What are your thoughts on shadowpeach?
Fandom wise? I do not care for it.
Canon wise? I believe in men committing crimes while forming the most toxic, unhealthy attachments to one person could lead to such a dysfunctional relationship that it, eventually, turns into a functional one. And also they’re trans and aspec.
Disclaimer: this is all my opinion and people can do whatever they want, i simply have my gripes with some of the fandom stuff. this is just me explaining what i like and dislike about shadowpeach.
I think the most common thing people fall into when it comes to ships—or shipping in general—is how to domesticate these two characters without fully addressing their flaws, personalities, behavior, and their overall choices throughout the original media/show they come from.
Macaque and SWK both suffer equally through this mischaracterization: Macaque is often painted as this shy or “edgy” character with little to no ties to his actual character in canon and, more often than not, he is perceived as this “dad” type of character when, in fact, he should not be allowed near children for I fear he will bully them nonstop until they sit there in the corner feeling disheartened and miserable about themselves; Sun Wukong is often portrayed as this dumb himbo with little-to-no means of understanding social cues, not understanding emotions in a way that’s very frustrating, and be this yearning, pining idiot who’s still longing for his childhood crush when he did not hesitate to punch this guy in the face multiple times throughout the show. So when they are paired up together it’s this weird mash of people believing Macaque is the better dad with more understanding of human behavior and Wukong is his dumb, doting husband who’s doing his best and cannot stand up for himself when confronted about things.
The amount of times people choose to make Macaque sympathetic by having Sun Wukong’s family side with Macaque when it comes to Wukong’s actions/choices is so vast I could not count them all on one hand. The common trope of having Princess Iron Fan (Sun Wukong’s sister-in-law) become Macaque’s sworn sister is so disheartening to see for someone who read through Journey To The West and thought of how silly the overall family dynamic of the Demon Bull Family and Sun Wukong’s troops was. Removing Iron Fan as Sun Wukong’s literal sister just to have someone backup Macaque and sympathize with him is funny and a bit silly.
That being said… the canon version of Shadowpeach and its possibilities are, in fact, very delicious.
Canon wise this is what we know about Sun Wukong and Macaque’s history together:
Sun Wukong and Macaque meet
The brotherhood is formed after Azure meets Sun Wukong, Macaque tags along with Wukong (note: Macaque is not addressed as “brother” by the characters, only Wukong is)
Macaque tries to warn Wukong about how dealing with Heaven might be a bad idea
They share a peach under a tree; Wukong reassures Macaque this plan will work
Wukong carries on with Azure’s plan anyway (yes, azure lion’s plan, not wukong’s)
The brotherhood is defeated and Wukong gets trapped under a mountain
Presumably no one comes to visit Wukong, only Macaque
During his final visit, Wukong is angry that Macaque is free and can’t see the fact that Wukong was trying to do everything for them and his kingdom
Macaque snaps back at Wukong and calls him an obsessive demon before leaving
They have another fallout and fight
Wukong ends up killing Macaque in the aftermath
500~ years later, Macaque and Wukong fight again with Wukong being more apathetic towards their reunion than Macaque is
Macaque obsesses over Wukong continuously (coughs)
Macaque is biased in his retellings of his and Wukong’s relationship (see: all of shadowplay and the scrolls memories)
They fight (again) throughout S3
They somewhat reconcile by the end of S4
We will address the fact Sun Wukong was groomed into going to war by this former celestial warrior instead of having it be because of his own want to protect his family and friends after Heaven refused to pay him the respect he wanted when he first joined their ranks later. Right now we focus on the fact that Sun Wukong is canonically a person people easily fall in love with (platonically) and have a tendency to want to stay close to regardless of what his future actions will be like and Macaque is sequentially obsessed with him throughout the show.
“The hero and the warrior were like the Sun and the Moon. Their light, a protective glow, shining upon the world. Together, there was nothing that could stop the two of them. Either in the Celestial Realms or on Earth. As time went on, the hero attained power beyond comprehension. As the hero's light grew, so too did his shadow. And soon, the warrior was cast in that shadow. In the darkness, the warrior was forgotten by the hero.”
Fun fact: Macaque is never going to be on par with Sun Wukong’s power and he works best as support than he does a duo-attacker along side Wukong. Wukong is on his own power level and Macaque, while being able of holding his own against enemies, could be stomped to death by Xiaoijiao is he crossed the line.
Macaque’s obsession with Sun Wukong comes from the inability to move on from the past; Macaque wanting things to go back as they were is a subtle theme going through the show — he keeps latching on to biased memories and avoiding the actual problems that caused their relationship to fall apart and it isn’t until Season 3’s big confrontation with Long Xiaojiao’s Samadhi Fire ritual. He realizes he abandoned Wukong during a time of need and proceeds to flee, abandoning him again.
Macaque has issues. More often than not people call out on Sun Wukong for abandoning Xiaotian or the Monkie Kid Crew all while ignoring the fact Sun Wukong does not purposefully leave Qi Xiaotian, he tries his hardest to make it back in time and is visibly scared/horrified when LBD attacks in his absence. Sun Wukong tries his hardest to comfort Xiaotian while Macaque tries to torment him.
