Steven Universe - Episode 27 & 28 Reaction! (First-Time Viewing!)

[@santiagolopez-fg6ws]

man, rewatching this truly makes you notice things, for example, you can see the exact moment Greg realizes his leg is healed and decides to pretend it's not. And a moment later you see Garnet watching this and making a sound as if suspicious that something was off from the beginning.

[@augustrempelewert4377]

Respect to Greg for the fact that he sees a cartoon he doesn't like and concludes "I'm getting old" instead of "TV shows are getting bad," which is the conclusion that you normally see people arriving at.

[@ArtoriasB]

"I almost got you killed!" "I'm used to it" that was a gut punch ngl

[@spookycircuits455]

The way Pearl is like “I’m sorry I almost got us both killed.” And Steven is just like “I’m used to it 🤷‍♂️ ” Really says something about Steven’s character that I can’t quite put into words

[@snowlondon8642]

(SLIGHT SPOILERS FOR SU:FUTURE) i think it’s nice to see some of those seeds sown for Steven’s internal struggles late in the show this early. Because yeah, the Gems do put him in harm’s way often, and even though he’s half-Gem with powers and supernatural abilities, he’s still just a kid, and sometimes it seems like the Gems either coddle him or throw him into danger he’s not ready for, even though it seems like a happy medium can be achieved. Obviously they love him and come from a good place, but each one has their own struggles and flaws, and oftentimes Steven deals with the physical and psychological burdens and consequences of those struggles

[@santiagolopez-fg6ws]

"His leg was not broken, that's the reveal" that was perfect timing Lucas lmao

[@jonathanthomas4327]

Greg’s laid back approach makes it so much more impactful when things get serious and we see him visibly worried. He is a relatable dad as he is obviously trying his best even when he does not know what he is doing.

[@InkyPetrel]

Greg is honestly one of my favourite dads in any animated show. He's genuinely supportive of Steven, even if he doesn't really grasp a lot of what Steven IS. It's unconditional. He also subverts a lot of the "deadbeat dad" tropes, like yes, he lives in a van, is broke, and isn't terribly organized or smart. Those things would normally be cues that we're expected to dislike him, to see him as a "bad" parent in a kid's show (with the harmful trope that equates living conditions and intelligence to morality, thankfully becoming slightly less common, but still very prevalent when it comes to the animation/storytelling shorthand meant to cue in an audience to how we're meant to feel about someone). But it's almost immediately subverted. As soon as we get to know him, we see he shows up for his kid, does his best, supports Steven's interests and passions, and has clearly passed along a lot of his human life lessons and enthusiasm (for music especially) along to Steven, because we see a lot of him IN Steven when they're together. Also, stuff like "there no shame in bailing" that's SO important to tell kids! They aren't disappointing anyone by looking after themselves! Holy shit I WISH someone had told me that stuff as a kid. I would just keep going with things until I burned out, because nobody told my lil neurodiverse ass it was okay to... stop? [/overshare]) I dunno, I just have a lot of Greg feels. I think he's a great example of a flawed person put in an overwhelming position, learning WITH their kid, giving them love and support, and in every way that matters, being a good dad. "Space Race" was the episode that made Pearl my favourite gem. It's the first time we've REALLY seen her flaws on full display, and see that some of the biggest ones are also what people might point to as her strengths. Her intelligence, her ability to get shit done, her drive for knowledge, etc etc. Everything about Pearl is a double edged sword, she puts on a front, and appears as the "perfect" one, but here we get to see how much of a mask it really is, and it makes her SO much more relatable. (Also, her engineering talent in Space Race is foreshadowed a little bit in the previous episode, when she just... decided to fix the van, taught herself about vans, and then did it perfectly. Love little things like that.)

[@aliyahpulido953]

16:52 I won't tell you why, but there's an element to the design of Pearl's spacesuit that's veeeeeery crucial to major events later on in the show...

[@marithflugelhorn7352]

It hadn't really hit for me before this episode that the Crystal gems are _thousands_ of years old. No wonder they're so indifferent to most humans. If anything, it's surprising that they're doing so well raising a (mostly) human kid.

[@bmoak]

Note that Pearl said "several humans, a monkey, and a dog have made it into space". It's one of several background hints that Steven's Earth. is....different from our Earth.

[@bmoak]

She doesn't mention, say, going to the moon or having space shuttles and so on.

[@agustinbarquero8898]

​@@bmoakWe did send several humans, a monkey and a dog to the space. Also, the rocket engine she said is indeed used irl. Not only that but in the future episodes they mention cities from our world. So, no... They do live in the same Earth with us

[@sketchyswirl]

@@agustinbarquero8898they live on a very similar earth to us, but with some notable differences. their continents are slightly differently shaped (though how much of that is artistic stylization is up to interpretation), their version of russia is mostly GONE (seriously whenever theres a world map in su russia has a sea in the center), and they dont have some holidays that we do (they dont have halloween, for example)

[@Swcher]

@@agustinbarquero8898 "same earth" there is a alien base on the moon and robot minerals genocide the cosmos

[@baraxor]

On top of learning that the bubbled gemstones and corrupted monsters were once Gems, Steven and the audience are now aware that the Gems apparently have an extraterrestrial origin. These two stories illustrate how passion can overwhelm sense in anybody. Greg would never deceive Steven for his own gain, but took advantage when the opportunity arose to spend some time with his son (the only thing in this world he really cares about). Pearl would never deliberately harm Steven, but even she could not resist a chance to relive the happiest days of her existence, whether it put Steven in danger or not.

[@aliyahpulido953]

18:46 The way Pearl hugged/held on to Steven is the same as a 3-point seatbelt in a car.

