Does Stella Even Need a Reason? (Helluva Boss Video Essay)

[@caryweaver7045]

"Stolas is terrible in bed, I swear to f*ck he just lays there staring at the wall and I have to do everything it's embarrassing" The more I think about that line the more horrifying and traumatizing it sounds.

[@ellballz]

omg it does wtf edit: thx for the likes for this such lazy comment, but truly it looks horrifying if you visualise it in your head.

[@IronycheinPain]

You know, at best I thought of that line as "ah, it's probably because it's just an obligation to. Regardless of he's gay or bi/pansexual, it's clear he just doesn't like Stella in particular so he just doesn't actively participate in their mating" But now that you mention that, my thoughts went from that to "okay. Let's add thought A with this and...what the hell do they actually do in bed besides the actual mating process????"

[@ceecee6521]

Wait, doesn't that imply that he might've gotten raped and just rolled with it??

[@skullton3292]

I always figured it was because Solas is gay. I mean, as hot as Stella is she's obviously not Stola's type lol

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

@@skullton3292 she’s not hot and she looks normal like other women

[@Universeofmany]

To me, the reveal about how Stolas and Stella "got together" makes Stolas telling Octavia that "I don't have the words" on the topic of his relationship with her mother all the harsher...because how do you tell your daughter with abandonment issues that you never wanted to marry her mother without implying you regret that she was born?!

[@derrickdaniels3955]

Again this makes sense.

[@Nehu_22]

Yeah... he could say something like "I love you, I'm only sad that she has to be your mother" it's implied that Stella doesn't really care about Octavia, so she wouldn't feel bad if he says that

[@antoniocarlosoliveira9146]

​@@Nehu_22to be fair , that wasnt implied , we still have no idea how their relationship is , the only clues we have are : the picture in stolas' palace which shows young via and Stella, she is smilling , So thats a first , and the fact octavia leaves to her mother's house in the weekends .

[@RaikimiA.A]

True!

[@ifeeldead463]

Sometimes, people are just plain awful for no reason and even if she does have a sad past, it doesnt excuse the abuse she's been doing on Stolas

[@springsnapped5435]

Truth at first I felt sorry for her but now not that much

[@mustachetwirler7617]

Agreed, the only thing Stolas ever did to Stella before he deliberately cheated on her was being forced into marrying her, and Stella had it coming to her when Stolas deliberately cheated on her.

[@ifeeldead463]

@@springsnapped5435 same. At first, I get Stella got cheated on and has every right to be mad at Stolas (tho, I draw the line at killing him. Octavia still loves her father dearly + We dont know whatll happen her and Octavia if she does manage to kill him) but now, ye, I don't feel too bad for her, especially when she gave me "would cheat on husband and rub it in his face" vibes

[@ifeeldead463]

@@mustachetwirler7617 right! Plus, he didnt seem that mean to her in their marriage, if anything, dude was really patient with her while she was being cruel and mean

[@PancakemonsterFO4]

The childhood photo of stella said it all (and Stolas crying right after)

[@JDWalker495]

To be fair, this is the kind of cruelty and selfishness I’d expect from a biblical demon. I mean even on earth some people are just cruel, there isn’t always a reason behind it, and this is a marriage straight from hell. Thought it would’ve been nice to see some depth from her past, perhaps she’ll be a character that receives depth from interaction going forward

[@thepinkestpigglet7529]

A character can have depth and still be an abusive ass because they're they're abusive ass

[@Nuti196]

We know Stella's brother will appear in this season, I'm looking forward to see them interact. Maybe they are good siblings, maybe they hate each other, maybe Stella is scared of him or maybe respects him. We'll see. There is a chance we'll get some depth out of he character

[@blackbloom8552]

@@Nuti196 yeah, that would be a good way to develop her character without backtracking on the direction they took her.

[@IronycheinPain]

@@Nuti196 it would be interesting if her actions take after Andrealphus', regardless if they were close as siblings or not (and regardless if it was positive or negative). She does mention him in s2e1 so it's either he is her go-to person to talk about this stuff so he can do shut about it, or she is pondering on what he is gonna say about her being "weak enough" to let Stolas divorce her

[@solarblues6601]

@@blackbloom8552 there was no backtracking, she was always like this?

[@DragonGoddess18]

Regardless of her past, Stella is still choosing to be terrible to Stolas. She outright admitted that she likes tormenting Stolas Like Alfred once said "Some people aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, negotiated with or bullied. Some men just want to watch the world burn." And that probably describes Stella

[@tobsonasanya4765]

eh i don't think she is doing it for fun. plus that quote does not apply to her

[@tobsonasanya4765]

@@DatRobot jeez did you really need tho type an essay/ also i ma pretty sure she abuses stolas cuz she is also angry she was forced into the marriage

[@tobsonasanya4765]

@@DatRobot most of the characters are bad people nothing wrong with simping for stella lol

[@1greninjawolfbossdeath648]

@@tobsonasanya4765 Stolas was forced too but he did not socially and physically abuse her.

[@tobsonasanya4765]

@@1greninjawolfbossdeath648 exactly that is my point. plus it was impledi she was probably spoilt based on her strangling those dogs

[@missconstruct6968]

No one seems to mention that she's deliberately going to devastate Octavia beyond belief by killing her father but she doesn't care because she's a bad person and a bad mother

[@straawberryfieldsforever]

Shes literally yelling in front of daughter all the time too. Ok girl you hate your husband but be a good mum?? Your kid didnt ask for this

[@helixsol7171]

She literally doesn't care about Octavia too, she just treated her as an excuse to not have to sleep with Stolas anymore.

[@DogFlamingoXIII]

She never wanted Octavia, and she made sure to loudly make that known. I'm interested in seeing why Octavia seemed to think that her mother was different in the past or if she ever was. At this point, I feel like the only reason she took Octavia with her on weekends was because she knew Stolas enjoyed spending time with her, and she wanted to deprive him of that; but it is probably something more related to making her a pawn in the game between Stolas and whatever Stella's family's plan is.

[@kimchic0re]

Octavia should just move in with Stolas after the divorce

[@TheRezro]

I actually believe (or at least hope writers are competent enpough) that Stella as most characters in the show is misunderstand. People ganging on her forget that we see her only in few scenes and mostly from perspective of Stolas, who definitely is angel himself and so we usually see her confronting him but! We actually don't have proves that she has bad relations with Octavia and she was actually one who separated with Stolas. So from day one, Paimon lack a tact. So he could unintentionally pick photo showing Stella in bad light. Stella also was one who organized ball for married (what imply huge divorce issue in hell and her being pride of marriage, even if it was a farce due to Stolas being cold. She was ironyzing asking if Stolas would show up. And then he literally stand under then wall like some singiel, drunk. And was not reacting even when she, most likely frustrated started offending him. Well, until he slept with random servant and parading naked in the window. Stolas severely humiliated her back then and later refuse to even acknowledge own guilt. Assassination plot actually could be desperate attempt to make point. It is why she did that straight in his face. Actually we have no prove that she did know that Striker has angelic weapon and otherwise killing him was unlikely. She most likely whole life struggled with Stolas acting cold and indifferent, though could have hope that he didn't divorce her. She probably did see as her obligation to keep him from doing some dumb things. Until discussion from season two pilot (what absolutely did hurt her, despite Stolas intend) it was most likely when she become aware that Stolas was with her only because Octavia and him going rouge was because he stop to care, as she started reaching age when she would not need him. It was never about Stella and she actually make thing worst pressuring him. What is interesting Stella most likely doesn't know about her husband actually being in relation with that Imp from ball. Because Blitzo would be obvious target if she actually would be as evil as people think. As side note, her brother seams to be transvestite and possibly gay. It is possible that he actually pressured Stella to keep mariage (it is why she mention him), but she may not aware that she was used if he did that to project himself on her place, lusting for Stolas (who prior to that was assumed to be hetero, when he is actually a gay). What is important he most likely was in the club when Stolas was humiliated and so he know the truth now. If this speculation is correct it actually may open new circumstances when Stealla would be betrayed by brother, who even may try use Octavia to take control over Stolas. In fact that would be valid reason for them to actually solve they issue, even if they marriage is dead. But that is just a theory. Anyway, I don't believe that Stella is evil. She was simply caught in situation she doesn't really understand and try aggressively regain control of situation. As it did work before. Even if new circumstances make it impossible anymore.

[@nyekomimi]

Something easy to overlook - Stolas cried not because of engagement itself but because he is shown to, even as kid, deeply care about other living beings. Stella in the photo is actively abusing an animal.

[@mitab1]

It was a stuffed animal

[@orionar2461]

@@mitab1 there are tears around its eyes. Its alive

[@ellag3265]

I'm pretty sure he also didn't want an arranged marriage

[@eyelessbun5785]

@@ellag3265 he didnt want the arranged marriage, but the animal abuse was what made him hate it to the point of tears

[@CRanunculus]

@@eyelessbun5785 Stolas has no issues with using a living human as a portal to the human world and not caring if his physical form fit in her mouth. He's not above hurting species he considers beneath him. I think it's just pretending to like someone that hated him for 18 years that broke him.

[@kittygardenva2741]

I predicted that Stella was a bad apple for a while now. She physically assaulted Stolas by throwing one of their imp servants at him, two assaults in one, certainly not caring about how Octavia might feel listening to all of it. The boiling point was when Stella responded to the cheating by sending a hitman, instead of getting a divorce or counseling or something. That is just not something a rational person does.

[@joimumu]

She isn’t even mad about cheating she is mad that he cheated with lower class

[@IronycheinPain]

Yeah, most of her issues and actions can be boiled down to her classism. She berates Stolas not because he cheated, but again it's with an imp ("I can believe you slept with an imp in our fucking bed" "A motel?! Like a fucking plebian (it means peasant)?!?!". This is gonna lock eyes on the family, and of course Stella being someone who values status would be embarrassed She wants to kill Stolas via a hitman but why? Easy. It's an easy way to get Stolas out of the picture while still keeping her status because she's technically still married to him. This is why she doesn't do a divorce, it's bad imagery for her. It's why her first reaction to Stolas' announcement is "What do you think the rest of the Goetia will think? Andrealphus will--" and even taunts Stolas about it after ("You have fallen from what little grace you had, and I know you'll pay for it." But for not even minding Octavia? I just think she doesn't care.

[@derrickdaniels3955]

@@IronycheinPain This makes sense.

[@sarafontanini7051]

@@IronycheinPain yeah the murder isn't even because she, personally, was hurt by the act of cheaitng, but by what it could do their reputation, so she's killing stolas to preserve what little dignity they have elft. Hell, she could event attempt to profit off it she was mart enough to spin it right. Then again, "it's hell and noone cares".

[@peagames2002]

@@IronycheinPain That's how it mostly seems to be, hell in artist's perspective is a huge caste system between 7 deadly sins from bottom to top.

