'Toon Reviews 15: Steven Universe Season 2 Episode 11: Cry for Help

Cry for Help

With this show developing more of a plot, story arcs are now more apparent.  It’s a strong exercise of continuity and offers a believable direction in taking time to solve issues.  This cartoon begins one of the most significant story arcs in an dramatic and striking manner. 

The search for Peridot thickens when she uses the Gem communication hub, first seen in “Coach Steven,” to affect TV signals to get Homeworld to help her off Earth.  The Crystal Gems proceed to preempt her preemptions by tearing down the hub which they need a fusion to do.  The ideal choice would be Garnet and Amethyst as Sugilite, but since her previous appearance proved she's too unstable to restrain herself, it’s decided that Garnet should fuse with Pearl instead. 

This decision introduces us to one of the best fusions, Sardonyx.  Utilizing Garnet’s collected strength and Pearl’s elegance and flare for emotion, Sardonyx brings a specialized approach to everything she does.  She opens and closes the job as if she’s doing a lavish stage performance, and goes through the destruction with a positive showy attitude, clearly having a blast with this serious mission.  In all, Sardonyx absolutely shines as a fusion for her style, class, and all around entertainment that works towards the greater good. 

She’s so impressive that you can easily buy into her praise as well as Amethyst feeling inferior to her.  Speaking of Amethyst, even more sympathy is directed towards her when the hub is mysteriously activated again, and Sardonyx is quickly chosen for an encore performance.  The reason for the sympathy is because Amethyst is not saddened about the neglect because she’s jealous.  She thinks about her mistakes that seemingly caused it.  Given that she’s not very mature, you’d expect her to blame someone else for not the issue, but that’s not the case, and she starts to think that Garnet is better off fusing with Pearl. 

Steven, being so caring, helps Amethyst prove her worth with a stakeout at the hub to catch Peridot before she reactivates it.  That’s when a major twist comes in when they catch Pearl rebuilding the hub.  If that’s not enough, when the hub effects the TV signals again, Pearl is the quickest to claim this as Peridot's doing while Garnet is unable to sense finding her with her future vision.  The pieces soon fall together that Pearl was fixing the hub to have a reason to fuse for her own gain.  It’s certainly a major low for Pearl, but it does show how real and human these characters are.  No matter how moral we are, we can’t always avoid sin, and this moment expands on that idea with the truth let out that Pearl committed a major sin. 

The moment she’s pushed to confess to Garnet is a highly suspenseful climax.  Garnet unleashes her most fury to date at Pearl who tries to explain her actions, and since they did a lot of wrong, it’s a fitting outcome.  Amethyst even shows some compassion by pointing out a possible reason for what Pearl did which is commendable even if Garnet won’t have it.  That’s why when she finally does fuse with Garnet to destroy the hub for good, she’s appropriately too shocked to find this rewarding.  The cartoon ends with Garnet too mad at Pearl to even talk to her as a clever tie to one of Steven’s favorite programs, Crying Breakfast Friends, shows that conflicts like this one need time to fix themselves, unlike in most fiction works where they’re resolved in the end of one episode. 

This relatable and mature instance, among its other strengths, portray this as a great and moving start to a long conflict to shake up the dynamic of our main protagonists. 10/10

The Ranking

1. Sworn to the Sword
2. Chille Tid
3. Cry for Help
4. Keeping it Together
5. Full Disclosure
6. We Need to Talk
7. Reformed
8. Joy Ride
9. Say Uncle
10. Rising Tides, Crashing Skies
11. Love Letters

The next Steven Universe review covers the first look into how each of the Crystal Gems get through the aftermath of the Sardonyx Scandal, starting with Garnet who in the process gives a unique look at how different sides of ourselves are often at a conflict.

Next time on MC Toon Reviews is a look at Hey Arnold Season 3 Episode 11 with "Phoebe Takes the Fall" and "The Pig War."

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