Chapter 128: What Now?
Art by Crash X Fusion: In Loving Memory of Beel Zatar.
As everyone deals with the aftermath of the Tarot Guild's fall, they remember to pay their respects.
Tropes that appear in this Chapter:
- Ambiguous Situation: When Eve mentions Rebus' name, Adrian's eyes widen, implying a connection, but not how.
- And Then What?: The driving question for several characters in this chapter now that the Tarot Guild is finished.
- During an interview with Felicity, Emily pauses as she wonders what to do next now that the Tarot Guild is no more.
- Without the Guild, the reason they formed, the founding members of LOWTH wonder if they should dissolve their team and resume their civilian lives.
- Averted for Luz, who's preparing for her stay with Camila on Earth, and the Porters, who're staying there for the time being to avoid being separated again.
- The author's notes do bring up how Luz will have to think of what comes next after learning all four elemental spells.
- Answer Cut:
- To end the broadcast of her vlog report, Felicia asks where Luz currently is. Cut to her walking out of her room in the basement of Camila's home.
- Before returning to the CAT's base, Levi asks Raine about Kay's current whereabouts. A scene cut shows her in Amity's arms at the Owl House.
- Berserk Button: Belos adamantly refuses to be called a human anymore between disowning his humanity and his experiences with G.B. Gates.
- Big Damn Reunion: The escaped rebels reunite with Raine, while Ludo reunites with Star.
- Bittersweet Ending: The "Tarot Guild" arc closes the book on the titular organization's antagonism over the Isles, but let's not forget that Lupe, the Alchemist, and the Ninja Supreme are still at large. Everyone gives Beel a hero's sendoff, Venoma, Dolly, and Kadabe face punishment for their actions, Raine is reunited with the BAT's and Star with Ludo, and Luz is preparing to stay with Camila and just learned plant magic. However, Adrian's planning on blowing Cross' other biggest secret to Emily to turn her against him again, Donna and her friends know that Belos is a fraud but aren't sure whether to remain heroes, and Abel's enabling Belos' drive to ensure the Day of Unity succeeds because he believes he's gone through too mich to stop now.
- Bookends: The first chapter in the arc had:
- One of the Foxes reporting on recent events in the Isles following massive changes to the status quo over the weekend. Said reports include an update on Blight Industries and Belos not being available to give a comment like the last time. The report ends on the Fox reporting asking where one half of Lumity currently is before showing them in Gravity Falls.
- Eda being interrogated by Leonte for being connected to a suspected 'criminal' (Amity), and now he does so again due to Raine appearing in the recording of the Clawthornes rescuing Perry from Terra.
- Broken Pedestal: Danny's belief in the Emperor's Coven is even more shattered after learning Terra had gotten away with so many crimes right under their noses.
- Call-Back:
- Camila brings up her promise to let Amity stay with her and Luz over the Fall break.
- Camila and Odalia met during the Lumity wedding reception a week ago. During this meeting, Odalia confesses that she knows Camila was brought Back from the Dead.
- As Gus mentions wanting to stay on Earth and seeing Luz is cool with it, she mentions how she didn't respond to him wanting to do the same thing back during Summerween.
- During the interview, Felicity tries to get under Alador's skin by mentioning the awkwardness of working with his ex-wife and the woman she cheated on him with to beat Terra; Alador simply reminds Felicity that she had a hand in the drama that led to his and Odalia's divorce.
- Calling the Old Woman Out: Attempted by Lambi when she tries to stand up to her mother over his racism against Nina. Unfortunately, Awassi stubbornly refuses to listen to reason and grounds her.
- Commonality Connection:
- When speaking at the funeral, Sarah states that she and Beel both shared a hatred toward the Coven Heads of their tracks.
- Cross says in his own eulogy that while he and Beel weren't close, they had one thing in common beside being Plant trackers; they were both introverts.
- Amity and Tina share their experience with getting mugged with one another.
- Continuity Cameo:
- Fan attends Beel's funeral as moral support for her brother.
- Tabrella is briefly seen escorting Lindsay off the stage when she starts crying after saying her own piece at the funeral.
- Dolly and Kadabe find themselves locked in a cell... with Batters.
- Continuity Nod:
- Amity being pardoned by Belos is noted, and it's why she publicly appears at Beel's funeral with Luz and Eda.
- Luz brings up Dipper's birthday again, which may be around the corner.
- Luz and Amity tell the founding members of LOWTH everything they learned about Belos.
- Amity and Tina's muggings are brought up.
- Crush Blush: Acorn's whole body glows red upon meeting Tyrone.
- Dénouement Episode: The official synopsis makes it loud and clear; this is the epilogue to the "Tarot Guild" arc.
- Disappointed in You: Awassi says this to Lambi because she believes her anger towards her mother is defiance stemming from Nina being a bad influence on her rather than being due to her blatant racism.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Adrian ordering Emily to stop being friends with Cross makes him come across as a Boyfriend-Blocking Dad forbidding his daughter from seeing her Love Interest.
