Hazbin Hotel

Hazbin Hotel is an American adult animated musical black comedy web series created, directed, written and produced by Vivienne "Vivziepop" Medrano.[1][2][3] The official pilot was released on YouTube on October 28, 2019. On November 6, 2019, Medrano stated on Patreon that there was no stated release date for a second episode yet.[4] By August 2020, the show had developed a dedicated fanbase, with the thirty-minute pilot receiving over 40 million views as of that same date.[5]

Hazbin Hotel
Genre
Created byVivienne Medrano
Written by
  • Vivienne Medrano
  • Dave Capdevielle
  • Raymond Hernandez
Screenplay byVivienne Medrano
Story byVivienne Medrano
Directed byVivienne Medrano
Creative director(s)Vivienne Medrano
Voices of
  • Jill Harris
  • Monica Franco
  • Michael Kovach
  • Edward Bosco
Theme music composer
Opening theme"I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" by Elsie Lovelock (pilot)
Composer(s)
  • Vivienne Medrano
  • Evan Alderete
  • Gooseworx
  • Thomas Ryan
Country of originUnited States
Original language(s)English
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes1 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)Vivienne Medrano
Editor(s)Vivienne Medrano
Running time30 minutes
Production company(s)
  • SpindleHorse Toons (pilot)
  • A24 (series)
Release
Original networkYouTube (pilot)
Original releaseOctober 28, 2019 (2019-10-28) –
present
Chronology
Related showsHelluva Boss
External links
Official website

The series' protagonist, a charismatic demon named Charlie, is the princess of Hell, and has the mission to do the impossible: rehabilitate sinners in the titular "Hazbin Hotel" as a peaceful solution to the current overpopulation crisis. Charlie invites sinister sinners of all descriptions to check in to the Hazbin Hotel and, hopefully, “check out” en route to Heaven.

On August 7, 2020, it was announced that A24 had picked up Hazbin Hotel as a full television series, but any information related to its production or release date remains unknown.[6]

Premise

The series follows the misadventures of Charlie (Jill Harris), the princess of Hell and heir to the throne as she sets about fulfilling her dream of opening up a hotel called the "Happy Hotel" which aims to rehabilitate sinners. Due to overpopulation, the citizens go through an annual "cleanse", arranged by angels. Her main goal is hoping that her clients will be "checking out" peacefully into Heaven. With the help of her devoted manager and girlfriend Vaggie (Monica Franco) and their first patron, pornographic film actor Angel Dust (Michael Kovach), she's determined to make her dream become a reality. But when her proposal on live television goes sour, her plan attracts the attention of the powerful "radio demon" Alastor (Edward Bosco) who, despite finding her belief in redemption laughable, wants to help Charlie run the hotel for his own amusement.[7][8][9]

Characters

Main characters
  • Charlotte "Charlie" Magne[10] (voiced by Jill Harris; singing voice by Elsie Lovelock) is the main protagonist and founder of Hazbin Hotel (originally named Happy Hotel, as seen in the pilot). She is the daughter of Lucifer and Lilith, and is one of the few demons born in Hell. Upset by the yearly cleanse in which a number of demons are destroyed by the Exterminators, she and her girlfriend, Vaggie, seek to open a hotel that allows for the rehabilitation of sinners with the hope that they can receive forgiveness and enter heaven.[1][2][3] Her bold plans are often laughed at by most of the demons in hell. She is shown to be very naive and optimistic but cares deeply for her people. She has a love for musical theatre, preferring to express herself in song and dance.
  • Vagatha "Vaggie" (voiced by Monica Franco) is the Manager of the Hazbin Hotel[10] and Charlie's girlfriend.[1][2][3] She is highly supportive of Charlie and has a quick temper. Often acting as the more level-headed and rational one, she struggles to keep the hotel's image up. She is quite annoyed by Angel Dust's trouble-making and doesn't trust Alastor at all due to his notorious reputation. She can also summon various knives, spears and daggers at will. There is little information about her past life, but it is known that she entered Hell in 2014.[10]
  • Anthony "Angel Dust" (voiced by Michael Kovach) is a spider-like effeminate adult entertainer, and the first volunteer for Charlie's rehabilitation program. He does not appear to take Charlie's cause seriously, stating to only be interested in the rent-free accommodation, much to Vaggie's anger, and tends to get into mischief behind their backs. In his mortal life, Angel was born to a crime family,[10] most of which reside in Hell with him.[11] Angel struggled with drug addiction which ultimately led to his death in 1947.[10] His stage name is based on the street name for the drug phencyclidine, which he still regularly uses in Hell.
  • Alastor the "Radio Demon" (voiced by Edward Bosco; singing voice by Gabriel C. Brown), is an eccentric Overlord of Hell. He is known to be extremely powerful, and is capable of rivaling some of Hell's most ancient demons, despite having been a mortal human in life. Upon his arrival in hell he built up a terrifying reputation seemingly overnight. Often keeping to a calm and gentlemanly demeanor, he prefers to always keep a smile on his face and shares Charlie's love of music and dance. His voice sounds like a vintage 1920s radio complete with static, sound effects including a laugh track, and theme music. He offers his services to Charlie in order to help her maintain her goal of running the hotel, but only for the amusement of watching other demons fail in the process. Charlie reluctantly allows his services as long as he doesn't do anything to jeopardize the hotel, for as long as he chooses without making one of his infamous pacts, and by also invoking her status as the heir to the throne. He provides a staff and protects Charlie's business from outside threats. It's stated that in his past life, Alastor was an asexual radio announcer who lived a double life as a serial killer in the Deep South.[12] Having lived to see the stock market crash, he died in 1933.
  • Niffty (voiced by Michelle Marie) is a small, fast demonic cyclops from the 1950s[13] who's obsessed with cleanliness. She died at age 22.[14] She is summoned by Alastor to serve as the hotel housekeeper.
  • Husk "Husker" (voiced by Mick Lauer), an ill-tempered and alcoholic 70s-era[13] cat demon. He is summoned by Alastor to serve as the receptionist and bartender at the hotel.

