{"id":7773,"date":"2021-03-01T08:00:08","date_gmt":"2021-03-01T16:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=7773"},"modified":"2021-02-23T13:06:26","modified_gmt":"2021-02-23T21:06:26","slug":"mark-watches-steven-universe-future-episode-12-bismuth-casual","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2021\/03\/mark-watches-steven-universe-future-episode-12-bismuth-casual\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Steven Universe Future’: Episode 12 – Bismuth Casual"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the twelfth episode of Steven Universe Future<\/i>, Steven heads to the local roller rink, where he learns an important lesson in friendship. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Steven Universe<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all know I love friendship. And emotions. And character growth. AND FEELINGS. So \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bismuth Casual\u00e2\u20ac\u009d hits EVERY mark I could have wanted from an episode, and IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S SO FUCKING GOOD. Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s talk!<\/p>\n

Bismuth<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll start with her story. First of all, I was so pleased we finally got a Bismuth episode!!! Because Steven Universe Future<\/i> takes place a significant period of time after the events of the previous finale (and the film), this allows the writers to have development happen off-screen. Bismuth has spent a lot of time on Earth relative to some of the other gems who have come to Little Homeschool, so she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s further along in her understanding in how Earth works. (Plus, she also BUILT the school!) That being said, there are still things she hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t learned, and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bismuth Casual\u00e2\u20ac\u009d focuses on the daunting challenge of dealing with romantic feelings or attraction to someone else.<\/p>\n

Like Steven, Bismuth is adjusting to a world without the same kind of conflict and violence that they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re used to. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not just that the war is over! In Bismuth\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s case, she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no longer part of the whole gem caste system either. So, how do you approach another person without that understanding? That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ultimately what was so fascinating about this to me. Bismuth found it easier to interact with people in the world she came from because it was what she knew<\/i>. It was her familiar, her day-to-day. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not the case with this problem. For what it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s worth, she manages to get along with Pearl\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s human friends just fine. (One of whom\u00e2\u20ac\u201dJaime\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwas wearing a Bad Brains shirt. I think??? That design looked super familiar, and those kind of references are rarely an accident.) So while her story has a parallel with Steven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not the same. Bismuth doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how to express this specific emotion. She frets over it; she doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t approach Pearl; she pines from afar. (THE PINING IN THIS EPISODE IS EXQUISITE.) She does what probably a whole lot of us can relate to: We just wish this was easier.<\/p>\n

But maybe it can be.<\/p>\n

Steven<\/b><\/p>\n

Because while this is unfolding, Steven is dealing with his own problem. As I mentioned before, the writers structure this episode so that both storylines are in parallel with one another. I was teaching writing recently and got to talk about parallel story structure and how the really well-executed structures allow you to truly compare and contrast. So yes, we can see similarities in Bismuth and Steven, but there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also one HUGE difference in the two stories.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

See, Steven is dealing with feeling like Connie is drifting away from him. Part of that is his flawed perspective, of course, but unlike Bismuth\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s conflict\u00e2\u20ac\u201dall that distant pining!\u00e2\u20ac\u201dConnie ACTUALLY OPENLY ADDRESSES STEVEN MULTIPLE TIMES. She correctly guesses that Steven kinda wanted to hang out with just her, and she literally offers to spend time off the rink (eating tater tots, for the record, a time-honored pastime that I honor as much as humanly possible) with him.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Here, the problem is that even faced with direct communication, Steven once again defers to what he thinks<\/i> someone else needs. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a defense mechanism to him as much as it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s his normal, too. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been such a common thing across these episodes! When he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s uncomfortable, when he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s scared, when he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s dealing with the unknown, even when he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s happy… it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s easiest for Steven to make sure someone else is getting what they need before he ever vocalizes what he<\/i> needs.<\/p>\n

And this show is demonstrating over and over again why that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not a good thing. How is Connie ever going to know what Steven feels if he doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t tell her? What happens when you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how to communicate what you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re feeling? Because that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a huge part of this, too! Steven genuinely wants the best for Connie, and his perception here is telling him that he will hold her back if he asks her to spend more time with him. He truly believed that Connie preferred her newer friends, Daniel and Patricia. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a hard thing to deal with!!! Like, I think that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s something a lot of us can relate to as well. What happens when a best friend has relationships that are meaningful and joyous outside of us? Why does that trigger feelings of inadequacy and jealousy?<\/p>\n

At the same time… Steven is different. Sometimes, I forget that his entire upbringing wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like anyone else\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s, and then here, as Daniel asked Steven what grade he was in, it was hard to ignore this. How does Steven relate to anyone who didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t go through what he did? Despite that Connie was involved in much of Steven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s childhood, she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s still had a bit of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153normal,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d so to speak. What if she preferred that over Steven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s world?<\/p>\n

The resolution to both of the stories in this episode centers around active communication. (Which is a repeated motif on Steven Universe<\/i>, for the record, and I love it!) Steven and Connie had to give Bismuth a little nudge so that she felt brave enough to make her feelings known to Pearl. At the same time, Bismuth gave one hell of a motivating speech to Steven to help him realize that Connie OBVIOUSLY still cared for him and that he should tell her how he felt.<\/p>\n

WHICH GIVES US THE RETURN OF STEVONNIE. I love how normal<\/i> this is in the world now??? There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s only the awe of Stevonnie here, rather than anyone acting shocked that fusion exists. That was a nice little worldbuilding detail, since I assume there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no reason for anyone to be secretive about gems existing. I mean… granted, the gems have been \u00e2\u20ac\u0153known\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in Beach City for a long time, but still! These are new characters! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s neat to see what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153normal\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to them.<\/p>\n

I also hope Bismuth + Pearl becomes a thing because YES.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bismuth Casual\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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

– My third novel (and middle grade debut) THE INSIDERS has been announced! Check out the cover reveal and pre-order links here.<\/a>
\n<\/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":"