Television series

Helluva Boss

Name: Helluva Boss
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
Released: 2019
Cast: Brandon Rogers, Richard Steven Horvitz, Vivian Nixon, Erica Lindbeck, Erica Lindbeck

A gleefully blasphemous animated comedy about a ragtag murder-for-hire startup in Hell. Think workplace sitcom meets ultraviolent cartoon, with musical numbers, surprisingly tender character arcs, and jokes that land hardest for people who've never seen animation do this before. For fans of irreverent humour who want their shows to care about the people they're making fun of.

TVMaze rating

3.6

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like animated comedy where grim workplace scheming and gleefully excessive gore sit next to a messy, tender romance, and you enjoy a show that goes for the jugular on both counts.

Skip it if you find extreme violence and crude humour hard to laugh through, since the bloodshed is frequent and the tone rarely lets up long enough for a quieter scene to land.

What it asks of you: Each episode runs about twenty-one minutes, so it is easy to binge, but it wants you alert to in-jokes and shifting alliances rather than letting it wash over you.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Arcane: League of Legends2021

Gorgeous hand-drawn animation, phenomenal soundtrack, and a story about found family that somehow makes you cry about video game characters. Treats its premise with absolute seriousness while being endlessly entertaining.

But Slow pacing in the first act; if you need constant laughs, the drama-heavy stretches might feel heavy. Also just extremely popular, which can set impossible expectations.

Hazbin Hotel2019

Same irreverent spirit, same creator energy, but a full-scale musical about redemption in Hell. Instantly charming characters, a killer soundtrack, and the sheer audacity of making demons sympathetic. If you love Helluva Boss's tone, this is essential.

But The first season is only four episodes; leaves you desperately wanting more. Tonal whiplash between comedy and genuine heartbreak isn't for everyone.

Inside Job2021

Adult workplace comedy about a shadow government organization, packed with the same irreverent humour and character chemistry. Fast jokes, smart writing, genuinely likeable misfits trying to keep the world running.

But Cancelled after one season on a cliffhanger. The ending will leave you frustrated, not satisfied.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Helluva Boss

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Undone2019

Both use animation's freedom to do impossible things in bodies and physics, but where Helluva Boss uses that for comedic violence and absurdism, Undone uses it for internal experience and disorientation. Opposite ends of what the medium can do.

Rotoscope animation of a woman questioning her sanity after a car accident that may have given her superhuman perception. Visually extraordinary, psychologically disorienting, and treats its protagonist's unreliability with absolute seriousness. Every frame is a painting.

But The animation style is off-putting to many viewers; it's uncanny rather than pretty. Also fundamentally about mental illness and trauma, which is heavy in a way that doesn't resolve neatly.

BoJack Horseman2014

Starts as a comedy about an anthropomorphic horse in Hollywood, transforms into a devastating exploration of self-sabotage and broken people. The jump from joke to heartbreak is exactly what Helluva Boss does with Blitzo and Stolas.

But Gets progressively darker and heavier; by season three you're watching something more sad than funny. Can feel self-indulgent in its misery.

Dead End: Paranormal Park2022

Animated supernatural comedy with a queer teenage crew, sharp writing, constant visual gags, and real affection for its characters. Rides the same line between absurdist humour and genuine character stakes that makes Helluva Boss work.

But Very aimed at a younger audience; some of the jokes land differently if you're not Gen Z. Only two seasons before cancellation.

Castlevania: Nocturne2023

Gothic action-adventure animated series with a tremendous voice cast, fluid fight choreography, and the same willingness to be visually grotesque and beautiful at once. Dark fantasy with actual wit, not just grimdark posturing.

But Heavy on plot exposition and lore-building; if you want breezy entertainment rather than mythology, it drags. More serious in tone than Helluva Boss, so don't expect laughs.

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners2022

Ten-episode cyberpunk story with movie-quality animation, a charismatic ensemble, and a narrative that builds genuine emotional weight from pulpy action-adventure roots. Finds the tragic undertow in stylish chaos.

But Based on a video game universe; some plot threads assume familiarity. Also: it's a tragedy, and the ending is devastating in a way that's not cathartic.

Daria1997

Deadpan animated comedy about high school outsiders delivered with surgical precision. The joke-per-minute ratio is astronomical, character relationships deepen over five seasons, and it launched a voice style that influenced everything after it.

But Extremely of the 90s; some references and cultural moments feel dated. The animation is deliberately flat, which reads as cheap until you realize that's the point.

Pantheon2022

Sci-fi thriller about teenagers discovering they can upload their consciousness to the internet. Genuinely tense storytelling, imaginative world-building, and a willingness to let consequences stick. Feels like prestige TV pretending to be a cartoon.

But Very slow-burn; plot moves glacially in early episodes. Extremely bleak, and the tone is serious throughout—zero comedic relief.

Severance2022

Both are fundamentally about workplace dynamics and what happens when people can't escape their jobs, but one is absurdist cartoon comedy and the other is a philosophical nightmare. Same prison, opposite doors.

A workplace thriller about employees who have their work and personal memories surgically separated. Conceptually stunning, visually elegant, and builds unbearable tension from a single premise. Some of the best television of recent years.

But Intentionally slow-paced and withholding; if you want answers you won't get them. Bleakly corporate and philosophically unsettling, not entertaining in a traditional sense.

Infinity Train2019

Both use animation to create entire functional societies with their own logic and rules, but where Helluva Boss grounds itself in character relationships, Infinity Train uses its world as a canvas for one-off philosophical puzzles. Same canvas, opposite priorities.

Surreal animated anthology about passengers on an impossible train, each episode a self-contained story that ranges from whimsical to genuinely disturbing. Beautiful art, imaginative sci-fi conceits, and a tone that shifts wildly because every story is different.

But Anthology format means no character continuity; if you want to follow people you care about, you'll feel lost. Some episodes are genuinely creepy for a cartoon, which can feel jarring.