River Butterfly

King River Butterfly (né Johansen) is a supporting character in the Disney XD animated series, Star vs. the Forces of Evil. He is the former King of Mewni, Queen Moon's husband and the father of Star Butterfly. Born into the Johansen clan of barbarians, River was crowned King of Mewni through his marriage to Queen Moon Butterfly.
After Eclipsa assumes the throne of Mewni, River now helps his wife in maintaining a society of Mewman refugees.
==Background==
===Personality===
Although seeming just as formal and strict as his wife, it is revealed in "Diaz Family Vacation" that River enjoys going off to fight monsters like Star does when his duties as king bore him. Like his daughter, River is belligerent, headstrong, and prefers battle to diplomacy. Despite this, however, he is a skilled warrior, a dedicated king, and a loving father.
In his youth, River was timid and very shy, being nervous about speaking up around others and easily unnerved when his opinions were rejected. However, he would occasionally speak out against others in defense of Moon, such as toward Count Mildrew.
===Appearance===
River is a short, stout, light-skinned man with blond hair (with a bald spot under his crown) and light blue eyes. The crown atop his head is golden with a large pink jewel on the top. He also has a thick, large mustache and a beard that splits in two ways. River's attire usually consists of a blue ruffled coat with gold shoulder pads and periwinkle tufts, periwinkle cuffs at the end of the sleeves, a blue cape with periwinkle fur, gray pants, and black boots.
In "Moon the Undaunted", teenage River has a full head of hair, with bangs styled in a similar fashion to Star and Moon's. He wears a blue shirt with light-blue trim and sleeve cuffs, a purple belt, a gray and white ruffled collar, large gray trousers, white boots with black soles, and a small gold crown on top of his head.
As of "Coronation", River takes to wearing a full-body bear costume, with only his face visible.
===Powers and abilities===
* Physical prowess: River possesses above-average physical prowess. He is able to fight monsters and wield a spear in "Diaz Family Vacation", wield a club in "Royal Pain", and survive for extended periods of time in the wilderness and run ten miles in five minutes in "Camping Trip".
* Magical staff: River wields a staff with a crescent moon-shaped crystal ornament at the tip that is capable of firing off lightning blasts.
==Role in the series==
===Backstory===
As established in The Battle for Mewni episode "Moon the Undaunted", River Johansen was among Queen Moon Butterfly's closest allies. Unlike the other leaders of Mewni, River had full faith in Moon and cared about her opinion, regardless of how controversial they may be. It is heavily established that much of this is due to having a crush on her. This would culminate in him eventually growing closer to her and marrying her; taking her surname due to tradition.
===Season One===
At the beginning of the series, River gives the impression that as King of Mewni that he takes his job very seriously along with his wife. However, as time goes on, it becomes apparent that he has a lot more in common with his daughter Star than he lets on. In "Diaz Family Vacation", he shows off his love of fighting and hunting; admitting to his daughter that being king is strenuous and he misses the old days where he was free to do whatever he wanted. In "Royal Pain", he visits Star and Marco where it is implied that this is another attempt at him trying to get away from everything. In "Storm the Castle" he and his wife Moon discover that Royal Magic Wand has a broken faceplate, though they worry as they cannot locate the other piece.
===Season Two===
River continues to support Star in a very liberal way, compared to Moon who has a tighter and serious grasp on her. More of his family is seen in "Game of Flags" where they are shown to be just as competitive, if not, more so than him. He and Moon later learn about how Star lost the Magic Instruction Book in "Raid the Cave" and while disappointed, tell her that they will find a way to take care of it. He is furthermore angered and irritated about Moon hiring Baby to test how far and competent Star has become with her wand in the episode "Baby", once again showing how he has better faith and confidence in his daughter. Secrets are revealed in "Face the Music" including Star losing the book, her parents agreeing to cover it up and her crush on Marco, which concerns River. Sometime afterward, he becomes depressed and becomes the sole ruler of Mewni following Moon's disappearance.
