"Pilot"
Helluva Boss episode
Left to right:
Millie, Moxxie, Blitzo, Loona in a meeting
Directed byVivienne Medrano[1]
Rick Zieff
Written byVivienne Medrano
Brandon Rogers
Editing byNico Colaleo
Original air datesNovember 25, 2019 (2019-11-25) (English)[2]
September 16, 2020 (2020-09-16) (French)[3]
Running time11 minutes

The pilot episode of the American animated television sitcom Helluva Boss was written by series creators Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano and Brandon Rogers, and directed by Medrano and Rick Zieff. The short film premiered to YouTube on November 25, 2019. The pilot had mostly positive receptions, and has been viewed over 53 million times,[4] leading Medrano to expand Helluva Boss into a full show.

Set in the same fictional universe as Medrano's show Hazbin Hotel,[5] the pilot introduces protagonists, the employees of the imp-run assassination company I.M.P (Immediate Murder Professionals): Blitzo, the titular boss;[6] his daughter, hellhound receptionist Loona; weapons experts Moxxie; and his wife, Millie, a bruiser, and follows them as they attempt to drum up business for their company.[2]

Plot

Blitzo (pronounced "Blitz") the imp runs an assassination company with three other demons: his daughter Loona, and married couple Moxxie and Millie. Their company takes clients from Hell who want to have people killed on Earth. They are shown discussing various ways to get more clients for their business, and reminiscing on past missions. One mission is shown to have gone wrong, with Moxxie accidentally shooting the wrong target, a young boy, before taking the critically injured boy back to Hell. The four demons argue over various issues taking place in the company, including Loona's apathy to her fellow coworkers, and Blitzo's tendency to stalk Moxxie and Millie outside of work. It is additionally established that the method the imps use to reach Earth is a portal created by a grimoire owned by Stolas, a Goetial demon of Hell, whom Blitzo stole the book from after the two had a one night stand. The episode ends with Loona receiving a text from a client, stating that the young boy was the right target all along. The four demons kill the boy, and reconcile their issues with one another while dismembering and disposing of his body.

Production and release

The popularity and success of the pilot for Hazbin Hotel permitted Medrano to develop another pilot for a separate series set in the same fictional universe to premiere that same year,[6] ultimately entitled Helluva Boss.[7][8] The pilot was cast by voice actor Kellen Goff, and voice directed by Medrano and Rick Zieff. It was storyboarded by Samantha Ames, Amanda Heard, Amy Heard, and Lidia Liu.[9] It was edited by Nico Colaleo. The pilot was released on Medrano's YouTube channel on November 25, 2019.[10][11] An extended music video of the song "Oh Millie", featured in the pilot during a flashback and over the closing credits, was released on February 14, 2020.[12] Additionally, a French dub of the pilot was released on September 16, 2020.[3]

Reception

Critical reception

Mercedes Milligan of Animation Magazine lauded the episode's "devilishly twisted comic tone", calling it "wildly popular" and "an overnight sensation".[9] Reuben Baron of Comic Book Resources noted the episode's "warranted criticism" from its "edgy" humor, while also praising it as a "clear labor of love from an animation standpoint".[13] Hope Mullinax of The Geeky Waffle similarly complimented the episode's "rewatchable" nature as "a solid introduction" to its characters, concluding by describing it as "a great time and a fantastic start to this well-built world" and "an excellent introduction to how each [character] functions within the narrative".[14] Mark Radulich of W2Mnet and Katya Stec of All Ages of Geek independently praised the pilot as "worth watching."[15][16]

Fiction Talk described the pilot of Helluva Boss as having created the expectation of "a Phineas and Ferb-esque show [with] a very mild plot [and] held together by good comedy, and amusing characters [who] didn’t need motivation that could be taken seriously because no one else seemed to do that."[17] Similarly, Ephrom Josine of Medium criticized the pilot for not "do[ing] a very good job [with its] characters, describing them as feeling "like one person chopped up a bunch of times in order to make it so the show isn't just some guy talking to himself. Any real differences between each demon is shown way too fast for my brain to have time to get anything out of it," before positively concluding that "if you like slice-of-life style comedies I would recommend giving Helluva Boss a shot".[18] Joker on the Sofa also praised how "[a] lot of the humor [comes] from the fact that [the main characters] are basically a massively dysfunctional family", similarly praising the "likewise over-the-top [and] exaggerated qualities" of the pilot's supporting characters, and both the "ridiculous ultraviolence that regularly ensues and the dark jokes that come from it", concluding by calling it "consistently hilarious".[19]

