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This is the article about the character. For Other Uses, see The Radio Demon.
"Just because you see a smile, don't think you know what's going on underneath. A smile is a valuable tool, my dear. It inspires your friends, keeps your enemies guessing, and ensures no matter what comes your way, you're the one in control."
Alastor, also known as The Radio Demon, is a sinnerdemon and one of the many powerful Overlords of Hell. He is one of the main protagonists of Hazbin Hotel.
He is the wickedly charismatic demon who has offered to assist Charlie Morningstar in her endeavors, albeit, for his own amusement.
Alastor is a slim, dapper sinner demon with beige-colored skin, and usually has a broad smile full of sharp, yellow teeth. He is at around the same height as his rival, Vox, with the two standing at approximately 7 feet.[25]
He sports a pinkish-red cropped, angled bob-cut with black tips at the ends and two large, black tipped tufts of hair extending from the top of his head, evoking the ears of a deer. The style has an undercut at the back, and two small black antlers protruding from the crown.
Alastor's eyes have dark-red sclera, bright-red irises and thin black pupils. His forearms and lower legs fade to dark grey, and he has red hoofed toes and red fingers.[26]
Alastor wears a red pinstripe coat with dark-red lapels piped with white, which is ragged along the bottom hem. Underneath this he wears a bright red dress-shirt with a black cross on the chest, and long black dress pants with matching bright red cuffs. He also wears a dark-red oval-shaped monocle, rimmed with black, over his right eye.
He accessorizes with a black knotted bowtie with a bright red center, black gloves with red at the fingertips, and black pointed-toe boots with red deer hoofprints emblazoned on the soles. Alastor also carries a thin cane with a sentient vintage style microphone attached to it, which he uses to play sound effects and broadcast his voice.
Full Demon
When in his full demon form, Alastor's body grows larger and limbs become longer, his neck gains extra joints, and his horns grow in size. In one scene in "Dad Beat Dad", Alastor has two sets of horns on his head. His sclera turn black while his pupils turn into the shape of radio dials. His suit and ends of his mouth also gain stitches along them, and the ends of his shoes split to form hoofed toes.
Pilot
In the pilot his design was almost identical, albeit with a more red color scheme, with his pants instead being dark red. His shoes and coat lapels were also completely black.
Personality
Alastor stands out from many of the more chaotic residents of hell for his well maintained amiable persona. He gives a first-impression of a good-natured and charming man, wearing a permanently wide grin on his face at all times. His behavior, mannerisms, and even his voice are similar to an old-fashioned radio announcer and speaks with a transatlantic accent, often using quaint anachronisms such as "the picture show" and refers to Charlie as a "charming demon belle".
This playful dandyish exterior, however, obscures a much darker side to him - one with high levels of self-importance - and he will not hesitate to use physical violence when others don't act in line with his very particular values or expectations. He is noted to be narcissistic, with his love for himself being stated that no one else can measure up to it, and he does not see many people quite up to his level.[27]
Alastor is described as a man of duality.[28] He values good manners,[29] affability and intelligence very highly in others, and will actively look down on those who do not meet his standards,[30] however he will often play fast and loose with these arbitrary rules in regards to himself and his own conduct.
Alastor has an odd sense of morality, which is described as "not normal",[31] and has been noted to be quite sadistic, even cannibalistic, devouring lesser demons or those that have incurred his anger. Despite this, he keeps close friends with the other cannibals of Hell, including the denizens at the Cannibal Town.
His smiling is a very self enforced form of ego and a show of power and dominance; he looks down on anyone who lets their true emotions show, and even when faced with a rival in strength, if they let slip a frown, Alastor will see them as truly weak.[32][33] His smile is also to be more unpredictable and unnerving, and gives him a feeling of complete control over himself.[34]
While Alastor is powerful, he is aware that there are other demons and entities that rival him in terms of power, such as other Overlords. For this reason, he is wary around such demons, as they could potentially harm him if he is not careful.[35]
Despite everything, Alastor does genuinely seem to want to help Charlie run the Hazbin Hotel, albeit for his own amusement, and hopes for its failure over siding with her idealism. Alastor also dismisses the idea that redemption is possible as laughable, nevertheless, he fulfills his role as patron as promised, providing the hotel with staff, and protecting Charlie and her business from outside threats. He views the whole endeavor as a fun distraction from his decades of boredom.
Despite consistently having a confident and cheerful demeanor, he harbors a vulnerable side that becomes apparent when confronted with reminders of being "chained". In this instance, his facade of certainty crumbles, and he succumbs to panic attack.
According to Mimzy, when Alastor was alive he would become a "kitten" if he drank enough rye whiskey while jazz music was on.
