A Haunted Inheritance
Netflix’s latest adult animated series Haunted Hotel is stirring up a plasma-filled mess.
The series depicts Katherine (Eliza Coupe)—a divorced single mother of two, Ben (Skyler Gisondo) and Esther (Natalie Palamides)—who inherits Undervale, a hotel full of ghosts and ghouls after the passing of her older brother Nathan (Will Forte).
Along with the hotel, she inherits a demon-possessed child by the name of Abbadon (Jimmi Simpson) and together they try to navigate making the company successful while trying not to scare every living customer to death.
The Haunt Continues
Boo to season 2!
Immediately on the heels of Haunted Hotel’s Season 1 premiere, “boo” in this context is a great thing, as Netflix renewed the series for a second season.
But why?
Lately, animated series on this particular streaming platform have had years between announcements, as the future of their content remained uncertain.
However, it appears Haunted Hotel has broken through that pattern, appealing not only to adults, but to younger audiences as well as the series navigates deep themes that connect across generations.
Loss.
Depression.
Single motherhood.
And what children may feel like growing up without a parent.
It produces these topics in a way that is zany, whimsical, and easy to understand while maintaining the spooky comedy that frames its identity.
Haunted Hotel will make you laugh and surprisingly make you cry through funny, transparent, and honest dialogue.
And for a series centered on a family who inherits a hotel full of ghosts, the ghosts play a huge part in redefining what it means to be a family—building a bridge across the veil between the living and the dead for community and fellowship.
Their boo-tastic presence is the perfect comedic backdrop to the insanity that is Undervale.
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Animated Mayhem
Kivonshe—founder of So There’s That—is a film & TV critic who explores compelling storytelling, fandom relationships, character psychology, and the impact of entertainment media through film reviews, episodic recaps, and in-depth theme analysis.