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What’s Your
Problem?
It’s only after being
convinced that Pink really wasn’t like the other Diamonds when Sapphire
realizes how hard she was on Ruby and wants to make amends. However, Ruby left a note and ran away. Steven takes it upon himself to go look for
her. It’s here where Amethyst shows her
interesting way of dealing with the group dynamic based on a lie.
For much of the series, she’s had a lot of
development, usually from learning to be proud of who she is, and this cartoon
finds a way of adding more. At first, it
seems like she simply doesn’t care about the situation, especially while Pearl
and Sapphire are crying like crazy. Once
she goes after Steven who begins his search, her approach to what’s been going
on slowly become clear. Steven is
fixated on tracking down Ruby while Amethyst is constantly humoring him with
visual gags and fun activities. It’s a
total clash of mindsets that keep their dynamic
interesting. At the same time, you can’t
help but question if it’s really ok for Amethyst to be acting like this.
Then at some point, she starts getting
explicit with what she’s trying to do. She
mentions Pink Diamond and how Rose Quartz was really her. Things get deeper as she brings up how Steven
actually has Pink’s Gem that Rose was said to have shattered and that maybe all
his pressure to be like his mom doesn’t matter now. When asked how all of this makes him feel,
Steven’s answer is very blunt and doesn’t get too emotional. He sees the benefits of his mom’s choice but
knows it doesn’t excuse her lies and destruction to the innocent. Even so, he’s far more concerned about how
Garnet took it, which Amethyst has a problem with since he doesn’t properly deal
with the emotional effects on him. In
the process, she drops hints for her feelings on the issue relating to how none of the Crystal Gems
should be responsible for what Pink did.
This really becomes an issue for Steven to invest in when they later get
a break in the case as to where Ruby might be.
Amethyst takes off insisting on finding Ruby herself, while Steven
chases after her so she can explain her problem. Adding in excitement from a chase after
Amethyst shapeshifts into a helicopter is a nice touch by the way. Once she is stopped, Amethyst gives a passionate
speech explaining all her actions. She
firmly believes that no Crystal Gem should be concerning themselves with the
actions of their leader, especially after she knows she was concealing her
identity. Her behavior and actions were
her way of staying out of their conflict and being her own Gem as well as
preventing herself from breaking down in front of other people like Garnet did. This was especially for Steven since he’s
constantly pushed himself to solve other people’s problems and not his own
throughout the series. She may not have
flat out said her issues prior to this, but living her life and not concerning
herself with the actions of others is honestly a healthy approach. It’s fitting that Steven sees the benefits of
this and considers Amethyst the most mature Crystal Gem as a result. When he declares he feels good because of
Amethyst, he’s officially ready to look for Ruby some more, and that’s what
they do by the cartoon’s end, leading into the next one.
On the surface this cartoon may seem like light-hearted
fluff, but it turns out to be full of character and interesting benefits for
one’s life. At times, it can be easy to
take things the wrong way, but the intentions make themselves known nicely when
all is said and done. You kind of can’t
call it anything but the “ding dong sunshine future; your friend forever.”
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. A Single Pale Rose
2. The Trial
3. Jungle Moon
4. Off Colors
5. Stuck Together
6. Pool Hopping
7. Can’t Go Back
8. Now We’re Only Falling Apart
9. Lars’ Head
10. What’s Your Problem?
11. Letters to Lars
12. Lars of the Stars
13. Your Mother and Mine
14. Raising the Barn
15. Sadie Killer
16. Back to the Kindergarten
17. The Big Show
18. Gemcation
19. Kevin Party
20. Dewey Wins
The next Steven Universe review shows how Ruby actually benefits from being apart from Sapphire, but then leads to a big event for animated family shows.
Next time on MC Toon Reviews is Episode 67 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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