Oh, how I’ve been itching to do this for a long while now. I’m not gonna lie, I’ve been wanting to do a proper review of the first season of “Helluva Boss” for quite a while now. I was waiting until episode 8 came out and finished it off so that I could take the chance to absolutely gush over what has become one of my favorite shows of all time.
But unfortunately, as of this writing, episode 8 still hasn’t come out yet. It’s most likely due to legal issues(maybe a song cover or a “Hazbin Hotel” character cameo), but until that gets resolved, that episode won’t be seeing the light of day. I was hesitant to start doing this until we actually got it, but since Viv and her team confirmed that episode 7 is essentially the proper story finale for the season and episode 8 is being done more as a bonus, I’m willing to go through on this right now. After all, we’ll be getting season 2 started very soon(heck, it might even have started airing by the time I post this), so why not cover all we have of season 1 at the moment?
This is going to sound unrelated, but when “Gravity Falls” was airing, I was among the people in the fandom that would constantly theorize about it, scouring every episode for background details that may hint at things to come, deciphering all the hidden messages to get some more lore tidbits and foreshadowing, and basically really get my brain’s gears turning. As a result, I couldn’t stop thinking about the show for a good long while, and ever since it ended, that part of my mind has essentially laid dormant, waiting for a chance to spring out and make itself known again.
With both “Hazbin Hotel” and “Helluva Boss”, that side of me has officially reawakened, and I honestly couldn’t be happier. Right off the bat, I really gotta thank both shows, as well as Vivziepop herself, for kicking the theorizing part of my brain back into high gear. The world she managed to create here is so amazingly designed and the lore so fascinating to me that I simply can’t stop thinking about it. It’s part of the reason why I’m frothing at the mouth for any news about “Hazbin Hotel”, as well as gearing up for whatever else this Hellaverse has to throw at me.
But as for “Helluva Boss” itself, it actually kinda slipped under my radar for a while. I honestly couldn’t tell you why, maybe I was too busy with work or something, but even though it was putting out official episodes for a good few months by the time I realized it, I somehow never noticed. But once I did, I got to watch all five episodes that were out at the time, and I’ve never been the same since.
Anyone who’s followed my Twitter account for the past year or so will know that I’m absolutely obsessed with both “Hazbin” and “Helluva Boss”. It’s a universe I simply can’t get enough of for multiple reasons, and I’m beyond hyped for the former to get its official version out in the near future. And since I’ve covered both pilots and the “Addict” music video their dues, it’s time I do the same for season 1 of “Helluva Boss”.
Before we dive into the nitty-gritty, I’ll mention some of the more general elements that carry over from Vivzie’s previous outings that are just as strong as ever. I’ve praised the “Hazbin Hotel” pilot for several reasons, and thankfully, the attention to detail, the incredible art style, the intricate character designs that make you ponder about their past, the sense of humor that’s just as funny as it is crass, and the banger songs are all kept intact, even improved in a number of areas. If you saw “Hazbin” and liked it, this show features a lot of the same strengths.
That being said, despite this being mostly a comedy show, the comedy itself isn’t what has gotten me so obsessed with it. Don’t get me wrong, each episode gives me at least a few belly laughs every time, and it’s clear the writers, voice actors and animators were all having a ball in putting these jokes together. But what’s kept me thinking about it ever since I first saw it is the insane amount of incredible character work accomplished here. Despite the show only having a pilot and seven episodes as of this writing, nearly every character has enough material to make whole analysis essays about. Taking their designs into account only adds to that amount, but even if you don’t factor that in, the characters are all complex and multi-layered, helping to prove that this show is trying to be more than just a raunchy sitcom. I’d even argue that even if you don’t find the show’s style of humor funny, there’s so much amazing stuff going on with all the characters that it’s enough to draw you in and keep you coming back for more. Much like with “Hazbin Hotel”, I think describing “Helluva Boss” as just crass and vulgar humor would be dismissing the things that really make it as addicting and wonderful as it is.
But to showcase all of that, I’ll have to go through the entire season from beginning to end. All seven episodes of season 1 will be covered here, top to bottom, as I absolutely gush over this phenomenal series and what makes it so. So gather ‘round, fellow readers and/or sinners as we see why “Helluva Boss” is worthy of unbridled praise.
Episode 1, ‘Murder Family’, begins with a deceptively cheerful sequence. It’s elementary school, and the teacher and students are all singing a happy song about how fun learning is. The sequence itself is actually prefaced with someone saying “I was a good person before it all went down. I was good my whole entire life” right before leading into the song number. It’s a telltale sign right off the bat that something horrible is going to happen here, and having the song right after be so happy and upbeat, not to mention quite catchy, only plays into the tonal dissonance.
One of the students points out that it’s the teacher’s husband’s birthday today, and the teacher, Mrs. Mayberry, realizes that she forgot this and, having not gotten him anything, decides upon a student’s suggestion to give him a call to make it up to him. Upon doing this, however, Mayberry sees that her husband is cheating on him with another woman, and in a blind rage, she races back home and shoots both her husband and his new lover, committing suicide soon after as the children can only watch in horror.
This entire sequence takes up less than two minutes, but it’s a great indication of the kind of tone the show is going to have as it goes on. It’s going to have fun, of course, and it’s clearly going to have a very adult edge, but it’ll also leave room for some more serious moments that dabble in heavy subject matter. Granted, it’s not as prominently focused on as it will get in future episodes, but as a hint of what’s to come, it’s a very solid opening.
With Mayberry now dead, she’s made her way to Hell, and so is offering the I.M.P. boss, Blitzo, to go to the living world and kill Martha, the woman who Mayberry’s husband was cheating with and who survived the incident. Now seen by the public as a hero for having survived an encounter with “such a crazy bitch”, she’s reaping the rewards and is now living the best life she possibly could. A loving family, tons of money and gifts donated to her, the kids all love and adore her, the works.
The sequence also shows Martha not only having sex with her new husband, but also another man. As presented in this montage, it’s played off very casually and in a rather joking manner. But given the context of what’s revealed about her and the family later, you get the impression that this was foreshadowing, letting you know upfront that Martha isn’t as innocent as everyone thinks she is. Sure, Mayberry’s rage towards her is justified given the circumstances, but we’re given just enough wiggle room to assume that maybe Martha just didn’t know what was going on. This bit of her having sex with someone other than her husband only lasts for a couple seconds, but whether or not you find it funny, it’s a very effective teaser for what occurs later.
Meanwhile, the employees of I.M.P. are having their own exchange during their offtime. Moxxie is trying to get in some target practice using a picture of a happy family, his wife Millie is trying to encourage him to take the shot, and the hellhound secretary Loona is holding the picture while looking at her phone. Moxxie is hesitant to take the shot since he doesn’t see any need to kill a human family, while Millie is noticeably more casual about it, stating that it’s their job to do so. Loona also gets to share some of her own wisdom, suggesting that the family may look cheery on the outside, but you have no idea what kinds of demons they may be hiding inside.
