Summary
Episode 14 tackles relationships and sacrifices as characters understand the importance of compromise. The chapter also heats the story, leading the audience to what the finale may hold.
This recap of Netflix’s Lucifer season 5, episode 14, “Nothing Lasts Forever,” contains major spoilers.
Handing over the God title is a complicated process, it seems, and episode 14 mulls through this situation.
Lucifer tells Chloe that he’s going to be the new God. Chloe has plenty of questions, of course, but Lucifer wants to keep lowkey with the angels until his dad makes it official. Chloe doesn’t understand why he wants to be God, but Lucifer says he wants to make plenty of changes and thought she’d be more excited about it — she doesn’t know what it means for their relationship, but Lucifer tries reassuring her that it’s a good thing.
Murder case but Father returns
At the aquarium, there has been a murder. The initial theory was that a shark killed Bruna, the aquarium operator. However, Ella tells the team that Bruna was killed before being fed to the sharks. They ask staff member Lizzie, who has no idea about who would kill her. But then Amenadiel turns up and tells Lucifer that Father is back. When they go to meet him, he’s partaking in a BBQ with all of the archangels.
The angels aren’t happy with Lucifer announcing himself as the next God
And that’s where all this successor process gets weird…
Lucifer and Amenadiel approach their father, and he welcomes them to his retirement party. Naturally, everyone assumes that Amenadiel will be the new God, but Lucifer announces that it will be him. The archangels are dismayed, but Lucifer reminds them that he ran Hell. The archangels put pressure on God to name his successor, but he wants to do his retirement plan first.
A new lead
At the station, Chloe tells Lucifer they have a lead — Bruna had intense arguments with her husband, so bring him in. The husband tells them that he was mad at his wife as she was never around, but he states an alibi. He raises how his wife argued with a man named Jeremy, but it wasn’t an affair; she just cared about the fish. Chloe raises questions about Bruna being the God of the aquarium and didn’t have time for her loved ones. Lucifer changes the questions about retirement plans — he’s clearly not invested in the investigation. Lucifer knows a Jeremy who owns Fine Food, who is known for selling illegal animals.
Double date
Lucifer becomes obsessed with arranging his father’s retirement, to an extreme degree, in season 5, episode 14.
Lucifer and Chloe go on a double date with God and Chloe’s mother, Penelope. It turns out Lucifer is trying to arrange a romance for his father with another retired woman. This was clearly a bad idea as it’s an awkward dinner. Father and Penelope get along well, but Chloe asks God what kind of work/life balance he had in his work. God tells her that he didn’t have much time for himself and damaged his relationship with his wife. Suddenly, Lucifer tries to give the waiter money for illegal animals — it’s a restaurant that Jeremy owns.
Jeremy pleads his innocence
Jeremy shows up and charms the table — he shows them a rare Panda dish. Chloe puts Jeremy under arrest. They take him in, and Chloe asks if Bruna threatened to oust him. Jeremy claims that Bruna tried to sell some of her fish and has wire transfers to prove it — he says they argued over a rare fish because he ran out of budget.
Amenadiel believes God doesn’t have any issues with his powers
But there’s a twist in the tale regarding God’s “lack of powers” in Lucifer season 5, episode 14.
Father tells Lucifer that Penelope is too many millennials young for him and doesn’t want his help. Lucifer insists he wants to help so that he can have the throne. God tells him to be patient and doesn’t want to hear about his retirement again. Amenadiel meets with his dad on the golf course and tells God that he has faith in Lucifer as he’s come a long way. Hel tells his father that nothing seems wrong with his powers — Father explains that he didn’t think anything was wrong until Michael raised it. Amenadiel wonders if he’s self-actualizing.
Maze’s Hell torture
The story has burned slow for Maze throughout season 5, but it’s gathering pace in this chapter.
