The Show Must Go On

"Tomorrow, the Exorcist Angels will face a Hell ready to defend itself and win! And we are going to win! But, in case we don't, I want you all to know that... getting to know you has been the biggest honor of my life. Whatever "redemption" really means, I know you all tried. I have seen the good in all of you and it's... I-I'm just... I love you all so much, and... live tonight however you want-"

- Charlie's speech

The Show Must Go On is the eighth and final episode of the first season of Hazbin Hotel, and the eighth episode overall. It premiered on February 1st and 2nd, 2024, on Prime Video.

Synopsis

 * In the Season One finale, all bets are off as the confrontation between the legions of Heaven and Hell begins.

Plot
As the inhabitants of the hotel and cannibals help out with reinforcing the hotel, Charlie shares with Vaggie her worries that she has lead everyone to their deaths, though Vaggie convinces her not to worry as the two sing ‘More than Anything (Reprise).’ Extermination Day arrives and the Vees watch as an all-out war between the angels and sinners ensues.

Alastor forms a forcefield around the hotel to keep the angels at bay, though Adam smashes it apart. The two then fight, with Adam eventually breaking Alastor's microphone before severely wounding him, forcing Alastor to dissipate into the shadows, much to Vox’s dismay. Realizing that Adam must be stopped at all costs, Sir Pentious confesses his love for Cherri Bomb, before sacrificing himself in a failed attempt to destroy Adam.

Distraught and enraged, Charlie enters her demon form. She and Vaggie ride Razzle and Dazzle, who have enetered their own demon forms, only for Dazzle to be killed. Charlie confronts Adam while Vaggie is forced to fight Lute. Lute manages to severely wound Vaggie, but Vaggie crushes Lute under some rubble and spares her. However, Lute tears her arm off to escape the rubble and continues attacking Vaggie. Lucifer arrives to help Charlie and easily overpowers Adam, who destroys the hotel during the conflict. However, just before Lucifer can strike the final blow, Charlie steps in, attempting to show mercy.

However, Adam is then stabbed through the stomach, his killer revealed to be Niffty. Lute and the other angels retreat, cancelling Extermination Day. Once all of Exorcists have left, Lucifer uses his magic to help rebuild the hotel to a greater state, with Charlie and the other residents assisting, as they sing ‘Finale.’ In the aftermath of the fighting, Alastor stumbles to his nearly-destroyed broadcasting-office, severely injured, and expresses extreme anxiety and anger over someone owning his soul. He attempts to figure out ways to get out of the deal.

Later, the hotel is finally rebuilt, with Alastor reappearing to the rest of the residents, most of whom seem delighted to see him. Meanwhile, in Heaven, Sera and Emily are shocked and thrilled respectively to see Pentious appear before them as an angel, proving to them that sinners can be redeemed. Lute, now in charge of the exorcists, confronts Lilith, telling her that if she wants to stay in Heaven, she has to go down and confront Charlie.

Characters

 * Employees of the Hazbin Hotel
 * Charlie Morningstar
 * Vaggie
 * Alastor Altruist
 * Husk
 * Niffty
 * Razzle and Dazzle
 * KeeKee (cameo)
 * Clients of the Hazbin Hotel
 * Angel Dust
 * Fat Nuggets (cameo)
 * Egg Boiz
 * Cherri Bomb
 * Angels
 * Sir Pentious
 * Exorcists
 * Adam
 * Lute
 * Seraphim Angels (non-speaking cameo)
 * Sera
 * Emily
 * 666 News staff (cameo)
 * Katie Killjoy
 * Tom Trench
 * The Royal Family
 * Lucifer Morningstar
 * Lilith (official debut; non-speaking cameo)
 * Overlords
 * Rosie (non-speaking cameo)
 * Carmilla Carmine (non-speaking cameo)
 * Zestial (drawing only)
 * Zeezi (pictured)
 * The Vees
 * Velvette
 * Vox
 * Valentino
 * Cherri Bomb
 * Eve (indirectly mentioned)
 * Baxter (non-speaking cameo)
 * Arackniss (debut; non-speaking cameo)
 * Cannibal Town residences

Locations

 * Hell
 * Pride Ring
 * Pentagram City
 * Hazbin Hotel
 * Radio Tower
 * V Tower
 * 666 News station (cameo)
 * Carmine's office (cameo)
 * Heaven (cameo)
 * Sera's office
 * Unnamed beach
 * Garden of Eden (mentioned)

Objects

 * Charlie's pitchfork
 * Vaggie's angelic spear
 * Alastor's microphone
 * Sir Pentious' blimp
 * Adam's halo
 * Dazzle's statue
 * Sir Pentious' portrait
 * Sir Pentious' first week anniversary banner

