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Vivienne Medrano’s Helluva Boss is a much more frantic, antic adult animated series than its sibling program, Hazbin Hotel. While they’re both revved-up, high-energy shows, full of dark comic elements and surprisingly deep emotion, Helluva Boss is more episodic and often more lightweight, with individual installments still carrying a larger plotline forward, but a lot of the action centering on in-the-moment hyperactive fun.
That initially seems to be what’s going on in season 2’s Halloween episode, “Ghostf**ers,” until the intense horror imagery kicks in. In the series’ most startling and frightening chapter to date, protagonist Blitzø (series co-writer Brandon Rogers), a hypersexual imp running a planar-hopping assasination-for-hire company out of Hell, attempts to gloss over an emotional breakdown by, as the title implies, trying to have sex with a ghost. That project does not go well.
Blitzø (“the O is silent,” he tells everyone he meets) has recently been dumped by demon lord Stolas (Bryce Pinkham), who Blitzø claimed he was only hooking up with to gain access to powerful magic. The breakup reverses their normal dynamic: The relationship has always been on Blitzø’s terms. Stolas’ sudden refusal to accept a connection based on grudging, contemptuous scraps of affection has pushed Blitzø toward facing the guilt, shame, and self-loathing that made him treat Stolas so badly in the first place.
But Blitzø has always resisted self-examination or confronting his own fears, so when a new client claims she was “killed by the evil ghost haunting a spooky hotel” and demands vengeance, Blitzø decides to emulate Ghostf**ers, the trashy human reality show he’s been binging, and go try to bang the ghost.
Instead, he’s haunted by a series of terrifying, disintegrating avatars of his own guilt. Transgressive comedy around sex and violence is a big part of Helluva Boss’ standard playbook. But this episode stands out both in terms of terror and crudity. Rogers’ script works through a full thesaurus-worth of words for coitus and every possible sexual organ, as Blitzø describes what he wants to do to sluice away his depression via erotic fantasy.
Image: SpindlehorseHelluva Boss centers on murderous demons in Hell, but it’s rarely dark and almost never scary. This installment just shows how much potential the adult comedy has as a horror show. The “ghost” imagery is confrontational and grotesque, with strong body-horror vibes. The emotional tenor is painful and personal. It’s a helluva standout for a helluva show.
“Ghostf**ers” isn’t a great starting point for the series — it leans too much on the relationships the characters have built over the past season and a half. And as a major turning point for the overarching story, it’s an episode new viewers shouldn’t jump ahead to watch, because of the spoilers involved. But it’s the one episode fans should most want to revisit during spooky season, both for the scares involved, and for a reminder of what Helluva Boss looks like at its grimmest, ugliest, and best.
Where to watch: Helluva Boss is streaming on Medrano’s YouTube channel (free, where it originated) and on Prime Video.
Polygon's annual Halloween Countdown is a 31-day run of short recommendations of the best horror movies, shows, TV episodes, and online specials to stream for the Halloween season. You can find the entire calendar here.