Regardless, Sun Wukong and Macaque’s relationship is unique to most media’s portrayal of friends turned enemies. Because Wukong does not see Macaque as a threat up until he teams up with Lady Bone Demon — he is only scary by association, not by anything he has done up until that point. You can tell with the way Wukong mocks him and calls him something akin to a puppet during their interaction in Season 3 when Macaque trapped him and Nezha in the ice.
And even then Macaque doesn’t even bother trying to engage with Wukong in a friendly manner because kindness is for losers HA i’m not apologizing for anything, bye Sun Wukong, you big old LOSER [proceeds to possibly live on the streets and stay homeless until wukong allows him to return to ffm under certain house rules]
You’ll notice that Sun Wukong barely has any opinions on Macaque.
This is because Macaque is favored by the narrative more than Sun Wukong is so we have very little context as to how Sun Wukong genuinely feels towards Macaque.
Sun Wukong sees Macaque as an annoyance, a bother, a threat, a coward, an imposter and then, finally, an ally.
But all we get from that is Wukong handing Macaque a peach-flavored ice cream pop as a parallel to him sharing a peach with his old friend back when they were young monkeys before he was trapped under a mountain for 500 years as a result of his abuser’s power hold on him that forced him to fight heaven as a way to “make the world a better place”.
We love to see it.
Macaque and Wukong’s relationship goes from mutual interest and a supportive friendship established years prior to the original building of the brotherhood to a very weird, uncategorized type of dynamic. The only way to characterize Sun Wukong’s “affection” towards Macaque is, possibly, the same way most people would characterize Macaque to be towards Wukong. Y’know the slightly judgmental actions and eye rolls and scoffs of affection most people write about Macaque when Wukong does something stupid? Yeah.
“But Macaque said “this guy” when Wukong was presenting his plan to defeat Azure—“ yeah have you considered Wukong does a lot of masking in the presence of the entire Monkie Kid Crew and Macaque has a tendency to present himself as this cool persona when in fact he’s just a homeless monkey who’s been crashing on his ex’s couch for the past weeks since the ending of Season 3?
“OK…. but why QPR Shadowpeach?”
Sun Wukong throughout the course of Journey to the West and all its past and future iterations have always had him be uninterested in both men and women. There are multiple instances where he’s capable of courting women and he instead backs away or does not pay it any mind; aside from this he’s heavily implied to only care about familial love and friendships. He does not see his pilgrim brothers as anything more than family and he views Tripitaka as a mentor rather than someone whom he was chained to. And Azure was his idol and he was groomed by him, and everyone else was viewed to him as a troop — or, y’know, a family.
This and the fact that— both Sun Wukong and Macaque are over a thousand years old. Why on earth would they have a normal type of relationship? Giving them a checklist of what passes on as romantic and platonic when to them the line is so blurred it’s barely existent to them is amusing.
Sun Wukong and Macaque having their own weird relationship where it changes from frustrated best friends to partners to angry middle aged demons to the tired traumatized immortals who sometimes cuddle while still beating each other up is so deliciously interesting and unhealthy to the point where it is healthy.
Also Celestial bodies are not the same as mortal bodies; canonically Sun Wukong has transformed into women before and people have addressed him with female-leaning pronouns before. my personal headcanon of sun wukong being genderfluid lves on and now we can have sapphic shadowpeach with transfem macaque.
also im still feverish so if this doesnt make sense then too bad damn im sorry
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Sins, Virtues, and Motivations: A Critical Analysis of Characters in Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
In this essay, I will argue that each demon brother some of the demon brothers can be associated with a sin (no duh), a virtue, and a core motivation--and that this motivation is best pursued through a synthesis of that sin and that virtue. Hegel would be very proud. Yes, this is critical media analysis. No, I will not try to explain the twisted, broken path that led me to this point in my life.
I will be looking at Lucifer, Mammon, and Levi in this study. Their core sins are obvious - Pride, Greed, and Envy. Their accompanying Virtues and Motivations are listed below.
I used the Seven Heavenly Virtues for this little game. These are Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance, Faith, Hope, and Charity.
They should not be confused with the Seven Capital Virtues, which are inversions of the Seven Deadly Sins. These are Humility, Charity, Kindness, Patience, Chastity, Temperance, and Diligence. I tried these first and damn were none of them easy to match up. Tell me, fandom for this mobile game designed for players to lust over hot demon men, which brother should have the "chastity" virtue?
Lucifer
Core Sin: Pride.
Core Virtue: Fortitude.
Core Motivation: To protect his family.
Lucifer's core motivation is to protect his brothers. He looks at this as a sort of penance for the outcome of the Great Celestial War. He knows that he's the reason they rebelled, and he feels responsible for their wellbeing. He is able to endure the relentless pressure of the responsibilities he puts on himself thanks to his core virtue, fortitude.