- Due to the Dead: All of St. Epiderm turns up to Beel's funeral to pay their respects to him for his actions, as does Felicia. Luz, Amity, and Eda also turn up with the former saying a few words.
- Expy: Dirk and Grime Ironwood are based off of Bow's fathers Lance and George.
- Foreshadowing: Eda may have pulled off a few crimes in Palm Stings.
- Genre Savvy: Luz lampshades how she's overdue to gain a new magic power and fighting Terra yesterday seemed like the perfect opportunity to unlock her plant magic.
- The Ghost:
- Luz mentions Dipper and how she'd get to see him all the time once she starts staying with Camila.
- Gus asks Luz to pass on the message that he's staying on Earth to Willow, Matt, and Eve. While Willow and Eve make appearances, Matt doesn't.
- Before returning to the Demon Realm, Luz tells Gus he can seek help from Abigail and even Ford should he need it.
- Venoma mentions Draco since he was how she learned about the Horned King.
- Given Name Reveal: Tyrone and Clé's fathers are named Dirk and Grime.
- Go to Your Room!: Awassi says this to Lambi after grounding her and saying she's disappointed in her.
- Green Thumb: Since Luz still hasn't learned plant magic yet, Willow takes her step by step to learning how. After a few moments, she grows a periwinkle flower as well as gains a new 'plant form' for her wings.
- Heartbreak and Ice Cream: Now that Vina's gone, Lilith finds herself missing her. As a result, she's binging on ice scream and is surrounded by tubs when Gwendolyn, Dell, and Blazer come across her.
- High-Pressure Emotion: Acorn has steam coming out of her head due to being enamored with the muscular Tyrone.
- Immediate Sequel: The chapter occurs on Monday, a day after the Sunday/Scumday the last four chapters occurred on.
- Internal Reveal:
- Amity returning to the Isles and Nicole outing Belos as a Clawthorne have become public knowledge among the events over the weekend involving the Tarot Guild and the Inner Demon's downfalls.
- Perry met Camila and was brought to Earth between the previous chapter and this one.
- Camila tells Luz that Amity will be staying with them once they tie up all their remaining loose ends in the Isles.
- Odalia met Camila at their daughters' mock wedding reception and told her that she knows she was revived from death.
- Implied for Nina getting confirmation that Belos is a Clawthorne since she sees Skara's nervous reaction to it.
- Luz and Amity officially meet Tina, Veronica, and Tyrone while Acorn meets all of them and Beocrow. Luz and Amity also learn that Tina was mugged, with Amity confessing her own mugging to LOWTH's original members.
- The Baron comes clean to Lilith about him being the one who gave Nicole her shadow powers.
- Luz and Amity let the founding members of LOWTH in on Belos being a former Clawthorne, his connections to Adam, G.B. Gates, and the Inner Demon, and the descendants of Gates being Luz's godfamily.
- Karma Houdini Warranty:
- Venoma was responsible for killing Howard Hatesew in order to steal the books he had about the Horned King. Thanks to the SSE, she's busted and arrested before Ms. Jitters arrives with the likely intent to punish her for stealing her library books (which makes up for her involvement in trafficking Donna and Cross two days back).
- Dolly and Kadabe have been locked up for their crimes even after helping to defeat the Inner Demon.
- Karmic Jackpot: Dolly and Kadabe may be in jail, but Hunter has promised to work something out for them. Plus, helping end the Inner Demon means Dolly can rest easy knowing she's free from him at last.
- Locked Out of the Loop: Played With. Emily plays dumb when Adrian says she doesn't know Cross as well as she thinks, assuming he's talking about his dragon heritage. In that moment, Adrian decides to dish everything he has on the hybrid to ensure Emily won't ever trust him again...
- Mark of the Supernatural: Because of her Next Tier Power-Up, Willow's sclera is now mint green instead of white.
- Meaningful Funeral: Beel's funeral and all the eulogies given by his friends and classmates reveal many facts about the things he'd do with and for them.
- Mythology Gag:
- Camila and Odalia's scenes together were a nod to the cut "mama drama" they would've had in "Watching and Dreaming".
- Lilith drowns her recent sorrows in Night Market ice scream, which she'd done in "Keeping Up A-Fear-Ances".
- Never My Fault: Lambi calls her mother out for her racist behavior against her girlfriend and continuing to insult her. Awassi, out of stubbornness, refuses to see that she's wrong about Nina and her belief that she's a bad influence on Lambi.
- Nothing Is the Same Anymore: Instead of returning to the Boiling Isles with Luz, Gus decides to stay in Gravity Falls while Perry recovers there so he can continue catching up with his dad and learn more about human culture.
Word of God confirms he'll stay there for the remainder of Book 2. - Not Quite Back to Normal: Terra's death has caused the people she turned into plants to return to normal, albeit still looking plant like.
- Oh, Crap!:
- Eda says the trope when she remembers where the Clawthorne family reunion is going to be held.
- Adrian panics internally after Eve mentions Rebus, and gets even more nervous when Venoma tells him the message Cuddlebuns wanted her to pass on.
- Relationship Upgrade: Beel's death resulted in Andrew and Minerva hooking up.
