It’s been nearly a month of Hazbin Hotel season 2, and as we’re reaching our first Hazbin-free Wednesday since the October 29 premiere, the loss is one acutely felt. It’s going to be 2027 before we see anything about season 3, and until then, we are left with our own imagination to fill in the blanks left by the finale.
Luckily, just because the season is over doesn’t mean that the discussions are done. Recently, alongside my co-hosts Tessa Smith and Sophie Martin, I was able to chat with series star Amir Talai, who voices the Radio Demon, Alastor, on our podcast, Hazbin Hotel Pod. We geeked out about all things Hazbin, from conventions to ships and what it’s like to know you’re singing alongside Broadway stars.
A frequently chatted topic among us was the dynamic between Alastor and Vox (Christian Borle). Season 2 gave us their backstory, which was a bit more traumatic than Alastor made it seem in season 1. While they had “Stayed Gone” in season 1, which introduced their conflict, “Don’t You Forget (Reprise)” gives us that conflict face-to-face. It is a culmination of decades of resentment that’s finally boiled over.
“All I had to do was sing, ‘Don’t you forget you ain’t won yet,” said Talai. “And people were like, ‘Oh man, this is an argument 70 years in the making.'”
“I was really inspired by the people I did duets with last season, Christian and Jeremy [Jordan], and the extent to which they f****** let it rip.”
Writer/composer Sam Haft also talked about the first (and unexpectedly popular) duet between the two former acquaintances, calling them the perfect foils for each other. The subtext, Talai said, is there for us. “Don’t You Forget (Reprise)” is spent with Alastor and Vox trying to one-up the other. There is, however, a fun little tidbit: Alastor’s part was originally meant to go a little more straightforward when he sang “Don’t you forget you ain’t won yet,” and Talai wanted to do another take, which ended up being the one they used.
When we asked, he said, “Well, you know, if I’m being honest, it was more than a little bit scary doing that in that moment, right? Of saying, ‘I want to line up with these f****** Tony nominees and Tony winners. And so, I’m going to make a choice here. I’m going to make a bold choice. And hopefully Viv and Sam like it and if they like it, hopefully the audience likes it.’ I didn’t know if they were going to keep that take. I had recorded it more straight leading up to that. And then when I saw it, I was like, ‘Oh, yes, they kept it.’ I was really proud that I had done something that they liked, right? And then for the audience to react to that choice, it felt f****** amazing.”
The scene, which features Alastor tied up in a chair with his movements restricted, also had another addition provided by Talai, though this time unintentionally.
“Wait a second, that’s me.”
“There’s a moment in that song,” he told us, “I think it’s when he said ‘When you lose your marbles in act three.’ Alastor does a little shoulder dance there. I did that in the booth. I only noticed that when I watched the show last week. I was like, ‘Wait a second, that’s me.’ Just so rewarding to know like, ‘I know that that’s me.'”
You can check out the entire conversation here on the Mama’s Geeky YouTube, as well as past episodes (and future ones). Before we parted, though, in true Amir fashion he dropped a bombshell while we were talking about the writing in season 2.
“There’s a callback in season 3 that’s going to knock you on your ass,” he teased.
(featured image: Bruce Glikas/Getty Images)
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