All Sorts of Nonsense

Hello there! 👋 Welcome to my blog for hellaverse critical stuff! 🔥 | Stollas stans DNI | 🔞 | We cherish Octavia Goetia in this house 💜 | Mammella is the OTP 💰❤️🦢 | This space is friendly to every character who has refused to take shit from Stollas at least once 👊 | My main blog with fanarts: https://www.tumblr.com/orionebulart

[orionhelluvarant]

My Predictions for Helluva Boss

Alright, guys, not gonna lie... I'm tired of HB! Protagonist-centered morality, favoritism, lack of stakes, Stolass' endless woobification, etc... It has become too much for me. Thus I've gave up any hopes for the writing improvement and refused to watch the show in the long run.

But!

This won't stop me from analysing the previous episodes that I've already watched. Furthermore, I wanna make a few predictions about what's going to happen in the next two seasons (unless those will be cancelled). Perhaps I'll repeat some of the points other critics had already made. So I'm sorry in advance for this, mates.

Now be careful, there's a HUGE list under the cut! 🔮

⋆˙˖⟡°˖⟡˙ {Predictions} ˙⟡˖°⟡˖˙⋆

None of the main cast is dead. The plot armor is too strong. Especially for Stolass. I mean, do you genuinely believe that Viv would kill her precious sad bean?! Bitch, please! 🤗

All/most of the antagonists are dead. The only exception I can think about is Cherubs. They're just too unthreatening to bother about. Prolly the D.H.O.R.K.S are dead but reborn in Hell and Idk if that counts or not 💀⚰️

If the rumors about one of the Deadly Sins' upcoming death are true then it's going to be Mammon. No other options 💸 (Btw I saw a fan theory about Blitzø killing Mammon and taking his place... Well, considering how poorly Viv handles the class problem I wouldn't be surprised if that came true)

F!zzarozz!e get married (S3) 💞 - 100% probability

Stol!tzø get married (S4, finale) 💞 - 100% probability

M&M became parents. Honestly I thought they'll save it for the end but after Sinsmas... Yeah. Anyway the truth about Millie's pregnancy is revealed (nearly to the middle of S3), she gives a birth for pro-lifers' delight and takes maternity leave becoming a background character. The child prolly is a boy and gets a better development than his mother. Apparently he's named Blitzø Junior or smth like that 👨‍👩‍👧

F!zzarozz!e & Stol!tzø double date💕

Moxxie's insecurity issue is showed at least once at the season. Now he isn't sure about himself being a good father/protector/role model for his son 💪

Loona shows her human disguise at least once at the season. Doesn't really matter if there's no logical reason for that 🐺➡️👩

More sappy sad ballads performed by Stolass 🎵

I.M.P. continue murdering people and not giving a fuck about morality (Sinsmas was the only act of mercy) OR they leave the business and fully go for Stol!tz soap opera (not like they haven't done that already- but hey! there's always room for degradation, right?) 📉

Stolass succeeds at the dime novels writing 📜✍️

Carnal hyper-sensual coitus between Stolass and Blitzø appears on-screen. Correct me if I'm wrong but I remember Viv expressed her desire to animate an intimacy act, so I have zero doubts these two are involved. It can't be anyone but them 🤢

Octavia forgives Stolass the moment she finds out about Stella's abusive nature. And since Stella's confirmed as a "stupid cow" the truth's revealed in the dumbest way possible. I wouldn't be surprised if Stella spilled the beans by herself 🤦‍♀️

Blitzø boosts his connection with Stolass the moment he finds out about Stella's abusive nature. After all we've got a sex out of pity, so why wouldn't we got a love out of pity as well? 🤡

Possibly Striker/Stella had been a thing at a certain time. Why? Because ✨fanservice✨ of course! And yes, it's going to be as dull, flat and out of nowhere as Cherr!snake. Or maybe worse 🙁

Stella's backstory turns out like the "she was born evil so don't you dare to sympathise with her" full edition. There is no valid motivation, no intriguing conflicts, no nuances - none of that. There is only Stolass' woobification arc. So this backstory isn't about Stella. It's revolved mainly around Stolass, maybe around Andrealphus or Vassago at the least. Granted that Stella ever had a chance to receive a decent backstory for herself Vivienne would've thrown it away right in the next episode without mentioning it ever again 😭

Actually Mammon can't play the guitar 🎸 He's just too dumb and untalented for this (according to Vivienne). Don't expect an epic villain song from him. I'd be happy to be wrong about this one but my hopes are dead

More fatphobic jokes toward Mammon 👎

Stolass' in drag. Just no comments 💄👠

Love triangle between Stolass, Blitzø and Vassago. At one point, Stolass leaves Blitzø because he doesn't satisfy his wet dreams well enough. Vassago and Stolass have complete mutual understanding and the idyll but Stolass feels smth isn't right. Smth is missing, smth like… Meanwhile Blitzø suffers and seeks Stolass' mercy. Eventually Stolass comes back to Blitzø because 💖 ~ they belong together ~ 💖

