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Starstruck
We
all have our idols but very rarely do we ever meet them in person. Given the various scandalous reports of
famous people turning up in the news these days, that may be a good thing, for just because
you idolize the work and actions of someone, the person behind those things
might not always be a good person. This
episode brings this message to light when Star learns that her monster-fighting
idol is not what she seems.
Her name is
Mina Loveberry who’s known in Mewni as a revered warrior and protector, and is
on Earth for a vacation via "doctor's orders". Right there Mina shows that she’s too crazy
to have the makings of a competent warrior. Her first moments show her freak
out over a bag stuck on her head. It’s
understandable that Star doesn’t notice this at first since Mina got the bag on
her head while hiding in a dumpster like Star was doing.
From there, because Star sees nothing too
wrong with Mina’s behavior, she joins her in exploring Earth for any dangers
which include Mina’s indescribably odd customs.
They include breaking into the national landmark of mud pits to become
“mud sisters,” attempting to ride away on a preserved wooly mammoth which
sinks, taking any random items they can find to make weapons even if they’re
the park’s property, and doing whatever they please after hearing America’s the
land of the free including arson.
Through it all, Mina is definitely a major danger to society with all
her customs causing serious harm in various degrees. We already discussed that she commits acts
like arson without care, but she also gets little kids hurt while they’re
swinging, and possibly causes the park ranger to drown at one point. I mean, he sinks in the mud pit, and we never
hear from him afterwards. All the same, despite being dangerous, Mina
is still highly enjoyable for the eccentric way she goes about life and teaches
Star her secrets of being a great warrior which really livens things up.
As fun as Mina is, because she’s so obviously
a menace to society, it’s concerning that it takes Star a long time to realize
that Mina is nuts and just shoots down Marco’s legitimate warnings while he
often has to deal with the aftermath of their destruction. All the same, there are times where Star
attempts to follow Mina along, but feels unsure about her idol’s customs. Then when Mina gets to the last step of
becoming a warrior which includes fighting everyone, including innocent people,
to conquer Earth which has no one ruler, Star finally sees fault in Mina’s
teachings and refuses to conquer the planet she’s come to care for. Star’s biggest change in her views on Mina
comes after the warrior takes on a monstrous form as Earth’s new leader, and
when everyone around votes on it, Star makes the choice to vote on Mina not
conquering the planet. It all ends with
Star facing the hard truth that her idol was not a skilled warrior, but a
really crazy and destructive lady she’d rather not emulate.
It’s sad that someone she looked up to wasn’t
who she thought she was, but it’s a hard cold lesson that matters now more than
ever. For that, this is a fun and
high-spirited episode that makes a strong point.
A-
Camping
Trip
A
few instances in the series has shown that Star actually has a lot in common
with her dad, King River. They both have
a huge desire for fighting and sense of adventure and are generally highly
energetic. Their bond is touched on even
more in a cartoon focusing on the favorite pastime of going on camping
trips.
This camping trip starts off
nice, simple, and relatable to one most people would do with the most hype
built around seeing a geyser erupting today, but it becomes more interesting
when River shows up. Like Star, he takes
extreme pleasures in every little thing there is to camping. It’s his role that makes the mundane pastimes
of camping such as fishing and hiking more exciting than they’d normally
be.
Interestingly enough, one of the
reasons for his behavior is that he wants to relive his youth and prove he’s
still cool enough to be there for his daughter which is both a believable
reason and adds some heart to his antics.
Still, it shows that unlike Star who at times is capable of breaking away
from being ridiculous, River gets even more ridiculous despite his reasons. Among these highly ridiculous acts is going
up to a bald eagle in its nest to get the bird to fly them to the geyser which
ends up getting the three of them caught by the rangers. River also does much more harm than good to
Marco’s own desire to see the geyser through eating the map for no reason other than he was hungry. He also
shows that he hasn’t learned from his previous encounter with the rangers when
the group is once again hounded by them when River steals a bear. It’s at least always clear that he wants to
help make the whole trip special, and wanting to act young and cool to impress
his daughter makes this desire all the more understandable.
There’s also a nice conversation Star and
Marco have involving the geyser. The
real reason Marco wants to see it is so he can show Star to thank her for ishowing
him so many interesting dimensions. Not
only does this camping trip stand out more from the antics of someone with a
midlife crisis, but the heart of what it means for Star and Marco’s friendship
adds to its endearment.
Then following
this conversation, and a statement that today is the geyser’s last eruption
prompts River to perform his noblest act for the episode. Finally reliving his youth with no trouble, he
carries Star and Marco while running through miles of wood even doing
impossible feats like jumping up a waterfall and running through a war
reenactment. It’s impressive that River
turns out to astound with how fast he travels just to get his daughter and her
friend to see something that means a lot to them, even if he ultimately
fails.
That said, it’s very satisfying
that the trip there was just as exciting for Star and Marco and are appropriately
grateful for how River came through in the end.
The moment is a bit devalued when they geyser erupts anyway and the
statement of this being its last eruption turns out to be a lie, but it’s nice
to see everyone in a good place anyhow, as well as a humorous ending of River
looking a lot younger after getting sunburned from the eruption.
Basic as this camping trip episode is, the
character moments, especially from what we see of River, are strong and
entertaining enough to make it worth watching.
A-
The Ranking
- Ludo in the Wild
- Mr. Candle Cares
- Wand to Wand
- Starstruck
- Star on Wheels
- Camping Trip
- My New Wand
- Red Belt
- Star vs Echo Creek
- Fetch
The next Star vs the Forces of Evil review covers Star and Marco take up babysitting Buff Frog's tadpoles, as well as what Buff Frog was doing while that was going on.
Next time on MC Toon Reviews is the OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes episode that asks "Do You Have Any More In the Back?"
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.
