Alright, as mentioned in the previous author's notes, I'll rant about the 'Battle For Mewni' movie special, its ups and downs, and give my overall opinion at the end.
WARNING: This rant contains spoilers and IS NOT mandatory to read if you wanna keep up with my story. It's merely me voicing my thoughts on the movie special, and will contain SPOILERS! You've been informed.
Alright, so I'm gonna break it down into individual acts or Episodes to avoid any confusion.
But before that, I FUCKING LOVED RIVER! He was without a doubt the best Character in the special, for me.
Return to Mewni:
Alright, this Episode started off as humorously with Marco mourning Star's sudden departure, although I was a bit disappointed that he didn't mention her confession at any point. Regardless, it was sweet how Star spied on him and called him a 'cute idiot', meaning that's she's not afraid or ashamed of her feelings toward him. And the fact that she took his (smelly) hoddie was touching. Moving on, I loved how we got to further explore Moon's relationship with Star and how deeply she cares for her, although hiding the truth was a bad move. The fact that the Magic High Commission were now balloons and got stuck in a tree was hilarious, as was the 'Keeper of the Sanctuary' and how Moon 'talked to him'. So the mixture of humour and seriousness was spot on. Inside the sanctuary... a candy (corn) machine, seriously? Does that thing run on magic or electricity xD? Finally, the part where it is revealed that Toffee and his minions had killed Moon's mother was something I didn't expect, definitely a dark turn of events.
Moon the Undaunted:
First of all, I loved the English accents they gave young Moon and the other nobles; It was very fitting. I wasn't expecting Mina Loveberry to have been one of Mewni's generals. Which makes me wonder; What in Oblivion happened to her xD!? Anyway, I loved that fact that young Moon herself acknowledged that she was far too young and inexperienced to be Queen instead of showing confidence from the very start. I expected her to be even more lost and sad than she was. But seriously, the jokes about her dead mother weren't cool in my book. I understand that you have to add humour, but you can do that in other ways besides joking about the fact that a 14yold's mother got murdered! Next, I loved the sweet relationship of young Moon and River. So cute ^.^! Queen Eclipsa was awesome, and I wonder why she was imprisoned, honestly. I am hoping that they make her into one of those 'I was right all along' characters since she does seem smart and very powerful. Oh, and the 'B4' thing killed me xD. Moving onward, I loved Moon's attitude after learning how to defeat Toffee but I was expecting something even more terrifying to happen for him to hold such a huge grudge, although Toffee does seem like the kind of character to keep his calm and walk away, so idk. I'm only bummed that the whole 'war between monsters and Mewmans' wasn't explained.
Book be Gone:
Just when I think Ludo can't become even better, they show this Episode and prove me wrong. He was very funny, as always. The book having a mind of its own was a surprise and makes me wonder who made it and when. Anyway, the thing I'm most excited about; The Mermaids! Don't tell me that the whole 'If you cut off a Mermaid's tail you can no longer be Queen of Mewni' was just for fun and jokes after they showed actual Mermaids! And I was both surprised and, admittedly, let down that the book just... burned like that. Seriously, it's a powerful magical object and you expect me to believe it's THAT easy to destroy? Meh. Glossaryck burning with it as he confronted Toffee for the final time showed his connection with the book, and made me question what Glossaryck is! I know he's a powerful magical being who created the Magical High Commission, but perhaps he's something more?
Marco and The King:
Fucking love River xD! Pardon my language, but he was just sooooo damn good in the Episode, although hosting parties was a bonehead move xD. When Marco showed up, I was surprised that he seemed rather calm, although evidently worried for Star's safety. It also makes me wonder; There was a 2-3 day gap before Marco came to Mewni in search of Star, so what happened on Earth during that time to make him seem so... composed. No offence, but he was a fucking train-wreck when Star left... Moving on, River killed it with his interaction with his subjects, with the whole 'you gotta let one building burn down every once in awhile'. Also, the gag with the monster had me laughing. This arc was probably my favourite part of the whole movie special. It also ended with a band, what with Ludo's (Toffee's) invasion and all.
Puddle Defender:
Ayy, Buff Frog! He's one of my favourite Characters and I loved seeing him and his kids. I also liked the parallel between him and Moon; Both showed concern for their children and wanted nothing but to ensure their safety (Although, sorry Moon, taking the wand away from Star was definitely stupid, corrupt magic or not.) Anyway -gosh, I use this word way too often but whatever- Moon and Ivgeny's little chat while playing the board game really gave us a good perspective of the situation on Mewni, with each side seeing the other as the vile and cruel one. I'm really interested in the events, although I'd side with the monsters, from what little evidence I've been provided with. It does seem that the Mewmans were the ones who invaded their lands, although it's merely a suspicion that I can't confirm. Moving on, I liked the brisk ending, with Kartina talking to Star and saying 'yeah, she's gonna die' after the princess left with no plan.
