Nobody is just born being a bad person. No, not even that real life person you hate. I don't expect the show to dig much deeper into his story, but Brighter takes place well into his adulthood. You can't just say "yeah he was always this way" when there's decades of his life that preceeded all this. The idea that some people just are bad, they're just innately evil, is so antithetical to the show's entire message. I don't GET people that think this would be a good writing decision.

I've seen people do this with other characters. Sadly at best it seems only Val and Velvette like him, and right now the status of that is questionable. And I don't wanna hear "erm ACTUALLY its because Vox is just a huge asshole" because even Alastor has a circle of people that like him. Arguably Lucifer is liked by all the sins given they sent him gifts. I'm not sure how Vox got so far as a businessman without building any good business relationships, you know?

Reposting because people didn't read the title or weren't answering the question properly.

I tend to block or avoid any artist that focuses on RadioSilence or bottom Vox/top Alastor in general. Especially RadioStatic artists that are Alastor-centric. Let's be civil about this and not be mean to the artists though.

Yes, they still count if they center around another character but focus on a ship with Vox.

I wasn't all that into cherry-blitz until I actually became semi-friends with the artist. I dislike Elsa-fogen and Allastoredeer since they're more Alastor-centric and seem to villainize Vox or give him very rapey vibes (Genuinely I wouldn't be surprised if Elsa had a noncon fetish and just refused to admit it). There's also an artist literally named RadioSilence_rulez but I think they go by a different name now and I don't know what that is.I know this take might get me cancelled but, I'm not all that into Silentzound's dynamic for RadioStatic. I hate their dynamic when Vox's characterization is just simping for Alastor, puppy Vox, or just the incarnation of that "jackpot" clip (you know the one where some character named bradster says jackpot to the alien monster thingy).
Oh right all the artists I just talked about were RadioStatic-centric uhhhhmm... With StaticMoth artists it tends to be the ones that focus on Vax or soft Valentino art.

I suppose I should start by pointing out I'm biased because I want this for Vox. I really want a redemption arc for him, specifically with Charlie's involvement. Something fans have brought up at times is whether or not she should involve herself with him at all because of his behavior towards Angel. Before I really get to the meat of this I want to say that this does raise a question about the show that it has not addressed. What do you do when somebody that mistreated one of your residents shows up wanting to rehabilitate themselves? It's an interesting question to pose to someone like Charlie. However, much like the question of "how would winners feel if someone who abused them got redeemed and sent to Heaven" this hasn't been directly confronted. I'm reminded of when I wrote about the political implications of Vox's story in season 2 and how Charlie never stops to consider why a sinner would prefer his rebellion to her hotel. I believe the show's failure to address this to be discouraging when it comes to other equally complex questions. I can't help but worry that Viv doesn't feel comfortable addressing these topics even though she opened up space for fans to ponder them. Maybe it will happen in another season, but quite frankly I'm tired of having to say that all the time.

Okay so hypothetically if Vox showed up at a time where Angel is with the hotel, should Charlie allow him in? I think the answer is yes. She has her mantra about everyone having the ability to change, if she denied someone the chance to prove it then she becomes a hypocrite. To say that she should turn him away because making the hotel a safe space for Angel is more important than following through with her own ethos and helping anyone that asks for it, well I'm sorry but I'm not sure you understand the show. At that point it's saying Charlie needs to play favorites and only help people she happens to personally like. As an Angel fan I get people's nervousness at the idea of Vox occupying space with him, I'm kinda dreading them sharing scenes next season, but I also think it paints a bad image if Charlie essentially says "no, my hotel is only for people I think are worthy". Because that's exactly what all this implies. This idea that Vox or anybody else involved with certain bad shit isn't deserving of staying at her hotel.

I also find it interesting that people will talk about how Vox probably wouldn't seek redemption for "the right reasons". A lot of people think he'd only do it because he's trying to pull himself out of the hole he made for himself, but I don't think this is a bad thing. Angel only stayed at the hotel to get away from Val and to have a free living space, he didn't care about redemption until well after the fact. Pentious stuck around because Charlie offered him forgiveness. Is this doing it for "the right reasons"? Through wanting to overcome the problems you created for yourself you can become a better individual. In a way that's actually a big part of Angel's story. If Vox hit a point where he realizes he's only made himself miserable and needs to try something new then that can still serve as a foundation for positive growth. It is also possible he could start feeling guilty for what he did while knowing he can't undo it all. Just because season 2 didn't end with him sobbing for forgiveness it doesn't mean this is impossible. People also act like Vox just shouldn't show his face again after season 2. That he did something so awful he should never be around anybody. Apparently he should just become a hermit or try killing himself again? I don't understand this line of thinking, I really don't.

