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mysteriesofmarcy · 4 years

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How would Star vs. the Forces of Evil have ended if you'd written the show?

I LOVE this question, anon. And sorry this is a few weeks late, but I wanted to finish writing my episode reviews before I wrote this answer. And I took a few days to type it because I wanted to make sure to give you the best answer I can.

For starters, I would not have (gasp!) forced Starco to happen. I said from the beginning that I would only be into Starco if it was done well, and I think even some hardcore shippers would agree that it was not. Like Marco said, the whole thing in Here to Help was kind of random, to the point where I couldn’t even remember which part of the finale it happened in. I probably would not have made it happen at all but, as a concession to the shippers, I would have left the door open for the future in which they could get together romantically (probably far into the future, similar to Phineas and Isabella if Act Your Age hadn’t happened).

If my co-writers somehow convinced me to make Starco happen during the show, I would have made it happen earlier and probably devoted a whole episode to it, probably in or around The Knight Shift. Then I would explore the relationship a little more in episodes after that. Maybe a kiss here, hand holding there, and I would also add at least one more episode solely focused on them. If I had to give up an episode to do this, it would be either Doop-Doop or Ready, Aim, Fire. (The Ponyhead Show at least had a good ending, unlike the Star show. Otherwise that would be my first choice.)

How would I have handled Kellco? First of all, let me reiterate that KELLCO IS NOT A SHIP. IT NEVER WAS. Kelly said that being breakup buddies simply meant that they would help each other with their respective breakups (even though Marco hadn’t broken up with anyone since coming to Mewni). To my (admittedly weak) romantic senses, the show seemed to imply that they were just “friends with benefits.” I probably wouldn’t have even hinted at there being anything there except friendship. The last thing we needed was another pointless love triangle situation.

Now about Stom/Tomstar. Obviously the way they broke up in the show’s canon was… pretty bad, to say the least. I mean, once Tom cleaned up his act and became a good character (sometime late in season 3), I couldn’t help but think that he deserved Star. The guy made a conscious effort to improve himself. Not only did he try, but he actually succeeded in that, and in getting the girl he wanted! That is how their relationship should have ended (in the scope of the show). Maybe later they could decide “Eh, we’re not really a great fit for each other” but that would be much later. But the show just decided to flush all that down the toilet because Starco Starco Starco!

On a similar note, I would not have made Jackie gay. I would have let Chloe stay, but no way is she dating Jackie. I’m… not really sure what I would do with them. I could see a few possibilities here, including, but not limited to: Jackie x Marco 2.0, Chloe x Marco, Chloe is weird enough to like Ferguson or Alfonso (or even Oskar), or “everyone just comes back together as friends”.

I would also have to seriously rework Cleaved, especially Star’s decision to destroy magic. There is no way that destroying all magic was the correct solution. That honestly sounds like communist propaganda. It’s almost like saying “Only certain people have guns; therefore, let’s take all the guns away from everybody.” (I say almost because while magic is an innate ability in Star’s universe, guns are a thing any upstanding citizen can buy in the US.) The fact that this action saved the monsters’ lives is irrelevant compared to all the untold damage it caused. I can see why Star’s “chaotic good” nature would lead her to believe this was the solution, but I would have had her just present this as an idea, rather than actually go through with it. They could have even used a version of this idea, concentrated in some way to destroy the magic within Mina. Kind of mirroring what Star did to Ludo at the end of Toffee.

The earth episodes would also get an overhaul. Namely, they would start a lot earlier in the season and there would be more of them. This would not only allow time to give all the earth characters proper conclusions, but would also allow us to explore their reactions to Marco’s time on Mewni in a little more depth. We could have had at least one episode to deal with each other earth character or plotline instead of just trying to cram them all into the Britta’s Tacos episode.

I would have to seriously rework the antagonists too. It seemed like Moon was slowly but surely accepting that most of the monsters are good too, but then she came out of nowhere and worked with the final boss. While I can understand the twist, it was just a poor decision to actually make it happen, especially with absolutely NO WARNING WHATSOEVER. We should have at least been shown more of Moon’s internal struggle over whether to hold on to her old habits, or accept the new way of doing things. Then, whatever decision she made would be more believable. My thought is that because of the conflict within herself, Moon’s attitude would be along the lines of “I am going to stay out of it, but please don’t hurt my daughter.”

Mina’s arc would have to have a little more substance to be totally believable. Yeah, she was introduced in season 2 as Star’s idol who had gone bananas, but I hardly call that a setup for her being the main villain of the finale. As recently as the middle of season 4, I remember there being debate over who the final villain would be and what exactly the conflict would be about. If we could have gotten an episode or even a longer flashback to explain Mina’s backstory, it would have been better.

Just a couple more isolated thoughts: It seems to me that most of the prominent female characters were written poorly in the final season and especially the finale, but all the prominent male characters were written well. And this isn’t me being sexist; the strength of the show as a whole is more based on its females. But Tom, Globgor, River, and Marco were the best characters this season and I think we can agree on that.

So that’s how I would have written the ending to Star vs the Forces of Evil. But if I couldn’t change the content of the episodes, I would have ended it at Toffee. Like I said in its episode review, it would have made the perfect ending to the series.

#star vs. the forces of evil #star vs the forces of evil #svtfoe #svtfoe season 4 #svtfoe finale #i love this ask #i really had to think through my response #and that's why it took so long #thank you

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quartings · 5 years

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College Adventures special episode! Interview with Sabrina Cotugno!

Some of you may know her as @ arythusa, but she's also a former storyboarder for Gravity Falls, character designer on Wander over Yonder, director of Star Vs the Forces of Evil and Owl House, and soon-to-be showrunner of an unnamed Disney fantasy cartoon! She’s very nice, funny, and extremely talented!! She came to give a talk at my school, and here are some of the highlights from the evening!

