Lucifer has spent the first half of this season wowing audiences with its uncanny ability to keep turning out one strong episode after another. They haven’t produced a single weak or even mediocre episode yet this season. It’s only fitting that their mid-season finale would deliver with big surprises and an unexpected ending. Though to be honest, we all knew the almost kiss that starts in the final seconds of the episode was going to happen one day, I just wasn’t expecting it until much later in the season. This episode was everything and more than I could have asked for.
Before I get into talking about that crazy ending with its big bombshell of new information, I need to address the start of the episode. It was a bit surprising that Amenadiel was the one to show up to save Chloe. Some part of him must be having doubts about his mom otherwise he wouldn’t have been following her that closely. But, after her comment at LUX, I am glad that he took the clue and chose to keep an eye on her. You’d think that when he has to keep trying to stop her from harming humans he’d get the clue that he should perhaps not trust her so much. And now, to top it all off, he knows she has some powers beyond what her human body should possess. For a normal person warning alarms would be going off, but much like his brother, he’s so blinded to her that he is letting things slide that he wouldn’t permit anyone else. “Charlotte” has zero compassion for humanity, and I’m sure she’d be more than happy to wipe out all humans just to get back at her ex. Still, Chloe is off limits, for so many reasons, but most specifically because of how much she means to Lucifer. Amenadiel, for all his faults, does value his brother and knew that had he let their mom kill Chloe the fallout would have been massive. Lucifer would have never forgiven either of them had she been taken from him. All of the humans Lucifer calls his friends are sacred to him and I have no doubt that he’d avenge Trixie, Linda, Ella, and even Dan with fierce determination, but should anything ever happen to Chloe, not even an almighty goddess herself could escape his wrath. The fact that “Charlotte” wasn’t already aware of that shows just how blinded she is by her own agenda for revenge on her ex. She loves her children, I do respect that about her, but it’s pretty much her only redeeming quality at this point. It’s very evident why God deemed it best for her to be in Hell rather than running around free. I do hope that in the back half of the season we will learn her real name. I’m quite curious to find out which goddess she was before being damned to Hell. One thing is certain, as long as she is on Earth no human is safe.
That is certainly going to make things hard on Amenadiel as he tries to keep his mom from totally burning every family bridge she might have left. If they ever have any chance of getting back home they will need Lucifer, but more than that they’ll need at least some of his other siblings to join with them. Most of the family seems to hold some affinity for humans, so causing too much-unwarranted destruction could permanently hinder their attempts. Not to mention, despite everything he’s done, Lucifer still welcomed him back into his life, so Amenadiel does owe his brother some level of respect in turn. It’s ironic that the Devil seems to be the most understanding member of the family. The only member of his family he seems incapable of forgiving is his father. Though if that changes “Charlotte” could lose her last hold over him. Right now she can use his anger towards his father to keep him somewhat on her side. With her knowledge about Chloe’s origins, she might just be able to use that information to elicit a grand rift between father and son. Or, it could totally blow up on her, and Chloe could still yet become an obstacle as both her ex and her son have a vested interest in Chloe’s safety, therefore uniting the two against her. She’ll either come to be glad she didn’t blow up Chloe or it’ll come to be one of her greatest regrets.
Though I must confess my surprise to the fact that “Charlotte” actually admitted to trying to kill Chloe straight to Lucifer. She may be a crazy psycho, but at least she’s an honest one. Perhaps that is the one good quality Lucifer got from his mom. However, it’s a quality that put them all in quite the pickle when “Charlotte” used it against him when she got him on the stand during Perry Smith’s trial. Her desire to get home is so great that she’ll even risk causing her son emotional distress. It was a rather genius nefarious plan, she used his inability to lie to compromise the case in Smith’s favor to force Chloe to have to turn against him in order to get justice for her father. The way she corned Chloe was downright wicked and I was sort of hoping Chloe was going to punch her. While it was a solid plan, “Charlotte” failed to take into account how much Chloe and Lucifer mean to each other. Chloe puts great value in her partnership with him and not even the chance to put Smith away could make her betray Lucifer. This went great lengths to show what a great moral compass Chloe has. “Charlotte” hung one hell of a temptation before her and she took the moral high road despite the repercussions of Smith being set free.
