Vox, Velvette, and Angelic Steel: An Overanalysis of Five Seconds
Posting this because I haven't seen anybody mention it yet amid the flood of Radiostatic speculation - but I think it is interesting, so here we go!
In Episode 3 of Season 2 of Hazbin Hotel, we saw Vox predictably being an absolute dickbag to everyone in the hotel, especially Angel Dust. It gets so bad that even Charlie breaks down and tells him and Velvette that they have to leave - and when Vox pushes back, Vaggie whips out her angelic steel spear for emphasis:
"Now she's uninviting you."
Angelic steel has been shown to be the one thing (aside from Adam's holy laser beams) that can send demons to double-death forever. Its deadliness has ben emphasized mere moments prior with the train setup Charlie created in an effort to redeem Angel Dust, which led to this very moment. Yet here Vox has said angelic steel pointing straight at his chest, and he doesn't react.
Overconfidence? Carelessness? Or as a being that can turn into electricity, can he just not be killed in conventional ways? For what it's worth, Velvette doesn't seem nervous for him either.
What's interesting, though, is what happens when Vaggie trains that angelic steel on Velvette when she speaks up seconds later:
Vox is moving instantly, before Velvette barely has time to react to having this weapon thrust in her face - something that obviously disturbs her in a way that it didn't disturb Vox. Meanwhile, Vox intercepts the spear with one hand and reaches around Velvette with the other, then pushes the spear out of the way:
For a moment, she gives him an interesting look, one that might be confusion, upset that Vox is taking charge and touching her, or something else entirely. But she soon shifts her focus, as after this change in target on Vaggie's part, Vox folds immediately:
"Fine! We have a reservation at Dante's Inferno anyway."
And then he keeps both hands on the spear and on Velvette, respectively, until she is out of range:
Maybe Vox has no heart for angelic steel to break, but this is not the action of someone who is completely careless. Even though I fully believe Vox will neglect or otherwise abandon the other Vees later in the season, he has some reason to care for Velvette enough here to act very differently to her apparent peril than his own. And for some reason, Charlie seems surprised. I have no idea whether she's clocking this too - it seems a bit deep for her character in this moment - but if she does, perhaps it informs her response to the final question Vox asks immediately after this exchange:
"I believe anyone can be redeemed."
Now, that was my favorite question in this entire episode drop....but more on that later.