Abilities
Immortality - As a Sinner, Alastor is biologically immortal, being unable to die from illnesses and unable to age, remaining the same age as when he died, thus can not die of old age and other natural causes. He also cannot die from any kind of damage to the body, and will recover from any injury, however, he can only be permanently killed with angelic weaponry.
Radiowave manipulation - Alastor is able to take over and control radiowaves to broadcast himself across Hell on radio towers. He is able to manipulate and generate radio waves and frequencies.
Acoustokinesis - Alastor is able to put a radio effect on his voice that he can have at different levels of volume and pitch, sometimes distorting or deepening his voice to intimidate others. He can also project various types of radio sound effects onto his cane, such as laughter, booing, or the sounds of his victims screaming, and can have his cane speak as well.
Physical distortion - Alastor's appearance, mostly over the face, becomes covered with a distorted glitch effect in all videos and photos. He is also able to cause glitches in reality.
Demon transformation - Alastor has demonstrated the ability to turn into a much larger and more powerful Demon form.
Flexibility - Alastor can contort his body into numerous unnatural poses.[14]
Alastor teleports Niffty to the hotel
Conjuration - Alastor can summon and transport other beings and areas to his location, as shown when he pulls Niffty out of a fireplace, as well as Husk, and a portion of the bar he was in, into the Hotel foyer. He can manifest objects such as the bottle of cheap alcohol that he bribed Husk with in the pilot, and can summon his cane when he wants it.
Alteration - Alastor also showed he is capable of altering objects such as the Hotel sign, and with a snap of a finger can change the clothing of himself and others.
Demonic magic - Alastor can cast magic thanks to the high power-level he has accrued in the demon ranking system.[36] In the pilot, this takes the visual form of glowing red symbols that resemble Voodoo veve, which float around him. Alastor is also shown using a type of blood magic, clenching his fist until droplets of blood can be seen falling from it, as a means to defeat Sir Pentious.
Alastor with tentacles
Tentacle creation - As seen in "Dad Beat Dad", Alastor can produce black tentacles from his back and can create tentacles from outside his body. In the pilot he is shown summoning tentacles through a portal to defeat Sir Pentious and destroy his blimp.
Umbrakinesis - Alastor is able to summon and manipulate shadows into doing his bidding. He can also hide in shadows as seen when he hid while Charlie forgave Pentious.
Shadow warping - Alastor is able to get around with the help of his shadow. This was first shown when he teleports behind Charlie and Vaggie after entering the hotel for the first time.
Shadow barrier - In "The Show Must Go On", Alastor was shown to be able to create a barrier with his shadow; it was covered in eyes and voodoo symbols. He is also able to produce tentacles from it.
Pyrokinesis - Alastor summons a ball of fire to distract Charlie as he shoves Vaggie away before starting his reprise.
Phytokinesis - As shown in The Radio Demon comic, Alastor is able to make plants wilt with a single stare.
Photokinesis - During his introduction, he is shown to be able to project red glowing light from his eyes as well as his microphone.
Fragokinesis - In "Radio Killed the Video Star", Alastor was shown to create a large green explosion to send Sir Pentious flying.
Skillset
Alastor making a deal with Charlie
Deal-making - Alastor is shown to be a deal-maker demon in the pilot, offering Charlie a deal in return for his help with the Hotel, something she wisely turns down. Deal-maker demons like Alastor can increase their power by dealing in souls, which is a very powerful commodity in hell, so they're seen as very manipulative and not to be toyed with. Deal-making is not something every demon can do, as such it is not to be taken lightly as it doesn't generally work out well for the other party.[37]
Soul manipulation - Alastor is shown to have full control over the souls he owns, allowing him to command them however he pleases. He can also manifest chains on those he owns such as Husk in "Dad Beat Dad", and can tear their souls apart, which he broadcasts the screams to Hell.
Broadcasting - While living, Alastor's profession was as a radio show host, and he continues his broadcasts in Hell, ensuring that Hell's denizens are aware of his activities over the airwaves, earning him the title of "The Radio Demon".[23]
Bilingualism - Alastor can speak English fluently as well as some broken Creole French.[20][38]
Cooking - Alastor is noted to be "a big foodie" and mentions having admired his mother's cooking in the pilot, specifically her Jambalaya.[5]
Musical, dancing, and theatrical talent - Alastor is shown to display moderate vocal abilities and excels at dancing, with Vivziepop noting tap to be a style he excels in specifically. He also shows a flair for theatrical showmanship.[10]
Wide intellect- Alastor is shown to be quite a cunning individual, resulting in him accruing a large amount of power through his tricks and deal-making.
