King's Tide

"King's Tide" is the 21st episode and the season finale of the second season of the American animated television series The Owl House, and the 40th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Bridget Underwood, and the teleplay was written by Zach Marcus & Dana Terrace, from a story by Terrace, Emmy Cicierega, Mikki Crisostomo, Madeleine Hernandez, Marcus & John Bailey Owen.

The episode premiered on May 28, 2022 on Disney Channel and garnered 0.25 million viewers when it premiered. It received near-universal acclaim, with praise for its tone, emotional weight, suspense, animation, and cliffhanger.

Plot
Continuing from "Clouds on the Horizon", King has a dream where he overhears Emperor Belos and the Collector arguing, the latter of whom has grown impatient over still being trapped within a mirror. Aboard an airship, an argument breaks out between Amity, Alador, Hunter, and Gus over Luz Noceda's capture. Willow calms the situation by having the palismen on the airship to bring a crate of food for everyone to eat. King learns a lesson from Willow: "There is always a way to help, and all you have to do is figure out how."

Meanwhile, Belos gives a speech to the general public, who remain unaware of his plan to eradicate witches and demons with a draining spell powered by an eclipse. The Covens Against the Throne follow Belos to the podium, with Eda Clawthorne preparing to disguise herself as Raine Whispers, the head of Bard Coven. After sharing a tender moment with Raine, the disguised Eda joins Belos with the rest of the coven heads. Before starting the ceremony, Belos confesses that he had changed the arrangement, having Darius Deamonne switch positions so that Eda would be between Adrian Vernworth and Terra Snapdragon. He casts the draining spell and teleports to his lair in the Skull, where the Collector resides, just as Kikimora arrives with who she thinks is Hunter, but is actually a disguised Luz. With only enough Titan's Blood for a one-way trip to the Human Realm, Belos betrays both Kikimora and the Collector, refusing to free the latter or make the former his right-hand man. He dismisses Kikimora and discards the Collector's mirror before confronting Luz, who attacks him. Eda tries to disrupt the ceremony, but is exposed by Terra, who had discovered the conspiracy against Belos and warned him. Eda, Lilith, and Hooty are captured and the rebel coven heads are forced to continue the ceremony, allowing the draining spell to take effect and slowly kill the assembled witches and demons.

The airship crew finally reach the Skull, but are shot down by Coven Guards and Abomatons, who were tipped off by Odalia. As King regains consciousness after the crash, Alador stays behind to fend off the Abomatons while the others go after Luz. Belos overpowers Luz, but is impressed by her magical talent and proposes that she join his side. When she refuses, he begins turning her to stone. Noticing a sigil glove, Luz manipulates Belos into lowering his guard, telling him society in the Human Realm has moved on from witch-hunting and offering to be his guide if he spares her friends. Belos accepts and undoes the petrification, but as they shake hands, Luz brands Belos with a sigil, rendering him susceptible to the draining spell. Enraged, he transforms into a powerful lich-like monster and retaliates. The Hexside Squad and King arrive and the former join Luz in fighting Belos, but although weakened, he retains the upper-hand and severely beats them, with Luz being scarred across her left eyebrow. During the fight, Belos momentarily recreates his human facade, triggering a PTSD-like response from Hunter. Meanwhile, Raine severs Eda's sigil arm to save her from the draining spell, keeping their earlier promise to Luz.

Alone, King finds Kikimora, who reveals only the Collector has the power to stop the draining spell. For lack of a better option, King has her lead him to the Collector, who recognizes him as the offspring of the Titan. King offers to release the Collector and play a game called "Owl House" in exchange for stopping the draining spell, and the Collector agrees. Once freed, the Collector splatters Belos into goop just before the latter can kill Luz and company, then ends the eclipse by moving the moon. However, the Collector then begins reshaping the world, believing they need an "Owl House" to play "Owl House", and effectively kidnaps King to make the latter keep his word. Amity, Willow, Gus, and Hunter flee to Belos' portal as it activates, though not before a fragment of his remains falls onto Hunter's shoulder. With Luz herself unwilling to leave him or Eda behind, King sacrifices himself by blasting her and the others through the portal with his sonic-scream ability. The portal then closes, stranding the battered and weary teens in the Human Realm. Luz and her friends later arrive at her house in Gravesfield, to the astonishment of Camila. In a post-credits scene, the remains of Belos that followed Hunter to the Human Realm come to life and close the door to the shack where the portal was kept.

Critical reception
Lee Arvoy, writer for TV Source Magazine, would write a heavily positive review for the episode, citing that the episode was a great season finale and that it had been an emotional episode. Along with this, Arvoy praised the cliffhanger brought upon the remaining inhabitants of the Boiling Isles, the exploration of Hunter and Luz's trauma sustained from the Day of Unity, and an overall feeling of nervousness and anxiousness about the future of the series' characters.

Jade King, writer for pop culture website TheGamer would also write a heavily positive review on the episode, connecting the series itself to fellow Disney Channel show Amphibia, saying that "King's Tide" was similar to the season two finale of Amphibia, "True Colors". King would write that the episode had pushed the medium for children's television, saying that the episode had "daring story developments, bold character moments, and subject matter that is way heavier than expected for the demographic... [it delivered] a finale that surpassed all expectations." Along with it, King would also praise the cliffhanger brought on to the characters in the series, writing that she had personally wanted Luz and her friends to have fun in the Human Realm after Luz had suffered mental trauma during the events of the Day of Unity.