In the twentieth episode of the second season of Steven Universe, Peridot and Pearl compete to build the machine that will stop the Cluster. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Steven Universe.Â
I love how silly this episode gets before dropping one huge revelation: GEM CLASSES. There are classes of gems designed for specific purposes. In hindsight, that’s super obvious. Remember all the shit I learned about Amethyst and her purpose? I should have realized that this meant that Pearls, Rubies, and Sapphires most likely had a specific purpose as well, but HEY. THAT WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN AS FUN. But now that I know this – particularly that Pearls are a servant class on the Homeworld – then Peridot’s behavior makes a whole lot more sense.
I can’t say I’m super certain of what Peridots are for. Kindergarten operation? Are they technicians only? Is that why Peridot makes a joke about how silly it is that she “has” a Pearl to her own? Regardless, now I understand why she was so repulsed by the idea that Pearl would be working alongside her on the Cluster drill. It speaks to just how long the Crystal Gems have been on Earth. I think of them as individuals. Their names denote who they are, not what social group they belong to. For Peridot, however, she can’t even fathom a world that isn’t like the gem homeworld, where everyone has their specific place.
Thus, I read the whole Robolympics thing entirely differently the first time around. To me, it seemed like Peridot trying to prove that since she knew the most about the Cluster, she should be in charge. However, Pearl had developed a number of useful skills over the years. This episode specifically reminded me of the time she built a rocket to go home, you know? So, clearly Pearl is super talented! Why wouldn’t Peridot want her working to create the best drill machine possible?
The Robolympics were hilarious, and I was ready for this episode to end with Peridot coming to an understanding with Pearl like she did with Steven in “When It Rains.” Except Peridot does the complete opposite! After Pearl ties with her, she throws a tantrum, all centered around the fact that it is impossible for her to ever work with or next to or beneath a Pearl. She flings the name like it’s a slur, and it was so disturbing. Now, for any of you who are marginalized in any way, I’m sure this dynamic is utterly familiar to you. I bet you’ve been in a situation where someone said they couldn’t work with you because you’re a woman, non-white, disabled, etc. In Peridot’s mind, there truly is a hierarchy to Gems and to defy that hierarchy is offensive to her. She deserves more.
Steven Universe takes a more optimistic view of humanity here. Because the Crystal Gems spent so much time on Earth, they learned the value of individuality. They learned that any one person can do what they want and succeed at what they want, regardless of their class or upbringing. Relative to the Homeworld, Earth is a utopia. Now, I still read this more as an allegory than the writers saying, “Hey, isn’t Earth a perfect utopia???” It’s not, and Peridot’s struggle is a direct reference to systems that are already in place in our world. I’m not gonna argue that it’s the most radical depiction of this; it needs to be a lot more simplistic to fit within the framework of this show.
However, I enjoy that the writers can invoke the trope of enemies working together towards a common goal while also addressing the complications of this act. Peridot has a lot of prejudicial thoughts to work on because of how the Homeworld treats Gems. If she’s going to be working alongside them to stop the Cluster, she’ll have to keep examining them and acknowledging that they don’t work on Earth. She can’t pull rank on Pearl because the Pearl servant system doesn’t exist here. She’s going to have to adapt.
The video for “Back to the Barn” can be downloaded here for $0.99.
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