Fortitude is strongly associated with courage. Specifically, it is courage in the face of pain and adversity. We see him displaying this trait any time those he cares for are in jeopardy, and it often helps him make difficult decisions where neither outcome is ideal. Lucifer is decisive, canny, and accepts the consequences of his choices, good or bad.
His driving motivation is also bolstered by his core sin: pride. He views himself as ultra-competent, while his brothers consistently make mistakes; beyond that, it's only natural that he take responsibility for the choices of his brothers (like the choice to join him in rebelling) because he is so significant an influence as to virtually rob them of their autonomy.
This has led to Lucifer having a somewhat toxic relationship with his brothers. Lucifer often acts as a parental figure rather than a peer, while the rest of them are all in arrested development of some sort, often acting more like kids than the adults they insist they are.
Lucifer either doesn't recognize that by doing everything for the family on his own, he's stemming their ability to grow and learn, or he does know the consequences of what he's doing and he feels conflicted about it. He ultimately blames himself for the fact that they're all in the Devildom in the first place, living as avatars of sins to the extent that they struggle to function as independent adults.
So, while fortitude and pride allow Lucifer to simulate the act of protecting his family, it's a matter of perspective whether controlling every element of their lives is protection or harmful coddling.
Mammon
Core Sin: Greed.
Core Virtue: Charity.
Core Motivation: To be valued and valuable.
Mammon is simultaneously a vessel of greed and its inverse, charity. This is because his core motivation is twofold, and those are the rewards of greed and charity; to be valued - to fulfill a want, to be desired, to look flippin' cool - and to be valuable - to fulfill a need, to have inherent worth, to serve a purpose.
Setting aside his unhealthy relationship with money, let's examine how Mammon behaves and what his deeper interpersonal motivations tend to be. He clearly places a high value on his brothers and MC, and he has shown on multiple occasions that he is willing to put himself at risk to help or protect them. Early on in both the original game and in NightBringer, Mammon attempts to heroically rescue MC (and his younger brothers, in NightBringer). In both cases, though, Lucifer shows up and does it for him. Mammon's pursuit of his core motivation clashes with Lucifer's quest for his, and Lucifer is strong enough to simply take it from him. Although in NightBringer he and his brothers do earn the not-insubstantial reward of the title "Lords of the Underworld" after Lucifer's rescue, he appeared so dejected by Lucifer's oneupmanship that he spent a good portion of the next day sulking. In the original game, Mammon wants MC to promise that they won't be saved by anyone else besides him in the future. It appears that his greed for an improved status in his interpersonal relationships is left unfulfilled.
Mammon wants to be heroic - to be valuable - and he wants to be admired for it - to be valued. The cognitive dissonance that accompanies motivations like these is all that sustains a person with such a diminished sense of self-worth.
Speaking of a diminished sense of self worth...
Leviathan
Core Sin: Envy.
Core Virtue: Hope.
Core Motivation: To find joy in the things that give him joy.
Confusing motivation? Yes it is. But envy is a confusing sin. All the other sins--pride, greed, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth--are enjoyable to indulge on some level. Losing your temper when you feel you've been wronged, or eating a bunch of delicious food, or sleeping through the snooze alarm: We know why we do those things. We might regret them later, but we indulge them in the moment because of the enjoyable side.
There is nothing enjoyable about envy. Wanting something that isn't yours, that belongs to someone else, be it tangible goods, talents, a partner, a job... is nauseating. And it makes you feel like a bad person, and it drains the joy out of things that you used to love. Speaking from personal experience for a second, when I was a teenager, I played music in a company with a much younger musician who was incredibly talented, and I was deeply envious of her. I wanted her talent; I wanted the praise she received; I wanted to impress people; I wanted what she had. But there was nothing I could do. I hated feeling that way, but I couldn't shake it. And it ate away at my desire to play music. It took the joy out of something that once gave me joy.
You see the connection?
Levi struggles to find pleasure in anything he does, despite how many interests he has, because, in spite of his blustering dismissal of all things "normie", he is deeply envious of those he perceives as his social superiors. Now, I am not in any way saying that Levi is or would be an inc3l, but there's an element of his character that has a strong parallel to inc3l culture. The idea that there is something fundamentally wrong with him that prevents him from achieving what he wants socially and that the only way he can protect himself from those who would ridicule him is with a defensive contempt for the group that rejects him... Does any of that sound familiar?
But Levi is not an inc3l. No, not because you're willing to **** him and his two *****, though I'm sure that helps. It's because he has his core virtue: hope.
Have you ever heard of the black pill? It's kind of like the final stage of inc3l culture, where you accept that you're not an alpha male, you'll never be one, you'll never be accepted by a woman, you're ugly and unloveable, and you might as well just stop existing. It is sheer despair.
Levi maintains hope for the future, even if he prefers not to admit it out of fear of jinxing himself. He is able to form a deep bond with MC, who he views as a "normie", without renouncing his hobbies or being mocked for them. In fact, I would argue that the anxiety Levi sometimes displays over the possibility of being made fun of (for example, in NightBringer when he considers trying out cosplay) is emblematic of the hope he has that he can be accepted.