On top of that bit from Loona being more effective foreshadowing of what’s to come, the entire sequence at the I.M.P. building does an excellent job establishing all the main characters in case you haven’t seen the pilot. As Mrs. Mayberry is giving Blitzo the target, Blitzo is condescending, smug, and willing to make fun of an otherwise serious situation even when it doesn’t call for it. With Moxxie’s hesitance to shoot the picture, he presents himself as a dedicated family man, as well as being the most timid of the bunch. He’s basically the straight man of the group, and his values and demeanor reflect that. Millie, meanwhile, is rather blasé about the act of killing, showcasing that she’s more accustomed to this kind of life than her husband is, and also loves her husband and is willing to support and encourage him in times of need. And Loona is rather uncaring towards her job and others around her, as shown by her focusing on her phone, as well as being arguably the most pessimistic of the bunch with all the assumptions she makes about the family in the picture. Both scenes are played out very naturally and realistically while also sprinkling in a good dose of comedy, and in turn is effectively establishing our main leads through how they play off each other.
The more explicitly shown relationships are also very well established here. Moxxie and Millie’s romance is absolutely adorable and wholesome even with killing entering the equation, and the fact that it’s so wholesome will become a factor later in the show. Once the office is set on fire thanks to Moxxie’s shot going awry, Blitzo berates and shouts at him for his mistake, establishing Blitzo’s rather harsh attitude towards him whenever he screws something up. And with Loona being Blitzo’s adopted daughter, Blitzo shows unconditional love and appreciation for her while she isn’t willing to show it, at least not yet. These scenes altogether don’t take much time at all, but even with the limited time, they manage to tell you so much about these characters before they head off on their mission.
Once they go through the portal and arrive at the house, they see Martha and her family having dinner. This is where I have to mention a background detail I love. Vivziepop’s work is no stranger to insane attention to detail, and this scene is no exception. The big reveal of the episode is that the whole family is totally nuts, which the story of course plays up like a massive twist. But as the family is having dinner, you can see behind the father’s head that they have a kid’s decapitated head hanging on the wall. It’s entirely possible to miss this, but once you do notice it, it’s a neat hint as to what the family is really like before their true colors are shown.
Moxxie is naturally terrified of taking the shot, and once the family know something is up, they all get their shotguns out ready to kill and eat whatever or whoever tried to hurt them. This is a good example of an effective twist. With all the foreshadowing sprinkled in very sneakily throughout the beginning of the episode, more attentive viewers would be able to pick up on the fact that they’re all insane, and once it’s revealed that that’s the case, they get the satisfaction of being right. But even if you didn’t notice all that and weren’t really paying attention to those little moments, the fact that a seemingly wholesome and loving family is actually a band of psychopaths is played off quite humorously, and I think it works in the comedy department.
Despite the imps’ best efforts, each one manages to get captured by these murderous monsters. Millie gets knocked out by the father, Blitzo gets taken at gunpoint by Martha(and has a certain discussion with another character that I’ll touch on soon), and Moxxie is held hostage by the kids in the attic. Moxxie’s scene in particular is a very solid taste of proper horror, with the reveal of all the human skin hanging around the place and the dead human body laying on the table ready to be devoured. The eerie music, the kids’ creepy as hell appearance and tone of voice, and the ominous red lighting really manage to send chills up your spine through an oppressive atmosphere and a true sense of just how fucked up this family is.
Meanwhile, Martha is gearing up to kill Blitzo and Millie, and it’s here that we get an effective dose of worldbuilding with a good bit of comedy sprinkled in. In Martha’s attempts to set them on fire, we learn that imps are unable to be harmed by fire, and Blitzo takes the chance to mock her for trying it. It makes perfect sense that this would be the case since they live in Hell, so it’s also consistent with what we know of their species. And even if you’re not focusing on that, the humor and banter surrounding it is entertaining on its own merits.
Martha decides to shoot them instead, but just before she takes the shot, Moxxie, having escaped the children, finally takes the shot and kills her. After a rather touching apology from him about screwing up the job earlier(along with a hilarious bit from Blitzo about fucking him and his wife if he screws up again), Moxxie runs back to the house and decides to deal with the father and kids by calling 911. Now, while all the main characters are established very well in this first episode, it’s really Moxxie that gets the lion’s share of development here. I haven’t touched on his arc in this episode yet because I was saving it for here. The episode itself may be one of the simpler and more comedy-centric episodes of the show so far, but that’s not to say it’s devoid of great character development.
Moxxie’s arc in this episode revolves around the idea of “don’t judge a book by its cover”. He’s shown extreme hesitance towards shooting and killing a seemingly innocent family, and he’s presented with the fact that you don’t truly know if someone is totally innocent. As Millie tells him earlier, “humans have lots of hidden nasties, it’s why so many of them end up here.” The episode as a whole portrays a very extreme case of it for comedic and horror purposes, showing Moxxie first-hand that even people as innocent-looking as Martha have skeletons in their closet. But even with this new knowledge, he doesn’t end up doing a character 180. He had to kill Martha to save his friends, as well as her being the target, but it’s not like he’s suddenly gung-ho about killing the whole family either.
Hence, this scene, where Moxxie is calling the police on the father and kids. Despite all the horrible things they’ve done, he’s still taking the chance to deal with the situation in the most humane way possible, offering them a chance to turn their lives around and become better people. It’s a subtler moment that I don’t see a lot of people comment on, but as far as Moxxie’s character is concerned, it’s a pretty big highlight for why he’s so great. And just to make this scene even better, him being a dedicated family man comes back into play with his concern for the kids and what they’re learning from their parents, as well as his heart melting at the thought of the father getting a universal remote for them. Moxxie still has plenty of getting used to the life of an assassin ahead of him, but at his core, he’s a loving man who will go out of his way to deal with things more humanely if possible.
And honestly, that just makes the last ten seconds or so even funnier. Once the cops arrive, the house gets blown to bits, killing both the father and kids instantly, and Moxxie is left traumatized while the rest of the group celebrate a job well done. The cheery tone and banter between the rest of the team is a perfect counterbalance to Moxxie’s “war flashback” expression.
‘Murder Family’ may only be the first official episode of the show, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t a great one. All the main characters are established effectively, the tone should give you an idea of the kind of humor the show goes for, the antagonists are a nice mix of creepy and funny, the action present is very good, and Moxxie’s character arc perfectly showcases him as a lovable and charming straight man.
Before I move onto the next episode, I want to touch on Blitzo’s interaction with Stolas, and there’s a reason I waited until now to talk about it. I’ll get to that in a bit, but for now, I can say that what we get of Stolas here is also great. As Blitzo is trying to hide from Martha in the woods, Stolas calls him and discusses the Grimoire with him, the book that the imps are using to travel to the living world. For those who haven’t seen the pilot, it’s made clear here that Blitzo only has the book in the first place because he slept with Stolas, stealing the book afterwards. Stolas is willing to let them use it as long as he has it back once a month during the full moon, as well as a night of “passionate fornication”.
