Helluva Boss is an American adult animatedmusicalcomedyweb series created by Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano. It revolves around the misadventures of the employees of I.M.P., a company in Hell that offers hitman services in the realm of the living. The pilot was released on November 25, 2019,[1] while the first episode of the first season was released on October 31, 2020.[2] Set in the same fictional universe as Hazbin Hotel,[3] the show is produced by SpindleHorse Toons. The first season was released exclusively on Medrano's YouTube channel,[4][5] as she has done for other animations.[6][7] The second season premiered on July 30, 2022.[8] On March 27, 2023, the show was confirmed to be renewed for a third season, in active production.[9] On April 26, 2024, a spin-off short series of Helluva Boss titled Helluva Shorts was announced at LVLUP Expo, with the first short being released on the same day.[10]
Premise
The series follows the employees of I.M.P (Immediate Murder Professionals), an imp-run assassination company in Hell, on their many different jobs.[11][12] The members of I.M.P include Blitzo (pronounced "Blitz"), the boss of the venture, along with weapons specialist Moxxie, powerhouse Millie, and receptionist hellhound Loona. With the help of an ancient book obtained from Stolas, a Goetial demon of Hell, they access the human world to complete their tasks on order from souls in Hell.
The show features a different cast of characters and a different storyline than Hazbin Hotel, another show created by Medrano, despite taking place within the same universe.[13] As Medrano described it, while both shows share the same setting, Helluva Boss follows "characters and societies that already exist in Hell", with the main focus being on interpersonal relationships between characters, while Hazbin Hotel is about redemption and consequences.[14][15]
The pilot of Helluva Boss was cast by voice actor Kellen Goff and voice directed by Medrano and Rick Zieff. In June 2019, Medrano stated that she was working with Erica Lindbeck, Brock Baker, and Brandon Rogers on a "new project".[18] The company Horseless Cowboy assisted Medrano with voice work during the first season, with Richard Horvitz and Medrano voice directing.[19] Lucas Bermudez of Screen Rant attributed the success of Hazbin Hotel as the sole reason for Helluva Boss being greenlit.[20] At some point, Rogers asked Jinkx Monsoon to voice a character in Helluva Boss, but Monsoon wanted to voice "stock characters" instead, so they did so, voicing various background and one-off characters in the show's first season.[21]
On November 25, 2019, the pilot was released on Medrano's YouTube channel.[22][23] Medrano contributed her writing and animation skills to the episode. Writing production for more episodes began in December 2019, with 8 episodes ordered.[19] In August 2020, the recording for the first eight episodes of season 1 was completed, and Lucas Bermudez of Screen Rant predicted that more episodes of Helluva Boss would be released to YouTube "as a web series" because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[20]
On October 31, 2020, the first episode of season 1 was released. In the episode, Rogers and Horvitz return as Blitzo and Moxxie, and while Lindbeck returns as Loona, she is replaced by Vivian Nixon as the voice of Millie. Baker was replaced by Bryce Pinkham as Stolas. Guest stars of the episode include Monsoon, Mara Wilson, and Maxwell Atoms. On January 31, 2021, the third episode of the series was age-restricted by YouTube.[24] In response, entertainment site Newgrounds offered to host an uncensored version of the episode and promote it with "a front page banner", something which Medrano expressed interest in.[25] The episode's age restriction was lifted the next day.
In September 2021, Medrano spoke on a virtual stage at the Animation Exposé of the Ottawa International Animation Festival about creating Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss.[26][27] She was joined by Bryan Dimas, the associate producer of development at Warner Bros. Animation and co-director of a group called LatinX in Animation.[28][29]
In February 2022, the official Helluva Boss Twitter account stated that the season one finale would be out "soon" but that it was taking longer than expected, and noted that season two was in production.[30] On June 3, 2022, the Helluva Boss Twitter account released an update after the final episode of season 1 was delayed, and the series would instead be moving forward with season 2. The original season 1 finale was released a year later on June 24, 2023.[31] The second season premiered on July 30, 2022.[32] The series has included celebrities such as Kesha, Norman Reedus, Mara Wilson, Alex Brightman, and others as guest stars.[33][34] On March 27, 2023, the show was confirmed to be renewed for a third season, in active production.[9] On May 25, 2023, Medrano stated that the series was planned to be "a very set 4 season story".[35] On July 31, 2023, VivziePop posted titles for the upcoming episodes for season 2 on Twitter.[36]
LGBTQ+ representation
Helluva Boss has various LGBTQ+ characters, specifically Moxxie, who is bisexual, and Blitzo, who is pansexual.[37][38] Another character, Stolas, is queer due to his relations with both men and women.[38][39] The episode "The Harvest Moon Festival" introduced the character Sallie May, Millie's sister, who was confirmed on the show's official Twitter account to be transgender,[37][38] and by her voice actor to be lesbian.[40]
Reception
Helluva Boss was met with critical acclaim for its animation, characters, voice acting, songs, and humor. In December 2019, in an article about the current state of adult animation, CBR animation critic Reuben Baron stated that, while the pilot episode of Helluva Boss has garnered "warranted criticism" because of its "edgy" humor, it is still a "clear labor of love from an animation standpoint".[41] Another reviewer, also for CBR, Morgan Shaunette, described the series as "underrated", said that it is a "twisted take on the workplace comedy", and called it a "helluva strange ride".[42] Tito W. James' of Comicon.com stated that demons having access to a portal that connects to the human realm "adds a new dynamic and is ripe for narrative potential".[43] Jones also said that he was impressed with the quality of the series and stated that "other animated adult comedies should take notes".[44]
Margaret Troup of the Iowa State Daily stated that there are "multiple musical numbers in each episode", similar to Animaniacs and Family Guy, and although the second episode was more serious than previous episodes, there were still plenty of "laughs and raunchy jokes".[12] The same was said about the show's third episode, which one reviewer said had other types of humor like "fourth-wall breaking and blink-and-you-miss-it sight-gags".[45] Zoe Dumas of MovieWeb argued that the series has "emotionally complex" characters, a talented and musical voice cast, and "outstanding" animation.[37] Dumas also argued that the series is "more episodic and character-driven" than Hazbin Hotel, while complimenting the latter.[46] Joshua S. Mackey for Into praised the series for having "three different queer main characters".[38]
Fandom
Animation Magazine reported that the pilots of Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss had been, collectively, viewed over 65 million times by October 7, 2020. It referred to Helluva Boss as "wildly popular" and an "overnight sensation".[47] Others called the series a "YouTube hit".[26]
In February 2021, Medrano told Insider that Helluva Boss remains independent of Hazbin Hotel, stating she intends to keep it that way "as long as the audience wants to keep seeing it", adding that she has "a plan for where the story goes and ends". It also states that she has "carved out a niche for adult animation on the platform".[24] In 2023, scholar Ben Mitchell described the series as "sensationally popular" and an effective use of Patreon to subsidize the show's art "through monthly tiered payments".[48] Zoe Dumas of MovieWeb described the series as a "wild success" with a "superb voice cast".[37]
^Pearce, Steven "SP" (August 12, 2020). "Hazbin Hotel". The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Archived from the original on August 10, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2020. Also set in the same universe is Helluva Boss (2019), a short (11 minutes) animated web-film.
^Crusch, Marley (December 13, 2020). "Hazbin Hotel Panel Recap". Bubble Blabber. Archived from the original on December 14, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
