What Happened to Steven Universe's Style?

[@Chiheb9]

Something I've noticed about the original pilot's artstyle is that it fits very well with other 00s cartoons. I can relate to the fact that the original style just has a certain appeal to it.

[@Frogadier_00]

Ikr? Honestly I would've liked it a lot more if it was in the pilot style lol

[@vincentgeneralcaptain4241]

I like both styles,but is it necessarily better one than the original series?Both styles have beautiful tones and effects.But the case is what we are using the style for.

[@dankygongalis9386]

HERO

[@RockyRakoon]

I guess that’s because it takes years to develop a proper cartoon and make a pilot for it.

[@SomeStrangeBirdGuy]

I liked the style in the series better

[@kennethfajardo9102]

I like both styles for certain reasons, the pilot has a lot more intricate designs, but I love pastel colors.

[@Saturn.098]

yeaa

[@joydanleigh7711]

yea the pastels🌷🍄🌸

[@ytlokop]

I feel like if SU was aimed towards an older audience, this art style would be great!

[@tevineleven11]

Forgot how much Steven looked like a small middle aged man in the pilot

[@veracaide1373]

Same 😭

[@IThinkIFuckedUpSomehow]

tbh yea

[@lukaspatrickson4776]

George Constanza but with a wig

[@chocobun4879]

Not rlly he looked like a normal chubby boy. Chubby kids exist and they don’t all look like models in the face

[@whizz_0711]

@@chocobun4879 they weren’t even talking about weight y you bringing weight into this? He’s also chubby in the current one

[@TECH097]

Without making this into a "which is better" argument, one thing I ADORE about the pilot is how dark and muted the colors are despite how COLORFUL the pallet is. It's a very unique balance that in spite of what many people could determine as "too bleak/murky", manages to pop in spite of it all!

[@GumSkyloard]

Yeah! It's muted, sure, but it's still so varied when it comes to its colour palette! It's beautiful!

[@batalayar]

I don't think it's muted for the reason, this happens because of the old recording of the TV stream. I will not be surprised, if the pilot is the same as the release.

[@fool4343]

i think steven universe is the reason i adore pastels. but the animatic is very beautiful too! both bc of designes and palette. i love them both

[@fool4343]

@@cajunking5987 no, havent been for 2 years, sorry

[@fool4343]

@@cajunking5987 are you ok

[@thetypicallifeofcousins2703]

“Kids don’t really wanna see their favorite characters cry their eyes out at the sight of their family getting destroyed...” *Me, who grew up watching Star Wars: The Clone Wars:* Are you sure about that?

[@rabiez_luvr6910]

*Me, who grew up watching this:* Are you sure about that?

[@Maretoast]

Why not booth, because I love booth

[@ratticusthewinion]

me growing up watching LOTR and reading greek tragedies: i beg your fucking pardon?

[@rosequartz4708]

Me, who grew up watching anime: Have you ever watched Land of the Lustrous?

[@totimajinesthngz1541]

Lol little me’s favorite part of Tangled the movie being when Eugene got stabbed and Rapunzel had to heal him, liking (og) Teen Titans, ATLA, Gravity Falls, OTGW, watched Black dynamite, the Boondocks and took an avid interest in Attack on Titan when it started airing on Adult Swim/ Toonami and Coraline/Monster house things of the like I think kids are a lot more interested and capable of handling deeper/darker/more intense topics than we give them credit for. Everything doesn’t have to be utterly gory and sexual for the adults and everything doesn’t have to sugar coated and dumbed down for kids and sometimes the young adults/teens/late adolescence want things by and/or for them sometimes.

[@graguu]

I get MAJOR 80’s vibes from the pilot. I feel like it’s a perfect blend of the retro and modern styles and would have loved to see the show drawn like that. I wonder what Rose would look like!!! Also Garnet’s hair in the pilot was AMAZING. I think the sleekness of her hair accentuates her curves and adds some variety to her look.

[@joydanleigh7711]

yeah your absolutely right about the 80s vibes❤️💙💚💛

[@zenzonerzz4789]

I prefer the newer version much more. The newer version focuses alot more on color and color combinations. Colors can be used to make the audience feel emotions and steven universe focuses on emotions alot. The older version, while detailed, looks washed out and feels like it's trying to be edgy which steven universe isn't about. That op was bomb tho, i liked that. But still the newer version just fits steven universe, as an artform and storytelling method, much better than the original.

