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The Big
Show
Basic and simple stories typically aren’t the strongest works
a show can offer. Thankfully, they can
stand out from the norm. This cartoon is
a continuation of Sadie’s big change in life through starting a band with the Cool Kids and really moving forward with her talent of singing. Given how relatable and impactful Sadie
coming to this direction was as well as how Lars now knows of it, this is
honestly pretty fitting to see.
The
actual story doesn’t measure up to its relatability though. Just like in Season 2, Sadie’s mother Barb is
overexcited about her daughter coming to a new path in life and Sadie's desperate
to make it so she can enjoy it herself for once. It’s just standard parent-child drama that isn’t
unlike other iterations.
While this is
very standard, there are plenty of ways the execution enhances its appeal. The most noticeable way of all is in the
overall aesthetic. Nearly the whole
thing is shot from an old camera Steven is using to film the band. It gives everything we see a unique
appearance with blurry images, muffled sounds when people talk, and static
appearing when scenes change. It all
amounts to a very avant-garde approach you hardly see shows take on, and I bet
this cartoon would be much less interesting without it.
Also, even if the basic plot isn’t too
special, it also has its enhancements from the featured characters since
crafting personalities for them is one of the show’s biggest strengths. For one thing, it gives Greg some decent
development when he’s appointed to be the manager for Sadie’s band. He lands them a gig at the famous Empire
City, and since he has the money for it, spices up their performance by buying
the best equipment concerts could ever get.
He’s not just about buying things though, as Greg is keen to offer life
advice to those who need it. We’re used
to him acting as a guide solely to Steven and key supporting players of the series,
but not so much to the Beach City residents.
After telling her mom that she wants to do the band herself while
holding herself back from snapping, Sadie confides her problems to Greg. He understands how she feels, but also offers
that it can be a good thing that her mother wants to support her, revealing
that his own parents never really supported his music career. So, in addition to seeing what makes Greg so
great, we also get newly revealed background of him which is a good bonus.
The actual performance at Empire City is also
a major highlight. It’s the only part of
the cartoon that’s shot in a higher quality similar to the norm of the series
and fitting for places that tend to have the better equipment. The performed song turns out to be very
fitting for Sadie as it covers becoming a ghost and no one seeing her, tying
into her passion for horror films and not being noticed for a time. It also puts all those special effects to
good use with fog and lasers enhancing the ghostly theme.
As for Barb, it’s remarkable that even though
Sadie thinks it from seeing someone in the audience, it’s remarkable that she
ends up respectful of her own thing after all.
She doesn’t show up, but through Sadie having her on her mind during the
performance and most likely Greg’s advice, she decides she’d like it better if
her mom was present. This conclusion has
very believable weight from what the cartoon provided, not to mention helps
build up to the grand concert finish at the end of this season.
For this cartoon, it’s not the best story,
but it’s admirable how it finds ways to be so interesting aesthetically and
characteristically.
A-
Season 4 Ranking
1. I Am My Mom
2. Storm in the Room
3. Mindful Education
4. That Will Be All
5. Steven’s Dream
6. Last One Out of Beach City
7. Are You My Dad?
8. The Zoo
9. The Good Lars
10. Gem Heist
11. Gem Harvest
12. Three Gems and a Baby
13. Adventures in Light Distortion
14. Buddy’s Book
15. Know Your Fusion
16. The New Crystal Gems
17. Lion 4: Alternate Ending
18. Doug Out
19. Kindergarten Kid
20. Room for Ruby
21. Future Boy Zoltron
22. Tiger Philanthropist
23. Rocknaldo
24. Onion Gang
Season 5 Ranking
1. The Trial
2. Jungle Moon
3. Off Colors
4. Stuck Together
5. Lars’ Head
6. Lars of the Stars
7. Your Mother and Mine
8. Raising the Barn
9. Sadie Killer
10. Back to the Kindergarten
11. The Big Show
12. Gemcation
13. Kevin Party
14. Dewey Wins
The next Steven Universe review explains a lot about Garnet's future vision and how she views Steven.
Next time on MC Toon Reviews is Episode 63 of Animaniacs.
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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