Spoiler warning
Season 2 of Hazbin Hotel, a well-known animated musical, has recently been released, running from October 29 to November 19th. It continues the story from season one, where the main character, Charlie Morningstar (the daughter of Lucifer and the princess of Hell) tries to redeem sinners in Hell through her Hazbin Hotel. In season one, we saw Charlie and Hell clash with Adam, the first man ever and now an archangel, as they argued over the ethics of Heaven’s annual massacres of sinners. Charlie has a meeting with Heaven’s ruler, a seraphim named Sera, to present her case that sinners can change and eventually be redeemed. She proves that one of her friends and hotel residents, Angel Dust, was able to act like a “winner.” Despite this, Sera does not believe in redemption and sends Charlie back to Hell.
With the next extermination coming soon, Charlie decided to step up and fight back. Her hotel’s manager and the self-proclaimed “strongest sinner” helps her recruit the cannibals by promising they would be able to feast on the angels after the battle. Charlie’s girlfriend and a fallen angel, Vaggie, secures the weapons needed to kill the angels from Carmilla Carmine, the overlord in charge of weapon production. Overlords are especially strong sinners who have great influence over certain parts or populations of Hell. With the help of her friends, allies, and her dad, (a former archangel), the sinners take on the exorcist army and even kill Adam. During the fight, one of the hotel’s residents, Sir Pentious, was killed by Adam, and the season ends with him appearing in Heaven as a winner.
Season two focuses mostly on Vox, Velvette, and Valentino, three overlords who control the entertainment district and are striving for the possibility of taking over Heaven. Previously, we learned that Vox and Alastor, controlling TV and radio respectively, were once old friends but had become bitter rivals. Alastor had made a deal with the cannibal overlord, Rosie, to be the strongest sinner in Hell in exchange for his soul, and he has been looking for a way out of it. He comes up with the plan to make a deal with Vox, agreeing to be his prisoner as long as Vox does not “put his hands on Miss Morningstar.” Vox celebrates this victory, because it gave him the support to convince the sinners of Hell to start an uprising against Heaven. However, as Vox’s power grows, his friendship and alliance with the other Vees are tested, with him being selfish and only acting nice when he needs something. Later on, when Heaven comes down to apologize for the exterminations, Vox uses it as propaganda, claiming Heaven believes sinners’ words were worth nothing more than gift baskets. This causes the angels to return and prepare for war, leaving Charlie feeling defeated. Alastor then asks Charlie to call Vox the strongest sinner in Hell, and when she does, Vox puts his hands on her shoulders. These acts break the 2 deals that Alastor had made that restricted him—one with Rosie and the other with Vox. Freed from his restrictions, Alastor goes to fight Vox. As Vox begins to lose, he goes berserk, destroying a large portion of the Pentagon, where sinners lived. Valentino stops him and plans to fly off with the other Vees, but is injured in the process, preventing them from fleeing.
Meanwhile in Heaven, Sera is conflicted about what to do, as she had permitted the mass extinctions upon sinners when they could have been redeemed. Sir Pentious helps her, saying everyone makes mistakes and that repentance starts with an apology. Sera decides to hold off on war unless Vox decides to attack them, giving another seraphim, Emily, a chance to make peace with Hell. Emily goes down to Hell, and when Vox is destroying the Pentagon, helps Charlie rescue the sinners caught in the crossfire. In the process, one of her wings is destroyed. After Valentino defeats Vox, Emily attempts to use her power to dismantle a machine used during the battle that was going to explode and destroy everything around it. Charlie and the other overlords join her, as they are the only ones who possess the power to dismantle the machine. The end is a sort of “the power of friendship” moment, as everyone sings together about hope. Essentially, season one’s theme was redemption and season two’s was identity, according to Vivziepop.
Now, what are we to expect for season three? According to the creator of the show, Viziepop, season three is set to release in about one and a half years. Additionally, since season two ended with Charlie receiving a call from her mother, Lilith, who has been missing for seven years, we are expecting season three’s main theme to be family and to go over Lucifer, Charlie, and Lilith’s dynamics. Overall, Hazbin Hotel covers themes highlighting the value of friends, family, and much more. If you have spare time on your hands and want to watch a funny and compelling show, consider Hazbin Hotel.