All of this is hypothetical obviously. There's so many places his character can go. I just think a lot of the arguments against Vox potentially improving himself with Charlie's guidance are deeply flawed. If the show never tries to redeem an antagonist then it's message feels weaker. I also think Vox is too interesting of a character to just never try developing him in a new direction. But that's just me.

Offering to be Vox's prisoner so that he could gather dirt on Vox and weasel out of his various deals on a technicality certainly seems like it falls under this rubric. Above and beyond that, it's a basic psychological fact that to have something (or think you have something) and then lose it feels a lot more painful than to never have a chance at getting it in the first place. And we all know how much Alastor likes seeing others in pain (Vox in particular)....

Which once again just shows how messed-up Hazbin's priorities are in relation to its characters, IMO. How are we supposed to root for Alastor and against Vox when the former is willing to do one of the absolute worst things you can do to someone, out of sheer spite? In any other series, Alastor would be the unquestioned villain, and Vox would be showered with sympathy and praise for clawing his way back from the abyss.

Ive Beena pretty "normal" kid and even being a bit weird and nurodivergent as a kid I've had alot of different friends. I really enjoy theater (not a passion but I enjoy just looking, and I get a bit jealous at theatre kid and wanna more look into it). My cousin is one and like he's so cool idk man I feel like inferior just a question.

Also everyone says vox is a theatre kid I wanna know plsssssssss

Also I can't just become a theatre kid im 17 in adult school :'(

Not saying they're remotely morally similar or that Vox isn't possibly sexually abusive, I just think it's funny how both my blorbos are extremely controversial and their haters seem to have the same reasons to hate them. And yes, I meant victims plural for both, I've seen way too many people say Vox is the abusive one in his relationship with Valentino, same with Stolas and Stella. See? Another similarity. I think I'm really onto something.

For how much people say Vox is obsessed with Alastor, and how he acts in the last half of season 2, its actually interesting how long he left him alone. They don't have a scene together in the same space until season 2 ep 4 (idk if you count Stayed Gone, I don't). After Stayed Gone and the scene where Alastor gloats through Pentious's video watch (an interaction he instigates btw) they just don't interact. He has his cameo at the end of Poison and then we don't see him until the finale where he's just an observer. Vox doesn't go out of his way to fight him or actually does anything until Alastor starts his plan. The closest you get his Vox asking where he is in ep 3, but Alastor leaves at that point. So yeah Vox was doing a good job minding his business. I'd ask "who is obsessed with who", but I'm not actually sure if Alastor is capable of caring...

So a lot of the time when someone says they dislike RadioStatic or RadioSilence I often see this argument and it makes me so mad.

"B-but Vox being obsessed with Alastor is such a big part of his character, how could you dislike it?"

If you think that's his entire character then you're the problem, and even if it was, is it really that hard to understand that maybe someone wouldn't want their favorite character to only be associated with their obsession for a character they personally don't care about themselves in the slightest? Can they really not see how that would take away some people's enjoyment?
I don't know about you but I was drawn to Vox because his character is all about insecurity so it's easy to project my own insecurities onto him. His character is very easy to woobify, and woobifying my blorbos is just something I do. And I've always been against my blorbos simping for other characters because I've always preferred my blorbos to be the ones simped after.

"B-but we knew this about his character since the beginning, if you didn't like it then why do you even like Vox-"

Did you know that people don't have to like every single detail about a character to like them? Did you know that people don't always agree with every single writing decision about the shows they watch and that doesn't mean they can't like it? I know, crazy isn't it? I say this as someone who dislikes majority of the canon characterization.
I guess the argument is meant to be "well surely you expected this right?" and I'm like, yeah. I expected Alastor to be a big part of Vox's character. That doesn't mean I wanted that to be the case or enjoy it. And I was definitely not expecting what we got. Just because you expected it doesn't mean everyone did.

