When FOX made the unusual decision to shelve the remaining six season 2 episodes of Lucifer until May 17, many fans of Tom Ellis' dashing lord of hellfire feared a cancellation notice was just around the corner. It certainly seemed plausible that the unremarkable viewing ratings or religiously combative content had sealed the series' doom with its network.

However, it turns out that FOX still has faith in the devil after all. The network has now announced that the Lucifer TV show is returning for a third season, with 22 new episodes on order.

Expanding on a character created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth and Mike Dringenberg for The Sandman and Lucifer comic book series, the tv adaptation explores its biblical mythology with playful humor. The titular character is incarnated as a captivating playboy that has escaped his millennia old role as the lord of hell to found an exclusive L.A club and live among humankind in defiance of his father the great almighty. Lucifer's hedonistic lifestyle and preternatural compulsion to punish evildoers conceives an unlikely alliance with a beautiful detective Chloe Decker (Lauren German) and he finds himself using his demonic powers to solve murders as a consultant for the L.A.P.D.

The Lucifer TV show also features D.B Woodside, Lesley-Ann Brandt and Tricia Helfer as the celestial and demonic beings in Lucifer's life and Rachael Harris, Kevin Alejandro and Aimee Garcia as his human associates. Lucifer is developed by Tom Kapinos (Californication) and Joe Henderson (Almost Human) and FOX Entertainment President David Madden has released the following statement, praising the show in light of its season 3 renewal:

“LUCIFER is one of those rare shows that starts strong out of the gate, and just keeps getting better and better.... Tom, Lauren and the entire cast have really made these characters three-dimensional, and the production team – Jerry, Len, Jonathan, Joe and Ildy – is one of the best in the business. We’d also like to thank our partners Warner Bros. for their commitment to this show and we look forward to seeing where this wildly innovative series takes us in Season Three.”

Fox have also offered a synopsis for the next episode of Lucifer (airing in May):

"In the all-new spring premiere of LUCIFER, “Candy Morningstar,” airing Monday, May 1 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX, Lucifer (Tom Ellis) has gone off the grid and cut off all contact from his family and the police department, following Chloe’s (Lauren German) near-death. But the murder of an up-and-coming guitarist causes him to resurface – with a new mystery woman. Meanwhile, Lucifer’s mom (Tricia Helfer) realizes she may have found a way to finally get them back to Heaven."

Lucifer

Lucifer's opposites attract, police procedural formula is conventional TV fare that audiences are more than familiar with and makes for comfortable, escapist viewing. It is the show's take on its biblical theme that elevates interest beyond the expected eccentric-meets-pragmatist dynamic. The devil character is presented sympathetically in concurrence with his fallen angel origin, with a character arc in play as he experiences increasingly human traits. The show cleverly explores these experiences as an ongoing existential crisis, using his therapist (Harris) as a device for humor and depth. The complex mythology will allow for a range of potential storylines and the introduction of new, metaphysical characters going forward - which will no doubt be more compelling than the predictably drawn-out romantic conflict between Lucifer and Chloe.

Despite the hackneyed formula, Lucifer has a solid cast captained by Ellis' commanding charisma and the potential of all of heaven and hell to narratively explore. If the third season can deliver more theological drama (in the way of bad-ass angel and demonry) in hand with its steady character development, this show could run for many seasons more.

Lucifer season 2 picks back up on May 1st, 2017. We wil keep you updated with season 3 news as it develops.

Source: FOX