[@tic857]

Even in the wedding portrait she looks like she's about to kill someone, the one in the kitchen, is perhaps during the time where she got the highest praise and her status rose exponentially higher because she produced a kid, so her ego was very well fed and it was very easy to keep up appearances of being a "Happy". But if you zoom in close, her arms are crossed and she's not holding onto Stolas or Octavia. And with the flashback scene in the latest episode, it would be around the same age when Octavia had that nightmare in the Looloo Land episode. In the pilot there's a photo of teen Octavia and Stella is right behind Octavia with full pride pose, while both Stolas and Octavia are more conservative in their poses. In Octavias childhood room, a drawing on the wall, shows her and her dad, and doesnt include Stella, Stella doesn't seem be engaged in raising Octavia, meanwhile there are several portraits with Stolas and Octavia. The woman is all about appearances, she only gets upset when she is "embarrassed", but has no problem embarrassing others. When Octavia mentions when her parents didn't fight constantly, it could very well be that was the time when Stolas was compliant and didn't argue when she was belittling him every chance she had. And Stella knows that if she takes Octavia, she is hurting Stolas more.

[@octavianjoseph8633]

What photo was in the pilot? The pilot doesn't feature any pictures of Octavia.🤔

[@sarafontanini7051]

yeah even in the one picture that ahs ehr with stolas and octavia smiling, the context is so unknown to us that it could be interpreted many ways. Maybe she's not actually smiling and just grimacing at the open affection. maybe she's looking at something else and not her husband. One picture is too vague to draw anything from comapred to walls of several other paintings where she looks far more stern.

[@elizabethk007]

(Based on the description questions that are probably not serious) 1. No it's not bad at all! Stella may be the worst, but she's got style. I'd wear that gown too if I had it. 2. It's nice to see a 101 Dalmation Street reference. But I think they chose the name Stella since it means 'celestial star' and pairs well with Stolas (both in alliteration and since his domain is astronomy).

[@tobsonasanya4765]

@@kieransc she barely has 3 minutes of screentime. aslo millie is not complex yet many love her

[@tobsonasanya4765]

@@kieransc by 2 dimensional; you were referring to the fact she was a fictional character right?

[@tobsonasanya4765]

@@kieransc lol my bad

[@doublespinkid2093]

Prunella arobella arobella prunella which one is which who knows who cares

[@facecampingbubba4656]

I feel the only reason I can think of is she’s always been like that since she comes from Hell royalty. We see that most Hell royalty are mostly terrible people like Stolas’ dad and it’s not far fetched that Stella’s parents and brother are like him. Also when kid Stolas was shown Stella’s photo, it’s seems to be implying she’s like that naturally. I think her “reason” is combination of nature and nurture.

[@valentinkambushev4968]

Then why isn't Stolas like her. The "It's Hell" excuse is extremely hypocritical, because people use it on characters like Stella, but ignore it with characters like Stolas.

[@facecampingbubba4656]

@@valentinkambushev4968 That’s why I said “most hell royalty” which excludes royalty like Stolas and Charlie (Hazbin Hotel). I should’ve clarified that better.

[@elciervoparaguayo3756]

@@valentinkambushev4968 She's like him, they were born like how they are. Stella is an aggressive bitch; Stolas is kind and considerate. There's no hypocrisy, they are treated equal

[@msk-qp6fn]

@@valentinkambushev4968 It's not hypocritical. It's just a generalization.

[@msk-qp6fn]

@@valentinkambushev4968 Also, Stolas isn't exactly the most decent or good person either. Besides the cheating, I still find the way he treats/treated Octavia and Blitz and other imps in general somewhat disturbing and his obliviousness doesn't actually help. I can see him get better and develop though, so why not the same for Stella? Not defending her, I don't like her attitude either, but it's just I don't necessarily see her as worse.

[@woodlandpricess]

I feel like everytime abuse towards a man is portrayed in media, a good chunk of the fandom finds a way to justify the abuser. There's always someone trying to find what the victim did wrong, it's honestly sad and pretty hypocritical imo

[@ScarlettDragon07]

I know, right? I never see this when the abuser is a man. He's just an asshole. No sad backstory, nor a justifiable motive or any. Hell, if the genders were reversed, the cheating might have been seen as payback and deserving. (I've shows and movies that do this)

[@Blitzardø]

Chichi fans in a nutshell

[@elciervoparaguayo3756]

I don't think she needs a reason, and i hope they don't try to redeem her. She's an awful person, i don't want to feel sympathetic towards a woman who psychologically and physically abuses her husband. If Stella was a guy and Stolar was a woman this discussion will probably not exist (there's an au where this is the case, which caused a curious reaction of people noticing how messed up their relationship was) because in general when we see an abusive man we just accept it but when it is a woman we need explanations about her sad past and why she is evil instead of just viewing awful people as how they are, awful people. This double standard has been going for a while and i don't want Stella to be part of it.

[@TheDaxter11]

This. I've seen people flat out unable to accept that Stella is just an asshole, even talking about what we saw in S2E1 like "If we _accept_ what was shown as *_retconned canon."_* Just unable to accept that their "waifu/queen" is just a bad person and demand that we get shown a tragic reason for it to make her sympathetic.

[@tobsonasanya4765]

but the main cast literally kil people

[@msk-qp6fn]

I say it's a combination of double standards and actual differences between men and women. It's like how if an abused husband was to try to escape from his wife, using a knife to defend himself might be considered excessive, but when an abused wife was trying to escape her husband, using a knife to defend herself wouldn't consider excessive. I do believe statistically that most abused males just leave their spouse or partners if they get the chance, but abused females often need to leave in the form of "escaping" and in the process, violence can happen and survivors often are found to have used weapons against their male partners; I suppose the courts will take the situation into consideration, but there are still numerous places where even in such a situation, the woman would be blamed for using a weapon. Tis an unfair world my friend.

[@Jazzcat74]

Nobody in helluva boss is a good person, they're in hell, they're demons.

[@elciervoparaguayo3756]

@@Jazzcat74 i never said that

[@mimibspooky7650]

From a plot wise stand point I suppose no , sometimes a villain can just be villains, and some people are just toxic and cannot be redeemed,but I agree it’s a little with the opinion It’s little disappointing that she’s Written As more of an obstacle then character while Stolas and blitz are given sympathetic backstory to make the audience believe they deserve better. That doesn’t mean you can’t write about characters in toxic relationship but Its just kinda better when both sides are given a proper backstory or the situation feels standard black and white (Not that they have too redeem Stella it just would be nice if she had a more complex reason for her motivation.), which is kinda fine for this story but in my opinion if want a Well written toxic relationship I’d go with clay and Bloberta from Morel Orel

[@mimibspooky7650]

Not that I think I’m entitled to limit anyone creative expression that’s just how I feel

[@RandomGuy-id2ej]

I agree

[@valentinkambushev4968]

@LlEUCU. BEAU× that's actually why I love Verosika so much. She is a bitch, but isn't the one responsible for the break-up. Blitzo is. It will also appear that Verosika genuinely loved him. Verosika is hot, famous and probably rich. She can have whoever she wants yet she still tattooed Blitzo's name. And so far it seems like the break-up was all Blitzo's fault. He doesn't even deny the things he did. Overall Verosika is an antagonist, but she is the only one that actually has layers.

[@valentinkambushev4968]

@LlEUCU. BEAU× sadly I get this feeling too. Then again the other name of "Helluva boss" is "The Blitzo, Moxxie and Stolas show". Everyone else doesn't matter.

[@RandomGuy-id2ej]

@LlEUCU. BEAU× Yeah, personally I think the jokes are stale or unfunny because it's Mostly Sex Jokes, Cursing or Crude humor and with that the best would be to have good plot and such, but the show almost fails at that because it only seems that Angry Bird Lady was only made for people to sympathize with Stolas and his decision instead of making her an Actual Character with actual emotions, but shes only that why because she is that way, enough said hate her and start loving Stolas, because in the long run they will have her be one of the very big bads who will lack a personality, her current personality being "Im a shitty Partner and Parent"

[@chicnuggs8238]

You know, with these essay style videos, I occasionally see people defending, or neutralizing abuse. It usually boils down to the why in the equation. Why did it happen, why did it start so early/late, and why the victim. What did the victim do to the abuser-Or moreso with Stella- What hurt the abuser to the point of abuse. But, I think everyone is forgetting something. There's no explanation, or excuse for abuse. None. No matter what the victim did, if they yelled, screamed, cheated. No matter if the abuser is physically ill, if they're unhappily bored, even if they're betrothed to an unloved party; No one genuinely deserves to be abused. Abuse is not a "tit for tat" manner. You don't rack up reasons to be yelled, or hit, or worse. You never, ever, do something to deserve being hurt so horribly. Even with Stolas being extremely unhappy, and in love with Blitzø, and Stella being a vile woman with an awful past. Neither has the "right" to hurt one another. You are never the fault of your own abuse, you did absolutely •nothing• wrong. Stolas didn't deserve Stella's abuse, and Stella didn't deserve her upbringing. And that's still not enough reason for each other to hurt the other, much less themselves

[@owenbridgers]

I don’t even need an excuse at all, I just want to know what made her a Bitch so i can learn how to avoid that shit irl

[@Ich-Existiere-Nicht]

Thank you for saying this

[@paomantilla1391]

Something curious that I was reminded of when you mentioned the double standards thing was a comment on some fan art. I saw after scrolling on Instagram a genderbend version of the scene where Stella shouts at Stolas “do you wanna f*ck this Imp too?” (Or something along those lines) and there was a comment that said “I’m sure Stella in this version abuses Stolas. It was very curious and a great example of that double standard when it comes to abuse, just because in this genderbend version of the scene Stella was a man and Stolas a woman, it was much more easy to perceive the shouting and throwing of things as abuse since we as a society have been train to percibe abusive situations like that.

[@sophisticatedPJs]

something to note is that stolas was joking about the sexual connotations at first when blitz broke in, he even says he wasn't being serious. He initially tried to steer the conversation in a different direction to just talk about life and play catch-up, but blitz, seeing the opportunity in stolas' obvious crush on him, went out of his way to try and push things in a more sexual direction to distract from the obvious fact he was stealing the grimoire (which stolas noticed but allowed). Very interesting dynamic.

[@lycantabris]

Oh yeah! And also that a lot of the over the top sexual commentary/flirting despite Blitz being obviously not down to the audience is a result of that night rather than Stolas trying to make him uncomfortable or looking down on him or something. He's demonstrably bad at reading his loved ones feelings until they straight up tell him so he can understand (see Octavia in Loo Loo Land), and Blitz was the one pushing things to be sexual that first night while also going "Ugh, stop it" to Stolas's terrible dirty talk... which he then turned around and rewarded by "real fast" taking all night. Like, if you want your boundaries to be understood, Blitz, you gotta be clear with the poor oblivious bird dad, not give him a million mixed messages! He was calling Blitz "Blitz" the whole date, not just at the end so like... Stolas would definitely be happy saving "Blitzy" for alone time if he actually thought Blitz would prefer it that way! Ugh, these two need to be made to talk to each other like adults. Maybe Moxxie and Octavia take Stolas and Millie and Loona handle Blitz before locking them in a closet or something.

