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Have you ever looked at two shows and thought that they would work great together? Whether its the premise or the characters they have, you just think these two shows would go together like peanut butter and jelly. However, that dream PB&J crossover sandwich can never happen for one reason or another. Fortunately, the power of fandom’s and the Internet can change that. For my next fan fiction pick, this is one such case where we get the sandwich. Only the peanut butter and jelly’s made from two bright stars.

Oh, and if the timing doesn’t make it obvious, this is to commemorate the finale to Steven Universe! In addition, minor spoilers regarding this story.

Believe in the Weird and the Wild

Author: 616MCU

Type of Fan Work: Crossover

First Published: June 17, 2017

Status: Ongoing

Synopsis

Growing up as the princess of the Kingdom of Mewni, Star Butterfly was no stranger to amazing things in life. But nothing could have been more amazing then when she found a baby boy with a gem in his stomach in the woods. She knew right away that he was special, and when she saw he could use magic like her family, her eyes filled with her namesake. All she could ask her parents was one thing:

“Can I keep him?”

Everyone happily welcomed the newest member of the Butterfly family, little Quartz Universe Butterfly, but none more so than Star. These two bright stars would spend their days together as brother and sister. That is, until a whirlwind of events lead to Star being sent to Earth. What no one knows is how strong the bond between these two is, or Quartz’s connection to Earth. Together, the two stars of Mewni will change their world in ways they can’t even begin to imagine.

Basic Exposition

As a crossover story, Believe in the Weird and the Wild combines the worlds of Star vs. and Steven Universe into one. In this story, Rose Quartz was not only the protector of Earth. She found a way to travel to other dimensions and became friends with the Magic High Commission and the Butterfly family. Known as the Rose Guard, she was one of Mewni’s greatest heroes. Thus, when Star finds baby Steven/Quartz in the woods, Moon takes him in as her son.

How Steven wound up on Mewni, I don’t know. However, I think it will be explained in time.

Perfect Blend of Two Shows

Steven Universe and Star vs. have several basic premises in common. Firstly, they draw influence from shonen and magical girl anime. Secondly, they take place in vast worlds with detailed backstories and filled with magical beings. Finally, at their heart, they share a lot of the same morals about choosing love over hatred and to not judge people for being different.

Thus far, 616MCU does a good job of blending both shows together to create that PB&J crossover sandwich I mentioned. Instead of Beach City, though, Echo Creek is the main Earth setting and now home to the human characters of both shows. Save for Connie (yes, she’s in this) and cameos, they have yet to make any meaningful appearances. To be fair, though, that’s because the story’s still in the first season of both shows. I think it will grow as time goes on.

Star and Steven, the Two Bright Stars

Even with all the crazy events in the story, the main focus remains on the relationship between Star and Steven. The two bright stars of the story, the two are inseparable and mean the world to each other. Rather than keep them the same as they are in show, the author goes the extra mile to show how being in each other’s lives affects their growth.

Star has the most notable personality changes of the two. As a result of having a little brother who looks up to her, she’s slightly more mature early on. She takes being a sister very seriously and tries to balance her desire to impress her brother with her desire to keep him safe. Steven/Quartz is the catalyst for her to become better earlier on, like how Marco was in the show.

Steven, or Quartz as he’s first known, starts the story largely the same as what we first see in his show. He’s got a big heart and wants to help everyone he meets, loves his adoptive family and idolizes his sister and the Rose Guard. At the same time, he’s getting to the age where he wants to find his own identity outside of his sister and make his own friends. He loves Star and her antics, but even he needs a break sometime!

Right now, though, their relationship is as strong as they come. Given what they go through in their shows, this could end up helping them a lot with any emotional scars. If it gets as far as Future, then I hope it helps them out. Heaven knows Steven needs help with what he may go through.

Two Worlds, One Family, One Steven

Steven is, for lack of a better term, the glue that binds the two worlds of the show together. In the show, he becomes what connects the Diamonds and Crystal Gems together. I hope he does in this story, but he’s already becoming this for the Butterflies and Crystal Gems.

I could tell that Steven/Quartz has a positive impact on Star’s immediate family. Firstly, having him around helps Star to mature faster than she initially does (not by much, but it’s a start). River gets someone to spend time with him on his “lectures”. Best of all, his calming presence seems to help Moon relax more and not be as uptight. As a result, she’s a lot more tolerant of Star’s antics. In other words, he’s helped Star’s family grow closer as a whole.