Recurring characters
  • Sir Pentious (voiced by Will Stamper), an English anthropomorphic cobra from the Victorian era. His goal is to take over Hell, though he frequently does not achieve his goals due to a multitude of setbacks. He died in 1888.[12]
  • Cherri Bomb (voiced by Krystal LaPorte, singing voice by Kelly "Chi-Chi" Boyer), a one-eyed demon punk from the 1980s and Angel Dust's best friend at committing crimes. Features prominently in the "Addict" music video.
  • Katie Killjoy (voiced by Faye Mata), 666 News' co-anchor, along with Tom Trench. She died in 1992.[12]
  • Tom Trench (voiced by Joshua Tomar), 666 News' co-anchor, along with Katie Killjoy.
  • The Egg Bois (voiced by Joe Gran), Sir Pentious' loyal minions.
  • Travis (voiced by Don Darryl Rivera), a demon who had sex with Angel Dust in the pilot.
  • Exterminators, the Exterminators are tall, slim gray angels from Heaven who are sent to purge Hell for its overpopulation problem every year. They are shown to wear LED masks and wield the only weapons that can destroy the demons of Hell.
  • Vox, also known as the "TV Demon", one of the major Overlords of Hell and Alastor's rival. He is shown with a television monitor for a head that broadcasts his face on the screen. His only appearance in the pilot is in the opening act, hiding in Valentino's porn studios with Velvet during the aftermath of the latest extermination.
  • Valentino, one of the major Overlords of Hell and runs the porn studios. He is shown to have a pimp-like appearance. He is the boss of Angel Dust, whom he abuses sexually and psychologically. His first appearance in the animation is during the opening act of the pilot, where he is hiding in the Porn Studios with Velvet and Vox during the aftermath of the extermination.
  • Velvet, one of the major Overlords of Hell. Her only appearance in the pilot is in the opening act, taking a selfie with Vox while they hide in the porn studios during the aftermath of the extermination.
  • Rosie, one of the major Overlords of Hell, and runs an emporium that she used to share with a demon named Franklin until he was killed in the extermination. Her only appearance in the pilot is in the opening act, where she is seen crossing out Franklin's name from her shop.
  • Razzle and Dazzle, two small goat demons who serve as Charlie's personal servants and bodyguards. They appear backstage with Charlie and Vaggie in the television studio, and take part during Charlie's song "Inside of Every Demon Is a Rainbow".
  • Helsa Von Eldrich, Charlie's rival and the spoiled heiress of the Von Eldrich family, a powerful Overlord family. She appears briefly in Charlie's song "Inside of Every Demon Is a Rainbow", where she is called a "loser".
  • Mimzy, a small short and cheerful demon from the 1920s, who is one of Alastor's associates and a good friend to Niffty.
  • Baxter, a short, aquatic anthropomorphic fish demon, who is stated to be a frequent associate at the hotel. Baxter died in the 1910s.
  • Crymini, a small, anthropomorphic dog demon, who is stated to be a frequent associate at the hotel. Her only appearance in the pilot is in the crowd of spectators, who are joined by Alastor in watching Charlie's hotel promotion on the news.
  • Molly, Angel Dust's fraternal twin sister.
  • Arackniss, Molly and Angel Dust's older brother.
  • Henroin, the father to Arackniss, Angel Dust, and Molly.
  • Fat Nuggets, Angel Dust's pet pig.
  • Seviathan Von Eldrich, the brother of Helsa and Charlie's ex-boyfriend.
  • Fredirck Von Eldrich, one of the major Overlords of Hell and the father of Helsa and Seviathan von Eldrich, and Husband of Bethesa Von Eldrich.
  • Bethesa Von Eldrich, one of the major Overlords of Hell and the mother of Helsa and Seviathan von Eldrich as well as the wife of Fredrick.