[@fluidwolf]

@@lycantabris Even beyond all their own problems one of the biggest issues between the two in the story is that there is no real communication happening between them. Every time one of them is talking to the other it tends to be in one ear and out the other due to whatever else is going on. Like with their date at Ozzy's. Stolas was trying to talk but Blitzo wanted to spy on the others so he didn't actually stop to communicate with Stolas at all until afterward when everything went to crap. Similarly with Stolas during their agreed on meetings pushes the sexy talk a lot which seems to push Blitzo off of actually speaking with him. One of the biggest things they really need to do is just sit down and speak to each other and listen.

[@nataliaramirez1290]

@@fluidwolf They need to talk but I also hope it'll take a while for them to do it, that when it happens it's because they're both ACTIVELY defying all obstacles and inconveniences because they finally reached the breaking point, they just NEED to communicate and get ANSWERS 😩🔥 Like this is definitely just me being very selfishness but I LOOOVE the tension and the frustration they the show has built so far, it's not gratuitous that we see so many opinions, so much argument, so much dissecting and sniffing for clues, digging for answers. It's so painful, it's fantastic, I just hope the resolution will be as cathartic as we'd like it to be. Until then though, 👀🍿

[@Sinc3r3ly]

Honestly I just kinda like that men who have been abused by women are finally being shown in shows, so many people think it can’t happen because “he’s stronger” or something like that

[@msk-qp6fn]

true, men do get abused by their spouses as well and that needs to be shown

[@timilehyinhussain7963]

Or women abusing their husband is used as a joke.

[@CatalinaLinal7710]

@@timilehyinhussain7963 or made into a message of "empowerment" for her

[@ma.2089]

@@CatalinaLinal7710 it’s only empowerment if she’s fighting back cuz he’s not a good guy

[@ickicynicky4890]

@@ma.2089 True most of the time it’s used as jokes cuz a women could never instill abuse over a guy which is so dumb the even with queer relationships Men abusing men isn’t protrayed as much as women abusing women

[@targetida3999]

I think some fans have been spoiled rotten by layered villain characters for the past 10 years. Because now any "evil" character that happens to be photogenic needs to be layered and has a backstory that many fans would justify over their clearly abhorrent actions in present time - or else there will be hell to pay within the fandom. That's what is happening right now with Stella and her devoted apologists

[@Allie.Caskie]

"that happens to be photogenic" yep. you will not see any fandom clammoring for depth from a character they find ugly.

[@ViridianCrisis7]

This. Sometimes characters are allowed to be evil for evil’s sake. Not every villain needs to have layered backstory

[@SirToaster9330]

Because a character that is evil for no reason is stupid and bland

[@kama933]

@@SirToaster9330 I don't think that's entirely true, some of my favorite villains of all time are evil just because they're huge assholes. I don't love them for their tragic backstories, but for how entertaining and fun they are as antagonists. Sure, a "layered" villain is really good but not every villain needs to have multiple deep layers.

[@SirToaster9330]

@@kama933 it can work for kids shows but this is targeted towards adults, if you have a cartoony villain in an adult show where everything is grey then it doesn’t feel natural instead it just seems forced and stupid. It’s almost like they changed Stella to pander to toxic fans

[@Autistic_Changeling]

My great grandmother was emotionally abusive, and my grandmother was emotionally and physically abusive. My uncle overdosed because of her abuse, leaving his two daughters. My mother got therapy and wasn't exactly abusive, but my sister and I still felt the effects of their crappy parenting. Abusers don't exist in a grey area. They are evil. Stella doesn't deserve to be anything more than what she is because that's exactly what abusers are like.

[@topcat59]

Honestly if they do give her character depth, all I ask is that they make sure she isn’t redeemed, since I preferred if she never does. Since the story gives off the vibes that she really doesn’t value her daughter or anyone else and it’s better if they somewhat stick with that.🤔🐱

[@mackthompson616]

YES I am hoping for depth without redemption for her

[@BrokensoulRider]

It also sheds real-world light on what some women do to their spouses (male, female, trans, et cetera), their children, and the people around them.

[@kaytlinjustis5643]

Same. It's shown that toxic people can be toxic from the beginning, or at least from a very young age. I mean, Stella's childhood picture was shown Stella CHOKING AN ANIMAL for pity's sake! She has no involvement with her child's growth, she insults and abuses Stolas BECAUSE SHE LIKES TO! Plus, this takes place in Hell; there are BOUND to be individuals rotten to the core!

[@mandybrown5611]

^^^^ this.

[@tabeechey]

I like the idea that they are embracing that some people are just a**holes. Not every jerk in the world has a tragic backstory - though often, they have convinced themselves they have suffered enough to justify their poor behavior. Personally, I love a good jerk every once in awhile. A villain that is fun to hate.

[@Nuti196]

I don't mind Stella being awful just for the sake of being awful. My problem is that it makes things too convenient and comfortable. Stolas was much more of a flawed character, being gray in the scale. Now it's easy to just forgive him everything and treat him as 100% good character. Shipping Stolas and Blitz is easier, Blitz is less of a problem that destroyed a marriage and Octavia's trust for her dad and more of a hero on a white horse that made Stolas leave his abuser I dunno, maybe I just imagined it to be different so now I'm a bit disappointed

[@zashgekido5616]

See here's the thing; It's not. Stolas is still selfish, it's just not towards Stella. If it came down to his reputation or Blitz, Stolas has already proven that currently he'd favor his reputation first and foremost. I think people put too much stock in the cheating aspect, and now they can't see the forest, just this one tree

[@JackedThor-so]

I heavily disagree. Stolas and Blitz have ALWAYS been in a turbulent relationship. It was built on misunderstandings and manipulation, continued on as a transactional relationship, but became muddled when each caught feelings for one another. Instaid of actually taking the time to be normal and talk about it outside of a sexual context, it's kept in the bedroom until Blitz pulls one last manipulation and the whole thing falls apart. Stolas arguably softened as time went on, but he still hung the book over Blitz's head to get him to stay when the relationship first started. Blitz entered the relationship purely as a way to get what he wanted but, same as Verosika, caught feelings leading to things becoming even more messy than they already were. It is not, and never was a healthy relationship. These issues with the relationship would exist, even if Stella / the family dynamic were removed. Even if Stolas were just an unmaried prince with nothing else changed, these massive flaws in the relationship would still be present.

[@flavortown6280]

I agree

[@sarafontanini7051]

I mean Blitzo was using Stolas, even when he beleives Stolas is using him. There's still that turbulence and complexity, it's jsut not with Stolas' murderous wife. ven though Blitzo is symapthetic and is a main character, he's still not the ebst person.

[@aug1014]

I agree! It’s just too clean and convenient

[@tayloredwards4968]

Even though I don't approve the stolas cheating. But this woman is absolutely insane. Not only that she's very toxic. Always talking ill of him. And I doubt she even shows any affection to Octavia. I'm so proud of him for kicking her out.

[@god_2.0_the_better_version]

I DO approve the cheating because there's an almost guarantee Stella did it first, and Stella is somebody he was forced to marry. He has every right to cheat, he's married to somebody he probably wouldn't even want to be friends with, it's only fair for him to want to find somebody who actually loves him/who he actually loves. Why should he not get to try and find a healthy relationship while stuck in a bad one?

[@thepinkestpigglet7529]

@@god_2.0_the_better_version He should have asked for a divorce a longtime ago. And no he's not too afraid of her, he's a prince who can hire people to protect him from her, the he said said only reason he stayed with her is because of Octavia, which is a bullshit reason because he's basicly indirectly telling his daughter to stay in an abusive relationship if she ever ends up in one, children base their future relationships off their parents.

[@god_2.0_the_better_version]

@@thepinkestpigglet7529 You do realize one of the main aspects of an abusive relationship is when the other person gaslights you into staying, right? Stella tried to *hit him* when he tried to leave, and not to mention the pressure (and probably threats) from his family to stay in that relationship, it wasn't his choice to be in it *or* to stay in it. Plus, I'm pretty sure he's only rich because of his family, that means he would have no means to protect himself from Stella because there's a chance they could take literally everything he owns. (I hope that was comprehensible because I'm pretty sure about I'm about to pass out from sleep deprivation or something and my grammar is dying, so that could've all come out as a keyboard smash)

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

@@thepinkestpigglet7529 stolas said stella doesn’t care if he cheated because stella only cares about money and power

[@chichiro8625]

Absusers dont deserve your loyalty! I see this cheating trope in abusive relationships so many times (for example titanic) and no one complained. I wonder why

[@shadylucy6366]

my problem isnt with stella its with how the show treats the female characters SO FAR we have gotten more screen time with stolas who suppose to be a side character than millie and loona

[@willowarkan2263]

I'd argue that's because he's Blitz paramour. He's not a side character as much as he is the de facto main character's love interest, the Amity to Blitz's Luz. So far the main plot seems to revolve around Blitz's love life under the cover of episodic contract killing. Loona is in the story because Blitz wants to be a better father, while Millie and her husband are romantic foils to Blitz's troubled love life. The assassin is a professional and ideological rival to Blitz. As far as I can see every other character exists in connection with Blitz. Like the odd run-ins with his ex or childhood, now former best friend. Millie has probably the most other characters relating to her personally, outside the main couple, with her family and hometown, Loona has the bodyguard, who relates to Blitz's ex, while I don't know if we know much of anything about Moxie's background, just some of his insecurities.

[@chichiro8625]

Stolas isnt supposed to be a side character Original i think just Blitzo, Stolas and Moxxie existed. They were part of Hazbin Hotel and then got their own show It makes sense for them to be main characters

[@Myelllie]

He's literally the leads love interest, we have to spend a lot of time with his character

[@theofficalsilentraven]

@@Myelllie it would be nice to see Millie and Loona. Come on you want to see them too don't you?

[@Myelllie]

@@theofficalsilentraven of course

[@briarwolf0501]

The James and Jezibelle joke was absolutely fucking immaculate.

[@budderdust473]

I wonder if they will give her the Azula treatment considering that she was also in an arranged marriage and we knew nothing about her brother and their relationship. BTW just like Azula, this is just giving context to pity her and not the justification for her behavior and actions. She will still be an irredeemable villain but looks less one-dimensional.

[@ifeeldead463]

Seeing as it's still episode one and a deign of Stella's brother was revealed on twitter, we would be seeing him soon. I also think Stella's relationship with her brother is at least maybe postive enough that she could threaten Stolas with a "my brother will hear about this"

[@chickadeestevenson5440]

@@ifeeldead463 and vivzi calls him "Stolas shitty brother in law"

[@alllittlethingzz]

So true, I kinda don’t like how they make the females characters either badass perfect or just toxic and rude. I wish we got more of Stella instead of having her all rude and abusive. I want an episode with her side.

