A Stylish Setup - But Not Much More (Yet)

The Hotel Stands Brighter Than Ever, While The Vees Circle It

Christian Borle, Joel Perez, and Lilli Cooper in New Pentious (2025)

We're the biggest fish in hell. How about we upgrade the bowl! It's time for growth, let's rule them both! Take total control! This of all your dreams that can come true!

Yeah, those too. Imagine what it could enable!

Yes! A heavenly host that bows to none but us!

Tear off their wings and make them dresses!

Jeremy Jordan and Erika Henningsen in New Pentious (2025)

Stephanie Beatriz

Christian Borle

Erika Henningsen

Adam Stein

With the hotel reborn, Charlie and the crew try to get the hotel back to it&apos;s original stability. However, Vox and the Vees will do anything to stop it, even if it means going over the boundary, while a dark truth ensues over the ...

Vivienne Medrano

New Pentious

I rate Hazbin Hotel Season 2, Episode 1, &quot;New Pentious,&quot; an 8/10 because it feels like a show that has finally learned how to breathe-only to occasionally sprint when it really should be walking. It&apos;s a confident, flashy, emotionally aware premiere that understands its own strengths far better than Season 1 ever did, even as it sometimes stumbles over its eagerness to prove how much it has improved. Watching it feels less like a reboot and more like a recalibration: same soul, sharper instincts, better control, but still wrestling with its own ambition.

The first thing that&apos;s impossible to ignore is the animation. This is not a subtle upgrade; it&apos;s a statement. The movement is smoother, the staging more cinematic, the character acting far more precise. Facial expressions are richer, micro-reactions are clearer, and the show feels far more confident in letting animation carry emotion instead of constantly propping it up with dialogue. There&apos;s a tangible sense of weight and timing now-jokes land cleaner, dramatic beats hit harder, and musical numbers feel less like interruptions and more like integrated storytelling tools. It&apos;s the kind of improvement that immediately signals a production that knows exactly what it is and how it wants to be seen.

The voice acting deserves its own spotlight, because it&apos;s operating on a level that quietly carries the entire episode. Christian as Vox is phenomenal-not just good, not just fitting, but razor-sharp in a way that instantly defines the character. Every line drips with artificial warmth and manufactured confidence, the kind of voice that sounds reassuring right up until you realize it&apos;s manipulating you. There&apos;s rhythm, intention, and a sinister musicality to the performance that makes Vox feel dangerous even when he&apos;s smiling. It&apos;s the kind of casting that locks in a villain&apos;s identity immediately. I don&apos;t need a full arc yet to know this: Vox is going to be a problem, and a fascinating one.

The episode also does an impressively clean job of laying out its thematic battlefield without turning it into a lecture. The hotel stands as this fragile, almost naïve beacon of redemption, while vengeance festers everywhere else-among the sinners who mistake retaliation for justice, and especially among the Vees, whose goals aren&apos;t noble so much as profitable. They sell vengeance dressed up as hope, and that contrast is where the episode really hums. You can feel the tension between healing and exploitation, between growth and control. And Vox sits right at the center of that divide, not driven by raw hatred but by selfish ambition, branding, and influence. If this is how the show is positioning him from the jump, then yeah-I&apos;ve got a strong feeling he&apos;s going to be one of Hazbin Hotel&apos;s most compelling villains.

That confidence carries into the episode&apos;s writing, which-despite lingering pacing issues-is noticeably stronger than much of Season 1. Scenes are more focused. Character motivations are clearer. The episode actually trusts itself enough to linger on interactions rather than blasting through them purely for energy. Humor and character work are far better balanced here; jokes arise from personality and tension rather than just volume or shock value. When the episode is working, it feels like Hazbin finally settling into its voice instead of shouting to make sure you hear it.

