I
love Steven Universe. Lots of people love Steven Universe. And with
the show now well into its second season, it’s not hard to see why- it’s set in
a fabulously creative world with funny, compelling characters, is littered with
some of the catchiest songs I’ve ever heard in a kid’s show, it’s relentlessly
fun, and is gorgeously animated to boot.
If
that was all the show had going for it, it would be good enough. But it’s not a good show. It’s a great show, one of the best animated
series currently running. And I give
much credit for this to the astonishing talent the creative team behind it has
shown in fully utilizing every second of every episode to broaden the emotional
depth of the world and its characters.
For
a show with only 11 minutes allotted per episode, even less than packed
storytelling successes like Gravity Falls
or the Avatar franchises, SU episodes, surprisingly, don’t feel
nearly that short. There’s a remarkable
weight the creators are able impart through tiny scenes, quick asides, and
silent moments that, in lesser hands, would either be empty bits to kill time,
or would be relegated to the cutting room floor by an overzealous studio hack.
Make
no mistake, Rebecca Sugar knows what she’s doing with this show, and to
celebrate what she’s given us so far until the next round of episodes comes out
this summer, here is a quick rundown of what, for me, are the most meaningful
moments in the show (so far).
**spoiler
alert- I don’t want to devote too much space to describing what happens in each
scene, so I’m assuming anyone reading is caught up on the show and knows the
episodes I’m referring to**
8.
Peridot discovers the rain (Season 2: Episode 19- “When It Rains”)
These
are the sort of scenes I adore seeing in animated works, because it’s the sort
of thing that would otherwise almost always get cut, especially in shows with
episodes as short as those in SU. With the Gems away on a mission, Steven
finally convinces Peridot to step out of the bathroom and teach her about the
world. She is initially terrified of the
rain, but when Steven steps outside, we get a brief shot of her slowly reaching
out her hand and feeling water for the first time. It’s only a short moment, but it’s reflective,
almost childlike, leaving a much bigger impact on the viewer than something
like that normally would.
7.
When Greg tries (and fails) to fuse with Rose (Season 2: Episode 9- “We Need To
Talk”)
There
are so many things in SU, especially
the whole concept of fusion, that can be directly used to talk about the
intricacies of love, sex, and relationships both romantic and platonic (and
lately its specifically sexual overtones have gotten VERY overt), and one of
the best examples is when Greg reveals to Steven that he once tried to fuse
with Rose in order to improve their relationship and be closer to her. It obviously fails, which really upsets Greg
but just seems to amuse Rose. The
conversation that results does a remarkable job of packing a wealth of
commentary on the contradictory and confusing feelings of being in love, and
all the anxiety and anxiousness about the future that entails, into just a few
short minutes. Anyone who has been in at
least one serious relationship has experienced that crushing sensation when you
are worrying yourself sick about something, and your partner just…doesn’t…get
it. How many animated images can you
think of that better capture that sensation than the sight of Greg
laugh-crying, and Rose’s response?
6.
Garnet’s split, post-Pearl (Season 2: Episode 12- “Keystone Motel”)
With
Pearl having betrayed Garnet’s trust just to be able to fuse with her again in
a previous episode, Garnet struggles so much with her feelings over it that it
literally drives Ruby and Sapphire apart for a night while they are on a road
trip with Greg and Steven. It’s the
first time we really get to see what Ruby and Sapphire are like, what sort of
characteristics, personalities, and powers they have, which their brief
introduction at the end of Season 1 didn’t provide.
I
love this scene for how it touches on a key part of family dynamics. The scene is practically a commentary on how
fights, separations, and open disagreements between partners can affect their
kids. The whole episode is from Steven’s
perspective; he tries to be around Sapphire, but the literal coldness of her
anger and hurt freezes the room, and drives him outside. He tries to go swimming with Ruby, but the
literal fieriness of her rage evaporates the entire pool, and Steven once again
feels forced to leave.
This
powerfully shows how, when two partners are openly struggling to deal with
something bad, it can deeply affect children even when the issue has nothing to
do with them. What brings the two back
together at the end of the episode is not a resolution of their problem, but
rather the realization that their inability to handle their anger in a
controlled and mature way was upsetting Steven, even though they obviously
didn’t intend that. This episode should
be required viewing for wannabe parents.
5.
Amethyst turning into Rose (Season 1: Episode 43- “Maximum Capacity”)
Good
God, this scene is messed-up as all hell.
