Michael, formerly known as Mi-ka-el, is an Archangel and the twin brother of Lucifer Morningstar, who served as the primary antagonist of Season 5. After growing envious of Lucifer's renowned reputation and status as the Lightbringer, Michael secretly instigated his twin into carrying out nefarious acts, which includes the rebellion against God that resulted in his banishment to Hell. Thousands of years later, unbeknownst to Lucifer or any of his siblings, Michael had been manipulating their Father with the intention of having him retire so that he could finally claim the position of God and thereby prove to himself that he's better than Lucifer.
Upon learning that Lucifer voluntarily chose to return to Hell for all eternity, Michael grew jealous of the praise he'd gotten from their siblings and ventured to Earth with the intention of ruining his brother's reputation and proving he hasn't changed. When Lucifer eventually returned, Michael was given a scar on his face so that he would never be able to impersonate his twin brother again. In retaliation, Michael proceeded to manipulate everyone in Lucifer's life, resulting in a temporary alliance with Mazikeen, exposing Lucifer's true identity to Dan Espinoza, and revealing Charlie's mortal status to Amenadiel by intentionally giving him an illness. In midst of a heated battle with his siblings, God appeared to halt the fighting. After a failed attempt to have his sons reconcile and reunite the family, God ordered Michael to return to Heaven, prohibiting him from coming back to Earth.
Although Michael's machinations of ousting their Father were discovered by Amenadiel, God still opted to retire after reconciling with Goddess, ultimately deciding to spend the rest of eternity in her new universe. With the throne of God effectively vacant, Michael recovered the Flaming Sword and rallied the majority of angels against Lucifer, who also managed to form his own army made up of Demons, ultimately culminating into a full scale war after Michael manages to kill Chloe Decker amidst a heated battle with his twin brother. Michael is eventually defeated by Chloe after she is resurrected by Lucifer and is in possession of Amenadiel's necklace, granting her superhuman strength. Despite accepting his expected fate of eradication at the hands of Lucifer, Michael is given a second chance at redemption by his twin who instead uses the Flaming Sword to cut off his wings, successfully forcing him to bend the knee and recognize Lucifer as the new Sovereign of Heaven.
Michael was one of the many angels born to God and Goddess long predating the Big Bang, billions of years ago, but is special as he is an Archangel.[1] He was also the elder twin of Lucifer Morningstar. Michael's enmity for his twin traces back to their early years in Heaven as he always felt overshadowed by Lucifer due to his renowned reputation and status as the Lightbringer. This ultimately causes Michael to unknowingly self-actualize the "chip on his shoulder" with Lucifer, causing his right shoulder to visibly appear slanted downwards and his right wing into looking as if it were injured.[2]
Manipulating His Twin
In Heaven, Michael often enjoyed pestering Amenadiel by making the latter think that he was Lucifer, but Amenadiel would often discover the facade and administer one of his "atomic wedgies"; Michael tended to give himself away with his mojo. Having always despised Lucifer for being the preferred twin, Michael supposedly manipulated him into having a sexcapade in the garden with Adam and Eve and rebelling against God to make everyone hate him. In 2011, Michael also whispered the idea to Lucifer of abandoning his duties as Ruler of Hell and to take a vacation on Earth, most likely to reignite their family's hatred for him.[3]
God's Right-Hand
Sometime after Amenadiel lost his divinity and became stranded on Earth, Michael manipulated his way into becoming God's second-in-command. And while God didn't speak directly to him, he ensured that he was the only one in Heaven to speak to him.[3] Michael then began setting into motion a plan to usurp his father as God, starting with making him believe that he was losing control of his powers for the last few months.[4]
Michael's plan to turn their family against Lucifer took a turn. Lucifer was able to reconcile as well as build his relationship with Amenadiel while assisting Goddess with moving on to her own universe. Despite killing Uriel, Lucifer was actually praised when he returned to Hell to keep the demons in check when William Kinley almost caused anarchy in Hell. In 2020, Michael grew increasingly jealous of the favor that his brother was receiving by those that once disliked him, most notably by Remiel and Raphael; he ultimately decided to venture to Earth and impersonate Lucifer with the intention of ruining his reputation and proving he hasn't changed.[5]
Impersonation of Lucifer
Doing the Research
Michael started doing research on his twin and learned a great many things; He knew about his relationships with the Los Angeles Police Department. Michael found out Chloe Decker was his first love and how she was a gift from God with the intention to cross paths with Lucifer. He also learned about his therapy sessions with Linda Martin. He did a great deal of research on Mazikeen, learning she was furious with Lucifer for not taking her with him to Hell[5] and Lucifer's role in hiding her mother Lilith after striping her of her immortality.[3] After copying Lucifer's style, Michael put his plans into motion.[6]
Saving Detective Decker
Michael breaks a criminal's gun.
His first stop being Chloe, Michael found her in the middle of a shootout in Megan Garner's house. Whistling, Michael entered the house, using Lucifer's accent to greet the "bad guys". After the confusion from the criminals of who Michael was settled, he then acted quickly and saved Chloe from a gunman by pushing him into a nearby wall. After Chloe saved him by shooting the second attacker in the head, Michael finished off the last criminal by throwing him over to Chloe after breaking his gun in half.