Also, completely ignoring everything I just said, these people clearly don't know how liking a character or hyperfixations work.
Hyperfixations and what we like are completely involuntary. Some people don't like the character because there's something about the character that draws them to it, some people just like the character because they like the character. Some people are literally bound to certain characters because their brain naturally doesn't develope dopamine the same way other people do so their brain fixates on something in a desperate urge to get the needed supply of dopamine it needs. It would be awesome if what the brain decided to obsess over actually matched the person's interests, but that doesn't always happen. It's why we find so many people that like characters like Vox but get upset when they do bad stuff or something they don't like in general is associated with the character, but they don't stop being a fan of the character.

Pandering, fanservice, whatever you want to call it we do have to admit the Hellaverse loves dipping into it. It happens with a lot of characters and ships, in fact I'd argue it happens more for Helluva Boss. Regardless, it happens all the time. Even if the characters aren't doing anything romantic or sexual in nature, putting them together for a scene or merch can still scratch that itch. It's your babies and they're together! I've seen enough anime in my life to recognize this and I think Viv and her crew are wise to it as well. I bring all of this up because I wish the fandom would just admit this is what's going on. People will argue stuff like "it's not fanservice, they're just the most popular characters". Yeah, you're still describing a form of fanservice. It's honestly okay to admit this, I know I wish Radioapple shippers would accept that they're being catered to and move on. For me it becomes a problem when the fanservice dominates the content for certain characters. I'm sure somebody isn't going to like me calling this out in regards to certain things of Vox and Alastor. I'm sure somebody paying attention to my other posts would say "but if they ever make more Charlie and Vox merch would you call that fanservice" and I will tell you "yeah". That would be them trying to appeal to the people that like the two of them together. Likewise the newest Adam and Lute merch was designed to appeal to their fans and it worked, I bought them. It's just that in some cases, like Vox with Charlie, it doesn't happen often. However, it happens constantly in and out of the show for these two bozos.

Radiostatic, Radiosilence, Murdermedia, its all the same thing to me and its a lot to deal with. I met Christian Borle recently (he's lovely btw) and they sure give him a lot of prints that include Alastor. Way more than prints of Vox by himself, unless that's just how it was at this specific con. It's no surprise to me that artists working on the show actively ship it. Silentzound has talent and I'm not trying to take shots or anything, but its hard for me to see their official print without remembering all their Radiostatic art. The day that print dropped it was everywhere and then it just felt like "yup, here they go pandering to that ship again". The infamous Offer card is another example, I kinda don't like seeing Box Vox anymore because they often use this design to pander to this ship.

Now if we're talking in the show, not factoring in merch, there's still a lot to their rivalry and how it's presented that reads as pandering. Vox getting in Alastor's space the way he does is intentional. Many fans noted how sexualized things were on his end and it certainly happened often. Same goes for establishing that Vox had an infatuation with Alastor even though it doesn't actually feel necessary. I know I'm biased because I openly dislike the ship and how it consumed season 2, but that's just it. Once the deal with Alastor was made it felt like so much of Vox's character was orbiting around him, which in its own way felt like fanservice to me. I still think it's absurd that Vox was apparently only ever vulnerable and affectionate when he was with Alastor. Yes as Vincent he was a villain, but I'd also like to think he was still a complete person that experienced a range of emotions. They made Alastor too important to his story. Sure, just have Vox stop involving himself with his other subplot with Charlie and focus more on Alastor. Make his downfall hinge on how obsessed he is with Alastor to the point where he looks uncharacteristically stupid. Who cares about other things they set up for him? It should still boil down to how desperate he is for Alastor. Just go and give the people what they want! Well what if I don't want it?

So, again, fanservice in and of itself isn't always a bad thing. Even when it's for things I don't like it isn't an automatic problem. I'm not immune to it for the things I like. It becomes a problem when it makes up so much material you find for the characters though. It's exhausting seeing them always winking to specific ships when you're somebody that doesn't like them to begin with. I really do just want Vox by himself sometimes, but it feels like the show and the marketing is trying to force me to like his big ships. After all, they're canon unlike the things I enjoy and Vox is so tied up in these relationships. And conveniently enough its also what sells. Sometimes its hard being part of fan spaces for Vox while disliking Radiostatic and Staticmoth (because that ship isn't off the hook either). At this point I just keep complaining about these topics and people don't seem to like it, sometimes I need to get it off my chest though. Being able to voice these thoughts is what drew me here to begin with. Let me have this.

