#sidetracked

This latest Helluva boss was so SO bad. Drawn out waste of time in just five minutes that added nothing, it could have slotted in to any timeframe as there's no tabs on character growth and the characters could have been switched out with anyone else, this could have been Moxxie and Millie instead of Blitzø and Loona.

As we have now come to expect, the latest short follows the whole plot we were sold, assassins who specialise in carrying out hits on humans and the mayhem that follows, things well featured in the pilot and early season one.

This story has Loona and Blitzø go on a job together, they are tasked with yet another petty hit which is fine, would be better if the main story didn't keep trying to force:

'they're just like people'

'they're nice really'

'they just had it tough and need to open up'

'sadness'

'desperation'

'hurt by rejection'

'just look at them grow'

Narratives, which again would be fine if they weren't so selective for whatever fleeting thing was going on that may never matter again or be consistent with future events, but they have worked before such as in the pilot where IMP tried to do the right thing when they believed that they made a mistake by seeking medical help, nothing wrong with displays of decency, or Moxxie's reluctance to take out the hit in a mother of a happy family, rathering the target was someone like a 'shitty dad', all to only be forced to act because it became a rescue mission and for his team to not care how he felt which reinforced where he stood amungst them, his unhappiness made sense in the end and there was nothing wrong with his initial projection, but on that note, let's return to this short.

The target is a very sweet old man who has high compassion for orphans, so much so that he has adopted many. Not only does this never take a perverted turn, but it takes a very familiar one, where it turns out that this man has adopted those who easily get left behind in the system, again sound familiar? Well not to Blitzø, as this isn't even picked up on at all.

Remember the main series in its season two briefly returned to its roots of carrying out hits for sinners in the finale, only for this plot and its contractor, a woman, to not be taken seriously?

This woman's targets received compassion without any dialogue, they simply needed to be a male same sex couple enjoying the holidays with their daughters. Double standards tend to mean nothing though, I can't really knock consistency. We get a moment of false character growth of Blitzø and Moxxie watching them through the window which is history repeating itself of Moxxie's reluctance to kill a happy family and Blitzø wanting him to get over it, this time Blitzø leads the compassion train and Moxxie, not knowing what Blitzø was actually daydreaming of, supports him before they quit the job totally ignoring Millie in the process, which was also supposed to be a thing.

It's also not so innocent because it seems women are needed to make these children then after serving her purpose she can be a mean bitch who deserves to die or someone long dead needed to serve a lead guys sob story, that's the case for Blitzø, Moxxie and Stolas. On the topic of Stolas, it fair to nickname this character 'Digression', because he's literally central to Blitzø's almost every move and the story going sideways, his mood swings could have made or broke IMP, but instead he chose to twist his own misdeeds on Blitzø and gaslight the whole audience like a true narcissist, but nobody else saw it (including many viewers) and in Blitzø's case, he had no right to speak on it like most victims. Is there nuance to this? Something for us to realise and take note of? No.

The sinner who placed the hit deserved to be ignored for her story hitting to close to home, for Stolas, her ex and his new man deserved to be spared because they gave Blitzø hope that he and Stolas could be like them one day (with their grown daughters having apparently had personality transplants) and finally this sinner, dispite all the petty jobs they take on, deserved to have her job rejected and to be assaulted, in defence of Stolas. That's that.

Yet Blitzø couldn't also see himself in someone who like him adopted someone disadvantaged and pours unconditional love into them, in this guys case multiple times? Why not?

Honorable mention of Loona. Since when did she seek validation from humans? What was the major difference between this loving dad and Blitzø sho chose her and smothers her? Why would she feel it fine to show her real physical appearance without warning and why wouldn't a human be startled? Does she long for more time in Earth and see this world as wonderful, because he haven't seen any of that just like we never see her studying magic. What even is the culture of their world and what do they know about humans? It's like Loona and every other female is here to be seen and not heard.

Not once was this target used to remind her that she had someone similar in her life, that this mirrored her own experience, the episode ended with Blitzø and Loona barely interacting and the two of them and the target interacting together momentarily. Nuance? Nope!

In season one we saw the scheming business man who placed a hit on his dying rival immediately upon entering hell only for them to be reunited, see opportunities, waste no time and immediately go back into business with each other. We also had the much better short we saw Emberlyn taken out on a petty hit revel in her moment of being centre of a demons scheme before showing up as a cute demon fangirling outside of the office.

But this short, no, nothing. A character actually has something in common with the characters in question but this isn't realised, he's killed off and the story finishes and not because of anything in particular. Nuance? Hello no.

— Nick Grimshaw about Louis setting up a tv to watch football at Glastonbury