Alex Hirsch was a bit of a procrastinator, but he was still a good writer with a clear vision.

He loved starting fights with S&P (the censorship department) to get more dark humor and LGBT rep into Gravity Falls! They couldn’t punish him that much for starting fights because he voiced half the cast of his own show! (There was an ages-long fight over whether Thompson could lick a snail or not.)

Sabrina had a slightly easier time on Star Vs because censors have less issue with “Magic fire” or “Magic bisexuals”, haha

However, depending on the political climate, S&P might be more bloodthirsty to sniff out and censor LGBT stuff...

Nickelodeon is not a good company to work for (at least as of a couple years ago) because they keep you just waiting around for your show to get approved or your series to get renewed.

Important: No matter how nice your own art style is, if you can’t draw fluidly in someone else’s style, you won’t be hired as a storyboarder (sad but true...)

Shipping wars exist even in the writers room! (Apparently there was an intense ongoing Starco vs TomStar debate behind the scenes) I’m not a hardcore Star Vs fan, so do with that info what you will, haha

Storyboarding is tough work! You have to be willing to summarize long scenes that you draw, receive tons of feedback from higher-ups who want to make changes, and make sure there are no miscommunications!

Fun fact: Both Sabrina and Alex only got their pitches approved by Disney once each of them started pitching to other studios (Hmm...)

Save your energy to fight for the BIG plot points in your show, not the small ones! Let the executives know you’re open to suggestions but are willing to fight for the things you love about your story!

Don’t let people know about the dark, feels-y stuff in your show at first- let them know it’s fun and colorful, but there’s still “more to the story”

Executives love hearing about your worldbuilding and character interactions!

Get yourself a lawyer to negotiate your contract!

Disney in particular tries to gender their shows, but they won’t try to stop you unless you’re very obviously writing about a culture/demographic you know nothing about; they know the internet will kill them if they let someone unqualified try to write about social issues!

Practice writing very often! Clarify your characters’ motivations! What do they want in life? How are they different from similar characters in other shows/books/movies? Why will your audience love your character?

Pitching a show can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 years, so be patient and persistent!

Fun Facts: I thought the talk would be a more open and casual kind of event, but it turned out to be a really fancy dinner, and I was one of only 2 freshmen invited at random! So I just showed up in my crocs and an accidental bad Alex Hirsch cosplay, super-nervously wondering if I messed up or something, haha.

Hope this was as helpful to you as it was to me! I kept some of the more insider stuff to myself though, hehehe... Can’t wait to learn and explore more of the animation industry!

Until then! ^_^

#college adventures #sabrina cotugno #gravity falls #star vs the forces of evil #wander over yonder #owl house #q speaks #my writings #advice

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ladyofthememe · 5 years

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Starco is together because of "bad" writing.

*holds coffee cup* Change my mind.

Let me just clear something up real quick before I get started. I love SVTFOE, and I love Daron Nefcy's storytelling and the world she has created. I think her characters are absolutely unique and wonderful. But I think the fact that in a limited amount of episodes, tying up loose ends before a series finale can seem rushed (looking at you Game of Thrones).

Okay but for real you guys,

I do think Starco is cute af, and that they were going to end up together in the end anyways (even though I'm a hardcore Tomstar shipper). However, all of that does not excuse the fact that the writers used Jackie, Tom, and Kelly for Starco development. AND that it was rushed in the last several episodes. Yes it's been hinted at all along, since season 1, there is no denying that. A lot of people don't think it was rushed because it's been hinted at for so long, but hints are not relationship development.

Starco was rushed at the very end of the show, and in doing so, Star and Marco literally get together like a day or two after Star and Tom broke up. That is all kinds of messed up, even for a pre-destined hinted at relationship. People might argue that Tom said it was okay for Marco and Star to get together, but you can bet your ass he didn't mean right away.

And while I'm at it, might I also add how literally no one questioned where Tom was in all of S4E19-20? (We know from the promo for "Cleaved" that he's in the magic dimension, but the rest of the cast doesn't know that). Not to be hateful, but Star and Marco are being pretty crappy friends to Tom at this point in time.

Sorry for the long post, and to those of you who made it to the very end, thanks for reading.

#my thoughts #my opinion #star vs the forces of evil #star vs las fuerzas del mal #star vs foe #star vs the force of evil spoilers #svtfoe #svtfoe s4 #star butterfly #marco diaz #tom lucitor #starco #tomstar #cartoons #disney #star x marco #star x tom #long post

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wise-owl · 5 years

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All aboard the ship train!! Now i know the ending and i know that the cheek things arent a thing any more but they are here just for reference to later, i shall explain...later. There are most likely more on the way, im drawing/designing a bunch then picking out my faves. These just happen to be the first 3 designs i liked and wanted to share. There are just so many possibilities for Starco kids just due to Star's family. Imma make one with silver hair! Not to mention the cheek things can be literally anything or not even there!

Lunar

First born || Male || Sassy as anything and a bit hipster || 18 yr old

Lunar is well kept and well mannered, he'll speak his mind if its needed but most the time its some sassy remark. Hes quite popular with the young ladies but has 'no time' for romance. Hes a well trained fighter and has the ambition to be a royal guard. He may be of royal blood, but its well known in Mewman monarchy that the first born female is to be the next ruler, which works in pretty well for him.

He has a strong connection with the wand

He has a mole above his left eye brow

Estella

Second born || Female || Always looking to the stars || 17 yr old

Her cheekmarks are more like some hardcore freckles/moles, she was born with them even though Stars had disappeared. It was quite the shock, and shes quite proud to have them. At first she got bullied for them but she slowly gained the confidence not to hide them.

