Frustrated with Heaven's dominion over Hell and its inhabitants, an enigmatic entity of unknown origin seizes control of every communication device across the universe — including those in Heaven and on Earth—to broadcast the future of Hell and it’s denizens.
How will Heaven and Earth React? Will families be reunited? Or split apart under the damaging revelations of their loved ones. Watch as they react to the Hazbin Hotel Pilot and Series!
Hellish Broadcast
is a Hazbin Hotel "Let's Watch Our Show" Plot Fanfic made by SpiderGibbon_Rose1246
This fic contain the following Tropes:
- Adaptational Species Change: In canon, Carmilla Carmine and her daughters, Odette and Clara, were all Sinners, making them formerly human. Here, SpiderGibbon_Rose1246 has stated they are explicitly following a fanon they believe to be true, namely the idea that the Carmines aren't Sinners, but Fallen Angels like Vaggie.
- Adaptational Sympathy: Contrary to their depiction in canon as being filled with sadistic butchers and flat out hate sinks, several of the rank and file of the Exorcists are shown to be punch clock villains, unaware that Heaven as a whole didn't sanction the Exterminations and thinking they didn't do anything wrong as a result. While some are just as dogmatic as Lute is, others are shown to be uneasy at the notion they were doing something wrong.
- Broad Strokes: The broadcast of the Pilot specifically omits the Early-Installment Weirdness of certain character designs, such as Clara Carmine initially being depicted as an Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette, or Carmilla Carmine having much more spindly fingers and loose hair, making their appearances fall more in line with canon.
- The Cameo:
- While the focus is primarily on the cast of Hazbin Hotel, Fizzarolli and Asmodeus make a brief appearance in Chapter 2 to demonstrate that Cain's broadcast was affecting the other Rings of Hell too, the two deciding to have sex rather than worry about the TV.
- Lucifer makes one in Chapter 2, showing him completely ignorant to what's going on due to being in a depressive funk over Lilith leaving him, his lack of a TV and being surrounded by towers of rubber duckies leaving him unaware of Cain's broadcast.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Molly recounts how her twin brother Anthony was thrown out of the house by their father for being gay, and he ended up falling to drug use to deal with the pain. She'd regularly find him on her front porch, barely able to stand and suffering from withdrawal, only able to comfort him as he broke down in her arms, until he eventually overdosed and ended up in Hell, becoming the porn star "Angel Dust". Even though they're in Hell too, Anthony has no contact with his father and brother, namely due to his father still hating him and implying he wants to kill Anthony if he saw him.
- Even Evil Can Be Loved: Less "Evil" and more "Amoral" or "Sinful", but its shown that a lot of Sinners have people up in Heaven that still love them and are horrified to see the state of Hell and what they have to go through, many of them crying out in anguish over the thought of their loved ones being caught in the Exterminations. In particular, Angel, Alastor, Niffty, Cherri, and even Vaggie are shown to have family and/or friends in Heaven who miss them.
- Expy: The Sinner responsible for the viewings, "Cain", is based on the character of the same name from The Amazing Digital Circus, as confirmed by SpiderGibbon_Rose1246 in the notes for Chapter 4.
- Internal Reveal:
- Part of the premise is that Cain has revealed the Exterminations to the people of Heaven, exposing Sera's Government Conspiracy in the process. He likewise reveals that Heaven doesn't know what qualifies a person to be Ascended or Damned.
- Charlie and Vaggie learn that Angel Dust wasn't being honest when he claimed he was "clean" while staying at the Hotel. While Charlie is more sympathetic and understands he was using it to cope with his circumstances, Vaggie is angered that he lied to them when part of the stipulations of his stay at the Hotel being that he'd go clean.
- Lotus-Eater Machine: Heaven is shown to be a downplayed version of this. While the Winners are genuinely happy and content in Heaven, it came at the cost of their memories regarding loved ones down in Hell or more sinful thoughts being suppressed, leaving them in a blissful state and making Heaven come across as "peaceful". Once Cain's broadcast causes the Winners to undergo Amnesiac Resonance however, the Winners quickly go into an uproar and start to remember everything. A Hellhound even lampshades the idea Heaven is in blissful ignorance, since no one would be able to consider it "eternal Paradise" if they were worrying about their loved ones suffering in Hell.
- Recursive Fic: "Hellish Broadcast" was specifically inspired by the fic "All Hell Breaks Loose". Like here, a mysterious Sinner broadcasts to everyone the events occurring in Hell so as to reveal the effects on the afterlife to everyone. Unlike here, AHBL broadcasts both of the main entries in the Hellaverse, and doesn't broadcast the events to Heaven. It likewise was written before the premiere of Hazbin Hotel proper, causing it to have a lot of depictions Outdated by Canon, in particular the characterization of Lucifer and depiction of Lilith being a present figure in her family's life, resulting in it eventually being declared an Alternate Universe Fic and the events they were viewing being a "possible future".
- Sneeze Cut: Shivering variant, but whenever a Winner manages to remember they have family that are likely down in Hell as Sinners, said Sinner ends up feeling a shiver run down their spine without knowing why, Angel Dust feeling it when Molly and Annie remember him, and Alastor feeling it when May wonders about her son.
- Wistful Amnesia: While the Winners remember their mortal lives for the most part, they have spotty memories regarding loved ones who are in Hell, not even remembering their names, only having the sense they were missing something and knowing they have other family members, but are sure they'll show up in Heaven eventually. Cain's broadcast however causes the Winners to quickly realize something is wrong, and seeing their loved ones on the broadcast completely jogs their memories. As Annie puts it, the Winners were always so happy and at peace up in Heaven, they never really had the need to think deeply about their remaining loved ones absence.