As far as the comedy goes, this exchange takes a joke used in the pilot and actually improves on it. Basically, Stolas starts going into detail about all the things he wants to do with Blitzo in bed, the details of which get censored. Here, that does happen, but even with the phone getting knocked out of Blitzo’s hand and Moxxie running past the phone later on, you can still hear Stolas going on about it. This is how you take a joke like this and make it work. You up the ridiculous factor just enough where it fits with the character, and have it go on just long enough that it doesn’t get too much.
Character-wise, it would be understandable not to see much from Stolas by this point. From what this and the pilot showed, he was essentially a very hornet aristocrat, demonstrating an opportunistic side as he takes the chance to get sex out of the situation. From this, you would expect him to be a one-note, one-joke character, where sex is the only thing you can really say about him.
Literally the very next episode paints a VERY different picture.
This is a special episode for me, because I can cite ‘Loo Loo Land’ as the episode that officially hooked me into the show. And funny enough, it managed to do so right at the beginning. The first three minutes…like, everything from when it starts to when Octavia walks into the kitchen…just perfect. Absolutely flawless. Wouldn’t change a thing.
The episode begins with a flashback in Stolas’s life. His daughter Octavia has woken up from a nightmare and is calling for her parents. With his wife Stella too cranky to join him, Stolas goes up to Octavia’s room. She tells him that the nightmare involved him just being gone from the palace, this poor little girl unable to find her father. Stolas proceeds to reassure her through song that no matter what happens, she will be okay.
Already, the episode is showing Stolas in a much different light than how we previously saw him. He’s not just a sex-starved royal looking for some tail, but he’s also an excellent father that will take time out of his day to make sure his daughter is happy. It’s a pretty daring move to take a character archetype like this and attempt to make him sympathetic, and if his calming words referring to her as his “special little starfire” weren’t enough to sway you, the song “You Will Be Okay” certainly will. It’s honestly difficult for me to put into words just how beautiful this song is, but I’ll try.
Musically, the song is given the proper feel of a soothing lullaby, with the gentle guitar strings perfectly fitting the atmosphere of a father trying to comfort his kin. It’s the type of song you can just listen to the instrumentals of and get the vibe. But it wouldn’t be quite as good if it didn’t have the lyrics to back it up.
The lyrics start off by painting a much bleaker picture of Stolas than anything we’ve seen before. He’s had experiences with love in the past, ones where he considered himself confident, bold and ready for anything…but these experiences have all ended in failure. Despite how powerful he is, his life doesn’t feel meaningful, his hopes around a stable relationship only getting crushed, like silence growing under the moon, constellations gone so soon.
This detail of his also gives credence to why he would go after Blitzo later in life; that one-night stand what have ended with Blitzo stealing the Grimoire, but as far as Stolas was concerned, it reignited his hopes for a loving romance, sparking a special attraction that he’d never felt before, certainly not with Stella. It’s a very morally complicated scenario given all the cards on the table, but you can see how Stolas reached that point.
Back to the song itself, Stolas remarks that all his stories have been told except for one, looking at Octavia in his arms with a loving expression. For him, Stolas feels like any attempt he makes at a genuine romance will only end just like all his others, and while I can’t say his marriage with Stella isn’t entirely loveless, it just wasn’t enough for him. He feels that he has nothing more to offer this world except for raising Octavia, like being a father is the final chapter in his life. He may have had failure after failure in the past, but with Octavia, he can at least hope to succeed in keeping her safe and raising her to be a possibly better than him.
As Stolas reassures her that no harm will come to her no matter what, the song sequence features him using the Grimoire to show her the stars, as well as a solar system getting destroyed, just to let her know that she’ll be okay even when creation itself ends. The colors are gorgeous, the lighting is beautiful, and it really goes to show just how far he’s willing to go to make sure she’s safe. And the song ends with just the perfect flourish in both music and singing to hit you right in the feels, leading to Octavia having a peaceful night’s rest.
Smash cut to present day, and things have taken a turn for the worse. Stella has figured out that Stolas cheated on her with an imp, and is having a furious fight with him. The gentle, happy girl that Octavia used to be is now gone, having become a moody teenager that drowns out the fighting with depressing music. And as she walks through the hall, a flower pot lands right in front of her, shattering to pieces, and she just casually walks over it without even reacting to it, indicating that this fighting has happened so often by this point that she’s just used to it.
With just these first three minutes, “Helluva Boss” made itself clear that it wasn’t just going to be an edgy sitcom. The characters will be suffering realistic consequences for their actions, and there will be moments for emotional beats without having any jokes in them. Stolas’s drive for sex is now not simply a joke; it’s a compelling character trait that’s resulted in his family life being in disarray. And as we see with Octavia, it’s causing the person Stolas yearns to make sure is happy to be disillusioned from him. The show isn’t going to forget to have fun, of course, but it will also take time for more dramatic stories and heavier subject matter to rear their heads and carry the show to a higher level. Naturally, this told me that this would be a show for me to gravitate to, and I’d argue that if the first episode didn’t sway you, this certainly will. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
As a quick little aside, this episode also features Stolas’s wide Stella in her first speaking role. While she might not have much screentime in this episode, what it tells us about her is quite intriguing. On the surface, it looks like she’s understandably upset that her husband cheated on her, as you’d expect from a loving wife. But when you listen to what she says here…
Stella: “You slept with an imp! In our fucking bed! I am not spending another moment looking at your pathetic imp-sucking face!”
She’s placing a lot of emphasis not on the fact that Stolas cheated on her, but the fact that he slept with an imp. On top of that, when Stolas suggests that he would have gone to a motel if he could have, Stella is furious at the notion.
Stella: “A motel?! Like a fucking plebeian?!”
Details regarding imps’ place in Hell’s hierarchy will become more apparent in episode 5, but for now, Stella is demonstrating a high respect for the Goetias’ reputation, believing that going to a motel and sleeping with an imp will put a damper on that. She may have had very few lines in the episode, but it makes great use of what little screentime she has, taking the typical “frustrated at being cheated on” scene and turning it on its head a bit to make things more interesting.
Back to Stolas and Octavia, from their interactions in the kitchen, you can tell just how different things are between them. Of course, Stolas still loves her openly, emanating joy when he sees her. But now with Octavia having become disillusioned from him thanks to his affair with Blitzo, her responses are…less than positive.
Stolas: “Good morning, Octavia! Did you sleep well?”
Octavia: “Is that a serious question?”
Stolas: “Hmm…what’s that you’re listening to?”
Octavia: “The song is called ‘My World is Burning Down Around Me’. It’s by Fuck You Dad…It’s a band.”
Stolas: “Oh. How charming…”
Octavia: “Are you two done screaming for the day?”
I think had the opening not been as effective as it was, exchanges like this wouldn’t have the same impact. We’ve seen first-hand the kind of loving relationship they had in the past, and so having it now be as dour as it is gives us a great sense of how their dynamic has been affected by this point.
And to anyone who might still be wondering why I’m delving this deep into a show that seems to be aiming for comedy above all else, let me ask this: When looking at this episode…when exactly do we get our first joke? The closest one I can think of is this bit.
Stolas: “Why don’t we go out? Have a day? Just the two of us?”
Octavia: “I’d rather kill myself.”
Stolas: “There you go! Anything other than staying in this house.”