[@greendecepticon6148]

Plus I would say that gems look more alien in the newer sytle while older ones just look like colored humans that in cans of paint.

[@idxrk_rxsesi143]

Okay

[@alexyz9430]

Okay

[@justicejackson8585]

I disagree. The newer style just emulated every other cal arts cartoon. I liked how proportionate the old style was.

[@zenzonerzz4789]

@@justicejackson8585 you can think the old style looked aesthetically better, but looking better isn't always the main goal. As a style, it did not fit steven universe and it's story. I truly cannot imagine steven universe's story being told in this artstyle. The cal arts style is also used alot for a reason, it's easy and expressive to animate and it can easily use many colors without it looking weird or overblown. And it can do all that while not needing much time to animate(as opposed to other styles atleast). While steven universe might have the cal arts style, imo it saves itself by having unique and beautiful backgrounds and environments. There are so many steven universe shots that are like pc background worthy, they really figured out how to use and blend colors in such a beautiful way while keeping a geometrical look in some of their backgrounds.

[@sunny_shinyyy]

I’ve always thought, how cool would the other characters look in this style? Especially the antagonists, imagine seeing jasper with a more uncanny look, or the diamonds looking like nightmares.

[@wastelandgames9409]

That would be awesome

[@sakareeh]

The diamonds were objectively beautiful In canon tho

[@whalewolf7477]

Yeah the diamonds would be more perfectly gorgeous in this style. They are the most perfect beings

[@enamis1]

The full show style was never 'bad' despite what people say, but by GOD did it deteriorate over the seasons to where it was basically a caricature of itself

[@poofan5086]

do you mind expanding on this? just curious since im not 100% sure what you mean on the latter part-

[@AerrisGShep]

Personally I feel like it's the other way around, the style was kind of sloppy and not as detailed or refined in the first season compared to what it progressed into

[@JotkaJulitkaJula]

@@poofan5086 no model sheets and lazy storyboards resulted in characters changing proportions, colors, heights and many, many, many animation errors.

[@poofan5086]

@@JotkaJulitkaJula yeah most of the storyboards were freehand iirc

[@bigbangpegasusmaster]

looking back, s1 is by far the best the show looked

[@KeeKage37]

To answer you’re question at the end. I kinda think the style we got fits Perl better. While the original style definitely made Perl more round, befitting the style of a Perl. I think the one we got better represents her personality of being a uniform neurotic neat freak.

[@BambamTheFizzle]

Yes, her name isn’t Pearl, it’s Perl.

[@sailorsagittarius8526]

Both are the same from the name cause it is similar to Perle which means Pearl.

[@ChloroPhobeTarantino]

"So they can pump out episodes as fast as possible." About that...

[@juliannaapril104]

*laughs*

[@coffeechaosart]

i didn't have to deal with the wait...by the time i was introduced to the show it was as a day by day countdown to the start of the long awaited season hahahahaha you poor souls!

[@josesosa3337]

Oh god. I watched this show as it released!! I want my life back!!

[@LuznoLindo]

​@@juliannaapril104 Sad thing is most episodes won't even worth the wait.

[@jamaisvudoo541]

5:40 what i love about the original palette was that it was jewel tones. JEWEL TONES!! FOR A SHOW ABOUT GEMSTONES!! LITERALLY PERFECT!! not only that but jewel tones are just so alluring

[@lotusdragonjbh]

God i loved the original pilot's Art style. The designs , clothing, background, the detailed, how the facial express , i really like how deep and earthy the colors feel too. and the proportions, I liked the proportions as well, im glad you mentioned it. I also like the CONSISTENCY. I wonder what the show would be like if they stuck to this style? I wish the stuck with it, I think I wanna make a work inspired by the art style.

[@GumSkyloard]

If Steven Universe kept the Pilot art-style and general tone, it would've been a much darker, grittier show, for sure.

[@cpprclrd8790]

@@GumSkyloard plus it was originally supposed to be on adult swim

[@GumSkyloard]

@@cpprclrd8790 Doubt that.

