Volleyball
A big sign that a work from the Steven Universe series is going to be of very high quality is when it develops its fascinating lore. In a series that’s meant to answer questions, the way this cartoon develops lore is very rewarding.
The subject is on Pearls, Gems who were originally made to serve Gems of higher authority such as the Diamonds. We’ve gotten to know the main Crystal Gem Pearl, Yellow Diamond’s Pearl, and Blue Diamond’s Pearl. However, the biggest mystery surrounds Pink Diamond’s original Pearl. It’s established that they were very close before Pink lost her, and that she spent thousands of years under the mind control of White Diamond. One thing that isn’t known about Pink Pearl is how she got an unusual wound in the form of a crack practically overtaking her left eye. This cartoon explores this wound regarding how it happened and Pink Pearl’s relationship with her Diamond.
When even Steven’s famed healing spit can’t help it, more drastic measures need to be taken to potentially fix it. All the while, Pink Pearl drops that rather than the assumed White Diamond who caused the crack, her injury is the work of Pink Diamond herself. Another mention of a bad thing his mother did noticeably sets Steven off with his new pink glow, but he quickly suppresses it with an aim to fix the wound. They call in our Pearl to help, and as she’s coaching a volleyball game, Steven finds a way to tell both Pearls apart by naming Pink Pearl Volleyball.
There’s world-building with a look at a place called The Reef, an underwater hub where damaged Pearls are fixed, cleverly modeled after an oyster where real pearls come from. As Steven is the son of a Diamond, he has control of the Reef to initiate Volleyball’s healing process. The thing of it all is that even the best work of the Reef can’t help Volleyball’s injury. This is because her injury has nothing to do with her physical form, but is rather a self-inflicted mental injury.
With this reveal, much is explained about Volleyball’s behavior, especially when it comes to Pink. All her blissful praising of Pink makes her blind to the seriousness behind the fact that her injury was because of Pink’s violent tantrum over not getting a colony. Pink may not have meant to do it, but Volleyball acting like the pain is nothing isn’t healthy at all, as shown by her crack getting worse as she makes that claim. All the while, Pearl continuously advocates that White still did this and that Pink was always trying to keep secrets, even from her.
Either way, all this bad talk of his mother unleashes what may be a replication of Pink’s tantrums. As Steven glows pink again, his shouts bring destruction to the Reef, and it threatens to rejuvenate both Pearls. Out of this though is another major highlight where they come to terms with the real Pink and that they’ve been unhealthily making excuses for the legit pain she caused. As a nice surprise for the audience, they escape rejuvenation by fusing into the ultimate Pearl, and get everyone out of the Reef via one of the most fluidly animated sequences of the franchise. What’s more, fusing officially lets Pearl know why Pink was trying to change and Volleyball to see the faults in her original Diamond.
As for Volleyball’s injury, it’s actually unknown if it was truly healed. In clever direction, the left side of her face is hidden in the cartoon’s last moments and in another appearance of Volleyball. So maybe this event actually did give her the healing she needs. Sadly, we never figure this out though. Other than that, the world-building, characters, and emotions make this cartoon exceptional.
A+
The Ranking
1. Volleyball
2. Little Homeschool
3. Rose Buds
4. Guidance
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