Spoilers! How 'Lucifer' says goodbye to a devilish good time in series finale
Spoiler alert! The following contains details from Season 6 of "Lucifer," including the series finale, "Partners 'Til the End."
The devil is back in hell.
After six seasons, one cancellation by Fox, a rescue by Netflix and lots of romantic tension between Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis) and Detective Chloe Decker (Lauren German), "Lucifer" said goodbye as the sixth and final season arrived on Netflix Friday.
What started as a fantastical police procedural based on characters from Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" comics evolved into a mythology-driven drama about heaven, hell and the people muddling between on Earth. The final episodes still had a few mysteries for Lucifer and his detective to solve, but mostly focused on the devil's fight to find his place in the world, whether ascending to heaven to replace his father as God, staying in his beloved Los Angeles or something else.
In 10 final episodes, "Lucifer" tied up its dangling plot threads while introducing a few new wrinkles. The emotional, action-packed finale was superb, surprising and cathartic, and might end up on the list of the best series endings of all time. Without veering too far into fan service, it managed to stick the landing, angel wings intact.
The majority of Season 6 deals with the appearance of Rory (Brianna Hildebrand, "Deadpool"), Lucifer and Chloe's daughter from the future. She traveled back to the present through angelic self-actualization, because she was so very angry at her father for abandoning their family. This is news to both Lucifer and Chloe, who can't imagine a reality in which Lucifer abandons his child after suffering from being cast out of heaven by his father for so many millennia.
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In the penultimate episode, Lucifer spends what he thinks might be his last day on Earth saying heartfelt goodbyes to his friends and soaking up every last moment with Chloe. When Lucifer survives past midnight, the couple thinks they have thwarted the future, until Lucifer receives a call from Le Mec (Rob Benedict), the mercenary who killed Dan (Kevin Alejandro). Escaped from prison and freed from his possession by Dan's ghost, Le Mec has kidnapped Rory and brought her to the very intersection that Lucifer is supposed to disappear from in Rory's future.
Chloe and Lucifer head to the warehouse to get their daughter back, fighting through Le Mec's minions. Lucifer eventually breaks through to find the mercenary, with his gun to Rory's head. Le Mec felt Lucifer had tortured him, and he wants to impart that same torture on the devil. Lucifer, who always has a way with words, explains that Le Mec should kill him instead. If he dies, he won't get to see his daughter grow up, which would be true torture.
Before Le Mec can kill Lucifer, Rory breaks free and grabs him, intent on killing the man who threatened her father. Caught in paralyzing rage, Rory's face begins to take on the devilish features Lucifer once wore, but Lucifer talks her down from her anger. Spared from Rory's wrath, Le Mec tries one more time to kill Lucifer before Chloe comes in and shoots him.
It seems as if our dynamic trio has stopped the inevitable future, but Rory is convinced that Lucifer is still going to leave. As they talk over events, Rory helps Lucifer realize Dan stopped possessing Le Mec because his soul was finally able to conquer his guilt and move on to heaven, all because of something Lucifer said to him. His real calling wasn't to be God, but rather to help lost souls escape hell after they make amends and alleviate their guilt.
But in order for all of this to happen without messing with timelines, Lucifer has to return to hell permanently and leave Chloe (now just barely pregnant with Rory) behind. Rory has to grow up without a father so that one day, she'll travel back in time and help Lucifer realize how he can help the universe. As she's pulled back to the future, she makes the devil – who never lies – promise he'll abandon her.
After a tender goodbye, Lucifer leaves Chloe behind for hell. A poetic montage follows, showing how Team Lucifer moves on after he goes back below. Amenadiel (D.B. Woodside) ends up as the new God, intent on fixing more of Earth's problems than his father ever did. He still has time to be a father to his and Linda's (Rachael Harris) toddler son Charlie, who finally sprouts wings. Chloe returns to the LAPD, working with and promoting Sonia (Merrin Dungey), the Black officer trying to fix even a little bit of the systemic racism in the department. Ella (Aimee Garcia) and Carol (Scott Porter) are happy together, running the foundation Lucifer left for her. Maze (Lesley-Ann Brandt) and Eve (Inbar Lavi) are married, bounty hunting and deliriously happy. Dan is in heaven, reunited with Charlotte (Tricia Helfer), his true love. Eventually Chloe brings baby Rory home to this found family.
In the future, Rory returns to her old, ailing mother on her deathbed. As Chloe dies she goes to heaven, where Amenadiel finds her and asks if she wants to go home. We finally see what Lucifer has been up to all this time: In a room in hell that looks just like Linda's therapy office, Lucifer is helping souls, including Linda's ex-husband Reese (Patrick Fabian) and even Le Mec. A knock on the door reveals Chloe, back in her young body, ready to spend eternity with him. The pair lean into each other, and the credits roll.
Emotionally satisfying, unpredictable and well-earned, it's a finale angels and demons can both be happy about.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Lucifer' series finale recap: How the devil says goodbye on Netflix