Michael smiles to himself.
After Chloe knocked the last criminal out, Michael took advantage of his knowledge of Lucifer's sarcasm and joked about Lee Garner's severed hand. Chloe then kissed him, to which he returned. Chloe let go, noticing something was off with "Lucifer". Michael claimed that since he's been in Hell for thousands of years compared to her two months, he was different, but assured her that she was the only thing that kept him going. The two then hugged, but unknown to Chloe, Michael smiled deviously to himself.[6]
Integrating Himself into the LAPD
After departing with Chloe, Michael spent the rest of the night at Lux. The morning he was to spend his first day as a civilian consultant, he stood in front of the mirror in the penthouse, naked and practiced his Lucifer impression. Adjusting his shoulder, he pretended to greet Chloe and once he believed he was ready to interact with everyone, he got dressed in Lucifer's cloths and headed for the Red 2 Mars Project where their latest case was.
Arriving at the crime scene, Michael greeted Chloe, only to get slapped by Ella Lopez, who believed Lucifer was in Florida the last two months. Going along with the lie, Michael made Ella believe he went to Florida to take over his family's business because his mother was ill, but came back because he missed Ella. Believing the lie, Ella hugged Michael and went back to work. Michael noticed Chloe staring at him, so the two went over to a corner to talk.
Michael calling himself Lucifer 2.0.
Chloe questioned his lie since Lucifer never lies, so Michael reminded her that since he was in Hell for so long he changed, stating that a white lie would be beneficial. Dan Espinoza then showed up, who wasn't happy to see "Lucifer". To prove his point, Michael lied to Dan that it was great to see him again and complimented his Amethyst bracelet, which made Dan happy. After he left, Michael called himself Lucifer 2.0 to Chloe.
Once they returned to the precinct, the two began questioning the suspects over Judy Mason's death, but Michael was doing the paperwork, while Chloe tried acting more like Lucifer. Chloe tried to get Michael to do Lucifer's mojo, but knowing he couldn't, he refused. When they questioned Sharon Osborne, she thanked "Lucifer" for what he did for her husband, and Michael just went along with it. After questioning all the suspects, they realized none of them killed Judy and left the interrogation room.
Once in the bullpin, Chloe continued to question Michael's strange behavior and gave him Dan's pudding to eat, knowing that it would annoy Dan if he ate some, but Michael wasn't sure if he wanted to or not. Dan then arrived, who questioned why he had his pudding. Michael gave it back to him, but the latter was suspicious of he spit in it to prank him and walked away.
Ella then arrived to reveal that the hair she found in the bloody boot print at the crime scene was sheep hair, which meant someone tracked it from outside the Mars Project dome. Faking excitement, Michael congratulated Ella for figuring this detail out and believed it was time to speak with the people running the Mars program and headed for the elevators.
After arriving at control room, Michael asked Sam Chavez and Mandy if people were allowed to drop off supplies and that's how the killer got in. Sam denied it, as it was to simulate what a real trip to Mars was supposed to be like. Michael then listened to Chloe ask her questions, including asking Sam if he was able to feel like himself again after he returned from the first Mars project, to which he wasn't sure.
Getting back on topic, Michael questioned if Judy was arguing with someone back home on the sat phone, but Mandy didn't believe so because they were used mainly for project communications. With that, Michael asked if anyone here at issues with Judy, which led Sam to think of Donovan Glover, who was cut from the project by Anders Brody when Judy was promoted project commander.
Having a new lead, the duo left, but on their way out, Michael told Chloe he knew some of her questions were about his recent behavior, but assured her that his feelings for haven't changed and brushed some of her hair to ease her mind. Michael then asked for more time to get back to normal, to which Chloe agreed to. Once she walked off, Michael dropped his demeanor and stared dangerously at her.[5]
Recruiting Mazikeen
While waiting for Chloe to get a lead on Donovan's wherabouts, Michael returned to Lux. Entering the penthouse, Michael walked over to Lucifer's bar and frustratingly took his jacket off and poured himself a glass of clear whisky. He then walked over to Lucifer's destroyed piano and stepped on some of the keys, which created a distorted chiming that Michael smirked at.
As he turned around, he was then tackled by Maze, thinking he was Lucifer. She pinned him to the ground, wrapping her legs around his throat and demanded to know why he went back to Hell without her. Breaking his impression, Michael spoke in his normal dialogue and revealed he wasn't Lucifer. Maze released him and he scrambled away from her and leaned against Lucifer's coach. Knowing Lucifer had a twin, Michael introduced himself to the Demon.
Michael reveals his wings.
Getting up, Michael poured himself a drink, but Maze was still hesitant to believe this wasn't Lucifer pretending to be Michael just so Maze wouldn't hurt him. Even with Michael reminding her that Lucifer doesn't lie, Maze raises her Demon daggers. Unimpressed, Michael walked over and unveiled his wings to prove he was who he said he was. Maze finally believed him and he retracted his wings.
Maze then sits on the coach and questions what he's doing on Earth in the first place. Michael tells her that while he was doing his job in the Silver City he heard from Gabriel that his twin returned to Hell voluntarily, but didn't believe it. However, he then started hearing all their siblings praise Lucifer's growth and the sacrifice he made and soon all of the Silver City was talking about Lucifer.