"But wait, daytaker," you say. "That doesn't sound like he's making progress towards his core motivation of getting joy out of the things that bring him joy! Being self conscious is not joyful!" Well, you're right. What Levi needs is to somehow find the right balance between enjoying his hobbies and allowing himself to enjoy other people as well. As we can see from his effusive excitement in sharing his favorite games and stories with MC and his brothers, the social component of media consumption is a major component in making it enjoyable. If Levi loses hope, he loses that connection to the world offline, and if he loses that connection, he loses the joy.
@blackstqr (I did it.)
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Angel and Alastor: Masquerade
Angel and Alastor are the first two demons to join the Hazbin Hotel, as respectively a guest and a staff member. However, both hide their real motivations and feelings towards the project.
On the one hand Angel deep down wants to change, but is too scared to admit it:
And I know I'm raisin' cane by every highway in Hell
Maybe things won't be so terrible inside this hotel
On the other hand Alastor has ulterior motives, but he has yet to disclose them:
I'm hungry for freedom like never before
The constraints of my deal surely have a back door
In other words, the two demons wear a mask and refuse to reveal their real feelings. This behavior is rooted in two jungian archetypes that can be used to describe Angel and Alastor's parallel arcs.
PERSONA AND SHADOW
According to Jung, the persona and the shadow are two complementary parts of the human mind:
The persona or mask is what lies in the light for others to see. It is what a person shows while interacting with the world.
The shadow or beast is what is hidden in the darkness. It is what a person represses and refuses to reveal to the world.
Both Angel and Alastor wear personas to hide their shadows:
Angel Dust: Oh ho ho, me? Fake? Wow, I had no idea. Guess that's why I'm an actor, dumbass.
Alastor: Just because you see a smile don't think you know what's going on underneath.
However, they are opposites in how they deal with this masquerade.
Angel embodies the persona, as he is linked to masks and lights (he peforms under flashing lights):
He always acts to the point he is trapped in a neverending role:
Angel Dust: It's not an act! It's who I need to be.
So, he doesn't know who he is anymore. Is Angel Dust all there is? Or can Anthony still be found deep down?
Valentino owns Anthony and has forced him in the persona of Angel Dust.
Alastor embodies the shadow, as he is linked to darkness (his powers make use of shadow-creatures):
He represses his feelings behind a smile:
Alastor: A smile is a valuable tool, my dear. It inspires your friends, keeps your enemies guessing, and ensures that no matter what comes your way, you're the one in control.
As a result, his darkest instincts are slowly taking over, making him a threath to both others and himself:
As Alastor hides his true intentions, his shadow grows bigger and more malicious.
The two demons perfectly sum up how dangerous the persona and the shadow can be, if left unchecked:
If one constantly wears a mask, it won't come off and will suffocate the person's self.
If one keeps on repressing their emotions, these feelings will grow stronger and find violent ways to come out.
Angel is a persona stuck to the face, whereas Alastor is a festering shadow.
The two characters' similar and yet opposite archetypes are so intertwined in Angel and Alastor's stories that they emerge in two additional ways.
1- Structurally
Angel is the only supporting character, who gets a whole episode dedicated to himself. He is the protagonist of Masquerade's A plot, whereas Charlie gets the B plot. He steals the spotlight (LIGHT)
Alastor is a character, who is never the protagonist of an episode. He gets development through the B plots, whereas others, like Lucifer, get the A plots. He thrives in the shadows (SHADOW)
2- Through Angel and Alastor's media motifs
PORN STAR AND RADIO DEMON
Angel is an actor, whereas Alastor is a radio host. These two medias tie into both the characters' bonds and identities.
Angel - The porn star
Bonds - In porn movies, actors fake pleasure on camera. Similarly, Angel Dust only knows fake love. He is trapped in unhealthy relationships and lets others exploit him. Be them Valentino or some random dudes in a bar:
Angel Dust: You don't think I can tell if someone spikes my drink? I do this all the fuckin' time!
At the same time, Angel himself approaches everyone in an overly sexual way:
Angel Dust: No activity requires more trust than BDSM, baby. No bond stronger than those formed through bondage!
It is not by chance that he suggests to bond through bondage. It is because for him sex equals bonds. However, this approach makes so he is unable to create genuine romantic relationships.
Identity - To act means to play the part of someone you are not, which is what Angel does all the time:
Husk: I see right through you and all this bullshit and how fake you are.
He hides behind his drag queen character to protect himself:
Angel Dust: Oh, please, baby. This body was made to be exploited. I got the arms, I got the stamina, I got the legs. I got the lung capacity. Oh, I got the legs. The gag reflex, the holes, the chest fluff everyone thinks are tits.
In other words, Angel's life is made of fake relationships (porn) and of a fake self (star). This characterization is perfect for a living persona.
Alastor - The radio demon
Bonds - Alastor's radio podcast is made of the voices of his many victims:
Mimzy: No one knew what happened to 'em, until these strange radio broadcasts started going out. All you could hear were screams. Every time an overlord went missing, there'd be a new voice screaming in the broadcast! That's when Alastor revealed himself as the radio demon, and anyone that would mess with him… well, let's just say, his broadcasts never lacked new voices.