Perhaps after the breakup between Stolass and Vassago the latter will get together with Andrealphus 💘

Millie & Moxxie or Fizz & Ozzie giving romantic advices to Blitzø / helping him improve the relationship with Stolass 💝

Barbie Wire forgives Blitzø in her next appearance and then moves away from the plot without a trace 💨

Sapphic bait 💗 Verosika/Barbie Wire? Barbie Wire/Sallie May? Sallie May/Verosika? All of them together? I don't know! But I do know Viv would rather escape from being accused of wlw underrepresentation. Since she has promised S3 is going to be "a queer roller coaster" she would need to dilute her sausage party a bit. And of course the lesbian ship (whichever it would be) is poorly developed.

New unnecessary characters for celebrity VA's ⭐

Stolass was kidnapped... again?! Yes, Striker abducted him before but... Why wouldn't do this one more time? After all the stans love presenting Viv's auto-plagiarism as meaningful "symbolic parallels". Besides kidnapping is one of the most beloved tropes in fanfiction. And HB is an animated fanfic for sure ⛓

More shitty dads/exes? Because Viv adores reusing the same tropes over and over again 💩

"Positive" characters keep being justified and woobified infinitely 😇 while villains are losing all their charisma and braincells from episode to episode 😈

Nobody will ever remember that Stolass harassed Blitzø 🙈

Nobody will ever remember that Ozzie allows succubi to enter the mortal realm and seduce humans by hypnotic songs (which doesn't sound pro-consent, does it, Mr. Lust-Is-Not-About-Force?) 🙉

Nobody will ever remember that Queen Bee runs shelters (which are essentially slave trade hellholes) in terrible conditions 🙊

Stolass' "depression" is brought up occasionally as a reason to justify and pity him. Stolass' immediately healed by Stella's death. Right after that the depression has disappeared completely. Therapy sessions aren't required. Even if the therapy is shown then only as a lame joke 🌧

Stolass brings his powers back because he's out... for LOOOOoOHoOOOHoOOVE!!! 💓💃🏻

Stolass gets everything he ever wanted without any efforts and self-improvement. Because he's good enough already and everyone who disagree is just stupid and mean 🏆

Aaaaaaaand that's all! My forecast: at least 80% of these predictions will come true one way or another. And what do you think? Maybe you have your own ideas? Please share those in the comments/reblogs! It'd be cool if someone made a bingo based on all this. It definitely wouldn't be me because today I'm identifying myself as a lazy ass. Bye-bye! 👋😊

[orionhelluvarant]

I was listening a cover for "I will be okay" with the original video sequence when I've noticed this symbolic detail.

Octavia is chasing shadow Stollas around the mansion, while he's running away and cuddling with shadow Blitzø. Then she falls to the floor, and the prince turns round and offers his hand, but she pushes it away and gets up on her own. This leads to the house collapse:

I suppose, this is the metaphor for a broken family. The relationship has been ruined. But I'm a bit concerned about the timing.

You see, this happens neither when the owlette is crying in the darkness, nor when she's desperately chasing Stollas. No. This happens IMMEDIATELY after Octavia confronts her father.

As if relationship's fallen apart not because Stollas has been breaking his promises, neglecting his daughter, dirty talking in her presence. As if relationship's fallen apart because Via refused to forgive Stollas once again when he suddenly decided to pay attention to her.

This might be my personal interpretation but the chances that the narrative would go this route are high, and it drives me up the wall.

[orionhelluvarant]

A woman being removed from her own plotline (and replaced by a man)

Originally, Stella was supposed to appear at the court. We can grasp this from the official beatboards for Mastermind.

Unfortunately, in the final version, Stella was kicked out of the key plot scene she has direct connection to. Revenge on Stollas was exactly what the princess wanted. This could've been her greatest triumph, the peak of villainous glory. But the writers robbed her, pushed her into the background, prevented her from being too spectacular and plot-relevant, so her icy twink brother could keep the spotlight all for himself 😒

And what is the cherry on top of this misogynous cake? Stella's place was taken by... Striker!

No offense, I'm genuinely glad for Striker fans eating good at that day (he kinda slays in this outfit, btw) but... His presence at the court doesn't make any sense?! Not only conceptually but also logically.

He's wanted??! I didn't notice this little detail before, but searching the wiki gallery I've found the screenshot with the "Wanted preferably dead please" posters. And this is confusing. Like what the actual fuck?! Who are wanting Striker? Why? The hell is anybody gonna wanted criminals... in Hell? Are there some kind of cheriffs to do that? So, Striker is a "helluva" criminal? Is this good? Is this bad? How does crime work in Hell?! This moment leaves more questions than answers, and the main one is: could Striker be considered a trustworthy witness if essentially he's a wanted criminal? (I know this is probably meant as a silly gag, it's not that deep, yadda yadda yadda, but there are other nuances...)