Guest characters
  • Lucifer and Lilith Magne: In the pilot, Charlie's parents are only mentioned and displayed in a family portrait. Visual nods to their character designs are present, such as Lucifer's staff being a clear reference to his tempting of Eve.

Episodes

Pilot (2019)
No.TitleDirected byWritten byStoryboarded byOriginal air date
1"That's Entertainment"Vivienne MedranoVivienne Medrano, Dave Capdevielle & Raymond HernandezVivienne MedranoOctober 28, 2019 (2019-10-28)
Charlie, the princess of Hell, and her girlfriend Vaggie, open a hotel in an effort to "rehabilitate" demons ("I'm Always Chasing Rainbows"). Her plans to promote the Happy Hotel on the news backfires after Angel Dust, the hotel's only patron, gets into a fight with Sir Pentious on live television ("Inside of Every Demon Is A Rainbow"). After a brief argument on their way to the hotel, they're visited by Alastor, a notorious overlord of Hell who seeks to help Charlie with the hotel. Despite his shady claims that he only wishes to provide this "charity" for his own entertainment to alleviate his boredom, Charlie allows his help for as long as he wishes, and to not do anything that would ruin her goals ("Alastor's Reprise"). Alastor accepts and provides her with a staff to help run the hotel, he defeats Sir Pentious when he attacks the hotel seeking revenge at Angel, and changes the name from Happy to Hazbin Hotel after inviting everyone back inside to have jambalaya.

Other media

Webcomic

Vivziepop announced a prequel comic focusing on the characters prior to the events of the series.[15] As of July 2020, the first chapter of the webcomic titled “Dirty Healings” has been completed containing twenty-two pages and hosted on the official website.[15]

Helluva Boss

Helluva Boss is a standalone animated web series set in the same universe as Hazbin Hotel but with a different voice cast and story, co-written and starring YouTuber Brandon Rogers. It focuses around the enthusiastic imp Blitzo (voiced by Rogers) and his subordinate employees—Moxxie, Millie (Moxxie's wife), and Loona (Blitzo's adopted daughter and receptionist)—running an assassination agency called the Immediate Murder Professionals (I.M.P.).[16] Moxxie is voiced by Richard Steven Horvitz, while both Millie and Loona are voiced by Erica Lindbeck. Blitzo stole a book used to make a portal to the living world from Stolas (voiced by Brock Baker), one of the Goetia demons of Hell, and the group later kills Eddie (voiced by Horvitz), a little boy.[16] Additional characters include Octavia, Stolas' daughter, as well as Barbie Wire and Tilla, Blitzo's sisters. Writing production for more episodes began in December 2019.[17]

"Addict" song and music video

"Addict" is an animated music video released on July 17, 2020 by Medrano,[18] based on the Silva Hound song of the same name.[19] The song was performed by Kovach and Chi-Chi. Tito W. James of Comicon.com described the video as giving viewers a "deeper look" at the lives of Cherri Bomb and Angel Dust, and praised the "world of Hazbin," as he called it, for being "paradoxically provocative and empathetic."[20] The song ranked as the #3 dance song on iTunes on July 21, 2020.[21] Additionally, the song reached number 14 on the US Dance/Electronic Songs chart and number four on the Dance/Electronic Digital Songs chart.[22][23]

Reception

Hazbin Hotel has been generally well-received by critics for its animation quality, music and characters.[24][7][3] Stephen Novak from The Oswegonian student newspaper praised the animation, writing, and characters in Hazbin Hotel. However, he criticized the songs, saying "while "Hazbin Hotel" will certainly not appeal to everyone, those who can appreciate good animation and fun characters will certainly find themselves tortured by what is likely to be a long wait until the next episode."[24] Matt Smith of another student newspaper, The Harbinger, had similar thoughts. Smith praised the show as a "hilariously dark look" into life in hell, while lauding the voice acting, singing, and animation.[25] At the same time, he pointed out the show is clearly "not for kids", noting some animation errors, but stating that the show has great pacing, and worrying that there is "no timeline" on when the rest of the season can be expected.