He takes others' voices and souls to grow stronger. At the same time, it is implied Alastor has also the potential to amplify one's voice. This is why he symbolically shares his staff with Charlie and helps her go through to the Cannibals:
This fits the shadow, as this part of the self is simply what a character represses, both positive and negative. Similarly, Alastor can:
Manipulate others' insecurities and take advantage of them
Help others realize their hidden potential, so they can grow
Identity - Radio stars perform only through their voices and have no need to show their face in public. In other words, this media lets people hide in shadows. Similarly, Alastor uses the radio-filter to mask his voice:
Alastor: (with absolutely no static) What just happened? notices broken microphone …fuck.
So, Alastor hides everything of himself, both positive and negative, behind a filter. That is why he is a walking shadow.
Angel and Alastor's medias are important also to explore their relationships with Valentino and Vox.
Valentino is a cinema producer and director. He frames himself as the reason of Angel's success, while profitting of the porn star's acting career (producer). At the same time, he wants to control and direct every part of Angel's life (director). He is Angel's abuser both economically and romantically.
Vox is the TV demon and Alastor's rival. In the real world TV and radio fought to affirm themselves as the preferred media and the former eventually won. Similarly, Vox and Alastor's friendship turned into animosity. In the end, Alastor disappeared and Vox took over. Vox is the future. Alastor is a "has been".
At the same time, Valentino and Vox tie into Angel and Alastor's respective archetypes. In particular:
Valentino is the shadow character that complements Angel's persona symbolism
Vox is the persona character that complements Alastor's sadow symbolism
All these ideas are conveyed by two songs.
POISON AND STAYED GONE
Poison and Stayed Gone are similar in how:
They describe Angel and Alastor's relationship with a Vee
They play with medias (cinema, radio and TV)
They use shadow/light symbolism
Poison - Love potion
Poison describes Angel's bond with Valentino through what is basically a pop music video, which starts like this:
Valentino: And… action.
This is fitting, as Valentino controls Angel from behind the scenes, both as a director (public life) and as an abuser (private life). The song itself is a mix of clips that juxtapose porns and musical routines with scenes of sexual and domestic violence. This choice emphasizes the contrast between performance and reality, as well:
On the one hand Angel happily dances on-stage, enjoys drugs and money. On the other hand he screams in agony, while scared and trapped. At the same time, the lines between appearance and truth grow blurried. Angel is supposedly just filming a porn. However, as the song progresses, the violence becomes real and he is in pain as he is recorded. In the end, it becomes difficult to differentiate what's an act from what's not. Just like Angel struggles to separate his work-life from his personal life, pain from pleasure, persona from self:
I got so good at bein' untrue
I got so good at tellin' you what you wanna hear
I disassociate, disappear
He is untrue because he keeps wearing a persona (mask), which is why the song is full of references to the archetype.
Both in its lyrics:
Another lover underneath those flashin' lights
Another one of those ruthless nights
And in its visuals:
Before the video Angel's wounds are covered by make-up (a mask)
Angel sparkles on screen (light), while he is being dragged away by Valentino
Meanwhile Valentino is directly associated to the shadow:
He is the beast threathening Angel and using the spider demon's worst instincts against him:
Yeah, I know it's poison
You're feedin' me poison
I'm chokin' from the taste and I can't help but swallow
Up your poison
I made my choice, and
Every night I'm wasted like there's no tomorrow
As a matter of fact Valentino encourages Angel's dependance on drugs to better control him. This is why "addiction" becomes a metaphor for his and Angel's relationship:
The red smoke Valentino uses to tie Angel to himself may be the secret ingredient behind the Vee's love potion.
Theirs is an abusive bond, a love potion which poisons Angel's life, but is too irresistible to escape.
Stayed Gone - Radio Killed the Video Star
Stayed Gone shows Vox and Alastor's rivalry through a duet that starts with TV:
Vox: Welcome home
I'm gonna make you wish
That you'd stayed gone
Say hello
To a new status quo
Everyone knows that there's a brand new dawn
Turn the TV on!
And ends with radio:
Alastor: Let's begin…
I'm gonna make you wish
That I'd stayed gone
Tune on in
When I'm done
Your status quo
Will know its race is run
Oh, this will be fun!
An inversion of what happened in the real world, where the superior technology conquered the market. As a matter of fact Vox is supposedly the future, whereas Alastor is "old crap":
Vox: You're looking at the future!
He's the shit that comes before that!
And yet, Alastor wins the confrontation. Why is that so? That has to do with Vox and Alastor's respective jungian archetypes:
Vox is the persona, as TV is a medium where you are asked to show your face on screen and to appear in the light
Alastor is the shadow, as radio is a medium that let's you hide:
While he hid in radio
We pivoted to video
Now his medium is getting bloody rare!