Maze figured Michael was jealous of Lucifer's newfound popularity among his siblings, though, he denied it and instead said he was mad that his brother got all this praise for finally doing what he was supposed to do after five years. He then tells Maze that he intends to drive Lucifer back to Earth by playing and breaking with his "toys" and then reveal his true colors as the eternally selfish twin.
He then sat down on one of Lucifer's chairs opposite to Maze and temporarily used his Lucifer impression to prove his point. Maze, however, didn't believe he could fool the likes of Chloe into believing he's Lucifer. Michael admitted that Chloe was growing suspicious of him, but wasn't worried, as all he had to do was up his Lucifer impression until it was time to break her heart.
Maze questioned if he even knew anything about being Lucifer Humanity in general, but he assured her that he payed attention. She asked why she would let Michael get away with his plans, but he got up and grouched before Maze and revealed he knew she was mad at Lucifer for going back to Hell without her and convinced Maze to help get him back to Earth so she could beat up the real Lucifer.
Now with Maze on his side, Michael went down to Lux where he ran into Amenadiel. He was initially happy to see Lucifer but then questioned why he wasn't in Hell watching the Demons. Knowing Amenadiel was afraid that the Demons would return to steal Charlie again, Michael assured him that he wouldn't have returned if he didn't believe that it was safe to. He then grinned and walked away.[5]
Investigating Donovan Glover
Michael met up with Chloe at Donovan's most recent address that same night. They waited in Chloe's car where Michael made a crack of Donovan looking like Waldo, to make Chloe less suspicious of him, which succeeds as she notes that he's acting more like Lucifer. Michael spots Donovan crossing the street. He sticks his head out the car window and calls for him. When Donovan drove off in his car, the two pursued.
Michael flying Chloe away from danger.
Getting cut off, Michael suggests going west to cut him off. They catch up with Donovan on a bridge and after a long chase, they corner him in a dead end ally. With his car facing them, Michael and Chloe got out and demanded he get out of his. When Donovan instead tries to run them over, even when Chloe shoots him in the shoulder, Michael grabs Chloe and leaps; his wings carrying them over Donovan's car. Once landing, Michael retracts his wings before Chloe could see them and comments on how fun that was.
They took Donovan to interrogation, where he revealed he thought they were repo men. When Michael brings up getting fired by Brody and Chloe brings up Judy's murder, Donovan gave them his alibi of being in Texas all week and revealed that the reason Judy was promoted in the first place was because she and Brody were having an affair. This led Michael and Chloe to believe that Brody killed Judy to keep his wife from finding out. Before leaving, Michael told Donovan that he would never be Ryan Gosling.
While waiting for Chloe to get the information on Anders Brody's whereabouts, Michael lounged against a wall in the bullpin when Dan walked up to him. He questioned what the imposter was doing, to which Michael confusingly said he was doing nothing. This, however, made Dan even more suspicious as the real Lucifer never did nothing.
Before Michael could try and defend himself, Chloe arrived to reveal that Brody was in a suborbital shuttle test until tomorrow morning. When Chloe gives the hint that that the two have the rest of the evening free to spend time together, Michael glances at the grinning Dan before claiming he would go home and get dinner by himself. He then leaves the confused Chloe and Dan to their thoughts.[5]
Faking an Affair
Michael having an "affair" with Maze.
Wanting to break the heart of Lucifer's only love, Michael pretended to have an affair with Maze. He was in the middle of making out with Maze on Lucifer's bed when Chloe arrived with her and Lucifer's favorite: burger and fries. Once he noticed her, he pretended to be horrified that she witnessed this and chased after her when she headed for the elevator.
Michael was able to get in before the door closed and tried to explain himself, but Chloe didn't want to listen. He continued to remind her that he was in Hell for so long that it caused him get lost in who he used to be and once he saw Maze, all the feelings of Hell came rushing back. He then assured her that it meant nothing and that she was the only thing that mattered to him.
Chloe, however, had a hard time believing him since he's started lying now, but Michael tried to ease her mind in telling her that she was the only person he would never lie to. Once the elevator lands on the ground floor, Chloe tells Michael she needs time to think and leaves Lux. At first, Michael tries calling out to her to stop, only to smile to himself, knowing he successfully broke Chloe's heart.[5]
Questioning Anders Brody
The next day, Michael met up with Chloe to question Anders Brody at his press conference. he continues to put on the façade of trying to explain last night, but Chloe didn't want to talk about. Once they got through the crowd of reporters, Brody confused Michael for Lucifer and hugged him for helping find forgiveness; Michael goes along with it until Chloe reveals her self as LAPD.
Michael using his fear mojo.
Brody took them into his hanger where they began questioning him about his affair. When Brody threatened to call his lawyer, Chloe urges "Lucifer" to use his mojo. Michael called Brody back, but instead of using Lucifer's mojo, he used his own and tapped into Brody's fear: the public finding out that the Mars project was a publicity stunt to compete with Bazos and Musk.
