“Sin-Eater”

Lucifer continues to deal with having the mother of the Prince of Darkness in the picture while defining why Lucifer still punishes people.

It’s a question that the show has never tackled before and possibly didn’t really need to. Lucifer continues to punish people because he’s the Devil and that’s what he does. This episode begins to suggest that there’s more to it than that and having his mother around is the ideal way to ask that question.

I mentioned last week that Charlotte -I’m going to call her that since “Lucifer’s mother” is a pain to type constantly- doesn’t understand humanity so she has a completely fresh perspective on Lucifer’s life as well as the world in general. She is able to figure out why Lucifer is fascinated by humanity but doesn’t understand why he likes to solve crimes.

It ties into his previous role as punisher of the damned. It was something he was made to do but now that he’s free there is nothing compelling him to continue. Charlotte continues to challenge him on why he would carry on until it gets to the point where Lucifer admits that he is addicted to it. He has accepted this addiction and has no intention of giving up. Refusing to give up on an addition isn’t the healthiest way to be and it’s possible that this will cause problems later on but for now it works as a motivation. Lucifer punishes people because he can’t bring himself to stop and actually enjoys it. Not to mention him being very good at it.

The case of the week also ties into this punishment angle. As usual I didn’t find the mechanics of the case all that interesting but the way it connects to Lucifer definitely was. Through this case he sees people who are forced to witness the very worst of humanity day in day out. They are content moderators for social media and in order to take down inappropriate content they have to find it. It is said that most of them don’t last more than a few month and Lucifer relates to seeing the worst of humanity being something that changes you. It’s a good connection but doesn’t fully work as Lucifer doesn’t seem at all disgusted by the worst of humanity as we frequently see him amused by it. He is making jokes over a charred corpse and enjoying watching the disturbing videos in this very episode. For this metaphor to really work then Lucifer should be more disturbed by what he constantly sees.

Tricia Helfer continues to impress as Charlotte. She is note perfect at portraying someone who doesn’t understand humanity and is able to shift instantly to the mother laying the guilt-trip on her disobedient sons. Despite the fact that she is a similar age to both Tom Ellis and D.B. Woodside -D.B. Woodside is actually older- she never fails to be maternal and the actors all run with how ridiculous it all looks. It really works and it’s an interesting dynamic to see play out. They are basically a family who have become estranged from one another and now they’re trying to move past that. It’s a very relatable struggle and it comes across well.

Charlotte is a fascinating character so far. She has such an ego in that she sees herself as being superior to humanity to the point that she won’t even learn names. I found it amusing that she is disgusted by humanity. The line about food changing “and not for the better” was great and it underpins how she views what human beings are and how we survive. She has also fully realised that her vessel is incredibly attractive and uses it to make men her servants but she also learns that being a glamorous woman makes her a target for criminals who want to rob her. Her education on humanity is coming quickly which is good as it stops the show treading over the same ground in the treatment of Charlotte. The reveal that she isn’t simply a vulnerable human was an interesting one and I predict that Charlotte will keep that from her children given that she seems to have some other agenda that she isn’t being honest about.

Lucifer punishes her by forcing her to go back to Charlotte’s family and I find this interesting. For one thing it’s a thread that was left dangling last week that I expected to be ignored but it looks like it’s about to become a big part of Charlotte’s development. She is going to have to learn how to live as a human and function as part of a family. It’s a really cruel punishment as it’s the worst thing that could happen to her outside of being sent back to hell and it should supply some entertainment in the coming episodes.

Mercifully Dan and Chloe’s relationship takes a step forward -or backward- instead of lingering awkwardly. They have been dancing around what to do about their failed marriage because the uncertainty affects Trixie in negative ways. It’s clear to anyone watching that the marriage could never work and this episode finally admits to that. Dan suggests that they get divorced and it seems like the best thing for them to do at this point. We are at the point where Dan has proven himself untrustworthy and it’s up to him to redeem that but Chloe would always wonder if he was being honest. Hopefully this will allow them to move on and give the characters more to do.

Dan is always at his best when he is able to play off Lucifer and we haven’t seen that so far this season so he has felt like a bit of a spare part in the background. The same has happened to Chloe but to a much lesser extent. Most of her scenes with Lucifer are plot driven so there has been very little character banter between them. I would like to see the show return to that sooner rather than later.

Maze is still having trouble finding her purpose and Linda is attempting to help her with that. The biggest problem is that Maze still feels obligated to look out for Lucifer and having Charlotte around isn’t letting her move away from that in any meaningful way. Linda has her hands full trying to break through that connection and Maze is obsessed with proving that Charlotte is bad news. I am curious to see what way this will go and I found it interesting that she tried to get Amenadiel to deal with the problem without telling him who she really is. Of course it doesn’t work and Amenadiel is still dealing with the fact that his wings are disintegrating and his Angel powers being all but gone.

Verdict

A solid episode that manages to tie the case of the week to Lucifer in a meaningful way. The connection loses itself in the way it handles the metaphor but it’s a decent attempt. Tricia Helfer continues to dazzle as Charlotte and the family dynamic between her, Lucifer and Amenadiel is really well done. Dan and Chloe finally moving on should be a good thing for their characters but time will tell on that one and I am interested to see what the plans for Maze are in how she fits into the Charlotte situation.