He's an imp, and bluebloods don't give a damn about imps. Isn't that what you, writers, intended to show with the IMP trial? Why are they getting silenced and ignored, while Striker's accepted as a reliable informant (especially considering the previous point)?

Ozzie knows he was involved in Fizzarolli's kidnapping for ransom. So does Stollas. However, they've successfully forgot about that?! Why, of course they have, otherwise the plot wouldn't happen!

He'd attempted an assassination of the Goetia prince. And everyone is informed and simply... doesn't mind at all?! Like, Blitzø is judged for putting a hit but Striker, who provided it, gets away with this?! Am I missing something? Are there some juridical nuances I should know about? Or is this another example of the confusing morality of Hellaverse? The latter option would perfectly explain why the IMP members are cool guys despite of being assassins, but Stella is the worst creature in Hell for putting a hit on her husband.

Well, what can I say? Congratulations, Vivienne! That's how you create four (!) plotholes with a single (!) script edit. And there was one simple thing you had to do to avoid this: let Stella take her place in the important plot scene! Granted, Octavia would be left home alone, but the narrative never cared about this issue anyway. And she didn't even speak in the episode. And we've got no payoff of the "she thought her father was executed" moment. So whatever.

[orionhelluvarant]

(Not) guilty: three methods of absolving Stollas from responsibility

I've made a huge analysis about how Stollas didn't face the consequences of his actions based on two last episodes of S2 - Mastermind and Sinsmas. However, the final dialog from the latter seemed so indicative that I decided to dedicate a separate post to it.

This has collected every major way the narrative cuts Stollas some slack and present him as an innocent victim, not just in this episode, but in the ENTIRE damn season.

1. Backtracking

I've already talked about this, referring to the songs "When I See Him" and "The Motherfucker". Every time Stollas comes too close to admitting his guilt, he changes his mind at the last moment, and the narrative just plays along with him. That happened in Sinsmas as well. Without a song. And it's kinda reversed.

Here's the line:

Without looking at past events of the episode I'd exclaim: "Gosh, fucking finally! Thank you for the awareness!" But... You remember what he said to Octavia's face, don't you?

"It wasn't my choice," "I had to..."

Yeaaaah... A bit earlier Stollas confidently insisted on the opposite. He was trying to make excuses and grab Via's hand, said that she doesn't understand... And now, after she left, the owl chooses to repent in Blitzø's presence? Why? Did he simply do the critics a favor? Or maybe the hypocritical bird is allergic to apologizing directly to those he hurt? Because before Stollas came to see his daughter, he had a tantrum and then he yelled: "I was an idiot, I've ruined everything!" - which makes the whole situation even more ridiculous than it already is. Could you make up your fucking mind if you are guilty or not, goddamn it!!!

2. Pity Party

Oooh! This is the juiciest part of S2, it literally starts with Stollas' tragic sad backstory: he's a little lonely baby who deserves a sympathy because his father's an abuser, his wife's an abuser, he was forced to have a kid, Blitzø doesn't love him, he has depression, royal duties - and basically he's an owl in cage! 😭😭😭

Now, about what this has to do with the balcony dialogue?

Let me remind you the context: Octavia is left behind, under the care of her toxic mother who hired a hitman to kill Stollas (and he's perfectly aware about that), and her creepy incestuous uncle who will do anything to gain more power and who attempted to kill Stollas (+ IMP) AS WELL and he did that in the exact same episode. Also these two have a hitman working for them who almost killed Stollas and threatened to attack his daughter. Essentially, Via's surrounded by cruel, dangerous demons.

Now, what's Stollas worried about? That Octavia gets abused, or married off against her will, or killed even? NO! The worst ever scenario is if she never forgive him! Hence the poor babyowl will be so sad and lonely he'll cry his eyes out! 🥺💔 And what will happen to his daughter who has no support, no friends and apparently no knowledge about the situation and her future? Pffft, who cares! It's Stollas' drama, he's the main victim and you must feel bad for him first of all. Speaking of which...

3. Devaluing Other Characters

THIS. IS. THE WORST.

The backtracking could be caused by Stollas' hypocrisy, and the pity party - by Vivziepop's attachment to her pet, but THIS! This is plain filth!

Stollas' suffering is paramount, the narrative always sympathizes with him. Meanwhile the struggles of other characters are often downplayed or erased. Especially if they're the ones Stollas hurt.

Stollas has been cheating on Stella who, just like him, was in a loveless arranged marriage? Well, she's a cruel bitch who never loved her husband, so she had it coming!

