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EmeraldSky Since: Mar, 2018
05/23/2019 16:49:57 •••

Great first three seasons but drops the ball. (Spoilers for the whole series)

I love seasons 1, 2, and 3 of this show but season 4 is not so great. First, what I enjoy. SVTFOE starts as a fun, magical show that gets some serious plots later on. There are funny, serious, awesome, and heartwarming moments, all wrapped up in interesting and unique worlds populated by fun characters. The St. Olga episode caught my interest and the show kept the mix of comedy and seriousness going from then on (until Season 4.) SVTFOE balances slice of life and dramatic plots very well. It can be lighthearted without being annoying, and serious without getting grim-dark. It also paces its Myth Arc very well (again, until Season 4). The Ludo-Toffee and Eclipsa arcs are some of the best I've seen in animation. Now what, in my opinion, played a major role in the show's drop in quality: the Romantic Plot Tumor(s). While it's realistic for people to date other people, the way it's set up makes it feel like characters and relationships only exist to delay Starco's arrival. Starco happening was practically confirmed, so it felt like other relationships only existed to fill runtime that should have been used to show Starco being a couple. Not to mention the way Marco and Star acted with their partners made me want them to break up. Long story short: Tom, Jackie, and Kelly deserve people who do not prioritize others over them- and that's putting Starco's behavior lightly. Speaking of priorities, Star and Marco prioritize each other and their personal happiness way too much, especially in the finale. There's worrying about your GF/BF, and there's doing that to the point where Starco blatantly ignore the bigger picture and are only concerned they might not see each other again. Star and Marco sadly fall into the latter category in the last season. By the time Starco happened, it was too little, too late. I felt nothing but exhaustion and annoyance. Why was so much time spent on doomed pairings instead of the endgame couple? Why was shipping prioritized over plot when so little time was left? That, combined with the other issues with the finale (rushed, Inferred Holocaust, Esoteric Happy Ending, Designated Hero, Unintentionally Unsympathetic) left a bitter taste in my mouth. SVTFOE changed from a story about the adventures of a magical princess from another dimension into Shipping Drama to Delay Starco: the Series. I won't say it soured my love of the series as a whole but I can't say it's one of my favorites anymore. Please do not misunderstand this review and think I dislike the show. I genuinely love the first three seasons, but the last one is a downgrade that prioritizes shipping over plot and characters. I'd say watch the first three seasons and ignore a majority of the fourth unless you enjoy romance-drama.


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