther is a kind, responsible, and upright person. He is demonstrated to have a strong sense of right and wrong and to be willing to put himself in dangerous situations straight away and serve as a barrier in perilous circumstances. He was the only member of his family to remain at the academy and carry on with his superhero duties because he had complete faith in his father’s instructions. As the head of the Umbrella Academy and his father’s “Number One,” Luther is depicted as taking his position extremely seriously and dedicating his life to his father’s cause. He never left the Umbrella Academy and never established life outside of it as a result, remaining alone and sheltered.
He specifically points out that because of his dedication, he never even had friends. He thereby exudes a slightly innocent, almost childlike quality. He is distraught and disoriented when he learns that his father has never seen his reports from the moon. Feeling as though his life was wasted, he spirals out of control and lashes out by attending a rave, doing drugs, and getting intoxicated.
Throughout all three seasons, he has also served as the bonding agent or the glue for the rest of the team members. He has brought them all together time and time again when faced with impending doom and has also put his own life on the line, making the tough decisions. As far as Luther Hargreeves is concerned, he is an upstanding man and an even more righteous superhero.
Powers and abilities
Luther has a tremendous amount of strength, which was enhanced by his new ape-like physiology. When he was younger, he had no trouble picking up and tossing a grown adult across the room and out the window. Diego’s locked leg was freed by Luther by lifting a 1000-pound farm truck with his arms.
Luther also has a very durable and resilient body, which was only enhanced by the development of his new ape-like physiology. During fight, he is able to withstand the majority of physical blows and could even withstand the full weight of a falling chandelier without getting hurt. Luther is shown to be able to hide from gunfire, proving that he is not immune to harm as Diego was able to stab him and draw blood. His body can withstand a direct blast from a rocket or bazooka in the 1963 alternate reality where everyone has superhuman talents.
Luther is skilled in strategy, tactics, and leadership, even if he subsequently experiences a devastating lack of self-confidence and gives up on his leadership position. He can give instructions to carry out a mission, strategize the group’s resources, and frequently puts himself in danger to keep his teammates safe. Luther has demonstrated proficiency in unarmed combat throughout both seasons, but not being as competent as Diego or Five. He primarily uses his tremendous strength to confront his adversaries.
It is important to note that Luther’s emotional state as a result of the accident that led to his father injecting the ape-serum to save him from death limited Luther’s abilities, even with all the upgrades it brought about with regard to durability and strength. He has become a shadow of his former self due to trauma, body dysmorphia brought on by his primate-esque upper body, and misery at his own apparent failure. This is reflected in his significantly diminished super-strength.
But by the end of season 3, his physique had returned to normal. There is no information on whether this implies that he has lost his powers as well.
Why is Luther Number 1?
Everyone that has watched the show has wondered at least once, why is Luther Number 1? His powers are far lesser in force and impact if we compare him to Number 7, and they are also less unique if we compare his powers to those of Number 5 and Number 6. Neither can he time travel, nor does he have all-powerful tentacles, so what makes him the leader and why did Sir Reginald choose him out of the seven children?
Since they were little, Luther has been the team’s number one, which has led to conflict with his brother Diego, who is the number two Umbrella. It is unclear precisely when Reginald made the decision to “number” his children, but many fans have theorised that they are arranged in reverse, according to power, with Luther being ranked first not because he is the strongest but rather because he has better control over his strength. According to this theory, Vanya or Viktor is Number 7 because he is the most powerful.
However, we have some more food for thought for you. Reginald may have chosen Luther as the team’s starter over Diego or another player for another reason, though. It is now abundantly evident that Reginald’s training techniques weren’t the best; for example, he medicated Vanya for years and imprisoned Klaus for hours in a tomb. Given their strong personalities, Reginald must have noticed Luther and Diego had an innate rivalry, and elevating Luther to the position of leader was a way to inspire both of them to perform better. However, this move may not have had the desired effect, as Diego eventually left the team and they struggled to get along, at least in season 1.
In fact, Gerard Way said on his Instagram page that Reginald gave Diego the number 2 because “the friction between him and Diego is one of the things that drives Number 1,” making it clear that this was Reginald’s unique and slightly perverted way of encouraging Luther and Diego to improve themselves as heroes.
