Friday, May 3, 2019

Last One Out of Beach City (Steven Universe Season 4 Episode 6) - 'Toon Reviews 29

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Last One Out of Beach City


Although this is yet another light-hearted cartoon, it’s one that provides very strong benefits.  Rather than solely focusing on Steven, some of the major Crystal Gems are involved in the adventure as well.  Given their deep backstories and relatable personalities, any story to develop them is sure to look into.  This particular cartoon is especially something worth checking out with Pearl standing out the most from the featured characters. 
Pearl has always been the Gem with the most interesting layers.  She’s caring and motherly, hilariously obsessive, but also quite emotional when it comes to her past which her love for Steven’s mother, Rose Quartz, was a huge part of.  Not only has Pearl always been highly enjoyable, she’s also had a relatable underlying arc of learning to move on from her unrequited love as well as her grief.  Through taking it easy and just doing something fun with her closest companions, she surprisingly makes a big memorable step towards that with this cartoon. 
We start with Amethyst excited about going to a concert, but when Greg is unable to take her, Pearl and Steven offer to go in his place.  Being someone who’s typically prided herself on elegance and dignity, going to an edgy cool environment like a concert is a major step out of Pearl’s comfort zone.  Impressively, she’s willing to change things up for the night and her attempts at blending in with the concert crowd leave undeniable effort.  She’s dressing in rebellious clothes over her regular appearance modifiers and giving a slight edge to her voice not to mention trying drinking despite having harmless apple juice.  It’s an awkward way of fitting the cool crowd, but there’s enough of Pearl’s trademark charm to prove that she’s very true to herself.  She leaves her own individual mark on the common archetype while becoming much more of a rebel than she already is. 
Fitting this mold also allows her to move on from her prominent trauma with her love life when she notices a teenage girl with big pink hair.  From there, the rest of the cartoon is Pearl and the others following the girl so she can get to know her better.  The girl never talks, but that adds to the mystery surrounding her and is reflective of Pearl longing to learn more about her and bond with her.  Frequently taking interest in Pearl does lean a lot towards the two working well together though.  Some could argue that Pearl’s not really getting over Rose since the girl looks a lot like her.  
However, everyone wanting to get to know her true character shows they know there’s more to a love interest than appearance which shows there's more to Pearl's desire to talk with this girl.  Out of this we get a fun fast-paced drive after that girl with a disregard for stop signs and speed limits amidst beautifully constructed night scenes. There’s also a great variety of personas with Pearl experiencing true rebellion, Amethyst coaching her socially being made on Earth herself, and Steven worried for everyone’s safety. 
While they end up chased by the cops and run out of gas, this act proves to be quite beneficial, especially for Pearl.  After so much humbleness and need for order and conformity for much of the series, she’s experienced the benefits of taking things easy and rebelling for her own good.  After all, she’s already rebelled against Homeworld for 6,000 years.  Following all that’s happened though, there’s a great payoff when she and the others find that mystery girl at the concert.  With soothing rock music to set the mood, Pearl actually goes up and talks to her and gets her phone number.  In the end, breaking from her comfort zone gets Pearl major progress in her arc.  If only we see her relationship with the girl more in action after this cartoon. 
For now, light-hearted as this cartoon may be, its atmosphere and use of characters make for one of the show’s most memorable watches.
A+

Season 4 Ranking

1.      Mindful Education

2.      Last One Out of Beach City

3.      Buddy’s Book

4.      Know Your Fusion

5.      Kindergarten Kid

6.      Future Boy Zoltron
The next Steven Universe review is one of the lesser light-hearted cartoons featuring slight discomfort from Onion and his newly revealed friends.
Next time on MC Toon Reviews is "The Hunted" from Voltron: Legendary Defender.
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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