Musically, the episode is a mixed bag, but in a way that still nets a positive overall impression. &quot;Hazbin Guarantee (Trust Us)&quot; is, frankly, the weakest point of the premiere. It feels obligatory rather than inspired, like a song that exists because the episode needs a musical number at that moment, not because the story demands it. The melody doesn&apos;t linger, the emotional thrust feels undercooked, and for a moment, it threatens to stall the episode&apos;s momentum. That said, the &quot;Trust Us&quot; segment with the Vees almost singlehandedly salvages it. Their presence injects charisma, menace, and theatrical flair that the song itself lacks. It&apos;s less that the song works and more that they do, bending the material around their personalities.

And then &quot;Once We Get Up There&quot; hits-and suddenly the episode remembers exactly how powerful its musical storytelling can be. It&apos;s an early banger, unapologetically energetic, emotionally clear, and thematically on point. It doesn&apos;t just sound good; it moves the story forward. It reinforces character motivations while setting tonal expectations for the season ahead. It&apos;s the kind of number that reassures you that yes, this show still knows how to swing hard when it wants to. The vocals from Christian Borle as Vox, Joel Perez as Valentino, and Lilli Cooper as Velvette are absolutely fantastic, you can tell the characters have chemistry. The lyrics are so catchy. And you can tell the song pays homage/references to the &quot;Be Prepared&quot; song from The Lion King. The visuals in the song are so smooth too.

If there&apos;s one undeniable triumph of the episode, it&apos;s the Vees. They don&apos;t just steal scenes-they dominate them. Every moment they&apos;re on screen crackles with intent. The writing understands their function perfectly: they&apos;re entertaining, threatening, and thematically sharp all at once. They embody the seductive danger of control, branding, and influence in Hell&apos;s ecosystem, and the episode uses them to inject tension without resorting to cheap shock. Their dialogue snaps. Their animation pops. Their presence instantly elevates the stakes. If Season 2 has a secret weapon, it&apos;s them-and Episode 1 wastes no time showing it.

That said, pacing remains the episode&apos;s most persistent flaw. While there is a clear improvement in structure and clarity compared to Season 1, the premiere still rushes through moments that deserve more space. Emotional beats arrive before they&apos;ve fully been earned, and certain plot developments feel like they&apos;re checking boxes rather than unfolding organically. The episode wants to establish a lot-new dynamics, new conflicts, new emotional undercurrents-and occasionally it does so at the cost of natural progression.

This is most noticeable in the forced story elements. The initial interaction between Charlie and Baxter feels slightly mechanical, like a scene that exists because the story needs it to exist now, not because the characters naturally arrived there. It&apos;s not disastrous, but it&apos;s noticeable. You can feel the writer&apos;s hand nudging the scene forward instead of letting it breathe.

Similarly, the sudden emotional depth implied in Cherri Bomb&apos;s feelings toward Sir Pentious feels underdeveloped given their limited interaction in Season 1. The idea itself isn&apos;t bad-there&apos;s LOTS of potential there-but the episode treats it as more emotionally established than it actually is... and it&apos;s a bit forced now that I think about it. Like they have no idea how to use Cherri as a character. It asks the audience to fill in gaps that the show hasn&apos;t fully earned yet. Again, this doesn&apos;t break the episode, but it creates a slight disconnect, a sense that the show is occasionally skipping steps to get where it wants to go faster.

And yet, despite these issues, the episode works because of how much stronger its foundation is. There&apos;s a clarity of intent here that Season 1 sometimes lacked. Character arcs feel more deliberate. Themes are more coherently threaded. The episode knows what it&apos;s about and who it&apos;s focusing on, even when it rushes past certain transitions. That alone makes it more satisfying to watch, even when you can feel the strain of its ambition.

What I appreciate most is that the episode doesn&apos;t feel defensive. It doesn&apos;t feel like it&apos;s trying to justify its existence or overcorrect past criticism. It simply does the work, trusting that improved craftsmanship will speak for itself. And for the most part, it does. The humor lands more often. The emotional beats are clearer. The world feels more alive and more controlled at the same time.