Brody explained that Judy found out it was all a stunt and called him, upset. This, however, further proved him guilty of killing her, but he said that the two made up. He gave them his alibi of puking all night, but when Michael asked if anyone could corroborate his story, he denied any. He then said he wouldn't say anything else without his lawyer and before he left, he accused "Lucifer" of being a bad friend, much to Michael's confusion.
After Chloe called Dan and told him the situation, Michael asked if he worried her even more when he asked Brody what he feared. However, much to his surprise, Chloe instead revealed that it helped her understand him. She said that she's finally come to realize that dishonesty and fear followed him and that she's accepted his change. She then headed back to the precinct, leaving Michael uncertain of his plans.[5]
Changing his Plans
To be added
Identity Exposed
Last Night as Lucifer
Michael pretended to have an affair with Maze to manipulate Chloe and get her to sleep with him. In the penthouse, Maze confronts him to stop him from completing his plan. Michael chokes Maze out and hides her as he plans to spend the night with Chloe. As Chloe arrives she mentions she realizes he is not Lucifer and learns his true identity. differences are also noticed by Amenadiel, leading to his eventual identity reveal as Michael, the archangel.
Brother vs Brother
Michael and Lucifer confront each other.
Upon finding this out, Amenadiel returns to Hell to inform Lucifer that Michael is on Earth attempting to take his life. Lucifer returns to Earth to find Michael in Lux, where they have a battle for who is the better brother; enraged by Michael's attempt to take his life and impersonate him, Lucifer uses a demonic knife and cuts a line through Michael's face starting at the top of his left eyebrow and ending at his right nostril, as a permanent symbol to prove he is not Lucifer.
Afterwards, Michael meets Mazikeen at Chloe's home and offers to help her find out about a secret that Lucifer kept hidden from her; which was revealed to be about her mother Lilith.
Moving the Plan Forward
Manipulating Dan Espinoza
Michael disappears following this, presumably to formulate a plan which involves ruining Lucifer's life. When Dan is heading back to his car after a night at Linda Martin's, he receives a phone call from Michael acting as Lucifer, telling him he forgot something at Linda's. Upon returning and looking through the window, Dan sees Lucifer's devil face and runs off.
Placing Doubt
Michael convincing Mazikeen to join him against Lucifer.
Later, Michael kidnaps Chloe and brings her to an abandoned zoo, locking her in a cage on the side of a mountain, and referencing a 'bigger plan' all along the way. Before this plan can be set into action, Lucifer, Maze, and Dan show up and free Chloe from her cage, and while Lucifer and Dan go to find Michael, Maze stays back and waits for him at the zoo. Upon Michael's arrival, Maze initially puts one of her knives to his throat, but they eventually work out a deal in which Mazikeen would help Michael achieve his ultimate plan, and he would, in turn, give Maze a soul so she could eventually die. This marks Maze's turn from Lucifer's side to Michael's.
Family Squabble
At the hospital where Charlie was just diagnosed with a cold, time appears to suddenly stop; this is revealed to be Amenadiel, doing a final test to see if Charlie is an immortal or mortal. Because celestials do not freeze during the time-stop, and mortals do, and Charlie froze, it is determined that Charlie is a mortal and not a celestial as Amenadiel thought who is then finding himself unable to continue time again. Michael then arrives to taunt them, a brawl occurs between Maze and Lucifer, and Amenadiel and Michael. Lucifer knocks Maze down twice before she finally stays down from his powerful strike, as the same with Michael but instead of staying down, he engages once more and all three of them reveal their wings, waiting to release their true power. Suddenly, God appears, halting the battle, saying "Children. You know I hate it when you fight".
Michael tauntingly offers to embrace Lucifer in front of God.
After God arrives to stop the fighting, Michael immediately portrays himself as the victim and tries to vilify his brothers by showing the scar that he suffered from Lucifer while on Earth. Although Lucifer offers his own rebuttals, Amenadiel decides to take responsibility due to his status as the eldest sibling and states that he shouldn't have lost control of his powers by stopping time. God ultimately doesn't care who is at fault and states that he wants his sons to get along regardless of what's happened because they're all family. Michael, trying to take advantage of the situation and stay on his Father's good side, attempts to embrace Amenadiel and Lucifer in front of God. Lucifer immediately disagrees due to Michael's actions on Earth and angrily leaves the police station.
Family Dinner
Michael expressing his hate to Lucifer.
In an attempt to reunite the family, God decides to make dinner at Linda's house and has Michael, Lucifer, and Amenadiel join him. He sends Michael to Florence in order to get chocolate as part of dinner preparations. The family dinner ultimately ends in chaos after Lucifer continuously expresses his disdain for God for sending him to Hell. Michael is ultimately instigated into expressing his hate for Lucifer and states that he's spent his entire life in the worst kind of hell that there is, which he reveals to be sharing a face with his twin brother, the lightbringer. Before things escalate, God shouts "Children!" and invokes thunder, resulting in a storm. Lucifer then leaves after stating that God is incapable of love, leaving Michael, Amenadiel, and Linda silent.
Banished from Earth
The following day, Michael visits God at Linda's house and asks if he's ready to return to Heaven with him. God refuses and states that he will stay on Earth longer. When Michael tries to stay with God on Earth, he is refused and told that he's "no longer welcome on Earth", effectively banishing him. When Michael questions why he is being punished, God replies that he's not, and Michael ultimately walks away.