[@michia3765]

Finally! Someone who praised the Pilot artstyle

[@ayamothy4628]

I honestly wish the whole show looked like this

[@skyeplayswithanimation5704]

@@ayamothy4628 Then animate it like that. What people don't get is how hard animation is. Especially when it's this detailed

[@ayamothy4628]

@@skyeplayswithanimation5704 I wasn’t saying “I want them to redo the animation 😡” I know how hard animation is. I practice it myself. I just like the style and wanted to see it like this throughout the whole thing

[@skyeplayswithanimation5704]

@@ayamothy4628 I'm sorry for misunderstanding then.

[@ayamothy4628]

@@skyeplayswithanimation5704 it’s all good. Sorry if I sounded aggressive

[@EnnuiOwO]

Both styles are nice, but the old one has this... feel to it. It feels older almost? Maybe nostalgic is a better word. It feels more like a cartoon you'd see as a kid that you'd have fond memories of. It makes me think of the 80s/90s for some strange reason. The new style feels much more polished and simplistic, but polished in a way where it doesn't have the same amount of personality. ALSO: I love the symbolism of Garnet at 2:00! Such subtle foreshadowing, and it's cool to see that they had the idea of fusion from the very beginning.

[@GumSkyloard]

It reminds me of some shows from the early 2000s, mainly Code Lyoko, due to the muted color palette and somewhat detailed backgrounds.

[@tuney7319]

I have the rare opinion that I genuinely love the current style more, mainly because i think it’s a lot more aesthetically pleasing, more colourful, the backgrounds have far more personality, as for the characters i think the gems in the pilot just look like cosplayers who got lost on their way to comic-con and not as alien, also i looooove when characters ignore physics just to show emotions, like when their eyes become gigantic and their eyes get tiny or when their mouths get really big when they smile, I literally stole half of my artstyle from the current style, but as you said it’s very subjective

[@brimmedhathoe4392]

Same same!!!

[@stevenuniversefan108]

I think they made the new art style simplified for a clean and simple look that'll attract children. I do like the designs in the pilot, especially pearl. I love pearls hair in the pilot so much, but I don't know why they gave her and amethyst ears whilst the gems usually don't have ears.

[@liviwaslost]

@@stevenuniversefan108plus, the backgrounds in the current style look a lot better. They may have less detail, but they utilize color a lot better. Plus, I like how in the current style they utilize black lines sparingly. This makes the backgrounds and other things look less sloppy, less clutter and adds more complexity.

[@YvngKrishna]

Same here, the colors on the pilot also kinda feel mucky and not connected to me

[@Revsoshi]

I think if SU had a style like this we wouldn't be going through this SU/Calarts art style people constantly pull out of their asses whenever they see a art style they don't like.

[@adeptdamage3669]

A lot of the shows did look samey but "Cal-Arts" is a poor term for it.

[@lehahiah81]

@@adeptdamage3669 That term is only used because it's recognizable, and people automatically know what you mean. Another term I've heard is bean people(referring to the shape of the head and mouth.

[@jonasmaynard1138]

I really loved Steven he made me feel happy cuz he was more chubby than the super fit characters of other shows it really helped with self esteem a few years back

[@KeeKage37]

I feel like the key word you’re looking for in this is “Test audiences.” I really wonder what kind of people companies bring in to think represents all audiences. Because sometimes it boggles the mind with what they think we want.

[@wastelandgames9409]

I know right, which is why i think the best test audience is the internet because there are so many different types of people online if something is liked by a majority of people then it's likely very good

[@Koenna99]

I'm kinda conflicted on which art style I like more, I kinda equally like and dislike aspects of each and I guess maybe my 'perfect' version for this show would have been something in between the pilot and the end product

[@toastedcockroach7848]

I love the look of the old style it has kinda a nostalgig feeling

[@awkwardorangedrawz5914]

I remember when the pilot first aired on 2011 or 2012. I was fascinated and adored the art style. I loved the intricate details, more realistic body proportions, and the more serious tone. That must be a little weird since I was so young - 7, 6, or 8 something like that. When the show started promoting it in 2013 with the new art style... I didn't like it because I liked the original pilot. I still like the art style of the show we got now... But I kinda wish the pilot and the show that we got was mashed together. Still keeping the relatively normal proportions and intricate details. But, adding the more pastel color palette and among other things.