His freedom didn’t last long because Chloe has some friends who care deeply for her. Despite their failed marriage, Dan still values Chloe in his life and was willing to sell his soul to a demon in order to protect her. Granted, it was his inability to keep his pants on that led “Charlotte” to get the information that was used against Lucifer when he testified which backfired on all of them, so he did have a lot to make-up for. Even with that in mind I never expected him to actively participate in the kidnapping and likely murder of Smith. This partnership between Maze and Dan was certainly unexpected given that on a good day they can barely tolerate each other. They’ve had interactions before, but I never thought circumstances would lead them to work together. This could be an interesting partnership should these two continue to work together in the future. After all, Maze is a bounty hunter that works with the LAPD, so it’s very likely they will be forced together again. They certainly have a heavy secret between them now. I’m interested to see how Chloe will react when she finds out that Smith has gone missing or his body is found. I just hope she doesn’t end up being accused of participating in this. Should she end up in court opposite “Charlotte” again I expect that it would end with Lucifer being forced back to Heaven in order to keep Chloe safe. Maze and Dan would have to do some fancy maneuvering to make up for things if that happens.
Given everything that was going on at court, most of the field work was delegated to everyone else while Chloe stayed with her mom at the courthouse. It’s a good thing they kept her away from the bulk of the case because the less “Charlotte” has to use against them the better. Ella helped Dan with the early part of the investigation including helping him realize he’d been played by “Charlotte”. Seriously, you have to feel just a little bad for him because he was thoroughly smitten. Once again I was surprised by how brutally honest she was when Dan confronted her. Are all celestial beings incapable of lying? Is that a thing up in Heaven? I’m pretty confident Dan is going to be very cautious of who he takes home from now on. Maybe he can hook up with Ella next time, at least she seems like a safe option compared to his most recent escapades. While Dan was busy trying to undo the damage his one-night stand caused, Lucifer met up with him to try and undo the damage his testimony caused. Together they went on the hunt for evidence that they could use to stop Smith from going free. They are a good team when they can put their difference aside, but this case required a little extra muscle hence how Maze ended up joining them as reinforcements. It’s a good thing they had her with them given her fierce fighting skills were what ultimately won them the information that almost helped them help Chloe. They may have fallen short in being able to keep Smith behind bars, but these very different people put aside their differences to try and help Chloe and that’s admirable.
Speaking about that fight, I must commend the show and Lesley-Ann Brandt for the fight sequence. It was serious yet funny while also being high-stakes and well-paced. Everything to do with the trifecta that was Lucifer, Maze, and Dan was perfectly played. Thanks to her spying from the prior episode, Maze was well aware that Dan’s actions gave “Charlotte” the information she was using in court and she wasn’t going to let him get away with keeping that a secret. Mainly because she knew how Lucifer would react and every demon has to have a tiny bit of fun. Watching Lucifer tackle Dan through the wall gave her great pleasure. Plus, come on, it was funny to watch Lucifer’s face flare up at the idea of Dan sleeping with his mom. Amenadiel didn’t react to it to well last week, but he had nothing on Lucifer. If getting the information hadn’t been so important I feel pretty confident that Lucifer would have sacrificed Dan to that fight just to see him get his butt kicked. While Chloe and Lucifer will always be the core team of this series, I do enjoy it when the dynamics are changed up. This season has so far provided a lot of new and interesting team-up dynamics, so I’m really hoping that there is some big Chloe and Maze adventure coming up in the back half of the season because despite being roommates now they haven’t got much to do together lately.
Maze has some free time on her hands since it seems like her association with Amenadiel is on the outs right now. Though, one can’t argue that there was still a tiny bit of chemistry in that kiss despite Maze only doing it to get her hands on the detonator. As long as he’s associated with “Charlotte” I don’t foresee Maze giving him much of a chance to redeem himself. He was messing with Chloe’s car simply to try and remove the bomb that his mom put on it, and while I think Maze knew that she still chose to blow up his car. She sent a very clear signal that what they had was terminated until he changes his ways and he’d be best to keep his distance from her and those she cares about. Linda was right, he’s treating Maze exactly like he had treated her, and if he wants to avoid getting his butt blown off he’d better just start apologizing now because it seems as though he’ll be doing that for the rest of eternity given the fact that he can’t stop messing up. Take into account the fact that Maze is a lot less forgiving than Linda means that he’s not going to so easily work his way back into Maze’s life. I don’t think he’s beyond hope just yet, after all, he redeemed himself after the Malcolm debacle from last season, but he has to disassociate himself from his mom to have a chance. Until that happens the others will continue to not trust him, and for good reason since he seemed to solidify his partnership with his mom at the end of the episode.