And I love it for that. After
Greg and Amethyst have spent days obsessively watching a ridiculous old sitcom
they used to love called “Little Butler” (as someone who just recently
discovered “The Nanny,” I can sympathize), Steven goes to find them and
inadvertently stumbles on what can only be described as this show’s version of bedroom
role-playing, with Amethyst having transformed into Rose to taunt Greg about
wanting to leave. The embarrassment
hanging in the air when the two realize Steven saw everything is painfully
palpable, and it opened up SO MANY QUESTIONS about what exactly went down
between Greg, Rose, and the other gems. Yeah,
I know a later episode nixed the possibility of Amethyst and Greg have an
explicitly romantic relationship, but somehow, even going back to this episode
with that knowledge in hand in no way diminishes the tense emotional of this
scene.
4.
Steven and Lion chase after Pearl (Season 1: Episode 45- “Rose’s Scabbard”)
This
was the scene that made Pearl my favorite character on the show. They tried to recreate it later on in the
episode where Connie learns swordfighting, but the cake had already been taken
by this earlier episode, which revealed more about Pearl and her complicated
relationship with Rose than any other scene before or since. It’s moving, it’s heartbreaking, and it was
one of the turning points of the show from being just really good to becoming
genuinely great.
3.
Stevonnie’s creation and self-discovery (Season 1: Episode 37- “Alone Together”)
Since
SU is, at least on the surface, a
kid’s show, I can’t quite say that the moments after the creation of Stevonnie
are explicitly erotic, but there is a
clear sensuality to how Stevonnie’s hands slowly move over the contours of this
newly-created body. Since Rebecca Sugar
subsequently confirmed that Stevonnie identifies as neither male nor female,
this moment plays out as a beautiful celebration of the pure human form,
detached from any subset of identity.
The whole episode easily ranks as one of the series’ best, but even within
its contours the magic of this particular scene will always stand out to
me. Also, good Lord does Stevonnie have Steven's laugh.
2.
Steve and Connie sit and watch the falling snow together (Season 1: Episode 42-
“Winter Forecast”)
While
I consider myself a Man of All Seasons, the silences to be found in wintertime
will always have a special, metaphorically warm place in my heart. Maybe it’s a symptom of growing up in
cold-deprived Georgia, but I absolutely adore snow, and no amount of shoveling,
car damage, or travel delays will ever allay that.
This
is, without a doubt, the number one reason why this quiet moment at the end of
the “Winter Forecast” episode counts as one of my absolute favorites of the
whole show, but I think there is a larger magic to how the scene, done using
dark night tones and quiet sounds, embodies many of those small, peaceful
moments rarely found outside of childhood, where the world seems to still in
its revolutions, the bigness and scariness of the unknown fades away, and only calmness
and peaceful wonder remains.
1.
Rose’s Video for Steven (Season 1: Episode 35- “Lion 3: Straight To Video”)
As
of this writing, Rebecca Sugar and others working on SU have made no claim that there is any particular spiritual,
religious, or philosophical “message” underlying the show’s world, story, or
characters. There are certainly some morals
regarding trust and honesty and friendships and relationships in particular
episodes, but the show is first and foremost a fun fantasy-adventure romp, with
any “teaching” being secondary to that.
And
yet, like fellow Meisterwerk The Last
Airbender, it’s a show that has a lot to say about love, life, and the
beauties of the greater universe we coexist in, and these are what make some of
its best moments so special. Some might
say that this is despite the fact the show isn’t trying to pass along a
particular philosophy, belief, or what have you, but honestly, I think these
parts resonate precisely because they
aren’t of some grand indoctrination scheme.
Most of us humans have a strict aversion to being preached to, and
usually instinctively call out shows/movies/books/etc. that seek to do so. Ironically, this makes us all the more likely
to be open to the truths that simple stories can convey without even
consciously trying to do so. When a show
like SU comes along, one that’s
trying to just be sweet and funny and a lot of fun for everyone, and every now
and then slows down to say something important about life, it feels so much
more genuine, meaningful, and earned.
For
me, there is no finer example of this (and thus no other scene that comes close
to being my favorite in this show) than when Lion reveals to Steven that he has
a home video made by Rose herself, expressly for Steven to see when he’s old
enough to understand. I won’t go into
any further detail than that- it’s a moment that can only be experienced to be
fully grasped- but it’s one of the most beautiful and moving moments I’ve ever
seen in an American animated show.
And
that’s a wrap! It won’t be too much
longer folks! Soon, the Steven Bombs
will rain down upon our heads once more.
And there will be much rejoicing.
-Noah Franc
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