issues with steven universe
since I’ve received quite a few messages asking what I think about Steven Universe now or whether or not I think it’s still worth watching, I decided to air out the things that have disappointed me or struck me as (varying degrees of) problematic about the series.
re-bubbling Bismuth was a disastrous decision on every level, undermining the series’s narrative, thematic, and sociopolitical integrity. as it is, several others have detailed just how the crew’s choices to 1) villainize Bismuth for inventing the Breaking Point to use against Homeworld, 2) have her react to Rose’s and Steven’s refusals to use it with killing violence, and 3) imprison her for it were disgustingly antiblack and part-and-parcel of that myopic neoliberal “don’t fight hate with hate” ideology…so I will acknowledge that without going over it again. what I will say is that:
Rose was the revolutionary leader of an armed insurrection; clearly she wasn’t opposed to violent methods or the possibility of killing other gems. her decision to bubble Bismuth (and keep her bubbled) becomes especially and hypocritically cruel in light of her later decision to kill Pink Diamond in order to liberate Earth. even though Steven recently “called out” (or at least signaled that he’s aware of) Rose’s cruel hypocrisy toward Bismuth in “Storm in the Room,” his failure to to free Bismuth again after learning about Rose’s actions speaks volumes. likewise, the fact that Pearl and Garnet knew that Rose shattered Pink Diamond, yet did not think to challenge Steven’s decision to re-bubble Bismuth for her methods was also a huge oversight.
and no. before you say that Steven, Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl decided to re-bubble Bismuth because she tried to kill Steven in The Forge, let me remind you that “attempting to kill Steven” is not an automatic marker that the character in question is irredeemable: Lapis nearly drowned Steven and Connie; Peridot tried to crush Steven in “Marble Madness” and later tried to kill all four of the Crystal Gems in “Friend Ship.” Peridot was bubbled for all of a few hours before Steven freed her, and the gems accepted that easily enough.
in any case, violent methods were never the breaking point between Bismuth and Rose. here is the most irreconcilable difference between Bismuth and Rose as I understand it: Bismuth always intended to take the rebellion back to Homeworld and liberate gemkind from the diamonds’ oppressive rule; Rose, on the other hand, was content to remain on Earth after the rebellion, leaving the diamonds in control of Homeworld and the empire.
Bismuth embodied so many possibilities for the show: fundamental shakeup of the Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl…and Steven!!! (and sometimes Peridot, Lapis, and Connie!) format of the show by becoming a main cast member and crystal gem; ethical tension to liberate all gems; new character development pair-partner with Garnet and Pearl; interpersonal tension with Lapis, who Bismuth was responsible for poofing during the rebellion; an alternative, more critical perspective on Rose Quartz…
…but her potential has been squandered, to put it lightly. and those decisions haven’t sat right with me ever since.
it’s also not that Bismuth marks the first time that the show unintentionally perpetuated antiblackness or racism. the series’s treatment of Sugilite, Garnet’s relegation to the strong black woman trope when dealing with people like Andy, or the very, very unfortunate decision to have Pearl work out her issues with self-worth by teaching Connie, a brown girl, that she isn’t worth anything compared to Steven all come to mind. of course, it was the series’s willingness to offset these moments by depicting Garnet as being emotional and needing support and relationships of her own and having Pearl called out in the very same episode that made those moments more palatable than the usual, run-of-the-mill antiblackness/racism on most other forms of media.
Bismuth, however, has yet to be addressed. so, in combination with all those other moments, it’s left a very sour taste in my mouth.
failing to create a credible mid-stage adversary for the Crystal Gems to face.
post-“Jail Break,” Peridot filled this role (badly…but, as I understood it, that was part of the appeal–Peridot’s incompetence and relative benignity as an antagonist were the foundation for her redemption arc. keep in mind that the narrative threat during Week of Sardonyx was always the conflict that Pearl caused by deceiving and using Garnet in “Cry for Help,” never Peridot. during the reconciliation scene in “Friend Ship,” the tension stemmed from whether Pearl could finally understand and acknowledge how she had disrespected and hurt Garnet…not the trap Peridot was using to try and destroy them.)
the specters of Yellow Diamond and the cluster rose during Peridot’s redemption arc, but they have both remained specters for the most part. aside from speaking authoritatively to Peridot, Yellow Diamond has remained in the background.
then Malachite ostensibly returned to fill this role…but was quickly dispatched the very same episode by Alexandrite. the cluster was never an antagonist as much as a horrible, anguished victim of Homeworld’s brutality that needed to be helped.
after “Super Watermelon Island,” Jasper and the rubies filled this role…but badly. and while, again, part of that was the appeal/novelty of meeting so many rubies, the same can’t be said for Jasper (more on that in the next section).
