#analysis... kinda

[potionorchard]

This fandom's whole tendency to write Valentino off as a one-note, not very interesting character is so frustrating because they're just... objectively wrong.

Val has demonstrated that he is more than a one-dimensional character.

He has actively gone against his initially established personality traits and actions. He's cruel and treats others like objects to be used for himself. On the other hand, he is the most loyal and family-oriented of the Vees. He's violent and sadistic, but is also vulnerable and emotional.

This is called "dimension" in a villainous character and you know what? It's fucking awesome! You don't have to like Val. Far from it, but don't just lower him down to "just a rapist" when the writers actively give him different aspects to his character. Just because it's easier for you to ignore it.

The thing is that a story for me, at least, is a two-way street. And a lot of the time in fandoms, the audience is not putting in the work.

When Valentino is shown doing anything in the show, such as singing and being vulnerable in small moments of S2, a large portion of the fandom cries out "EW! Why is Vivziepop and crew making us feel for an abuser? Why are they woobifying him???"

When that happens, I wish... I just wish the fanbase would pause for a second and ask themselves: "Is Vivzie trying to make us sympathize for an abusive rapist? Or is she trying to make me understand that he has these humanizing traits? And if it's the latter, why does that bother me? Why does it bother me that I might find a horrible character funny or sad? Could it be... that the writers want us to recognize sympathetic traits in horrific individuals because that's how real life abusers are?" I want people to understand how critical thinking works. People need to ask themselves more questions about the media they consume and not jump to the most insidious conclusion. What is the creator or writer trying to convey by saying something? What did they actually say? Where did they fall short? That's where you find the issues in a narrative, not with all these disingenuous, surface-level assumptions about the creators.

Valentino is a character who is charming, funny, high-energy and flirtatious. He has a lot of charisma and he's attractive. Look at his character design.

And there is a reason for this. Abusers are highly charismatic people. That's how they draw you in.

But the unfortunate truth is that abusers are still human too. They get sad and they can love and they can have best friends who enable them. They often are another cog in a cycle of abuse too which could, for Valentino, be the nature of the sex/porn industry itself.

Does this excuse them? FUCK NO.

But you, as an audience member watching a rated 16+ series, should not need hand-holding to know this. You shouldn't have to diminish Val's entire character to "just a rapist" just to justify your misreadings of a narrative and what it is saying.

Tl;DR: Valentino is a compelling character and I'm sick of the fandom pretending otherwise because of purity culture plaguing their critical reading skills.

[potionorchard]

I love your character analysises! More food please

Do you have any thoughts on Alastor and the future direction of his character arc ?

Omgosh! Thank you very much, anon! I always feel like I have trouble articulating myself on what I want to say about characters I love, so it means so much!

Alastor, huh? This is quite funny because while I love EVERY single character of Hazbin, if you noticed my blog, then you probably guessed my mental real estate has been devoted to observing every second of the 10 minute collective screen time of the Vees and Lute/Adam.

That said, I love Alastor. My wife and best friends love Alastor and maybe there is something I can add to the conversation here.

In terms of Alastor and his future arc, one of my friends, @misstrashchan (who I regret tagging because she's gonna see my cringe blog again, dammit, don't look but her writing and analysis on fandom things are amazing, go look at her), is the one who pointed out to me the significance of Alastor being a deer.

It's something I didn't often think about but him being a deer speaks to the duality of his character.

You see, Alastor is a POWERHOUSE of an Overlord. He's terrifying, does as he seemingly pleases, cannibalistic, always seems to have a solution on hand against anyone who tries to stand in his way (be it Vox or even LUCIFER HIMSELF). But on the flipside, a deer is also known to be a creature that is often victimized or vulnerable.

And that's what I think S2 may explore with Alastor: his vulnerabilities. His weaknesses. Who controls and possibly victimizes him (or makes him feel like a victim).

Season One did this incredible job of speaking about Alastor's power. About how terrifying Alastor truly is from how everyone reacts to him and his status and from Mimzy's tale of his arrival in Hell. We can, of course, harken back to the rumors Vaggie spoke of in the pilot as well.

That's all well and good, but you know what else Season One of Hazbin showed us?

Just how insecure and vulnerable Alastor may truly be.

When Zestial questions Alastor on his whereabouts for the last seven years and even gets a jab in about him working with Charlie, Alastor quickly and coolly deflects, being like, "No, no, just a temporary sabbatical. What are other people saying about me?" Something that seems to bemuse Zestial as they walk together. He even overinflated himself at the Overlord meeting, stating that Carmilla and the others must be wondering where he's been (only for her to assure him... not really.).