[@halojoe1028]

I've never watched Stephen universe but I'm considering watching this pilot just to see what it's about

[@Revsoshi]

It's actually pretty good. Not the best but not as bad as people like to make it out to be

[@beedoesthings8037]

The show is actually really good, I think. The first episode was weak, but it was a necessary introduction to the word. I can’t imagine jumping right into Laser Light Canon as the first episode. It’s a little too dark and serious for a first episode, but it was an excellent second episode.

[@alooqualufgh]

Steven*

[@rocketleax5]

@@beedoesthings8037 Actually as a kid my first episode was Laser Light Cannon and I had a blast watching it.

[@OldTimeyDragon]

I overall like the finished show's style better; I think the simplicity leads to easier to digest character designs that makes them really nice to look at. But what I love about the pilot's style are the incredibly vibrant colors, as well as the various visual effects such as smoke or mist having a really intense level of detail.

[@JohnTaco]

Imagine how insane the fights and serious story moments could have been in this style...

[@dannyeli6288]

It probably would have gotten cancelled after the first season for being more expensive to produce

[@JohnTaco]

@@dannyeli6288 unfortunate but true

[@Serje1227]

While I am a fan of the pilot, I will politely disagree about the tone. To me, it was really in line with a typical season 1 Steven Universe episode which had more than a few horrifying moments themselves

[@ricegorm]

Yeah absolutely. I'm still messed up by the cat fingers episode. Sends shivers down my spine just thinking about it lmao

[@bobtheball5384]

Or Steven getting old..bro wtf

[@GumSkyloard]

Yeah, a lot of Season 1A was very unexpectedly dark for some reason. Cat Fingers, So Many Birthdays, Steven and the Stevens,

[@eniryuuoke7446]

Ah okay.. I haven’t seen EVERY episode of Steven universe but I feel like I’ve seen a good amount of it and I was scratching my head wondering what she was talking about everytime she kept saying the Steven Universe we got didn’t have that tone or how “kids don’t want to see their favorite character crying their eyes out” … I was thinking “am I crazy? Are we talking about the same show here??” 🤨

[@GumSkyloard]

@@eniryuuoke7446 Not just that, but some early episodes are straight up lovecraftian horror in nature.

[@cretinouscretin9677]

I really dig the meatiness of Sugar’s style. Pity none of that made it into the show.

[@drewbrown3116]

indeed, raw Rebecca Sugar in this indeed, although some at least made it (note some)

[@palanquinnn]

Steven actually looks his age in the pilot unlike in the show where he looks like a 9 year old for the whole entire 5 seasons

[@pseudoplotinus]

I think it was just the youthfulness powers from the gem he had

[@oopsie_gacha]

The whole point is that Steven doesnt age like normal kids. In one of the birthday episodes, you can see greg looking through the picture book of past years and every picture looks like same after age 8/9 and he was turning 14 that year

[@lessalazar9068]

Tbf, one episode did address Steven not appearing to age.

[@MewDenise]

Yeah "adult cartoons" always seem to choose ugly. That's why I like Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel. Helps that I love black and red like... where these shows made for just me? Lol! xD

[@cheek3664]

The best art style imo is the Movie/Future one, The Pilot is cool and the original to just too inconsistent at times

[@IDKman5020]

I forget the names of the thing but Steven universe a two different groups that would animate episodes which is why proportions were always differing

[@juliannaapril104]

Nah the story boarders just didn’t do their job right

[@annaking7593]

@@juliannaapril104 I think thats what theyre getting act because most of the storyboarding for the show was done by different groups and like you said they may not have communicated well enough when working on the show and its design

[@juliannaapril104]

@@annaking7593 their story boards looked like shit so the animators gave them shit 😔

[@cameroncooper5941]

Having only seen brief glimpses of the pilot, I always thought it looked ugly, but you honestly sold me on the style it used.

[@peterclaymore2239]

King of the hill is better then people give it credit for. The fact that it’s not a live action sit-com with a laugh track helps tremendously, not to mention its nuanced in its approach to mature subjects like Gun control, the importance of family, the generation gap between said family’s. I highly implore people give king of the hill a shot because it’s so very under appreciated

[@raiinefall]

I watched it as lot as a kid and enjoyed it, even if I truly didn't understand it

[@_____________a_a]

Yeah, they weren’t super about sex, drugs, and violence.

