First things first, if you’ve not finished binging Lucifer Season 5 or haven’t started watching the show yet, then go ahead and do it. There will be major spoilers ahead so if that’s not what you want, come back once you finish watching the season.
When I finished binging Season 5B, three words came to my mind: Oh my god! Yes, there’s a lot happening for Lucifer in the latest season.
In Season 5 Episode 15, we witness the death of one of the show’s major characters: Dan Espinoza played by Kevin Alejando. While the reasons are plenty including the most obvious one of moving Chloe’s track forward, there is definitely more to it.
So, did Dan Espinoza die for good?
Dan Espinoza (played by Kevin Alejando) dies in Lucifer Season 5 after being shot by the French mercenary Vincent Le Mec on Michael’s orders. He does so to convince Lucifer to come become King of Hell and make Chloe feel guilty so she ends up in Hell too.
Here’s all we think about Dan and his surprising death in Season 5B.
1. How Does Dan Die?
To cut the long story short, the gang was looking for T.J Ross, a thief who was involved with Jonathan Donnelly while they were busy with the investigation of Donnelly’s theft mystery.
During the investigation, Detective Dan Espinoza became hostage at the homes of one of the T.J clients and there you go. What followed didn’t seem happy for Dan at all. Though the detective tried his best to escape and even managed to defeat one of the kidnappers, he was unfortunately shot by the second mercenary, Vincent Le Mec.
Dan dies in Chloe’s arms and his last words to Chloe were “It’s Caleb.” The twist here is that the mercenaries were actually hired by Michael, Lucifer’s twin brother. He was looking for Amenadiel’s key to unlock Azrael’s flaming blade.
Now, Amenadiel had left the key with Caleb Mayfield’s dead body in his casket but T.J had stolen it, since he was a grave robber working for Donnelly. That is where he got his enormous strength from. So that explains why Dan was shown a photo of Caleb when they were looking for Michael’s key.
It also explains Dan’s last words before dying, a really sad moment for fans. Dan’s death is a crucial turn in the show as it has several consequences.
2. Why Did Dan Die in Season 5B?
If you’re familiar with the two last episodes of Season 5, it is clear that Michael was responsible for what happened to Dan. He hired Vincent and his associate friend Sayeed Faisal to find the key to the Flaming Sword.
But before that, Jonathan Donnelley had stolen the key which was so high in demand from Caleb’s grave and given it to T.J the thief to sell it in the black market. All of this happened without Ammendiel’s knowledge.
Dan was a part of this case and was looking for T.J, and this led to his kidnap by the mercenaries.
However, Dan was also an important part of Michael’s master plan. When Michael realizes that the mercenaries have Dan, he asks them to kill him to get at Lucifer.
In the season finale, Michael presents Lucifer with an interesting offer to avoid war: If Michael could become God, then Lucifer could become the ruler of Hell again and could have Chloe with him.
Now, Lucifer or Michael aren’t the ones to decide who gets to go to Heaven or Hell, so Michael played a trick here. By having Dan murdered, he instigated Chloe to feel more guilty and thus also paved the way for her to go to Hell after her death. Smart plan indeed.
So that way, Lucifer would go back to Hell to be with Chloe for eternity since she would also be going to Hell after death.
It is actually sad to see Dan become a mere pawn in Michael’s plan, but it also puts things into perspective. It reveals how evil Michael actually is and that he could go to lengths to get what he wants. But, it is really heart-breaking to watch Chloe tell Trixie that her father is dead. Hope you all had your tissue boxes with you.
But again, realizing Dan’s death was caused because of Michael infuriates Lucifer and he decides that he must become God. As the ruler of Hell tells his therapist, “Dan should not be dead. The system is not only broken, it’s unjust.” Lucifer and Maze even takes their revenge by getting hold of Dan’s murderers.
But it does not bring Dan back after all. What it does is prepare us for an exciting Season 6, because Lucifer is indeed going to war. He is angry and infuriated with Dan’s death as a part of Michael’s plan, Trixie being left without a father and Michael’s betrayal.
But I can’t help but think this whole Michael plan thing to be an improvisation in the storyline. Season 5 was supposed to be Lucifer’s final season and it makes sense that crucial characters would die in this season. However, Lucifer is definitely coming back for Season 6 so the killing-off-major-characters trope doesn’t work here.
In fact, I will not be surprised if Dan returns in Season 6 in some way or the other.
Another important reveal which we figure from Lucifer and Amenadiel’s conversation is that Dan is not in Heaven, but in Hell since he died still being guilty of his earlier deeds. So, can Lucifer’s new position as presumptive God pave way for Dan to head to Heaven from Hell? Will Dan be brought back from Hell? There are a lot of questions there.
3. Will Dan Return In Season 6?
I would guess this is really not all we see of Kevin Alejando as Dan Espinoza. Leaving everything aside, the pictures which confirm Alejando’s presence in the sets of Season 6 itself is proof enough that he will return in Season 6.
Alejando himself posted a video of himself in the sets of Lucifer Season 6 in his Instagram account in November 2020. Here’s the Instagram post:
Maybe for one episode, or for a crucial flashback we did not see before? It is feasible.
Moreover, Dan might return from Hell. Lucifer’s new position makes him really powerful and it is not impossible to assume that he could direct Dan from Hell to Heaven by helping him overcome his guilt. He could also try to bring him back to life.
Lucifer does seem pretty upset about Trixie losing her father and Dan’s death in general. So, he might try what is within his powers (or beyond) to bring Dan back.
Remember Season 5A’s premiere? Lucifer spends the episode helping Lee, a criminal work his way and get through the Hell loop and deal with the guilt he feels for not loving his family enough. When Lucifer goes to Heaven in the episode “A Chance At A Happy Ending”, he meets Lee in the Silver City.
This could be a hint to what is in store for us in Season 6 in terms of Dan’s resurrection or paving his way to Heaven.
In fact, Alejandro has himself confirmed that this is not the end for Dan. He said,
“This is definitely not it for Dan. Joe [Henderson] and Ildy [Modrovich, writers] figured out a way to bring him back in some capacity.”
Kevin Alejandro
But, also take a look at this photo posted by Aimee Garcia from the final day of shooting from the sets of Lucifer does not feature Kevin Alejandro. Here’s the link to the Instagram post:
It is possible that Alejandro was not on set on the said day or simply not present when the photo was taken. But it could also mean that though Dan is coming back for Season 6, we won’t get to see him for long. Maybe his track will finally end for good after some unresolved matters are put into place.
All we can do is wait for Lucifer Season 6 to drop soon so all our questions are answered.
4. About Lucifer
Lucifer is an American urban fantasy drama series created by Tom Kapinos. It is based on the DC Comics character from The Sandman, created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg. Warner Bros. Entertainment and DC Entertainment produce the series.
Originally premiered in 2016, Lucifer was picked up by Netflix when Fox canceled the show after three seasons. Lucifer is set to end with Season 6, which is rumored to air early in 2022.
The series revolves around Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis), the Devil, who abandons Hell for Los Angeles, where he runs his own nightclub named ‘LUX’ and becomes a consultant to the LAPD. All the while working on his character development to be a better Devil/Angel.
The latest season featured the retirement of God, a lot of broken hearts and mending relationships, ambitious Angels, and the Devil taking it upon himself to right the wrongs of his dear ol’ dad, God.
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