Tori Brazier reviews the fourth episode of Lucifer season 3…
Lucifer presents a pretty meaty episode this week with ‘What Would Lucifer Do?’, focusing on some welcome inter-character development for Chloe (Lauren German) and Lieutenant Pierce (Tom Welling), and Lucifer (Tom Ellis) and his brother Amenadiel (D.B. Woodside). After last episode’s virtual one-woman show, there is no Maze again this episode – I’m beginning to suspect perhaps scheduling conflicts for actress Lesley-Ann Brandt? Whatever the reason, although the cynical demon is missed it does allow plenty of room for other characters to come to the fore.
New character and Chloe’s new boss in the LAPD Pierce gets a fair chunk of screen time this week as Chloe tries to work out what his apparent problem with her is, seeming cool in interactions, questioning her judgement – and turning down her application to be the union rep. The likeable Ella (Aimee Garcia) plays up her interpretation of their glaring sexual tension. All the while, Pierce is friendly with Lucifer, praising him for anything and everything he does. It undermines Chloe’s belief in her ability to do her job well – but then the audience knows, from a couple of episodes back, that Pierce and Lucifer have a common interest in Sinnerman – and then, as it turns out, Chloe herself. No surprise there. Pierce was just using that ol’ chestnut of being tough on your favourite detective.
Meanwhile Amenadiel tries to walk a mile in Lucifer’s “Italian leather loafers” to better understand his test from God: something difficult for an archangel prone to much less smiling and much more self-denial than the ruler of the underworld. As Amenadiel tries to give in to his base desires, it leads him to an amusing scrape with a call girl and her ‘cousin’, he believes (he is an angel, after all). D.B. Woodside plays the pomposity of Amenadiel perfectly, and pricks it just as well in the situations where the laughter is at his expense. Dan (Kevin Alejandro) is also allowed the chance to step up and lend a hand by bailing him out, for once being the one in control rather than the butt of the joke (at least until Pierce rather cruelly marks him out as a has-been at the end of the episode).
Lucifer is back to fully embracing his past self in an effort to solve his ongoing devil/angel and am-I-evil? identity crisis. He’s doing what he does best again, making deals and calling in favours – which proves helpful in getting a judge’s help in this week’s murder at an upmarket drugs rehabilitation programme for teens. Lucifer also spends most of his time harping on about the pointlessness of reformation, convinced as he is that evil people will always remain evil (again, the personal issues are evident). It allows Tom Ellis to luxuriate in Lucifer’s usual obnoxious self, taunting programme leader Jerry Blackcrow Ross (Antonio Jaramillo), and also allows him to use his unorthodox methods to track down the first young suspect from the programme. Watching him dangle the eighteen-year-old out the car door (and off a cliff) also gives more of a flavour of Lucifer’s dangerous side rather than his more usual playful, sleazy persona. He is the punisher of evil, after all.
The episode’s denouement sees Amenadiel show Lucifer he’s evolved through his care for Chloe, tormenting himself through excessive punishment of the case criminal that attempts to shoot her (and gets Pierce instead). Amenadiel’s role is to support Lucifer’s evolution. Lucifer throws it all back in his face rather harshly, claiming Amenadiel is a sadomasochist glutton for punishment, like a previous victim of Lucifer’s in hell, happy for the scraps (of attention) from Lucifer’s table, which compare pitifully to the power he used to wield in heaven. Someone’s lashing out…
The fourth episode of Lucifer‘s third season good, solid progressions with character relationships seems a reasonable price to pay for another week’s delay on this season’s storyline with the – still – mysterious Sinnerman. And so it continues.
Tori Brazier
