The creator of Hazbin Hotel credits these shows with inspiring Prime to become a hit

Hazbin HotelThe hectic first season came to an end on Friday, with a dozen reveals and floating storylines all set up for a second season. From creator Vivienne Medrano, who first posted the pilot episode on her YouTube channel, the devilish comedy follows Charlie, the Princess of Hell, who opens a hotel in the hopes that demons will recover and go to heaven . Oh, and it’s a musical too!

The first season ended with a bang, but it might be some time before we see the second season of Hazbin Hotel. So if you need something to satisfy your devilish desires for now, Medrano has handpicked some of the series’ biggest influences.

Intruder Room

Image: Netflix

Where to see: Paramount Plus

Merdano calls this “huge,” and it’s not hard to see why: both shows share a similar feverish sensibility along with a strong, vibrant color palette. The spindly style of Intruder Room feels clearly in the game Hazbinwith characters like Alastor and Angel Dust feeling like they could move between shows quite comfortably.

The dark adventures of Billy and Mandy

Image: Cartoon Network Studios

Where to see: Max

The other childhood show that Merdano cites is about two children (one a clueless, cheerful goofball, the other a cynical and clever tomboy) who summon the Grim Reaper and beat him at a game of limbo, making him theirs make eternal servant best friend. You get involved in the paranormal world of demons, gods and other supernatural creatures, but everything happens with a silly twist. The hellish through line of Grim adventures To Hazbin Hotel is pretty obvious.

BoJack Horseman

Image: Netflix

Where to see: Netflix

When she was younger, Medrano says, she also watched other series, but the ones from Netflix BoJack Horseman — about an anthropomorphic, depressed, washed-up sitcom actor (who is also a horse) — came at the “perfect time” to show her that she could tell a complicated emotional story in adult animation.

“[It’s] actually one of my favorites of all time; phenomenal show,” says Medrano. “It kind of showed me that adult animation can be not just a raunchy comedy, but also a story where there’s intense character development. It can have incredibly flawed characters. It can make you cry. It can get really deep and dark.

“It had just started around the time when I thought I really wanted to work on the pilot, and they kind of got me to Oh, wow, adult entertainment is starting to change. And it starts to develop.”

South Park

Where to see: Paramount Plus

Medrano calls South Park For her, it was a “big turning point” in adult animation – an experience that many people had with the Comedy Central classic. The show tackled current ideas and events, all with a gleeful, jaded humor that has kept it going since 1997. “From that point on,” says Medrano, “I just kept watching.” [adult animation].”

Rick and Morty

Image: Swimming for adults

Where to see: Max

Similar to BoJackMedrano cites this ever-popular adult swim comedy as an advocate for the depth and humor she tries to balance with her work. Like everyone who watched Rick and Morty I can attest that there is more to the show and Pickle Rick than just the reputation it conveys. “Something like Rick and Morty This is still very raunchy and vulgar and shocking in many ways – the direction it went was: Yes, but let’s go a little deeper, let’s get a little darker. I think that also helped move the space forward a bit more Oh, that works! This has an audience that has done really well.”