Expansion to web series

Following the pilot's positive critical reception, Medrano wrote eight episodes for a first season with Brandon Rogers.[9] The series was released to YouTube as a web series with Erica Lindbeck and Brock Baker replaced in their respective roles as Millie and Stolas by Vivian Nixon and Bryce Pinkham respectively, although Lindbeck would continue to voice Loona.[14] The series was critically acclaimed, and after completing its first season, was renewed for a second, third, and fourth season. In November 2023, Medrano stated the pilot was "not functionally canon" to the later series.[20]

References

  1. ↑ "Helluva Boss (2019)". Letterboxd. November 25, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2019. Starring the incredible talents of Brandon Rogers, Richard Horvitz, Erica Lindbeck, and Brock Baker! In HELL, imps are the lowest of the low in society, but what happens when one starts an assassin business? This happens! Follow Blitzo (the 'o' is silent) as he attempts to run a startup killing company in a very competitive market, along with his weapons specialist Moxxie, his powerhouse Millie, and his receptionist hellhound Loona. With the help of an ancient book obtained by one of the princes of Hell, they manage to make their work possible and together they attempt to survive each other while trying to keep their business afloat. Bad Language warning! Not meant for kids or probably some people! All demons welcome though!
  2. 1 2 Medrano, Vivienne (November 25, 2019). Helluva Boss (Pilot). VivziePop. Retrieved November 25, 2019 – via YouTube.
  3. 1 2 Medrano, Vivienne (September 16, 2020). Helluva Boss (Pilot): French. VivziePop. Retrieved September 16, 2020 – via YouTube.
  4. ↑ "Helluva Boss (2019) directed by Vivienne Medrano". Letterboxd. November 14, 2019. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  5. ↑ 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 [as Hazbin Hotel] is Helluva Boss (2019), a short (11 minutes) animated web-film.
  6. 1 2 Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano [@SpindleHorse] (November 14, 2019). "Blitz[o] was being developed during the making of this Hazbin [Hotel] scene! Fun to see what his design turned into" (Tweet). Archived from the original on November 20, 2020 – via Twitter.
  7. ↑ Bermudez, Lucas (August 12, 2020). "A24 Is Bringing Controversial Demon Cartoon Hazbin Hotel to TV". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  8. ↑ Dumas, Zoe (July 2, 2023). "How Does Helluva Boss Replace Hazbin Hotel?". MovieWeb. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 "'Hazbin Hotel' creator Vivziepop teams with Horseless Cowboy on devilishly twisted 'Helluva Boss'". Animation Magazine. October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  10. ↑ Troup, Margaret (August 12, 2020). "'Hazbin Hotel' picked up as a full series after fans petition". Iowa State Daily. Archived from the original on August 15, 2020. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  11. ↑ Kachel, Brendan (June 30, 2023). "'Helluva Boss' Season 1 episodes ranked". FurteanTimes.com/Flayrah. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  12. ↑ Medrano, Vivienne (February 14, 2020). Oh Millie (Official Music Video) – Helluva Boss. VivziePop. Retrieved February 14, 2020 – via YouTube.
  13. ↑ Baron, Reuben (December 2, 2019). "Adult Animation Is Better Than Ever – So Why Does It Draw Ridicule?". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on December 2, 2019. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  14. 1 2 Mullinax, Hope (June 24, 2023). "Helluva Boss Episode Review: Pilot". The Geeky Waffle. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  15. ↑ Radulich, Mark (July 10, 2021). "Helluva Boss Review (Pilot–Episode 3, Youtube, 2019)". W2Mnet. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
  16. ↑ Stec, Katya (November 28, 2019). "Squad TV: VivziePop Animation's Helluva Boss Pilot". All Ages of Geek. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  17. ↑ Bale, Boss (November 3, 2020). "Helluva Boss Episode 1 First Impressions". Fiction Talk. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  18. ↑ Josine, Ephrom (November 27, 2019). "My Thoughts On Helluva Boss". Medium. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  19. ↑ Joker on the Sofa (February 4, 2021). "Helluva Boss (Episodes 0–3): This is Damned Funny – YouTube Review". Joker on the Sofa. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  20. ↑ Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano [@SpindleHorse] (November 17, 2023). "I'm confused by that because the pilot is pretty obviously not functionally canon? Is that not obvious by them literally bringing a kid back to hell?? Anyway it's not canon. But it is still a fun pilot I'm so glad I made! Pilots are meant to be a foundation!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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