Striker despises Stollas and says that bluebloods oppress commoners? Pfff, he's a supremacist, and a hypocrite, and actually he's just jealous of rich people!

Blitzø doesn't like that Stollas treats him like a plaything? Oh, he's just a stupid tsundere who can't see how deep Stollas cares about him. Always has been.

Even when Stollas' actions impact others, those stay overlooked. What matters isn't that he hurts people around him. What matters is that he hurts HIMSELF.

Okay, back to the hideous dialog:

Yeah, right, this time they're devaluing Via's emotions!

"No-no, Stollas! It's not your fault! Your stupid daughter must understand that you did no wrong. You don't need to do anything to make amends. Just wait and see!"

You'd think Blitzø was just comforting his newfound boyfriend? Nah, he could've done that differently, without silly bullshit, and said something like: "I know what it's like - to fuck things up horribly. But that doesn't mean you should give up. Our mistakes don't necessary make us bad, they help us to be better," etc..

But NOOO! Let's just coddle Stollas and portray his daughter as unreasonable! Let's reassure him that he doesn't need to try and change himself, that happiness will come to him eventually... However, that's how it will be.

Oh, be sure, Octavia WILL forgive her deadbeat father when she "comes to her senses" and realizes everything. Possibly, she's gonna apologize to him even. Just like Blitzø did. Because the parallels are already here.

But Stollas won't even have to explain anything. He just has to wait.

...Aaand that's how you absolve the character from all responsibility using a single dialog 🙌

[orionebulart]

OMG, GUYS, LOOK!!! IS THIS A SECRET MERCH ITEM WITH GOLDENGOOSE ⁉️😱😱😱💥🤯

.

.

.

Nah, sorry, I was fucking with you. Made an April Fools kind of joke for V-day, using my drawing and Photoshop skills.

Here's an art version (+ without a cap on Stella, since that was an afterthought):

Anyway, my fake merch is obviously unrealistic for one simple reason: SpindleHorse would never allow a big man to walk around topless - because they're cowards. So I don't really know why I've chosen to prank you in the first place. Hope, you're enjoying my art, at least 👉👈

[orionhelluvarant]

I'm not an expert in anatomy. However, I tried to show Mammon's beauty without turning him into grinch-like perfectly smooth pear 🍐😭

Oh, also! I'm sick of them constantly shoving that damn chicken leg into his mouth. It's like the universe would collapse if they don't! 😤

[orionhelluvarant]

Yep, this is SO typical! You see, abusers are known for their patience and ability to let their victims speak out! /s

Jokes aside, I've always been irritated by this dialogue. It's so fake and stupid. There's no reason why the characters would start it in the first place:

Stella wouldn't hear Stollas out. She's supposed to be THE abuser. Besides, she's just said that Stollas' complaints annoy her. Realistically, Stella would've interrupted him mid-sentence.

Stollas wouldn't vent his frustrations on Stella. He'd been living with this woman for 17 years, so if there's at least one braincell inside of his bird brain, he would know that she doesn't care about his feelings (she literally said that she likes tormenting him a few moments ago!). Realistically, for Stollas, talking to a brick wall would be much more productive.

Then why does this dialogue exist? Only for audience's sake. It provides them with information the characters already know:

Stollas doesn't regret his infidelity since Stella wasn't hurt by it because she never loved him (he even emphasizes, "I would feel bad if I hurt you but we BOTH KNOW I didn't do that!" Dude, if you "both know", then why the hell are you saying this regardless?);

Stella was cruel within their entire marital life and Stollas suffered because of that;

Their marriage was arranged;

Their marriage had one only purpose - giving birth to a precautionary heir;

Stollas had been trying to make their life comfortable for them all.

It's funny that points 3 and 4 are known to the viewers as well (thanks to the opening scene with Paimon in the same episode), but apparently Vivienne treats her audience like idiots, so she decided to repeat them. The rest of the points embody the "tell, don't show" problem because we've seen either the bare minimum (2), or nothing at all (5).

This is what they call expository dialogue. In the right hands, that may be an useful tool. But if it's poorly written (like this), then everything turns into a cheap, fake mess.

[thephantombleu]

After studying HH and HB’s character designs, I bring to you the Ultimate Vivziepop Guy Design, where I tried to cram more or less every common trope found in her designs into one fella

[thephantombleu]

Yayyyy 🎉

I guess this is my legacy now

Ok time to never think about this fella again

[orionhelluvarant]

Lmao! It's like you took Lucifer, Alastor and a random incubus, mixed them together in a blender and then colored with Cherri Bomb's palette... Speaking of which. The palette is too simple - 6 colors. There should be at least 10. Otherwise, you've nailed it, op! 😂👍

[orionhelluvarant]

Why are the Deadly Sins placed in the exact order they are? What's the criteria?

