Chapter 103: Friends in Lower Places
Art by Crash X Fusion: When you see my face, I hope it gives you Hell.
Team Hell-and-Back journeys through Hell's Pride Ring to reach the River Styx, and things happen after they split up.Tropes that appear in this Chapter:
- The Ace: Lindsay notes that Cross, Veronica, and Beel are all the top students in St. Epiderm's Plant track. This may factor into Cross's recruitment into the Emperor's Coven.
- Adaptational Badass: Shere Khan rose to become an Overlord in Hell following his death while continuing to run his company, Khan Industries, and has a Super Mode that gives him control over fire.
- Adaptational Early Appearance: Alastor appears before disappearing.
- Alone Among the Couples: Loona feels this way when she sees that Vortex is taken, drinking as a result.
- Ambiguous Situation:
- Rosie, the old woman who saves Willow and Gus from Shere Khan, uses an umbrella for a weapon which has a bird-shaped end. There's only one woman this would remind you of, and Eda seems to think the same...
- Whatever Lilith knows about the Drakescale Clan may indicate she knows why Cross would be a candidate for joining the Emperor's Coven.
- Asshole Victim: All of history's biggest d-bags have ended up in Hell for their sins, and special mention goes to G.B. Gates for his witch-hunting actions towards Philip Clawthorne, which played into Philip's ascension to Emperor Belos.
- Baddie Flattery: After Luz, Eda, and Boscha rebuke Stolas attempting to send the mortals back to their realm, he commemorates the three of them for their spirit.
- Big Damn Heroes: Sam saves Willow and Gus from Shere Khan and holds him off long enough for Rosie to step in and drive him off.
- Big "WHAT?!": Loona lets one out near the end of the chapter when Blitzo tells her she's gonna have to get a job.
- Blatant Lies: While watching a news coverage of Blitz and Moxxie breaking out of prison, the former keeps stating that it could be a different pair of Imps.
- The Bus Came Back: Several enemies of the Boiling Isles residents are seen in Hell;
- Piniet, who died way back in "Raising Human" and is the only Book 1 antagonist on this list.
- Adegast and Craig, who were killed during the siege in "Masks Off".
- McScream, who had been killed by Lupe between "What is it Good For?" and "After the War".
- Riff, the coven scout who harassed Hunter during his training days as seen in "Understanding Hunter".
- The Cameo:
- Several historical figures appear throughout the chapter, such as Adolf Hitler, John Smith, Ivan the Terrible, and Al Capone.
- Katie Killjoy and Tom Trench are seen doing their jobs as news casters, announcing their interviewee is the former Mayor Befufflefumpter who believes he's in Heaven.
- Faustian Al Roker appears in Hell doing his usual weatherman gig, to the surprise of Luz and Eda.
- Gus and Willow find Husk standing outside of a casino drinking. He tells them they shouldn't be here before going back inside.
- Lady Tremaine and her cat Lucifer are guests that Stella bring to her party to mock behind her back.
- Lilith and Moxxie briefly encounter Verosika outside of a restaurant.
- Loona meets Tex and his girlfriend in a Hellhound bar.
- In the visions Luz is shown of Alastor's life, she sees he was killed when he was a human by an unnamed Tiana.
- The last scene in the teaser shows Charlie and Lilith Morningstar walking into the Triton Resort.
- Captain's Log: Implied. Lilith taking notes on the witches' expedition through Hell seems to double as such since she narrates what she's saying.
- Character Development: Seeing how Loona acts gets Eda to give Blitzo advice on how to be a better parent, and he takes it by starting with having Loona get a job.
- Cheap Costume: Luz, Eda, Willow, Gus, and Boscha use disguises from the Spirit Halloween store everyone hides out at in the beginning to travel through Hell without arousing suspicion.
- Commonality Connection: Having had a crappy father figure and a horrible relationship with Chaz, Moxxie finds sympathy in Hunter over the boy's relationship with Belos and understanding in Lilith over her relationships with both Ford and Odalia.
- Continuity Cameo:
- Eustace Befufflefumpter is shown to have been sent to Hell for possibly starting World War I.
- G.B. Gates appears and receives a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown from Lumity.
- Several deceased Boiling Isles villains are shown playing cards, McScream and Piniet each having one line.
- Continuity Nod:
- Lilith being suspended from her job at the museum is highlighted, which is why she's writing up a Captain's Log.
- Amity mentions being called a "hellcat" before and her love of cola rises again.
- The Mayor of Gravity Falls dying is highlighted.Luz: Remind me to ask Dipper about that one.
- Blitzo and Moxxie ending up in jail is brought up.
- Hunter telling Boscha he's the Golden Guard and her calling him a creep is mentioned.
- Lilith brings up Ford leaving her while talking with Moxxie.
- Boscha brings up her bad experiences with Fae: Puck scarring and paralyzing her, the Coachman, and Meteora in the Glandus War.
- Lindsay recalls the playdate Amity and Tabrella set up for Kay and Katie, which will probably be canceled now that Amity was outed as a Fae.
- Crossover Relatives: Malphas being a member of the Ars Goetia makes him a relative to Stolas, Stella, and Octavia.
