- "♪ Dear Dad, tell me what you would've done. Too bad that I'm not your braver son. Why'd I have to be picked to lead? I wish that I could be anybody else! I'm supposed to do something. Am I, am I supposed to do something? Do I run? Do I dare? Can I grant my own prayer? Get a grip, grow a pair. Let me stop you right there! There's no cause for attack. Swallow your pride, cast your blood lust aside. Bitch, you better fall back! ♪"
- ―Abel, during his solo in Hear My Hope
Abel is an angel, the son of the late Adam, and a supporting character in Hazbin Hotel who made his debut in the episode "Storyteller".
Following his father's death in "The Show Must Go On", Abel was appointed as the new Commander of the Exorcists.
In "Curtain Call", Abel mustered his courage to stop Lute's vengeful attack, allowing the Hazbin Hotel staff to destroy the Might of Lilith and save Pentagram City.
Appearance
Abel is a light fair-skinned angel with a few of his father's features, such as his chubby physique and large, golden wings on his back. Unlike him, however, he has wavy and shoulder-length pale blonde hair, pupil-less amber-gold eyes, a gap in the top row of his teeth, and a halo with a slight wavy dent in it, which is typically tilted to the side to accommodate his hat.
His outfit resembles Adam's, only it appears to be mixed with pale yellow marching band attire. It includes yellow epaulets, golden buttons with pink straps and trim, and sleeves that fade from yellow to pale yellow. His visible arms are black in appearance.
His Exorcist helmet also looks near-identical to his father's, only with the horns shaping to resemble a ram's.
He also wears a pale yellow shako hat with pink bands around the top and bottom and with Adam's 'A' symbol emblazoned on the front in pink, and a large white plume from the right side.
Personality
Unlike his father, Abel is shown to be more easygoing, calm and benevolent. He also isn't afraid to speak his mind, as he shoots down Lute during the hearing regarding Sir Pentious' ascension to Heaven when she relentlessly cries foul on the matter-at-hand, and also mildly gloats about being the new head of the Exorcist army following his dad's demise instead of her.
Abel is also willing to make new friends, as seen when he along with Emily and St. Peter sings to Sir Pentious about Heaven's goodness in the song Like You during "Storyteller". However, the same episode also shows he's not very tactful and rather oblivious, such as when he unintentionally ridiculed Sir Pentious' name, and later tried to take one of Adam's guitars when Lute already was in a bad mental state.
It's implied that Abel never really received good comments or treatment from others, especially from his own father. For this reason, when Emily mentions Abel would handle things more fairly, Abel is seen blushing because of the compliment.
Vivziepop explains that, unlike his father, Abel is the soft one between them and the sweet son.[1] She describes him as an "innocent silly little guy".[2]
Due to the tensions between Hell and Heaven, Abel suffers several panic attacks because of his lack of preparation to lead the Exorcists. When Lute attempted to kill Vaggie while Pentagram City was threatened with destruction if the Hazbin Hotel group didn't destroy the Might of Lilith, Abel hesitated, wondering what his father would do. He finally mustered the courage to stop Lute, ordering her to halt her attack and return to Heaven.
Abilities
- Longevity - As a son of Adam, Abel has existed for at least thousands of years, and presumably is unable to die of old age.
- Flight - Similar to other angels, Abel is able to fly thanks to his wings.
- Aureole - As seen in Hear My Hope, Abel can surround himself in light. This is a trait he shares with his father, and both use it to call for attention or assert authority over other beings.
Skillset
- Musical talent - During the song Like You, Abel demonstrates good singing skills.
- Leadership - He was appointed as the new leader of the Exorcists after his father, Adam, died. He was unprepared, but in "Curtain Call," he was able to step into his position and order Lute to stand down.
History
Past
Little is known about Abel's history, except that he was a son of Adam who at some point ascended to Heaven.
Hazbin Hotel Season 2
"Storyteller"
Abel informs Lute about his appointment
During Sir Pentious trial in Heaven after he was redeemed and ascended, Abel was sitting along with St. Peter and when Lute was about to make her statement about what she will do, Abel interrupted her to cut in and as he introduced himself as the son of Adam while saying "rest in peace" to his father, he said "as much as he wanted to honor his dearly departed dad", he wanted to say something before Lute cuts him off telling him that Adam didn't even like him which Abel sadly acknowledged, and said that facts aside it might be good for them to stay on the subject of this color snake thing Sir Pentious. As Abel listened to Sir Pentious story and The Speaker of God welcomed him to Heaven, Abel noted how it was cute, and when Sir Pentious told them that he doesn't use his real name "Pendleton" anymore and instead implores them to call him Sir Pentious, Abel figures out what his name means as it's like a serpent and calls it clever and adorable.