Then let's get to the meat and potatoes. Dad Beat Dad. Episode Five has Lucifer, a source of DEFINITE power and status show up at the hotel and Alastor's first move is to establish himself as the heart of the hotel and why it's going to be successful. Sure, he doesn't like Lucifer, but he's the one swinging first. He moves in quickly to show everyone he can stand toe to toe with the literal King of Hell, to show that he's just as powerful. He is, isn't he? When Mimzy interrupts the song and the situation, he again plays it cool (especially around someone who knew him in his human life) but Husker can quickly spot that Alastor is thrown off. But again, Alastor keeps up appearances, threatens and mistreats Husker (how lovely, haha, it's like all the Overlords are bastards), and reasserts himself as soon as the loan sharks show up to show off his power.

"It's time to remind everyone of why I'm here."

And let's hop to the Finale where he's so (rather easily) defeated by Adam. Adam even breaks the source of his power, his microphone, the object that gives Alastor his voice. And Alastor, defeated, flees. On TV, on all of Vox's cameras. No wonder Alastor is having a breakdown in the final song! Everyone saw him, supposedly one of the more powerful, mysterious and infallible Overlords, get beaten so thoroughly and flee. It was a good day for the Vees/Vox is what I'm saying.

Okay, I tried to cover everything about Alastor's vulnerable moments. So what does this mean about him and I what I think his future arc is about?

Well, I think S2 will dive more into his backstory, who is truly is and what he wants. Ah yes. What does Alastor want? If the last song is anything to go by, he wants to be the one "who's pulling all the strings". But what does that mean for him? To be in charge and in control of Hell? To kill and slaughter as he pleases? I certainly couldn't say... yet.

But Alastor is scared. He's vulnerable. He's insecure. We can joke all we like about how blatant Vox is about how insecure about power he and the Vees are, but Alastor is just a different side of the same coin. Unlike Vox, however, he's just better at hiding it. I once saw a post about how The Vees are all talk behind flashy things that show off their power while Alastor and his actions prove he's the real deal. But as Husk says, he's on a leash too. He's putting on just as much of a front.

Oh yes. I think S2 of Hazbin Hotel will bring Alastor to new and different lows with himself now that's S1 has established the cracks among his surface. I think we'll see Alastor getting more desperate to reassert and reassure his power to others while also juggling whatever affection he feigns for Charlie (which might not be entirely fake... it seems some true affection may be leaking in).

Let's go back to Vox and the Vees for a second as well. It's no secret that the Vees are slated to the big villains of next season, in particular, Vox (who is noted to be much more manipulative and smart than he appears). And it's clear Alastor and Vox have a deep kind of history together that illuminates their knowledge of each other. After all, Alastor is perceptive and bold to proclaim that Vox wouldn't be anything without his reliance on Valentino and Velvette, something Vox immediately denied. We can joke about Vox having the homoerotic obsession and pining for Alastor while the radio demon clearly never felt the same, but I'd wager that Vox knows Alastor quite well too...after all, what was the final line in Episode Two?

"You'll have to do better than that, *old pal*!"

Vox and Alastor have a defined history and you can bet, we're gonna have major revelations about that and Alastor's first moves down in Hell too. Whether that'll all come out in S2 though? Who's to say? I can't see the future.

Alright, that's about all my thoughts on the larger scope of Alastor's arc and what I think we will see. Here's a few smaller questions/thoughts I have:

-Perhaps Alastor's asexual identity will be brought more into the forefront as he seemed partially unaware of it when Rosie brought it up. Of course, he could simply be confused at her joke. The old timer! XD But I think it would be interesting to explore it. So much of the Ace community adores Alastor, so it's something I wonder about.

-In Episode Two, Valentino says something akin to "Someone who owes us much more than money... the radio demon is there..." with a chuckle. It's a small line, but I wonder what Val believes Alastor owes them. Noticeably both Val and Vox have broken antenna. Clearly, the two have been through something together, and a good bet I have is that Alastor may just be to blame.

-Alastor and Charlie. He muscled his way in to becoming this manipulative influence in Charlie's world, now he's gotta sit with the consequences with his new adopted daughter figure. Haha! I do think there's a lot showing that despite his intentions, Alastor is definitely fond of Charlie. He's using her but he's also reaching out (sometimes literally in the case of offering his mic to her in Ep 7) and giving her a more powerful voice.

- Husker and Niffty. We saw how Husker fell into Alastor's clutches and it's clear Husk despises him for how he's treated and bonds with Angel for his abuse under Val. But we don't know the story about Niffty and how she came to work under Alastor or what their history is. They seem to have a friendlier relationship than Husk does with Alastor, but this could just be because of their similar bloodlust and intensity/whimsy. I wonder if we'll get more of these complicated relationships in S2.

Alrighty, that's everything I can put into the conversations on Alastor and where his character goes from here. Tl;dr: He's powerful, but not infallible, and he's putting on a front, and I think he will get his shit wrecked in S2 quite a bit! I'm so excited! Whoohoooo! More vulnerable Alastor!