{"id":7164,"date":"2019-01-15T08:00:49","date_gmt":"2019-01-15T16:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=7164"},"modified":"2019-01-13T17:11:19","modified_gmt":"2019-01-14T01:11:19","slug":"mark-watches-steven-universe-s05e26-together-alone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2019\/01\/mark-watches-steven-universe-s05e26-together-alone\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Steven Universe’: S05E26 – Together Alone"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the twenty-sixth episode of the fifth season of Steven Universe<\/i>, Steven attempts to throw a party to get White Diamond\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s attention. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Steven Universe<\/i>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Good lord, this was a LOT. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m amazed by the way that \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Together Alone\u00e2\u20ac\u009d continues the world building I admired in the previous episode, using visual cues or dialogue to explain how Homeworld works to the audience. I figured from the start that Steven would have a hard time pulling off this \u00e2\u20ac\u0153ball\u00e2\u20ac\u009d because his idea of a dance party was most likely nothing like what we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d see here. I just was not prepared for how difficult and stuffy this process would be.<\/p>\n

Which brings me to my first major point: Wow, there is no real joy in this world, is there? As Steven sets to organize the ball, he learns that there are rigid customs that must<\/i> be followed in the execution of this event. Fair enough, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s to be expected. But in the exploration of that, Steven and the Gems discover just how messed up this is. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no dancing on the part of the Diamonds. Fusions are not allowed. Diamonds must remain on their elevated thrones and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153approve\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of their court. Everything is organized. Detailed. Exact. And, in the mind of the gems of Homeworld, this is all an expression of perfection. This is how these beings \u00e2\u20ac\u0153perfectly\u00e2\u20ac\u009d express themselves. Which is literally the exact opposite of Steven and his family. (The deliberate parallel to bigots and repressive organizations in the real world<\/i> is not lost on me, though. Oh my god, IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S SO GOOD.) So how do you succeed at this?<\/p>\n

What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s interesting is how much the Crystal Gems are willing to sacrifice to achieve their goal and how much they are not. Steven accepts the boring and uninteresting customs of Homeworld because he wants to talk to White Diamond. (That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s starting to increasingly worry me, by the way. Steven is so<\/i> sure he can just talk White Diamond into his plan, but I fear that she is far, far beyond that. There are some people upon who logic, kindness, and empathy do not work. I think she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s one of them.) We also get Garnet\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s angry refusal to unfuse in order to present as a Sapphire and a Ruby. I get Steven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s emotional reaction to this, but I also understood why she initially refused to be a part of the ball. Look how much she fought over the years to be herself. In a sense, I saw her refusal as a parallel to Bismuth, who refused to return to Homeworld after having suffered there for so long.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, Garnet changes her mind, but it has such an incredible effect, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll get to that in a second because the ball itself is just SO TENSE AND WEIRD. And I am thinking of it in light of the nightmare that opens the episode, one where Steven chokes on Rose Quartz\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hair as he keeps coughing it up. This is indeed a continuation of the theme of this show of Steven trying to survive in the shadow of his mother. Now, he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s on Homeworld, trying to successfully dismantle the empire his mother used to be a part of, all while trying to navigate who she used<\/i> to be. No matter how hard he tries, no one sees him as Steven; he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ALWAYS Pink Diamond. That means he is treated a specific way by all the other gems: with a terrifying reverence. And Steven hates it! But he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s willing to sacrifice a lot of his comfort in order to get to White Diamond. That means he has to sit through gems basically worshipping him, and he has to act very differently from how he normally does.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

During that, we see some new gems! And lord, those \u00e2\u20ac\u0153cog\u00e2\u20ac\u009d gems are the most disturbing ones to me. The show takes the notion of being a cog in a machine\u00e2\u20ac\u201da necessary but replaceable part\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand makes them literal<\/i>as we watch the gems dance around the ballroom floor for<\/i> the Diamonds. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so upsetting, isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t it???<\/p>\n

And yet, this episode still had more to come that would mess me up even more. I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t realize Stevonnie would appear until about a few seconds before they did, but I did<\/i> notice those two gems who broke from protocol. One cried when Blue Diamond entered, the other elbowed the gem next to them. What this episode shows us is that just existing<\/i> as someone different and unique can often inspire others to do the same. Those gems fused after Stevonnie did, after Garnet did, after the Crystal Gems defied Blue and Yellow. IT WAS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL MOMENT. That was then immediately destroyed!!! Ugh, all that progress, and the Diamonds are still <\/i>the same overlords, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. They can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be defied, they don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like change, and they believe their way is the only way. And White Diamond DIDN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T EVEN SHOW UP TO THE BALL. My gods, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a disaster. All the Crystal Gems are now in their gem state, and Stevonnie is locked in Pink Diamond\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s room. WHAT THE HELL.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Together Alone\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>. Please ignore that I say the wrong episode number at the start of the video; it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the right one! Additionally, the next review goes up Thursday morning.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– The paperback edition of my debut, ANGER IS A GIFT, is now up for pre-order!<\/a> It comes out on May 7, 2019.\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>If you’d like to stay up-to-date on all announcements regarding my books, sign up for my newsletter<\/a>! DO IT.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"