At Maze's urging, Lucifer decides to take care of the Sinnerman before the man has the opportunity to take any more from him, this time things he values far more than his devil face: his life in LA, the Lux, Chloe...
Tropes present in this episode include:
- Cain and Abel:
- Turns out that Pierce and the Sinnerman were this, though probably not in the way that most people were expecting.
- To say nothing of Pierce literally being one half of the Trope Namer.
- Call-Back:
- Dan's file on Lucifer comes into play when they need to find where Lucifer took the Sinnerman.
- Angels can't kill a human; God's rules, and no angel is exempt from them. Not even Lucifer.
- Complete Immortality: As Lucifer puts it, Pierce/Cain is condemned to walk the Earth for the rest of eternity. Nothing and no one can kill him, short of possibly Azrael's blade itself. And it's not like anyone would want to, as, per the Bible, God promised to exact revenge seven-fold on anyone who killed Cain. Thus, when Lucifer stabs him in the heart, he comes back to life about two minutes later, no worse for wear.
- Exact Words: Pierce told Chloe that the Sinnerman killed his brother. Since he's the real Sinnerman, he was actually talking about the time that he killed his own brother, Abel.
- I Always Wanted to Say That: When Chloe begins questioning Sinnerman, he replies by quoting Hannibal Lecter's "I ate his liver" speech from The Silence of the Lambs before laughing and admitting that he just always wanted to say that.
- I Cannot Self-Terminate: For some reason, the Sinnerman wants Lucifer to kill him.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: Pierce/Cain asks for one after Lucifer stabs him.
- I Never Said It Was Poison: During the investigation, Chloe and Lucifer find a grenade in a car and race off before it explodes. Later, finding the kidnap victim, they press her on what happened with the car exploding. She mentions that the grenade must have rolled free somehow, at which point Chloe states that they never said it was a grenade, simply an explosive. This is the key to discovering that the "kidnapping" was faked.
- Inevitably Broken Rule: In this episode, it is established that God decreed that no angel is to kill a human lest some vague Biblical calamity were to happen. This rule is so serious that Lucifer — who is hellbent on provoking him regardless of whatever compunctions he has for killing — can't bring himself to kill the Sinnerman. He then risks incurring the Wrath of God on a gamble by stabbing Pierce in the chest and assuming that he had Resurrective Immortality based on a hunch.
- Mark of Shame: The original one: the Mark of Cain, placed by God on the arm of the first murderer.
- Mythology Gag: Lucifer reveals who Pierce really is by stabbing him, unafraid of the repercussions of killing a human would bring (as established in this very episode) just to prove a point. In The Sandman, Lucifer is the only person who ever hurts Cain in any way, unafraid of the Laser-Guided Karma from the Presence that harming him would allegedly bring.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: The Stoic Pierce screams at Ella to stop talking when she gushes about how cool it was that he killed the Sinnerman.Lucifer: What on earth...?
- The Reveal: Pierce is Cain, the first murderer, cursed by God to walk alone among humans for eternity.
- Shipper on Deck: Trixie tries to push her dad and Charlotte together; she ends up arranging for the two of them to have a romantic date.Dan: (whispers to Trixie) You are the best wingman ever.
- Squee: Ella's blatant crush on Pierce can only be described this way... until he's Suddenly Shouting at her.
- Thou Shalt Not Kill:
- Angels can't kill a human. Now that Lucifer is officially an angel again, this rule applies to him as well.
- Lucifer thinks that by killing the Sinnerman himself he'll get his devil face back and get rid of his wings, although Maze cautions him against this, saying that God's rules aren't to be disobeyed so carelessly; after all, look at what happened to Amenadiel, and all he did was bring a condemned soul back from Hell.Maze: I'm a demon. Big fan of death and destruction. But killing a human is angel no-nos 101! Look at your brother— total power loss, and he only got murder adjacent.
- When it comes down to it, though, Lucifer realizes that he doesn't have it in him to actually kill a human. Hurt them, brutally torture them, or punish them for their crimes, however... that's another story.
- Wham Line: When Lucifer puts the pieces together at the end of the episode, following his meeting with Pierce.Lucifer: Right. Well, we're both familiar with the "accomplice" theory; that our blind barbarian had someone working for him. Then it occurred to me that... what if the Sinnerman was the one working for someone else? What if he was the accomplice? Exhibit A: here is Mr. Sinnerman as a child with a man that he seems very close to. Interesting birthmark. It's a very similar shape to your military tattoo, actually. Wouldn't you agree?
Pierce: ...so?
Lucifer: Well, so it stands to reason that this man would be very, very old by now! Or, if he isn't, he'd have to be... immortal.
Pierce: An immortal crime boss? Just like you're the Devil?
Lucifer: Yes, I know. It does sound rather absurd, doesn't it? So, as such, there's really only one way to... [searches behind the bar] prove... my theory. Where did I... ah! There it is.
[Lucifer grabs a knife from the bar, whirls around, and rams it into Pierce's chest. 33 seconds later, he gets back up.]
Lucifer: I wondered why I didn't figure it out sooner! The World's First Murderer, marked by God and doomed to walk the Earth alone for a tortured eternity. It's quite the moniker! Yet... still, nowhere near as ridiculous as The Sinnerman. Wouldn't you agree... Cain? - Wham Shot: Lucifer stabs Pierce... who sits up after a few moments.
