Find Moon! Beach Day Photo? | Wraith's Journal #49 pt. 1 [S4E1 Butterfly Follies]
Journal #48 - Book of Spells pt. 3
The kingdom's going through a big upheaval. Eclipsa is now Queen, Moon is still missing, Monsters have new rights and there's lots of tension! Star is combing Mewni to find her mom and encounters the Pie Folk. Eclipsa's kingdom is being established at Monster Temple, and Star leans on her photo of her and Marco at the beach... Star, Marco and River go to Pie Island and learn an uncomfortable truth? The final story arc begins now!
~
We join Star who is blasting up a tower in the badlands with Marco and River. Star is perfectly competent using magic even though she gave the Wand to Eclipsa.
~Star already learned to dip down 2 full seasons ago. And then Star mastered her butterfly form last season. So, this seems a perfectly natural progression to me.
Star's purse gets knocked out of a window in a scuffle. Star dives out after it to save it and the Beach Day Photo, hanging on by her boots.
~This is the first time we've seen the Beach Day Photo (BDP) since the end of Season 2, right when Star's life was all over the place. She almost died.. for a photo?
Eventually, the owner of the tower tells off Star for blasting up his prison tower.. for the third time. He once again tells Star that Moon is not here, and rants about Eclipsa decreeing that Monsters can't be imprisoned anymore.
~Seems Mewmans aren't too happy about Star giving the kingdom to Eclipsa, or that Monsters are being treated.. less unfairly.
Outside, Marco marks up a map of Mewni that's full of red crosses - they've searched literally everywhere for Moon, multiple times. Tom calls Star and has an awkward conversation with her (more communication issues with these two).
A Monster comes by and checks on the trio. Star notices he's wearing a shirt with Moon on it! "Come see me at the Pie Carnival". The Monster thanks Star for giving the kingdom to Eclipsa and "giv[ing] us Monsters a chance to live a normal life again!" Star also wonders how Moon's memory is given how long she was in the Realm of Magic.
~Seems Monsters are happy about Star giving the kingdom to Eclipsa. Also, does being in the Realm of Magic for longer have a bigger effect on the amnesia one experiences? Moon was in there for, what? 3-4 days?
The Monster points them to the Pie Carnival, and the trio head there. At the carnival, River is suspicious of the Pie Folk for being "scammers". Star is nonetheless determined to find her mom, and ventures in anyway.
Supposedly, Moon is here, but they missed her meet and greet. Marco notes that they've been "questing for weeks", and Star is questioning her decision to give the throne to Eclipsa, despite wanting to do the "right thing".
They run into a play - The Butterfly Follies!. The actors are mocking River for being incompetent and Star for giving the kingdom to a 'monster loving' Eclipsa, but then a voice is heard, "You two always make such a mess! But do not worry. Your Queen is here!" It's Moon!
~They found her! What an odd place for Moon to be.. entertaining a group of Pie Folk? So, Star's advancing in her magic, Mewmans aren't happy about Eclipsa being Queen, but Monsters are happy. Things are a mess, but at least they're moving in the right direction?
~
Star rushes the stage and hugs her mom. Moon doesn't remember her, but Star is happy to see her nonetheless. The Pie Folk realize it's the real Star Butterfly and attack, but Star 'queen-naps' Moon, and the group escape on warnicorns.
In the clear, "Moon" reveals that she's actually a guy in drag - another Pie Folk actor who didn't want to break character. Star and River are distraught.
Marco suggests they go home, clean up and get some rest. "We'll be more efficient if we're well-rested". Star is annoyed, but Marco continues, "Hey. I promise we're not quitting." Star eventually relents, "Let's go home."
~I appreciate Marco here. Star's been stressed for a while about her mom being missing. He's right, though - they've already searched the kingdom multiple times over. Some rest would do them some good.
The group get back to.. New Monstertown, at the base of Monster Temple. It's a thriving town; even Monster Temple is looking good.
~Again, this has only been, what, 3-4 weeks? Pretty impressive that things have been established so quickly.
Eclipsa and.. laser puppies(!) greet Star and Marco at the temple. Eclipsa asks how things are going (fruitless). We also see a shot of Butterfly Castle in the distance, still in ruins.
~Quite the contrast between bustling Monstertown and what used to be Butterfly Kingdom.
Eclipsa then shows them Globgor's crystal. Several Monsters are trying to break him out with pickaxes to no effect.
~Interesting to show this right now. Remember, we've been hearing Glossaryck yell "Globgor!" all last season. Now he's here.. the goal is right here.
Eclipsa shows Star and Marco to some temporary housing - a room with a bunk bed in it. Meteora was hiding under the covers, and after climbing on the ceiling, jumps into Eclipsa's arms. Marco happily greets Meteora (someone's good with kids) who glares back at Marco. Eclipsa and Marco wonder if Meteora remembers anything from her.. past life.
~Magic's weird. Meteora's on literally her second life at this point.
Star uses the All-seeing Eye to look around Mewni for her mom. Getting annoyed, she storms out and runs into Glossaryck.