That’s just over the four-minute mark in a 17-minute episode, roughly 25% of the runtime before we get a definitive joke. Everything beforehand was dedicated to character development, showcasing a more serious side to a character we wouldn’t have expected to have. I think this is a major sign of the show’s secret ingredient, which is also why Vivziepop’s work has caught on as much as it has. Even if you don’t find the comedy funny, there’s more than enough interesting character work to dive into and keep you thinking. Most adult cartoons live and die by the comedy, but this is an example of how to add extra pieces to really pull people in.
Anyway, Stolas suggests that he and Octavia go to the amusement park, Loo Loo Land, wanting to simply spend some time with her, and proceeds to hire the I.M.P. gang to serve as bodyguards while they’re there. The whole exchange between Stolas and Blitzo over the phone is quite humorous and has some pretty underrated jokes IMO.
Stolas: “I’ll pay yoooouuu.”
Blitzo: “Pay me what?”
Stolas: “Moneeeey.”
Blitzo: “Done!”
Oh, and as a brief side note, once Blitzo first appears in the episode, we see him playing with crude dolls of Moxxie and Millie in a…let’s say lewd way. This is an excellent bit of continuity from the pilot. In there, it was established that Blitzo has the habit of trying to get involved in Moxxie and Millie’s love life, invading their home and filming them during their most intimate moments. We’ll get to how this trait of his develops later on, but for now, it’s one of those moments that’s just edgy enough without overriding the comedic aspect. The way Stolas’s call interrupts him during this only adds to the joke.
Once they arrive in Loo Loo Land, we basically get more of a balance between the comedic antics and banter between the characters and the emotional core of Stolas and Octavia. But before we dive into all that, I want to talk about Loo Loo Land itself and the kinds of jokes they do with it. We’ve seen plenty of comedic takes on terrible amusement parks, what with the creepy mascots, overpriced merchandise, dangerous rides, all that good stuff. While it would be easy to write this off as unoriginal, I think the fact that this is being done in a more adult series allows the writers to take the jokes even further. The mascot straight-up admits to being a pervert, the rides most certainly end up killing people, and the fact that it all takes place in Hell gives a great amount of credence to a park like this existing. Like, it’s made abundantly clear that the park has the potential to face lawsuits, and it’s not because of all the death and danger, but because it’s ripping off another theme park. It all combines to make the jokes surrounding Loo Loo Land itself work without taking away the believability.
As for each of the characters’ bits, since Stolas and Octavia provide the emotional core, I’ll be saving them for last, and actually starting with Moxxie and Millie’s parts. Sure, plot-wise, you could cut them out of the episode and nothing would change. But honestly, with how adorable and precious they are, I can’t conceivably remove them. Since Stolas and Octavia provide the more serious side of things, Moxxie and Millie offer a nice bit of levity in between.
Millie is established here to have been to Loo Loo Land when she was a kid, and her enthusiasm for it all is just downright infectious. She’s very much just letting her inner child out throughout, gushing over all the nostalgic memories and simply having fun letting Moxxie experience it all for the first time. Moxxie is notably less enthused about it, the creepy mascots and sickening rides proving to be a bit much for him. And yet despite all that, the episode shows that he’s willing to put up with throwing up as long as his wife gets to have a good time. Moxxie going through all the trouble to win a plush for her despite how rigged the game is is a great sign of how much he loves her, and it’s all just so wholesome and sweet.
This is also the home of one of my favorite background details in the show so far, and it’s one that serves to make a more explicit joke even funnier once you notice it. Once Moxxie and Millie notice the plush, they have this exchange.
Millie: “Look, Moxxie, a thing!”
Moxxie: “You want that thing, don’t you?”
Millie: “YEEEES! I don’t know what that thing is, but I want that thing!”
Okay, the dialogue itself is funny enough, but then I does a close-up of the toy itself, and during this shot, you can see a tag on it that you can read.
Even the people who made it have no idea what it is, or they had to rush it out so fast that they couldn’t even have time to figure it out. It’s one of those pause-or-you’ll-miss-it details, but one that adds to an already funny bit.
As for Blitzo, he’s more actively involved in being a bodyguard for the Goetias, keeping an eye out for potential assassins while trying to dodge around Stolas’ attempts to flirt. How he factors into their conflict I’ll get to in a bit, but for now, I can say that how he plays off of Stolas during these scenes are pretty damn amusing, and even this early on, you can tell he’s got a bit of a tsundere complex going on right now, what with just how aggressive he’s trying to go against Stolas’ playful attitude.
But the most intriguing bit involving Blitzo is his exchange with the robotic version of Fizzarolli, the theme park mascot. While it’s made clear that this isn’t the real Fizz, Blitzo has had a checkered past with him, one that resulted in the both of them having a rivalry that’s lasted all the way to present day. Unlike Fizz who actually makes the audience laugh with his jokes despite being a “sellout” as Blitzo describes him, Blitzo’s attempts at being an entertainer failed miserably. The kids were scared of him, no one laughed at his jokes, and being forced to watch Fizz get all the praise gets under his skin way more than he lets on. He even went so far as to make the “o” in his name silent in an attempt to distance himself from that life, that part of his name too much of a painful reminder of his failed dreams.
This is even more fascinating when you consider background details. Blitzo’s office and the I.M.P. building contains memorabilia featuring his time working as a performer; circus tickets, a poster featuring him and his twin sister with their own act, and an advertisement for Blitzo’s solo act.
All of this in mind paints a much more complex image of Blitzo than we initially thought. While he did change his name to try and escape his past, there’s a part of him that still yearns for his dreams to be achieved, that wants to make a living entertaining people. This is a character that’s hiding a tragic past behind his taunts and kill-happy demeanor, and despite how much he tries to keep it secret, there will be a point where those old wounds have to show up again, whether it’s for them to heal or be ripped wide open again.
Topping off this whole exchange is Fizz’s remark that no one loves Blitzo. While Blitzo does seem to just shrug it off, it’s clear that the idea of being alone bothers him more than he would like to admit. He constantly drops in on Moxxie and Millie’s alone time just to feel included, he’s adopted a hellhound daughter, and future episodes would only make this aspect of him all the more painfully clear. He’s a character that has the unfortunate habit of hiding his true feelings, whether or not it’s truly warranted. Even though Blitzo’s bits don’t take up much time in the episode, it does wonders for his character and adding depth to someone you might have just assumed was nothing more than an asshole with a filthy mouth.
With all that out of the way, let’s finally get into the rest of Stolas and Octavia’s plot. While they’re spending time at the theme park, Stolas takes equal opportunities to give Octavia a good time and flirt with Blitzo. The latter of these noticeably annoys Octavia, and she can’t cheer up no matter what Stolas suggests they do. Eventually, the flirting gets to the point where Octavia storms off, unable to handle it anymore. Stolas runs after her and they finally stop in the funhouse, and it’s here that they let all the air out regarding their relationship.