[@tobsonasanya4765]

@@alllittlethingzz none of the female charcters are perfect. also it is hell

[@lolli_popples]

Considering the timeline, Stolas was probably in his late teens when he got married. So most of his life has been focused on his job and his kid, and he has no relationships outside of that. No wonder the man is depressed, the only adult he’s around ever is Stella.

[@InvaderTrisha]

Someone actually calculated it, he and Stella had Octavia when he was 18 years old.

[@elizabethk007]

I mean...it's Hell, not every character needs to be morally justified in their actions. So no, I don't think she needs a reason to be this way. I just didn't like how Stella was presented in the latest episode. It felt like they needed to make her as awful as possible so you could like Stolas without making him the bad guy. Idk I just found the implication that the arranged marriage fell apart because he fell in love with a different person more interesting than the wife just being the worst.

[@chongwillson972]

@Elizabeth K a reminder ,killing your husband just because he cheated on you , will send you to hell regardless of how much good person you were before that.

[@unapersonav1522]

Completely agree. This episode felt like a way to make Stolas overall a completely good person that only needs to raise his voice to gain redemption instead of the flawed one but still deserving of love that would need to change to redeem himself. Now he's just misunderstood and Stela is just evil, which isn't bad by itself, its just not what was presented before.

[@mackthompson616]

i’m hoping we get her side/pov on life and the marriage eventually bc i feel there’s more to her behavior than meets the eye

[@NachoPotato]

Yeah, sums it up

[@Tues48]

We can't keep just saying "it's hell morals don't matter" when they do to some extent. There are still rules to follow plus the children versions of blitz and stolas are very moral, their morality came from somewhere. In Harbin hotel, the princess of hell is moral. Each character has the capacity for good and whatever circumstances guide that. Is striker evil cause he's evil or because he's an imp in a world that inherently sees him as lesser and must fight his way up Is Verosika evil cause she's evil or her role as a succubus influence how people see her and she responds to it. We very rarely see characters who are evil for the sake of being evil (so far the only ones I can name are Stella and Kitty Killjoy)

[@codafett]

My issue isn't how evil Stella is, because duh she's a demon from hell. My issue is that she's not a villain, she's a walking strawman of an abusive relationship. She's just unpleasant for no reason and she's clearly written that way deliberately to make Stolas sympathetic.

[@aug1014]

She’s literally Lisa from The Room now

[@conorrigoli7578]

@@aug1014 Why Lisa WHY WHY?!

[@AniabelLark]

Yes, remember Zuko, from the series "Avatar", at first we were presented as the villain, a leader, violent, cruel, he destroys villages to find the Avatar, blinding himself and he must "by force get his father's approval" without giving him importance to uncle Iroh, he saw him as a son, he did not demand anything from him, then he asks himself questions about life, he arrives in a conflict between himself, his sister Azula arrives with ideas of destruction and support of conquering kingdoms, manipulating her friends, raising doubts To Zuko, should he support her to be accepted again by his father or accept the affection of his Uncle Iroh and the people who forgave his crimes? He doesn't know what he's doing, he decides to side with Azula for a while, but his conscience doesn't. He leaves him alone, decides to apologize again, to regain the unconditional affection of his uncle Iroh.

[@codafett]

@@AniabelLark I think you're vastly overestimating their writing ability.

[@AniabelLark]

@@codafett sorry,

[@Tues48]

Honestly they should have written her with more nuance. Like I get it's to show Stolas had no choice but I hate "this action (aka stolas cheating) we thought was terrible was actually good and everyone else is wrong and why can't they just let him live" I just can't wait to get another Octavia flashback cause i need to know what she thought her parents marriage was like. Stella has apparently been evil since birth, been bad mouthing her husband since the beginning but stolas raises his voice a few times (he doesn't even fight back) and suddenly it's "I miss when my parents didn't hate each other". Like I wanted them to portray Stella as a bad wife but good mom (like they did for Stolas in season 1) cause it doesn't make sense she's an awful mom but takes Octavia with her on weekends, and that Octavia doesn't say anything bad about her mother or that she doesn't say "mom is crazy and usually freaks out over nothing but you did fuck this time". Octavia's problem is that her father's actions upset her mother and and now she's mad at her dad too because it's destroying their family. Why was it hard for Stolas to explain to in looloo about his marriage to Stella if she's always been openly antagonistic What image is Stella trying to uphold? Her character at this point makes no sense cause there's nothing behind it. Looking forward to the video btw. 27 hours to go.

[@elizabethk007]

Yeah it sort of retcons the LooLooLand episode if the situation is as black and white as it was presented in season 2

[@chickadeestevenson5440]

My theory is that Stolas has been sheltering her from the abuse. I thought the way my mother and father interacted was normal when it was in fact highly toxic. I'm still trying to figure out how to human. Stolas stayed because he had to, but also was too kind hearted to let Octavia be poisoned by her mother. So he probally played the dutiful and quiet part, making sure that nothing ever happened. Stella likely never did anything too obviously abusive (just neglect and the like) because Stolas would likely end her, and if he didn't I don't think Pidemon would like his precautionary Heir damaged.

[@ghostfalcon6609]

Ok, I was wondering about Octavia's view on this, and I'm realising that the LooLoo Land dialogue wasn't retconned, it actually change the context of the whole thing now that we know that Stella was being abusive towards Stolas for a while now. And here's why. Long story short, Octavia got older and started to notice the cracks of the marriage, since she's still a teenager and Stolas was trying to give her a normal family, she probably wondered if something happened between the two and that's when the affair happened, she probably thinks that the two are related in the inverse way (as in, Stolas sleeping with Blitzo caused Stella to lash out at him and cause the rift in the marriage)

[@ifeeldead463]

I see it as a mix of "Stolas tried to shield Octavia from Stella's cruelty and toxicity but it got difficult the older Via got" and "Stella does care about Via but in a toxic sort of way". Cuz Stolas said that he's been putting up with the abuse to give Via the closest thing to a normal life and we do see some evidence since 1) little Octavia does cry out for both parents when she had a nightmare, 2) Octavia mentioned her parents seemed to love each other in the past and 3) there was a family photo of the family in Loo Loo Land with Stella being the only one not happy to be there but otherwise tolerating the situation. That implies that Stella at least cared enough to be willing to play pretend, she probably stopped bothering when Via got older and especially after Stolas cheated. The reason why I think Stella does at least care about Octavia but in a toxic way was the fact that Stella doesn't seem to think about Octavia in her actions or plans. She doesn't care that she might accidentally hit Octavia with a potted plant or the imp butler when she had her rampage, she didn't care that Octavia would overhear whatever hurtful thing or truth she'd say, she didn't care how Via would react to Stolas' death and she def never acknowledges her other than "the egg". But at the same time, Octavia never says a bad thing about her and Stella doesn't say anything bad about Octavia either, Stella also seems to be willing to pretend to be a happy family to the point Octavia thought Stella and Stolas actually loved each other at some point and Stella still gets custody of Octavia on weekends. So, I feel like she does care but in a toxic way, where she puts herself before Via or it might also be conditional since Octavia is her and Stolas' heir. Tldr: Stolas tried to shield Octavia from the abuse but Stella might at least care about her daughter, even if she might be a toxic parent

[@simpgod2170]

An awful parent can still.take their child on the weekend and not treat them right. Stella probably didn't start freaking out around Octavia until Stolas cheated. It's possible Stella just put up a act around Octavia or Octavia just didnt notice how unhappy her mother was around stolas so she just assumed her parents had a happy marriage Stella is abusive and bad tempered royal demand who husband (who she can't stand) cheated on her with someone who is considered the very bottom of low class. In real life it's already bad enough when your husband/wife cheats on you with someone and a bunch of people are talking about it, but as royalty that's even worse cus they are considered at a higher standard then the avenge person Imagine if the president cheated on his wife and it was with someone who considered low class, both the president and his wife would feel humiliated by not only upper class but also by lower classes

[@chatyxd6078]

I never had a problem with Stella being an awful wife but I think she's very one dimensional and it kinda hurts Stolas's agency. Stolas cheating on his wife was his own choice, we assumed she was awful but we also only ever saw her in unfavorable circumstances. But now we know there isn't a single spot of redemptive qualities, so no wonder Stolas cheats on her I would to. Cheating on Stella used to be a blemish on Stolas's character but now that we feel he's justified this goes on top of the list of good qualities that Stolas posseses, of which he has many.

[@ibdora05]

we need to be patient. the helluva boss fans and community needs to be PATIENT. the 1st episode of season 2 JUST came out. there will most likely be a couple episodes further explaining stella's origins. the creators can't explain EVERYTHING in one episode. i'm so tired of seeing people trying to rush things. we need to just be patient for the next season.

[@JamesWillmus]

So just... Not talk about the show at all then? Because I'm honestly confused as to how making up theories constitutes impatience. Hell, kitty here wouldn't have a channel if no one could talk about what happens next.

[@flavortown6280]

@@JamesWillmus THIS. Just because something isn't finished yet doesn't mean it can't be critiqued

[@ivyproductions7097]

@@JamesWillmus People are complaining about a lack of backstory on a character. Umm yeah of course we’re gonna have to wait to see where it goes. You can talk about it, but complaining how we never got a backstory of a character who probably has a grand total of 5 minutes of screen time in the first episode of a season, is ridiculous. Discussion is good for a show, it always is, this video and all videos on Hellvua Boss are great for it. But we’ve only been given a couple pieces of the puzzle and people are complaining that it doesn’t look right.

[@safenow2186]

@@JamesWillmus I- Did you even read their comment??????? They never mentioned anything about people making up theories for the show. They're talking about people complaining about how Stella has no backstory for how awful she is despite the fact that we've barely seen her on screen. Next time, read comments carefully before replying.

[@safenow2186]

@@flavortown6280 Ok, but the original comment never said that something couldn't be critiqued just because it isn't finished.

[@luxluther436]

14:43 EXACTLY! No one else seems to see this! Okay imagine you’re at a cafe and see a man and a woman on a date. The man stands up and slaps the woman. What would you do? Most people would call the cops on him. But imagine the woman stands up and slaps the man, now what would you do? Most people would be like “Ooooooo what did he doooo” and it’s so unfair to me.

[@shybie2798]

I don't think she needs a reason, some people are just plain out bad, yes they can potentially be better with better people, but sometimes they don't want to improve themselves and can just be flat out assholes just to be assholes. No matter how tragic her backstory can get if they decide to write it, it does not excuse the asshole, being an asshole, there are tons of people with really rough pasts who are genuinely the kindness of the kind and vice versa.

[@kawaiicrossing5047]

While it is important to show that sometimes people are monsters because of life tearing them down to the point of losing their moral code, I think it's just as important to show that despite what we want to believe, there are horrible people who are just evil for the sake of it.

[@mitab1]

I don't belive that someone could be evil for the sake of being evil, i'm not saying that awful people can be redeemed, i'm just saying that bad people are not born they are made, again alot of people are a lost cause but they weren't born that way,

[@blackbloom8552]

@@mitab1 Bad people generally are bad because they have been raised to become entitled and selfish from a lack of accountability and consequences for their actions. They are as much a product of the corrupt scociety but they are not victims of it.

