Lucifer season 3 episode 22

[shapinglight]

Just watched this, and to compound my gloom about the show possibly being cancelled...

Spoilers behind cut.



...have to admit it was not a favourite by any means.

On Twitter, the showrunners/writers were talking it up as a reprise of the season 2 episode, Girls' Night Out, but in reality it was kind of the anti-girls' night out, since everyone except Ella (and possibly Linda when she wasn't too busy yelling at Maze) had their own agenda and weren't really focused on Chloe and her actual needs.

Mind you, even in the original season 2 episode, Maze had an agenda. But in that, she transcended it. Here, quite the opposite. I'm not really arguing about it from a character POV, though. Maze is a demon, she's really pissed off and is being very demonic. It's going to be a toss up which between Lucifer and Pierce she's most angry at as to who she ends up killing by the end of the season, I suspect. However, female bonding friendly, this episode was not.

The Chloe part of the episode was never going to quite work for me because her decision to accept Pierce's proposal never worked for me on the Doylist level anyway (due to complete lack of chemistry between Tom Welling and...well, anyone except Tom Ellis). Not to mention, her decision to break off the engagement leaves her in the icky situation of still working for the guy whose offer of marriage she just threw back in his face, when I feel that she would have been too sensible ever to get herself in that big a hole in the first place, Pierce's great (according to some) arms, or not.

So that didn't really work for me, as I said, not to mention the whole break up being pretty much a foregone conclusion. What also didn't work for me was the Lucifer/Dan team-up. I do like them together, but this time it felt a little forced simply because the daft conclusion Lucifer had come to this week (one of a string of them, of course) felt all wrong after his Dr Linda-inspired revelation of the week before.

It seems like nothing he learns ever sticks for long.

All the above said, there were plenty of things I did like in the episode, not least Charlotte's machinations. In fact, Tricia Helfer was great all the way through.

Which brings me to my final gripe. As I've said before, co-showrunner Joe Henderson has been saying on Twitter that the season ends with a massive cliffhanger. I'd persuaded myself (no idea why, that's not how these shows work) that it would be Lucifer finally showing Chloe his wings (or his devil face if he gets that back). Now, having seen some possible (not at all verified) spoilers by accident, I'm afraid it's not that at all, and am getting Joss Whedon inspired warning bells going off in my head about anyone who seems too happy.

More gloom.

On the other hand, Pierce's nasty look at Lucifer and Chloe at the end of the episode makes me hopeful that everyone will find out before the end of the season that he was the real Sinnerman all along. Also that we might find out why the fake Sinnerman was so desperate for Lucifer to be the one to kill him. Given how hard he tried to make Lucifer furious with him I think that might be the key. Maybe if Lucifer is angry enough he can kill Cain/Pierce mark or no mark. Or maybe none of it will get referenced ever again.

Trivial(er) stuff: I wish Lucifer would dress down a little more often. I liked his 'pretending to be a real detective' look.

Comments

[lyr]

I also had a thought during this episode, when Pierce is telling Maze that he doesn't know how or why he fell in love with Chloe. Maybe Chloe's power isn't just about making immortals physically vulnerable. Maybe she also makes them love her back. Which, in the context of Lucifer's concern that Chloe has no choice but to love him, would be an interesting twist if we discover that it's really the other way around.

[shapinglight]

I agree. That would be interesting. At the moment, though, I'll settle for Chloe being more herself and less (unconvincingly) starstruck by Pierce. Ella too.

I know we're meant to get it because we're meant to see Tom Welling as 'hot', but I don't. So I don't get it. :(

Feel like I've been round in circles with this all season. Started off disliking Welling because he was so wooden, began to warm to him a little mid-season, but am now back to disliking him a great deal, finding him a millstone round the show's neck and almost convinced it will be cancelled because of him.

:Sigh:

[lyr]

I guess he's sort of hot? I'm not into him, but I can see how someone could be. But in a show full of pretty hot people, I find that an unconvincing reason for Chloe and Ella to lose their shit over him. He'd need something extra to stand out, you know? And we haven't really seen him develop much in terms of personality, which is also why I, as a demisexual, have zero attraction to him.

[shapinglight]

But in a show full of pretty hot people, I find that an unconvincing reason for Chloe and Ella to lose their shit over him.

Same here. The much-lauded arms do nothing for me.