King Ludo:
Honestly, I don't see who's the worse King; Ludo or River xD. I'd guess that it's Ludo since he tried to set up a dictatorship. And River, WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU EAT THE BUTTER XDDDD!? It's raw butter! Argh! I just couldn't get enough of this guy xD. Sorry, back to the rant/review: Ruberiot and his band of entertainers were something I wasn't expecting to see and have no real opinion about them. Apart from the Mime Girl, she's an artistic genius. The one fluke I noticed was the time span of this Episode; Are you seriously expecting me to believe that it took Marco 24 hours to steal a key, or that Ludo slept for 24 hours, because he didn't do much else during that time... As if I couldn't have loved River enough, he decides to face his death without a hint of fear. Seriously, I love the dude. The Episode ended on a high-note, with Marco deciding to take matters into his own hands. Good job, Safe-kid!
Toffee:
First question; How incompetent must Ludo's guards be to not notice Star sneaking around in a giant rat costume? Seriously... Now, onto my favourite part of the special, the reunion of Star and Marco! I gotta say, they were apart for only a few days yet hugged as if they'd been separated for months, maybe more. Another sign that Star's no longer afraid of her feelings was when she called Marco 'cute' while he was wearing the French beret. Also, I'm not sure about this, but I am fairly confident that Star wanted to ensure Marco safety and therefore refused to cooperate with him, which would put him in even more danger. How sweet ^.^! Thing escalated quickly from that point onward, and we got to see another side of Star which showed that there is more to her than just her 'rebellious princess' attitude; She can be very serious and determined at times, even willing to give up her own life if it means protecting her friends and family, a sacrifice she was willing to make when casting the whispering spell that would likely destroy Toffee, but the resulting explosion would kill her. I was expecting her to be seriously injured after the balcony blew up, but wasn't expecting her to end up in Ludo's body! Now, here's a complaint I have: We never got an explanation of how Toffee was doing all of this! Seriously, how did he corrupt the wand, how was he in control of Ludo's body, and how the hell was he able to absorb and corrupt so much magical energy? They really should have cleared that up. Eh, whatever. Once Toffee demanded his finger in exchange for Star, she, yet again, wanted to sacrifice herself to prevent Toffee from gaining his full power back. Girl, I know you're the heroine, but you gotta stop being so damn selfless! Then, Toffee didn't keep his promise and told them Star was dead... what a surprise :O! I was not expecting the main villain to not keep his promise! *Audible gasp*! With Star being 'dead', the corruption on Moon's hands spread and the diamonds on her cheeks darkened. I think it was a good portrayal of what happens when someone you hold so dearly is torn away from you and you're powerless to stop it. Moon snapped and she even tried to cast her darkest spell on him and destroy him, but it didn't work, meaning that Eclipsa must be in control of the magic behind the spell, not Moon. We also got to see Marco's reaction. Damn, he punched a hole straight through Toffee's heart and ruined his suit, yet he can't put a straw in a damn juice box xD! Star must've really meant a lot to him *wink* *wink*. Sorry, that's my inner shipper talking. Anyway, Toffee is one mean dude, not giving Ludo any satisfaction right there! That's just mean. This part of the movie was by far the darkest and saddest one that actually had me on the edge of my seat. Moon left completely helpless and desperately trying to bring Star back. Star nearly drowning in the black sludge and crying her eyes out... I thought this was a goddamn kids' show, and then you do stuff like that! Next up, *ahem*, GLOSSARYCK YOU PIECE OF... Seriously, what the hell are you doing!? Making damn soup and not giving a damn about anything xD!? I both love him and hate him for his indifference.
Then, the final act, Star's transformation. I gotta say, as a guy who's actually watched the entirety of Sailor Moon, I could see the resemblance. Then again, the original concept for the show was heavily influenced by Sailor Moon, so it came as no surprise. So, the wand has evolved even further and looks even better than the previous two versions. Nice. Back to Star's transformation, she is definitely special amongst the Mewmans, what with being a golden radiant Butterfly that annihilated Toffee while smiling like a psychopath. That smile was honestly creepy, I'm not gonna lie! I expect this form to come back into play in seasons 3-4 where she'll presumably, be fighting Eclipsa. I also suspect that Star will be corrupted by Eclipsa's magic and we'll get to see a dark and corrupted version of her mewberty form. At least, I hope so. I was let down by Toffee's defeat; I think he isn't dead because that would be a pretty pathetic way to end it all... I mean, he0s some evil mastermind and Star just destroyed him, and Ludo dropped a pillar on him! So yeah, I hope we've not seen the last of him.
Onto the final act, I really like the fact that Ludo wishes to 'find himself' again and his hatred toward Star seems to have subsided. And Moon's sudden departure; Just what did Eclipsa do to her? And finally, *inhales*, RIVER, YOU GLORIOUS BASTARD! I KNEW YOU WERE ALIVE! This scene had me laughing with joy, as did most of the scenes involving him. I wonder how Moon will react to the whole 'King of the Eagles' thing xD. He's got A LOT of explaining to do!
The closing scene was a good foreshadowing of the things to come. Eclipsa is now free, so a new trial awaits both Moon and Star, and Marco if he decides to stick around.
That being said, I was expecting to see Marco and Star's thoughts at the end, but I guess they're saving it for Novermber.
So overall, putting the nitty-gritty complaints aside, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie and am super excited for the rest of season 3! Things are gonna be really dark, and I absolutely love it!