Is this their power? Nah. Lucifer's the most powerful among the Sins, and Satan's supposed to be the second, right next to him, as far as I know. And here they're on the opposite sides! The rest of the Sins are all mixed up in-between.

Is this the rings order? This isn't suitable for the very same reason.

So why?!

My theory: it's all about their kindness level...

I know this sounds stupid but please hear me out!

Lucifer is a depressed dad, therefore he's good by default, misunderstood and can do no wrong (source: Vivziepop's mindset). Well, maybe morally grey, at the worst. Yep, the dude simply screwed the whole humanity up and created the oppressive system that hurts his people. Come on, as if YOU are perfect!

Beside Lucifer we see the "GOOD" Sins: Lust, Gluttony, Sloth. Asmodeus' the king of consent, Beelzebub's a cool party gurl and Belphegor... just innocently naps all the time.

On the opposite side from Lucifer sits Satan. He's the tyran, usurper, yapper. He sticks to traditions and hierarchy, unlike cutie pie Luci who desperately wanted to 🌈 give humans freedom! ⭐

Beside Satan we see the BAD Sins: Greed and Envy. Mammon is an abuser, manipulator, exploiter, etc.. And Leviathan... It's not clear with her at this point. Perhaps, she's cunning and two-faced (not only literally), just as envy should be.

This is just my rambling, and we'll probably never find out the truth. It'd be funny if my micro-theory turned out to be true, though. I don’t have any other rational suggestions about how that works - except for this dumb, black and white moral filter. Like, the """good""" guys are so good they're not gonna even sit next to the bad guys, ughhh... Or maybe it's just random, so I may fuck off. Who knows 🤷‍♀️

[tsuktra]

'Octavia just doesn't know the truth' what truth doesn't she know, exactly?

That her mother is an abusive person? I think it's not much of a secret.

That her parents hate each other? Even if she didn't know that when she was a kid she learned it when she became a teenager and she definitely knew it after they decided they wanted a divorce.

That her dad loves her? You can still love someone and keep hurting them, you know, without even wanting to. As Octavia said herself, Stolas hates Stella more than he loves Octavia (and by extension he loves Blitzø more than he loves his own daughter). Sometimes actions are more important that words.

He broke her trust too many times, she doesn't NEED to forgive him. He can love her all he wants, when everything he does suggests otherwise, it's only natural that she thinks he's lying, to think he'll betray her trust again.

Stolas is not a good father, even if he says he wants to be. Wanting to be something and actually being that thing are two completely different things.

[orionhelluvarant]

Granted that we just accept the "Octavia just doesn't know the truth" statement, then...

Who's responsible for this?

Who was trying to "protect" her from the cruel reality?

Who came up with the legend about a loving family?

Who maintained the illusion that everything's fine and kept silent about problems?

Who do you think shall hold accountable for all this? Paimon? Stella? The icy twink? The Ars Goetia? Maybe Octavia herself?! NO! It's Stollas!

"But he wanted a normal life for her! Was it really worth dumping everything on the child?" No, you shouldn't do that neither! But it's necessary to have some serious conversations at the right moment. I think for Octavia that moment has come a long time ago. Besides, the stans keep saying that she's not a child anymore, that she's old enough to live alone, without Stollas... but still not old enough to know the truth about her own family apparently! /s

Of course, the honest conversation about the arrangement / divorce would be difficult, I can't deny... But the fact it'd be difficult doesn't mean you shouldn't avoid it! Your child (especially at their 17 yo) deserves to know the truth no matter how tough it is. And it'd be better if they learned it from someone who loves them and cares about. Not talking about a problem won't make it disappear!

Silence ≠ Protection!

[orionhelluvarant]

"Where's Via? And what is she doing?"

These questions crossed my mind everytime my girl was off-screen. I don't have any suggestions what was going on with her when those things happened:

Have you noticed how the majority of the situations belongs to S2? That's because back then Stollas didn't leave home for long. The only exceptions were Harvest Moon Festival and Ozzie's. The former case lasted just for a day. And in the latter Stollas' stated that Octavia was hanging out with her mother on the weekends, so that reasoning... could have worked if Vivienne wouldn't decide that Stella must be a merciless harpy who returned to torment her husband (god forbid a woman spend some time with her daughter).

Anyway, the second season has created a huge gap between S2E2 and S2E11 where Stollas doesn't contact with Via at all and he's totally chill about this. As if she doesn't exist in his life. This gets even more stupid after the prince figures out that Stella put a hit on him. Yeah, sure, let his daughter stay around this woman while he chases an imp! Octavia will be okay! No reasons to worry!

And so that you don’t forget that Stollas has a child, the writers will occasionally mention Via / stick her cameo on the background, as if to say: "Hey, look, this is Stollas' daughter! He loves her and he's such a good dad! Remember?"

Yep, they used the same picture to convince us of Stollas' love for his daughter. Trice... Have I ever told you the definition of insanity?