[@mitab1]

@@blackbloom8552 yes that's what I mean, being a yes man to a child is how you get a Karan, and it's important to teach children that their actions have consequences

[@BrokensoulRider]

@@mitab1 There are plenty of examples through history that can and will prove you otherwise. Some people, legitimately, are just born... bad. The most notable is some of the recent serial killers. Charles manson, for example, was born into a good home with a good family. Still kicking puppies, killing birds, pulling butterfly wings off the butterfly to see it suffer. These are legitimate behaviors that some people exhibit from birth.

[@mitab1]

@@BrokensoulRider either his parents didn't teach him right from wrong or we don't know the full story, also if they were born evil then why punish them for something out of their control?

[@Spectra651]

The thing about the "cheating" aspect, though... to me, cheating implies that one person in a loving, consensual relationship is seeing another person behind behind their partner's back... but Stolas' and Stella's relationship isn't consensual and never was. It was an arranged marriage where both were essentially forced by their parents to be together, despite what either of them might want personally. Imagine if when you were 10 years old your mother or father brought another child home you'd never met before and said "When you turn 16, you're going to marry this person whether you like it or not, no ifs, ands, or buts." Now that person you're forced to marry might not even be a bad person, but that's irrelevant; the fact remains that neither one of you consented to the marriage in the first place, so how is it a betrayal of your partner's love and trust to be with someone else if there was never any mutual love or trust there to begin with? Anyone who would judge you as immoral for "cheating" would be doing so unfairly, imo, looking at it in black-and-white terms without seeing the nuance of your individual situation. It would be just as unfair to condemn someone who killed their attacker in obvious self-defense as a murderer. And I must reiterate, there cannot be a relationship without consent. Otherwise it's called stalking, or... something worse. This key element was denied to both Stolas and Stella by their parents, so I don't think you can really call what Stolas did "cheating" in the traditional sense. And aside from *all* of that, Stella is an abuser, both mentally and physically, even before Stolas "cheated" on her, and I honestly don't care if the partner "cheating" in that scenario hurts their abuser's precious little feelings.

[@samfaulhaber5249]

I think Stella being given a reason, like not wanting the arranged marriage any more than Stolas, would work well if done right. If anything, it could be used to make her even more unsympathetic, because as you said, she’s just being spiteful and petty by taking her anger out on Stolas, who, unlike her, is actively trying to make the best out of the bad situation that he’s in by being a better father to Octavia than Paimon was to him.

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

Stella only bullies stolas because stolas doesn’t do anything

[@pugs0226]

I really enjoyed this episode, a great start to season 2. It was nice having Stella be a simple character in an already complicated situation, plus seeing stolas and blitz as kids was amazing. I hope to see Stella take a bigger role in this season and see her a bit more often scheming to get rid of stolas

[@sheaceon6312]

while i do understand the "people didn't like it because it doesn't line up with what they thought would happen" and think it is something that does happen, I and I know some others don't like the direction they took stella because it feels like they're flattening the story. Removing things that could be interesting and taking a lot of moral ambiguity away from Stolas' actions. This episode kinda felt like "oh she was always terrible so its pretty fine and justified that he cheated" when I feel previous episodes, epecially stolas part of the song in ep 7, made it seem more like he did something bad that he regrets/should regret.

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

Stolas shouldn’t apologize to an abuser

[@sheaceon6312]

@@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7 thats not what I said at all. I said I don't like that they made her always terrible and an abuser. From the way the show was going before (imo) it seemed like they were in an ok marriage that turned loveless so he cheated, and thats why stella (justifiably) got angry and what turned her villainous was how she responded unjustifiably(trying to have him killed). Ozzie's song implies that he threw away his life and family (that both seemed good if the song framing is anything to go by) to be with blitz. The way the song frames it it sounds like a mistake stolas made. Her not being abusive and terrible all along I also thought made stolas more interesting and a more morally grey character. I just think it makes a lot of things in the show less interesting if she was abusive and horrible from day one. Again, stella, as revealed by s2e1 was always abusive and horrible, but it seemed a lot of the show leading up to this episode pointed at her only getting horrible with him because he cheated. Not justifying her actions, as we know now she 's always been irredeemably horrible, just think this characterization makes a lot of the story and character elements flatter.

[@briasinterlude1755]

@@sheaceon6312 The fandom will say people are mad because their headcanon was wrong and there was always hints in the beginning that she was abusive.

[@witherslayer-7315]

"does Stella even need a reason?" Not necessarily. Some people are just awful for no reason at all. However, her writing is pretty weird if she doesn't have a reason. I wish it wasn't heavily insinuated that she did have the reason, even I she was still a bad person. It feels like they had an idea of what they wanted Stella's character to be that was similar to what he have now, but reworked it at the last minute. It's no wonder that people sympathized with her a little bit in the beginning, since they had reason to think Stolas's cheating with an imp is what made her even more bitter towards Stolas and what ultimately made their Marriage so sour. Octavia even says "when I was a kid and my parents didn't hate each other." Or how Stella says "I want this cheating prick dead!" You could say she's saying think because it might ruin her reputation. But I'm still not buying that. The emphasis of "Cheating" just doesn't make much sense if you look at it that way. I guess what I'm trying to say is if I were to write a character like Stella I would make it apparent that she was just a bad person and nothing else form the get go. I guess I was expecting more form Stella. She's more of a plot Device than a character right now, and her cruelty is so cartoonish it's almost comical, which makes her hard to take seriously. At least for me. I wasn't looking for a sob story,(we have verorsika for that. Though, her relationship with Blitzo isn't that fleshed out either...) just something a bit more than this.

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

Stella was born with mental illnesses and stolas said stella is not in love with him in episode 2

[@TheDawnofVanlife]

She can be abusive to Stolas and still have her own issues. Doesn't excuse her being abusive, but there is still the opportunity for layers. Likely expectations have probably been thrown on her as well. also, reasons are not redemption. You might become an abuser because you were abused, but until you recognize why you are the way you are, but until you make the continuos choice to behave differently. You're still an abuser in your own right. Sometimes people make reasons also excuses and that's what annoys me sometimes.

[@chongwillson972]

@The Dawn of Vanlife i dont know once a female abuser gets reasons on why they are abusive to their partner , they are usually almost always forgiven by everyone, while if they tried to to that with a male abuser their character would need to go to hell and back for his redemption and even then would be hated...

[@ilikeyoutube7224]

Shadowweaver is not redeemed though. The creators even said her sacrifice was selfish/ calculated. Something about her not wanting to put in the effort to change (like Catra did), knowing the upcoming world wasn't gonna be one she can have power in, and her last words, "ur welcome" suggest cockiness and entitlement.

[@kaijaruptor]

Stellas like the embodiment of a Cocker Spaniel and Chihuaha. Rude as a Spaniel and crazy as a Chihuaha

[@SaffronicSaffron]

I'm actually glad that you called out that she is a bit cartoonish at times. it was one of the first things I also noticed when looking at the episode, as I'm studying trying in writing I noticed that sometimes she's not very subtle in her actions and sometimes people view subtlety as a better way to describe abusive actions. in writing of course.

[@mistingwolf]

I'm completely okay with Stella just being a bad person. Not every villain has to have or has had a sob story, and in fact there are multiple cases of real people growing up with a perfectly loving family that turn out as absolutely deplorable people. Clearly we see that Stella has had violent tenancies from a young age. It doesn't have to be that deep, bro.

[@sadlobster1]

The worst example of a female abuser character scenario I can think of comes from The Loud House, specifically where Lincoln reveals he's getting bullied. When his sisters believe it's a BOY causing the trouble, they're more than willing to bash any boy they find through a wall; if he turned out to be the guilty party. But when Lincoln reveals it's a GIRL doing it, they squeal like a bunch of twits at a Justin Bieber concert. What's worse is that in a later episode, Lincoln vents off his frustrations about that bully's teasing in the cafeteria...and she happens to overhear him. As a result, she goes home crying and tells her own brother about it...who just happens to be the boyfriend of Lincoln's oldest sister, Lori. She then FORCES Lincoln into going on a double date, claiming Lincoln has to SHOW the bully girl he's sorry; rather than tell her via a text. Needless to say; in it's early days, Loud House (and some of its fans) were REALLY pushing the "girl abuser is just misunderstood" thing. The only good that came out of this is that eventually (and I use that term VERY strongly,) she gives up her abusive ways and becomes a more likeable character

[@the_UF365]

Can we all agree that Stella basically has a sadist personality disorder? She said flat out that she gains pleasure from torturing Stolas emotionally and physically and when she was a little girl, she was shown to be attacking someone with a smile on her face.

[@davidmorales5797]

I think Stella being horrible for the sake of it is actually on point... I have people in my family who act just like her and they were never abused or mistreated by anyone, they just say and do terrible things for the sake of it, especially towards their spouses and they chose to marry them! Stolas reminds me of Fredrick the Great, yeah he was married, but it was arranged and neither party loved one another, so would you shame a person for cheating if there was no love in the first place? Shame a person for looking to take back a life they never controlled at all? Remember that marriage and love being connected is a very, VERY recent concept only being established in the 1700s during the age of enlightenment, people started thinking "well why do I have to marry a person I don't even know for the sake of religion and my family, don't I deserve someone I love?" Back then loving your spouse was a bonus not everyone was granted.

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

So some of your family members are terrible because they don’t suffer ?

[@aug1014]

I just can’t connect that Stella to the one who hogged the blankets in episode 2. I don’t see why she needed to be changed. The only way I see the change servicing the story is to make the two men more virtuous, which is irrelevant since both are murderous demons

[@chongwillson972]

@Aug 101 how was she changed?

[@quangtuantran7181]

imo not every characters need to be complex and onion-like, some just serve one purpose but does it very well, and is very fun to watch/hate. Throwing even more drama and layers into Stolas' relationships will just be too much and it will just become a mess, well, a bigger one. Stella is fine as she is, she doesnt need to be more fleshed out to do her job in the story, I d prefer if they develop Millie more tho, she is one of the main couples but right now she feels like a Mox+1

[@vucsanna1136]

She's such an awful person but honestly- I laughed the most on her insults during this episode. I know she's an abuser but like Paimon the way the actors delivered the lines was so damn hilarious I couldn't help but laugh against my better judgement. I honestly really like the way she's built up! She's the hilarious snobby arranged wife with temper issues that I would choke in a spoonful of water and I love it ♡ Can't wait to see more of her!

[@bigmacsama]

Not only Odalia Blight, but also Queen Dagmar as well from Disenchantment; for a number of reasons, if you think about it.

[@ChasehaWing]

I love that Stella is just like that. She is full blown evil from her head to her talons and she LOVES it. Irredeemable people make some of the best villians in all stories, and Stella's lines are just iconic. It's fun to watch her villianous downfall. Besides there are a LOT of complicated characters and dynamics already. Sometimes a sympathetic villian actually slows things down and ruins the internal structure of a story, than adds to it.