Maze tells Linda that having a soul is hard, and she’s struggling with it — she’s also worried that she will not go to Heaven with Eve — she doesn’t want to go to Hell as one of the tortured. Suddenly, Maze knows what she will be tortured with and wants to create a new Hell loop. She doesn’t want to see herself breaking Eve’s heart over and over again. Amenadiel tells her that when Lucifer becomes God, he can change the rules of Hell for her. Maze meets Lucifer and tells him that she wants him to change the rules of Hell — she wants to have the throne of Hell, and she doesn’t feel she can stay on earth. Lucifer agrees and calls her the Queen of Hell.
But this all feels like Maze is still avoiding the obvious — sorting it out with Eve.
God tells Ella about her light
Ella meets Linda for therapy after recent traumatic events — she talks about the darkness inside and that she’s genuinely not a good person. She doesn’t know how to accept herself. Ella meets Father, and she tells him she wishes he was God as she knows he is Lucifer’s dad. God asks if she needs help. Ella wants to be rid of the darkness within her and wonders if she is a bad person. God tells Ella that she shines very brightly, and he can see it all the way from Heaven. However, it’s such a shame that Ella did not know that the person she was actually dealing with was God. Let’s hope his words resonate within her.
Another case solved
Lucifer and Chloe learn that Bruna sacrificed some fish to save the aquarium as it was in dire straits. Ella has tracked the victim’s Fitbit in the aquarium in one of the sharks. She reckons DNA will be available on the severed arm; however, Dan raises how all DNA would be gone by now. However, Chloe raises how the murderer will not know that. They head to the aquarium, and Lizzie is trying to move the shark — Chloe says they will find her DNA on Bruna’s arm. Lizzie confesses and says Bruna was playing God with the fish. Chloe arrests her.
Charlotte returns
And as always, Lucifer has an epiphany as season 5, episode 14 moves closer to another twist in the tale.
Lucifer tells Chloe that he hasn’t been listening to what his Father wants for his retirement. Then, Lucifer heads to his apartment and asks for angel Gabriel — he wants a favor from her. So Charlotte returns, and God has a reunion with his wife. They’ve clearly missed each other. Amenadiel tells Lucifer that God isn’t losing his powers, so he doesn’t need to replace him. Charlotte tells Amenadiel and Lucifer that she and her husband are going to go to her universe. Father tells them it’s his turn to spend time in her world.
There’s plenty of themes of relationships and sacrifices in this chapter.
God’s plan
Lucifer tells his father that he doesn’t need to retire, and he doesn’t want him to leave. However, God tells him that not everything lasts forever and admits he could have been a better father to him. God then tells Lucifer, “I love you, son, and I am very proud of the man you’ve become.” Lucifer is overwhelmed as he hugs his father. As they leave, Amenadiel asks God to name his successor, but Father says they will figure it out and that it was always part of his plan.
I wonder what this means now for Lucifer — will he now be able to tell Chloe that he loves her. His father’s love is a big moment for him.
The ending
There’s more news — Chloe tells Lucifer that she’s quitting the LAPD. She explains she became a cop to help people, but she wants to help Lucifer become God to do better for the world. She states that Lucifer has supported her job for years, and now it’s her turn to support him. As they kiss, angel Remiel turns up and asks where Father is — she wants to know if the successor is named; she explains that when she returned to the Silver City, she discovered that Michael has been gathering support for others to be God. Remiel pledges her support for Lucifer even if she doesn’t like him — she hates Michael even more.
As the episode ends, it turns out Gabriel was working with Michael on his plans; she gives him Azrael’s blade.
Lucifer season 5, episode 14 tackles relationships and sacrifices as characters understand the importance of compromise. The chapter also heats the story, leading the audience to what the finale may hold.
Additional points
- Chloe asks Dan that she doesn’t think Lucifer can balance the universe and their relationship. Dan thinks they will be okay as Lucifer is crazy about her.
- At dinner, Chloe raises that her father gave up his dreams for his mother. Penelope confronts her about what she said — she explains that they agreed to switch and work on their careers, but when it was her father’s turn, he died. Penelope insists she loved him.