- Crush Blush:
- Cross has one of these when he and Lindsay swear to stick together.
- Loona hides one from Vortex's sight, though the crush doesn't last long when she sees he has a girlfriend.
- Destination Defenestration: Gabriel is thrown out of a window at the bar Alastor brings Lumity and Loona to.
- Didn't See That Coming: Eda is stunned to learn that Malphas is not only a Hellborn demon, but a member of the Ars Goetia.Eda: Well...wonder how Amity would react to this...
- Dope Slap: Blitzo rightfully gets one of these from Eda for accusing the oldest kids, notably Lindsay, of being a Hormone-Addled Teenager.
- Early Installment Character-Design Difference: McScream didn't have a Sinner form in this chapter, being depicted missing half of his head. When he's reintroduced in "Demon Girls' Night Out", he's shown as a gray-skinned Sinner demon with bite and claw marks around his neck and stomach, plus wolf ears and a tail.
- Fantastic Racism: Loona isn't let into a normal bar because it has a 'No Dogs Allowed' sign and she is instead forced to resort to a smaller Hellhound bar.
- Foreshadowing:
- Moxxie mentions that some people in Hell are Christians. Later, Luz and Amity come across Gabriel Gates himself and seize the chance to make him pay for his crimes even further.
- Alastor was able to tell that Luz and Amity are mortals.
- As everyone's checking out of the Triton Resort, Blitzo asks the receptionist if they have any staff openings. After Loona wakes up from her hangover, Blitzo tells her that she's getting a job and the teaser shows she's now an employee at the resort.
- For Halloween, I Am Going as Myself: Boscha would already pass as a demon with her third eye, so her demon disguise is lighter compared to those of Luz, Eda, Willow, and Gus. Same goes for Luz, who uses her cambion form with her disguise.
- Freudian Slip: Lindsay calls Katie Tabrella's daughter before correcting it to "sister".
- The Ghost:
- Camila is mentioned by Luz in the beginning and Eda brings up Faust, voicing her belief that he's either from Hell or will retire to there.
- Teri is mentioned by Cross who wonders how he'd react to his imp disguise.
- Emily is brought up many times as both a victim of Mel and as a powerful young witch the Emperor's Coven kept an eye on along with Donna.
- Tabrella is brought up by Lindsay, as are Katie and Kay who were meant to have a playdate.
- Gus worries about running into Michael, but thankfully, he doesn't appear.
- Glamour: Using Stolas' grimoire, Loona creates disguises for half of Team Hell-and-Back making Amity look like a lavender hellcat, Lilith and Lindsay become demons, Hunter a golden retriever Hellhound, and Cross an imp.
- Guest-Star Party Member: Blitzo, Moxxie, and Loona act as such for the rescue team with Stolas joining them midway through the chapter. Once the mortals reach the River Styx, they part ways with the Hellborns minus Loona seeing them off.
- Groin Attack: This is the first thing Luz does when she proceeds to attack Gabriel.
- Hormone-Addled Teenager: When warning the mortals to not f@$# anyone, Blitzo singles out Hunter, Cross, and Lindsay because they're the oldest of the kids and he believes they're one of these.
- Immediate Sequel: This chapter starts just after Luz's group arrived in Hell.
- Internal Reveal:
- Hunter reveals to Lindsay and Cross that he's Emily's predecessor and tells them and Boscha about his visions.
- Cross, in turn, tells Hunter, Lilith, and Boscha that he's being forced to work for the Emperor's Coven, and Lilith explains how Amity became part-Fae to the kids.
- Boscha comes clean to Hunter about who Tom really is and that he and Athena are incarcerated. Because of this, Hunter tells Boscha that he's Belos' nephew.
- Kissing Cousins: Discussed by Boscha, as she tells Hunter that she and Tom aren't actually cousins which means they don't fall into this.
- Lame Pun Reaction: Helping Gabriel to his feet, Alastor makes a joke based on his last name "Gates", which reveals who he is to Luz and Amity.
- Lampshade Hanging: Boscha wonders what would happen if a living person died in Hell, and Cross says it's best not to get an answer.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Upon seeing that G.B. Gates ended up in Hell for his crimes during his time in the living world, Luz kicks him between the legs and punches him in the face before she and Amity proceed to beat him up.
- Let's Split Up, Gang!: To travel through Hell's Pride Ring and reach the River Styx without drawing too much attention to themselves, Team Hell-and-Back splits into two groups led by Blitzo and Moxxie; Luz, Eda, Amity, Willow, Gus, and Loona go with the former, and Lilith, Hunter, Boscha, Lindsay, and Cross go with the latter. The first team splits up further due to a turf war, with the parents going to Stolas for help, Lumity and Loona being escorted by Alastor, and Willow & Gus getting tailed by Shere Khan.
- Locked Out of the Loop:
- Boscha may have seen Puck twice, but she has no idea that he's the Fae who injured her, left her with a scar, and paralyzed her.
- Luz, Amity, Eda, Willow, and Gus don't learn about Cross' forced allegiance with the Emperor's Coven, nor do they, Lilith, Boscha, and Hunter become aware of his tenure as the Golden Guard alongside Emily.