This specific juxtaposition is referenced in the title of the episode itself. As a matter of fact Radio Killed the Video Star is a joke on the famous song Video Killed the Radio Star, whose main thesis was that new technologies like TV would have conquered the show-business and forced performers to expose themselves more. Radio instead is seen as a more safe medium because a person can avoid revealing their appearance. In other words, TV is the persona medium par excellance, while radio is the perfect shadow technology. So, Vox and Alastor's musical number is built on light and shadow imagery:
Vox starts the song speaking of a brand new dawn and switching the TV on, as the room gets full of light.
Alastor ends the song transforming into his demon form and appearing as a big shadow on Vox's monitors.
Vox puts up a self-assured persona, who breaks the moment Alastor reveals the TV demon's secret:
Alastor: And here's the sugar on the cream
He asked me to join his team
(Vox: Hold on!)
I said no, and now he's pissy, that's the tea!
Vox: (glitches) You old-timey prick
I'll show you suf-ffering!
Alastor: Uh oh, the TV is buffering
Vox: (glitches) I'll destroy yoo-o-u-u, you little—!
Alastor: I'm afraid you've lost your signal
As a result, there is a black out. That is because symbolically Vox isn't able to accept his repressed emotions. So, the shadow takes over.
In other words:
Vox is the persona, the light, order and the future
Alastor is the shadow, the darkness, chaos and the past
A person can't face their future if they don't solve their past. This is true for Vox, but also for Alastor, who is clearly as angry at Vox as the Vee is at him. The difference is that ironically Vox is slightly more open about his feelings.
This is a big juxtaposition between Angel and Alastor, as well:
Poison is a song where Angel openly sings about his trauma and contradictions. It is one of the most introspective songs in the whole season 1 soundtrack.
Stayed Gone is the closest there is to an Alastor's song and yet it is not his. Vox starts the song and Alastor steals it. It is Vox who exposes himself, whereas Alastor reveals nothing.
In short, both Angel and Alastor repress themselves, but at least Angel can be honest, as he openly sings about his depression and desperation:
Poison, I'm drownin' in poison
I'm fillin' up my glass but it's always hollow
Full of poison, I'm sick of the poison
Wish I had somethin' to live for tomorrow
Alastor instead can't be honest, even as he sings alone:
"Great Alastor, altruist, died for his friends"?
Sorry to disappoint… That is not where this ends!
This contrast becomes clear in the two characters' reactions to the Hazbin Hotel's Old Wise Man:
Husk: Everyone likes to bitch to the bartender. I know everything about you and these motherfuckers at this point.
YOU'RE A LOSER, BABY
Husk offers wisdom to others:
Angel Dust: Oh, I forgot. You're the wise old bartender who's seen it all.
He does so with both Angel:
Husk: Look, if you've got a problem, you're not going to find the solution at the bottom of a bottle. I should know, I've been looking there a long time.
And Alastor:
Husk: You and I both know Mimzy only shows up when she needs something. That bitch is trouble, and who knows what kind of demon she fucked with to come running to you this time?
However, the two demons react in opposite ways.
Even if initially Angel gets angry at Husk, he eventually understands he and Husk are suffering a similar fate:
Husk: I was an Overlord once, you know. Yeah, and uh… It was nice to have that power. But when you're dealing in souls while also being a gambler, the stakes are pretty high. And losing a few hands can be more than a little dangerous. So when you're down on your luck, you turn to anything to…Keep you afloat. Even making deals yourself. So I know what it's like to… Regret the choices made… And knowin' ya can't take it back.
Even if eventually Alastor follows Husk's advice about Mimzy, he refuses to accept he and Husk are just the same:
Husk: Big talk for someone who's also on a leash.
Husk challenges both Angel and Alastor with the same knowledge: everyone in Hell is a loser. Angel might be a celebrity and Alastor a powerful overlord, but both have screwed up and are paying for their mistakes. If they admit it, though, they might find someone ready to help them, even in Hell:
Angel Dust: You're a loser, baby
Husk: A loser, but just maybe if we
Both: Eat shit together, things will end up differently
Angel sees a mirror of himself in Husk and chooses to empathize with him:
Angel Dust: I'm a loser, honey
A schmoozer and a dummy
But at least I know I'm not alone
Husk: You're a loser
Both: Just like me
In this way, he can start accepting himself and can take off the mask suffocating him.
Alastor is confronted by his most vulnerable part in Husk and chooses to treat him cruelly:
Alastor: If you ever say that again, I will tear your soul apart and broadcast your screams for every other disrespectful wretch who dares to question me!
This means he isn't ready to integrate with his shadow. He can't face his most disliked and repressed side.
At the same time, Angel and Alastor's respective interactions with Husk highlight another foiling they have:
Angel is abused and controlled by Valentino. Alastor abuses and controls Husk. In other words Angel is a weak prey, whereas Alastor is a strong predator.
