Maybe my favorite part of Steven Universe -- amid everything I love about the show, which is a whole lot -- is how good it is for kids. I cannot wait for my littlest housemates to be old enough to watch it, because it is so amazing in its handling of people and relationships and morality and consent and so many other things that are so important for children -- for everyone -- to know. It’s not at all didactic, there is no Wheel of Morality at the end of every ep; but it just has so much showing of healthy behavior (and unhealthy, and how to change and grow and seek solutions and better ways.)
Like, in one of the most recent episodes (only a mild spoiler, of a very minor element) -- Steven’s dad wakes him up from a dream because Steven is crying in his sleep, and Steven is surprised by it, because his dream didn’t seem sad to him -- but he’s not at all embarrassed to have been crying. He’s a fourteen-year-old boy who is not ashamed by emotions -- and he’s also (is developing into) a confident, self-possessed kid who happens to be one of the most powerful beings on the planet. It’s not even that the show is suggesting everyone should be as open as Steven, most of the other characters aren’t -- but that’s the way he is, and it’s one of his strengths, and I love that.