Shes always had this thing for stars and the universe above, when earth and Mewny joined and lot of the constellations changed, causing many Mewman and Human astronomers baffled and confused. This meant that there was a whole new universe out there, not only with the combined worlds

Aurora

?? born || Female || A bit chubby and self conscious || 14 yr old

Shes rather shy. Being on the larger side of things its always made her feel distance from her more active, fit siblings. She loves to learn, if theres someone who can teach her shed happily be taught, shes not that much into books, shes a slow reader making the shortest of books far to long to read.

She has two moles under her right eye and one under her left

HOLY CRAP DRAWING NIT SWEATERS IS HARD HOW DO PEOPLE DO THAT

also i thought id have more trouble with the shows style but i think i did pretty good! Also dont mind the hands and Lunar's pose, i know its off and looks awkward, i re-drew him 3 times

#star vs the forces of evil #svtfoe #svtfoe next gen #next gen #starco #star x marco #starco next gen #owls art

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hammerjarljurenhar · 5 years

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Unfortunately for a lot of people out there who want to support the show no matter what..... this past weekend episodes (april 28th) exploded like a bomb in sabrina’s and daron’s face. Yeah... some people complained a bit about the LGBT, but that’s not really harmful, cause... well it’s LGBT, and whenever you point at it, you better say something good or people from every “offendable” corners will come, calling for help and making a fuss about it. Anyway... yeah, some people said “damn Cotugno for pushing her lgbt agenda on a kid’s show“ and this was previously announced by herself in the past season... which is really depressing cause, implies that probably this girl who only wants to make a show about gays and lesbians might get to do so. Now... the real problem which many pointed out is that they decided to use the characters to try and promote starco as a good ship (cause everyone knows that this ship went down the hill on support since season 3 and even more hardcore during this season). Why is that something bad? Remember that Simpsons episode: Itchy Scratchy and Poochie where Homer brought his “brilliant” ideas to make the show better?....

Yeah... THAT exactly is what the fandom got this weekend in Britta’s tacos episode... where every single character mentioned that Mariposa was star and marco’s child, insisting it to Marco even when he reluctantly rejected the idea. Now, as a latinoamerican dude here, I’ll take this moment to point out that “Mariposa” is not a name for a girl.... the word is usually used (other than the insect) to imply homosexuality, travestism, and that... so, it’s quite weird as a name for a girl (maybe sabrina is behind this like any lgbt stuff related in the show?). Even when we got Jackie back for a single episode showing she moved on, she’s happy with her life, strong and all that. She was there to say “Our relationship wasn’t good, you were a quite standard boyfriend” which it’s ok... yeah, marco was a terrible boyfriend, that’s the truth... but that was the show’s idea with the curse of the bloodmoon... to make him value star above everyone else with no real good reason.

And they also made Jackie come to say “I’m not worth it, star is”, in a cammouflaged sense, cause everything they made her say before saying “Now, she is a special girl, Marco” was this “where is poochie” thing I mentioned... it’s there to redundantly get you to accept that Marco and Jackie must not be a couple and star should be marco’s girl, get it? they only put it there to convince the public’s attention that starco is good, despite it was portrayed as bad curse.... and that honestly was the worse low thing they could do. Tell me girls, how many of you out there go and talk with your ex telling him you’re not worth it, and that the other girl is worth it?... From all the girlfriends I had, only one was like this.... a girl with so many mental and selfsteem problems (despite studying psychology) that it was kinda dangerous being around her... now in a tv cartoon show level, it gives you a lot to think... cause you can literally see that they are desperate to have the starco ship accepted by everyone before it happens... and using the characters in the show for that is a redundant poochie move. Now... as a final note... the last nail in the coffin will be that they make Tom come back with a boyfriend out of nowhere and say to star: “Hey I’m not worth it, Marco is” I honestly hope I’m 100% wrong... but considering sabrina is there... it’s a chance that may happen, you know since she is obssesed to push lgbt wherever she goes Toodles!

#svtfoe #svtfoe season 4 spoilers #jackie lynn thomas #the simpsons #poochie #brilliant ideas #dumb ideas #drawn together

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seddm · 5 years

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All these hardcore Tomstar fans who deep down inside knew this was comming and keep saying things like Star does not deserves him to downright hateful things about her... Why do they watch the show? At all? Also, since it happened at the shadow of Marco droping the L word no one is talking about it, but Tom calling it on Janna being on the Monster Truck dump and their playful mood with the tennis ball showed gold-level synch between them!! I actually believe they are being shipped in-show 100%.

It’s a pity that we are so close to the end of the show and that it took so much to get here, but Starco + Tomco bromance with no tensions is perfection, and Janna being there is a more than welcome bonus. While in some cases I haven’t been a fan of the show moving away from it’s Star and Marco focus to become something more of an ensemble cast series, these segments used the quartet of teens in an outstanding way.

#seddm answers #svtfoe spoilers #jarr87

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ngame989 · 5 years

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Notice how the starco shippers are the ones who say the show has affected them greatly. It's beautiful, in my opinion.

Obviously it’s not 100% unique to hardcore Starco fans, I’m sure that this show and its characters have left a lasting positive impact on people from all corners of the fandom who supported various things.

...that said, yes, Starco does objectively tell a clear story about friendship, commitment, and the foundations of a deep and true love, a story that I’d wager is fairly unique to the genre if not to fiction in general. So while anyone can feel connected and affected by any part of the show, Starco in particular probably/hopefully has been a major part of what fans have felt was special about it.

#answered #ido100

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phoenix-kat · 5 years

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To be completely honest

I’m really sad Tomstar broke up. Like seriously I am- but I really loved how Tom interacted with Janna and how Star interacted with Marco. I walked away being happy with it and satisfied because I feel it was good to give us a whole episode to kinda just let it end. It’s ok they broke up- I still ship them but I also kinda like Starco in canon a lot more now too!!

That being said, Starco shippers are bein a little annoying thus far. It was never about who won, it was about the characters being happy in the end. And that’s what we got- so I’m satisfied.