Then we eventually get the Crystal Gems. The story’s only just started to feature them, but it seems like they have more problems than they had in Steven Universe. Not knowing where Steven was all this time has led to some strain between them. When they meet Star’s family, they’re very angry and aggressive. Star even considers Pearl to be like her mom, only way more uptight. How their relationship will develop, I do not know, but am eager to find out!

A Great Story of Two Great Shows

As a fan of both shows, I love Believe in the Weird and the Wild. It takes two shows that mesh so well together and gives us something new and unique. At the same time, it retains enough to keep each property recognizable for the fans. It’s both new and exciting while also familiar enough to follow along! That’s a tough balancing act for a crossover!

The best part to all of this is that I have no idea how this will end up impacting the ending to both shows. Which one will end first? Will they wind up mirroring the show’s endings or create a new, cooler one? It’s the uncertaintity that makes me want to know more!

With Steven Universe: Future ending tonight, I think now’s the time when fans will start looking for good fan works to fill the void left behind. When that happens, I cannot recommend Believe in the Weird and the Wild enough. Two bright stars that will change their world forever.

Special thanks to Gogola for getting me this fan art done in time for the finale. If you haven’t already, go check them out on Instagram. They’re big fans of Star vs. and Steven Universe and they accept payment for commissions!

Click here to see more of Gogola’s work

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We all knew that this day was coming, people. After seven years of fun, music, and intense emotional growth, Steven Universe is ending its run on Cartoon Network. I cannot overstate the importance of this show. It’s one of the best cartoons ever made and serves as an icon for the LGBT+ community. I stand by my previous statement about the movie: it should be made into a Broadway Musical. However, if this recent interview with Rebecca Sugar is any indication, we will be seeing more of Steven Universe in the future. It’s the kind of franchise that’s just too good to be left idle.

Enough about that, though! We’re hear to talk about the trailer for the last ten episodes of Steven Universe Future.

Steven’s Anger Issues Worsen

When we last left Steven Universe, his emotional state was becoming progressively worse. Now that everyone else seems to have grown and no longer needs his help, he’s lost and confused. Combine that with his lingering issues regarding his mother, and he’s an emotional wreck. As we see in this trailer, he’s starting to further retreat from his loved ones, which is only making things worse!

So far, Steven Universe Future has been what happens when a hero who’s focused on saving others for so long, he doesn’t know what else to do. My guess, is that he’s going to learn what may be his hardest lesson of all: how to accept help from others.

A Brighter Future

Despite how bad things may seem, I am confident that Steven will be able to overcome them. In a way, he’s actually the last person on the show that needs help, and the one who needs it the most. For all the growing we’ve seen him do, he’s still dealing with the legacy of his mom and trying to figure out his place in the world. When this show started, Steven was just a boy, and here he is on the verge of adulthood. The end of the show will not be the end of Steven Universe.

As for me, I’m only sorry I didn’t start the show at the beginning like so many others did. I missed out on a heck of ride, but I’m glad I got to see the tail end. And I plan on reviewing it to the end!

A Little Surprise

I got a little surprise in the pipeline for Steven Universe, by the way. Expect it by the time the next episode of Steven Universe Future comes out.

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Steven Universe: Future, Episodes 7-8 Review

We all knew that this day would come, but that doesn’t make it any less sad in the end. One of the big themes behind Steven Universe has been characters learning how to grow and change, usually for the better. However, when kids get older, that means they have to deal with boring adult stuff. Now we have to watch as Steven Universe almost falls victim to adulting; and he’s only a teenager!

“Snow Day”

Back when the show first started, Steven was the one who was trying to spend time with the Gems, who were busy with their work. With Earth at peace and Steven running Little Homeschool, the Gems have little to do. Thus, in an ironic reversal, they try hanging out with Steven. Unforutnately, it seems they haven’t fully accepted the fact that Steven has grown beyond cheeseburger backpacks and dogcopter. He wants to focus on Little Homeschool.

When a snow day ends up stranding everyone at home, the Gems take drastic measures to connect with him: STEVEN TAG! The Gems even resort to using fusion to catch him, which we can recognize as taking things too far. In the end, Steven has to flat-out tell them that he doesn’t like them seeing him as a kid still, and the four reconcile.

Steven’s been through more in his 17 years of life than most people go through in their lifetimes. Needless to say, this has led him to mature a lot. aturing isn’t a bad thing, but Steven’s spending so much time adulting that he’s forgotten what it’s like to have fun and be a kid. Thankfully, the Gems are able to remind him something that I think a lot of adults need to remember: that growing up doesn’t mean having to get rid of our childhoods altogether. That’s why I keep watching cartoons even though I’m an adult: it helps keep me in touch with my childhood!

