Lucifer's Star Falls to Netflix for Its Fourth Season

To the great relief of many fans, the further adventures of Lucifer Morningstar, monarch of Hell who came to Earth to run a nightclub and advise the LAPD, will not end simply because the FOX network cut ties almost exactly one year ago. Season 4 of the supernatural procedural Lucifer, based on the character Neil Gaiman dreamed up in his Sandman books (and before him, Milton, and before him the Book of Revelation), premieres on Netflix today. The ten-episode season drops in full and makes Lucifer the latest series to be rescued by the soft, welcoming arms of a streaming platform.

The unlikely standard bearer of the "network show gets picked up to continue on streaming" was Community, when it was axed by NBC in 2014 only to be revived by the fleeting streaming destination Yahoo Screen. A year later, The Mindy Project was rescued by Hulu a week after Fox cut it loose; it would run for another three seasons.The Killing and Longmire got picked up by Netflix after getting dumped by AMC and A&E, respectively. Designated Survivor is a month away from its third season on Netflix after two on ABC; and at some point this year, Amazon will resume The Expanse after three seasons on Syfy.

The benefits of this new second-chance opportunity are clear, especially for the fans of the shows. But what this also does is create an expectation by fans of any cancelled show that a streaming platform will be there to break the fall. In other words, if you're wondering what can save E!'s cancelled Busy Tonight, try not to get your hopes up too high.

NEW PLATFORM: The ten-episode 4th season of Lucifer drops on Netflix today. The streamer snuck out a reunion special on Monday to help pave the way for the new season. A season which features the Biblical Eve returning to Lucifer's life and perhaps looking for revenge. Streaming on Netflix

SEASON FINALE: The fifth season finale of Empire is worth keeping an eye on for a couple reasons. For one thing, the Lyon family (and Andre's life) hangs in the balance, and there's still the mystery over who's in that coffin. Of course, there's also the lingering shadow of Jussie Smollett hanging over the proceedings. Fox has renewed Empire for season 6 with no plans for Smollett's character Jamal Lyon to return, and Jamal was written out of the last two episodes of this season. Still, will there be an offscreen solution to the Smollett problem? Poochie returning to his home planet, perhaps? 8:00 PM ET on FOX

SEASON FINALE: The end of Modern Family's 10th and penultimate season coincides with a look back at how each character celebrated their birthdays this year. A little "all the Friends turn 30" but okay. Do you, Dunphy/Pritchetts; do you. 9:00 PM ET on ABC

SEASON FINALE: ABC's The Goldbergs takes its very '80s aesthetic into its sixth finale. Sorry, make that its breakdancing-themed season finale. 10:00 PM ET on ABC

ALSO TONIGHT

• Schooled ends its first season as CB works with Barry to help him win back Lainey. 8:30 PM ET on ABC
• Star hits its third-season finale with a wedding and a bang as someone from Alex's past returns to mess up her wedding. 9:00 PM ET on FOX
• The Real Housewives of New York City celebrates Halloween with — what else? — a cabaret performance by the Countess. Look for Bethenny and Dorinda to exchange more than eye-rolls. 9:00 PM ET on Bravo
• The Amazing Race sticks around Vietnam for another week, and a classic Amazing Race villain returns: taxi theft. 9:00 PM ET on CBS

Joe Reid is the senior writer at Primetimer and co-host of the This Had Oscar Buzz podcast. His work has appeared in Decider, NPR, HuffPost, The Atlantic, Slate, Polygon, Vanity Fair, Vulture, The A.V. Club and more.