Okay, in the past, I have expressed frustration with how Alastor's major popularity in the fandom manifests--being a fan of characters like Charlie and Vaggi, who get unfair vitriol by comparison, I hated how some people thought Alastor was "the only good character in the show", which is a pretty disingenuous "criticism" to have with a cast as big as Hazbin's. Not to mention, my gripes against RadioApple and how some people think it's a good idea to have Lucifer break up with his (admittedly estranged) wife and hook up with his loathed nemesis.
Thinking back on it now... Perhaps my hang-ups with Alastor come from how he's made into a better person than he is in reality, mostly to justify shipping him with others.
Peeps, peeps, I have this to say...
You can ship someone as jerkish as Alastor and have it be an unhealthy relationship. After all, it wouldn't be out-of-character for Alastor to be a bad partner for Lucifer or Charlie or whoever you can think of!
Although, I still dislike Charlastor, RadioDust, and RadioApple for three shared reasons:
Poor behavior from the shippers, including bashing Chaggi, HuskerDust, and Lucilith supporters.
No enjoyable toxicity, not like RadioStatic/Silence or RadioRose.
Charlie, Angel Dust, and Lucifer all deserve better than Alastor.
Speaking which, I feel like the Alastor fans forget just how nasty the guy can be at times. His cruel rejection of Vox/Vincent in the past, his disinterest in genuinely supporting Charlie and the hotel crew, and flaws such as his high cynicism, selfishness, and hypocrisy. For instance, he makes fun of Vox for two things that Alastor himself is guilty of:
Relying on partnerships to achieve power, even though Alastor got his own power in the first place by making a deal with Rosie in his human life.
Invading others' boundaries, even though Alastor was pretty creepy and and invasive himself with the likes of Charlie, Husk, and Vaggi.
I do have to wonder, do Alastor fans like him in spite of what an asshole he is, or is it because of his assholery that people enjoy him in the first place?
I'm doing my best to cool down about Alastor, but the reason I can't get into him like everyone else is that he's just so confusing a character. Like, what am I supposed to get out of him?
I guess as per rule of thumb, one's favorites or unfavorites spawn from what someone understands of them, even if it's rather poor and off the mark. Like, the reason I enjoy Charlie and Vaggi is that I get that they're both flawed-but-sympathetic characters and genuinely good, both as individuals and as a couple. Alastor, however, might be a tad too complex for me to grasp. I don't know what to think of him.
Like, why is he a popular character? Is he entertaining, is he interesting, is he strangely-likeable, is he somehow sympathetic, is he tragic, is he oddly relatable? I don't know, I struggle to get a clear impression of him.
What I do know, however, is that after Season 1 of Hazbin, people were up in arms over how "unimpressive" Alastor was in the fight with the Exorcists, specifically Adam. I guess people were too hung up on the initial exposition of Alastor being an infamous serial killer and thought that the show was "betraying" that backstory.
However, in the bigger picture of things, that might be the point. Alastor does have a legitimate reputation and the power to back it up, but he's not that high up on Hell's power hierarchy. He's certainly nowhere near the level of Lucifer (the King of Hell himself!) or Adam (leader of the Exorcists that could've easily killed him off).
Season 2 elaborated on that point by showing how badly Alastor's ego was after his near-death experience, which in turn caused him to willingly double down on his more unsavory traits and trying to quit the hotel.
This leads into the reveal of Alastor's deal with Rosie--how she'd make him "the strongest Sinner in Hell" in exchange for his soul. If I was supposed to be unsettled by this reveal, well, mission failed. Not on the show's part, but a couple of fans did seem to think that the Rosie/Alastor deal was "abusive" like what's happening with Valentino and Angel Dust.
Like I said before, though, Rosie is much nicer to Alastor than Valentino is to Angel Dust, and Alastor himself to Husk. The worst Rosie does is act condescending and treat Alastor like a pet, which is small fry by comparison. Besides, it does knock Alastor down a peg after he got petulant and acted entitled about his power to Rosie's face, so the dynamics here can't really be compared to those of Valentino/Angel Dust or Alastor/Husk.
Of course, Alastor decides to rebel with a domino-effect gambit. Getting himself captured by Vox, sowing discord among the Vees, getting Charlie to acknowledge Vox's power with her "favor" from Season 1, which ultimately feeds into Vox's ego and boosts his power to the point of surpassing Alastor's--which makes the contract with Rosie null and void. As a cataclysmic explosion threatens to kill everyone within the vicinity, Alastor blackmails Rosie into giving him another power boost, lest he leave everyone there to die.
Alastor then ends Season 2 free of Rosie, more powerful and free than ever, but he decides to stay at the hotel. Not out of altruism, mind you, but to continue messing with Lucifer, with the implication that he knows about the latter's limitations and vulnerabilities.
What I might be getting from Alastor is that he's meant to be a "love to hate" kind of character; selfish and uncaring, only being a hotel member out of his own amusement, but still intriguing the audience with his determination and cunning.
Now what I don't get is how people try to find sympathy or merit to Alastor's character, even though he's not supposed to be an agreeable character. For starters, his whole "no friends in Hell" speech is a load of crap, and he shows no sincere care for a majority of the hotel staff. Yet some people agree with his cynicism, apparently upset that no one tried to rescue him until the very last episode of Season 2. One, it was a deliberate gambit on Alastor's part, and he could withstand Vox's nonsense, plus Niffty and Husk were there to see it happen. It's not unreasonable to assume that they told everyone else back at the hotel, and Vaggi does show faith that Alastor has a planned involved. Second of all, it's not like Alastor is that nice to the hotel crew either, especially not where Husk is involved, why are the likes of Charlie, Vaggi, and Husk getting crap by comparison?
Another thing is that some people seem to be too focused on the "what-if factor" for Alastor; as in, they care more about what he could be in the future, rather than what he is now. They think he could become a better person, have his own redemption and whatnot... tbh, some of it just seems like thinly-veiled excuses to pair him up with someone.
Listen, not every character in the show is primed for redemption. I know it's a primary theme of Hazbin, but Alastor shows no interest in actually changing for the better, in fact delighting in his current station in life. That doesn't mean he can't be tragic or have his good moments, but don't expect Alastor to end the show outright redeemed. It certainly shouldn't be a mark against the show, should it decide to keep Alastor as a straightforward villain/antagonist--Hell, perhaps he could outright turn against the hotel. It would be pretty in-character for Alastor.
I guess in conclusion, if I do develop a fondness of Alastor, it would be more in a "love to hate" manner. He'd still be a disagreeable character whose delightful assholery would be hard to get by, but at the very least, I appreciate how the show doesn't try to present him as "likeable" or "sympathetic" to the viewers, instead exploring the layers and complexities to his vices and villainy.
Also, consider this: what if the show did try to present Alastor in a positive light? I'd imagine viewers disapproving of it, mostly because they genuinely like Alastor as a villain. Indeed, consider this: some villains are better off staying villains, and trying to redeem them can be a huge gamble that can backfire, especially if they commit some rather unforgivable acts.
Ending question for people to answer:
Taking the ins and outs of his whole character into account, what makes you fond of Alastor?
