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Mama Star
One thing to work in the favor this show’s desire to be silly and random is that there’s a place where acting that way makes total sense, and that’s the Realm of Magic. This episode makes going through there completely necessary as it’s the only way Star and her friends can make it back to Mewni in this time of crisis. Along the way, there are much broader perspectives on the place, especially with it being effected by what Mewni is currently going through.
Starting things off though is a random act that you can’t help but question the validity of. Now that Star and her friends have found the well that connects Earth to the Realm of Magic, they think it’s a good idea to throw garbage down there to attract the firstborn unicorn. In the process, Marco does draw an interesting conclusion that the first Mewmans were actually humans from murals, but that sadly goes nowhere. While the whole garbage plan is ridiculous, it does lead to interesting character reveals and moments. The firstborn appears, and shows strict annoyance and backbone which is a refreshing break from her calm elegant appearance in her prior appearances. Oskar Greason gets some surprise credibility by going along with Star’s plan by letting her and the others borrow his car to get through the Realm of Magic. He’s not even the slightest bit unmoved by how crazy Star’s story sounds.
The firstborn is still firm about not wanting Star and her friends to have anything to do with the Realm of Magic, but this brings a shining moment for Star. As she originally created the firstborn, she has the power to discipline her like she’s her daughter, and has the unicorn pull her and her friends to the well to Mewni, the car like a carriage. The firstborn does say she can just send them to Mewni with her horn, but Star is also firm with making that not happen, remembering how this move separated her from her mom. Along the way, Star, who’s had actual experience with the Realm of Magic, is the one to warn everyone of when the place is going to make them lose their memories.
Despite her warnings though, they’re all hit hard with its anesthetic qualities, and soon they’re reduced to the strange big-eyed fools with no idea what to do. They all question what they’re doing, have no idea what certain things are, and basically just mess about much to the annoyance of the firstborn. There are at least a few things to make them stand out. Marco goes on a long-winded speech about what he wants, ending with a claim that he flat out loves Star, which she hears before her memory goes. Tom has the most memorable gag when everyone’s deprived of memories when he goes on fire which blows off the entire car off its chassis. He then questions if he’s even supposed to be on fire, and is even left behind as the episode ends. Janna doesn’t have nearly as impactful moments in this instance apart from taking interest in little unicorns that turn dark as they’re consumed by a strange dark puddle. This brings on a cute scene of her bringing a bunch of them for Star and Marco to raise as a family together. As for the presence of the dark magic, it’s the effects of a much darker unicorn, which raises the stakes over all these memory deprived teens. In fact, it gets so bad, the firstborn, the only one able to keep her memories intact, has to use her horn to send them away after all.
While characters mindlessly goof around like this can get uncomfortable, the few standout moments and drama from a light-hearted setup can’t be overlooked.
A-
Ready Aim Fire!
It’s kind of crazy how well the end of the last episode and the start of this episode blend into each other. The firstborn unicorn’s magic did indeed separate Star and her friends by having them wake up in different parts of Mewni. However, the way they wake up one by one makes for a brilliant transition considering that they all lost their memories while in the Realm of Magic. Ultimately, this turns out to be the best way to lead into the rest of the episode that comes off as one big all-out battle.
As for the places Star, Marco, and Janna end up in, they surprisingly have a strong connection to their roles on Mewni and the characters are each given insight on what’s going on. Marco, for instance, ends up in the lint catcher of Butterfly Castle’s laundry room which was where his role as a squire began. In addition to coming full circle with his role on this dimension, he uncovers major information. The Magic High Commission talks about excitement over overthrowing Eclipsa with Rhombulus accepted on the team as if his treason never happened. While this makes them look more dense and bad than they already are, it is refreshing that Hekapoo has genuine concern over this plan. This is because the one apparently in charge of the oncoming attack is Mina Loveberry, the crazy sole surviving Solarian warrior. She mans a large suit of armor and sets off. Then Star is seen waking up in the shed where Doop-Doop lives on the outskirts of her parents’ yurt village. When Moon finds her, she’s desperate to keep her daughter safe, but isn’t quick to argue against Star’s decision to help Eclipsa. However, it makes an upcoming reveal even harder to swallow than it already is.
Surprisingly, the character who lands in the place most direct to the issue is Janna. She wakes up in Meteora’s room in the new Monster Temple, probably because of her previously established role as Meteora’s babysitter. Showing up here allows her to see the entire battle firsthand as Eclipsa and Globgor set out to face the invading Solarian warrior. Among the effects of this battle is a wound Globgor gets from a mystical fire sword that is treated as more severe than battle wounds tend to be. Considering how well he utilized his shapeshifting against the warrior before getting struck, it’s commendable that he’s still willing to fight. However, emphasis is put on how bad the pain is as he can’t even get up properly, and everyone insists he stay in and rest despite how much he wants to keep going. There are even implied dire consequences to this wound as Eclipsa show’s somber awareness to its association with the Solarian warriors.
From there, it’s all Eclipsa’s show as she takes on the Solarian Warrior alone wand in hand. All throughout, it goes to show how awesome a character she truly is. For how much she does what she does for her and her family, she has a lot of vigor to protect her entire kingdom. She’s willing to hit the warrior with a bunch of dark spells, many of which used in the finale to Season 3. Despite they’re power, they barely give a dent, and the episode even ends with her on the verge of her demise. That’s just a chilling way to make the audience fear what will happen, and with Eclipsa’s genuine bravery against the threat, these feelings are completely earned.
It’s just a grand-scale battle with expert staging, and approaches that consider the serious potential repercussions, making for a season highlight.
A+
The Ranking
1. Cornonation
2. The Monster and the Queen
3. Ready Aim Fire!
4. Gone Baby Gone
5. Escape from the Pie Folk
6. Meteora’s Lesson
7. Swim Suit
8. Cornball!
9. Yada Yada Berries
10. Moon Remembers
11. Jannanigans
12. Beach Day
13. Britta’s Tacos
14. Junkin’ Janna
15. Queen-Napped
16. Ghost of Butterfly Castle
17. The Knight Shift
18. Ransomgram
19. Mama Star
20. Butterfly Follies
21. Kelly’s World
22. A Boy and His DC-700XE
23. Surviving the Spiderbites
24. A Spell With No Name
25. Princess Quasar Caterpillar and the Magic Bell
26. Down By the River
27. Out of Business
28. Lake House Fever
29. Doop-Doop
30. The Ponyhead Show
31. The Curse of the Blood Moon
32. Sad Teen Hotline
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where Star and her friends help the fun of the battle continue, and Moon comes to help only to later kill all the potential greatness with a very disturbing reveal.
If you would like to check out other Star vs the Forces of Evil reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.
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