In season 1 of The Umbrella Academy, Luther took his duty as Number 1 extremely seriously to the extent where many viewers decided they didn’t like him. However, in season 2, Luther relaxed a little bit. If Diego had been given the position of Number 1 and Luther had been given the position of Number 2, Luther’s attitude might have changed, but that wouldn’t have posed any sort of challenge for them, and Reginald was all about continuously testing his children. Fortunately, Diego and Luther came to the realization that their numbers don’t matter and that Reginald’s motives were dubious in The Umbrella Academy season 2, allowing them to move on and eventually cooperate.
Luther in Season 3
A LOT happens to Luther in this season. Hold tight if you haven’t watched the show yet because there are some definite surprises in here; skip if you don’t want spoilers!
Viewers of The Umbrella Academy might have believed Luther Hargreeves’ moon mission was over, but we are here to let you know that, that is not the case. While it’s less often mentioned than it was in the first season of the Netflix series, Luther’s voyage to the moon is still an important portion of this season’s plot. Luther repeatedly mentions Reginald taking him to the moon for the duration of the first season of the Netflix series. Because Luther speaks up about his experiences on the moon so often, fans started to create memes around it. One Twitter follower even turned one of his moon remarks into a drinking game.
Well, it turns out that the moon was important after all because as we get to know in the third season, Reginald had hidden the body of his deceased wife on the dark side of the moon and it is quite plausible that he had sent Luther to the moon as a placeholder, just to make sure that his wife’s body would be safe.
However, from another angle, he also develops a hatred for his father upon learning that his father never read a single report Luther sent from the moon, and thus when they do meet him in the new timeline where the Sparrows are present, he is wary of him and he is very right to be. This is the first time he is not sincerely devoted to his father and that is refreshing to see.
Luther also finds love in season 3. After a brief kiss with Allison prior to season 3 and them deciding to just be friends, it does not seem like love is in the cards for Luther; however, with the introduction of The Sparrow Academy members, that completely changes.
Sloane, a student at the Sparrow Academy, portrayed superbly by Genesis Rodriguez, captures Luther’s attention. Luther’s inner hopeless romantic falls quickly and deeply for Sloane, who possesses the ability to manipulate gravity, in spite of their families’ differences. Luther is quite reluctant to tell Sloane about his time on the moon because he is accustomed to being ridiculed. She even expresses a desire for him to someday take her to the moon, which is the most perfect response Luther could have ever hoped for. When the time comes for Luther to pop the question to Sloane, he fashions the ring out of a piece of moon rock (that only seems apt). Sloane accepts the proposal and things seem to be going wonderfully for Luther. However, we all know happiness doesn’t last much longer in the Umbrella Academy future and Luther tries to keep Reginald out of the wedding celebrations after remembering how little he cared about his time on the moon.
But the worst is yet to come. In fact, one of the most shocking moments of the season unfortunately involves poor old Luther. The Umbrellas, Ben, Lila, and Sloane must decide whether to enter Hotel Oblivion, which is in an alternate reality and which they can enter via a portal in Hotel Obsidian, to stop the Kugelblitz which was effectively on its way to destroying everything in the known universe.
Hargreeves chooses to take issues into his own hands by murdering Luther – slashing him across his chest with a sword and leaving him to bleed out and die. Luther’s death, he believes will give the gang a reason to embrace the cause, in the event that the side choosing to do nothing at all about the Kugelblitz and accept their fate prevails. And that is exactly what happens – Sir Reginald is a master manipulator and tactician after all.
The Umbrellas enter the portal, prepared to exact retribution on the alleged Hotel Oblivion assassin who killed Luther, having no idea that Sir Reginald was the one behind all of it. Klaus is left behind as the others go and he commits suicide moments before the Kugelblitz wiped out the universe as they knew it.
Klaus sees Luther in the afterlife and tells him that because everyone passes away, there is no point in attempting to return as the Kugelblitz obliterated everything anyway. Although Klaus eventually chooses to do so and awakens in the Hotel Oblivion with the others, this is only because Luther doesn’t accept his point of view and implores Klaus to bring him back to life with his newly acquired abilities.