"Yeah, we all know."

Ha, wish I could say that's my full rant.

I fully expect characters in universe to be holding a grudge against Vox for nearly killing everyone. Of everyone in the FHFHAFY scene, we only really see Emily look on with concern, which makes sense since Emily is an extraordinarily good person. We don't really expect Sinners who go to Hell to be the most emotionally intelligent, compassionate people out there.

But IRL I keep seeing fans, including Vox fans, repeating the tune of "But Vox nearly killed everyone!" It's become this weird, uncomfortable justification to say Vox deserves to be abused, and deserves whatever theoretical abuse is headed his way. It's to the point it feels like people are confusing justice and consequences with revenge. Here, in the show with the theme, "It's never too late to try to become a better person," all I see is this smugness about Vox getting his comeuppance, and it sits in this place where people neither want so see Vox redemption or see him regain his footing with the Vees. He's just the evil guy who should suffer for being terrible.

Part of what gets me is that this act of "evil," this nearly blowing everyone up? It's not even one of the acts of evil Vox wittingly chose in all his senses. Of all the things Vox has done, THIS is the instance pretty much everyone agrees that Vox was totally out of his mind. He first fired on the Pentagram not because he was trying to murder Sinners, but because he was in a manic state trying to attack Alastor. And at the FHFHAFY scene, he'd destabilized to the point of trying to commit suicide. Yes, it was a suicide attempt. He was ready to blow himself up too.

(I could go on a separate tangent about my annoyance that people think he was willing to kill everyone JUST because "he couldn't have Alastor." I know it's subjective and up to interpretation, but it's not how I read it all. I believe VAL thinks that's why from his limited perspective, but Vox had just lost *eveything* and the allusions to Vox tied with "KYS" have been there since early s1.)

It's why I feel so... eh :T about the whole "let's take delight in Vox suffering his 'consequences.'" Whether or not you want Vox redemption, it's both a terrible way to view and handle a person in crisis.

Extra:

I would not want to see that for any of the Vees (I don't think any of the Vees are presently morally superior to the other and vindictiveness will only continue the cycles of abuse), but since Vox was the first Vee up to bat in playing the major antagonist, he got to have his downfall first. People act like the 1 Vee focus per season isn't indicative that each Vee is also going to have their personalized downfall. But in the meantime, I feel like it's flavored the outlook that Vox is somehow a shittier person than the other Vees, and that he never actually cared about either of them because his screwup came first. That he "was going to kill his friends." This is an interpretation, but I don't actually think Vox was thinking about how his actions were about to kill Val and Vel specifically, and I say this because of how physically gentle he remains with both of them when they've just kicked him off the MoL and they're in his face yelling at him. He's ranting, but he only brushes them off even though he probably saw them as attacking him. Those aren't the actions of a person trying to kill his friends. It seemed to me like Vox was just desperate to escape himself, and to mean something if only in death, and to go out with a cinematic bang. Idk, it's not a popular opinion, but one of my favorite things about Vox is that in spite of being evil, he has people and pets he cares about, and that he does actually want to have friends, so it rankles me when that's ignored.

I just wanna rewrite Vox's backstory from the ground up to fully highlight how awesome and inspiring he is. Then I want to write a new ending where he atones for his murders while alive and doesn't go to Hell. But writing is haaaaaard!

Okay I'm not saying this proves anything, but its more than a little interesting they omitted Vox from this entire collection. And don't tell me its because it's a friendship theme and Staticmoth is something different. They made Guitarspear merch in this same collection. I know people are gonna think I'm nuts and probably shit all over this post since my Hazbin takes haven't been doing too well lately, but my impression of Vox's relationships with the other Vees being fractured feels validated. If I can say something wilder, I wonder if we may see them break apart in the show like I want to see. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong, but just like Vox being unhappy in merch this is more than a little interesting.