When Lute was about to declare herself as the head of Heaven's Exorcist army she was interrupted by Abel who then put on an Exorcist helmet and then told her that he's the new head of the Exorcists and tells her "sorry", and when Lute questioned this Emily told him that Abel's Adam's son and thus his heir, and they thought he would handle things in this situation more fairly which Abel blushes too. And later as the meeting is adjourned, Sera then tells Abel to stand by for what their next action will be regarding his father's death, and Abel replies "yepperoni" while he leaves by flying off. Abel is seen along with St. Peter, while Emily takes Sir Pentious on a tour though the wonderful things in Heaven, and tells them they will get to be his friends while showing him fun things in Heaven, but Sir Pentious is still saddened by his current situation.
Abel debates with Sera and St. Peter about the situation with Hell
Afterwards Abel is later seen along with St. Peter in a private meeting room with Sera, where she tells them they need to discuss what actions will need to be taken regarding how much a threat Hell could be now, and Abel tells her that they are ready and waiting with their knives and helmets and other "pointy things" and tells her not to stress so much as it'll hurt her tummy, Sera then asks what they should do but he nervously replies while going under the table that he doesn't like confrontation and he doesn't like the idea for going down for revenge, but he says that they kinda did kill his dad so he maybe considers it but says he's pretty okay with either option, and as Sera thanks them for their time and suggestions, as Abel leaves he tells her whatever choice she makes Heaven will be behind her. Abel then comes into Adam's office, when just about came in and was having a breakdown, he came in he said he was sorry for interrupting her while she was in a dark time, he then asked if he could get one of his dad's old guitars to remember him by, but Lute furiously tells him to get out as he is about to take the guitar and Abel leaves, and afterwards comes back into the room and he sees Lute trashing Adam's office and immediately leaves as she stares back at him.
"Silenced"
Abel attends a meeting with Lute, Sera and Emily where they watch Charlie Morningstar from above desperately trying to contact them. After Emily convinces Sera to go down to Hell Emily suggests to Sir Pentious that they should apologize to Hell with gift baskets to which Abel adds toffies and teddy bears that spell "sowy for the violence".
Down in Hell they find Charlie who is happy to see them. Abel proudly announces his contribution to the gift baskets but Charlie turns them down because she is disappointed at Sir Pentious's absence until she realizes she can ask the angels to tell Vox and everyone in Hell that redemption is possible. While Abel questions who Vox even is he and the other angels agree to help out as long as they get to apologize.
Unfortunately, when they appear in front of Vox they quickly learn that their apology is not enough to make up for years of exterminations and that they have caused irreversible damage to demon kind. Vox spins it for his own advantage convincing everyone that the angels want to flex their powers on them. Abel tries to defuse the situation by telling them about how good the toffies are which only makes everything worse in the end as Vox officaly declares holy war to Heaven. Abel uncomfortable by the negativity, and the traumatized by the treats throws the gift baskets away and leaves with the other angels in Heaven. Terrified he informs Sir Pentious of what happened down there and is forced to prepare for war.
"Weapon of Mass Distraction"
Abel appears worried in the council meeting telling Sera that he not prepared for all this after Vox makes his first hit on Heaven. He also tries to defuse the conflict between Emily and Lute who are arguing about deferent approaches to the problem, while Abel says both of them kind of have a point only for both to get angry at him. When Sera announces to prepare the troups Abel starts to worry but is relieved when Sera tell him to tell the army to stand down until further notice. Later him and Lute talk about going down in Hell to fight with Abel clearly nervous. Lute aggressively tells him he is not worthy of his father's crown and he knows there's no stopping the war now.
"Curtain Call"
Abel and Lute are ordered to retrieve a hurt Emily from Hell's battlefield after her wing being eviscerated by Vox's cannon. Unfortunately Lute uses that opportunity to kill Vaggi. Abel begs Lute to just take Emily and leave but she fights Vaggi. While everyone begs Abel for help he has an anxiety attack and hides in a rock. He then asks himself what his father would have done. He then finally gains confidence and stands up to Lute, telling her there's no reason for attack and that they should leave. Lute sees Adam in Abel and retreats. Back in Heaven the Angels rebuild the gate and await the arrival of new redeemed sinners with Abel himself waiting. He also sees Lute flying away in enraged and looks at his mask melancholingly.
Relationships
Family
Adam
- "Shut up, Abel. Adam didn't even fucking like you."