===Season Three===
River's rule of Mewni becomes lackadaisical as he does nothing, but throws parties, despite Ludo's sudden rise to power with the help of Toffee. It is not until the arrival of Marco that he finally surmises the courage to finally break free from his slump to help him with saving Star. He is nearly killed after Ludo sends him flying into the sky, but is rescued by eagles and returns to Mewni unharmed. He spends the majority of the season becoming less active in being King and taking part in his hobbies. In "The Bogbeast of Boggabah", he helps Star become less stressful and embrace the love of the hunt, once again showing his more nurturing approach to raising his daughter. He stays in the forests of Mewni with his friend Eddie during the events of "Divide" and "Conquer", while Miss Heinous, now going by her true name Meteora Butterfly, transforms into a giant monster and sucks up the souls of everyone. River is one of the few people who does not get his soul sucked out, but witnesses his daughter and Eclipsa defeating her and return everyone's souls though he cannot seem to locate where his wife is.
===Season Four===
River joins Star and Marco with going to rescue Moon from the Pie Folk in "Butterfly Follies"; discovering, to his disbelief, that she and Star are actually part Pie Folk, something which was hinted at in "Butterfly Trap". With Eclipsa having taken over as ruler of Mewni, River and Moon move into the woods as seen in "Down by the River". River takes to living in the woods while Moon seems slightly indifferent. Despite getting annoying neighbors, they opt to teach them how to live in the woods and create a community. In "Cornonation", he witnesses Eclipsa's coronation into being queen and takes sympathy on Globgor after learning that he too is a father and supports his return and acceptance as king of Mewni. Afterwards, he continues to live in the wild with Moon; happy with his new life. He later takes part in the final battle against Mina Loveberry and the Solarian Soldiers and watches over Globgor and protects him when he is injured by the Solarian blade.
==Trivia==
*In "Storm the Castle" it is revealed that King Butterfly's first name is River.
*River's pre-marriage surname, "Johansen" is a Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning "son of Johan".
*"Camping Trip" reveals that River is very strong and athletic, able to run ten miles in five minutes while carrying Star and Marco (equivalent to 120 miles per hour), and he claims he "used to be able to do it in four" (equivalent to 150 miles per hour). "Game of Flags" reveals that his family, the Johansens, are just as strong and physically capable as he is.
*Like most Mewmans, he has a fondness for corn, to the extent where he goes into a crazed frenzy should he see his supply threatened.
*According to Dominic Bisignano, the Johansen family uses a calendar based on felled stags, and River is 17 "felled stags" old.
*He has a powerful dislike for the Pie Folk, due to their con artist ways. As such, he violently rejects the Pie King's claim that Moon is descended from them.
==Gallery==
===Screenshots===
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Star Comes to Earth 6.png|"She can't handle it."
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Diaz-Family-Vacation-5.png|King and Moon Butterfly on Star's Mirror
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Diaz-Family-Vacation-27.png|Wild King Butterfly
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Diaz-Family-Vacation-32.png|"I didn't see you and you didn't see me."
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Scent of a Hoodie 5.jpg
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The Bogbeast of Boggabah 5.png
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The Bogbeast of Boggabah 8.png
Marco, Star, and King Butterfly in S4.jpg
Butterfly Follies 2.png
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Escape from the Pie Folk (1).png
Escape from the Pie Folk (4).png
Escape from the Pie Folk (8).png
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Moon Remembers 7.jpg
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===Miscellaneous===
Royal Pain promo.jpg
Camping Trip poster.jpg
Game of Flags concept 11.png
Battle for Mewni poster.jpg
Marco and the King poster.jpg
River Butterfly concept 1.png
River Butterfly concept 2.png
==References==
==External links==
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pt-br:River Butterfly
Category:Star vs. the Forces of Evil characters
Category:Animated characters
Category:TV Animation characters
Category:Parents
Category:Disney characters
Category:Lovers
Category:Royalty
Category:Kings
Category:Character stubs
Category:Males
Category:Spouses
Category:Nobility
Category:Heroes
Category:Disney XD characters
Category:Disney Channel characters
Category:Siblings
Category:Interdimensional characters