[@ProxyDoug]

It kinda reminds me of how much Bee and Puppycat changed from the pilot to the series. I couldn't bring myself to watch the series since it too so long to come out after the pilot, so the style and feel of the pilot (which to me was much closer to Scott Pilgrim vs The World, while the series is a lot more like Steven Universe) was too firmly imprinted on my mind.

[@iloveyouacetrappola]

have you seen lazy in space?? i love the new artstyle so much and the colors are beautiful

[@RedMouthSmileAndFreedom]

We can see how fond of og pearl Rebecca was because when we first see her reforming one of the outlines that form matches the pilot's style

[@ficklearc2622]

The official style is just much more pleasing to the eye. I think it’s just fun and cute and makes watching the show a much more fun experience

[@lazycat3179]

This is why I like RWBY so much. It’s too dark to be a kid’s show, but it doesn’t have to get gory or very sexual to be seen as an adult or y/a type of show.

[@chideraomeh]

The show kinda lost me during seasons 4-6, and I'm slowly getting back into it with 7-8, but that's exactly why I loved season 3, it seemed like a cartoon for 15-22, not babish, not American dad Esque humor

[@lazycat3179]

@@chideraomeh yeah, I see where you’re coming from. Volume 4 is actually my favourite volume, but it definitely has its flaws. Volume 3 had a great shock factor, and an interesting setting/idea.

[@chideraomeh]

@@lazycat3179 I can see where you're coming from. 4 took me a while to watch initially, because I got bored, but rewatching it, the lack of action and more storytelling is a nice break

[@SHSLRuby]

@@chideraomeh RWBY is definitely one of those types of shows that are MUCH better on a binge watch After Volume 3, Volume 4 is a nice break to everything, and while 5 is.... not very good, 6, 7, and 8 do a good job getting back into the swing of things

[@rubyy.7374]

“It gets good 100 episodes in I swear!”

[@Peridot5xg]

*[I wonder if they're ever going back with that style...]*

[@OnlyOSpoonFull]

I would love to see a character short or episode with this style But that unfortunately won’t happen :c

[@indorianshell]

Finally someone who likes the Pilot's style !!! It looks so fluid and has texture- I just don't really like Garnet's hair, it doesn't match her personality that I thought it was wet at first

[@MadLover4690]

I would say it should have been long but coiled and poofy; sort of a mixture between ruby and sapphire's hair since without that the only aspect of sapphire that's really present is the third eye, and the slight purple hue to garnet's skin (though shes still mostly red since amethyst is the purple one tbf). The way her hair looked when she first fused made more sense and had more texture to it, now it's a literal freaking block when the other characters have normal looking hair.

[@GlitteringChesh]

The pilot’s art style gave me the heebie geebies when I was a kid. I can’t explain exactly why, but it’s the same feeling I got from shows like rugrats and ren & stimpy. I agree with all your reasons for preferring it, but I can’t shake the discomfort.

[@MTZAnimates]

Oh yeah, same here. I do NOT like the pilot's art style either.

[@Lilmoisesmoonchild]

THIS IS SO TRUE OMG... asa kid i remember finding the og pilot episode when i was in 7th grade and i remember thinking that the art style was ugly... but now im just in love with it! It really shows that the younger audience really does take things in differently bcuz they haven't matured yet.

[@heavenlymistakes1897]

I love both styles-but it I nice blend of both styles could have happened that would have been amazing. The amazing details and proportional bodies(like you said) would help ground it but the colors from the new would help brighten it(I love Lars design in the pilot but I prefer the colors of Lars in the new) I also prefer the temple from the new because it looks bigger and more opposing then the pilot slab thing-it makes you wonder who that could be

[@odasiam6342]

I like the way it’s animated now more because it makes Steven in early seasons feel like a kid but I feel like as the story went on the plot out grew the style and the pilot fits the story as a whole more

[@mericuty]

I think the original style with all the intricate details with the pastels from the newer SU would've looked perfect tbh

[@HeraldofProphecy]

"So we can pump out episodes as fast as possible." Boy, that gave me a laugh.