- The Reveal:
- Belos hasn't responded to Nicole's claim that he's a Clawthorne.
- Luz took Perry to Camila's home in Gravity Falls so he can recover from his imprisonment at the Plant Coven.
- Some things are revealed about Beel;
- He's known Lindsay since 6th grade homeroom, and she encouraged him to join in on the student council's activities, which he occasionally did.
- He offered to help Riley find palistrom wood for a new palisman after Buster's death, but Riley rejected his offer.
- Andrew and Minerva's families originated from the underground community of the Isles, and they've know Beel since childhood when he showed them around the Titan.
- He tutored Veronica which helped her with her grades. They also made a garden in Metropelvis Park for a school project.
- Tyrone and Clé's fathers Dirk and Grime were once part of the "Five Guardian Nails", a specialized unit in Palm Stings who keep the peace at Palm Stings that Belos created to combat the weirdness there such as its infamous weather or the bizarre crime rate.
- The Clawthorne family reunion will be held in Palm Stings and last all week up to the Day of Unity.
- Brolin and his wife Eartha aren't just Beo's grandparents; they're Eda and Lilith's Gruncle and Graunt.
- There's two pairs of double-cousins in the Clawthorne Clan: Dell's other brother and sister married two of Gwendolyn's sisters.
- Veronica's father is a bard who uses a pan flute and his partner is a potionist.
- Willow's taken to healing the flora in the Forest of Fear.
- Venoma is Lor Garh Chaka'kan, and she killed Howard Hatesew to collect his books on the Horned King, which she heard about from Draco. At some point, she apparently met Prof. Cuddlebuns.
- Batters has been arrested following the disbandment of the Melvins, and Dolly & Kadabe were forced to turn themselves in after the Inner Demon's defeat.
- After traveling away from Bonesborugh's city limits, Judd split off from the BAT's.
- Abel knew that Terra was a traitor and didn't tell Belos so as to not influence his fate.
- Sequel Hook:
- With the Porters on Earth, they'll be hanging out with its residents, Luz's human family members, and the former Gatesfieldians as they make up for lost time.
- Adrian, desperate to keep Emily away from Cross, prepares to tell her what he knows about his family to turn her against him again.
- The Clawthorne family reunion is about to begin, and who knows if Eda will actually go since she's hesitant to. Dell and Gwen convince Lilith to attend, and there's a possibility the Drakescales will as well, which means Luz might finally learn she and Cross are related.
- Now that the founding members of LOWTH know the truth about Belos, time will tell if they'll really hang up their capes or decide to rebel against him.
- Luz has finally mastered all four basic elemental spells and can move on to combos. She also decides to enroll in the Plant Track next semester.
- Shipper on Deck: After seeing how happy her daughters' girlfriends have made them, Odalia hopes for nothing less for both couples and whoever Edric ultimately ends up with.
- Shout-Out: Andrew and Minerva start dating due to their friend's death and realizing that life's too short to waste any time not doing so. Sounds a lot like how Wonder Girl and Tim Drake had gotten together after Wally's death.
- String Theory: One time, Beel showed Danny a red string theory board where he deduced that their teachers spent the money for a museum field trip on a coffee maker. He was correct.
- Symbolism: Beel used two kinds of flowers for "Mother's Garden": Lavender and Zinnia. Lavender represents silence and calmness, while Zinnia represents friendship and daily remembrance. The garden can be seen as a place of tribute to Beel where people like his friends can pay their respects to him.
- This Is Gonna Suck: With how nervous Venoma suddenly gets in Ms. Jitters' presence, taking a punishment from her will be as rich as going to jail.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: Fan attends Beel's funeral to be Danny's shoulder to cry on, never making fun of her twin due to the seriousness of the event.
- Twitchy Eye: Felicity has one when her attempts to anger Alador by bringing up his family don't work.
- The Un-Reveal:
- It's implied that Eda once had a run-in with Grime Ironwood at Palm Stings.
- It's only implied, not confirmed, that Adrian's going to reveal Cross' Clawthorne roots to Emily.
- Where did Judd go and why did he leave?
- Why is Abel determined to make sure Belos succeeds in initiating the Day of Unity?
- Vitriolic Best Buds: Sarah describes her friendship with Beel as being one of conflict due to her scientific beliefs clashing with his paranoia-driven theories. However, Sarah respected Beel and is glad they shared a disdain of the Coven System.
- Wham Episode: The Porters have relocated to Camila's home so Perry can recuperate, the founding members of LOWTH get confirmation that Belos is a Clawthorne, Luz learns plant magic, Venoma is arrested for her crimes, and Raine reunites with the BAT's and brings them, Webstor, and Ludo back to their new base.
- Whole-Plot Reference: Finishes off the nods to the Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated episode, "The Shrieking Madness".
- You Are Grounded!: Refusing to admit she was wrong about her prejudice against Nina or accept the idea that Lambi would willingly ditch Titan service, Awassi grounds her daughter and forbids her from seeing Nina until she determines if the werecat is a bad influence or not.