References
  1. Bekah (9 November 2019). "Hazbin Hotel: The Queer Demon Princess Revue… Review". The Geekiary. Archived from the original on November 20, 2019. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  2. Matthew Field (5 December 2019). "'Hazbin Hotel' a bold step in indie animation". Go! & Express. Archived from the original on May 12, 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  3. Liberman, Dr Esther (2019-12-09). "A Salvadoran-American Artist's Conception of Hell". BeLatina. Archived from the original on February 26, 2020. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
  4. Medrano, Vivienne (November 6, 2019). "WOWZA!! WE DID IT!! (UPDATE))". Patreon. Archived from the original on November 15, 2019. Retrieved 2019-11-14.
  5. Brueheim, Jackson (May 13, 2020). "Hazbin Hotel: 10 Astonishing Pieces of Fan Art". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  6. Mercedes Miligan (August 7, 2020). "A24 Checks in to VivziePop's Hellish 'Hazbin Hotel'". Animation Magazine. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  7. Lillie, David (25 October 2019). "Hazbin Hotel's Upcoming Premiere & The Crowdfunding Frontier". Bleeding Fool. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  8. Peters, Danielle (15 February 2019). ""Animation is Magic": SVA Alumnus VivziePop on Perseverance, Inspiration and 'Hazbin Hotel'". SVA NYC. School of Visual Arts. Archived from the original on December 2, 2019. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  9. Milligan, Mercedes (30 October 2019). "News Bytes: 'Sarah & Duck' Quacks Back in US, Check in to 'Hazbin Hotel,' Tellys Get Immersive & More". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  10. Hazbin Hotel [@HazbinHotel] (May 5, 2018). "We want to help everyone get to know our cast! So today we are sharing some official info!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on January 30, 2020. Retrieved February 7, 2020 – via Twitter.
  11. Vivziepop (August 27, 2019). "VIVZIE STREEM- WHATS IN THE BOX -#7". YouTube. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  12. Hazbin Hotel [@HazbinHotel] (May 5, 2018). "Get to know some of the more devious of the cast!😈" (Tweet). Archived from the original on February 9, 2020. Retrieved February 13, 2020 – via Twitter.
  13. Vivziepop (July 29, 2019). "VIVZIE STREEM- MONDAYS AMIRITE -#3". YouTube. Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  14. Fautisse (January 5, 2020). "💖 Inking the Hazbin Hotel ALASTOR Comic💖". YouTube. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  15. Vivziepop (11 November 2019). "7 MILLION? WHATS NEXT? BIG OL UPDATE VIDYO!!". YouTube. Archived from the original on May 7, 2020. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  16. Vivziepop (25 November 2019). "HELLUVA BOSS (PILOT)". Archived from the original on March 28, 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2019 – via YouTube.
  17. @VivziePop (December 29, 2019). "I'll share news for #HazbinHotel as soon as I can DON'T WORRY [Two hearts] but I'm thrilled to say me and @BrandonLOVESYOU are getting started on writing more #HelluvaBoss !!! I'm so excited about the crazy ideas being cooked up! ❤ Multiple musical notes Smiling face with horns" (Tweet). Archived from the original on January 7, 2020. Retrieved February 7, 2020 – via Twitter.
  18. Viziepop (July 17, 2020). "Addict (Music Video) - Hazbin Hotel". Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020 – via YouTube.
  19. Silva Hound (February 14, 2020). "Silva Hound ft. Michael Kovach and Chi-Chi - Addict". Archived from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020 – via YouTube.
  20. James, Tito W. (July 17, 2020). "'Hazbin Hotel' Returns With A New Music Video 'Addict'". Comicon.com. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  21. "iTunes Top 100 Dance Songs". July 21, 2020.
  22. "Dance/Electronic Songs (August 1, 2020)". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
  23. "Dance/Electronic Digital Songs Sales (August 1, 2020)". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
  24. Novak, Stephen (7 November 2019). "'Hazbin Hotel' Debuts With Masterful Animation, Strong Writing". The Oswegonian. Archived from the original on December 7, 2019. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
  25. Smith, Matt (January 9, 2020). "'Hazbin Hotel' Debuts With Masterful Animation, Strong Writing". The Harbinger. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
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