Alastor was the first character created by Vivziepop that would eventually come to feature in Hazbin Hotel,[39] with her having first designed him in high school,[40] circa 2008,[41] and he remains one of her personal favorite characters to date.[42]
Alastor was originally intended to be a character that would feature in the Angels and Demons arc of Vivziepop's then-running webcomic, ZooPhobia. He appeared as a frenetic, cannibalistic shapeshifter, with hypnotic eyes, whose true form was a black-and-red demonic deer with sharp yellow teeth.[43]
Vivziepop eventually realized that the collection of misfit demons she had designed to appear within the comic had the potential for their own self-contained story, and shifted them, along with Alastor, over to the first draft of what would eventually become Hazbin Hotel.[44][45][46]
Trivia
Alastor's name can be translated from ancient Greek to "spirit of revenge" or "tormentor".
Alastor was stated to be from New Orleans, Louisiana, when he was alive.[4] Vivziepop expanded that New Orleans was where he lived and died as a person.[47]
He was a radio show host and prolific serial killer.[2] Vivziepop describes him as "living that good life/his best life" while a radio star.[23]
Vivziepop declined to give out details of Alastor's killings, but described him as "not going after just anyone", highlighting his "weird moral code". She emphasized his not being a direct parallel to any real world serial killer, instead describing him as sharing some similarities with the fictional serial killer, Dexter.[51]
Faustisse does not think that Alastor was a cannibal while he was alive.[note 3]
Alastor speaks with a Transatlantic (sometimes called a Mid-Atlantic) accent. A fashionable affect for American newscasters in the 1920s' to adopt, it was a combination of an idealized American accent and the clipped upper-class Queen's English used by the British Broadcasting Corporation in their "World Service" radio news.
In the series, Alastor does have his radio voice filter at all times, but it sounds different and gets lighter to hear the actors voice a bit more at times.[52]
Alastor can speak some French, although not fluently.[38]
The pilot makes several references to Alastor's love for his mother. This was confirmed by Faustisse, who described him as "a momma's boy".[note 1]
Alastor was a big theater person while living and would see everything. His general media preferences would be the "elevated horror" genre, as well as smart, dry comedies, such as the work of Buster Keaton.[9]
When asked whether Alastor is afraid of dogs, Vivziepop stated that she doesn't think he's afraid of dogs (as was the case for previous iterations of his character), but that he actively dislikes them due to "backstory reasons" which involve his death,[3] an event he apparently did not appreciate.[53]
Faustisse elaborated on this on their own separate stream, by stating that Alastor had been shot in the head by a hunter while attempting to bury a body on a hunting ground. The red 'X' on Alastor's forehead, seen glowing in the pilot when he uses his demon powers may be a visual reference to this.[note 4]
Although Alastor is not a hard drinker, he does favor the hard liquors when he chooses to drink, such as whiskey. Vivziepop cited his New Orleans background for his "party side", emphasizing that he is a "classy drunk, not a messy drunk".[4] In "Dad Beat Dad", Mimzy stated that he becomes a "kitten" if he drank enough rye whisky while jazz music was on.
Alastor likes black coffee, but does not like tea.[8][54]
Alastor is a big foodie and enjoys cooking.[5] He is also something of a food snob, and hates "lazy" processed foods.[55] Vivziepop thinks Alastor probably isn't much of a fan of sweet things either, preferring bitter tastes, like meat and whiskey.[7]
Alastor enjoys occasionally impromptu joining in with bands that are playing. He loves to cook and prepare dishes, although in his own way as he prefers his meat raw. He also enjoys playing pranks on others.[6]
Alastor enjoys visiting the Cannibal Town and frequents the cafes there, relating a lot to the residents and enjoying the food.[59]
Alastor's demon powers
When asked exactly what Alastor's powers are, Vivziepop stated that they are "lots of things", and that even she doesn't know all of them, yet. Alastor is a character that keeps many abilities hidden as he enjoys being unpredictable. He will sometimes feign an inability to do things that he can actually do, partly to subvert expectations, partly to be intentionally antagonistic and force the people around him to struggle with something he could easily have done.[60]
Whenever Alastor uses his powers in the pilot, he is shown emitting a faint red aura.
He can be seen using a form of Voodoo inspired blood magic as a means to defeat Sir Pentious in the pilot.