[@mysticdoctor251]

As someone who grew up with Steven Universe, and as someone who really relate to Steven, I have to say I love both art styles. Even developing my own style that combines both the pilot and the show.

[@ratsandmice1612]

I like the old style way better. The detail is amazing. It's weird, but oddly beautiful

[@poofan5086]

at least in regard to the background drops, i do like how theyre more simplified so your eyes know to focus on the characters and not the intricate walls yk - and when they amp up the details your eyes *are* drawn to them because it's a change from what you're used to if that makes sense,

[@gd8693]

Never ended up watching SU myself, but it's interesting to see this shift between pilot and show. Although, wouldn't Avatar TLA be the show that changed Western animation for kids? Or did SU improve somewhere else?

[@cameroncooper5941]

They both did important things, but in different ways.

[@winterspectre]

I think avatar did more for animation in general, but Steven universe did a lot for representation

[@adeptdamage3669]

Avatar is anime.

[@mooses6]

@@adeptdamage3669 @AdeptDamage anime... as in "animation". The literal point that the commenter was discussing was specific to title of the animated series in reference to its overall assumed effect it had in future animations which drew inspiration from the success of those that came before them. No, they didn't mention the origin of the animation to influence the Western animation, simply that Western animation style WAS influenced. and as for Steven Universe, I would point out that it has many anime-like features such as the GIANT eyes and the use of growing enormous mouths when yelling or other such characteristics... just saying, anime has had plenty of influence upon western animation style but to try to call it of a different category outside of animated cartoons is kind of an absolute reach, as it is literally part of its actual name, ANImeTION..

[@bobtheball5384]

@@adeptdamage3669 Atla was created in the west, that's like saying the boondocks is anime...

[@Echo_Artsist]

This is why I’m excited for bee and puppycat . It’s a show aimed for young adults that addresses issues and the ARTSTYLE is cute and very detailed I love it so much, it’s not ugly!

[@hannahramos9247]

Both designs looked good but, for me liked the newer version cuz it is really umm aesthetically pleasing and i kinda feel some sense of comfort watching it

[@Cable_bun]

The pilots reminds me of 90's anime shows

[@Bloomddd]

I love the pastel colors and simple artstyle of the full show. Steven Universe is kind of a comfort show for me. If it had been a darker overall theme, I couldn't imagine myself binging it over and over again, at least not for the same reasons.

[@Alissi-P]

I literally am obsessed with the pilot. I wish so badly we could've gotten this version of the show

[@SpiralAnimationssssss]

Idk, the current style looks more clean and the background style sometimes reminds me of a corporate art style (while also being very pretty) but the pilot one is much more mature looking, and fitting into that era of CN, or at least the way I saw it when I watched it when I was younger. It also makes the gems seem more human with the clothes choices and the house looking more cozy, while the current style makes them look like more like they _are_ just projections of light. It’s cool though that it’s shown in the scene where pearl, opal and steg sing independent together during the backstory segment that pearl momentarliy in history did take the form of her pilot self, and to me that means the crew know how much the fans like the pilot design and so they decided to incorporate it almost like an Easter egg… while also making it canon

[@bestdadoftheyear7181]

The skull monster from the pilot reminded me soo much of adventure time, like it looks like its literally from adventure time

[@killerscove6340]

How does she not have at least 100k subs she's amazing at what she does

[@thejudgmentalcritter6584]

Oh my god, thank you so much!!!!!

[@michia3765]

That's what I was thinking lol

[@Letcharlieplay2545]

As a viewer, the pilot's art style is wonderful and amazing, as an animator, I cringe thinking about how much time and effort it took to make all those little details by hand- I prefer the end show because ultimately the color scheme, softness, and simplicity is both more appealing to the young audience the show is aimed at and much easier to animate/replicate for other artists and kids.

[@ynntari2775]

The pilot style looks visually polluted and overwhelming. It does look beautiful, but I could easily get distracted or overwhelmed from it and miss the show itself, so simplifying it was accessibility. And also, it is harder and longer to draw, and that is super important for production. And also, it looks much more witchy, magical, mystical, and less alien, technical and tehcnological. The production seemed to have gravitated from the formar to the last, the first season is still coated in magic and mysticals that gradually fade away throughout the show in favour of alien sci-fi.

