Fox’s Lucifer season three episode nine finally revealed the identity of the serial killer known as the Sinnerman. Unfortunately for poor Lucifer (Tom Ellis), the reveal of the person committing the brutal murders came only after two people Lucifer had done favors for were found dead. Episode nine also brought Maze back into the mix and moved forward a certain romantic relationship some Lucifans have been hoping for.
Season three episode nine begins with self-described nice guy Joey Pileggi (Andy Cohen) asking Lucifer for a favor. Lucifer, back in the satisfying desires mode, asks what he wants.
Next, Lucifer pays Dr. Linda (Rachael Harris) a visit and she wants to know why his celestial gift is “desire.” Lucifer teases that he was sorted into a house in angel school – he’s pulling a whole Harry Potter at Hogwarts thing – and Dr. Linda falls for it. “There’s no Hogwarts in the sky,” laughs Lucifer. He finally gets serious and says that’s just the way he was born.
She wonders if his powers shaped his personality or his personality shaped his powers, and Lucifer admits he doesn’t know. He just thinks his powers are perfect for him because desire is all about free will.
Over at the police station, Marcus Pierce (Tom Welling) is back at work but he admits to Chloe (Lauren German) the wound still hurts. She needs a day off and he doesn’t immediately grant it. Instead, he takes it under advisement.
Chloe’s still pissed about Marcus’ answer when she and Lucifer arrive at a new crime scene. She thinks Marcus is a jerk and then Lucifer asks the same question Marcus did, why does she need a personal day? She gives him the same answer, “It’s personal.”
Ella (Aimee Garcia) is already at the murder scene and Lucifer immediately recognizes Joey as the murder victim. He admits he just did the kid a favor a few months ago. Chloe pulls him aside and Lucifer explains about the favor, and she can’t believe he’s still granting favors. Lucifer confesses Joey wanted to be the new Scarface for millennials, so he got him an internship with the mob.
Joey’s legs were broken and he has two gunshot wounds to the chest, and Ella quickly determines the broken legs happened after he was dead. Lucifer reveals the legs were probably broken because he was a “runner” for the mob.
Over at Dr. Linda’s office, she and Amenadiel (DB Woodside) share a laugh over Lucifer’s angel school joke, although Linda doesn’t think it’s as funny as Amenadiel apparently does. He can’t believe she thinks angel school is a thing. She reminds him that all of this is crazy, so angel school could be real. She then wonders why his power is slowing down time and he explains it’s so he can do his dad’s work on Earth without anyone being the wiser. Linda thinks that’s sad because it means he doesn’t really get to know people. He admits he never really wanted to…until recently.
Maze (Lesley-Ann Brandt) busts in and she and Linda share a hug. (Maze’s portion includes grabbing Linda’s butt.) Amenadiel fills Maze in on the fact Linda believes in angel school. Maze laughs but seems a little put off by the fact Linda and Amenadiel are now friends and hang out. It’s obvious she’s a little jealous.
Back at the station, Ella shows them Joey’s shoe and she’s excited to announce they’re limited editions worth a grand. Charlotte (Tricia Helfer) joins Lucifer, Chloe, Dan (Kevin Alejandro), and Ella and reveals she’s now a prosecutor. Surprise! They can’t believe it and Ella acts strange when they talk about what instigated Charlotte’s career change.
Ella talks about all the cash and stuff Joey had hidden, and it’s way more than he should have earned from being a runner. Charlotte says if Joey was skimming off the top, then he would have been executed by his bosses. The killing wouldn’t have taken place the way they found Joey’s body.
Chloe’s going to bring in Frankie Ferrante, the person Lucifer sent Joey to to mentor.
Linda and Amenadiel try and figure out why Maze was weirded out by their friendship. They compliment each other and the sparks are flying all over the place. They kiss and Linda’s the first to pull away. She says it’s a mistake and Amenadiel is a gentleman about it. He apologizes, and then they kiss again!
Once again at the station, Charlotte provides some help because she knows Frankie Ferrante. Chloe accepts her offer but wants Charlotte to “keep a low profile” during the interrogation. Frankie (Andy Davoli) doesn’t admit to knowing Lucifer, but he does admit to having worked with Charlotte in the past. (She has to explain she’s now with the cops.) Frankie claims he doesn’t know Joey. Lucifer threatens Frankie and then Chloe makes Frankie admit he did actually know Joey. Lucifer uses his special angel school desire trick and Frankie reveals they all loved Joey and would have protected him. They were all generous to Joey and treated him like family. Frankie wants to help bring in the killer.
Dan interrupts the interrogation to confirm Frankie’s not the killer. His alibi checks out and they have another body.