When asked if Alastor has a deer tail, Vivziepop said that she is undecided on that element of his design and decided to leave it ambiguous, as she didn't think he would be wearing any outfits that would show it during the course of the show.[62] Faustisse is of the opinion that he does not have a tail and thinks it sounds unnecessary.[note 6]
Vivziepop described Alastor's planned room at the Hotel as a mixture between both traditional décor and the fantastical, with one half being a classic "fancy study", complete with tasteful wallpaper and furnishings, the other half being a literal swamp conjured as a dining area. Vivziepop highlighted Alastor's duality as a character and described him as being the type of person to own two homes, one a fancy townhouse, the other a rickety hunting lodge in a bayou on stilts.[28] This room appears in the episode "Scrambled Eggs".
Alastor simultaneously does and does not care about neatness. He doesn't mind being covered in blood and viscera, and will calmly clean up after himself, but he is bothered by other things, such as people being messy eaters around him. Dave Capdevielle made the comparison to a Hannibal Lecter-like figure, who is very sophisticated about things.[63]
You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile
Alastor was created to the song "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile" from the musical Annie,[64] and specifically the London cast recording inspired his voice.[65]
When asked what Alastor's favorite song would be, Vivziepop answered that it would be the one that inspired his creation, "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile". As for songs specific to Alastor's time period, Vivziepop stated it would be "Smile" by Charlie Chaplin. Cab Calloway was also mentioned as a favorite singer, with an emphasis on Alastor's love of jazz in both life and death.[64]
According to Vivziepop, Alastor does like musicals and appreciates them more than the average demon, liking much more old-timey vaudeville and really liking pre-1930s musicals, but he wouldn't understand more modern musicals and probably would not like Shrek the Musical.[66]
Alastor can play several instruments, including the piano, violin, trumpet, and saxophone. Vivziepop has also partially joked that it is part of Alastor's canon that he both owns, and can play a "Furby organ".[67]
Faustisse thinks that Alastor loves the fact that he scares people.[note 7]
Alastor is not a fan of modern technology and doesn't like using any technology that was invented after he died. This plays a part in his not getting along with Vox, who has fully embraced it.[15]
Alastor is said to not be a big fan of children, and although he wouldn't kill a child, he would strike one if they annoyed him too much, believing in "that kind of discipline".[68] He also won't take responsibility if the child accidentally injures itself when he lets them play.[31]
Vivziepop thinks Alastor would be a bad father, although a better mentor figure.[69]
When asked about who is the better dad between Alastor and Lucifer, Vivziepop answered that it would be Lucifer, stating that she doesn't know how authentically fatherly Alastor is, explaining that in "Dad Beat Dad" Alastor wanted to get under Lucifer's skin and bother him and used Lucifer's wanting a relationship with his daughter to do so.[70]
Alastor's jovial remark on there being "so many orphans" during the stock market crash of 1929 in the pilot, implies he is apathetic to children's suffering.
Alastor is canonically asexual. On earlier development streams for the pilot, Vivziepop was more explicit about his also not being romantically inclined, but later prefers to take the approach of allowing fans to "have fun" with his character, while simply reminding them he does have a specific direction within the canon of the show itself.[18] Vivziepop doesn't think the question of his romantic orientation is story-relevant and cites part of the reason being Alastor's love for himself and that no one else can measure up to it. Vivziepop also doesn't think that Alastor is aware of the specific modern label applied to his sexuality, but she is writing him with that orientation clearly in mind.[27][71]
Faustisse confirmed on their own separate streams that Alastor is, in fact, still aromantic within the show, but also echoed Vivziepop's sentiments about allowing the fandom to have respectful fun.[note 2]
When pressed on whether she thought Alastor had ever been intimate, Vivziepop said she didn't think so, but added that she did not spend much time thinking about Alastor's personal life at all.[72]
Alastor is capable of forming friendships and can become fond of people, although in his own particular way. He becomes fond of people he sees as especially funny or entertaining.[73]
Alastor interacts on better terms with women in general, and is much lighter in his view of them. He doesn't view many of the other powerful male characters within his circle as providing any substantially intelligent conversation, seeing them as "stupid idiot brutes" and not thinking very highly of them for the most part. Others, such as Angel Dust and Husk, he finds pitiable.[30]
Alastor greatly values manners in others and is personally offended by disrespect and rudeness. He also values humor, enjoying when people can give him a good view of their misery.[29]
Alastor is one of the few Sinners who has not taken on a new name in Hell. Instead, he keeps with his true name from his living life, as he is not a fan of making nicknames for himself.[1] He is, however, happy to be referred to as "Al".[74]
Alastor intruding into the personal space of others
Alastor does not like anyone invading his bubble, and dislikes being touched[12] and will go out of his way to avoid it, usually in the most off-putting way possible. Vivziepop described him stretching and snapping his neck in unnatural contortions to avoid his hair being touched and creep out whoever has tried to touch him.[13][14][75]
Conversely, Alastor does not respect the personal space of others at all, being very handsy and comfortable invading the space of others[12] and shown grabbing and pulling around Charlie, Vaggie, and Husk numerous times in the pilot.