Battle for Supremacy
Power Grab
It is revealed that Michael had secretly been manipulating God into making him think that he was losing control of his powers and needed to retire. Although Amenadiel eventually deduced the truth, God chose to retire with Goddess to her new universe, leaving it up to the angels to decide whether Michael or Lucifer would become the new deity.
Gathering support in the Silver City, Michael sent Gabriel to steal Azrael's Blade and the Medallion of Life from Goddess' universe in order to reunite the Flaming Sword for his own purposes. Michael then sought out the third part of the blade, the key made out of Amenadiel's necklace, while orchestrating the death of Dan Espinoza so that Chloe's guilt over his death would condemn her to Hell.[7]
Offering an Olive Branch
Michael then offered to let Lucifer be the Ruler of Hell again with Chloe's as his queen if Lucifer supported him, but Lucifer refused.[7]
Ala a Ala
Michael fighting Lucifer with the Flaming Sword.
Dressed in armor, Michael gathered the angels in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum where Lucifer, Amenadiel, Chloe, Maze and several demons attempted to stop him. Michael and Lucifer engaged in battle, Lucifer armed with a staff made out of the Tree of Life and Michael with the Flaming Sword. Although the staff was broken, Lucifer and Chloe managed to disarm him of the Flaming Sword and break it apart.
However, Michael mortally wounded Chloe with the broken staff and then watched as a heartbroken Lucifer held Chloe as she died. Appearing somewhat remorseful, Michael stated that she should never have been there and that at least it seemed like she made it to Heaven as Chloe had let go of her guilt and regrets in her last moments. Lucifer decided to get Chloe back despite Michael warning his brother that Lucifer's banishment meant that he would die if he attempted to return to Heaven, but Lucifer didn't care as long as he could save Chloe. After Lucifer left, his forces engaged Michael's in battle.[7]
Defeat
Michael watched the battle, only to have Chloe resurrect. Although shocked that Lucifer had succeeded in bringing Chloe back, Michael relished in a second chance to kill her with Azrael's Blade. However, Chloe still had a hold of the key which granted her superhuman strength great enough to throw Michael around with just one hand and beat him into submission. Before Chloe could kill Michael with Azrael's Blade with Michael ordering her to do it, Lucifer suddenly returned and stopped her; Lucifer's return stopping the battle around them.
Michael is given a second chance.
Lucifer ordered his shocked brother to kneel and reunited the Flaming Sword, apparently to execute Michael for his crimes as Michael knelt and extended his wings. As Michael closed his eyes, preparing for the death blow, Lucifer instead used the Flaming Sword to slice off Michael's wings. Lucifer declared that there would be no more killing and that during his time on Earth, he'd learned that everyone deserved a second chance, even Michael.
Realizing that Lucifer has replaced their father as the new ruler of the universe, Amenadiel led all of the Angels, Maze, and Eve in bowing before him. After a moment, Michael limped over and joined the others in bowing before his twin. While Amenadiel, Maze, and Eve all smiled at Lucifer's accomplishment, Michael stared at Lucifer with fear in his eyes.[7]
Personality
Michael (right) taunting Amenadiel about Charlie.
“
You see, you pride yourself on exploiting everyone's fears, but we've always known yours. You're terrified that Lucifer is better than you. That he'll always be better than you.
Michael's ambitions largely involve causing havoc in Lucifer Morningstar's life as well as those around him. It can be assumed that his reputation as a master manipulator and deceiver is largely well known in Heaven, due to Amenadiel's open disdain for him, most notable when Linda Martin suggests naming their baby 'Michael'. Michael is shown to have an extremely narcissistic and egotistical personality, which serves as a disguise to his childish insecurities about his perception of Lucifer being the better twin. Michael has shown to be jealous of Lucifer and has constantly tried to prove that he is better by causing harm to his brother. He is visibly distraught when confronted by Amenadiel at Lux about what his biggest fear is and always was, Lucifer being better than him. When Lucifer and Michael confront each other at Linda's house, Michael describes sharing a face with Lucifer as the "greatest hell that there is", and believes that he's been overshadowed by his brother since they were born. Michael is skilled at picking at a person's weak spot such as taunting Lucifer by addressing him by his real name and deliberately having Chloe question the sincerity of her relationship with Lucifer. Not only that, but he has proven to be unreliable, constantly working at an angle and sowing seeds of doubt in the minds of others. Using a web of lies mixed up with truths makes it very hard to realize when he is honest. He is highly skilled in revealing fears in other people and using that to manipulate their actions to his gain.
