The ironic part about the disgruntled ex-fan drama is that HB’s development is more than Viv and Brandon embracing their creative vision: it’s Spindlehorse finding its niche. The numbers they got from fans receptive to the show’s plot for the long haul exceeded the ones who’d only wanted hijinks.
It’s like this… HB pilot was made before the decision was made to make a more dedicated overarching plot starting with S1. What was the fan reception like? The majority preferred this new direction, while the episodes focused on missions were consistently the lowest rated of the bunch.
So Spindlehorse got the message and is continuing to appeal to that majority by toning down the “mission” plots in favor of the main one (NOT an overnight decision in real time though), while still using them in lower-budget shorts so that they’re still in their own spot.
So the ex-fans insinuating that they were indispensable, that because they were there first they’re entitled to get whatever they want… they weren’t as much of a majority as they thought. Where were they when their reception and financial support mattered? What message did it send the studio?
Their support was very conditional to begin with, and they wouldn’t even commit to it (or, at best, it wasn’t enough to make a difference). That’s why they’re appealing to an audience who are in for the plot but still appreciate some funny side stories to supplement mid-season wait times.
"No but its not the Striker show so its bad !"
Both Viv and Brandon WANTED to make the show more than just violence, jokes and swearing. Even the pilot had the underlying message of working class folks who are struggling (especially that cut line of dialogue from the video of the voice actors recording it)
So let's see, the audience is more receptive to character-driven episodes and the underlying messages about working class folks, complex relationships, the world they live in, and oh, Brandon agrees with the idea of what becomes the main couple?
Let's do the math! Audience loves the complex character stuff, Viv and Brandon have room to make the show THEY want to make, and it'll please the majority audience who support the show? Ding ding ding! We have a winner!
Right? They get a good deal making the story they want AND a paying audience invested in said plot at the same time. Why would they ever go back?
It's pure win-win for everyone involved! Going back would be a detriment and they don't have to, the shorts can now be wacky hijinks! So even more win!
Ex-fans wanna pretend Viv and Brandon are at odds with the majority audience, but they really aren’t. There‘s very much synergy, it’s just that there’s this loud and toxic minority who can’t stand that they’re not catered to
What cut line?
It's at the end of the video I mentioned, about how imps work the jobs no one else does
No kidding, they seem to think since they were there from day one at the drop of the pilot, they were betrayed. Claiming that Viv "broke her promise" even though she never said any sort of "Oh yeah, Helluva Boss is gonna be mission hijinks in every episode LMAO"
The audience could see that hey, there's more to this show that wacky wild hijinks, these are actual characters existing in a complex world, and there's relationships! What's all that about? How interesting! I want to see more! It offered so much substance beyond any hijinks and gimmicks
Now the shorts are the mission hijinks that can still exist in the world but aren't exactly driving the plot or the characters forward. Isn't that what they wanted? Guess it's not good enough!
I've seen people genuinely confused about why CHERUB is so lowly regarded. It's not because it's bad or not funny! It's good and funny! And it introduced Heaven, which IS important, for sure! But compare it to the rest of the season. It adds nothing to our characters whatsoever!
Our mains are passengers in this episode and there's nothing we don't already know about them. The hijinks and minor one-off characters are the focus. You can literally slot this episode anywhere before The Full Moon and it won't be out of place
The rest of the season gives them something! Murder Family has the deal introduced, Loo Loo Land needs no explanation, Spring Broken gives us a tip on Blitz's past, Harvest Moon Festival and onward are super important
So yeah, it's not bad, not by any stretch! But there's a reason a mission hijinks episode isn't exactly up in the top five on a grand scale
They can just go watch TADC if they don't like the show post pilot. Or anything else, honestly. There's a lot of parasocial entitlement to shows and movies and video games, and I think it stems from immaturity. They forget it's not their creation, they're just there for the ride.
Honestly the pilot is so “We have Family Guy at home” that I genuinely don’t get how people actually WANT that. But then again Twitter seems to think new Family Guy is funny so I won’t say they have much in taste.
People are willing to deal with the so called vulgar and "immature" humor they claim to hate so much as long as it's heterosexually coded.