Alastor wears gloves.[note 8] They are charcoal grey with red tips at the nails.
Faustisse makes reference to him having black gums.[note 9]
The red treads on the soles of Alastor's shoes resemble deer hoof tracks.[78] He also has antlers, as well as two tufts of his hair that evoke the ears of a deer.
His hair tufts are shown lowered during the Finale of "The Show Must Go On" which may imply they are actually his ears.
Alastor's pilot voice is shares the same voice actor as Joe, Jesse, Striker ("Western Energy" onwards), and the unnamed hellhound from "Queen Bee" of Helluva Boss, with all of them being voiced by Edward Bosco.
Vivziepop talked about Alastor being one of the hardest characters for her to draw and animate, as she has a very specific image of him in her head that she admits can be challenging for her to reach.[79]
In a stream, Vivziepop mentioned that Alastor would like Willy Wonka because he's "a showy dick". She also explains that Alastor has a line where he doesn't like people who are too much like himself but likes those that are enough like himself.[80]
Development
According to Vivziepop, she originally created Alastor as a cannibalistic deer, then he became a cannibalistic deer demon, then when she heard the "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile" with a radio filter version of the song from Annie she decided that is what he sounds like. She added that he had a little bit of The Joker and a little bit of Cheshire Cat in him.[81]
Alastor's original deer form when intended for Vivziepop's webcomic, ZooPhobia
Previous incarnations of Alastor's character, intended for ZooPhobia, rendered him as a cannibalistic demonic deer shapeshifter.[82] This is no longer relevant for his character as it appears in Hazbin Hotel, where he is simply a demon who is themed after a deer, sharing many visual traits,[83] although Vivziepop considers it possible he still has a deer form of some kind, which he doesn't use very often.[84]
According to Vivziepop in an interview, Dr. Facilier was not an influence in the creation of Alastor, as Princess and the Frog came out a long time after Alastor's conception, but he was influenced by hoodoo/voodoo and has a lot of New Orleans influence.[47]
Faustisse provided an explanation for Alastor's deer-like appearance was because he used to hide his bodies on a deer hunting ground. While burying the body of one of his victims, he was shot and killed after being mistaken for a deer by a hunter. This is why his demon form shares many characteristics with that of a deer.[note 4] It is unknown if this backstory is canon in the main series.
When asked if Alastor is a Wendigo, Vivzipop stated Alastor, while not explicitly one, "definitely has Wendigo themes" and that she's very aware of the folklore.[85]
During Mimzy's development, across Zoophobia and early drafts of Hazbin Hotel, she was "head over heels in love" with Alastor and early illustrations depicted the two in a romantic relationship.[86][87] This element of their dynamic has since been moved on from, with Alastor being re-written as uninterested in all forms of romance.
Faustisse has the opinion that Mimzy's crush on Alastor is a "joke that will never die".[note 10]
When planning for the pilot, Alastor wasn't originally meant to appear as much as he did. Vivziepop's plan in the first few drafts of the story had been for him to stay in the background as something of a mysterious entity that would eventually appear later, but that was changed so that he could have a big role from the start. During 2017 development streams, Vivziepop described Alastor as becoming "a very vital part of the pilot".[42]
Originally, it was stated that Alastor's microphone was a living extension of himself which he can manifest and hide whenever he chooses. Vivziepop thinks that he hypothetically would not be able to talk without it, but that it's not something that can ever be separated from him as it's not a tangible object to anyone but Alastor.[88][89] This is shown to not be the case in the main series as Charlie was capable of holding it in "Hello Rosie!", and Adam was able to break it in "The Show Must Go On".
At MomoCon 2019, when asked if Alastor is planned to appear in most episodes, Vivziepop stated that he would definitely be part of the main cast. She felt like there were going to be times when he's not around, but that he would show up a satisfying amount and provide a big source of conflict within the story.
When describing Alastor's key visual themes, Faustisse listed: Voodoo, pindolls, eldritch, inspiration from Princess and the Frog's Dr. Facilier, blood, and static.[note 11]
According to Faustisse, Husk and Alastor are business partners.[note 12] It is unknown whether this is still canon in the series as Alastor is shown instead to be the owner of Husk's soul.
In a mid-2024 interview, Vivziepop confirmed that the show's future seasons will fill in many of the assorted blanks in Alastor's mysterious personal history.[90]
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