I still love how Tom is gonna be a main player during this last bit however! He’s way too good to just get rid of! I’m still a hardcore star fan, and I give a salute to every tomstar shipper who walks away with the same attitude- and even continues to make works about Tom and Star.

#starco #svtfoe #svtfoe spoilers #tomstar

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curly-star-child · 5 years

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Everyone’s disappointed by how messy starco’s development is, and i’m no hardcore shipper, but i really like how messy the whole thing is. They catch feelings, they lose em. People say they should like each other when they don’t know what they want themselves. They try to move on and sever ties and get over it to preserve their friendship. They constantly deny things and i LOVE it. Maybe it’s because it hits home to me due to my own personal experiences, but it feels way more real to me. Teen crushes, especially between two best friends, are messy and confusing. It’s like a roller coaster ride and while it may not be the best writing in terms of how the plot unfolds, i think that’s what the writers are going for; a weird, flippy, confusing, semi broken train wreck that’ll probably unravel into something wonderful.

#star vs #starco

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televisor-reviews · 5 years

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Everything Of Note I Have To Say About “Star Vs. The Forces Of Evil” Season 4!

As I’m sure you’re aware, the great animated series Star Vs. The Forces Of Evil has recently concluded and I have a ton to say about it... So I made a list!

1. Spoilers...

2. Duh...

3. Before anything, I absolutely loved it! This was the finale this great show really deserved.

4. Let’s start from the beginning: I’ve been watching Star Vs. for a few years now when a good friend of mine recommended it to me. At first I was resistant because the advertising for it at the time was god awful, but luckily I was convinced otherwise and been loving it ever since.

5. The show premiered when I was a teenager, going through all the cliche teen shit. So seeing a show that portrayed the overly dramatic life of a teenager without being one of those stock teen dramas was a good change of pace.

6. In particular, I remember being amazed that it could be so relatable while still being able to have it’s upbeat and fast-paced fantasy/sci-fi action sequences and world while also having a good mixture of mature and juvenile humor. I mean, all of that would seem to work against each other and yet this show made it work in spades.

7. Actually, the way Star Vs. uses it’s fictitious setting to complement its down-to-earth characters while juggling great humor reminds me a lot of a different Disney property: Guardians Of The Galaxy. GOTG, I think, is the perfect film to study if you want to ever write for sci-fi or fantasy because director James Gunn understood that you can have as wild and crazy of a world as you want but you still need to write your characters as genuine as possible. If you don’t, you’ll get something like Avatar (the movie); a film that everyone remembers liking because of the incredible world and even better effects, but no one can name a single character or plot-point. The universe still needs to be grounded by the characters or else it’ll become forgettable and un-relatable. Star Vs., thankfully, does not have this problem. I love the characters, their trials, their tribulations, all because they feel real despite the world in which it takes place.

8. That isn’t to say there isn’t a reason to set a story in a fantastical world or that there isn’t an issue with being too relatable. If anything, the world of the show helps to make it more entertaining, less monotonous, and more unique. Without it, Star Vs. would be another Pretty Little Liars or Zoey 101 or Dawson’s Creek or any other boring teen drama out there. They’re practically identical because they start off too similarly! They all follow around relatively normal teenagers in a relatively normal world with their relatively normal life and god do none of them stand out. So Star Vs. separates itself by still keeping its characters pretty wacky and the universe as crazy as Daron Nefcy’s imagination!

9. Even by a storytelling perspective, this makes more sense because there is objectively more that can be done! By the end of Zoey 101, Zoey and her lame crew basically did everything they could do without jumping the shark too much. In comparison, there are countless adventures Marco and Star could go on even past the series finale.

10. And because the number of future adventures are countless, part of the tragedy of the show ending is that we (the audience) don’t get to experience them alongside these characters we’ve learned to love so much. Keeping that door open leaves a much longer lasting impression on the audience, as apposed to the ending of Zoey 101 in which... wait, what happened again? I don’t remember. Anyways!

11. I love the comedy in this show! From the very beginning, the humor was very lighthearted and yet mature because it had to be. It had to have a tinge of maturity to it because the target audience isn’t little kids like it would be for a show like My Little Pony or SpongeBob. Star Vs., with it’s doomsday atmosphere and constant teen drama, was definitely geared more towards older children/preteens. The ones more likely to watch a show like Gravity Falls or Rick And Morty and this audience will not tolerate childish humor. They can appreciate it sprinkled in here and there but if used too much, they’re taste will sour. This is because as they are maturing to to start maturing into adulthood, there is the natural need to separate from childish things with the added childishness of wanting to totally separate from it. That’s why on The Loud House, a punchline could literally be poop and why that is not something you’d see very often on Star Vs.

12. With that said, the show still needed the humor to be incredibly lighthearted because otherwise this show would be so depressing! The worlds in which these characters live in and know are constantly changing, evolving, and almost blowing up. For Christ sake, many important characters die in this finale! The only one who died in Gravity Falls was the villain and in this, the villain isn’t even one of them! Seeing Marco and Star still be able to crack jokes to one another and making each other laugh keeps spirits high. God knows Hekapoo can’t do that now!

13. Speaking of Marco and Star, I have been a hardcore Starco defender from the very beginning despite the show constantly trying to convince me otherwise! There are so many perfect pairings in this cast that any one of them could’ve worked if Nefcy were top change her mind. If it ended with Star x Tom or Marco x Janna or Star x Janna or Marco x Hekapoo or Marco x Tom or Marco x Kelly it would’ve worked perfectly well.

14. But lets not kid ourselves, it was always going to end with Marco x Star. Their relationship and chemistry is unmatched, they might be the only couple in existence to say a joint line like “With or without magic, we were always meant to be together,” work and come off as not only sincere but true. I don’t even believe in the whole “soul mate” mumbo-jumbo, but I’d be damned if they are not that!

