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The Owl House Episode 9 Review

After the events of “I Was a Teenage Abomination,” I was certain that Luz wouldn’t be going to the Boiling Isles version of Hogwarts, Hexside. However, it appears Dana and her team had more to tell with Hexside, as this week’s episode saw her return to the school. In the process, we also got to learn some more about Eda’s increasingly interesting past and set up some plot points for the future.

New Jerk in School

In this episode, Gus’ status as President of the Human Appreciation Society gets threatened by a new student, Mattholomule, who wins everyone over with fake human artifacts. So to one-up him, he sneaks Luz back into Hexside to show her off. Despite being banned from Hexside after her last visit, Gus talks her into it by lying that he got the ban lifted.

We don’t know Gus that well as a character since he’s only been in minor roles until now. However, I found his actions in this episode to be pretty selfish, even if we could understand where he was coming from. People shouldn’t lie to their friends about something like that, especially when it could get them in big trouble. To be fair, though, he was riled up by Mattholomule because he knew he was a fraud.

Mattholomule is like a younger version of Stan Pines, having the same charisma, but none of the character traits that made the latter a lovable rogue. The episode makes it clear that he doesn’t care about the club, only that he wants to cause trouble for the sake of it. The jerk even admits that later in the episode! Add in the fact that he’s named after my least favorite subject in school, and I don’t like him. Here’s hoping we don’t see much of him.

Eda Makes Amends

Meanwhile, the episode’s b-plot sees Eda realize that Luz’s interest in Hexside isn’t going away anytime soon. The witch has made it clear that she distrusts public schools and the Isles’ Coven System, as she thinks they stifle creativity and thinking. Despite this, though, we’ve seen that Eda’s largely failed to keep her promise and teach Luz magic. As a result, Eda decides to swallow her pride and get her enrolled in Hexside.

Truthfully, I was more interested in the episode’s b-plot than I was with what Luz and Gus were doing. At the start of the show, Eda would never consider doing this. The fact that she’s willing to put aside her “beef” with Hexside for Luz’s sake shows just how much she cares about her apprentice, despite how she may act.

As a bonus, we got to learn more about Eda’s past, and as expected, she had quite the reputation! The end credits even show some of her memorable pranks, and they’re hilarious!

Ultimately, Luz ends up getting sent to detention for coming to Hexside, which in the Boiling Isles= Attack of the Pod People! Gus busts her out and takes the blame for the trouble she caused. As a result, Gus is thrown out of the club, and Mattholomule gets to be President. However, Eda was able to talk Bump into letting Luz enroll in the next semester, and he won’t tell the Emperor’s Coven. Eda can’t help but be happy for her apprenctice and trusts her enough to not succumb to the Coven System in place. Which, to me, shows how much Eda cares for her pupil.

Future Hexside Story?

So, this episode wasn’t the most exciting of the series, or the most drama-filled. However, what it does do is open the door to plenty of future stories. In particular, the idea that she’ll study at Hexside hints at the idea that Luz will either continue to stay in the Boiling Isles after the summer ends or will choose to return to it.

At the same time, this also sets up a potentially big problem for Luz down the line. If she stays in the Boiling Isles past the summer, her mom will eventually realize she never went to that dumb camp and become worried. This, in turn, could lead to Luz having to choose between Earth or the Boiling Isles, though I hope it doesn’t come to that.

I Give “Something Ventured, Someone Framed” a 3/5.

Stray Observations

• Eda’s Last Name is Clawthorne

• Ed and Em are in the illusion course.

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Steven Universe Future Episode 13-14 Review

Well, if there was any doubt about it before, then these two episodes pretty much confirmed it: Steven’s life has been pretty traumatic. I daresay it, but the only reason he’s kept it together for so long is because of his large support network. The support network that Steven Universe Future has seen move on without Steven. And last night’s episodes had Steven with a possible loss that brings all his trauma to the forefront: Connie and the potential end to Stevonnie!

Together Forever

Connie has been Steven’s best friend for years, and someone who kept him grounded and stable in the worst of times. They’re also one of the cutest couples in modern cartoons. Heck, the Fusion of Stevonnie’s the physical manifestation of how strong their bond is. Despite last episode affirming that they’ll always have each other, “Together Forever” sees Steven’s fears of losing Connie return with a vengeance. She’s going to college far away, and he has no idea what he wants to do beyond staying with her. So he talks to Ruby and Sapphire about it.

Their advice: propose to her! 

……………..whaaaaatt?

I cannot lie about this: I love Stevonnie, both the ship and the fusion. And I think that the way that Steven proposed to her was the absolute sweetest thing in the world! But I also knew that what Steven was doing was impulsive, reckless, and doomed to fail. Connie realizes, just as I did watching this, that Steven’s trying to use Stevonnie as an emotional crutch. That’s not healthy and will only end badly for both of them. So, even though she acknowledges that she knows Steven will be a part of her future, Connie defers on the decision, for now.

I don’t know what made me feel worse: the fact that Steven’s sweet but misguided proposal failed, or seeing how Steven starts to fall apart emotionally. 

Growing Pains

Continuing into the next episode of “Growing Pains”, Steven’s moping around the house, letting his emotions fester into Pink Steven without any Gems or his dad to help him. As a result, Steven’s body starts growing and mutating, so Connie takes her to her mom. Dr. Maheswaran is able to confirm what we already suspected: all of the fights and events throughout the show have left Steven with untold amounts of stress and emotional trauma. With Connie turning down his marriage proposal, his body’s reacting the only way it knows how: like his life is in danger!

Future of Stevonnie?

It breaks my heart to see Steven going through all of this when he should finally be happy. And I know that it’s only to get worse before it gets better. Regardless, I don’t think Steven’s many friends will ignore his pleas for help when the time comes, so I’m hopeful. And I don’t think this is the end of Stevonnie, either. Connie never said yes, but she didn’t say no, either. So there’s still hope for Stevonnie yet.

Overall, these may be my two favorite episodes of Steven Universe Future yet, and help drive home the fact that this epilogue is an excellent deconstruction of the child hero and the effects it can have.

I Give “Together Forever” and “Growing Pains” Each a 5/5. The stakes have been raised.

Stray Observations

• Noticed how everything from Steven’s proposal had something to do with Steven and Connie’s friendship? So Cute
• I think that someday, Connie will say yes and marry Steven.

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