OK, now I'll write the one I meant to yesterday. Just in case you didn't know, I'm an atheist, so I don't believe in the God/devil shit. Not a bit. But! I like to think about the nature of the devil. It's fun. It's also why I enjoy the show, Lucifer, so much. To be honest, I'm not a fan of the comic book it's based on. I mean, I liked the character when he was in The Sandman, but when he got his own book? Not quite so interesting. I even tried again when they rebooted the series. Still not interesting.
Which is why me enjoying the show surprised me quite a bit. I think a lot of the heavy lifting is done by the sheer charm and wit of Tom Ellis, the actor who plays Lucifer Morningstar. All the characters are great, though.
So I was watching an episode during the final season when something occurred to me. I planned to write this column then, when I still hadn't seen the series finale. I watched it last night after doing the 404 Not Found column, and I'm glad to see that my hunch was correct, but my thinking brought it a step further.
If you haven't seen the final season, step lightly. Here there be spoilers. You might want to skip out on the rest of this one starting now.
In case you're unfamiliar, per the show's rules you are not damned to Hell for your actions. You send yourself there because of your own guilt. The episode in question details what happens when Lucifer has to help someone he hates, and that person is in Hell. This made me think that maybe the devil's true task is to help those in Hell heal, to overcome their guilt in order to help them finally enter Heaven. Maybe he has to do that for everyone in Hell.
Much to my surprise, this is exactly how the show ends. Lucifer is a therapist to the denizens of Hell. But here's where my thinking goes further. Why did Lucifer present the fruit to Eve? I think it's because he didn't learn his lesson the first time, when he tried to help save the angels from their father's tyranny. So he saw humans getting set up for the same suffering, and in an attempt to save them, he offered them Knowledge of Good and Evil.
I interpret that to mean that Lucifer, from that point forward, is responsible for humanity. Therefore, it is his penance to save everyone. He must go from person to person in Hell and help them recognize how they went wrong, and then to teach them how to let it go and become right for Heaven. And he has to do that for everyone. Only when Hell is empty will he finally be able to be forgiven by his father, and then he will be allowed to return home into the loving arms of his family.
See? It's fun to think about these things. Also, it's kind of a beautiful sentiment and an answer to why God would damn his supposedly beloved children to Hell.
Maybe the devil does have some sympathy coming to him.
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