Apparently, he learned nothing from Linda’s advice. At least that’s good for her business. The longer her celestial clients and friends continue to make stupid decisions the longer they’ll have to keep coming to her since she’s the only person qualified to treat demons and angels. Linda has a specialty niche that no one else can lay claim to. My favorite therapy moment was when Amenadiel was sitting on Linda’s couch clutching his steering wheel from the car Maze blew up. The look of shock on Amenadiel’s face really sold the hilarity of the situation. Okay, well, it wasn’t exactly funny for him, but the way he reacted to the situation certainly was. Linda gave him great advice, which he surprisingly tried to take until he got distracted by Chloe’s mom. That seems to be a trend, her celestial clients try to take her advice then at the last minute something happens to stop them. They are all like cats who are on a mission until something shiny catches their attention and the original mission is forgotten. First Lucifer and his almost date last week, by the way, I found it funny how invested Linda was in trying to find out every detail of that date, and now Amenadiel this week. I wonder what he did with those flowers after he took off to go spill his guts about Chloe to his mom. Perhaps Linda should just take each of them by the hand and babysit them while they take her advice.
In Amenadiel’s case, I can understand why he got distracted, putting together the pieces surrounding his involvement in Chloe’s existence would distract even the most focused of minds. While this interaction with Chloe’s mom at first seemed odd it quickly turned out to be one of the most important interactions so far this season considering it led to the big Chloe revelation. Chloe’s parents were unable to have a child so God himself sent Ameandiel to bless them with one, an act that, according to Amenadiel, that had never been done before or since. That makes Chloe a truly unique and special human who was placed into existence for a very specific reason. The big question is exactly what that reason is. When Chloe was blessed into existence Lucifer was still in Hell. He hadn’t started his little vacation just yet, so why was she originally given life? Did God have enough foresight to know what Lucifer was going to do and just luckily guessed right regarding what city he would end up in? Did God play a part in everything that has happened for some intentional purpose? Was Lucifer getting fed-up with Hell and leaving all preordained? This one bit of information, Chloe’s origins, began to answer the question posed in the pilot about what makes her so special, but in turn, it caused so many more questions to be asked. I can’t imagine God having her be created like this under such unusual circumstances without bestowing her with some very special soul. Could Lucifer’s kiss awaken something in her? When they return for the back half of the season I really hope they quickly answer the question of why God seemingly placed Chloe on Earth specifically for Lucifer. I’m very curious to see how this will play out.
After everything that has happened recently it looks as though Chloe and Lucifer finally got their timing right. While we didn’t get to see their lips connect I can’t imagine anything short of God himself showing up could stop them. The way they were touching each other and staring into each other’s eyes conveyed so many long building emotions. They’ve both been waiting for the chance to kiss, so I hope nothing stops them from covering those final few centimeters that the episode left us hanging on. Now, comes another big question, if they do kiss and they do hook-up, what next? I figure that the big issue between them will be the part that Lucifer’s father played in her existence. Given his disdain for his father, I’m sure Lucifer won’t take kindly to finding out his dear old dad intentionally put Chloe in his life. It won’t change his feelings for her, but it could certainly cause some friction for a bit. Also, the next step for them will be Chloe seeing his true face and confirming his identity as the Devil. If this kiss does happen and if they end up moving onto a more serious type of relationship then it’s only the beginning because there are still so many milestones ahead for this complicated duo.
The case of the week was great as it united everyone together to try and help Chloe. The entire trial against Smith was handled in an impactful way. It also gave the audience a chance to see Lucifer have to swear on a bible which was something I didn't know I wanted to see, but now that I have I can't believe they didn't so it sooner. The best part about the whole trial is that it gave both Chloe and Lucifer a chance to say what they've been struggling to say to each other. They were able to convey their feelings at court which allowed the final scene between them to play more emotional since everything that needed to be said had already been said. It struck such a cord with Lucifer that he was ready to finally make good on his dinner promise to Chloe. And, for Chloe's part, she got to see how Lucifer stuck by her and her mom despite the cold shoulder she tried to give him at the start of the episode after he stood her up. Every single aspect of this episode tied together in perfect union with a pace that made the ending feel very organic and not rushed or forced. This was a brilliant way to close out the first half of the season. While it was faultless that ending will leave fans speculating for the entire break. Well played,
Lucifer writers, you’ve left the audience thoroughly intrigued and desperate for more.
Be sure to catch the next episode of
Lucifer when it returns on
Monday, January 16th on FOX at 9/8C to find out if Lucifer and Chloe did finally get their first kiss. We’ll get a three episode block in January before an undetermined lengthy break kicks in.
Hit the comments with your thoughts regarding this episode. Do you think Lucifer and Chloe will actually kiss? Why did God create Chloe? How will “Charlotte” use Chloe to get her and her children back to Heaven?
