Shoutout to TBSkyen for being based, as usual, about Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss.
Just a clip from his design review that I really loved since Iāve been thinking a lot about Hellaverse (Hazbin S2 eating me alive) lately, and the reasons I love it.
Hazbin and Helluva to me have somehow felt like the most human shows out there that Iāve experienced, and itās because theyāre unabashedly themselves. Everything is 100% genuine.
The idea of it being āfanfiction of itselfā struck me, because while haters use that as a gotcha (though usually talking about how everyoneās too gay and how it makes the writing bad), this section really made me think about how Viv and the crew talk about their characters, and how Iām completely convinced they love them more than anything, theyāre fans of them, everything they make is an excited tribute to them, out of love.
The writing of these characters is loud and unrelenting, but inexplicably we can feel that itās deeply personal. The stories being told mean something to the writers, whatās being shown is something core to them, and if those emotions need to be expressed so badly that they burst off the page. What is more human than a story that needs to be told because it is so loved? That canāt be held back because it is felt so strongly?
And what a perfectly encapsulating statement.
āFanfiction is one of the most human forms of art in the modern age, and human art is what the human soul is nourished on.ā
And, of course, we love the love for fanfiction. There really is no greater form of creative love than a fanwork. To be able to capture any of that feeling within an original show is truly a wonder.
So, in the leadup to Hazbin Hotel Season 2, sending love to the Hellaverse!
Anyway, hereās the original video essay, itās a great, art-history-informed, in-depth analysis that you wouldnāt guess from this clip is about Hazbin Hotelās character design and its maximalism:
After years and years of media being made by creators who hate their characters and hate their audiences, I cannot think of anything more refreshing, more hydrating in the desert of condescension and blatant sexism, than people who love their stories.
And I think thatās a large part of the reason why the Hellaverse took off. The love for musicals and soap operas and complex characters and interesting morality shines through with every single frame. Itās not apologizing for anything.