And it works! Seriously, I couldn't count how many people praised Stollas for covering up all the portraits in the house, excluding Via's face. These are just a few examples:

And what about the fact that Stollas didn’t interact with her on screen for almost the entire S2? Who cares! As if not just Stollas but the narrative itself neglects Octavia, and the fandom goes along with it. This is sad.

Alright, getting back to the topic:

What's up with Via?

I mean, you don't need to know exactly what any character is doing every second off-screen. But I think you should have some sort of idea. Which isn't the case with Octavia.

What do we even know about the girl?

She's Stollas and Stella's daughter;

They both neglect her and she's not happy about this (which is valid)

Has trust issues and is scared that her father will leave her (valid as well);

Personality: angsty goth teen, blunt, introverted;

Likes: astronomy, punk music, playing the acoustic guitar, Stylish Occult and spending time with her dad (I didn't count taxidermy and reading since that was shown in Sinstagram only which isn't canon);

Dislikes: clowns, her father's affair and broken promises.

You might think that's pretty much. Firstly, most of these things revolve around her father. A very few things belong to her exclusively (I've marked them in purple for clarity). And usually even those are somehow related to Stollas as well: the guitar's a gift from him, hatred towards clowns is caused by trips to the LooLooLand with father, Stylish Occult appeals to her future stepsister so they could bond over this and strengthen the marriage of their gay dads. And her relationship with Stella is neither positive nor negative - it's nonexistent! These two just ignore each other, as if they were fucking ghosts! That's how you fail the Bechdel test spectacularly!

Secondly, we don't know the basic things about Octavia. Who does she communicate with (besides her father)? How does she interact with the servants? What does she think about her royal duties? Does she know about them at all? Does she have friends? Where does she study? Does she study at all? Is she home-schooled by a governess? Or is Stollas the one who educates her? Then why did we never see that before?

All in all, the girl has no social circle of her own and barely anything that doesn't revolve around Stollas. Even Stella's situation is not that hopeless. No matter how one-dimensional Stella is, at least I'm able to guess where she is and what she's doing most of the time. But Octavia? Staying locked in her room, waiting for her father, probably? In fact, she's just the plot device. Her only purpose is to portray Stollas as a good father. But ironically, her shallowness creates the opposite effect. If her entire world was built on Stollas, then what kind of an asshole does this make him for destroying it?

[orionhelluvarant]

Unawareness - a cheap excuse, not a flaw

I'm sick and tired of stans' attempts to justify the privileged jerks such as Stollas and Charlie using phrases like: "(s)he doesn't know any better", "(s)he was sheltered", "(s)he's unaware", "media literacy is dead", etc..

Like, their unawareness' supposed to be the fatal flaw - okay, that could've work. But that'd mean it has to be a part of their character arc, hence they must either 1) become ingrained in their own ignorance if they're villains, or 2) change and learn if they're protagonists. Both Charlie and Stollas are presented as the latter.

But do they actually learn anything?

I've made a huge separate post about Stollas and how the writers are pretending to make him accountable. Anyway, long story short: the prince made a sex deal with a lower class imp that he has been belittling and degrading throughout most of the first season; later we suddenly find out that he had feelings for the said imp this whole time, so he tries to undo his own actions and breaks the deal, hoping for reciprocation; then the imp expresses his rage about being oppressed and the owl gets offended. As a result, the narrative puts all the blame on the imp, forces him to apologize and become an obedient servant for his master knight in shining armor for his prince. Apparently, Stollas' lesson sounds like: "Do the bare minimum to earn forgiveness. If that didn't work, just whine louder and perform one heroic act - so the person you hurt would be obliged to you."

Now let's talk about Charlie in detail because I think this is a new Pandora's box.

She believes ANYONE could be redeemed. Such a ridiculously naive idea, isn't it? However, it was NEVER challenged for two seasons at all! Almost everyone trusts her unconditionally, and those who don't will either trust eventually (Lucifer, Sera), or die shamefully (Adam).

Charlotte's the princess of Hell but she doesn't use her power and authority because "this is so meeean". Will she understand that "with great power comes great responsibility"? Will she learn to use it to protect her less lucky friends? Well, in S1E4 she came to negotiate with Valentino and help Angel, set the studio on fire due to her clumsiness, made things even worse, left, and at the end of the episode she apologized, and ugly cried like a fucking toddler... And then she's never tried ever again! The rest of the time Charlie either acts like a glorified doormat, or requires support from others - whether it's protecting her hotel, or management, or intrusive reporters, or anything else. She doesn't help people around her, she only guides them to achieve her goals.