[@ynntari2775]

I personally prefer the alien sci-fi, it makes me so comfortable and interested, and the simpler desings feel so pleasant and comfy I could watch it all day (in fact, that's exactly what I've been doing today), I could not watch more than 3 pilot-styled episodes in sequence.

[@ynntari2775]

I very definitely also prefer the more pastel colours from the show proper. The flashy saturated colours of the pilot feel so uneasy.

[@ynntari2775]

I think it would be far more difficult to transition the pilot's style from magic to sci-fi and the gems from witchs to aliens

[@ynntari2775]

don't get me wrong, I love seeing the pilot episode, and I do wish we could see more episodes developed for that route, in that style, where would it go, how other characters would look in that style, etc. And I do like to revisit the style from time to time.

[@forwatchingstuff]

i wonder how rose, and the other dimonds would've looked.

[@ofthecaribbean]

We, are the Crystal Gems

[@jk2782]

It's hard to describe, as I didn't watch that many kids shows, but it feels like the execs saw the pilot and thought of adventure time 2, now with gemstones. Like they said yes, then immediately after said "as long as it appeals like adventure time to the kids" and the creator hasn't even heard of adventure time so she watches like 3 episodes of the current series and comes back with the new style. That's just what I think happened though.

[@cookiecat9448]

Rebecca Sugar, the creator of Steven Universe, has worked on Adventure Time before so I don't think she had to watch a few episodes of Adventure Time to change the art style.

[@Rozdlc]

She even helped some of the songs, like Marceline's french fry song. You can even find the demo sung by Rebecca on KZbin.

[@littlemayo7136]

Even when I was a significantly younger child I like the older pilot of Steven universe better and times of art style it looks like a '80s comic book to me and now the art style it is very reminiscent of a bunch of other cartoons art style but Steven universe still manages to be more distinct than those other cartoons but if teen Titans the original series on cartoon Network was so successful Steven universe would have been just as fine kids can handle that art styles are so good they should have can binds on both together in order to make something that captures both positive traits of the other one

[@do11soup94]

in steven universe the movie , when pearl gains her memory back in “independent together” you can see her pilot form for a few sec

[@GumSkyloard]

And same when she reforms in Steven the Sword Fighter!

[@sneakers_smh]

We NEED a re-animated version of this series in the pilots style for young adults

[@issiblissi6167]

Pilot pearl kinda looks like my aunt

[@cheese3708]

lul

[@Alice_So6]

I think the description of what young adult targeted steven universe would have be like fits bee and puppycat pretty well, you should check it out if you haven't,

[@scribblecloud]

i LOVE amethyst's pilot design/outfit, its so cute

[@LJ-vm9rn]

Imagine if SU was picked up by adult swim instead of cartoon network 😭

[@tajdahlart]

I can’t even imagine the beauty and scary darker design that white diamond would have had if they went along with this style like omg I soooo wanna see it. 😢😢 she woulda been breathtaking.

[@minty1691]

Personally, I adore the style that they stuck with. The simple style, the pastel colors, it all just personally appeals to me and is easier on my eyes

[@rainy-matcha]

The official show is the corporate logo redesign of the original pilot

[@ZorimePati]

I discussed this to a board artist for the series and stated the original art style was just Rebecca Sugar own artistic expression and the change was more to accommodate other artists working on the series

[@N3on_r4t]

I really wish they stayed with this style its very creative and i just love it

[@rosewater226]

More detail means more time to draw. Most redesigns of animation is due to increase of ease in drawing for various animators.

[@wifipazwurd6892]

They couldn't do Adult Swim because there are already like twelve different "haha funny alien combat" shows. And besides, by the end of the show, it was incredibly dark and really unsettling, and I feel like the unsettling tones based around Steven LITERALLY COLLAPSING TO THE GROUND, DYING and all that really went well with the goofy squash and stretch. The contrast seemed to really sell it.