Michael displays a superiority complex similar to that of Amenadiel's as he seemingly believes himself to be be better than his fellow Angels, which is shown when he brags to his eldest brother about being the closest to their father, and that he can do whatever he pleases. Michael's open disdain for humanity also reflects the condescending nature that many Angels possess once setting foot on Earth, which is evident by Amenadiel's behavior throughout his quest to send Lucifer back to Hell as well as Remiel's when she tried to take Amenadiel's son, Charlie to Heaven. Michael is displayed to be extremely manipulative, self-seeking, and ruthlessly ambitious in pursuit of achieving his goals. According to Lucifer, Michael has always been cowardly in his tactics of manipulation, and would always receive retribution from those that he deceived in Heaven, mostly from Amenadiel. As time progressed, it is clear that Michael's sadistic nature has only grown since then, as he finds pleasure in using his nephew Charlie as a pawn to psychologically torment Amenadiel. In contrast to Lucifer's "all bark and no bite" belief about him, Michael has proven to go at even greater lengths in acting on his threats as he manages to successfully damage Lucifer's relationship with Chloe Decker, convince Dan Espinoza to shoot Lucifer, and bring Mazikeen to his side. He also was willing to break the rule in Heaven about killing Humans, as Michael threw one of Maze’s Demon Daggers at an officer during the fight in the precinct and would have killed him if Lucifer hadn’t intercepted it. Michael would later kill TJ Ross who had the last piece of the Flaming Sword without hesitation, as well as mortally wounding Chloe during his war with Lucifer, showing how little he cares for Humans and even the rule that Angels cannot kill Humans. Additionally, his ability to kill Remiel for siding with Lucifer by posing as a spy indicates that he's willing to do whatever it takes to pursue his ambitions, and that includes killing his siblings. His sadism carries on to his fighting style as well, as every time he gets knocked down or punched by Lucifer or Amenadiel, he can be seen grinning and laughing, seemingly thrilled by the pain inflicted upon him.
Michael's relationship with God is very similar to that of Amenadiel's in the sense that he deeply cares about getting his approval and affection. Due to his ability to manipulate others without them knowing it, he has proven to be better at winning their father's affection which is clearly evident by the fact that he was the only Angel to have a direct line to him when Amenadiel leaves Heaven. When God arrives on Earth to stop the fighting between his sons from escalating any further, Michael is the first to visibly embrace his father's vision of family values, and tries to hug his siblings despite hating Lucifer. When God effectively banishes Michael from Earth, presumably to work on his relationship with Lucifer without any potential interference, Michael is visibly distraught and immediately questions why he's being punished. Ironically, Michael shares the same feelings of contempt for God that his twin Lucifer does, as he also believes their father to be rather insincere and unclear most of the time. This is clearly evident when he questions Mazikeen as to what "annoyingly arbitrary and inscrutable answer" God gave her when she asked for a soul. This effectively explains why Michael was readily comfortable in manipulating God into making him believe that he was losing control of his powers. This also shows just how hypocritical Michael can be, as while he scorned Lucifer for trying to take over as the new God in his failed rebellion, he was doing the exact same thing with his manipulations to their father. He is able to mask his real emotions for his family in a much more calculative manner than Lucifer is able to, which is most likely due to the fact that Lucifer never lies. Moreover, it can be assumed that he does not care for Goddess since he resides in Heaven and was mentioned by Amenadiel to be the closest to their father out of all their siblings currently.
Despite his cruel personality, Michael does not appear to be entirely remorseless. When he mortally wounded Chloe, Michael stopped fighting upon seeing the impact that it had upon Lucifer and watched possibly with some sympathy as Chloe died in his arms. Rather than taking the opportunity to taunt his brother, Michael attempted to justify himself by pointing out that he had tried to get Lucifer to make Chloe leave and even attempted to comfort Lucifer a bit with the revelation that Chloe had most likely made it into Heaven after all. However, upon her resurrection, Michael relished in the chance to kill her a second time, this time using Azrael's Blade which would make her death permanent as the blade would eradicate Chloe from existence. While he utterly hates Lucifer, he does seem to try to avoid killing him, constantly persuading Lucifer to go back to Hell or to stay out of his way in order to avoid bloodshed. It is only when Lucifer confronted Michael that he chose to kill him. Even then, he tried to convince Lucifer not to risk going to Heaven to save Chloe, outright stating he'd die if he tried to go there. After he was defeated, Michael bowed to Lucifer after it became clear that Lucifer was the new God.
Powers
Archangel Physiology: As an archangel, Michael is extremely powerful and has their physiology, including superhuman strength, speed, stamina, durability, endurance, agility, reflexes, intelligence, and senses, immortality, invulnerability, indestructibility, eternal youth, dimensional travel, and a regenerative healing factor... He also has their weaknesses. Michael is powerful enough among angels that even Amenadiel recognizes his strength.
Michael fighting Lucifer and Amenadiel.
Superhuman Strength: Michael is incredibly strong, capable of exerting vast amounts of superhuman physical force, and has displayed immense levels of superhuman strength. He was able to completely break a gun in half, smashing a man's head through a wall, and quickly and easily choking out Mazikeen. He has shown himself to be strong enough to hold his own against both Amenadiel and Lucifer for a short time. He and his twin brother Lucifer are shown to be roughly equal in strength at full power, though Lucifer was able to get the upper hand in their fight at Lux, indicating that he's a better fighter than Michael.
Superhuman Speed: Like all angels, Michael is extraordinarily fast, he is much faster than humans, demons, animals, and other beings, he can appear and disappear with a blink of an eye.