Next, Charlie learns that Vega was an exorcist. What could she grasp from this? Well, Rosie tells her: "Yep, your girlfriend fucked up. But hey! who hasn't ever!" And then the princess realizes that Vega made mistakes and she deserves a second chance nonetheless... But this is literally what she already knew FROM THE BEGINNING!!! Again, since the very first episode, Charlie has been moralizing and trying to convince us that ANYONE could be redeemed, even sinners who torture, kill and eat each other day by day. She defended her standpoint to Adam, Sera and even her own father. She has demonstrated it by forgiving Pentious who turned out to be a spy. And now this is an ✨ incredible discovery ✨ that the princess makes simply because some unknown woman repeated her own mantra to her. (Meanwhile, Vega finds out she must be "out for love", although that's all she's ever done. That conflict was such a nothing-burger!)

In the second season Charlie repeatedly disregards advices and feelings of others. She crosses boundaries, forces to do whatever she - and only she! - wants, puts everyone in danger, blames them for the problems she creates. Three of her "friends" (Husk, Angel, Alastor) left the hotel / were captured along with her father. Has Charlie realized that she's a lousy friend? Nope, she says that she was too busy with making her absent mommy proud. And that she's hypocritical. Welp, she's kinda admitted her fault for once, I guess that's something, at least.

The princess falls for Vox's rage bait and tries to prove something without any evidences. Sigh, what did she learn this time? That she should leave the Vees alone, despite of them having a new leader (Valentino) who poses as a hero and constantly abuses one of her "friends" who's came back to him in the finale! Charlie clearly shouldn't confront the nasty moth, even though her trust rating among the Hell's citizens is higher than ever, and everyone knows that the Vees worked together, and there were numerous witnesses that Val wasn't the one who saved the day, and now Angel's doomed to endless torment at the "evil ass rape building". No, fuck it, show must go on!

These all are the cases when the narrative was trying to teach Ms. Morningstar something. And only one of them can be considered kinda successful. This will be funny if the writers disintegrate it somehow in the next seasons though.

Anyway, characters spend a lot of their time comforting Charlotte, reassuring that her dreams will come true and she's helped so many souls: we see this in "More Than Anything (Reprise)" and a significant part of "Finale". And for everything to work out, others simply must believe the princess: this is what Sir Pentious sings about to Sera (high seraphim, btw!!!) in "Live To Live" when she's scared and doesn't know what to do. Thus, Charlie appears not as a young and naive dreamer, but as some voice of wisdom, Solomon, who's capable of teaching a person that older than the world itself! And the wisdom's as corny as "It Starts With Sorry"!

Conclusion: The narrative repeatedly gives Charlie the opportunity to learn something. However, this either falls flat, or leads to nothing. And generally, what is the main lesson for our female protagonist? I have no idea! Maybe it's something like: "If you've failed to help your friend, then just stop trying! There's no need for self-reflection and understanding where exactly you went wrong. Your success should come first, even if your friends get left behind."

Charlie's only advantage over Stollas is that the other character are allowed to call her out validly (even if the writers won't bring this back later). Stollas doesn't even have any of this, hence instead of fair and justified claims, we get stupid bullshit pulled out of the ass and "misunderstanding" arcs. I mean, Blitzø could've pointed out on the specific cases when Stollas mistreated him, but instead he yells some generic rant about the classism, so the viewers could accuse him of bias since he speaks just like Striker the Supremacist. Or Octavia could've expressed her frustration about father's broken promises and constant neglect, but instead she blames him for using antidepressants and not loving his abusive wife.

Obviously, the stans would say: "But the show isn't over yet! Just wait till season 3 / 4 / 5 / 25 - and then all the problems will be resolved!" And I'd answer that character development should proceed gradually and consistently. So, if worldview of the main protagonist hasn't been improving in the slightest during two seasons, then I have zero reasons to assume that we'll get some meaningful mindshift eventually. Probably, there's still a chance, but for me it seems so unlikely that I won’t believe it until I see it.

[lucifertheanalyzer]

The fandom's misogyny is never ending.

Also, they can wrap their heads around that an abuser can also be a victim. Yes. Stella is a (poor written, kiddy cartoon level) abuser but is also a victim of being forced into arranged marriage. Arranged marriages is a form of abuse!

Stella is basically an incubator for the Ars goetia, her ONLY purpose was to give birth and that is it.

[doodler16]

[orionhelluvarant]

I think there's a huge paradigm in the hellaverse standom:

"Your feelings are valid only if you cry."

Almost every time a character's going through something, they MUST cry. Even if the reason is not that big. Even if it's not typical for the character. For example, I barely can imagine a person like Loona crying IN PUBLIC (like she moved away a little, but she was still there, anyone could notice her)!

You can't suffer in silence, hide your emotions, keep a straight face. No! Until a character cries, they doesn't deserve sympathy.

No tears = No suffering = Your feelings don't matter

So don't ask these people to realize that one person can be both an abuser and a victim. This idea is too difficult to comprehend for those who believe the lack of tears means the lack of pain.