PREDATOR AND PREY
Angel is Valentino's prey, whereas Alastor is a predator of souls. This comparison can be explored in two different ways:
Angel and Alastor's foiling with respectively Vox and Valentino
Angel and Alastor's animal motifs
1 - Dark foils
Angel's conflict is with Valentino and Alastor's is with Vox. However, Angel foils Vox, whereas Alastor foils Valentino. As a matter of fact Angel and Vox are both self-made preys, while Alastor and Valentino are both wannabe predators.
Now, prey might be a little too strong for Vox. Still, what I mean is that both Angel and him are trapped in abusive relationships with Valentino. Sure, Angel's one is particularly bad because the difference in power is bigger:
Valentino: You think she can get you out of work? You know she can't do anything. I own you. Or have you forgotten that?
Angel is not only Valentino's romantic interest, but also his employee. Valentino literally owns Angel's soul and can do with him what he pleases.
Vox and Valentino are instead more or less on pair. However, there are hints about their bond being unhealthy:
Vox: 'Oh god. Here I go, Valentino.' Just another fucking day with Val. Hey-hey-hey. Fuck my life.
The Vees' introduction has Valentino violently lashing out and Vox being forced to deal with him. It is obvious their partnership has toxic undertones.
In short, Angel and Vox are sexually and romantically tied to Valentino, but deep down dislike him. And yet, they don't leave him. This happens because both have frail identities they mask with happy and self-assured personas.
So, Angel acts proud of his porn movies, but deep down he is unsure of who he is and believes he isn't strong enough to change:
Valentino: You actually think you can change? Addict trash like you doesn't change. I'll see you soon, baby.
Vox instead behaves as a successful businessman, but he is actually scared he would be nobody without his alliance with Valentino and Velvette:
Alastor: Is Vox as strong as he purports?
Or is it based on his support?
He'd be powerless without the other Vees!
Angel thinks he can't leave and Vox chooses not too. Still, both are limited by weak senses of self. They force themselves to play the prey.
When it comes to Alastor and Valentino, both are predators of souls. They prey on weaker demons, like Angel and Husk, but they also try to make contracts with stronger beings.
This is shown by the way they interact with Charlie:
Charlie: I'm taking your offer to help. On the condition that there be no… tricks or voodoo strings attached.
Alastor: So, it's a deal, then?
Charlie: Nope! No shaking! No deals! I… hmm… As princess of Hell and heir to the throne, I, uh, hereby order that you help with this hotel. For as long as you desire.
Valentino: Welcome to my humble sex dungeon. What can I do for such a-- Mm! Lovely specimen! You don't want a role, do you? Because I can make you a star, make us both richer than, well, your papito--
They meet the Princess of Hell and offer to enter partnerships with her, so that they can use her. Obviously Alastor is intended as a gray character, while Valentino as a pitch black one. However, they are pretty similar in how they manipulate others:
Charlie: How? I'll do anything.
Alastor: Anything? Then… let's make a deal.
Valentino: Put something inside them. That's how I get the bitches to behave.
Alastor takes advantage of Charlie's self-hate and desperation to force her into a pact. Valentino uses drugs to make his employees dependant on him. And yet, they are both far from unstoppable.
Vox: Heh. What are you doing, Val? You're not going over there.
Valentino: That slippery twink is gonna remember who owns him. I'm gonna FUCK everyone in that rancid shit hole, I swear to god!
Vox: VAL- Hehe. Think about it.
Alastor: it's nothing I can't handle. Don't worry Husker. Who in their right mind would cross me?
Husk: I mean, you've been gone a while, and it's not like anybody knows why.
Valentino is impulsive and leaves obvious loopholes in his contracts. Alastor is smarter, but he is not as feared or as strong as he would desire. They like the feeling of power, but their control over others is not as firm. A moment may be all it takes for them to become preys. They give in to violence and behave like beasts because they wanna make sure they stay predators.
Vox and Val are darker versions of Angel and Alastor. They are who the two hazbins might become if they don't fix their flaws:
Vox is a person who chooses to appear strong (persona) over being happy
Val is a slave of his worst instincts (shadow) and has no genuine relationship whatsoever
At the same time, it is clear the dychotomy between prey and predator isn't as cut and dry.
2- Spider and Deer
Angel is a prey and Alastor is a predator. And yet, their animal motifs say otherwise:
Angel is a spider, a predator.
Alastor is a deer, a prey.
Why is that so?
That is because Angel is repressing his most powerful and aggressive side. Alastor instead is hiding his most frail and vulnerable part.
Angel comes from an influent criminal family to the point that his spider motif alludes to their wide web of criminal activities. As a result, he lives a violent life, but chooses to distance himself from it in Hell. According to Word of God, he decides to leave violence and fighting (Anthony) behind to explore sexuality and love (Angel Dust). However, the end result is that he is now trapped in a different way. As a human, he is forced to cultivate his most masculine traits. As a demon, he is valued only for his feminine ones. So, Angel is a porn star, who hides a strong fighter:
Angel Dust: Eat lead, sucka!! I told ya. I can handle myself baby.
Angel pulls out 5 extra guns and begins fighting the rest of the demons with Husk tuntil all the shark demons are reduced to blood and guts.
Husk: Well, that was something I didn't expect to see.
