📺 Lucifer (2016)
Based on comic
The television series Lucifer, which premiered on Fox in 2016 before being saved by Netflix for a further three seasons, takes the core premise of the DC Comics character and transforms it into a playful urban fantasy police procedural. Developed by Tom Kapinos, the show stars Tom Ellis as a charming and hedonistic version of the Devil, who abandons Hell to run a high-end nightclub in Los Angeles and, after a chance encounter with a murder investigation, becomes a civilian consultant for the LAPD.
The series is a very loose adaptation of the Vertigo comic book character created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg, who first appeared in The Sandman, and later starred in his own critically acclaimed solo series written by Mike Carey. While the comic is a sprawling, darkly philosophical epic about free will and cosmic rebellion, the television adaptation leans heavily into the 'case-of-the-week' format, using Lucifer's devilish powers of desire-prying as a unique interrogation technique. The show's tone is significantly lighter, focusing on Lucifer's emotional growth, his fish-out-of-water comedy, and his evolving relationship with Detective Chloe Decker, a character created specifically for the series.
Despite the drastic shift in genre from theological horror to romantic crime dramedy, the show retains the central character's core traits: his disdain for his father (God), his refusal to lie, and his struggle with his own identity beyond being the Devil. The series gradually introduced more supernatural and biblical elements, particularly in its later Netflix-produced seasons, bringing in angels, demons, and a full family drama involving God himself. The show became a massive streaming hit, driven by Ellis's charismatic performance and a passionate fan campaign that famously resurrected it after Fox's cancellation.
Lucifer is an American comic book series published by DC Comics under its Vertigo imprint. The series was created by writer Mike Carey, based on the character Lucifer Samael Morningstar originally created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg for the pages of The Sandman. The comic ran for 75 issues from June 2000 to August 2006, with a subsequent 2015 revival.
The story begins directly after the events of The Sandman, where Lucifer Morningstar has abdicated his throne as ruler of Hell. Having grown weary of his role in the divine plan and the constant blame for humanity's sins, he closes the gates of Hell, evicts all demons and damned souls, and hands the key to the Key to Hell to Dream of the Endless. Lucifer then retires to Los Angeles, where he opens a piano bar called Lux.
The series is a sprawling theological epic that blends mythology, cosmic horror, and character-driven drama. It follows Lucifer's quest for true free will, a journey that pits him against the forces of Heaven, Hell, and beings from outside God's creation. Carey's writing transforms the Devil from a simple embodiment of evil into a complex, charismatic, and deeply intelligent antihero driven by a profound rebellion against predestination. The comic is celebrated for its sophisticated narrative, philosophical depth, and its expansion of the Sandman universe's cosmology.
