In the fifth episode of the fifth season of Steven Universe, Steven returns to Earth and discovers the unintended consequences of his actions. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Steven Universe.Â
Oh, this was a tough one, and I appreciate that. After the opening arc of season five, this show has immediately jumped into ramifications. It’s deeply uncomfortable, but there’s a powerful lesson here, one that I think all of us can stand to appreciate.
See, Steven really expected a specific reaction when he got home, and the initial conflict introduced in “Dewey Wins†is perplexing to him. Why isn’t Connie overjoyed to see him? Why does she seem sad? It doesn’t make any sense! But this is an issue of perspective, and one of the reasons I enjoyed this episode as much as I did is because it demonstrates how easily we can get inside our own heads and forget to empathize with others. Steven comes home from a hellish experience, and all he can think about is what he did to save everyone. So when Connie begins to tell him that she was hurt by his actions, he literally can’t fathom it. How can she be hurt by him saving people?
Like I said, it was a matter of perspective. Connie leaves Steven in a bewildered state, despite that she communicated what made her feel betrayed VERY SUCCINCTLY. Like, it wasn’t a mystery! I thought she was pretty clear about feeling left out of Steven’s decision-making when she and Steven had trained so much to battle together. Yet all Steven could think was that he had solved everything by himself, so this, everyone should be happy.
And then Mayor Dewey happened.
I get why Steven threw his weight behind him. I really do! Steven is obsessed with fixing things, and he certainly felt responsible for the residents of Beach City turning on their mayor. Instead of dealing with the root frustration, though—that Dewey is entirely a figurehead who doesn’t actually help anyone—Steven chose to try and turn the public tide on the man.
It’s admirable, but completely misguided. Oh, that first scene outside Dewey’s van was so PAINFUL. Yes, Steven’s actions were what caused gems to start kidnapping humans, and yes, Dewey wasn’t directly responsible, but the man can’t even pretend to care about the residents of his town. His comment about hiring someone to replace Lars was so, so awful, and it was indicative of Dewey’s obvious flaw as a leader!
I didn’t really expect the show to engage with that—Dewey has always been a source of comic relief—and I definitely didn’t expect that Nanefua would run as Dewey’s opponent. AND SHE IS SO CLEARLY THE BETTER CANDIDATE, TOO. But Steven can’t see that. Y’all, this whole episode is like a giant personification of that saying, “You can’t see the forest for the trees.†Steven gets so caught up in fighting this wrong that he can’t actually see that Dewey is a terrible mayor and that Nanefua is a much better choice to run the town. In fact, it’s Dewey himself who has this realization after she gives a killer speech about unity and collective responsibility. (NANEFUA FOR PRESIDENT!!!!) And what happens when Dewey conceded the race without consulting the person who helped him prepare for the debate?
Well, Steven feels betrayed. Left behind. Like he didn’t even factor into Dewey’s decision-making. Did Dewey intend that? No. Did he make a bad choice? Nope. And yet? It still hurts. Sometimes, the right choice for one scenario hurts someone else. And instead of being honest about that and giving Connie his understanding, Steven doubled down and got burnt in exactly the same way she did.
OUCH, IT HURT TO WATCH. But damn, what a great story. I AM SO GLAD I AM GETTING MORE OF THIS SHOW.
The video for “Dewey Wins†can be downloaded here for $0.99.
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