15. I audibly squealed in delight when they finally got together. It was like the build-up of four season culminated in one scene.

16. Though it wouldn’t really surprise me if I was alone in this assessment because I am a sucker for a good romantic movie. I saw La La Land in theaters, I cried at Love, Simon, I actually really love Love Actually. And though I do think Star Vs. pulled off relationships better than most, take my opinion with a grain of salt because the build-up itself was a little grating.

17. I have a huge issue with “will-they, won’t-they” stories! It’s the same issue I had with The Office and Friends and The Big Bang Theory and Sailor Moon and That ‘70s Show and every other show that has this dumb trope! Of course they’ll get together because otherwise I wasted several hours of my life wondering about it! Star Vs. isn’t as bad about this as most others but it’s still there and it’s still annoying.

18. It does this better than most because of three main components: it’s relatively short, we get plenty of Star and Marco being all lovey-dovey with each other once they do get together, and they do have genuine chemistry together. They have so much chemistry that Star’s ex literally told Marco that they were clearly into each other. If only they could’ve avoided the trope.

19. Okay, this next point is a little personal but it did effect my feelings towards this show’s finale so I think it’s kind of important that I mention it. Around the time the Star Vs. was ending, I was just entering my first real relationship and around the time I watched this finale, we lasted long enough that we could start taking the relationship a little bit more seriously. Now before anyone says anything: everything’s going great (she actually made me my header) and I am absolutely still in a honeymoon phase with her. But I think you could imagine how a lovesick teen just entering a serious relationship would be effected by this show that ended with lovesick teens so in love that they’d happily sacrifice themselves for the other.

20. I may or may not have also been high while watching this and that may or may not have effected my viewing experience. Don’t be a narc!

21. I love what this last season did with Ludo. Push away the fact that they somehow keep talking Alan Tudyk into these rolls he clearly does need to do and yet still does a great job at it (did you know he was King Candy in Wreck-It Ralph? Why? Why did he do that? Why is he so good in it? This guy’s casting decisions are so weird). The character of Ludo was a generic comic relief villain (see Doofenshmirtz) but was usually fine if only because he made for a good contrast and was way more interesting compared to Toffee (played by Michael C. Hall, another actor who does not need this job). But season four made Ludo a million times more interesting by showing his obsession with the wand exactly what it is: and unhealthy obsession that he needs to get over. And I like where he’s left by the end, clearly still not doing too great but is making strides to get better. As someone who has known many addicts in my life, this hit home a little.

22. Actually, I think a large part of season four was specifically meant to fix the first two mediocre seasons. Just look at my new favorite episode of the series: Britta’s Tacos. In this episode, Star and Marco find themselves back on Earth after a year of being on Mewni and catching up with all of their friends and seeing what’s changed. Watching this episode, I was reminded that as good as the first couple of seasons were, the latter half of the series was a ton better! The characters, character arcs, stories, everything, everything was better once they went up to Mewni. So seeing them go back to Earth and challenging the writers with rewriting their past characters to be more interesting showed just how much the series has improved. Could you imagine characters as uninteresting as those nerds I don’t even remember the names of being introduced in the much more interesting latter seasons? I couldn’t! So I appreciate that they went back and made sure every character in this show was interesting... except for Toffee, he still sucks.

23. And of course, the character that improved the most, hands down was absolutely Jackie Lynn Thomas! She was as bland and boring as a love interest got and that bothered me from the very beginning. How is it that in a show this imaginative and unique they still felt it necessary to use this tired cliche. So bringing her back, the writers had to do something to make her more interesting and it was apparently really easy. All they had to do was keep the character herself basically the same but now she’s a lesbian. And somehow, just adding that one extra layer made her feel so different, so interesting, so complete. I think that’s what it was, she just felt like an incomplete plot point and giving her a girlfriend completely separates herself from being important to the plot and adds that extra layer to make her seem more finished as a character.

24. I’m actually really surprised by this recent trend of LGBTQ+ characters in kids cartoons. You’d think that of all mediums, kids cartoons would be the last to fully integrate a controversial minority but they’ve been some of the first. Steven Universe really started this trend but I feel like The Loud House was the first to show and say it outright. Star Vs. doesn’t do it that well (and I’m willing to bet that was because of higher-ups over at Disney) but I appreciate the sentiment anyways. They never call Jackie and her girlfriend a couple or show them kissing, the most they do is have them hold hands and though I guess that’s enough, I wish they were able to go further. Whatever, I already wrote about why this representation in kids media is important, go read that.

25. For a while, Star was my favorite character in this show. I just have a real soft-spot for upbeat female badasses (and I am very happy this has become more of a trope recently), I think Janna might’ve taken the throne. It’s not that Star stopped being interesting or anything like that, I just really love Janna and her “Jannanigans”. Plus, I do really like the “cute girl who’s into weird shit” trope too. She’s not my favorite version of this trope (see Raven from 2003′s Teen Titans), but she was always a delight whenever she was on screen.

26. Tom is probably the most obvious example of “boring character was made interesting” that the show has. In the beginning, he was the standard bad boy archetype but, over time, was given more personality and started working off the other characters much better. Sure, he and Star worked great with each other as to be expected, but I think the real standout relationship he had was with Marco. I have never seen bromance as strong as what those two have. Their little musical number at Queen Moon’s cornonation turned talent contest might have been the greatest piece of animation ever made (change my mind). And this I know people agree with me, I cannot exaggerate just how much literally everyone I have ever spoken to loves Marco and Tom. It just works so strangely, it has to come off as genuine.

27. I think the series was supposed to go on for another season. I say this because Kelly was too good of a character to waste like they did! She was a great character with tons of personality and amazing chemistry with Marco that was seemingly building up to something... only to drop the ball at the end. She isn’t given much to do, she doesn’t have a final scene with Marco, she isn’t even given a good ending. The most we got was Ponyhead theorizing what her life would be like just to cheer up Star. If that was all they were going to do with Kelly, that’s just a waste of perfectly good build-up.