Songs

 * "More Than Anything (Reprise)"
 * "Finale"

Tracks

 * Angel Dust's theme

Trivia

 * It is revealed Charlie was right that a sinner can be redeemed and ascend to Heaven, though the exact cause remains unknown.
 * Sir Pentious is the first sinner to ever be redeemed, as he was reborn as a winner angel in Heaven after being killed by Adam.
 * Sera is shocked this can happen, while Emily is happy Charlie was right.
 * It is heavily implied that, in order for this to work, a sinner must "die" again and be reincarnated into their angelic form in Heaven.
 * Sir Pentious' angel form is similar to his sinner form, albeit with mostly white and without his multiple eyes.
 * Despite being redeemed, his Egg Boiz were not redeemed alongside him.
 * Charlie and Vaggie kiss for the first time onscreen.
 * Vox and Valentino kiss for the first time onscreen.
 * Sir Pentious finally confesses to Cherri Bomb and kisses her on the lips before he sacrifices himself in battle.
 * The aftermath of the final battle are as follows.
 * Adam is defeated after Niffty stabs him to death.
 * Lute is defeated but survives while losing her left arm.
 * Following Adam's defeat, she is then promoted as the new head of the Exorcists.
 * Dazzle is killed by Lute, and later has a golden statue of his full demon form built in his honor.
 * Sir Pentious is killed by Adam, and later has a memorial shrine built in his honor.
 * Sir Pentious is later revealed to have successfully ascended to Heaven.
 * The hotel is severely destroyed and is currently being rebuilt.
 * Adam is seen to have a god complex for having fathered the beginning humanity. Appropriately, he's killed by Niffty stabbing him through the back.
 * Adam is revealed to also be wearing a LED helmet.
 * Alastor confirms through song that he also made a deal with someone and wishes to be free of it.
 * Lilith's whereabouts are finally revealed this episode, which is none other than Heaven itself, wherein she can be seen relaxing on an empty beachside.
 * Lute heavily implies that Lilith made a deal with Adam that allows her to stay in Heaven. And, since Adam has been defeated, Lute tells her that the deal is off.
 * Lucifer reveals he has also, at the very least, slept with Eve once.
 * Charlie's pitchfork was first revealed in the official TCG cards set sold by Amazon.
 * Additionally, Razzle and Dazzle's full demon forms as well as the hotel being destroyed were also first revealed this way.
 * It is revealed that Lucifer can shapeshift, and that the infamous snake he transforms into is not the only animal he can turn himself into.
 * He can also be seen blinking like a frog.
 * The Vees' table has a handful of photos and doodles scattered about, one of which reveals Valentino can draw but can't seem to spell.
 * Another is a photo of Carmilla with the demon poop emoji beside her, implying that this was taken and filtered by Velvette.
 * The running text at the bottom of Katie and Tom's live news broadcast breaks the fourth wall by asking when the release for the show's second season is.
 * Listed below are hints thar foreshadowed Pentious' death.
 * The pilot track titled Sir Pentious Fucking Dies.
 * Sir Pentious' line, "Here's to being alive today and not dying tomorrow!".

Cultural references

 * The episode title is a reference to the real-life phrase referring to having to proceed the performance despite any interruptions.
 * Incidentally, this episode, where Sir Pentious sacrifices himself, debuted a day after the real-life National Serpent Day.
 * Angel mentioning how he's heard rumors of Pentious "having two dicks" is a reference to the real-life fact that snakes have two penises.

Continuity

 * When Niffty is interviewed by news reporters, she became frozen when being on camera as shown in "Overture" when Vaggie tries to film her for the hotel commercial.
 * This episode takes place a month after the previous episode.
 * Sir Pentious did everything that Adam had on his list from the previous episode. He didn't steal, he acted selfless, and he "stuck it to the man [Adam]".
 * In Lucifer's song Hell's Greatest Dad, he mentions usually charging a "sacrificial lamb". During that scene, Dazzle is shown tied down on a silver platter for Charlie, having foreshadowed his death.
 * Sir Pentious' first week banner from "Scrambled Eggs" is shown.
 * Lute exclaiming how she would rip out Vaggie's remaining working eye is a callback to "Welcome to Heaven".

Errors

 * During Adam's monologue after his defeat, Lucifer appearance alternate between his regular and demonic form.
 * Charlie singing "With a little sorcery", her elbow is not colored in.

Transcript
View the episode's transcript here.

Gallery

 * The Show Must Go On/Gallery