[orionhelluvarant]

They've applied this even to their """complex""" heartbroken villain!

.

.

.

I'm speechless...

[orionhelluvarant]

Wow! Well, isn’t that another example of Viv not giving a flying fuck about anything but her fujoshi “self-service”? I guess it is!

I didn't check this but still I'm sure if you add up backstories of EVERY non-yaoi canon couple from both Hellaverse shows at this point, they still wouldn't outweigh Moxxie and the fish guy who appeared for a single episode (and died right there) and whose only use was to flesh Moxxie's bisexuality out.

[orionhelluvarant]

If I had a nickel for every time some shitty guy from Hellaverse got villainized not for his truly shitty actions, but for not reciprocating the feefees of an incel another shitty guy (who also SA'ed him), I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice, right?

No, seriously, what the actual fuck?! Blitzø and Alastor committed many crimes and questionable deeds which they may (and should) be judged for. But then it turns out that rejection of someone's wooing is the WORST thing these motherfuckers had ever done?!

But there's even more to this!

Blitzø's case is fucked up because he's a lower class who had been dealing with Stollas (while usually expressing huge discomfort in his presence) just to keep his business running. And Stollas never apologized for how he treated his "lover".

Alastor's case is fucked up because he's an ace. Sex repulsed ace. Thus, it seems like the writers equate his orientation with egoism and malice... Oh, wait! Vivienne DID admit that during one of the deleted streams. It doesn't help that Vox has punished his rival by making him watch how he and Val have sex. I swear, this shit is some sort of conversion therapy...

Frankly speaking, it looks like Viv doesn't beat the amatonormativity allegations.

And, of course, she tried to justify these writing choices. In Stol!tzø's case she was parroting that they both are in the wrong.

In Rad!ostatic's case she has made these tweets:

Also she stated that Vox's such a complex character and his "break up" with Alastor was BRUTAL... Sounds funny as hell, too bad I have no energy to laugh, though.

[orionhelluvarant]

Y' know. Last time I've mentioned StoLLas, and not StolaSS. That happened because recently I was thinking about potential of his character, the gray morality, flaws and nuances that he could have (and that I'd been craving to see), until the Circus episode has ruined it all. And I've got a bit sentimental about it so...

I'm still gonna miswrite Stollas' name though (because he's blatantly differs from his demonic prototype). But now I want to do it a bit more... respectfully? I know this is odd and stupid but whatever

Besides, StoLLas... SteLLa... Yep. The parallels.

[orionhelluvarant]

Found this in the ask box (for my main blog)...

Damn... This expresses my thoughts about Hellaverse pretty well 😞

I used to be a fan of these shows, I wanted to enjoy them and all of the characters (even Stollas). But a huge number of plot holes, black and white narrative, protagonist centered morality and many other flaws didn't give me such an opportunity.

PS / Although the ask was send to my main blog, I wanna keep it for my artworks exclusively, so I've published this stuff here instead. PPS / My critical blog has no ask box because: 1) I don't want anonym messages from the diehard stans; 2) English isn't my first language, therefore I probably wouldn't be able to keep up with the requests; 3) I created this blog as an outlet for myself, a place where I could rant, analyze and express my opinion about the show. Long story short: this is a one-time event... Sorry if you wanted to speak out through my blog too but I won’t enable this option for a number of reasons I listed above. Thanks for your attention and have a good day! ❤︎

[orionhelluvarant]

You know, all that "Millie and Blitzø are besties" nonsense always seemed extremely forced to me. Their friendship is illogical because Millie loves Moxxie and is intended to be a caring wife, but Blitzø occasionally mocked (+ harassed and fatshamed) him. Besides, it came out of nowhere, near the end of S2. They neither have any proper development, nor tiny little hints at least!

For example, recently I've realised that Blitzø collects photos with each meaningful person in his phone. With each person individually... Except for Millie!

Here we have:

IMP gang

Stolitzø first night

Blitzø + M&M

Blitzø employing Moxxie

Blitzø adopting Loona

Blitzø and Verosika

Blitzø and Fizz as teens

Blitzø and Fizz as kids

Blitzø with his family (sister and mother... okay, they didn't get individual photos either, but they haven't even appeared in the show at that point, sooo 🤷‍♀️)

There's not a single photo with Millie and Blitzø together, without Moxxie (and Loona). Besties goals, huh?!

Alright, to be fair, I've found ONE picture with them alone on the wall (the lowest right angle).

But even there you can see two photos of Moxxie and one with him and Blitzø. Thus, I'd more likely believe these two are best friends.

And what about Blitzø and Millie? They act like friendly colleagues who communicate with each other, but not too closely. And their so-called "friendship" seems like it was pulled out of the ass at the last minute, just to give Millie some depth and dynamic outside of her husband, which I don't believe was planned from the start, so it feels so fake and insincere for me.