[@comet.x]

yyyup. plus, abusers are just like that!

[@BBMacsWorld]

From what I can tell. Stella hates Stolas and probably Octavia. It's not the fact that Stolas cheated on her that's the problem. It's the fact that they're royalty and he slept with the Lowest ranked species of Demon in Hell's Hierarchy. Who then openly admitted to it right in front of her friends who I assume told other Demons. Which is why she hired Striker

[@reyfan011]

Octavia is the one who I believe will show what kind of mother Stella is. If Stella truly loves her daughter even a little, then if via finds out about her plot and tries to stand between her and stolas, what she chooses to do will show how bad she is. Will she hesitate if it means hurting her daughter? Or is she willing to go through via to get to stolas and will simply feel she can have more kids? We don’t know what kind of mom she is. Would she do anything that would hurt her child?

[@joimumu]

What Stella doesn’t realise if anything happens to Octavia then her family will make her pay for it and she won’t get away with just one heir like she stopped after Octavia was born but she be used as a baby factory

[@philw3039]

Stella probably does care for Octavia somewhat if only for her value as an Ars Goetia heir and the narcissistic tendency for some people to see their children as extensions of themselves. So I doubt she'd intentionally target her own daughter, but she might not be particularly mindful of how her actions might end up impacting Octavia either. However, characters like Stella are very good at justifying their own actions. Stella probably thinks of herself as a wonderful mother and if Octavia did end up getting hurt as the result of something she did, she'd likely find a way to place the blame on Stolas or maybe even Octavia herself.

[@avivastudios2311]

We don't need Stella to have a reason to be bad. We just need her to do something other than be mean to Stolas. Even in the latest episode when she's talking with her brother, it's ALL about Stolas. It's annoying.

[@crystallightwings8520]

I understand she suppost to be an evil charater, I personley think the show is using Stella to say it was okay for Stolas to cheat on her. And I don't like the fact that a show is saying is okay to cheat if they are a terrible person. I can understand getting a divorse if they are a terrible person just not cheating for me anyway

[@area52ron]

Well actually Steven only tolerates the diamonds especially White Diamond if the face he makes in the movie and how he tried to smash her gem into a piller when he was able to take control over her body has anything to say about it The reason he didn’t shatter the diamonds is because he knows what happens when Homeoworld thinks that one of the diamonds (his mom) is shattered

[@babybunnigutz3297]

I honestly like the idea of Stella being a bad character and I don’t think she should be redeemed I would just rather her be not so one dimensional and flat because that’s just not how people work, plus there’s obviously no excuse but we just kinda skip past the fact that she was probably raised to be this cruel and was also forced into this marriage and giving birth. I want her to be a bad person but a good character.

[@thesatelliteslickers907]

Not every villain needs to be three dimensional and sympathetic with an understandable motivation. Simple does not necessarily equal baf

[@comet.x]

besides, simple is realistic. Abusers are that simple and cruel. They are just monsters. remember amber and jonny? There are many cases like that

[@anonymoushiram7672]

Another thing to note is that Stolas is heavily gay coded, as in he only likes men. The line about him lying around in bed, doing nothing implies a disinterest that and the way he clearly had a crush on Blitz when he was young, just makes me think he’s gay. Which I think is an important element of his heterosexual arranged marriage.

[@trashking471]

I didn't take it as Stolas assumed Blitzø came to have sex with him, I took it as Stolas joking, especially since Stolas decided to strike up a friendly conversation with him afterwards- "OBVIOUSLY you're here for that double gawk suck suck lmao 😩- nice, to see you here, how have you been, bro?" Blitzø, however, took it as Stolas coming onto him so he decided to use that to get the book which obviously caught Stolas off-guard considering he didn't expect Blitzø to ACTUALLY be there to have sex with him. However, since Blitzø has been Stolas's childhood crush, we went with it lmao.

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

But why was he flirty when he was joking because stolas could act scared in a joking way

[@trashking471]

@@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7 Beacuse some people jokingly flirt??

[@TheCommenterDragon]

Honestly, Stella may have been raised bad and she may be the main antagonist of the series, but even if they find out that Stella has been the mastermind behind the assassination attempts on Stolas chances are she won't get punished for it or anything because not only do they live in Hell but also because Stella comes from a rich family and as the series has shown even in Hell you can get away with anything as long as you got power,wealth, and a social status.

[@PancakemonsterFO4]

Unless she gets Karma'd by Striker

[@TheCommenterDragon]

@@PancakemonsterFO4 Sure, if she betrays Striker which she most likely will since not only is she a bad person, but also because she would never think of an Imp as an equal to her.

[@harmony2846]

I have a question, did you post this exact comment on sarcastic choruses video that came out

[@TheCommenterDragon]

@@harmony2846 Admittedly yes i did, but in it's own right it's still a relevant topic so as long as it's on a video about Stella what's the harm?

[@harmony2846]

@@TheCommenterDragon oh there's definitely nothing wrong with the comment I just wanted to confirm I wasn't seeing things

[@leephillips4402]

"Parental bond nothing more" it disturbs me you felt the need to clarify that.

[@KittyMonk]

There was that whole fiasco on Instagram :/

[@leephillips4402]

@@KittyMonk damn

[@tnuoccaeht]

Two seconds in, no she doesn’t need a reason, the joke is that Stella’s been choking creatures out ever since childhood.

[@area52ron]

🤓: actually they were supposed to make a precautionary heir which means Octavia will be doing Stolas’ job once he’s dead and can no longer do his job either by being murdered or something goes wrong in his job

[@eccentricdownfall321]

Wow kittymonk it's really eye opening about the double standard of cheating

[@animatorireenie8319]

Hm... I do think she's very one-dimensional. I get that it's hell, but other characters are getting backstories etc. I mean, why is this excuse applied to some but not everyone, y'know? Maybe they could show that she was enabled in her behavior. Good actions aren't rewarded, but she gets treats for acting wild. I'm not asking for her to be redeemed. I'd just love to see more context instead of only being told. She's clearly abusive and this can't be excused. But Blight has more going in her life than Stella does, y'know? Right now it all seems a bit like lazy writing in order to excuse Stolas to me. Additionally... In the context of the little screentime Millie and Loona are getting compared to Stolas, who didn't even start out as part of the main cast... Yeah, the female characters don't seem to be well off.

[@lexyruse603]

To me it seems vivzie is putting more context on how men can be victims of abuse. We seem time and time again. Men are the abuser. Women are the victim. Men are the one dimensional abuser. Women are the victim but in her shows it's different. It's like Hazbin Hotel. When you think of people being pimped out and abused by their pimp and raped by their pimp you think Women. But in Hazbin Hotel it's Angel (male) who is being abused and raped and being pimped out by Val. And I find it interesting that people are arguing Stella is one dimensional. But nobody is arguing that Val is one dimensional. It seems people mainly argue that when the women is the abuser where as if it's a man who is just a one dimensional abuser nobody really cares and just says "That seems about right". But that's just me.

[@animatorireenie8319]

@@lexyruse603 Hm, I can definitely see your point. Calling this out is indeed a good thing. Though I'm going to play devil's advocate here and assume that Val hasn't had the screen time to be as talked about.

[@lexyruse603]

@@animatorireenie8319 Honestly after the music video where you see Val rape Angel I strongly doubt he will get any sympathy points no matter what they do.

[@animatorireenie8319]

@@lexyruse603 Oh, I completely forgot about the music video being a thing. I'm dropping my previous argument.

[@lexyruse603]

@@animatorireenie8319 Honestly I found Angel a little annoying, then I saw the video and I'm like "My poor baby!" Honestly I think the music video is when Val Became Vivzie's most hated Character🤣

[@1221-g5f]

I’ll spell it out for y’all. M.O.T.I.V.E We humans have motive, motives that get us out of the bed in the morning. Regardless of what you do, you have a motive, a reason for WHY you do things! You eat because you’re hungry, you drink because your thirsty. You hate because you’ve been hurt, you love because you’ve been loved. Cause and effect! The only things that are excluded from a need for motive, aren’t human, or they lack emotions and basic desires for survival. Machines, nature, or something that breaks the bounds of motive itself, like an actual force of good or evil. And the last time I checked, Stella has human emotions. From what we’ve been allowed to see, she broadcasts a very relatable emotion that every person has felt at one time or another, WRATH. Stella is an angry person, and the show has gone to great lengths to demonstrate this. She trashes her home on a daily basis for almost any insignificant reason. She berated, physically assaulted, and ‘tormented’ her ex husband for at least fifteen years! It is clear to me, and many other individuals that Stella is a horrible person. We don’t even know how she interacts with other demons besides Stolas, and we haven’t even seen how she treats her own daughter! Although we can assume it isn’t good! But one thing that people have been failing to account for, is WHY? We can reliably assume based upon her past appearances and active role in the potted assassination of Stolas; that Stella Goetia is a villain. And considering what I know about villains, THEY NEED A MOTIVE! A reason, a system of beliefs as to why they do the things they do! Before season two, the audience was given a couple possible options as to why Stella called the hit on Stolas. She was hurt, disrespected, or she felt her reputation at the very least was being tarnished by Stolas! Stolas had done something to wrong Stella, and she became a villain because of that! But with the Circus episode, it is clear to me that the writers want us to look further back (If they’re good writers). The episode goes out of its way to imply that Stella wasn’t hurt by Stolas in any notable way, and they further this narrative with the picture of Stella strangling those two dog things as a child! They imply that Stella has been a bad person for a long time with that image! But people aren’t willing to see this story from both sides! WHY IS SHE A BAD PERSON AS A DAMM CHILD? This episode displays three characters as children other than Stella (Blitzø, Fizzarolli, and Stolas), and all of them are innocent, non-violent, standard children. Children EVEN IN HELL aren’t born evil! They start out just like every human does! Stella became a villain early in her life and villains need wounds. They don’t have to be much, and they don’t have to be only physical! A villain is a person that was wronged by the world, and so they choose to hurt the world back in response! So I ask this question. What wound would turn a completely innocent little girl, into a violent raging mess that actively sees abuse as a justifiable action to take? Someone whom has witnessed it, or has suffered it themselves that’s who. Animal abuse is an extremely common sign of abuse or neglect of a child or another family member. And I get it! The story of helluva boss is not about Stella! But the writers are willing to dive into the psychological aspects of every other character, including other antagonizing characters like Verosika, and Fizzarolli. They have been hurt, by Blitzø personally, they have clear reasons for being horrible people to Blitzø. Before I go any further, I want to point something out. IN NO CASE IT IS MORALLY OR LOGICALLY JUSTIFIABLE TO ABUSE, MISTREAT, OR HARM ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL, WHO IS COMPLETELY UNDESERVING OF IT. I AM NOT IN ANY WAY CONDONING OR EXCUSING STELLA’S ABUSE TO HER EX-HUSBAND, WHAT SHE HAS DONE IS HORRIBLE, AND IT WILL STILL BE A HORRIBLE ACTION! But that’s the one thing. Stella doesn’t see it that way! She believes that her cruel words, fists, and neglect are justifiable actions. We as the viewers of the show have the luxury of seeing all the available angles that the writers are willing to give. We as the viewers need to actually see WHY Stella believes that she is in the right. Because a villain almost always believes that their cause, and the actions that they take to further it, are justifiable. If they are going to show Stella being a horrible person, they need to show WHY that is. So we as the audience can understand her motivations, what gets her out of bed in the morning, and what she may be working towards. It is paramount that the writers clear this mess up, and I beg of any person whom reads this; do not excuse lazy writing, if they don’t fix this mess, don’t be blinded by all the pretty colors or the cool character designs! Stella very clearly didn’t want the divorce at the end of S2 E1, but yet she still does everything to make Stolas want to divorce her! WHAT IS THIS LADY’S PLAN FOR CRYING OUT LOUD. Alright that’s it! I apologize if I’ve confused anyone, but I cannot sit idly by, and allow people to ignore bad writing devices. And I definitely do not like to watch people push the idea that some children aren’t created, as innocent individuals. Let’s not even talk about psychopaths and Sociopaths and all that crap! I don’t want them to push the narrative that hating sick people because they’re sick is okay! Alright NOW I’M DONE!

