The first half of Lucifer’s fifth season recently dropped on Netflix, and it’s a hell of a good time!
And before you tell me, “Erin, you’re a sentence into this piece and reaching for the easiest puns possible,” just know that I’m aware and having fun because playful puns are part of Lucifer’s Devilish DNA!
If you’ve not yet checked out Lucifer on Netflix, please allow me to share a bit about the show and what makes it such a sinfully successful romp!
First, A Plot Summary…
The basic conceit of Lucifer, which was developed based on characters from Neil Gaiman’s work for the DC Comics universe, is that the actual devil is living the good life in Los Angeles and running a hip nightclub called Lux.
Oh, and then he ends up helping the LAPD solve murders!
That’s right…this show is like Law and Order, but with the devil himself as one of the investigators!
Unlike Law and Order, Lucifer possesses a high level of silliness, cheesiness, and an overwhelmingly playful sensibility! It’s not long before we learn that the devil is just a dapper, handsome, woefully misunderstood angel who’s looking for his own sense of purpose in this crazy world.
As the show progresses, viewers meet all kinds of amazing supporting characters. There are detectives, forensic specialists, an over-worked therapist, an angelic brother, surprise Biblical figures, and a demon bounty hunter.
And then there’s Detective Chloe Decker, Lucifer’s crime-solving partner. She’s the person he most desires.
Bring On The Romance And Shipping!
The show is tailor-made from the beginning to encourage shipping Detective Decker and Lucifer Morningstar. Their couple mash-up name, which appears both online and in the show’s canon, is #Deckerstar.
Chloe Decker is Lucifer’s one weakness…literally! Though he’s physically invulnerable in all situations (after all, he is an immortal fallen angel), Lucifer becomes vulnerable whenever the detective is around! Similarly, Chloe is immune to Lucifer’s major power of getting true answers from people whenever he asks them, “What is it you truly desire?” As you can imagine, this all stacks up as evidence that #Deckerstar is a match made in heaven!!
So much of the early episodes of the show run on intense will-they-or-won’t-they sexual tension. While this kind of romantic plot can be a little bit exhausting, Lucifer is successful in part because as a viewer you can believe in your bones that of course they will get together!
All of this longing makes Lucifer an ideal show for romance fans out there. Some of Romancelandia’s favorite tropes show up over the seasons: Forbidden love! Pining! Reformed Rakes! Secret Identities! Fake Dating! Paranormal Forces! There’s seemingly no end of romance-friendly goodness that this show brings to the table.
And, on a personal note, I have a major celeb crush on Tom Ellis, who brings all kinds of rakish charm to the titular character. Sometimes it feels like he could have waltzed right off the pages of one of my favorite Regency or Victorian romance novels!
It’s Self-Aware About Its Silliness
As mentioned above, Lucifer is a show that embraces the ridiculous side of procedural detective shows. Sure, there are dark moments in different character arcs…but there are also tons of absurd, goofy, outlandish plotlines that keep things interesting.
One of the most recent episodes perfectly encapsulates goofy plots with self-aware winks to the audience and super-fans. The detective team is sent to investigate a murder that happened on the set of a television show made by one of Lucifer’s acquaintances. Turns out, the show-within-the-show is about a crime-solving devil! These kinds of antics give the audience a chance to smile, laugh at in-universe references, and appreciate all the zany things Lucifer and his friends get up to.
In addition to the general sense of whimsy that’s built into Lucifer, the show occasionally features genre-bending, pop-culture-referencing episodes. Sometimes that means the cast breaks into song and dance in the middle of the police office! Or maybe an episode told in flashback is stylized to look like 1940’s film noir! The creative team on Lucifer clearly seems satisfied to try new things…and that keeps the show feeling fresh and fun.
So, if you’re in a pop-culture rut or are just looking for a unique twist on crime solving procedurals, may I recommend checking out Lucifer on Netflix? Just be aware that you may get sucked into a super-entertaining binge-watch. But at least this time, your binge has a perfect alibi…after all, the devil made ya do it!