Invulnerability: Michael, like all angels, is virtually indestructible, has a highly durable body, and he cannot be harmed by conventional means. Only things that could kill him are Demon Daggers forged in Hell and the Flaming Sword. During his fight with his brothers Amenadiel and Lucifer, he was able to withstand and quickly recover from most of their very powerful attacks, kicks, and punches. Michael, like all angels is significantly far more durable than demons, animals, humans, and most beings and creatures in the universe.
Superhuman Reflexes: Michael, like all angels, has incredible superhuman reflexes, capable of dodging, and countering incoming attacks at immense speeds.
Angel Wings (formerly): Michael, like all angels has divine wings. Like other angels, he can hide his wings and take them out at will. However in the final battle with his brother his wings got cut off.
Flight (formerly): Like all Angels, Michael's wings enable him to fly. He can use his wings to fly to other dimensions such as Heaven, Hell, and Earth in a mere second such as when he appears to Dan in the cemetery in a holy bright light. Now that his wings have been severed Michael can no longer fly or travel freely between dimensions, effectively trapping him on Earth.
Immortality: Michael, like all angels, is immortal. He's immune to aging and illnesses. Like his angel siblings, he's billions of years old.
Photokinesis: Michael was shown to create heavenly light behind him, when he revealed himself to Dan in “Our Mojo”
Regenerative Healing Factor: As witnessed numerous times all along with the show, Michael heals much faster than humans, animals, and demons. He can heal any injuries within minutes. He was able to rapidly heal from the wound Lucifer severely inflicted on his face from a demon dagger forged in hell although it has not disappeared, and caused a scar.
Fear Exhibition: Michael can make people admit their deepest fears, similar to Lucifer's desire mojo. He also appears to be able to cause their fears to manifest. He seems to sense certain fears in an individual, and can quickly expose their fears, and can hypnotize them to admit any or all of their fears. There are moments where he didn't ask what they truly fear but be able to bring fear out of them.
Biokinesis : Lucifer accused Michael to be the one responsible for simulating Charlie's common cold symptoms simply to psychologically torture Amenadiel.
Abilities
Michael deflecting Lucifer's punch.
Master Hand-To-Hand Combatant: In contrast to what Lucifer and Amenadiel originally believed, Michael has become an extremely skilled combatant. He was able to swiftly subdue Maze and Chloe within a matter of seconds. During his fight against Lucifer and Amenadiel, he proved capable of holding his own against them reasonably well. He has shown to be very relentless in a fight, constantly getting up despite being knocked down by Lucifer and Amenadiel multiple times. Before God arrived to halt the fighting, Michael seemed confident enough to fight both Lucifer and Amenadiel with their wings unleashed, showing that he may have believed that he could've defeated them on his own at full power.
Psychological Warfare Mastery: Michael is an almost unparalleled manipulator who specializes in using a combination of deception, hard truths as well as his opponents' fear to turn them against each other. This is evident by Mazikeen's shift to his side, Lucifer torturing himself for not being able to find Chloe, Dan's nervous breakdown as well as Chloe's existential crisis after revealing why she was created. His ability to prey on the fears of his enemies indirectly gives him the power to weaken other angels due to their tendency to self-actualize, making him an extremely dangerous foe.
Skilled Detective: While impersonating Lucifer, Michael was able to use his power of fear exhibition to deduce information from suspects in the murder case. Although not as experienced as Lucifer or Chloe, he was able to fulfill his role as a traditional detective without causing major suspicion, despite lacking his brother's unpredictable and impulsive attitude.
Skilled Impersonator of Lucifer Morningstar: Michael has been able to impersonate his twin brother Lucifer at a significantly exceptional degree. He was able to make his attire look the same as well as mimic his accent and mannerisms without causing major suspicion, even managing to fool Maze and Amenadiel with the facade. Despite copying his attire and accent, Michael isn't able to impersonate some of Lucifer's core personality traits such as his impulsive tendencies, flirty nature, and natural wit, which ultimately makes the facade less reliable when interacting with Chloe.
Flaming Sword Wielder: Michael recovers Azrael's blade, the primary component of the Flaming Sword, with the help of Gabriel. He uses the blade to eradicate Remiel, a fiercely powerful warrior, from existence. After he assembles the completed Flaming Sword, he is instantly able to wield the blade with experience as he manages to wound Lucifer very early in their fight, who struggled to hold his own until getting ahold of Zadkiel's staff. The Flaming Sword allowed Michael to maintain the upper hand for most of his final fight with Lucifer. After Chloe manages to catch Michael by surprise and steal Amenadiel's necklace, Michael loses the Flaming Sword.
Weaknesses
As an angel, Michael has their weaknesses including the Flaming Sword, demonic weapons, and other supernatural beings.
Michael was brutally scarred by Lucifer with a demon blade
Other Supernatural Beings: Supernatural beings can harm one another. Both Lucifer and Amenadiel were easily able to physically harm Michael, with Lucifer restraining Michael without Michael being able to get out of his grip at the end of their fight while Amenadiel had the upper hand for the majority of their altercation and easily knocked him around with his blows. Even Mazikeen was able to at least temporarily restrain Michael, though she caught him off-guard and it was unclear how long she could have held him had she not released him first.
