Star vs. the Forces of Evil

created by Daron Nefcy.

Show site: link.

Six Word Summary: Cute yet compelling, complex, and emotional.

Blurb: Intergalactic warrior Star Butterfly arrives on Earth to live with the Diaz family. She continues to battle villains throughout the universe and high school, mainly to protect her extremely powerful wand, an object that still confuses her.

My Thoughts: Star vs. the Forces of Evil surprised me. I initially started watching the show as a late night impulse and was quickly drawn in. While it may be easy to pass off the show as cutesy and for kids, there is an intense story and rich emotional depth to the show.

Over the course of three seasons, you see Star and Marco both develop and mature. I found it incredibly refreshing to see Star encounter situations where she was forced to rethink her world view. Star’s interactions with the characters Buff Frog and Eclipsa are ones that force Star to reevaluate and come to terms with her unfair world. My love for the bubbly and enthusiastic character never died as with each challenge and inner journey, she kept her chin up and managed to not lose herself.

A lot of the story, especially in regards to how the ‘monsters’ and Eclipsa are treated, touch on tough subjects. Star is forced to recognise the injustice and bigotry of her world. Over the course of the series, Star not only accepts this divide but she takes steps to bridge the gap. Star isn’t just a magical princess, she is a princess who comes to recognise the discrimination inherent to her society – she is a princess who fights for justice and equality. To see the slow reveal and emotional journey of Star over the three currently available seasons, was amazing! To see such hard hitting themes in a kids show was even better.

Best Bits:

• Alan Tudyk shines in this show. Tudyk voices two characters and he really fleshes them both out – he makes them more than they are, he makes them multi-dimensional.
• That opening theme song!
• The slow reveal of the back stories of Star’s mother and her family history. When you know what to look for, you see lots of little hints and foreshadowing in the early episodes.
• That cute little kiss between two guys in one episode. Also really love the multicultural and interracial couples featured in the cast!
• The big story! If you haven’t picked up on it already, Star vs the Forces of Evil has a really big story and the show isn’t afraid of telling them through multiple episodes or multiple POV episodes.

Recommendations: I would really recommend this show to everyone. I will be honest with myself though and narrow it down to people who enjoy watching cartoons. I know that, if you’re not a fan of the media type, you probably won’t track this show down, but it is so good you’re doing yourself a disservice.

If you don’t watch cartoons and find yourself with a child to mind, then definitely put this show on. Not only is it incredibly cute and colourful but it has such an appealing story for both children and adults alike.

To those of you who have taste, you really need to watch Star vs. the Forces of Evil. The show looks amazing and has a story with a breathtaking scope. Do yourself and check out the show!