the problem, I think, has to do with the crewniverse’s attachment to the Beach City setting and “status quo” of being able to rely on the slice-of-life formula whenever they like. because if they really brought Yellow Diamond to the fore as the main antagonist, then Homeworld comes with her–and if that happens, then there’s no way that the Crystal Gems won’t be overwhelmed, even with Lapis and Peridot supporting them.
remember, one hand-ship and one quartz soldier soundly defeated and overwhelmed the Crystal Gems in “The Return.” in the event of a full-scale invasion, the series couldn’t reasonably continue in the vein it has since its premiere.
if the conflict with Homeworld is going to be treated with the gravitas it deserves (by the crewniverse’s own making: they’ve built up Homeworld and the diamonds as this overwhelming, superior force time and time again), then Steven Universe will probably have to shift and mimic the structure of a series like Avatar: The Last Airbender, wherein the vastly outnumbered Crystal Gems are forced to stay on the move, traveling from place-to-place, picking their battles, gathering and helping allies where they can, and dealing with an Earth occupied by Homeworld.
which, honestly? would be a really welcome change at this point.
making post-“Super Watermelon Island” Jasper so unthreatening.
I don’t know about you all, but I was horrified the first time I watched “The Return.”
Jasper pretty much overwhelmed Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Steven on her own. her and Peridot’s ship effortlessly resisted Rose’s laser light cannons.
but the real fear I felt when Jasper effortlessly forced Garnet apart and headbutted Steven in “The Return” seems silly in retrospect now that Stevonnie and Smoky Quartz–very young or newborn gem fusions that cannot hold a candle to Garnet’s wisdom and experience–have defeated Jasper so easily.
whereas Jasper caught Garnet by surprise with the gem destabilizer during “The Return,” Garnet was prepared to fight Jasper in “Jail Break”…and still took something of a beating. Garnet’s victory in “Jail Break” was more a product of her experience and cleverness than brute strength, a category in which Jasper is superior to most living gems–and some gem fusions!–we’ve met.
to give an indication: Jasper, as a quartz, is the closest indicator we have to Rose’s strength. as in, Jasper and Rose were probably roughly as powerful as one another and would have been evenly matched had they ever fought.
Stevonnie, with Steven’s increasingly confident control over his gem powers and Connie’s swordfighting skills and Rose’s sword, kind of approaches the vicinity of Rose’s prowess–in fact, the entire sequence with Amethyst, the memory of Rose, and Stevonnie in “Crack the Whip” demonstrates as much. Amethyst remembers Rose’s words to her immediately before Jasper poofs her, and reforms quickly to save them. but when she does, Amethyst looks on in awe and shock at Stevonnie, wielding Rose’s sword and standing alongside Lion with their back turned to Amethyst, facing down a winded Jasper as their hair billows rather dramatically in the breeze and a piano theme plays…all of which, I think, invokes Rose.
all of which is to say: I think Stevonnie could, someday, either match or even defeat Jasper. but that’s the thing–someday. the crewniverse didn’t really “earn” Stevonnie’s victory over Jasper, especially since the battle was so one-sided in Stevonnie’s favor.
because, yes, while Stevonnie is now approaching Rose’s skills, they do not match her, Garnet’s, or Pearl’s level of experience. it’s crucial to keep in mind that Rose, Garnet, Pearl, and Jasper are all war veterans; while Steven and Connie had been training hard with Pearl prior to “Crack the Whip,” they don’t have the wisdom or experience that Garnet relied on to outsmart Jasper in “Jail Break.”
all of this to say is that this and other decisions reduced Jasper to an unthreatening, almost pathetic antagonist: Lapis effortlessly water-punches back into the ocean; Stevonnie effortlessly forces her to retreat; Smoky Quartz forms for the first time and defeats Jasper and Jasper’s fusion with the corrupted gem easily. I recognize that Jasper was arguably fighting both these opponents and herself (due to her self-hatred), but…still. come on. watching her get handed defeat after defeat has just been plain disrespectful to Jasper herself, Garnet, and “The Return/Jail Break.”
all I’m saying is that Jasper deserves better, as an antagonist.
glossing over Lapis’s trauma recovery, mostly by shunting it onto offscreen Camp Pining Hearts-watching and meep morp-making with Peridot.