28. It��s very strange how on the nose these metaphors in the show got at times while still seeming perfect. I guess it had to be on the nose so that the younger audience could catch on to them but I’m not sure what the’ll do with the knowledge that magic=nuclear power. Also, the monsters kind of changed metaphors, originally they were clearly meant to be Native American stand-ins but later on they kind of changed into African American stand-ins. Not that they’re histories (in America) are all that different but it was a noticeable switch. It’s not like Zootopia where any given animal could represent any number of races depending on the scene in question, this was definitely what Star Vs. was going for and I’m not sure if it totally worked. It didn’t NOT work, I guess.

29. I actually don’t like the whole “blowing up the magic” thing. It was something Star made up in a temper tantrum and goes totally against the theme. The whole time, the show was going on about how important integration is and how “separate but equal” doesn’t work and whatnot. So destroying the only way they know how to travel through different dimensions seems contrary to that point. I get that drastic times need drastic measures but I get the feeling that in a theoretical season five, Star and Marco would work to bring back the magic. Or maybe find a more scientific way to travel through dimensions... like some kind of portal gun. We already know this takes place in the same multiverse as Rick And Morty, it’s not that crazy an idea.

30. Another reason I think there was originally going to be another season is because the whole “Mewmans are humans” thing that came right out of nowhere! I mean, it makes total sense and I’m totally down with this plot point but it seems like that would be a much bigger deal than the characters make it out to be. My god, they don’t even let Marco finish explaining this. How the hell did that cave painting get to Earth if they didn’t run into Glossaryck until they got to Mewni! Explanation please!

31. I wish destroying the magic didn’t also mean killing off Glossaryck and Hekapoo. I don’t really care about any of the other characters literally made out of magic, but those two are just so likable and such fan favorites, it’s just a shame to see them go. Though I do really like that they’re reaction to the whole thing seems to just be a mild shrug. I get the idea that since they’ve lived for millennia which would make them more okay with dying. It’s easier to live a full life if you can’t die.

32. I like how Mina’s story ends: defeated and yet still refusing it. Her whole speech about having good ideas really says something, like these issues will never be fully defeated because everyone thinks that they’re right. It’s a bit more of a bittersweet moral than “bad always loses because they’re bad” but is an important lesson that I think kids need to learn. Especially in this political climate. Good god, just end me!

33. Holy shit, I’m up to 33! My Wakfu one only made it up to 25 and I am nowhere close to done yet!

34. A psychotic part of me really wishes the finale had Star and Marco die in each other’s arms in the Magic Dimension. It’d be the ultimate show of love as they’re sacrificing each other for one another and be the ultimate ending. I mean, what more is there to care about after the main two characters are dead? It’d be very bittersweet and much more emotionally taxing on the audience but it’d also be more classic. Like Romeo and Juliet or Bonnie and Clyde, they’re love was just too strong for this world.

35. With that said, that part of me is absolutely wrong! Having their dimensions merge was clearly what the series was building up to with it’s hopeful tone, the power of love being a big theme, the message of integration, and (of course) the promise they made to Meteora and Hispanic Meteora. It seems so obvious in hindsight and yet I still didn’t see it coming, I guess that’s a sign of a really good plot twist.

36. My god, everyone is such a dick to Queen Moon. Like let her be in love you jackasses. I had such a hard time liking anyone who worked against her (which is why I really like that Hekapoo had reservations on both sides the whole time) and this includes Ex-Queen Moon. I really can’t grasp my mind as to why she thought this was a good idea, it clearly wasn’t from the very beginning. Maybe if the show gave her time to explain herself I’d be singing a different tune but she never really does and I have a hard time forgiving her even after her apology.

37. This is just a reminder that Starco is best ship. Repeat, Starco is still best ship.

38. The ending reminds me of Titanic. I mean, two young lovebirds meeting each other, growing closer, and falling in love all the while a looming threat of destruction and death is above them. The epic scale of their problem being brought down to earth by the almost normal love story happening in the midst of it all. Their ever ready willingness to sacrifice everything for each other. Their world forcing them to cling to each other for protection. The grand scale of everything around them making their love seem grander than it would be without it. Yeah, there are more and probably better examples I could turn to for comparison (Romeo And Juliet, Les Miserables, Spartacus) but Titanic was the first one to come to mind and I’m sure my subconsciousness has a good reason for that.

39. I continue to have problems with this finale but I get the sense that I’m nitpicking because this was still an amazing end to a great show. When I think about this ending, the first word that comes to mind is deserves. This is the ending that the story deserves, that the characters (minus Kelly) deserves, that the show itself deserves. It really is a fantastic finale and I’m so grateful that I got to experience it.

40.

#star vs the forces of evil #marco diaz #star butterfly #daron nefcy #disney #disney channel #disney xd #animation #cartoon #finale #season 4 #starco

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isaackuo · 5 years

Text

Starco Week5 Wrap-up!

This week was really fun! It was nice for someone to actually see the silly comics I draw! Normally, hardly anyone even notices so I rarely put in the effort of a multi-panel comic.

Here are links and explanations to my Starco Week 5 comics:

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185176588866/awkward

The one that started it all for me! I actually didn’t even notice there was a Wedding prompt later in the week. I just saw a post about “Awkward Dating Moments” and the Kellco shipper in me thought of a cute little comic that MAXIMIZED STARCO AWKWARDNESS.

So I thought, why not? It was only 3 little panels, and it mostly involved me drawing Kelly - who I find easy to draw. And I thought it was freaking hilarious.