An 8/10 feels right because this premiere is genuinely strong, occasionally excellent, but not quite as cohesive as it wants to be. It&apos;s the sound of a show finding its stride without fully settling into it yet. The flaws are noticeable, but they&apos;re growing pains, not structural failures. If anything, they make the episode more interesting to critique because they exist alongside real progress.

&quot;New Pentious&quot; doesn&apos;t just restart Hazbin Hotel-it reframes it. It promises sharper storytelling, bolder character work, and a willingness to let moments land rather than rush past them, even if it doesn&apos;t always live up to that promise yet. And if this is the baseline going forward, then an 8/10 isn&apos;t just a rating-it&apos;s optimism. (I know that I am over-analyzing this episode, I am just saying that this episode is an amazing start to Season 2 OK?! 😭😭)

I rate Hazbin Hotel Season 2, Episode 1, "New Pentious," an 8/10 because it feels like a show that has finally learned how to breathe-only to occasionally sprint when it really should be walking. It's a confident, flashy, emotionally aware premiere that understands its own strengths far better than Season 1 ever did, even as it sometimes stumbles over its eagerness to prove how much it has improved. Watching it feels less like a reboot and more like a recalibration: same soul, sharper instincts, better control, but still wrestling with its own ambition.

The first thing that's impossible to ignore is the animation. This is not a subtle upgrade; it's a statement. The movement is smoother, the staging more cinematic, the character acting far more precise. Facial expressions are richer, micro-reactions are clearer, and the show feels far more confident in letting animation carry emotion instead of constantly propping it up with dialogue. There's a tangible sense of weight and timing now-jokes land cleaner, dramatic beats hit harder, and musical numbers feel less like interruptions and more like integrated storytelling tools. It's the kind of improvement that immediately signals a production that knows exactly what it is and how it wants to be seen.

The voice acting deserves its own spotlight, because it's operating on a level that quietly carries the entire episode. Christian as Vox is phenomenal-not just good, not just fitting, but razor-sharp in a way that instantly defines the character. Every line drips with artificial warmth and manufactured confidence, the kind of voice that sounds reassuring right up until you realize it's manipulating you. There's rhythm, intention, and a sinister musicality to the performance that makes Vox feel dangerous even when he's smiling. It's the kind of casting that locks in a villain's identity immediately. I don't need a full arc yet to know this: Vox is going to be a problem, and a fascinating one.

The episode also does an impressively clean job of laying out its thematic battlefield without turning it into a lecture. The hotel stands as this fragile, almost naïve beacon of redemption, while vengeance festers everywhere else-among the sinners who mistake retaliation for justice, and especially among the Vees, whose goals aren't noble so much as profitable. They sell vengeance dressed up as hope, and that contrast is where the episode really hums. You can feel the tension between healing and exploitation, between growth and control. And Vox sits right at the center of that divide, not driven by raw hatred but by selfish ambition, branding, and influence. If this is how the show is positioning him from the jump, then yeah-I've got a strong feeling he's going to be one of Hazbin Hotel's most compelling villains.

That confidence carries into the episode's writing, which-despite lingering pacing issues-is noticeably stronger than much of Season 1. Scenes are more focused. Character motivations are clearer. The episode actually trusts itself enough to linger on interactions rather than blasting through them purely for energy. Humor and character work are far better balanced here; jokes arise from personality and tension rather than just volume or shock value. When the episode is working, it feels like Hazbin finally settling into its voice instead of shouting to make sure you hear it.

Musically, the episode is a mixed bag, but in a way that still nets a positive overall impression. "Hazbin Guarantee (Trust Us)" is, frankly, the weakest point of the premiere. It feels obligatory rather than inspired, like a song that exists because the episode needs a musical number at that moment, not because the story demands it. The melody doesn't linger, the emotional thrust feels undercooked, and for a moment, it threatens to stall the episode's momentum. That said, the "Trust Us" segment with the Vees almost singlehandedly salvages it. Their presence injects charisma, menace, and theatrical flair that the song itself lacks. It's less that the song works and more that they do, bending the material around their personalities.