[@SuperPcPenguin]

Another thing I see people forgetting about with all this is that helluva boss takes place in literal hell, no one is a completely good person, so you shouldn't expect anyone to be a morally good person all the time. Sure, people still have their reasons for doing things and everything, but but doing bad is generally the norm. I don't see any real reason to redeem Stella, she plays her role just fine and it makes sense that demon royalty that's been spoiled so much and had never been told no would turn out to be such a bitch as an adult, and honestly she seems too disconnected from anything to even get a decent redemption arc anyways, she never cared for stolas, she never seemed to care for her daughter, there's nothing to grasp to for her to see the error of her ways or how the she's effecting those around her is bad, thus far it seems that the only way she would change for the relative better is if she personally got something to gain out of it.

[@sarafontanini7051]

exactly. People forget that this is not only hell but Hazbin Hotel hell, where bad behaviour is not only the norm its actively encouraged because anything else is seen as weird or repugnant or weak. Stella's behaviour is supposed to be NORMAL here.

[@Birdyboys]

“Villain is evil for no reason” honestly only works for something like a Saturday morning cartoon villain, not a character who’s intended to be an important character in a cast of nuanced and fleshed out characters. I don’t think anyone disappointed in Stella’s writing wanted her to be a victim or have some kind of trauma, but that all her dialogue (and only in the first episode of season 2) is just her constantly bullying and berating Stolas… in front of people. This is a show for adults but she’s written like the mean girl character in a children’s show

[@thelanktheist2626]

Mean girls exist. Your point is moot, by that alone.

[@nectarinn3]

@@thelanktheist2626 yeah they exist, but it's not exactly a basis for a compelling villain of anything other than a teen drama

[@Birdyboys]

@@thelanktheist2626 how does that make my point moot? Like yes mean girls exist in real life, but those mean girls aren’t laughably one dimensional. Stella couldn’t even try to be a little two faced about her writing. Everything is flat and boring, her dialogue is bad, quit being in denial about it because you don’t like being told a show you like has flaws

[@Birdyboys]

@@nectarinn3 even teen dramas try to give their mean girl characters depth 💀

[@PixieoftheWood]

I mean, literal narcissists are actually that one dimensional. Since one of the criteria of being a narcissist is to be literally incapable of introspection, you do get people who just care about attention and are horrible and sadistic with no real complex thought behind their actions.

[@user-nmCarter]

Stella need let things go. Good work on the video.

[@purplerose2124]

In my experience with mental health and how abusers are made, normally abusers were abused. Nobody believes that makes it okay or forgiveable. I think tv shows fall flat when they "redeem" abusers by showing they did something good for someone. I like the example of Beatrice because that's more realistic. Shadowweaver was a bad representation in my personal opinion. Amity's mom is a good example too. If Stella is shown to have an abuse filled childhood i dont think that justifies her abuse toward Stolas. I dont think there's any story reason i could predict to show that though. I think abusers become that way as a survival method. The way some people learn to make themselves small and unnoticeable. The problem is abusers feel guilt and know they're doing something wrong, but they never make the effort to change their actions. The only way to redeem an abuser is for them to stop abusing. And then its the survivors choice if they want to forgive them.

[@comet.x]

yeah unless it's a dream luck head injury that perfectly rewired neurons, being abused as a child doesn't make you an abuser in the same way being abused as a child doesn't give you autism. psychopathy/sociopathy is a mental disorder that makes them monsters.

[@purplerose2124]

@@comet.x psychopathy and sociopothy aren't used as labels anymore but when they were sociopaths were made and psychopaths are born. How do you make a sociopath? Oh, crazy, its abuse!! Thats how! Wow! Its almost like being mistreated at an extremely young age normalizes violence for you! Emotional abuse doesn't make abusive assholes too often, people tend to recover from that, generally, given some years. But if youre abused in multiple ways, especially sexually, you're a lot more likely to come out the other side with some serious damage. And rarely that damage makes people violent. Do some research because you're extremely under educated to say sociopaths arent made.

[@untappedpotential2761]

The thing that makes Amity work is that she was never the abuser, but rather an abuse victim forced to follow the whims of the abusers around her.

[@theawkwardpotato1973]

Stella really doesn’t seem to care how it’ll affect Octavia. At least Stolas tries. He doesn’t always succeed, but he obviously cares about Octavia’s happiness. Stella just doesn’t even have Octavia in her mind when considering consequences of her actions.

[@Persphone_cabin]

I love that Helluva boss made the MAN the abuse victim. Without ANY GREY AREA!!!! It’s so good! I love that! Good rep!!

[@Lovehandels]

"Oh! That's an ugly noise son" Always cracks me up!

[@syniimon-stix4022]

Yes, she does need a reason. Without a reason, she's just a one dimensional character. Just an evil bitch who abuses her "uwu soft gay lonely" husband. And it's not at all realistic either, people aren't just "evil" for no reason, it's either because of how they're raised, how they've been treated or behavior they've observed from others. I honestly hate the season 2 episode 1 because of how everything is portrayed. It kinda retconned things about Stolas and Stella's relationship, turned Stolas into an uwu sad boy, and turned Stella into a piece of cardboard with angry eyes drawn on it. That's just my opinion tho.

[@Srakch]

"People aren't just evil for no reason." Oh boy this will be fun to tear down. When I was a kid I was subject to a lot of favouritism, my sister often always got things she wanted and I was the brunt of the common "you weren't good enough" or "you don't deserve it." She would often slap the back of my head whenever my autism got me distracted, she would psychologically gaslight me and lie to me. Further on, when I was 15. My mother one day is gone, my sister with her. What happened? Turns out after all my father did for her, a car, helping her escape from a drug addiction, providing a roof and food and being very loving and supportive. Turns out that wasn't enough, you see she took my sister one day, stole every bit of money we had. My dad found out by my own tears of guilt, that she planned to run away to one of dad's friends because he's got more money. She began to lie to my sister about how abhorrent my father is, spread lies that he hit her when she was pregnant, and that he regularly abused her. She sent him the bills to the house she is now living in, and my father who is broken already, just pays them off. She has sent people to spy on us, had people threaten him, had people pretend to visit and take pictures of us to send her. So please I implore you, give that hag a reason. You can't, cause she has none. When it's a man he either deserves it or doesn't provide enough, when it's a woman there's excuses, that she was scared or was threatened. You can fuck right off.

[@syniimon-stix4022]

@@Srakch Sir, maam or person of other unspecified gender. How about you fuck off? I have every right to state my opinion on the internet, I never justified Stella's actions, I never said Stolas deserved it, I said it would make her a more interesting character, I never said it was an excuse or a justification. I never asked for your entire life story and I never asked you to assume things about me based upon my opinion of a *fictional* character. I have every right to state my opinion on a character. So rather than assuming things about me and claiming I'm trying to justify Stella's behavior, maybe just respect my opinion and move on? Stolas of course doesn't deserve the abuse and Stella is an awful person, that's pretty fucking clear to me, I'm not dense. But hurt people hurt people, which is something Stella's voice actress has said about her, which implies there's more to her than meets the eye. Either respect my opinion and move on, or hold your tongue, because I didn't say anything to imply that I thought Stella was right or that Stolas deserved it.

[@comet.x]

@@Srakch this exactly. abusive 'people' are abhorrent. Yes, it's a mental illness so blah blah ableism but the only thing human about these monstrosities are their bodies. there is no human thought process in that brain. they are psychopathic monsters. little baby adolfs with not as much power, but just as much evil intent. would you defend the adolf? chalk it up to trauma? of course not. So why stella? I'll tell you why. because op here is a sexist bigot. if this was a man there would be no 'they need a reason to be an abuser' but no. because stella has a hole instead of a pipe suddenly it's all different. a girl can't POSSIBLY be an abuser. people like you, op, who enable monsters to go about and continue their horrendous acts, and put the victims of these monsters even further into despair, disgust me. of course this could just be ignorance, but if not, then you are geniunely sub-human, just like they are. if the data in your brain makes you a monster who just wants to torment, then 'saving' you and giving you empathy wouldn't be what you want would it? in that case it's you against the entire universe. and abusers fucking deserve it.

[@Ludi_Chris]

In something I’m working on it takes having Stella having someone showing care for her does it brake away her parents less then decent approach to raising her. So the way I see it she grew up to be this way and with out someone to show her kindness, she never grew up to be kind.

[@andrewwhitney1831]

I can agree to the fact that Stella is one dementional and I guess you can make it interesting by giving her an arc, but the creator obviously wanted it this way, and to me its not bad, it might be biased because I like characters going over the top and I could tell the voice actress just enjoys every line she says which makes me grin to listen. The only thing that bugs me is the time -line, it seems like one event drags on to a few episodes and it makes me wonder if helliva is more like an anthology than a chronology which does not reflect the mood from previous episodes.

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

It’s becoming more serious than season 1

[@andrewwhitney1831]

Looks promising So far I sure hope so.

[@alliecat8245]

Please do more helluva boss video essays, they are some of my favorite of your content

[@JanizMakudomaru]

Stella just being a bad person is great to me: 1. she's a demon, I know it's not my feeling, but we've forgotten that demons are historically depicted as evil and at the least malicious. So having her be the way she is makes me like this turn of events. 2. Expectations lead to this kind of thing.