EXPLANATION:

This comic refers to Booth Buddies, a “memorable” episode among us Starco shippers. In it, Kelly and Marco are on a wedding date, until Star Butterfly yoinks Marco away to the infamous photo booth. Then things get a little weird. In this comic, Kelly gets back by yoinking Marco to be her breakup buddy “booth buddy”, when Marco and Star are on a “wedding date” ...

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185223809716/yeah-im-a-bad-boy-princess

This one was the toughest for me, and also the weakest. I don’t follow AUs and I’m not used to thinking in terms of AUs. I tried to study the Bad Boy AU a bit, but I couldn’t think of any funny jokes for it. Honestly, I just went with the first idea I finally thought of which was vaguely funny.

EXPLANATION:

This comic references a few of the “bad” things canon Star actually did:

1) Trash a cop car in Star vs Echo Creek

2) Shoot a cop chopper out of the sky in Sad Teen Hotline

3) Murder the MHC in Cleaved

But “nice” AU Star wouldn’t do that stuff, right? So Bad Boy Marco picks up the slack for her. So ... it’s funny? I dunno, I think my sense of humor is too obtuse a lot of the time. You really need to be in deep with the show to even remember the stuff I’m referencing and make the connections?

I guess either you “get it” or ... oh well.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185220760531/starco-snugs

Haha, this one was “controversial”. I mean ... if you read my stuff then you know I think Star was addicted to the thrill of having both Marco and Tom, the same way Marco was addicted to the thrill of two timing with Star and Hekapoo (in Night Life). I think this was cute and tragi-comic, and it’s one of my favorite parts of Star Butterfly’s character. Let her have her distinctive flaws, okay?

But apparently this also cuts a bit too close to home, since it’s one of the things hardcore Tom stans criticize Star for (both the character and the show).

Anyways ... while everyone else was going sweet lovey-dovey, I went a bit freaky. I mean ... I think of this as romantic, but maybe I’m just weird that way. Like ... just imagine. Marco Diaz consoling Star every night for breaking up with Tom, and then he gets hit by “Mind Eraser” so he gets to do it again tomorrow. Isn’t that romantic?

EXPLANATION:

This comic is based on the “Mind Eraser” spell Eclipsa teaches Moon in Total Eclipsa the Moon. It’s one of my favorite spells to make jokes around, because it’s basically the flashy thing from Men in Black.

So I ponder ... what if Star really went all out using “Mind Eraser” and she went completely nuts taking advantage of it on Marco Diaz? Okay, in Here to Help, Star rushed to skip the awkward talky talky stuff and went straight for a kiss first. Maybe she’s used to it because she’s had the confession talk with Marco dozens of times already?

Oh, I also snuck in a joke referring to how Tom didn’t let Star kiss him on the lips after they broke up. As such, the only actual Tomstar kiss shown was the Lava Lake Beach kiss Marco saw from a distance. A bit mean to the Tomstar shippers, don’t you think?

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185256268271/when-is-this-state-going-to-end-starco-road

Road Trip was a challenge for me. I wanted to minimize drawing effort since my arm was sore, but I also wanted to depict a long amount of time. So I was thinking of them taking turns driving, but I switched to a bicycle based on Honey and Clover. Using a bicycle also allowed posing them in cute ways not available with a car, so it all worked out!

I was also thinking to try and cram in a joke about Star not being able to just use magic - using the Thor reaction gif to Steve Rogers not having the internet to look up the weather meme ... but ultimately it just didn’t fit. Also, I wanted to minimize drawing effort.

EXPLANATION:

Not much going on here - there’s really only one joke. But the cuteness of Star slumping on Marco really sells this one. Apparently, everyone else also thought so, since this ended up being pretty popular.

Oh, I suppose the sheer absurdity of doing an interstate bicycle trip eastward from the California coast is also a bit funny.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185303660951/isaackuo-sword-fight-club-xover-double-fight

I initially struggled with this prompt. I mean ... crossover double date? It’s just weird to me. How do they even know each other? How did they meet? It makes no sense?

Well, a classic Douglas Adams writing trick is to take what you’re stuck on and turn it around. And so I did. How do they even know each other? THEY DON’T. It’s just some random “Fight Club App” meetup. Once I had that epiphany, it was a matter of figuring out what couple would be the funniest to fight ...

EXPLANATION:

I’m proud of all the jokes I packed in here. Of course, we start off with the fact that this “date” is a random “Fight Club App” thing. Not only that, but it’s a Sword Fight Club. Like that’s a thing. You’re just going to randomly fight some strangers with swords. Like you’re in freaking Highlander except there’s no Prize or whatever.

But it’s funny because getting into some random fights is indeed the sort of thing Star and Marco would do for a fun date! Same with Steven and Connie, really (although this is more along the lines of Steven and Amethyst wrt Tiger Millionaire).

Then there’s the fact that Marco Diaz wore baby Mariposa to a sword fight. Who even does that? Oh right ... Queen Solaria and Queen Eclipsa. Which fandom didn’t question at all ... we just thought it was cute.

Star’s “We’re fighting kids?” is a reference to Alone Together, when Kevin freaks out that Stevonnie is actually two kids.

Marco is okay with fighting a kid, since his Season 1 karate nemesis was 8 year old Jeremy Birnbaum (remember him?).

The slit eyes Mariposa give Steven are based on the way baby Meteora looks at Marco.

Connie’s right - Star and Marco are 15 ... not all that much older than she is. But Star has been through a lot of serious stuff making her grow up young. She has lost touch with what teenagers even do (as she noted in Cornonation).

Star’s shocked at Steven’s age the same way Connie was shocked when she learned Steven’s age.

Even though Steven’s age disconnect is caused by wibbly wobbly gem hybrid growth rates, Marco assumes it’s because he “Did time in the Neverzone”. I had fun rewording that phrase until it implied something like doing a prison sentence.

