We got our first glimpse of Peridot back in “Warp Tour,” yet
we didn’t really get a sense of what she was up to. All she did was investigate the Galaxy Warp,
take out defective robonoids and then leave. All we got was a mystery of not only why she
was coming to Earth, but also what exactly was she like. Now, we have this cartoon that attempts to
answer some questions about Peridot.
Much of the first part of the cartoon follows a beat-for-beat routine. Steven tries to understand a book series that
Connie gets him into, but then one of Peridot’s robonoids shoots down to Earth,
prompting him and the Crystal Gems to go to where it landed and destroy it. The fact that these same instances happen a
couple times in a row make the early part of the cartoon somewhat
monotonous. They’re mildly entertaining
on their own, but the show has had more enticing moments than this. However, there is one truly enticing part of
the cartoon in the second half when Steven comes up with a smart idea of
following one of the robonoids to where it wants to go and why they’re all
being shot to Earth. This plan brings
the Crystal Gems to the Kindergarten from “On the Run,” where they come across
Peridot who has accessed the Kindergarten via a screen. As the Crystal Gems wonder what Peridot is
trying to do, Steven decides to find out by going up to talk to her which is
both smart, and boneheaded since no one knows what Peridot is like. One thing about his first conversation with
Peridot that’s worth pointing out is that him mentioning a list of humans to
her goes on to play a role in one of the most recent cartoons. The fact that this one little line from the
conversation starts something huge much later on demonstrates the cleverness of the storytelling and gives this
cartoon more value than it already has.
Anyway, when Peridot goes on to attack Steven with hand robonoids the
screen provides, the Crystal Gems come to his aid, and reveal that they’re
protecting the planet at all costs.
Through it all, we see more of what Peridot is actually like. Although she’s meticulous and technical when
it comes to going about her work, instead of serious and menacing, she’s
quickly agitated by others interfering.
Even though you don’t want her to succeed and fear for the Crystal Gems
when she leaves to report her finding, it’s still somewhat easy to feel for her
as she complains about her destroyed robonoids among other things. This trait of Peridot among others would
become more prominent for the rest of the show.
As you can see, this big reveal on Peridot adds to the appeal of this cartoon
which, while not being the most exciting story, does its job in preparing for
what’s to come. 9/10
The Ranking
- Ocean Gem
- Lion 3: Straight to Video
- Alone Together
- Coach Steven
- On the Run
- Maximum Capacity
- Mirror Gem
- An Indirect Kiss
- Space Race
- So Many Birthdays
- Steven the Sword Fighter
- Lion 2: The Movie
- Bubble Buddies
- Monster Buddies
- Laser Light Cannon
- Winter Forecast
- Giant Woman
- Lars and the Cool Kids
- The Test
- Steven’s Lion
- Horror Club
- Watermelon Steven
- Gem Glow
- Steven and the Stevens
- Marble Madness
- Warp Tour
- Island Adventure
- Rose’s Room
- Cheeseburger Backpack
- Future Vision
- Secret Team
- House Guest
- Serious Steven
- Joking Victim
- Beach Party
- Cat Fingers
- Tiger Millionaire
- Together Breakfast
- Fusion Cuisine
- Frybo
- Onion Trade
- Arcade Mania
- Garnet’s Universe
- Keep Beach City Weird
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where this season and the whole show hits its emotional high point with "Rose's Scabbard."
If you would like to check out other reviews on this blog, click here for the guide to all the reviews posted so far.