FWIW, though, I've rewatched this episode and I like it better the second time around. Lucifer's behaviour, while still ridiculous, makes a lot more sense than it did the first time. After re-watching all three of the latest episodes, even Chloe's does, up to a point. There are clues here and there, such as her thinking Pierce's initial rejection of her was her fault, which suggests she was linking it with the time she thought she and Lucifer were a 'thing' only for him to disappear off to Vegas and come back married to 'Candy.' In light of that, her acceptance of Pierce's proposal of marriage- which she's obviously regretting right from the beginning of this latest episode - makes more sense. It's still all a bit muddy, though.

I also once again thought that Tricia Helfer as Charlotte was the best thing in the episode. I never thought the Lucifer writers could find something really convincing to do with the character once she wasn't Mum any more, but they've managed it. It does seem like a short term thing, though.

[rainkatt]

I watched this the other day, and I pretty much agree with your entire post.

Never got the Tom Welling love, but I don't always understand the various fan obsessions. (See David Tennant, who still gives me the creeps.) But you're right; he does seem to have chemistry with Tom Ellis–I tend to actually watch their scenes; he usually puts me to sleep, so I grab the knitting when he's on-screen...

[shapinglight]

Never got the Tom Welling love, but I don't always understand the various fan obsessions. (See David Tennant, who still gives me the creeps.)

Right there with you. I never liked Tennant either.

[yourlibrarian]

it was kind of the anti-girls' night out, since everyone except Ella (and possibly Linda when she wasn't too busy yelling at Maze) had their own agenda and weren't really focused on Chloe and her actual needs.

A good point.

It seems like nothing he learns ever sticks for long.

True, although this may be the most realistic thing about him!

Tricia Helfer was great all the way through.

Yes. Plus, did you ever think you'd see Maze in pearls and a sweater set?

Actually what amused me the most about Dan and Lucifer's team up is how Dan sees Lucifer.

[shapinglight]

True, although this may be the most realistic thing about him!

Yep. He's hardly alone in that.

Plus, did you ever think you'd see Maze in pearls and a sweater set?

Absolutely not. I have no idea what she thought she was doing. ;)

Actually what amused me the most about Dan and Lucifer's team up is how Dan sees Lucifer.

Same here. There is an element of envy there. At the same time, Dan doesn't want to be Lucifer at all.

[ex_peasant441]

Yes, not my favourite episode either, but it is hard to pin down exactly why. I think maybe it just felt like it was trying too hard - all the ingredients individually could have been fun and yet somehow the totality was off.

Also the number of ex-Suits cast members is getting silly (4 now).

[shapinglight]

I think maybe it just felt like it was trying too hard - all the ingredients individually could have been fun and yet somehow the totality was off.

I think there was an element of stalling for time too, because the finale was coming up. It was a bit like Go Fish intruding between I Only Have Eyes For You and Becoming in BtVS season 2.

Also the number of ex-Suits cast members is getting silly (4 now).

Well, I don't care about that, obvs. Never seen Suits and have no intention ever of doing.

[ex_peasant441]

I think there is a real shortage of good TV writers so almost every show has to have some filler eps written by the B team.

[tinny]

Agreed on the shallow points: Lucifer looks awesome in jeans and leather.

I hadn't looked at the parallels to Girls' Night Out, and to be honest, they wouldn't have occurred to me. The episode was so different.

Dan rarely works for me, neither does Pierce, Ella only rarely. This is not a good season for me.

About the cliffhanger: that is not good news indeed. I always think of John Rogers's conviction that cliffhangers are disrespectful to fans. Always wrap up your seasons, that's what you owe your viewers. I agree with him. I have watched a lot of shows with happy, upbeat season finales, and as many with terrible cliffhangers. The former were always the ones I was looking forward to more. Happiness just carries better than suspense.

(Unless canon is so bad you spend all your time writing fixits, then it doesn't really matter one way or the other. Timeless is in such a state right now, and I really hope Lucifer doesn't join it.)

[shapinglight]

I hadn't looked at the parallels to Girls' Night Out, and to be honest, they wouldn't have occurred to me. The episode was so different.

The only actual parallel is that they were women on a night out. ;)

I agree about the cliffhanger, though for different reasons than you. I think you only end on a cliffhanger if you know you'll be coming back for another season and can make the angst worth the fans' wait. At this moment, we still don't know that, and if they do get cancelled, it's a terrible way to leave things. There's a British TV series called The Hour that ended in that way. I loved the series but have not been able to rewatch it because of the way season 2 ended. The writer has since said she would never ended it that way if she thought they wouldn't get a third season, but that's no comfort.

As of watching episode 23, btw, I don't think Lucifer will need fixits.