[@ember-fire7583]

I always love the episodes that expand on Greg not only as a character but also his role as a parental figure to Steven and his entire dynamic with the Crystal Gems. The way this show does parental philosophy and portrays that is quite nice and as realistic as it can be at times. Love the discussions that were had here, and I forgot how hard-hitting the emotional beats of this show can sometimes be even early on.

[@spookycircuits455]

I can understand why Greg struggles as a dad. Being a single parent is hard enough by itself but Greg also doesn’t have a stable living situation most likely because most of his money goes towards raising Steven. Add in the fact that Steven is a brand new type of half magical being who no one knows what abilities he’s going to develop and I could see why he would let people who know what they’re doing take over for a bit to teach him. Then he sees his son in a dangerous situation where he broke a leg and has a lapse in judgment where he decides to be a bit selfish to spend time with his son.

[@dawn8293]

I also felt that this was out of character for Pearl on first watch, but I think it actually makes a lot more sense the more you learn about her history and motivations.

[@chromaticdreams618]

Space race is one of my most favorite episodes this season

[@staceygaenssler4461]

"There's never any shame in bailing" - I wonder if Greg ever gave the same advice to Rose...

[@bmoak]

Won't tell you how, but the deign of Pearl's spacesuit is significant.

[@timeneses]

The shift of these last episodes are amazingly paced

[@cajunking5987]

2:22 I never noticed Garnet’s reaction here. It’s amazing how many details and foreshadowing there is in this show that you can notice even years after

[@wasntdeleted]

When yall gonna finish the first season, you definitely need to react to the extended intro version!!

[@PhoenixMF1986]

Totally kidnapped him and nearly got them both killed. That explosion would have poofed her and killed him and then she would have shattered on impact. Crazy

[@dragogy]

i always LOVE watching the steven universe reactions. i’m not very observant when watching anything so hearing the discussions brought up by both of you guys really are insightful to me ❤️

[@rosecollins5465]

I just binge-watched this entire series today. I am so excited to be on this journey with yall!

[@Peridot5xg]

[Greg's heart almost exploded---]

[@cosmosquartz4188]

Im still very surprised that still most ppl still dont get the reference of the warp whistle, its the same notes to the warp whistle song from mario bros 3 and zelda 1 and 2.

[@RealGothGirlHours]

I'm always down to see a bit more discussion on the episodes! Cool video 👍

[@jasmine9581]

HAHA OOPS 6:52 Lol part of me is curious, like-- you could've seen how long it took, maybe let the camera zero in on his leg I always feel awkward watching how long it takes Greg to remember Lol aggressively competent How he doesn't know? Oh yeah intimidating but they also told him not to get involved (1x2) 16:36 I never in my life of reaction watching have noticed that Well I mean- I was already looking at his feet wondering if I could recolor some stills where he's not red af And she's fasted alone?? 18:54 seatbelt like (...Steven turned around at some point?)

[@unsoundmethodology]

Aside from Greg's lapse in judgement here, he's a pretty great dad and a good guy. I'm not sure I can come up with a better dad in western animation, but that may be because there's kind of a low bar. (Now, I maintain that the best dad in anime is Genya Nakajima, from the _Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha_ series; he shows up in the "StrikerS" season and really goes above and beyond as an _adoptive_ parent. I'm speaking a bit obliquely so as to not spoil things too badly, but when we meet him he's a single father to two girls who have, shall we say, special needs, and later adopts more, and creates a really great and loving family environment.) For sheer characterization, I love the moment when Steven and Greg have made blowtorch sandwiches and they're both happily eating - and Pearl is just sitting with them, pointedly _not_ eating, but enjoying their company.

[@ArbazKhan-iz8oz]

9:20 There is a sailor moon manga there

[@mistingwolf]

Oh, episodes 25 & 26 aren't in the playlist.... Gotta go find it. XD

[@SleepyTaafey]

Love this series

[@tequilalong4345]

They're coming 💎 💎 💎 💎

[@maxdon2001]

Great reaction! I really like episode 28!

[@CJBurgandy]

I love Greg as a character, but I'm not sure about a dad tier list until after Alec sees SU Future. His ranking changed for me after that. (for better or for worse, can't say because we don't wanna spoil Alec ;) now do we?)

[@TGOArchive]

I forgot how great this show was…

[@scarecrow108productions7]

15:35 About what Pearl asked about is actually spot-on and a real thing too! Because there is actually an *"F-1 Liquid-Fueled Rocket Engine"* that exists IRL. The world's biggest rocket engine ever built by Rocketdyne. And it's the very same rocket engine that propelled the *Saturn-V Rocket* that was used in NASA's *"Apollo Space Program"* in the late 60s to 70s. Afterall, the episode was entitled *"Space Race"* which is also a reference to the US and USSR's rivalry in the Space Race early on in the cold war era. Kudos to such creative writing for this episode of getting it right and such attention to detail. 🤩😁😄 But if we're talking realistic rocket science in the SU timeline, here's what I'm gonna say to Pearl: "Sorry P, but the Rocketdyne F-1 is no longer in production and long since...obsolete since the Apollo Space Program closed after the late 70s. But if you are indeed looking for rocket engines, I'd highly recommend the *Aerojet-Rocketdyne RS-25s* instead. Same rocket that powered the Space Shuttle and the new SLS (Space Launch System) for NASA's Artemis Space Program. That is if you can get your hands on those rocket engines, Pearl..." 😉

[@humayazdani554]

Now ik why he did this to pretend it was bc he wanted to spend time with his son but yeh kinda selfish bc he needs his healing power and steven wanna protect everybody but stil i understand why he did this😢 ❤

[@hibaum6555]

Good Show

[@Meamery]

Omg I’m first and I really liked this reaction 😊