Reformed
One of the most interesting thing about Gems is how they
don’t apply to things that destroy humans and other mortals like
aging and getting hurt, so long as the pain is on their bodies and never their
gemstones. On the subject of getting
hurt, their response is to poof into the physical gem that projects their
appearances and spend as much time as they need to fix their
bodies sometimes with new features.
This is one of the most creative approaches towards life for Gems, so
it’s completely welcome to see cartoons dedicated to this concept.
So far, we’ve seen Pearl reform after getting her body damaged, and Garnet got a slightly new
appearance when Ruby and Sapphire reformed.
In this cartoon, Amethyst, the most slobby and accident-prone Crystal
Gem, goes through the reform motions. It
happens when a corrupted Gem simply known as a “Slinker” gets loose in the
temple, and Steven and Amethyst join Garnet to try and catch it in Amethyst’s
room. Every time they come across the
Slinker, it attacks Amethyst so hard, she poofs to her gem, forcing herself to
reform. However, since she’s not as
patient as other Gems, she comes back from her reforms very quickly. As a result, her appearances are very ridiculous and provide very little productivity.
When you take the task out of consideration,
there’s some mild enjoyment out of the many reforms Amethyst takes on. One has all her limbs become feet, one has
her look as much like Pearl as she can, and one is unsustainable with all limbs
varying in size. They’re visually
appealing in their own way and fascinate with how Gems are able to go this far
when altering their forms.
The big thing
to take from all these forms is how they have an effect on Amethyst’s general
character. She’s been a reckless,
easygoing troublemaker from the beginning, and has the added baggage of her creation being part of Homeworld’s devastation on Earth which makes her easily
agitated when others judge her. For this
cartoon, she feels especially agitated whenever Garnet criticizes how she reforms, and when Steven keeps pestering her to take an online quiz,
some questions relating to her internal trauma. At times, all
these characters can get overbearing with their drawbacks, especially
Amethyst’s tense responses to judgements and the fact that talking about the
quiz and freaking out at Amethyst getting poofed being all Steven does here, but
they do their part to move the conflict along.
In the end, it becomes clear to everyone that Amethyst keeps changing
her form because she wants everyone to think well of her, even if what she wants
to be is something she has to figure out herself. During another Slinker
attack, she gets poofed just as Steven discovers she doesn’t WANT to think
about herself. This only makes the
following scene where she finally reforms with a perfectly suitable design,
which is basically a modified version of her old form, an appropriate and
pleasing end to her conflict where she satisfies her peers, and herself.
It is concerning that we never see what
happens with the Slinker afterwards, but since there are so many strong points
to the cartoon already, this factor doesn’t have a huge effect. It’s still a solid watch with further looks
into Amethyst’s character, and one of the most creative aspects of Gems. 9/10
The Ranking
- Full Disclosure
- Reformed
- Joy Ride
- Say Uncle
- Love Letters
The next Steven Universe review will be on one of the most beautifully crafted cartoons of the series with a new beginning for Steven's friend Connie, Pearl character development, a beautiful song, and an adorable friendship at the center.
Next time on MC Toon Reviews is Hey Arnold Season 3 Episode 5 featuring "Helga Blabs it All" and "Harold the Butcher."
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