From the scene in the kitchen and his interactions with her, it was clear that Stolas could tell that his affair with Blitzo has hurt her on some level, and taking her to Loo Loo Land was a rather idealized plan on his part. By doing so, he was hoping that it would help him rekindle with his pride and joy. But this gets into a very interesting character flaw with Stolas; he’s not the best at grasping the full consequences of his actions. Despite him openly having an affair, it’s not until this moment, with Octavia getting the chance to be open about how she feels, that he truly gets it.
The opening of the episode showed full well how much they loved each other, but now with this affair, Octavia’s fears of being alone resurface, something she had a nightmare about before. She’s afraid that Stolas is just going to leave her behind, abandon her for this imp that she barely even knows. She remembers a time when her parents didn’t hate each other, and now even that’s gone to pieces. Her world is burning down around her, and she’s in a position where she can’t do anything about it.
Stolas’s response to all this helps make this scene one of the most human moments in the entire show so far. He doesn’t try to excuse his actions or weasel his way out of it like you’d expect a character of his archetype to do, but tries his best to empathize with her and show that he understands that it’s a lot to deal with. What he’s going through isn’t something that can be put into words, or maybe he does indeed have the words but can’t find it in himself to say them. But one thing he makes absolutely clear is that he will never abandon his daughter. Even if his marriage with Stella falls through, his devotion to protecting Octavia is as strong as ever, and even when all creation ends, she will be okay.
The real clincher of all of this is the fact that, as far as Stolas and Octavia’s relationship goes, the episode doesn’t treat this ending like it’s a bookend. Based on Octavia’s statement of him being “okay sometimes”, it’s clear that it will take time for them to fully patch things up, but the episode does end on a hopeful note. It’s a very realistic and grounded way to finish this episode, even as the I.M.P. gang’s antics result in all of Loo Loo Land ablaze behind them.
With such a comedy-centric first episode as ‘Murder Family’, having one like this right after it is quite the shock. The comedy is still very much there, but its core takes a deeper and more emotional approach, and as far as I’m concerned, it worked like a dream. The Stolas/Octavia plot is an excellent indicator of the kind of tone and character development the show will go on to have, while the I.M.P. stuff contributes to either the comedy or deepening a character’s backstory in a subtle way. With all that in mind, it’s no wonder why this episode is considered one of the best. If the pilot and ‘Murder Family’ didn’t win you over, this one is sure to do the trick.
Episode 3, ‘Spring Broken’, is one of the more comedy-focused episodes of the bunch, and as such, there’s not quite as much to analyze here as there was with ‘Loo Loo Land’. That being said, it still manages to squeeze in some very interesting character work that’s worth diving into. Despite being an episode focusing mainly on humor, it lays the groundwork for excellent character development to occur in the future.
As the episode begins, the I.M.P. gang are on their way to work, and even though this bit is only a few seconds long, it perfectly encapsulates the charm of their group dynamic. With the song “Mustang Dong” playing on the radio, Blitzo is belting out the lyrics at the top of his lungs, trying to be heard over the radio despite any mistakes he makes. Loona is trying to use her phone, but the noise is getting in the way of that and distracting her, as shown in a facial expression that reads both mild irritation and humiliation. Millie opens the back window and pokes her head out, simply taking the time to enjoy the ride while Moxxie is covering his ears from the loud music.
If I had to pick only a few seconds from the show to indicate what all four of these characters are like to anyone who hasn’t seen it, this would be it. Blitzo is the type to just do whatever he wants regardless of how people feel about it, and so of course he would just sing over the radio despite how loud it may be. The fact that he often stumbles over the lyrics helps to give it that extra dose of realism, making his character feel human despite being an imp.
Loona’s wordless reaction to it does display embarrassment, but that also indicates a more personal connection with Blitzo than it may seem. Her face is very much how you’d expect an angsty daughter to react to her parent doing something embarrassing. Millie, being the most carefree of the bunch, shows a look of contentment as she takes in the sights of the city, not letting the volume bother her in any way. By contrast, her husband is the most sensitive, and so he attempts to shield himself from the noise, all while looking annoyed with Blitzo. There’s the sense that this isn’t exactly new for him, but it’s still irritating nonetheless, a perfect metaphor for how he views Blitzo’s treatment of him up to this point.
Even though this sequence only lasts a few seconds, it embodies the spirit of the IMP gang flawlessly, utilizing very little dialogue along with a nice dose of visual cues to depict the characters in their purest form.
I’m only 15 seconds into the episode. Maybe this will be deeper than I thought, lol.
Anyway, they drive into the parking lot heading for their designated spot only for someone to steal it just in time. Blitzo starts to chastise the person who took their spot over a megaphone, only for that person to reveal herself: Verosika Mayday, a pop star succubus that used to date him in the past. Between Verosika’s usage of the o in Blitzo’s name and the heated discussion between them, it becomes very clear that these two had a super sweet romance that eventually led to an ugly breakup. And according to Verosika, said breakup is entirely on Blitzo’s own behavior.
Verosika: “Awww, you mad, Blitzo? You gonna run off, leaving someone else to pay for the hotel room, steal their car and run…”
Verosika and Blitzo: “…run three rings to Wrath and max MY credit cards on shitty horse riding lessons?!”
Blitzo: “Goddammit, whore, you will not let that go!”
Of course, on the more comedic angle, we have the rest of the I.M.P. gang roasting Blitzo on the fact that he somehow got together with such a bombshell like Verosika, and as far as that all goes, it makes me laugh out loud every single time.
Blitzo: “Okay, why are you all acting like that’s such a shock?”
Loona: “Helloooo, it’s Verosika Mayday?”
Millie: “It’s…you?”
Moxxie: “I just…is she blind?! Perhaps suffering some form of brain damage?”
But much like Blitzo’s history with Fizzarolli hinted at in the previous episode, this is a case of the show sprinkling in pieces of Blitzo’s past, making the viewer all the more interested in learning more. Him and Verosika breaking up is suggested to be mainly his fault, doing a rather dickish thing to her for seemingly no reason other than…he’s an asshole. This aspect of Blitzo’s character will get expanded on in the latter half of the season, but as far as this episode is concerned, it does give Verosika solid reason to hold a grudge. I mean, I can’t say I wouldn’t be like that to an ex who did something like that.
But on top of that, it also raises intrigue to see more of what their past relationship was like; there clearly must have been some kind of genuine passion there, or else she wouldn’t be trying to get under his skin so much. During this scene, she makes a passing remark at his sister being a washed-up loser, and you know that she’s the type who would want to cut deep. Yet if you look at her design, one would notice that she has a heart tattoo with Blitzo’s name inside it, with the “o” removed for good measure. You don’t get that kind of thing with a one-time fling, I can tell you that for free. As of present day, she now has an X tattooed right over it just to spite him.
All of this combined makes for a very solid character introduction that not only properly establishes Verosika as the episode’s antagonist, but also lays some more groundwork for some amazing drama later on. And as for how it affects Blitzo in the long run…well, I’ll get to that in good time.