[@benceszilagyi8442]

Just a fun detail, I don't think it's means anything, but in the Pilot style, the gems all got a golden star emblem, and, interestingly, if they stand next to each othet, the emblemas are closly on the same level 🤩

[@sicksickBacon]

i loved how pearl looked in the pilot

[@thinehungarianball]

if steven universe stuck with the og look and was adopted to a more mature adult company and keeping the same edge but same funniness it might have actually worked out greatly

[@nugget3878]

Ngl I feel like it would be harder to animat the show like the pilot episode but the fighting scene would look soo much better with the pilot episode style

[@wisgarus]

I'm surprised you didn't mention the super SMOOTH animation in the pilot, as well as just more stuff being animated. Which for my taste is the only big thing the old style had over the new one. It's not rare to find small bits that are kinda choppy or coulda been more smoothly animated in SU as a whole. It's understandable, 100%, but it'd still be cool if we could have butter smooth animation everywhere, even if it's entirely unrealistic xd

[@meghanstanley1765]

You've got to remember, though, that of course the pilot that's probably had a year of dedicated work is going to look a lot more smooth than episode 125.

[@thefantasylife]

pilots tend to be more smoother animated than the main show, as pilots tend to have a higher budget than the average episode in a show. Plus, a pilot has certainly way less time in it than a whole show, meaning you can spend more time per minute animating the pilot than the entire run time of the show. theres multiple factors at play that said... i do really really really love the pilot's smoothness

[@MaelZack]

Original pilot style was something special.

[@Nagasakevideo]

God, I loved the pilot's artstyles so much, I was so sad when the real show came out and it changed. It looked SO GOOD!

[@vortex_ghost9289]

I for one, would love to see the whole series reanimated in the pilot art style, I think it would be incredible

[@onlychrisallthetime]

I preferred the show propper’s use of color more IMO but, the designs were changed so that animation wouldn’t look as choppy

[@Munnwort]

The old artstyle is just so beautiful, I haven’t been able to get it out of my head & it’s been years. thanks for posting this

[@robinwest7531]

I’ve watched the entirety of Steven universe 8 times over and I’ve never seen the original pilot, and all I have to say is that we……were……ROBBED!!!

[@lobotomite4636]

imagine how much better lars and sadies' relationship would have been handled in this style and with a more mature theme

[@ephemeraIl]

7:18 i wish we had THIS. its beautiful

[@PossiblyBean]

The old art style managed to make a 12 year old look like a 120 year old 💀

[@whizz_0711]

I can explain how the pilot has more details than the current one, it’s because the pilot is just a test and when it’s actually gonna become official they would tweak stuff so it would be more animation friendly (as in they don’t have to spend an extended amount of time in animations every small detail)

[@PeriwinkleFairywinkle]

I love the pilot style so much more than the proper but it really would have been too difficult for animators to make a longer show, we probably would have only gotten one season and in between every episode would have been a long hiatus, it just wouldn’t have been practical.

[@nazathelivingcorpse]

tbh it kinda feels like you're saying that the dark vibe the pilot has was completely discarded for the actual show, which is objectively not true if you've watched any season of the show, even the first one. the show gets very edgy at times, it wasn't something that was EXCLUSIVE to the pilot.

[@jmachero5852]

I don't know about you but I found the art style in the final version a bit more appealing and easy on the eyes.

[@Ssjvaca]

Every 5 seconds you go like "I prefer this in the pilot over the show proper, not that there is anything wrong with it" like we understood the first time you said it

[@Dr_Damon_1111]

0:24 really? I hate it

[@nimbusstormysheep9553]

“Kids don’t really wanna see their favorite characters cry their eyes out at the sight of their family getting destroyed” Steven crying for his dad as he's headed toward the human zoo with the gems seemingly poofed: Also those shard experiments in the hospital episode And can we just appreciate how in both art styles the main heroes don't all have the "perfect" body type? I like how the show was actively trying to add diversity and not just doing it for extra views

[@josesosa3337]

I just wish the shows pacing and arcs were better divided/organized between the story board artists so each arc can have its own identity if they still want different art styles. I hope my opinion came across well.

[@user-xtambourineguy]

A detail I love about the pilot is the metal rings around each of the gems signifies it’s place in the diamond hierarchy. Ruby and Pearl are bronze, Amethyst is silver, and Steven is gold.

[@Meela9088]

I prefer the newer designs. Old design makes Steven look like an old man lol