Friday, July 26, 2019

The Big Show (Steven Universe Season 5 Episode 14) - 'Toon Reviews 29

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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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