The Steven Universe thread

[ConsummateVs]

I hate leaks. Whenever a new episode gets leaked, everyone watches it online before the episode officially airs. When the episode airs, not a whole lot of people watch it because they already saw it online, and the show gets bad ratings, bringing it closer to being canceled.

We're lucky the app viewers count towards the ratings, because otherwise, it would seem like Cartoon Network is trying to get the show cancelled in favor of more Teen Titans Go.

I just don't understand why CN seems to hate SU so much. It's a very popular, well-liked show that has a strong fanbase and earns them good ratings. I wish CN was aware that everyone is sick of TTG and that they should stop shoving not just SU but all the other shows off to the side to air reruns all day long (*cough cough* Adventure Time). At least CN in the UK gives SU the attention it deserves.

 

[Oscarfan]

I believe I read that their poor treatment of SU is because its continuity; it's not really able to air episodes out of order in re-runs because there's tons of stuff that's out of context and the "bombs" are a way of managing that. TTG, I don't watch so I only assume, is just a series of random episodes that have no throughline story thread, thus, can be shown at any point with no regards to missing anything.

 

[Pig'sSaysAdios]

I believe I read that their poor treatment of SU is because its continuity; it's not really able to air episodes out of order in re-runs because there's tons of stuff that's out of context and the "bombs" are a way of managing that. TTG, I don't watch so I only assume, is just a series of random episodes that have no throughline story thread, thus, can be shown at any point with no regards to missing anything.

That makes sense, I guess. I kind of wish more shows were less continuity heavy. I really like the self contained stories of older cartoons (Courage the Cowardly Dog, Fairly Odd Parents, etc.), it allows for more variety and avoids the tediousness of shows with long arcs. At the same time though, without a recurring storyline and an end goal in mind, it's probably much harder to come up with new stories in each episode. Not to mention, the character development in arc shows can be very interesting to watch, and can give the show more weight and meaning.

 

[mr3urious]

That makes sense, I guess. I kind of wish more shows were less continuity heavy. I really like the self contained stories of older cartoons (Courage the Cowardly Dog, Fairly Odd Parents, etc.), it allows for more variety and avoids the tediousness of shows with long arcs. At the same time though, without a recurring storyline and an end goal in mind, it's probably much harder to come up with new stories in each episode. Not to mention, the character development in arc shows can be very interesting to watch, and can give the show more weight and meaning.

It also rewards those who have watched the show from the beginning (or for a long time) whenever they reference events and jokes from past episodes, or foreshadow stuff in future episodes.

 

[Pig'sSaysAdios]

It also rewards those who have watched the show from the beginning (or for a long time) whenever they reference events and jokes from past episodes, or foreshadow stuff in future episodes.

That's also true. It kind of goes along with, shows with arcs do tend to have much more dedicated fans.

 

[snichols1973]

As of this past Friday, new (and long-overdue) episodes of Steven Universe are on Cartoon Network again with

Spoiler

Steven going through a break-up with Connie after he hastily left for Gem Homeworld and impulsively took on the burden by himself instead of having her accompany him...

 

[snichols1973]

Waiting for SU to come back like:

The feeling is even more agonizing when the new season starts off with a handful of episodes stretched out over a span of 4 to 6 weeks, only to learn that it will be several months before what may turn out to be another small handful of episodes...

It almost seems strange that the new SU episodes come out in trickles, as compared to We Bare Bears, Gumball, Teen Titans Go! and other shows (particularly newer ones like Unikitty and OK K.O. Let's Be Heroes! that release a new episode every week)...

On the brighter side of things,

Spoiler

Steven reconciles with Connie, who has a new hairstyle, and they go into space to check on Lars, who is now captain of the Off-Color gems, and Stevonnie gets stranded on a strange alien moon, with Captain Lars coming to the rescue...

 

[snichols1973]

I just don't understand why CN seems to hate SU so much. It's a very popular, well-liked show that has a strong fanbase and earns them good ratings. I wish CN was aware that everyone is sick of TTG and that they should stop shoving not just SU but all the other shows off to the side to air reruns all day long (*cough cough* Adventure Time). At least CN in the UK gives SU the attention it deserves.

I don't think it's Cartoon Network, but the morally conservative members of other countries (especially places such as Europe, the Philipppines, southeast Asia, and Middle Eastern ones with strong Muslim majorities) that dislike certain aspects (scenes, dialogue, accidental innuendos or double entendres) of the show, such as LGBT themes, parts of the dialogue that get lost in foreign translation or come across as awkward to the point where the questionable scenes are edited out of the international airings:

In the Netherlands, the "watching myself die" line from "Steven and the Stevens" must have been considered too harsh (in spite of the fact that euthanasia has been legalized in the Netherlands), so it was replaced with an alternate lyric in the Dutch language dub...

This page has more info on what foreign countries found offensive about the show:
https://steven-universe.wikia.com/wiki/Censorship_in_Foreign_Countries

 

[snichols1973]

One theory as to how a human gem (Steven) and regular human (Connie) can fuse into Stevonnie:

Connie, being the successor to Rose Quartz's sword and scabbard (and its gemstones), is able to fuse with Steven because the gems in the sword and shield have made it possible...

 

[snichols1973]

So far, the biggest stunner of all is in "A Single Pale Rose", where

Spoiler

Steven discovers that his mother, Rose Quartz, was once Pink Diamond, and she had Pearl sworn to secrecy about Pink Diamond faking her death by pretending to shatter her gemstone and Pearl shape-shifting into Rose Quartz so that Pink Diamond could give up her royal status and be free of the burdens of aristocratic society.

It feels good to know that Steven Universe will be returning for another season since the most recent episode and season concluded on a "To be continued" cliffhanger...