Luther does seem to come back to life amid the Umbrellas’ battle with the hotel’s guardians and Hargreeves, but this is actually Klaus bringing Luther’s spirit from the afterlife to expose the reality of what really happened to him. This shocks Allison who finally breaks away from the deal she had made with Reginald and she finally does the right thing and kills their adoptive father to save her siblings. After Klaus uses his abilities for as long as he is able to, Luther ultimately departs for the afterlife, giving the impression that he has actually passed away.
However, in the final moments of Season 3, the entire universe is reset because Allison decided to push the button even after Hargreeves had died, bringing Luther back to life—albeit without his powers, in the same way, that the other members of the Umbrella Academy were also brought back. He can no longer find his lover, Sloane however and that makes us think that season 4 might be a tough one for Luther.
Luther in the comics
The comic series is an important source of inspiration for the characters and while the Netflix characters are largely similar to their comic book counterparts, there still are some key differences, especially in the case of Umbrella Number 1.
Sir Reginald Hargreeves adopted him as a child with the sole purpose of raising him to save the world. Luther resided at the unique school that Hargreeves established to educate the kids. Hargreeves ranked Luther as Number One because of his improved physical prowess and fortitude. He was committed to succeeding, and as a result, he was successful in whatever he set his mind to, especially shooting and flying. With his brutal leadership style, Luther rose to become The Umbrella Academy team captain and Sir Reginald’s favorite among the kids. One key difference is that in the comics, Luther and Number Five were actually twins!
The Umbrella Academy made its public appearance ten years post the adoption of all the members. They debuted in order to combat the dangers presented by the Zombie-Robot Gustave Eiffel and the ravaging Eiffel Tower in Paris. The team was led into battle by Luther, and the result was the death of Gustave Eiffel and the ascent of the Eiffel Tower into space. Luther later revealed his ambition to travel to space while enjoying a celebratory ice cream after the expedition. And when the time came, Sir Reginald made good on his pledge to make it happen.
With the help of his Chimpanzee co-pilot Phinneus Pogo, the family butler, Luther thus became the youngest person to ever set foot in space. As a result of his success, he earned the nickname “Spaceboy.” Given that a banner for “Spaceboy – The First Boy in Space” is displayed in The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite, it is unclear whether Luther picked his moniker, or if it was chosen by Hargreeves, the media, or both.
However, unfortunately, Spaceboy suffered a catastrophic injury while on a subsequent journey to the planet Mars. In order to preserve his own life, Sir Reginald had to undergo emergency experimental surgery that involved having his head placed on the body of a Martian gorilla. Therefore, everything about his transformation into a half-man, half-ape was unique.
The Umbrella Academy split up soon after Ben Hargreeves passed away, and Spaceboy left Earth to settle on the Moon. Again, different reasons for going to the moon, and there, Spaceboy kept a lookout for interstellar dangers from Annihilation Control with the help of his robot assistant Ben. Twenty years after the Umbrella Academy made its debut in front of the public, Luther from the Moon was called by Pogo after Sir Reginald passed away. It was only when Luther got back to the Academy, that he discovered that Number Five had come back from the future.
In the comics, Spaceboy’s gorilla physique gives him extraordinary strength. A jetpack serves as his life support system, and he is proficient with a laser gun.
Lastly, in the comics, Sir Reginald Hargreeves’ records on his adoptive children were incredibly detailed. Sir Reginald described Luther as “ruthless” and “inhuman” in his views of him. This was one of the factors that led Sir Reginald to designate Luther as the group’s head and to regard him as his favorite.
This is a significant change from the Luther from the Netflix series. Luther is one of the gentler Academy members on the program; he isn’t as vicious as Diego or as insane as Klaus. His feeble attempts to maintain the group’s unity come off as incredibly human.
All in all, Luther has had his own set of ups and downs as a member of The Umbrella Academy. We already know that Sir Reginald was quite honestly, a terrible father, so it does not come as a surprise that even the child that he supposedly liked the most, was also a victim of his cruel behavior. However, Luther is the glue that holds the gang together and The Umbrella Academy might not even have come together if it wasn’t for him. What do you think about Luther Hargreeves? Does he deserve to be Umbrella Number 1? Let us know in the comments section below!