[@comet.x]

3: she's a realistic abuser

[@rainbowtoyfunrandomess1982]

Ugh Stella, I feel foolish into thinking she's one of my favorite characters when she's clearly a total hate sink. She literally hired Striker to kill Stolas and she even admits she likes tormenting Stolas for no reason. Plus in Western Energy she acted like an idiot and she whines like a child, worse yet she even neglected Octavia especially when Octavia is little. Not only is she a bad wife, but she could be a bad mother as well. Who knows if Stella would get what she deserves or if she would change her ways in the future, but time will tell.😑

[@queenofawesome2550]

I don't want the show to necessarily redeem her I would just like to see a peek into her childhood and maybe see why she's the way she is. Even in that picture of her Paimon show's Stolas when he was young she was strangling some sort of monster. What in the hell made her so violent even from that age? (And don't say "She's a demon what do you expect?" that isn't an excuse) If she's going to be the main villain from this point on I hope we do get a better understanding of her upbringing. Seriously whatever it may have been doesn't excuse all of the abuse she put Stolas through for years. And yes he did imply this went on for years in the scene where he told her off and even Stella hinted that when she said he was terrible in bed but managed to lay an egg (Octavia) in the end which was all they arranged to do.

[@comet.x]

being abused doesn't make you an abuser. monstrous behavior like this is an incurable mental disorder. psychopathy/sociopathy isn't learned. Mental disorders aren't infectious. some people are just born the brain of a monster, in the same way i was born with adhd.

[@Kyle-gi2jb]

I appreciate the unique sound effects that the show has been utilizing. It reminds me of a bit reigned in Ed, Edd, n Eddy sound effects.

[@rebelrat3594]

Hey did you notice Stella's voice and facade break after hearing what stolas said. A simple thought she's a woman who grew up in royalty that's all she knew and then was married off to a boy she never met same for stolas he didn't know Stella when the marriage was arranged the parents didn't set up play dates and obviously they were home schooled so no interaction there. even more over the only man she has ever been with that we know of is stolas yes people point out that she wasn't upset about him cheating but I think she was that's why she reacted in the way she did because as a woman of standards and wealth it would be most unproper to show love towards anyone or thing and it would be unproper to discuss commoner troubles within the palace aka why did you sleep with someone else bottom line she's married to a man she doesn't know nor does she care to know him because she gave herself to him and he spits in her face by laying with another because how would she know what a man should be like in bed aside from the man she's been married to since she was 10 not to mention that the only time we see them alone is the only time we hear a small whimper in the voice a broken heart of a foregone lover if one wants to look that way basically she's a woman who hasn't cheated but was cheated on. If anyone bothers reading this please leave a comment reply greatly appreciated

[@PancakemonsterFO4]

Why did stolas cry as soon as he saw stellas picture? I'm pretty sure they totally had play dates and it went just as well as Tuesday Adams playing with Pugsley

[@rebelrat3594]

@@PancakemonsterFO4 it could have been but if that were the case why did he show him the picture if they knew each other he would have just had to say her name. Also cool Adam's family reference except pugsley enjoyed what Wednesday did to him

[@PancakemonsterFO4]

@@rebelrat3594 well the Adams family are generally acting as the opposite of everything but that's not the point. Stolas could have interacted with her on one of his fathers parties so he could have remembered how she looked like but mabe not her name (being forcefully married to a stranger is something you learn even as a child so i doubt thats the reason why)

[@rebelrat3594]

@@PancakemonsterFO4 okay fair point also I always thought the Adam's family explained what it was outright in the theme song 🎵 there creepy and spooky and alot a bit o kooky the Adam's family. But hey aside from that what did you think about the rest of the theory

[@PancakemonsterFO4]

@@rebelrat3594 still have to watch half of it, had to give my friend a pep talk over phone

[@MethuselahWinter]

Odelia and Stella (especially Stella) are cartoon villains versions of my actual biological mother. I really felt bad for Octavia because my Dad also stayed as long as he did so I could have a “normal life” but I want to tell every parent in that situation your kids absolutely would prefer you just divorce versus the constant fighting, scream, and violence. That isn’t giving anyone a good or normal life. Also I give Stolas a break for the way he treats others, because while it is absolutely not okay he could genuinely be obvious to how condescending and arrogant he comes off as. I think he and Blitzø need to actually go somewhere private and have a sincere honest discussion about everything but I also remind myself this is Hell and having any concept or concern for healthy relationships isn’t the norm. Like Moxxie and Millie’s relationship is probably an abnormally healthy one for their kind. We see in Season 1 Episode 5, Wrath Imps are extremely violent and aggressive. When Striker actually kicks a fangirl in the face, she is thrilled and others around her attack her probably out of jealousy she got the kick. And based on the bar other parents and spouses so far have set for the universe of Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel, Stolas is rather a wholesome person by comparison. Could there be greater improvement? Yeah! But I think they are more complicated demons with bad habits rather than actually bad people. It’s not very fair to hold literal demons to the same expectations of humans in my opinion.

[@sarafontanini7051]

it's very tellng that in ehr first canonical appearance, stella calls Stolas "an embarassment". Not "you bastard" or anything of the sort, she highlights his actions as embarassing. She was ALWAYS about the humiliation of what he did because of their status, not because he hurt her feelings.

[@fruity4820]

I have never seen or heard about this show but the art style of those characters is *gorgeous* , let me watch this real quick

[@BloodyWinterwolf]

Sadly for Octavia, her mom is most likely going to use her as another means to torment Stolas. Stella remarks about Stolas paying for his transgressions and since he doesn't care what her brother let alone his own family will do, there's only one way she'll truly hurt Stolas: Convince Via her dad doesn't love her and never has. I also want to point out that Stella other than appearances, has had little to no interactions with Via.

[@sarafontanini7051]

or she's referring to the literal assassin she hired to murder her husband.

[@hopscotch5617]

I said the same about Pimon he's just like Zeus. He adapts a form when he needs to. I like that sound you put every time there saying bad words.

[@georgedawson5621]

Great vid, and I’m really glad SOMEONE brought this up. I was kinda bothered with how they portrayed Stella in general, not that she needs to be sympathetic AT ALL, I just wished she wasn’t so one-note. I think a good example of a villain with no redeeming qualities written well is Malty from Rising of the Shield Hero. She’s a TOTAL bitch, but you kinda love to despise her since you see more of her, whereas with Stella it feels like they just wanted to make her an unlikeable antagonist without spending more time setting it up. We really only learned a lot about her in the last episode, beforehand just getting brief glimpses of what she was like before

[@1slayer959]

Obviously haven't watched the vid yet. But my idea is. As it stands now. Stella hasn't been shown to have a reason to be as awful as she is. She may be stuck in a loveless marriage. But so is her husband so that's no reason to parade his sexual failures around for the whole world to see. If she does have a reason. We haven't been shown it yet.

[@PancakemonsterFO4]

And she seems to get something out of the relationship (inheritance, an ego boost, MONEY) or she wouldn't be upset about the divorce, mocking him for the last time that he sealed his fate by doing so

[@comet.x]

abusers don't need a reason. she's realistic. scarily so.

[@lullabyluna7170]

I feel like what we really need to see is an interaction between stella and Octavia so we don’t have to keep grasping at straws on how their relationship is like.

[@twilightknight7726]

To me she did deserve it because if I had to deal with that constant neglect from my lover I would literally just tell them I don’t want to see you

[@crazygamer_1082]

I think my main problem is the writing of it. It was mentioned by Octavia that her parents didn’t always hate each other. Or were neutral at least. No one is that good at acting 24/7 that even their own daughter had no idea how bad it was. And we’ve seen that she could give a shit less about how people react to how she is. But for (IDK how old Tia is LMAO) years up until the cheating/downward spiral she just-wasn’t being herself? That’s what gave me pause. It must’ve been a plot hole or something. Because I really can’t get behind Stella’s “I hate you just because you’re breathing so f you” Like sorry but if she’s that much of like unempathetic and callus. Why doesn’t she just abuse EVERYONE? Even her daughter? She doesn’t seem to do that though. Just Stolas. And yes, it would make sense if we saw that even she wasn’t too thrilled with being stuck with someone who doesn’t care either. So it was a slow/quick progression down after Tia was born. But it doesn’t seem that way. They made it seem she was always abusive. But apparently her abusive tendencies have like an only one person boundary because again-ONLY STOLAS? Like Stella, find an imp to abuse if you that angry, girl. 😂😂 Especially since most people who function the way Stella does. Get their rocks off to the visual perception of “Yeah I know you’re in pain suffer”. I’ll believe they wrote it well if after the whole divorce thing she no longer cares to hurt him if she sees it has no effect. I mean I’ll also take it if she tries to like hurt/murder Tia. Which is dark as hell but-a lot of parents do it. Since we all know Stolas loves his daughter

[@chongwillson972]

@CrazyGamer_108 "must’ve been a plot hole or something. Because I really can’t get behind Stella’s “I hate you just because you’re breathing so f you” Like sorry but if she’s that much of like unempathetic and callus. Why doesn’t she just abuse EVERYONE? Even her daughter? She doesn’t seem to do that though. Just Stolas. And yes, it would make sense if we saw that even she wasn’t too thrilled with being stuck with someone who doesn’t care either. So it was a slow/quick progression down after Tia was born. But it doesn’t seem that way. They made it seem she was always abusive. But apparently her abusive tendencies have like an only one person boundary because again-ONLY STOLAS? Like Stella, find an imp to abuse if you that angry, girl. 😂😂" she literally THROWS an butler at stolas. and she abuses her daughter though neglect.

[@dana-ger_to_society1011]

I feel like that's just how it is sometimes. Some people are just total pieces of s***, nothing more.

[@SirProtagonist]

For me I really don't like Stella. Having a character be an asshole for the sake of being an asshole doesnt make me feel like they're a compelling character. I really like Stolas as a character, he's fun, innocent and genuinely tries to do the right thing in his mind, and the universe just constantly beats him down, over and over and over again. Stella being just a character that exists to torment Stolas just makes me hate her as well as being just utterly bored. I don't hope she gets redeemed or anything but just get her some extra personality other than abusive jerk. Character design of her is superb though!

[@abimaellopezmaylord27lopez7]

I wish she was an owl

[@chilljelloton2089]

as someone who hasny watched a video of yours before i want to say two things. 1) good video 2) my theroy for stella has come true for the most part. I wonder if as stella develops we'll be able to see if her traits match up with npd like im also therozing. Trying to murder youre parthner is a exetremely abuser thing to do and it seems clear that her ego is one of the things she values the most.

[@nosorab3]

Yeah, I get that some people are just shit, I just think it would have made a more interesting story if Stella had a few more dimensions. It also would have made Stolas' actions more morally gray and helped develop him, too. Still looking forward to where they take this series, though.

[@ashebennett7726]

People don’t always need a reason to be evil. Like in rl. Just let evil characters be evil characters. If people complain about Stella being “one-dimensional”, is probably just upset that the character they simp for is psychotic and dumb. Well it’s no different how some people can be in rl. And someone had the audacity to call Stolas a “Mary Sue” because of how bad Stella is. Like what? Someone doesn’t know what makes a character a Mary Sue. A villain being a villain doesn’t make the other characters Mary Sue. Like wtf?