During this scene, we also get briefly introduced to Vortex(who Loona develops a crush on), and as far as this scene goes, he’s established as Verosika’s bodyguard hellhound, willing and able to snap someone like a twig if he wanted to. We’ll see how the episode develops him soon, but the fact that he is essentially a bodyguard raises interesting questions about Loona as well as hellhounds as a whole. The episode basically implies that hellhounds are typically used as such, protecting those who hire them. But an imp adopting one as their own kid…is that something that’s considered out of the norm? Did Blitzo go that extra mile so that he could have some semblance of a loving relationship? Granted, that may just be speculation on my part, but it’s details like this that always keep me thinking about the show.
As far as the plot goes, the scene establishes that Verosika is taking their parking space for all of spring break as she performs her own duties. And after the implication that Moxxie and Millie are bisexual…
Millie: “What was sex with her like?”
Moxxie: “Millie!”
Millie: “What? She’s a pop star. You’d wanna know what sex with Michael Crawford was like.”
Moxxie: “…Touché.”
The gang all head inside the building, and once they exit the elevator, Loona remarks that she did her makeup shitty today. Blitzo responds that she looks perfect like always, prompting Loona to say…
Loona: “Just shut up, Da- ugh, Blitzo!”
Notice how she almost said “Dad” before correcting herself? Let’s put a pin in that, we’re gonna come back to it later.
On the way in, they bump into Vortex, and upon noticing that Loona has become smitten with him, Blitzo butts in and tries to keep her from getting too involved with him, bringing the attention to where Verosika is. Blitzo getting between Loona and Vortex is another thing we’ll have to put a pin in.
As for Verosika, she’s set up her office right in front of the I.M.P. office, obviously in an attempt to bring attention to her and away from Blitzo. As Vortex informs him of this, the hellhound adopts a softer and more formal side to him that his initial scene didn’t give us. These moments combined give us a pretty good picture of the kind of person he is; a tough guy with a heavy amount of strength, but is a genuinely nice dude once you get to talk with him. His scenes with Loona later on cement this fact, but I’m getting ahead of myself.
Moxxie offers to reason with Verosika and have her park the car somewhere else, and as he’s suggesting this, he takes on the attitude of a music snob, viewing pop music as beneath his standards. Richard Horvitz’s delivery makes it funny enough, but they also add in Blitzo just tuning him out, ear ringing noise and all. That bit gets me every time.
Once Moxxie actually does try to talk to Verosika, she and the other succubi try to seduce him into having him leave, and Moxxie replies that he’s married. Given how powerful the temptation of a succubus is, this makes this moment work even more for Moxxie’s character. Even with the power of four succubi trying to seduce him, it doesn’t affect him at all as he remains loyal to his wife. Total Chad right here.
With their seduction attempts failing, the succubi transform and forcefully overwhelm him with their love, as shown with him getting several kisses on his face. Enraged by the harm done to one of his employees, Blitzo storms in and offers Verosika a challenge: with spring break currently going on, Blitzo challenges them to see if they can fuck more people than I.M.P. can kill by the end of the day. Though not taking it seriously at first, Verosika ultimately accepts, and the race is on to earn back that parking space.
Now, on the surface, one would describe Blitzo and Verosika's bet here to be rather petty, and...well, that's because it is. Having a competition like this over something like a parking space can be seen as rather childish. But given what we know about their relationship in the past, we can tell that things between them go deeper than that. From Blitzo's perspective, he took part in a self-destructive act, doing a shitty thing to his girlfriend and ending up having to break up with her. From the evidence we have in previous episodes, Blitzo sees himself as unworthy of a loving relationship, and later episodes make it clear that he keeps others at arm's length so that it wouldn't hurt so bad when they inevitably leave him. In that context, him kickstarting their breakup was due to his fears about becoming too close to someone. Verosika coming back and starting this whole parking space conflict is essentially an instance of his past actions coming back to bite him in the ass. He did a really asshole thing, and Verosika holds enough of a grudge over it to keep inconveniencing him all this time later; put simply, he made his bed, and now he's being forced to lie in it.
Anyway, the I.M.P. group all come together in the meeting room as Blitzo devises a way to beat Verosika at the bet. He demonstrates this with crude drawings, and the following sequence showcasing it is snappy in terms of comedic timing, is well animated even with these crude designs, and makes excellent use of Brandon Rodgers' voice acting and comedic chops. I wouldn't be surprised if that bit was at least partially improvised on his part.
Once the demonstration is done, we get another instance of Blitzo and Moxxie being rather aggressive with each other, with Blitzo's ego coming into play as he takes offense at his drawings being insulted and his plan being totally nonsensical, and Moxxie's attempts at being the straight man clashing with his boss's antics and deciding to try standing up for himself for a brief moment, signified even further by having Moxxie climb onto the top of the table to look down on Blitzo. This is a case of an exchange that takes less than 15 seconds, but given how their relationship develops in a later episode, this is an effective reinforcement of their dynamic on top of being funny.
Right after this argument, Loona suggests that she go with them on this mission, and this leads to one of the funniest bits of the entire show so far.
Blitzo: "You know the kind of FREAKS up there who drool all over you."
(the whole gang gives the audience a death glare)
As a way of poking fun at the furry side of the fandom, this is funny enough, but I think what really sells it is the little zoom-in that the camera does during the death glare, that then snaps back to normal when they continue the conversation. It's an instance where the camera is almost a character in a sense, helping to enhance the joke and make it even better than it would be if the camera just stood still.
Loona explains that she has a perfect human disguise that she can use for the mission, which ends up leading to a detail about the imps of the group being explicitly called out: they have never used a single human disguise in their entire time performing their business. Considering this detail becomes important in a later episode of the season, it's one of those details that was clearly intentional from the start, and not to mention that it fits with their characters. These are imps basically starting their own business in a desperate attempt to make a name for themselves, and said business involves them traveling to the human world. As their adventure in 'Murder Family' proved, they're not all that experienced in their job, like they're basically throwing themselves into it with barely any planning at all. We'll see how this comes into play in 'Truth Seekers', but for now, it works as both a good joke and a great acknowledgement of a gap in logic that the characters had.
The gang ultimately decides on a plan of using Loona's human disguise to lure humans to them in a secluded spot where they can then kill them. After a pretty funny moment involving a single poster bringing in tons of clients for the job, they finally reach the spring break party, putting their plan into motion. Like 'Loo Loo Land', this is a case where the episode branches off into different plot threads, and just like that episode, I'll be discussing each one separately, leaving the one with the most substance for last.
For the rest of the episode, Blitzo and Verosika's bet more or less takes a back seat until the end, but there are some details of note to go into. The first is the song Verosika uses to seduce the partygoers, titled "Vacay to Bonetown". The song makes brilliant use of Cristina Vee's ear candy-like voice, having her sound soft yet seductive, perfectly fitting the role of an alluring succubus, and the instrumentals are just as fitting for the vocal performance. Take a listen to it yourself and just soak in the soothing feel of it all.
Verosika's booze ends up getting tossed into the ocean, its hellish qualities causing a fish to become a kaiju, causing chaos for the party. After Millie kills it, it becomes clear that Verosika inadvertently causing it could lead to big trouble for her, and she and Blitzo begrudgingly call the bet off on a draw. In effect, this represents their larger conflict and its current state: it's still ongoing, and this isn't going to be the last we see of her, but for the moment, both parties are on equal ground in terms of power standing. We'll see how well that gets maintained when we get to 'Ozzie's'.