- Luz and Maya invoke this by keeping Alastor's visions of the Horned King to themselves, not wanting everyone to worry about Luz and risk the rescue mission's success.
- Mama Bear: Lilith acts this way towards Hunter while traveling through the Pride Ring, playing into their cover story of being a Helldemon and her adopted Hellhound son. She really leans into it when keeping a succubus demon from flirting with him.Lilith: Stay away from my son, mutt! He's not interested in girls!
- Missed the Call: All of the villains who died fighting the Clawthornes never even learn that they had a shot to face off against them.
- Mythology Gag:
- Shere Khan's sinner appearance is based on his character in TaleSpin.
- Loona gives Luz and Amity the exact same description of Alastor from the Hazbin Hotel pilot.
- Stella has the same conversation about Stolas from her "still not divorced" party, seen in flashbacks in "The Circus".
- Fitting for a Poorly Disguised Pilot, the chapter ends with Alastor telling the readers to "stay tuned".
- Not Helping Your Case: Luz is annoyed when Boscha and Willow discuss the latter keeping her out of trouble and says she's not that prone to getting in trouble. Everyone just gives her a look in response.Luz: Okay, maybe I get into trouble most of the time, but not all the time!
- Oh, Crap!: All G.B. Gates can say when confronted by a Clawthorne is "Oh, shit".
- One-Steve Limit: Lilith Clawthorne shares her name with Lilith Morningstar, Lucifer's wife. It's lampshaded by Moxxie.
- Parental Sexuality Squick: The teaser shows Loona walking in on Blitzo and Stolas making out on the couch, to her disgust.
- Point of Divergence:
- Moxxie and Loona respectively meet Verosika and Vortex before "Spring Broken".
- If the teasers are any indication, Moxxie and Millie meet while the latter was still dating Chaz.
- Poorly Disguised Pilot: This chapter turns out to be a backdoor pilot for a Helluva Boss spinoff story titled Helluva Dad, which will focus on the characters from Hell.
- Reincarnation: Blitz refers to Stolas as the 'current reincarnation' of him, implying that this Stolas is not the first.
- The Resenter: Cross has shades of this. When he learns who Hunter is and that Belos isn't forcing him to return to the castle despite knowing he's been staying with Lilith, Cross bluntly states that unlike him, Hunter gets a choice to be in the Emperor's Coven.
- The Reveal:
- Lilith traveled to other Titans with Vina in the past, one mission resulting in the death of a Beast Keeping Coven Head.
- According to Moxxie, God may have stepped down and left running Heaven to the angels.
- Lilith seems to have knowledge about the Drakescale Clan and may have figured out why the Emperor's Coven would be interested in recruiting Cross.
- Malphas is actually one of the Ars Goetia, splitting his time between the Boiling Isles and Hell.
- Stolas knows Hooty, mentioning that they go way back.
- Alastor was partially inspired and influenced by the Horned King. He also knows the Baron and was originally killed by Tiana.
- The teaser for Helluva Dad shows that the Overlord protecting Cruella is Valentino.
- Secret-Keeper: Luz and Maya agree to keep the vision Alastor showed them of the Horned King to themselves until the rescue mission is complete.
- Sequel Hook:
- Hunter decides to return to Belos in order to get Athena and Tom pardoned.
- The Helluva Dad storylines as a whole are these in abundance.
- Series Continuity Error: Despite learning about Baron Samedi resurrecting Camila, Loona acts surprised that Luz and Amity know the aforementioned death god.
- Shout-Out:
- Al Roker appears as both a weatherman and a supernatural being who makes deals with people, something he does regularly in The Proud Family.
- When Amity asks Loona about Alastor, the narration describes him just standing there... MENACINGLY.
- Shere Khan's Super Mode is noted to be based off of Incineroar from Pokémon.
- Alastor sings "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile".
- Alastor was killed by none other than Tiana of The Princess and the Frog.
- Mr. Guide the crazy demon bus driver is a parody of the crazy tour guide from Rocko's Modern Life, complete with quotes from his lines used when Lilith's group escapes from him.
- Spinoff Sendoff
- Suddenly Shouting: How Stolas calls out Blitzo for bringing mortals to Hell.
- True Companions: Even though Boscha has had a lot of bad luck regarding the Fae, she doesn't think any different of Amity and worries about her safety as much as everyone else.
- Wham Episode: Team Hell-and-Back traverses the Pride Ring and reaches the River Styx, separating from their Helldemon allies. Luz and Maya are now plagued by Alastor's visions of the Horned King and keep them secret for now, Hunter has informed Boscha, Lindsay, and Cross of his own visions along with telling Boscha his true connection to Belos and promising to get him to pardon Athena and Tom, Lilith is implied to have learned why Cross would be of great interest to the Emperor's Coven, and Blitzo starts taking a new approach in raising Loona courtesy of Eda.
- Wham Line: After Luz sees Alastor's visions:Alastor: Next time you see the Horned King, do give him my regards.
- Wham Shot: Alastor has Luz see a vision of the Horned King and his death at the hands of Tiana.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Stolas is far from pleased when he learns that Blitzo brought mortal children to Hell.
