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Lucifer: A Priest Walks Into a Bar

"At first I didn't understand why God put you in my path, but then it hit me. Maybe he put me in yours."

This was actually the very first episode of Lucifer that I watched.

I had heard about it from a few people on my Twitter feed, but never really paid too much attention to; I had about five or six other shows that I was watching at the time, so why would I add another to that list about some comic book/religious text character played by Gary from Miranda? I put the show on my 'Maybe I Will Watch It In The Future When I Am Really Bored' list, and then promptly forgot about for several weeks.

And then a friend posted a screen-grab of the scene where Lucifer is talking at the night sky to God, angry and pissed off that his new-yet-unlikely friend had been taken away from him. And not just any friend; a priest. Father Frank, despite being the polar opposite to Lucifer, believed in him and it lead to some of what I believe to be the most powerful scenes of the season. I'd never really taken Tom Ellis seriously as an actor before and this episode, my first experience with the series, changed my opinion of him and made me want to give the series a proper chance.

True, I probably should have started from the pilot and eventually made it to this episode at some point or another, but I think we can all agree that the first several episodes of Lucifer were rather hit-and-miss when it came to quality content. Having the safety net of knowing that there is such a powerful episode almost smack bang in the middle of the season allowed me to push through the meh-level episodes to get to this one again, and finally be able to re-watch it while knowing just who the characters were and how everything worked together. But then again, I'm the sort of person who reads the last page of a book before I buy it, just to make sure it's actually worth my time and that I won't be left disappointed and financially poorer.

This episode was a major turning point for Lucifer's character. Spending time with Frank, getting to know the man beneath the frock and essentially making a friend out of an old enemy gave Lucifer previously unheard of layers. He was trying ridiculously hard to implicate Frank in something, to prove that the man was a fraud. When it came to light that Frank did have a past, and that he had managed to turn his life around, it became clear to Lucifer that perhaps he could do the same too. I really wish that Frank had survived the episode, but his death was obvious as soon as he and Lucifer bonded.

Frank's death did lead to some sweet moments between Chloe and Lucifer at the end, so I'm going to hold my tongue on them because I genuinely loved their scenes this week. When Lucifer isn't trying to get into Chloe's pants, their scenes are always an A+ for me. Chloe knew that Lucifer was grieving the death of a friend, even if he was a new friend, and was supportive in a way that I don't think many of the usual suspects that spent time with Lucifer would have been able to do. Can anyone else imagine Maze having been there for Lucifer as he grieved over the death of a priest?

I know that there was a Case of the Week, and I would usually put in some effort to write about it in my reviews, but I really wanted to talk about the importance of this episode for Lucifer's character development and the episode as a whole. The case sort of took a backseat once again and allowed the relationships to take front and centre, particularly Lucifer and Father Frank. While Frank was tied to the case initially, Lucifer spent most of his time trying to work out Frank as a person. I honestly think that this was around the time that Lucifer started focusing on the relationships and characters rather than it being a primarily procedural show.

So let's pour one out for Father Frank, a pivotal piece in the development of Lucifer as a character and as a TV series.

Bits and pieces

Trixie is credited but does not appear in the episode.

I was going to transcribe Lucifer's speech at the end of the episode, but it would not have done it any justice.

Turns out Dan isn't a bad guy after all, but rather shot Malcolm in order to save Chloe. Awwwww.

Loved the piano duel between Lucifer and Father Frank. I really want to know if the actors were genuinely playing the piano or used actual musicians.

Quotes

Dr. Martin: Have you ever considered that all of this excessive partying is your attempt to fill a void?
Lucifer: Attempt? I filled five voids last night.

Lucifer: The Devil friends with a priest? It's absurd.
Chloe: It's absurdly cute.

Father Frank: We all have demons inside.
Lucifer: My demon tends the bar.

Father Frank: It's okay. I'm not afraid of dying.
Lucifer: Well, you should be. It's really boring where you're going.

Father Frank: We might not always understand it, but God has a plan.
Lucifer: Yes, I know. But why does everybody always think it's a good plan?

Five out of five piano duels.

Morgan India, who almost forgot to put in a page break for this review, and wouldn't that have been awkward.

4 comments:

  1. Morgan, Tom has indicated a few times on Twitter that while he does his own singing, he fakes it when it comes to the piano playing and they use someone else's hands for the close-ups. He fakes it REALLY well, he definitely had me fooled for a while :)

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  2. This was the episode that hooked me. Really terrific. I've also become a fan of Colman Domingo's partially because of this episode. (He's one of the two best actors on Fear the Walking Dead.

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  3. Patrick - Thanks for clarifying that it's Tom singing but not playing the piano. I don't actively follow him on Twitter so I wasn't entirely sure.

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