Moxxie and Millie, once they see that Blitzo and Loona are busy taking care of their own personal issues(which I'll get to soon), both of them take it upon themselves to keep adding to the kill count and keep the bet going in their favor. Them doing this is a good showcase of their standing in the group when it comes to their line of work. In case Blitzo gets inconvenienced in some way, it's up to this power couple to pick up the slack, their absolutely wholesome romance serving as the foundation for how well they work together. They'll take the time to support each other whenever it's needed, they're a force to be reckoned with when working together, and when one is in danger, the other will do whatever it takes to protect and rescue them. Once Moxxie gets taken by the kaiju fish, unable to really do anything due to being drunk, Millie gets to show her fiercely protective nature when it comes to keeping her husband safe, slaughtering the fish and making sure Moxxie is out of harm's way. Moxxie being drunk adds a nice extra comedic layer to this sweet cake, but even if that wasn't there, their relationship is so damn charming that they carry their bits based on their banter.
But the brunt of the episode's substance actually falls on the dynamic between Blitzo and Loona. This may not be a Loona-centric episode, but it does wonders in adding dimensions to a character that would easily have been dismissed from the start as just an edgy goth. Like Blitzo's relationship with Verosika, it takes full advantage of continuity to flesh out his dynamic with Loona in a way that makes perfect sense.
If we're taking the pilot into account, there was a moment in it where Loona is getting criticized by Moxxie for her terrible work ethic. Blitzo stands up for her, and though it doesn't have a lot of focus on it, you can notice that Loona adopts a little smile. It's a subtle detail, but it's one that tells us so much about how she feels about him. The flashbacks beforehand show her as very standoffish and kinda bitchy. Blitzo can be giving her a present for her "adopt-aversary", and because it wasn't a cure for syphilis, Loona takes the present and angrily throws it to the floor. From that, one might draw the conclusion that Loona doesn't like Blitzo and doesn't appreciate his efforts to be loving to her. And yet with her little smile while he's standing up for her, it's clear that she in fact does appreciate his efforts; she's just...not ready to express it yet.
This characterization of her gets carried over to the official show. Earlier in this episode, she comes close to referring to Blitzo as "dad" before quickly correcting herself. She secretly does see him as a father figure, but she's not willing to be open about it. This gets to the core of her main character flaw: her aloof nature and tendency to close herself off from others.
Her main motivation for going along with I.M.P. for the mission is to see Vortex, a hellhound that she has a crush on and one that she's more willing to be open with. At first, that may sound like a contradiction, but given how she interacts with Vortex and how she conducts herself around him, it becomes evident why she doesn't have close connections with others. She's very socially awkward, often struggling to say the right thing, even playing with her hair in a way that demonstrates nervousness and timidity, and this is with someone she's actively trying to be friendly towards. While Loona may seem like just an aloof and antisocial jerk, it's more than she doesn't know how to properly socialize, and said aloof and antisocial attitude could just be a way of her trying to internalize it.
On Blitzo's side of things, he does actively try to show fatherly love to Loona, always willing to stick up for her when others are mocking her or trying to do kind things for her even when she doesn't seem to appreciate it. But as this episode makes clear, he's also smothering and tends to control who she spends time with. Vortex is a very gentle and kind person all things considered, and Blitzo is basically shoving himself between the two of them in an effort to keep them apart simply based on the idea that he works for his ex.
At least, that's what's explicitly made clear. During their argument, Blitzo's demeanor demonstrates a desire to make sure that Loona doesn't leave him. He's gotten close enough to her that he doesn't want to risk losing her to this man he barely even knows. The episode points out that Loona was adopted when she was almost 18, and it's gonna be tough to get used to a new father figure even at that old an age. She does have the right to choose who she spends time with, and yet Blitzo's own personal issues are getting in the way of that.
The fact that this argument between Blitzo and Loona doesn't exactly have a resolution demonstrates that this dynamic between them is still ongoing. It turns out that Vortex already has a girlfriend, and is still willing to be friends with Loona regardless. As far as that goes, it seems to have been resolved cleanly. But her and Blitzo's issues haven't been resolved yet; they clearly care for each other, but neither of them are capable of communicating it properly. Blitzo is too smothering and overwhelming for her, and Loona is too closed off to make her true feelings clear to him.
All of that combined makes for a stellar fleshing out of Blitzo and Loona's dynamic, one with plenty of dramatic potential to be expanded on in the future. Not to mention that it's wrapped in an episode that also squeezes in a healthy dose of comedy, a great song, strong character moments from all involved, good action, and some of the best coloring in the first half of the season.
So remember when I said dissecting the plot of 'Spring Broken' was gonna be simple as a joke? Well, here, I mean that sincerely. The plot in 'C.H.E.R.U.B.' is arguably the simplest of the show so far. It's easily the most comedy-centric episode thus far, and so as far as the plot goes, breaking it down is gonna be pretty easy.
But there's another layer to take into account: the worldbuilding. At times throughout this review, I had been pointing out instances of worldbuilding being subtly implemented into the episodic adventures, along with the idea that they flesh out the world in a way that gets the viewer more intrigued into the show's universe and the implications these additions could have to the Hellaverse at large. Believe it or not, 'C.H.E.R.U.B.' is a prime example of this. I'd go so far as to argue that the implications brought on by this episode bring fascinating dramatic potential not just for "Helluva Boss", but also its sister show, "Hazbin Hotel".
The episode begins with the titular C.H.E.R.U.B. organization showing off their commercial. From this, it becomes clear that they were made as the heavenly antithesis of I.M.P. Rather than going to the living world to kill people, their priority is to help prolong the lives of humans who are on the verge of committing suicide or are suffering depression or the like. Right off the bat with this commercial, a close eye can tell that something is...off about it. So far, this is the most we see of Heaven in the entire series, and yet what we are shown paints a very bleak picture of this supposed paradise.
The commercial, in an effort to sell this organization to its viewers, points out how it's non-profit; they don't even ask a fee and are just doing it out of the pure goodness in their hearts. But the fact that this lyric in the jingle is being sung while the angel Cletus is in front of a golden harp-shaped mansion just makes it that much more suspicious, doesn't it? In fact, when you really take a look at Heaven itself, the architecture and cleanliness of it all really gives off a "rich neighborhood" vibe. Once the viewer notices that, they'd naturally think "Well, no shit, you don't ask for a fee. You don't need money, you're loaded already." With that knowledge in mind, it's clear from the get-go that this C.H.E.R.U.B. organization isn't as perfect and selfless as they claim to be, most likely only doing kind deeds for praise and attention.
Hell, there's also the possibility that God himself is enabling this kind of thing to happen, hence what is easily one of my favorite background details in the show so far.
Either God himself did say all that, or the heavenly denizens twisted his word to fit their own self-serving agenda. Either way, that's quite the bombshell to drop about this version of Heaven.