The final kicker is baby Mariposa revealing she’s almost as old as Connie. This calls up fandom mixed feelings about Neverzone age ambiguity and what the heck this implies after Gone Baby Gone. And I mean ... you all saw it coming, right? You knew baby Mariposa had to be there for a reason, right? It’s funny because you see it coming a mile away.

Needless to say, this one is the one I’m most proud of. I had so much fun writing and rewriting it in my head until it was perfect! The only bad thing is that you need to be pretty familiar with both Star vs the Forces of Evil and Steven Universe to get all the jokes. But hey ... my sense of humor is obtuse like that.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185295564211/the-honey-moon-ball-starco-wedding-prompt

This was another tough one. I already blew my best wedding joke on Day 1, and I didn’t even notice there was a Wedding Day prompt at the time!

I struggled and struggled to come up with anything. So I just latched onto the first joke I came up with. In lieu of good jokes, I tried to sell this one with sweet cute character art showing Tom being dashing and Starco being lovey dovey. Still ... this is one of my weaker ones.

EXPLANATION:

Obviously this is based on the Blood Moon Ball/Curse, but this time Tom’s hitting them with a different curse - the Honey Moon Curse.

As we find out in Curse of the Blood Moon, Star didn’t pay attention to the MC and she thought the Blood Moon light was just a fun party light. So in this comic, she’s just obliviously caressing Marco while he questions what Tom means.

I initially thought of Tom explaining that he was confused about what Marco had previously meant when he said he wanted a “honeymoon”. But then, I thought it would be funnier if it’s simply ambiguous whether or not Tom is being spiteful or a silly practical joker or what. Sometimes it’s funnier when there’s a psychological tension - you don’t know what Tom’s thinking/feeling.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185313724836/toy-star-starco-week-5-prompt-au-of-choice

Another one which was initially tough for me. I’m just not familiar with AUs, so I knew I’d have to make up my own. But what? Nothing clicked until ... TOY STORY! After that stroke of brilliance, there were too many ideas. The hard part was paring things down into a manageable short comic.

I’m most proud of the INSANE look of Princess Star tapping her Wand at Diaz. And also the Pony Head box for Princess Star.

Anyway, the great thing about Toy Star is that I didn’t need to fill in much detail in order for the reader to imagine a whole world around it. I mean ... we all know and love Toy Story. It’s part of our cultural consciousness. So it’s really easy to imagine some fun enemies-to-buddies story just from a few suggestions.

EXPLANATION:

The boxed Princess Star bonking Diaz off the bed is actually not quite how it happened in Toy Story. But close enough! (We don’t actually get to see the majesty of a boxed Buzz Lightyear until Toy Story 2.)

Princess Star has ball jointed arms similar to Buzz Lightyear while Diaz is a flexible stuffed doll like Woody. I left off “Butterfly” because “Princess Star” feels more self centered and self important.

Diaz is named “Diaz” just to make Jackie’s line sound more intimate and personal.

Mermaid Jackie is, of course, a reference to the popular fan theory that Jackie was a mermaid. This “Sunny Atlantis” mermaid is a reference to the Pixar short Knick Knack. She’s an aquarium decoration, rather than a toy. This is a reference to how Woody’s girlfriend Bo Peep was also not a toy (she was a lamp).

The mermaid in Knick Knack has shades rather than eyes. So that’s why mermaid Jackie is lifting up shades to look down toward Diaz.

The panel where Diaz is getting out from under Adam’s bed is directly based on a Toy Story screenshot. The original does have a cactus pictured on the bedspread. I thought it would be kinda funny if it’s ambiguous what sort of “cactuses” broke Diaz’s fall.

The “must be some mistake” panel is also directly based on a Toy Story screenshot.

Princess Star immediately trying to Narwhal Blast Diaz indicates she’s even crazier than Buzz Lightyear. Buzz merely shifted around pointing his laser arm at Woody. Oh - the “psycho” look in her face really sells this, I think.

The fact that Princess Star is somehow aware she has to tap the button on her wand to activate it is ... well I think it’s funny. (The button placement, of course, is plainly designed for human use.)

Princess Star requesting a nearby Quest Buy is a reference to Quest Buy, the episode where they go to Quest Buy to buy a wand charger. “Or do you still use Plutonium” is a reference to Buzz’s technobabble “distolic fusion” ... but I thought the use of real world “Plutonium” would give the joke a bit more kick (sort of a Back to the Future reference also).

Diaz answering “we’ve got double-A’s” is a reference to Toy Story where Woody says the same thing.

“Look, new friend,” is something Star Butterfly would say, but with a flat attitude more like Buzz Lightyear. This indicates Princess Star has a bit different personality than canon Star Butterfly. It fits in more with Toy Story, helping the reader imagine how this Starco relationship will play out.

“Multiverse High Command” is a mashup of “Magical High Commission” and “Star Command”. The threat of the multiverse being destroyed is something Queen Moon warns Star in Star Comes to Earth. The spiel where Princess Star explains her mission is similar to Buzz Lightyear explaining his mission. Presumably, it’s written on her Ponyhead box. Again, all this stuff helps the reader imagine how this Starco relationship will play out.

Diaz’s “You’re a toy” is, of course, a reference to Woody trying to explain to Buzz Lightyear that he’s just a toy.

“I believe the term you’re looking for is ‘Magical Princess from Another Dimension’“ refers to a similar Buzz Lightyear line, as well as how canon Star introduces herself to Marco Diaz in Star Comes to Earth.

But really ... there are SO many memorable Toy Story lines that cramming in references is like shooting fish in a barrel. Too easy! But still fun!

Of all the silly ideas I put out there for Starco Week 5, Toy Star is perhaps the one which has gotten some interest. It’s begging to be fleshed out. I welcome anyone to do whatever they want with it!

And again, a big thanks to everyone who read my stuff, followed, reblogged, and such! Especially, of course, @starco-week

#starcoweek5 #starco #svtfoe #star vs the forces of evil #Thoughts #myart

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