Star: Okay. Glossaryck, here's what's goin' down. I need your help, but I don't have time for any of your weird riddles. I am going to ask you a question, and you are going to answer it, okay?
Glossy: Okay.
Star: I think the reason I can't find my mom is because something happened to her when we went to the magic dimension. But I can hardly remember what even happened there. What did the magic do to my mom?
Glossy: You're asking the wrong question. The real question is, what were you doing in the magic dimension at all? That was your first mistake.
Star: What are you talking about? I had to go there to find my mom! Just like I had to go there to defeat Toffee!
Glossy: ...Maybe that was a mistake, too.
Star: Huh?
Ominous music and hard cut
~I honestly don't know what to make of this. 'Going to the Realm of Magic was a mistake?' I mean, sure, Moon washing the dark magic off her is.. ominous, but Star herself didn't really do anything other than look for Moon? Rage-Meteora wasn't even near the castle yet at that point. What else was Star going to do?
~Also, defeating Toffee was a mistake? Sure, Star had an epiphany and realized Toffee disappeared but was still doing things that were messing up the magic, but Star's use of the whispering spell on Ludo's Wand-hand was still kind of a hail mary - you can't seriously tell me she knew that she would be transported to the Realm of Magic.
~What does the whispering spell do, exactly? And why would it have been a mistake for Star to defeat Toffee? Even in the context of the finale, it's illogical that Star would have not wanted to stop the guy who wanted her family dead. Anyone got a better idea on this?
Eclipsa convinces Marco to have a hard conversation with Star about her mom being missing - if the All-seeing Eye can't find Moon, "...it's not a good sign".
At bedtime, Marco talks to Star, who is looking at a photo. Star defiantly tells Marco that she "know[s]" they'll find her mom.
Marco: But how can you possibly know that?
Star: Because I have this. [gives photo to Marco]
Marco: A picture of us that says "Beach Day"?
Star: Look closely, Marco. When exactly did we go to that beach?
Marco: ...What is this?
Star's mood shifts to a more positive one
Star: It's a gift from Father Time. It's from the future!
Marco: What?!
Star: Father Time gave it to me, and I keep it with me because sometimes I need a reminder—
Marco: Oh, my gosh, this was on our fridge! How long have you had this thing?! That's, like, so many levels of time paradox!
Star is annoyed he interrupted her
Star: Just listen, okay? I don't know how, but someday soon, we're gonna have this awesome beach day, and there's no way I'd be this happy if we never found my mom.
Marco: Huh. Well.. I'm not keen on paradoxes, but you do look pretty happy in that photo. Still a paradox, though! Let's get some rest. The sooner we find your mom, the sooner we get to go to the beach.
Marco takes the bottom bunk with Star on top. They bid each other good night.
~I love Marco here. He just.. supported Star without question (I mean, he was understandably perplexed by a time paradox of all things), and made his focus finding Star's mom so she can be happy. What's more important than your lifelong post best friend being happy?
~Also, wait. HOLD UP. The Beach Day Photo is from the FUTURE?! When the photo got revealed in the Season 2 finale, it seemed like Star was wistfully looking back at the 'good times' with Marco before things got all complicated with her crush and what not. When the episode list for Season 4 got revealed, along with an episode titled Beach Day, it seemed we'd be getting a flashback episode.. except this HAS YET TO HAPPEN?
~Indeed, when is Beach Day? Star and Marco look about the same, so it can't be that far in the future. How does Star even get there. If she knows she'll get to Beach Day eventually, does anything she do even matter? Relativity gives me a headache.
~Gotta feel for Star here. She started getting depressed over missing her chance with Marco, losing the Book of Spells, having to leave Earth, working hard to fix Mewni's problems only for those problems to get worse, her mom going missing, having to be Queen, searching for her mom... she's had a tough go of things to say the least. How much longer will she have to endure?
Star hears a noise, and finds Marco eating a pie he kept secret (he doesn't even have his hoodie - he's in his pajamas - where was he keeping that thing?). Star is mad that he took a pie from the Pie Folk, but accepts Marco's offer to share when he seems to enjoy it. Star realizes the pie has a 'signature' on it:
Star: The crust! It's just how my mom makes it! She made them all the time when I was a little girl!
Marco: So, do you think...?
Star: Yes.
Star turns the pie over; the tin reads "BAKED FRESH ON PIE ISLAND"
Star: My mom made these pies.
~Magic couldn't find Moon, but a random pie showed Star the way forward. Looks like we have our location.
~Things are definitely still weird and wild. Monstertown is nice, Glossaryck is confusing as ever, the Beach Day Photo is a paradox, but Star actually narrowed down where her mom might be! At least we're moving forward, but I can't get over the weirdness with Glossaryck and the Beach Day Photo...
~
Aaand I'm realizing how long this is, so I'm splitting it into 2 parts. Episode 2 of Season 4 will be out tomorrow!
Posted Oct 2, 2025, 10:37 PM UTC