Saturday, November 17, 2018

The New Lars (Steven Universe Season 3 Episode 10) - 'Toon Reviews 23


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The New Lars
It’s hard to believe that Lars hasn’t been given anything to do in the previous season, especially with how relevant he later becomes.  His starring role here, in a way, is a strong ways to bring his future change, but it falters from roles of other characters. 
When Steven hears Lars sound determined to not hang out with Sadie, Steven barges in by pushing Lars to admit he loves her.  There is weight to Steven’s actions since he has heard of Lars being intimate with Sadie and has seen him confide in her.  Still, Lars doesn’t treat Sadie well on a regular basis and even Sadie has harmed him at times, so them being an item isn’t exactly worth supporting.  Plus, it’s wrong to interfere with romance matters that don’t involve you. You’d think someone as mature as Steven would already know this. 
That said, we do get a creative scenario out of this.  Coming off of his dream powers allowing him to connect with people he cares about and taking control of other bodies, Steven takes control of Lars.  Steven really should be trying to get out of Lars’ mind, but even if the right thing isn’t done, there’s interesting things to take from this move.  For one thing, Steven learns about Lars’ family where both Lars’ parents are loving and caring, but somewhat scared to even talk to him.  This reveal kind of makes you feel sorry for what they put up with. 
Regarding the portrayal of Steven controlling Lars, there are some key standout elements.  Most cases of controlling someone would have the voice of the controller from the mouth of the victim. Here, even though Steven is controlling Lars, everything he says is in Lars’ voice.  It’s amusing for Lars to say and do things more upbeat than normal, even going so far as to converse with the Cool Kids, something he’s too self-conscious to do on his own. 
Given his earlier concerns, Steven’s main priority is having Lars go over to Sadie’s to explain his true feelings for her.  After a few charming moments with Sadie, Steven enthusiastically lets out a love confession to her as Lars.  This instance brings a new insight to this relationship regarding exactly how Sadie really feels about Lars' behavior. She's actually enraged by this confession, because when others are around, Lars won’t be open his true feelings and treat her badly .  This even gets her to make the ultimate move to demand that Lars get out of her life. 
Fortunately, seeing the trouble forcing love has caused gets Steven to act fast to fix everything.  He tells Sadie the truth about possessing Lars, and they rush to get the real Steven to wake up.  While they bring the real Lars back, events get concerning.  Lars’ parents and the Cool Kids misunderstand what’s going on and are madder at Lars for yelling at Steven and breaking into his home than Steven. However, Steven caused all the trouble in the first place, and Lars still gets more scorn even after Sadie tries to explain everything. 
While the concerns are still present, they’re less of an issue with what happens next.  The following day when Steven tells Lars about what possessing him was like, Lars laments that not being open with his feelings is why people prefer him when he was possessed.  He reflects on his flaws which suggests he wants to improve, and the last scene of happily stating he wants to hang out with Sadie while Steven is around is a good first step.  Considering how much Lars really improves later on, this cartoon is an example of a problematic watch made better by a good conclusion. 
I can’t write off how uncharacteristically pushy Steven is or how no one realizes he was the cause of the conflict. Nevertheless, with the fun moments and character growth that comes from the story directions, the flaws are worth sitting through.
C

The Ranking
  1. Mr. Greg
  2. Gem Drill
  3. Super Watermelon Island
  4. Too Short to Ride
  5. Barn Mates
  6. Hit the Diamond
  7. Same Old World
  8. Steven Floats
  9. The New Lars
  10. Drop Beat Dad

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where the return of Stevonnie leads to a race with the one being Steven actively despises.
If you would like to check out other Steven Universe reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.



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