Angel Dust: Like I said, you don't know me. Sex ain't the only thing I'm good at.
Husk: Good to know, cause this guy ain't that bad.
He is a spider tired of his own web, who ends up prisoner of a moth. The challenge is for him to reconcile his two sides (masculine and feminine) and to find people who accept him as a whole person. He must forge a brand new web of healthy and supportive bonds.
Alastor is a radio host and a serial killer who buries his victims in a hunting ground only to be mistaken for a deer and killed. In Hell he chooses to live as he did on Earth to the point he doesn't even change his name. He keeps being both a radio host and a serial killer. He simply fuses his two sides and becomes the Radio Demon. And yet, he is just repeating the same pattern, where he goes from predator (serial killer) to prey (deer). So, he is an overlord preying on overlords, that ends up on the receiving end of a detrimental pact. Symbolically, he hates this part of himself so much that he committs "cannibalism":
He is a deer who eats deers because he can't phatom he might end up on the plate himself. He needs to feel a predator no matter what. And yet, he is a prey deep down and if he could just admit it and ask for help he might change his situation. If he accepted to step into the light and open up he might grow stronger. And yet, he is too proud and too scared. A deer frightened and confused by the headlights, who prefers to hide in shadows, where he feels safe and untouchable.
So, Angel is a prey who hides a predator, while Alastor is a predator who hides a prey. Throughout the season, these repressed parts start emerging.
Positively for Angel:
Angel Dust: Fuck off, Val.
Valentino: Excuse me?
Angel Dust: I said fuck off! I may have to put up with your bullshit, but you ain't fuckin' with any of my friends!
Valentino: You forget who you're talking to? I own you, bitch.
Angel Dust: Yeah, you do, in the studio. And you can do anything you want to me there, just like our deal says. But out here, I get to do what I want. So once again, FUCK. OFF.
He manages to slowly free himself of Val's toxic influence and by the end he stands up to his abuser. The spider is growing stronger and soon the moth won't be a problem.
Negatively for Alastor:
Adam: I'm going to wipe that shit-eating grin off your face, CAUSE RADIO IS FUCKING DEAD!
Adam flies a few metres into the air and swings his guitar, sending a shockwave towards Alastor. When it dissipates, Alastor has been forced out of his full demon form and his microphone has been snapped in two.
He slowly loses control of his situation to the point that by the end he miscalculates so badly he is almost killed by Adam. The deer can smile as much as he wants, but in the end he can't escape stronger animals.
SAME PROBLEM, OPPOSITE RESOLUTIONS
Angel and Alastor share the same issue. They both can't accept themselves. However, throughout the season their stories go in opposite directions.
Angel makes progress in self-acceptance, so he can start cracking his persona:
Husk: Last day of afterlife, and you're not off snorting a line off some hunk's abs?
Angel Dust: Eh, you fucked one cannibal pool boy, you fucked 'em all.
Husk: I guess you have changed.
Angel Dust: Hey, Charlie said live tonight however we wanted… so pour me a fresh one, and let's get to living!
Alastor refuses to face who he is, so he gets engulfed by the shadow:
It will be interesting to see how their parallel arcs will keep on going in future seasons, how their intertwined conflict and foiling with the Vees will evolve and which role they will have in Charlie's story.
FOUND FAMILY
Angel and Alastor are the first two demons to join the Hazbin Hotel and they grow into members of Charlie's found family:
Alastor: They say the family you choose is better!
In particular:
Angel is set-up to become a sibling-like figure (he clearly projects his feelings for Molly on Charlie)
Alastor is framed as an evil mentor and a parental figure (his foiling with Lucifer makes it obvious)
At the same time, they are meant to challenge Charlie in different ways:
Angel is a protector (angel), who forces Charlie to deal with her pollyanna persona
Alastor is a dangerous manipulator (devil), who has Charlie deal with her repressed shadow
This is made clear in the episodes Masquerade and Hello Rosie:
Charlie: Okay… I could be so aggressively kind to Angel's boss… That I convince him to let Angel spend more time at the hotel!
In Masquerade Charlie is confronted by Vaggie about how much she repressed her aggressivity. For Angel's sake then Charlie tries to wear an "aggressively kind" persona, but it feels fake and it leads to a mess.
Charlie: flips Susan off FUCK YOU, YOU OLD BITCH!!!!!
In Hello Rosie Charlie is overcome by her negative feelings to the point she gives in to Alastor's request to make a deal. However, as the episode goes on, she manages to face her inner emotions and to grow more decisive:
Charlie: It's a feeling like a rumbling in your gut
That you could finally be faced with
A billion needy faces, I guess what I mean to say is
For the first time in my life
I might have to be ready for this
Ready to be the one who's leading from the front
Gotta come into my own
Gotta come into my throne
Gotta take charge and defend my only home
And although I kinda feel unsteady
Now I need to be ready for this
In short, Charlie herself wears a persona and has a strong repressed shadow. Angel and Alastor are the two characters who will help her face these parts of herself, so that she can grow into a powerful Ruler of Hell.
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