Lapis and Peridot’s friendship can be heartwarming, but its quick development seems jarring when it’s Steven with whom Lapis had her most significant, trusting, and supportive relationship. it’s great that Lapis and Peridot are close and that Peridot has been so supportive of Lapis, but I don’t think it’s unreasonable that 1) the series earn the creation of this friendship over a long(er), significant period of time, and 2) it not be used to replace the work we need to see done with their other relationships.
it’s great to see Lapis happy, and it’s great to hear that she’s finally starting to love Earth…but–and I think this is a persistent issue of the series–it’s unsatisfying to devote just one (1) or maximum three (3), maybe four (4) episodes focusing on a character’s issues, then having them declare that they’ve resolved that issue after ten or twelve episodes that don’t focus on them. this is the kind of writing that Lapis’s trauma recovery has been subjected to, and that Amethyst’s identity crisis has been subjected to, albeit to a different extent (more on this later).
it’s not like the crewniverse can’t pull off this kind of writing. in fact, they’re at their best with that kind of writing when it has to do with Pearl: Pearl’s relationship with Rose, Pearl’s relationship with Amethyst, Pearl’s relationship with Greg, Pearl’s relationship with Garnet, Pearl’s self-worth, and so on. several episodes have been dedicated to working out Pearl’s issues and relationships, and many of them still haven’t been wholly resolved! but that’s why it’s so rewarding to see her express interest in Mystery Girl, or hand Amethyst a tea bag after serving Greg some tea, or grow in confidence.
not every episode needs to end with a happy resolution, especially when it’s forced. in fact, some long-standing issues–like Lapis’s trauma, Pearl’s grief, or Amethyst’s backstory–feel disrespected if they’re resolved in the space of a single episode. but even if an episode does end with a hard-fought happy moment of growth for the characters, that doesn’t absolve the writers of writing those characters with consistency and attention to detail with respect to where they’ve been.
Pearl has long benefited from this kind of writing, and I think it’s high time that Lapis, Amethyst, and Garnet start receiving similar consideration.
(honestly, this is why a lot of us complain about episodes focusing on side characters like Ronaldo, Lars, or the other Beach City characters. it’s not that those episodes aren’t nice or worthy of being made, but that they are seen as taking up space that should be devoted to the main or main supporting characters. it shouldn’t have to be either-or, however….)
ignoring Garnet as her own character.
that Garnet might be reduced to “Ruby and Sapphire making out” has been a persistent concern of many of her fans since “Jail Break” revealed that she is a gem fusion.
while Garnet is Ruby and Sapphire, she is also her own being. therefore, it’s not unreasonable to expect that Garnet should receive more character development and character-focused writing that focus on her and her relationships, apart from Ruby and Sapphire.
unfortunately, those Garnet-focused episodes have been in short supply of late. the last Garnet-focused episode I can remember is either “Friend Ship” or “Log Date 7 15 2,” the former of which she shared with Pearl as part of Week of Sardonyx and the latter of which she shared with Peridot.
since “Hit the Diamond,” all Garnet-focused episodes have featured Ruby and Sapphire in some way–and featured them in such a way that Ruby and Sapphire have been focused on more significantly than Garnet herself.
now, I’m not saying that Ruby and Sapphire shouldn’t appear in the series at all–I love them and their relationship, so I’m always happy to see them make appearances apart from Garnet. however, what upsets me is that Ruby and Sapphire have largely replaced Garnet as a character in her own right. and that’s not okay.
Amethyst’s backstory thematizes heavy, complex, and nuanced elements that resemble the experiences of children who are the products of wartime imperialism and sexual assault. as an Earthborn Kindergarten gem raised by the Crystal Gems, Amethyst grew up believing that Homeworld was wrong for colonizing the planet and creating gems like her at the expense of the Earth’s vitality–which has led her to believe that she herself may be wrong. “On the Run” touched on these facets of Amethyst’s character beautifully.
however, since “On the Run,” “Maximum Capacity,” and “Reformed,” relatively little attention has been paid to Amethyst…which was why it was such a relief to watch “Crack the Whip,” “Steven vs. Amethyst,” “Beta,” and “Earthlings”–an honest-to-goodness Amethyst arc as the main narrative focus of the series!
I generally have positive feelings about this arc of Amethyst’s. I guess I only want to express my caution about having “resolved” her issues with the formation of Smoky Quartz. I think that, if/when Jasper is healed and returns, Amethyst has been set up to continue her arc with Jasper…but I don’t think we should have to wait until Steven finds a way to cure gem corruption to see time and care get devoted to Amethyst again. because she deserves it.
Andy DeMayo, “Gem Harvest,” and the uncritical toleration and rehabilitation of the “racist, homophobic, xenophobic uncle” at the expense of poc/queer/immigrant-coded family members and characters like the gems, who continuously take his derogatory speech without batting an eyelash–particularly in the political situation we’re in now in the U.S..
look. I still love Steven Universe, and I still keep up with it. that said, I’ve been keeping up with it much less enthusiastically ever since I watched “Bismuth,” and I think it would be a disservice not to point out or critique the things the series has mishandled or is not doing enough of.