They arrive at the new murder scene to find a victim with the same wounds. Lucifer also knows this woman, telling Chloe he did this woman a favor a few years ago. He’s certain the murders are a message for him.
Frieda Marquis is the victim and Ella explains the noose around her neck was made from her own hair. She, like Joey, died from two gunshots to the chest. Frieda wanted to be a hairstylist to the stars says Lucifer, and Ella fangirls over Frieda’s hair care products.
Chloe quietly asks Lucifer who he thinks is sending the messages, admitting she’s worried about him. Lucifer insists the killer must be the Sinnerman, but Chloe reminds him there’s no evidence such a person exists. Lucifer is positive this is the Sinnerman’s way of escalating their rivalry.
As they talk, Marcus arrives at the crime scene to back up Lucifer’s story. He agrees this is the work of the Sinnerman and Chloe’s shocked to learn Marcus and Lucifer have discussed this before. Marcus takes the blame for not filling her in, and then adds that it’s not really the Sinnerman’s MO to taunt a nightclub owner. Lucifer’s a small fish compared to the Sinnerman’s other victims, according to Marcus.
Lucifer keeps getting calls from an unknown number but doesn’t answer.
Lucifer heads off to his place and calls his brother for help on the Sinnerman. He doesn’t even realize Maze is back but when he discovers she’s standing in his living room he’s super happy to see her since he needs her help. She can’t believe he doesn’t even care about her needs and is only happy she’s returned because of how it affects him. (Did she forget she’s talking to Lucifer?)
Lucifer finally answers the phone, trying to get rid of the telemarketer who’s been calling him. Turns out it’s not a telemarketer – it’s the Sinnerman.
Back at the station, Ella has found the DNA of the Sinnerman. She found skin under Frieda’s fingernails and a hair at Joey’s place and knows the killer was at both scenes. She dug even further and found a perfect match to an old Sinnerman case in Chicago. Chloe calls Ella a miracle worker and then gets distracted watching Marcus walk through the station, muscles bulging. Ella can’t believe there’s nothing going on between Chloe and Marcus since there are so many sparks.
Chloe tells Marcus she found the Sinnerman’s DNA at the scenes and she wants to lean on Frankie. Marcus offers to help, but she opts to take Charlotte instead.
An angry Lucifer meets the Sinnerman at the designated location, a slaughterhouse. Lucifer is tricked into walking into a trap, with the doors closing behind him. The Sinnerman (Kevin Carroll) is communicating via closed-circuit television and Lucifer demands to know why he killed Frieda and Joey. Sinnerman says they were just bait and now Lucifer’s trapped.
Lucifer declares he’s no mouse and tries to break the wall down. Unfortunately, it’s a foot of reinforced steel. It also turns out the Sinnerman believes Lucifer is the Devil. Lucifer wonders how the Sinnerman returned his wings and changed his Devil face, and the Sinnerman taunts him that he’ll be trapped in the building for years.
Lucifer can’t use his Jedi mind trick because the man’s wearing sunglasses. He promises the Sinnerman he’ll find out what he really wants and then he’ll destroy him.
Chloe and Charlotte show up at a restaurant to talk to Frankie, but Chloe makes Charlotte promise she’ll stick to the script before they go inside. She does.
They take a seat at the table with Frankie and some of his people, and Chloe asks about the Sinnerman. Frankie claims he’s never heard of him and Charlotte promises if he helps, it will be worth his while. He’ll have a friend inside the D.A.’s office next time he needs it.
Chloe and Charlotte leave without getting any answers. Chloe explains she knew Frankie wouldn’t talk to the cops, but since they’ve disclosed the killer was the Sinnerman, Frankie will be hunting him down on his own. When he finds him, the cops will step in.
Charlotte heads home while Chloe sticks around to watch Frankie. It turns out Marcus is also in the restaurant parking lot and he’s going to handle stakeout duty with Chloe.
Lucifer’s rescue comes in the form of a very upset Maze. She opens the door and he’s happy to see her, but of course makes everything about himself once again. She tracked him down because she wanted to talk and she’s pissed he’s hiding in a freezer. He yells at her that he’s a prisoner trapped by the Sinnerman. Maze can’t believe he was trapped and she steps out of the room, locking the door behind her.
Lucifer pounds on the door and yells at her to think of someone else’s needs. Maze assures him he can only get out once he listens to her. Plus, he has to act like he cares. She asks if he knows Linda and Amenadiel are a thing, and Lucifer’s genuinely shocked. He reminds her that talking in Dr. Linda’s office is what she does, so maybe they were just chatting. Lucifer adds that he doesn’t care if Linda and Amenadiel are a thing and she shouldn’t either. And then Lucifer figures out that Maze is still “hot for angel.”