- ―Lute, to Abel
Adam was Abel's father. According to Vivziepop, Adam may or may not have been proud of Abel,[1] but Abel is not the favorite of his sons.[1]
As seen in "Storyteller", Abel himself is aware that Adam was very uncaring towards him, but still tries to harbor some positive feelings for his late father, such as allowing himself to be the new head of the Exorcists despite not liking the idea of revenge, and trying to keep one of Adam's guitars before Lute prevents him from doing so.
In "Curtain Call", Abel in a panic attack asks himself what he would think his father would do if he was in his place implying he still idolized his father despite everything.
Heaven
Emily and St. Peter
As seen in "Storyteller", Abel is shown to be good friends with Emily and St. Peter, as they are shown going around heaven and enjoying things in Heaven.
Sir Pentious
As of "Storyteller", Abel is acquainted with Sir Pentious. Although Abel tries to be friendly to Pentious, his unintentional ridicule and his enthusiasm about showing off Heaven have made Pentious uneasy.
In "Silenced", Abel marvels at Sir Pentious and Emily's idea of bringing gift baskets to apologize to Hell for the Exterminations. Upon returning, Abel nervously tells Sir Pentious that the peace attempt failed with Vox's declaration of war.
In "Curtain Call", Abel flashes a smile as Sir Pentious happily receives a letter from his crush, Cherri Bomb.
Fellow Exorcists
Lute
Abel is scared by Lute
Abel and Lute have a poor relationship. He was upset when Lute reminded him of Adam not caring about him, and later gloated about himself being the current head of the Exorcists instead of her. This uncharacteristic act of arrogance from Abel could potentially stem from jealousy of the fact that Lute was closer to his father than he was. He was also very unnerved and scared upon watching her having a meltdown over him trying to get one of Adam's guitars and after she sang Gravity.
In "Weapon of Mass Distraction", Abel is denigrated by Lute when she mocks his cowardice in leading the Exorcists and declares that he was not worthy of his halo.
Abel orders Lute to stop her attack
In "Curtain Call", Abel and Lute are tasked with rescuing Emily from Hell, but Lute refuses to follow Abel in order to get revenge on Vaggi. During his panic attack, he finally finds the courage to save Vaggi and stop Lute, calling her a "bitch," which forces the lieutenant to obey him after seeing a resemblance between him and Adam.
Sera
- "Whatever choice you make, your Highness, Heaven will be behind you."
- ―Abel, to Sera
Sera is Abel's superior. Abel generally respects and doesn't question her much, as seen in "Storyteller", he is later called by Sera to a private meeting where she asks for his opinion on what actions will be made concerning the threat of Hell, but Abel was very hesitatant on the matter since he didn't like confrontation or revenge and was mostly unsure about it which didn't help her mostly, but tries his best to support her when she has to make a decision of what must be done.
Gallery
Trivia
- Abel shares the same name as the second son of Adam and Eve in the biblical story of Genesis. In an interview, Vivziepop confirms that he is indeed the same figure.[1]
- According to Sera, Abel's father, Adam, is said to have been the first human soul to enter Heaven, despite the biblical Abel being the first human to have died, having been killed by his older brother Cain in a fit of jealous rage centuries before Adam was said to have died.
- In his solo on the song "Hear my Hope," Abel says, "Too bad that I'm not your braver son." Although he most likely meant that he was not brave like his father, it is also possible that he was referring to Cain.
- For choosing Patrick Stump to voice Abel, Vivziepop explained that because of Adam being a kind of toxic masculine version of a rock star and Abel being the soft one and the sweet son, she thought it was very fitting to go to someone in the classic rock world. Additionally, Vivziepop had been a fan of Stump for a long time, who has experience in both voice recording and music, and felt he is someone who not only has a phenomenal voice, but a very distinct, unique, and incredibly iconic voice, and others on production pushed for her to reach out to him.[1][2]
- Abel was Designed by Donna Zambia a character lead artist, who designed him as one of the first new characters when Season 2 started.[4]
- Donna also noted the reason why Abel looks exhausted is because Donna took inspiration from Renaissance paintings of angels which have a "romanticized sleepy eyed look" to them.[4]
- The horns on Abel's Exorcist helmet seem to resemble a sheep's horns, which could be a reference to the fact that Abel was stated to be a shepherd in the bible.
- Another reference is Abel's golf club during Like You being bent and crooked like a shepherd's staff.
- Another reference is that Abel's halo appears to have a dent on it, which is most likely a reference to his own death by being hit by a rock.
- The sheep horns on Abel's mask could be referencing when Abel sacrificed a sheep, which led to his murder by his brother, Cain.
- When stressed or having a panic attack, he gets a nosebleed.
References