Multiverses are usually just an excuse for lazy cameos. You know the drill. A character walks through a portal, meets a slightly different version of themselves, they fight for a bit, then they become best friends. But Fionna and Cake didn't play by those rules. When episode 7, "The Star," dropped, it didn't just give us a "what if" scenario; it ripped our hearts out by showing exactly what happens when the emotional anchor of the entire Adventure Time franchise is removed.
That anchor is Simon Petrikov.
In the main timeline, Simon’s descent into madness as the Ice King was a tragedy, but it was also a shield. He protected a young Marceline. He gave her Hambo. He taught her how to survive the literal end of the world. In the universe of "The Star," Simon dies early. He’s just a skeleton in a suit, clutching a red bow. Without him, Marceline Abadeer doesn't become the Vampire Queen we love. She becomes something much colder.
Who Exactly is The Star?
Honestly, she’s terrifying. Voiced by the incomparable Olivia Olson, The Star is a Marceline who never learned the value of human—or demon—connection beyond raw power. Since Simon wasn't there to raise her, she was eventually found and "adopted" by the Vampire King.
Think about that for a second.
The Vampire King is the primary antagonist of the Stakes miniseries, a charismatic but predatory monster. Under his wing, Marcy didn't learn to play the bass and sing about fries. She learned to hunt. She became his prize pupil, a ruthless enforcer who treats the world like an all-you-can-eat buffet.
She doesn't go by Marceline. She is The Star, the final card of the Tarot-themed vampire hierarchy. She's flashy, cruel, and seemingly bored by everything except the kill. Seeing her interact with our Simon—who is essentially a walking ghost of the father figure she never had—is genuinely uncomfortable to watch. It’s a masterclass in "nature vs. nurture" storytelling.
The World Without a Hero
The Land of Ooo in this reality is a nightmare. It’s not the bright, colorful kingdom we’re used to. It’s a grey, vampire-infested wasteland where the "good guys" are barely hanging on.
We see a version of Princess Bubblegum (Bonnie) who has traded her lab coat for a tank and a gas mask. She’s not a scientist-ruler here; she’s a gritty resistance leader running a "Vampire World" hit squad. It’s fascinating to see Bonnie in this light. She’s still calculated, but there’s no room for her usual moral ambiguity because the threat is too immediate.
Then there’s the rest of the crew:
- Huntress Wizard: A hardened soldier in Bonnie’s squad.
- Martin Mertens: Surprisingly, Finn’s dad is here, acting as a sort of cowardly lackey for the vampires before meeting a pretty grim end.
- The Crown: It’s not on Simon’s head. It’s being held by the Vampire King himself, used as a trophy rather than a source of madness.
This episode really hammers home how much the "main" timeline relied on specific, tiny moments of kindness. One man staying sane long enough to look after a kid literally saved the world from becoming this graveyard.
Why This Episode Matters for Simon’s Journey
For most of the series, Simon Petrikov is miserable. He’s depressed. He misses being the Ice King because, let’s be real, being a magical wizard is easier than being a 1,000-year-old man with extreme PTSD in a world that has moved on without him. He thinks his life has no value.
"The Star" is the wake-up call he didn't know he needed.
By seeing the skeleton of his alternate self, he realizes that his sacrifice—the madness, the loss of Betty, the centuries of being a "clown"—actually meant something. It meant Marceline grew up to be a hero. It meant Ooo had a chance. When he looks at The Star, he doesn't just see a monster; he sees the cost of his absence.
It’s heavy stuff for a "cartoon." But Fionna and Cake was never really just for kids, was it?
The Marshall Lee Parallel
While all this heavy multiverse stuff is happening, the episode cuts back to Fionna's non-magical world. We see Marshall Lee and Gary (the human versions of Marceline and PB) dealing with Marshall's mom, Eleanor Abadeer.
It’s a smart bit of writing. While The Star is a literal monster in a magical world, Marshall Lee is dealing with a "monster" of a different kind: a cold, corporate, overbearing mother. The emotional beats mirror each other perfectly. Marshall is trying to find his own voice and identity while being crushed by the weight of his mother’s expectations.
The moment Gary stands up for Marshall against Eleanor is the human-scale version of the battle happening in the Vampire World. It reminds us that whether you're fighting ancient vampires or a toxic parent, having someone in your corner changes the outcome of your life.
Real Talk: The Ending of the Episode
The climax is chaotic. Fionna, Cake, and Simon have to get out of there before they're turned into juice. The fight between Bonnie and The Star is brutal, but it’s the emotional resolution that sticks.
Simon has to accept that he can't "fix" this Marceline. She isn't his Marcy. You can't just give a speech and turn a lifelong killer back into a precocious child. They barely escape, and in the process, the remote that allows them to travel the multiverse gets broken.
It leaves them stranded, but it also forces Simon to stop looking for an easy exit. He can't just wish his way back to the "good old days." He has to face the reality of the multiverse—and himself.
Actionable Insights for Fans
If you're looking to dive deeper into the lore of "The Star" and the vampire world, here is how you should approach it:
- Rewatch the "Stakes" Miniseries: To truly appreciate how much of a departure The Star is, you need to see the original Vampire King’s philosophy. It makes her corruption much more poignant.
- Look at the Background Art: This episode is packed with "dead" versions of characters. Look for the remnants of Finn’s stuff and the ruins of the Candy Kingdom. It’s world-building through destruction.
- Analyze the Songs: Music is the soul of Adventure Time. Compare The Star’s aggressive, performative style to Marceline’s introspective "I'm Just Your Problem" or "Everything Stays."
- Track Simon's Eyes: Pay attention to Simon’s facial expressions whenever he looks at The Star. The animators did an incredible job showing the specific type of grief that comes from seeing someone you love become someone you hate.
The multiverse in Fionna and Cake isn't about seeing cool variations of characters. It's about exploring the "The Star" in all of us—the version of ourselves that might have existed if we didn't have the people we love to keep us grounded.