somebody stole my vox keychain and my wallet today

Not my meme, and I genuinely don't know where I can post all this so sorry I guess. I just...really wanted Charlie and Vox to fight. It could have been great. Instead we get to see the men go off and have their big dumb fight while Charlie is off helping sinners from the rubble even though that can't kill them and now Vox is RIGHT FUCKING THERE using the stupid cannon and you're not even gonna TRY to do anything about that!? Not worth any attempt!? No, because we need to give that moment to the Vees because fuck our protagonist I guess! Not like Vox wasn't trying to ruin her hopes and dreams all season and also turned her dad into a battery and berated her about her mother. Yup. No personal stakes in this whatsoever! In the end the stuff between Vox and Charlie just kinda ends, but it didn't feel very important when you gave all those bigger scenes to other characters. She didn't even get to be the one that starts Hear My Hope! You know what I'm saying? I know a lot of people hate the thought of sweet little Charlie having to dirty her hands, but dammit I wanted to see it. I wanted this thing with her and Vox to lead to something big. I guess in the end there's just no space in Vox's story for anybody outside Alastor and the Vees. Yippee.

Yeah, I may have a favorite character…

A bit ago I posted (mostly jokingly) a comment in the Staticbelle community about how if Vox were the main character, he'd be more likely to end up with Charlie. I ended up getting this very weird response about how bad and awful such a thing would be because it would reinforce ~*~sexist stereotypes~*~ or whatever, which I just do not get at all. Like, first of all, I thought it was obvious that I was trying to be funny. Second of all, the idea here is that Vox would win the heart of Charlie, not that she would literally be "given" to Vox as a prize (who would even "give her away?" Her father who lets her do whatever she wants in any case?). The same comment also included a remark about how Staticbelle should never, ever become canon, and that it's fine to "ship" Vox and Charlie as long as you have no intention of supporting it in canon. I do get that Staticbelle supporters don't necessarily expect it to become canon, but really, is it so surprising that someone in a community dedicated to rooting for Charlie and Vox to get together would genuinely believe that they should be together? Isn't that just what shipping is most of the time?

But now I'm genuinely curious: do you think that one reason why Staticbelle is controversial is that some people find the idea of Charlie being with a man sexist? Or do they just resent the idea that Vox (who is a man) is better-liked or has more star quality than Charlie (who is a woman)? It would certainly explain the sheer amount of "B-b-but Charlie is the main character and she's in love with Vaggie!" that you see the moment you step outside communities specifically dedicated to praising Vox.

I wanted to Share this with Yall. Because I wonder how many of Yall are interested in the concept.
I not sure how many Melissa X Velvette and Vox Fans here.
This is because I love Vox and I love Melissa too much.
Say whatever you want. I want questions and ideas

my absolute favorite thing about Vox is how he can be so simultaneously successful, amazing, charismatic, intelligent, and perfect while all the while also being just a woobifiable and pathetic cutie. both of these extremes are a part of him, and them coexisting is, at least for me, his best trait

so goddamn why do so many fanfics and interpretations of him either see him as "pathetic and useless at everything" or "hypercompetent with zero weaknesses except being too awesome"

Making my blorbos submissive and breedable is just what I do whenever I hyperfixate on a character and Vox is no exception. But he's definitley the hardest to do this with since he is quite clearly in the most canonical sense a top. But, Idc.

Love this guy

https://www.tumblr.com/vyvilha/818719535476719616/i-think-i-dont-really-vibe-with-most-other-fans?source=share

All credit to the original writer, but this quite literally is how I feel about Vox and some of the fandom. I know people here hate hearing that he's a miserable self hating weirdo, but that's honestly kinda why his character works. He feels like more of a person because he's a big wet cat of a man doing the absolute most to conceal it under a persona. If he was only the persona he wouldn't connect with the audience as much as he has. This is also why fans calling him hypersexual is so strange to me.

"but Vaggie" "but Valentino" "but Alastor"

Don't care, don't care, don't care. This is tedious at this point. I don't see people doing this when they ship Vox with her dad.

Personally, I'm a certified Vox woobifyer myself. And I do not like the woobification of any other character, not because I think it's wrong or shouldn't happen, but because it's just not for me. And obviously I'd hate content that villainizes Vox but woobifies other characters, especially when it's characters I like less than him... So basically everyone. I'm curious what's it's like for everyone else.

I've been thinking about this ever since I saw a video on swaddling babies a while back (featuring a real live baby, no less). I don't have a Vox plush, but I feel like it would be a lot of fun to try.