Maze denies it and says she’s upset because Linda is her best friend and Amenadiel’s her ex. “So, you don’t want him but nobody else can have him? That’s awfully greedy of you, Maze,” says the still-confined Lucifer.
Maze demands to know what’s going on and Lucifer tells her to ask herself what it is she truly desires. She must answer that question honestly. She’s silent and then finally sets Lucifer free.
Marcus and Chloe continue their stakeout, and Marcus is fully aware she wants to say something to him. She confesses she wants to know why the Sinnerman case is so important to him, and Marcus claims it’s simply because it’s so high priority. Chloe doesn’t believe that and thinks it’s personal. Marcus finally admits the Sinnerman killed his brother. He wants to make him pay.
Chloe reveals she asked for a personal day because it’s the anniversary of her father’s death. She tells him about finding the guy who did it a few months back and she wasn’t sure what she’d do. She ultimately did the right thing and arrested him. She explains she doesn’t talk about it – not even to Lucifer. She suggests Marcus think about what he really wants and warns him not to do something he’ll regret. (There’s a lot of that “think about what you really want” advice going around this episode.)
Chloe and Marcus watch someone walk into the restaurant but don’t follow, thinking it’s probably just someone reporting on the Sinnerman’s identity to Frankie. Lucifer calls and explains he was held captive by the Sinnerman, providing a description of the man complete with a critique of his sweater vest. Chloe realizes the person walking into the restaurant is the killer. She leaves the phone in the car as she and Marcus head into the restaurant.
Lucifer, concerned, speeds toward the restaurant.
Chloe and Marcus enter, guns drawn. Sinnerman has already shot some of the mobsters and shoots at Chloe before running into the kitchen. She follows him, warning there are units outside. She promises to take him in if he gives up. He doesn’t and keeps shooting.
Chloe and the Sinnerman exchange gunfire in the kitchen before he takes off running. Marcus tackles him outside and wrestles with himself over shooting his brother’s killer. Chloe offers her help and Marcus makes the right decision and places the Sinnerman under arrest.
Lucifer arrives after the Sinnerman’s arrested, but Chloe stops him from talking to the killer for now.
No one notices the Sinnerman has managed to get a pen and slips it up his sleeve as the cops take him away.
Maze shows up at Dr. Linda’s and Linda’s acting strange when she reluctantly lets her in. Maze admits it was weird seeing her so “chummy” with Amenadiel. She also admits that Linda is her best friend and Amenadiel is one of a million exes, and she feels left out. She doesn’t want Linda and Amenadiel to get together, and Linda understands. Maze makes it worse by describing her sexual adventures with Amenadiel, explaining she touched nerves Amenadiel didn’t know he had.
Once more to the station and Charlotte is crying in the bathroom when Dan asks if she’s okay. She confesses she’s not okay and that she’s not any closer to being a better person after switching to the prosecution side. She sucks at being good, and Dan comforts her by saying no one expects her to change overnight. He confides that he makes mistakes and advises her not to quit.
Only after they talk and she feels better does Charlotte realize she’s in the mens room.
Lucifer looks around the police station as everyone is going about their business. He sees Charlotte, Marcus, Dan, and Chloe, and you can see he’s just waiting for a chance at the Sinnerman. Lucifer sees his opportunity and enters the interrogation room. It’s just Lucifer and the Sinnerman when the Devil reminds the serial killer he was going to look into his eyes, find out what he desires, and then take it from him. The Sinnerman won’t look at Lucifer and only then does Lucifer realize the Sinnerman has blinded himself. “Now you’ll never know what I wanted,” says the Sinnerman.
More on Lucifer Season 3:
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 1 “They’re Back, Aren’t They” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 2 “The One with the Baby Carrot” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 3 “Mr. and Mrs. Mazikeen Smith” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 4 “What Would Lucifer Do?” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 5 “Welcome Back, Charlotte Richards” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 6 “Vegas With Some Radish” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 7 “Off the Record” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 8 “Chloe Does Lucifer” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 10 “The Sin Bin” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 11 “City of Angels?” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 12 “All About Her” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 13 “Til Death Do Us Part” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 14 “My Brother’s Keeper” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 15 “High School Poppycock” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 16 “Infernal Guinea Pig” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 17 “Let Pinhead Sing!” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 18 “The Last Heartbreak” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 19 “Orange is the New Maze” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 20 “Angel of San Bernardino” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 21 “Anything Pierce Can Do I Can Do Better” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 23 “Quintessential Deckerstar” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Episode 24 “A Devil of My Word” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Bonus Episode “Boo Normal” Recap
– Lucifer Season 3 Bonus Episode “Once Upon a Time” Recap
