Probably the first thing one must ask, when considering the history of Form Five is: why does this form even exist? Historically speaking, Form Four was initially designed to be the last form of the system. It was the culmination of advancement of how a practitioner must deal with attacks of a more and more critical and complex nature. The forms begin with first defining motion (the one's and the two's); then move into how to deal with applied attacks, both minor and major in application; then integrate in-flight minors (aka pushes); and finally in-flight majors (punches, kicks, etc.) and combinations of attacks.
At first glance, this appears to be a complete analytical undertaking. Forms one through four. Done. But then, upon further reflection, and applying the definition of an American Kenpo form to this thought process, one will come to the conclusion that a shift in perspective is needed. What shift? A shift from second person perspective (attacker) to first person perspective (practitioner). Okay, sounds good; but how does this apply to Form Five?
If one were to contrast the previous forms to Form Five, they will see that Form Five primarily deals with the practitioner's perspective (i.e. out of position, hanging hands, etc.) and what we do to the potential opponent (i.e. destabilize, take-down, etc.). This shift in perspective was not only necessary to the system, but also opens up the door to further shifts.
Another way to consider this scenario is that the forms prior to Form Five are the base of the system and all forms after that are "extensions" to the system. From this perspective, one can come to the conclusion that Form Five is the first of the "extension" forms.
This is all interesting, but one should keep in mind that these details are from a historical perspective. And, the modern day practitioner is only really interested in such details from this historical perspective. Taken from a modern perspective, the system is no longer under such development and a fact such as this is relatively trivial in nature. To put it frankly, Form Five exists and has existed for many, many years.
So why bring all this up? Because there is a lesson to be learned. This historical scenario demonstrates to the modern day practitioner how to think and how to keep an open mind. How a shift in perspective can open doors that would otherwise stay shut. It also demonstrates that innovation, such as displayed by SGM Parker, is derived at through re-examination of one's prior conclusions and determinations. That one should always be open to new thoughts and re-exploration into areas that may be considered complete.
Another historical question one might ask is: "So, since Form Five was created later, when was later?" Later, in a real sense of time there was no real lapse between Form Four and Form Five. For the most part, SGM Parker started work on Form Five immediately after Form Four was completed; and definitely with some overlap. But how can this be? If Form Five is an "extension" form, how can it be that Form Five had no real time delay between its development and Form Four's?
This can be explained by the fact that it takes time to develop a form. They don't just appear out of thin air. By reading the books in this series, one can easily see that there is a lot of information presented and a lot of design that went into the development of the forms. And, this takes time. So, by the time that Form Four was created, Form Five was already thought of, themes were laid out, and the process of development of the actual form could start immediately.
To put a real-world time frame on these developments: this was in the late 1950's and into the very early 1960's. To be slightly more precise, there is evidence to suggest that Form Five was in its late developmental stages in 1959. And, it was definitely being taught as part of the curriculum by the early 1960's. Only a span of a year or two.
So, historically speaking, Form Five is not very special nor different from the other forms of the system. Its distinction lies in the fact that it took an expansion of thought to come to the conclusion it should be developed and added to the system.
Another way to think about Form Five is that this form is the poster-child for opening the door to other advancements in the system - from the perspective of the forms. Without the innovation and acknowledgment that this form needed to be added to the "core" system, we wouldn't have many of the other advanced characteristics that make American Kenpo a unique and distinctive martial art.
And, although Form Five has not experienced any real physical changes since its inception; where it is placed within the system has. Originally, Form Five was taught at the level of Brown Belt. To be more specific First Brown. To clear up any misunderstandings of this rank title, this is where the practitioner has three (3) black stripes on their Brown Belt. Or, the rank just below Black Belt.
In the much later publications about the system, Form Five was moved into Second Degree Black Belt. This came about because of new additions to the system. Things such as the number two (#2) sets and Form Seven. Regardless of where it is taught, Form Five still stands as one of the most distinctive forms of the American Kenpo system.