Lucifer Returns on Netflix

And it's Missing a Key Ingredient

Lucifer, the supernatural telling of the devil living a life in Los Angeles as a club owner and as a consultant for the Los Angeles Police Department, has made his fateful return on Netflix in a ten episode run. When we last saw Lucifer, it was on Fox television that ended in a cliffhanger where Lucifer had just killed Pierce that manifested him showing his true face. Unbeknownst to Lucifer, Chloe had run in and was behind him when he turned to reveal his true identity. The reaction on a shattered Chloe was met in frozen fear. Fade out. So as the story goes, the show ends on a high note but here comes the twist, Fox cancels it. What !!! Really!!! what is a fandom to do? Well, they mobilize and start a campaign to save Lucifer. A few weeks later, Netflix announces they will pick up Lucifer to the delight of cast, crew, and fandom. So, here we are. Lucifer continues in the telling on Netflix but it's not the same in some aspects. There are special elements that are missing that got lost in the transfer.

The first episode opens up with a time jump of a few weeks. Chloe has taken off with her daughter, Trixie, to get a handle on the revelation. Lucifer is moping around contemplating his role at LAPD, Dan has PTSD with Charlotte's death, Ella is struggling with her faith. We are hit with all of this but we don't get to see the aftermath of Lucifer's reveal to Chloe. This was an important element that for whatever reasons, was not addressed because the fandom wanted to see that played out in real time. Strike one.

We move on, crimes are still happening, Lucifer shows up at crime scenes hoping to see if Chloe is back until finally, she shows up in the most casual way. In their first pairing on screen together, something is missing. We wade through the awkwardness as you look at Chloe in a strange way. There is something about her look that's disturbing. She looks somewhat harder, especially around the eyes, I don't know if it's the makeup or the lighting or even if it was intentional but for the most time in this ten-episode run, she didn't have that warm glow as she had in past episode. With Netflix, you get to binge watch the entire season and at the conclusion of the run, you have a better understanding of the story arc.

In giving Lucifer this post-analytic assessment, one of the most endearing aspects to Lucifer has been sacrificed or perhaps lost in this run. What is lost or missing is the sweet banter between Lucifer and Chloe. The heart of the show has been cut out. In all ten episodes, we get none of the humor and fun that made this couple so endearing. Instead, we are handed coldness and isolation. Trike two. Even Chloe's daughter, Trixie, is used sparingly during this run. Though she has a reunion with Maze, their camaraderie is removed when Maze moves in with the good Dr. Linda.

What Lucifer did do was give the supporting characters some in-at-bat runs some flexing. Dan's PTSD crisis was good the see portrayed as he dealt with the aftermath of Charlotte's death. Too often, shows don't reflect what a person is going through following a loved one's death in this detail. Dan's anger is misapplied on Lucifer. He blames Lucifer for her death even though it was Pierce who shot her going after Amenadiel. Dan slowly implodes to the point where he almost caused either death or injury to his own child after pointing the bad guys in the direction to Lucifer. Guilt doesn't wear well on Dan's already fragile psyche.

Amenadiel and Dr. Linda was a twist at the close of the series when it ran on Fox. You sort of rooting for this couple's unexpected union. It was interrupted due in part to Maze's jealousy with Amenadiel hooking up with her best friend and perhaps that women code of not dating your ex. Yeah, I don't get it either. But this time out, Dr. Linda drops an egg down the tubes and she is expecting Amenadiel's baby. The way she announces her pregnancy to Amenadiel at a club is priceless. We get to go along in this journey of unconventional parenthood of an angel and a human having a hybrid child. I can see the possibilities of this being explored in future episodes of Luther surrounding a Nephilim. The pace of her pregnancy goes from initial announcement to delivery in the ten-episode run. There is one glaring obstacle however that should be addressed and that is the baby itself. The union of an interracial couple should produce a much lighter baby. I don't know why they chose a baby with a much darker pigmentation that is clearly a baby from a black couple. The audience isn't stupid and when the baby was revealed, I'm sure there were lots of WTF moments. It's a controversial move on the showrunner's part to play this hand when there was no need to introduce it if they would have just cast a child from an interracial couple.

Maze is a much more compassionate character. She moves out from Chloe's place and into Dr. Linda's to help with her pregnancy. What I will miss most is that we will see any more exchange between her and Trixie. These were good moments between the two characters that cemented their bond where Maze was more of a big sister to Trixie. If there is a next season, I would prefer Maze moving back in with Chloe so that we can have that dynamic between the two. Maze is still a badass bounty hunter and I could see a storyline or two surrounding Trixie getting involved with Maze's profession and learning some fighting skills.

By far, each of the character engines is clearly defined and separate from the Lucifer tome that it almost seems as if we are looking through separate chapters, especially since we are introduced to the Eve character. This is a complete let down because now we are dauntingly consumed by this waste of precious territory of storytelling because this character brings about absolutely rehashed tropes to Lucifer. She takes up too much real estate in the Lucifer/Chloe dynamic and when you binge watch, you quickly become annoyed and tired of her antics. Who thought this was a good idea to bring Eve into the equation? What this did was take away any and all of the good moments we say with Lucifer and Chloe from the past. At some point, the only thing that Eve brought was that of an immature, petulant woman who brought nothing to the table. Her orgy scenes were boring and even her 'Eve' costume was a complete bore. If this was filmed in chapters, you could skip all of the Eve chapters and you wouldn't miss a thing with the story arc.

We do get to see Lucifer in full scary devil mode at the end, we get to see a rogue priest, some subterfuge, some lukewarm demons and an impalement that's getting a passing grade. Actually, there are two impalement's but the latter is most exceptional. We also get to see Lucifer's butt and Ella's butt or at least an Ella stunt double butt. Lucifer's self-absorbed hubris is still on display with each consult with Dr. Linda. Chloe and Lucifer are still solving crimes together but the sexual tension is gone, the special magic has disappeared. It's as if we are watching a marriage being disposed into a trash container. So what is the take away with Netflix's version of Lucifer? It took a left turn down a road and turned off its GPS locator as they went stumbling down a road replete with potholes. They finally reached their destination but the vehicle needs some major front end repair to the suspension system. The show got us to a cliffhanger that wasn't so much of a cliffhanger but an unsatisfying dry hump of an ending that did not serve us well. Will the show come back and can it be repaired after this rough ride? Only Netflix can tell and not tell us judging by the number of cancellation it performed with the likes of Luke Cage et. al.