Self-Actualization: It is mentioned throughout the series that all angels are able to self-actualize, which results in their judgements manifesting as psychosomatic changes, as shown with Amenadiel losing his wings and Lucifer regaining his angel wings despite cutting them off. It is revealed that Michael self-actualized the "chip on his shoulder" with Lucifer, which effectively serves as the reason why he looks like he has a shoulder injury.
Flaming Sword: Michael can be eradicated by Azrael's Blade and the completed Flaming Sword. In addition, the key granted Chloe Decker superhuman strength that enabled her to effortlessly overpower Michael.
Physical Appearance
Michael's Scar
Michael displaying himself with an Angelic Robe.
Michael's appearance is identical to Lucifer's. He was able to trick several characters into thinking that he is Lucifer. Once exposed as a Lucifer imposter, Michael adopted a more causal look. While still mimicking Lucifer's fashion, Michael wears less classy fabrics, opting for cheaper and comfortable ones. The most notable difference is he replaces the dress shirt with a turtleneck. Michael also briefly displays himself with Angelic Robes when revealing himself to Dan. After he is outed after posing as Lucifer, Michael's hair is slightly more unkempt than his brother's, and he now sports a large scar over his face which starts above his left eyebrow, crosses his nose, and ends at his right cheek. He seems to possess a crooked right shoulder with it being noticeably higher than his left due to his self-actualisation of who he is compare to Lucifer. His angel wings are black in contrast to Lucifer's white and his right wing is slightly damaged, missing several feathers. This is shown even with his wings retracted, as his right shoulder is noticeably higher than his left.
Amenadiel is known to dislike Michael to the point his name disturbs him. Linda Martin almost named Charlie, "Michael" in season 4 but Amenadiel decided against it because he knew Lucifer's disgust and anger at that name.
During Michael's introduction, he is seen whistling the TV series's theme song.
When visiting Lucifer Morningstar at Hell, Amenadiel mentions Michael being the closest to their Father currently as well as the only sibling that has a direct line to him. However in previous seasons, it was widely known and stated by Amenadiel himself that he was indeed God's favorite son, as well as main messenger. This may indicate that Michael has taken Amenadiel's spot in Heaven as God's favorite since Amenadiel no longer resides there, while also suggesting that he was prevented from moving up the ranks by Amenadiel when the latter would reside there.
Unlike Lucifer, Michael is shown to be quite miserly and tight when it comes to money.
After Michael is exposed, he starts wearing loose-fitting tweed jackets and turtlenecks, which is similar to one of Lucifer's looks in the comics.
The scar Lucifer gives Michael with one of Mazikeen's Demon daggers is a reference to the comics where Maze scars Lucifer's face with a blade in a similar way.
After seeing Michael's armor in A Chance at a Happy Ending, Lucifer jokingly asks if winter was coming in a reference to Game of Thrones.
In the comics Michael's a supporting protagonist and Lucifer and Michael respect each other.
In the comics Michael's last name is "Demiurgos" whose etymology corresponds to the name given by the Platonists to the God who creates the world, constitutes the beings (it is a being identical and/or complementary to the being that the Platonists call the spirit).
Michael was responsible for more main character deaths then any other antagonist in the show.
The name "Michael" origins from the Hebrew name מִיכָאֵל (Mikha'el) meaning "who is like God?".
Behind the Scenes
Michael is an archangel in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions. In the lore, Michael is the Archangel who defeated Lucifer in his rebellion and cast him out of Heaven.
According to Tom Ellis, Michael doesn't have the liver that Lucifer has when it comes to alcohol and prefers to drink vodka, while Lucifer whiskey.
Ellis also mentioned that while Lucifer drinks with his right hand, Michael drinks with his left.
Michael is not a favorite among the fans, the cast (Tom Ellis included) don't really like Michael much. So much that Tom himself suggests doing #michaelisadick on social media.
Ellis has confessed that he felt like a fraud while portraying Michael. He mentioned that "Getting into character as Michael in the first instance was weird, because [he] really enjoyed it. But at the same time, [he] hadn't felt that way on this set for a long time, in that [he] was living in new territory for [him] as a character."[8]
Gallery
Michael posing as Lucifer.
Michael reveals himself as Lucifer's twin.
Michael easily picks up Linda's fears of being a bad mother after carefully observing her.
Michael changing his plans.
Michael after being exposed by Chloe.
Michael being outed by Amenadiel as well.
Lucifer and Michael meet after centuries.
Michael and his raven black wings.
Michael calling Lucifer "Samael", knowing it irritates him.
Michael losing to Lucifer.
Lucifer ensures Michael can never impersonate him ever again.
Michael getting brutally scarred in the face by a demon blade.
Michael meets Maze after his fight with Lucifer.
Michael after exposing Lucifer's Devil face to Dan.
Michael revealing himself as a traditional angel to Dan in an effort to manipulate him.
Michael reveals himself as Chloe's kidnapper.
Michael arriving to find Chloe gone and Maze waiting for him.
Michael offering Maze and alliance so she can find a soulmate.
Michael arriving after manipulating both Amenadiel and Lucifer.
Michael taunting Amenadiel how Charlie's illness caused him to spiral out of control.
Michael and Amenadiel fight over Charlie being used as a pawn.