The actual plot gets going when the I.M.P. gang encounter Loopty-Goopty, a very eccentric inventor with Doc Ock tentacles who had just died and gotten sent to Hell. He and his business partner Lyle Lipton worked in robotics(casually mentioning that they test their inventions by experimenting on the poor), and after a tragic accident involving an age modifier, both of them aged dramatically. Loopty died while Lyle is given the opportunity to exploit the power vacuum and take full control of the company to become a trillionaire. Fearing this outcome, he tasks I.M.P. to travel to the living world and off him.
While they're in the human world, I just have to point out a little continuity nod that I adore. Remember when Loona pointed out their lack of human disguises in the previous episode? Well, now they have some, and they're very...Bugs Bunny-esque. Unlike hellhounds or succubi who can simply transform into humans whenever they want, this tells us that imps have to rely on whatever costumes they can manage to put together. It not only leads to some amazing new looks for the main three, but it's just a humorous visual in and of itself.
In their attempt to try and kill Lyle, they see that the old man is on the verge of hanging himself, unable to take the loss of his dear friend. He expresses this sentiment while caressing a picture frame with a stock photo of cash in it. Rich beyond belief and he doesn't even have a picture of his friend. Beautiful, lmao.
But at this point, the cherubs arrive, and behavior-wise, they seem wholesome and well-meaning, simply wanting Lyle to see the good in the world and that his life is worth living. If you take this at face value, nothing about them seems especially suspicious. But that sentiment I mentioned earlier about them only doing kind deeds for praise and attention comes to a head at the end, making it apparent that these cherubs are indeed just doing it for that purpose.
Now, reception-wise, this episode is often regarded as the weakest of the series, mainly going off the idea that it's not all that funny. Of course, comedy is subjective; I'm not one to tell viewers what they should find funny(unless they find the Holocaust funny, in which case, seek help). But even putting aside the worldbuilding stuff for just a second...sorry, I'm just a sucker for the more cynical side of comedy. I'd argue that once you really take in the fact that the cherubs are pretty corrupt, it makes rewatches of the episode work better.
In this case, we essentially have two different groups of morally gray people working towards vastly different goals; it's just that one is much more honest about their motivations. The sequences involving the cherubs' attempts to show Lyle the good parts of life are always followed up by the dark underbelly being revealed, which serves as solid satire of these various aspects. Nature may seem precious and adorable at first...once you remove the horrific violence that occurs in it. A mall Santa seems wholesome...until you reveal the disgusting creep taking the role. Love is a great thing...but it tends to be reserved for certain people. Opera is great...but there's always the chance an accident will happen and death follows. I just enjoy seeing a mirror get put up to the world and getting the chance to laugh at its darker sides.
After the imps and cherubs inevitably duke it out, Lyle ends up getting killed thanks to the cherubs by complete accident. And as a result, all three of them are banished from Heaven. Yep, they don't get the chance to explain themselves, they're not offered a chance to seek redemption, the fact that it was an accident is not even considered. Cletus, Keenie and Collin are just barred from entering Heaven again. On top of how self-serving the heavenly denizens have been proven to be, it's clear now that they don't even care about each other anymore, so much so that an accidental kill means permanent banishment.
This fact is made even more intriguing when you consider the effect this could have on "Hazbin Hotel". In that show, Charlie's whole deal is redeeming human-born sinners so that they can earn their way to Heaven. Certainly an ideal goal for sure, but consider how Heaven operates as we see here. If they're willing to banish three of their own people for accidentally killing one person, what chance does a sinner have of getting in there? Think of someone like Angel Dust, who is guilty of loads of different shit. Even if he were to get redeemed and earn his chance to get to Heaven, would he even be allowed to enter in the first place? It opens the door for loads of dramatic potential for the sister show to explore in the future once it comes out.
Anyway, now that Lyle is dead, he got sent to Hell for experimenting on the poor(the fact being casually mentioned beforehand was a very nice bit of foreshadowing), and both he and Loopty get hired to work for Wally Wackford, a salesman who specializes in wacky contraptions and whose brief appearance at the beginning in a commercial serves to make this a good payoff.
Overall, I can understand the general disdain people have for this episode. I'd hesitate to say it's the funniest one, and the story itself isn't anything that special. But not only does the comedy appeal to me with how unapologetically cynical it is, but the show's strength with worldbuilding I'd argue is very strong here. It's done in such a way where with a little digging, you can uncover a very interesting picture of what the universe's version of Heaven is like, which brings on tons of potential for both series involved. The cherubs are most likely gonna return at some point, and I'm eager to see where their characters get taken from here. Now that they're either trapped on Earth or even sent to Hell, the directions they could go are quite intriguing to me. Anyway, with that final Wally Wackford scene, the episode ends, as does the in-depth analysis for the first half of season 1.
Conclusion:
Originally, I was going to review the entire season at once, but as the project went, as you can tell, I ultimately decided to split it into two parts. Of course, one motive is to get more out for my viewers without leaving them hanging for too long. But truth be told, that wasn't the main reason. By splitting the first season this way, we're leaving the self-proclaimed Big Four to all be covered on their own, and we can see how the first half was handled before we get there.
There's no denying that the first four episodes tend to vary in tone and story complexity, ranging from a simple, comedy-centric episode like 'C.H.E.R.U.B.' to a relatively more drama-focused and emotionally-driven narrative like 'Loo Loo Land'. I get the sense this stretch was written this way so that newcomers can be given a different strength of the show, and therefore be given something to latch onto and make them want to keep going.
You want a taste of the show's more out-there stories and unhinged level of comedy? Boom, 'Murder Family'. You want a more dramatic narrative that gives the characters a chance to air out their interpersonal issues? Boom, 'Loo Loo Land'. You want an ensemble piece featuring the whole I.M.P. gang with a bit of everything? Boom, 'Spring Broken'. You want some subtle worldbuilding that leaves you pondering about the implications of future stories? Boom, 'C.H.E.R.U.B.'. There's something in this four-episode stretch for everyone to get into, and you're bound to get something out of it before the show really picks up.
The characters are initially established as their respective archetypes; Blitzo is the asshole boss, Moxxie is the straight man, Millie is his loving supportive wife, Loona is the standoffish goth, and Stolas is the sex-starved royal. But over these four episodes, the seeds are expertly planted for nearly all of them to show that they're far more than that, and the stories that are to follow from this point on can properly flesh them out more and make way for truly heart-warming/breaking moments.
The only main that gets the short end of the stick in this case is Millie. Even with season 2 having its first episode out now, Millie has yet to get a focus episode and get more development beyond the loving wife with a violent edge. Even Loona got more development in an episode that didn't focus on her. Still, there is the chance Millie will get this treatment in the future, so I don't want to write her off completely just yet. But yeah, as much as I love her, she's begging for a story that fleshes her out a lot more.
In any case, while these four episodes aren't perfect, I do hope this analysis served as a good showcase for all their merits. And now that they're covered in their entirety, the rest of season 1 is ripe for the Unbridled Praise treatment. We'll officially be hitting the point where the show truly picks up, and the quality of the episodes elevate into true excellence. I hope to get Part 2 out before the end of the year, but we'll see.
Until then, thanks for reading, thank you so much for your patience, and I'll be seeing you next time!
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