And then "Once We Get Up There" hits-and suddenly the episode remembers exactly how powerful its musical storytelling can be. It's an early banger, unapologetically energetic, emotionally clear, and thematically on point. It doesn't just sound good; it moves the story forward. It reinforces character motivations while setting tonal expectations for the season ahead. It's the kind of number that reassures you that yes, this show still knows how to swing hard when it wants to. The vocals from Christian Borle as Vox, Joel Perez as Valentino, and Lilli Cooper as Velvette are absolutely fantastic, you can tell the characters have chemistry. The lyrics are so catchy. And you can tell the song pays homage/references to the "Be Prepared" song from The Lion King. The visuals in the song are so smooth too.

If there's one undeniable triumph of the episode, it's the Vees. They don't just steal scenes-they dominate them. Every moment they're on screen crackles with intent. The writing understands their function perfectly: they're entertaining, threatening, and thematically sharp all at once. They embody the seductive danger of control, branding, and influence in Hell's ecosystem, and the episode uses them to inject tension without resorting to cheap shock. Their dialogue snaps. Their animation pops. Their presence instantly elevates the stakes. If Season 2 has a secret weapon, it's them-and Episode 1 wastes no time showing it.

That said, pacing remains the episode's most persistent flaw. While there is a clear improvement in structure and clarity compared to Season 1, the premiere still rushes through moments that deserve more space. Emotional beats arrive before they've fully been earned, and certain plot developments feel like they're checking boxes rather than unfolding organically. The episode wants to establish a lot-new dynamics, new conflicts, new emotional undercurrents-and occasionally it does so at the cost of natural progression.

This is most noticeable in the forced story elements. The initial interaction between Charlie and Baxter feels slightly mechanical, like a scene that exists because the story needs it to exist now, not because the characters naturally arrived there. It's not disastrous, but it's noticeable. You can feel the writer's hand nudging the scene forward instead of letting it breathe.

Similarly, the sudden emotional depth implied in Cherri Bomb's feelings toward Sir Pentious feels underdeveloped given their limited interaction in Season 1. The idea itself isn't bad-there's LOTS of potential there-but the episode treats it as more emotionally established than it actually is... and it's a bit forced now that I think about it. Like they have no idea how to use Cherri as a character. It asks the audience to fill in gaps that the show hasn't fully earned yet. Again, this doesn't break the episode, but it creates a slight disconnect, a sense that the show is occasionally skipping steps to get where it wants to go faster.

And yet, despite these issues, the episode works because of how much stronger its foundation is. There's a clarity of intent here that Season 1 sometimes lacked. Character arcs feel more deliberate. Themes are more coherently threaded. The episode knows what it's about and who it's focusing on, even when it rushes past certain transitions. That alone makes it more satisfying to watch, even when you can feel the strain of its ambition.

What I appreciate most is that the episode doesn't feel defensive. It doesn't feel like it's trying to justify its existence or overcorrect past criticism. It simply does the work, trusting that improved craftsmanship will speak for itself. And for the most part, it does. The humor lands more often. The emotional beats are clearer. The world feels more alive and more controlled at the same time.

An 8/10 feels right because this premiere is genuinely strong, occasionally excellent, but not quite as cohesive as it wants to be. It's the sound of a show finding its stride without fully settling into it yet. The flaws are noticeable, but they're growing pains, not structural failures. If anything, they make the episode more interesting to critique because they exist alongside real progress.

"New Pentious" doesn't just restart Hazbin Hotel-it reframes it. It promises sharper storytelling, bolder character work, and a willingness to let moments land rather than rush past them, even if it doesn't always live up to that promise yet. And if this is the baseline going forward, then an 8/10 isn't just a rating-it's optimism. (I know that I am over-analyzing this episode, I am just saying that this episode is an amazing start to Season 2 OK?! 😭😭)

With the hotel reborn, Charlie and the crew try to get the hotel back to it's original stability. However, Vox and the Vees will do anything to stop it, even if it means going over the boundary, while a dark truth ensues over the Hotel.

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