“Why So Blue”

Despite though they’re some of the best characters on the show, Steven Unvierse: Future hasn’t really given much of a chance to focus on secondary characters like Peridot and Lapis. Thankfully, this episode gives Lapis some much-needed focus as we see how far she’s come since meeting Steven.

Steven and Lapis travel to another planet when they hear of two Gems who are still destroying worlds. As it turns out, they’re Lapis Lazuli’s (who I will be calling “Curls” and “Freckles” for convenience’s sake). They enjoy their job of smashing things, thus they question why they need to stop. They have no regard for other life-forms, and they prove hard for Steven to get through to.

In the end, it’s Lapis who does more to get through to her counterparts, while also showing how far she’s come. We never know what she was like before arriving on Earth. Judging by her reaction to Curls and Freckles, though, she was a lot like them. It dredges up some uncomfortable memories, especially when she has to resort to violence to subdue them. It works, but only because they think she’s strong, while Lapis think it’s weakness.

In the end, like with Bluebird, Steven seems to fail with changing Curls and Freckles. It’s a bitter pill to swallow, but it reminds us how far Steven’s helped the Gems come. In addition, the episode ends on a hopeful note, as Freckles decides to try out Little Homeschool.

Growing Up vs. Growing Older

The main theme of these episodes seem to be looking at how much the cast has changed over the years. Everyone who’s watched the show long enough has noticed everyone’s character development, but it can be so subtle at times that we don’t always notice it. Seeing where Lapis and Steven came from puts how far they’ve come into perspective. Since the main plot of the series seems to be behind us, epilogue moments like this help to tie up all the loose ends of the series. Few shows seem to do that, and it’s why I like Steven Universe.

I Give “Snow Day” and “Why So Blue?” each a 4/5

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My Spoiler Review for Steven Universe: The Movie

Six years and five seasons since it started, and Steven Universe is an undisputed global phenomenon. It’s easy to see ehy: great characters, catchy songs and dances, and as I said in my article on the subject, it’s done a lot to help LGBT portrayals in kids cartoons. Now it’s got a hit musical film that everyone’s been talking about.

Quick Warning: there are going to spoilers ahead. So if you haven’t seen the movie, then read my spoiler free review and go see the movie.

Last Warning. Good

Two years have passed, and life’s going great for Steven Universe. The Diamonds are learning to be nicer, the uncorrupted Gems are building a home on Earth, and peace reigns across the galaxy. It seems like Steven’s days of dealing with his mom’s (many) mistakes are done.

That’s when mysterious, yet silly, new Gem called Spinel shows up, and she’s got a grudge with Pink Diamond. Before Steven can react, this new Gem’s uses a mysterious weapon to poof the Crystal Gems. When they come back out, they have none of their memories: they’re basically reset to default mode. Worse, Steven has no control over his powers at all, and there’s a giant drill pumping death poison into the planet. Now Steven has to get his friends to remember who they are and save the world, while singing!

New Look to an Old Trope

While the amnesia story may not seem wholly original, it works well considering how it’s Steven Universe. Rebecca Sugar got the idea after she accidentally reset her smartphone back in 2015. Losing her early work for the show and the photos she took with the crew made her realize how big a role our experiences play in molding who we are. Without them, we see that the Crystal Gems have little to distinguish them from the rest of Gemkind.

Luckily, Steven realizes, with some help from a now-reset Spinel, that the key is to recreate the pivotal moments in the Gems lives. It makes the movie feel like a pseudo-microcosm of the show, reminding us of where the characters started from and just how much they’ve changed in five seasons.

At its heart, I think there are two themes at the heart of Steven Universe: love, and the many forms it takes, and change. Before Steven, Gem Society was more or less static, as unchanging as the Gems were un-aging. Steven’s a Gem that can grow and change and be who he wants, which makes him so revolutionary. He’s what drives the Crystal Gems and eventually all of Gem Society to change. The movie’s a condensed version of the impact he’s had on his friends, how they’ve impacted him , and changed for the better since the show began.

Pokes A Hole in The Show’s Idealism

Steven Universe has always portrayed change as a positive thing, something to make people better. This movie pokes a giant hole in that logic with its villain, Spinel. Once a happy-go-lucky Gem, she was Pink Diamond’s best friend and playmate. When Pink got Earth, though, she didn’t just abandon her: she lied and told her to stand still until she came back. So when she found out Pink started her new life on Earth with new friends, and now no longer existed, she’s mad. So she decides to get revenge on Pink’s other friends and her son.

The show’s made it clear that Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz made a lot of mistakes and did some bad things, but this takes the cake. Steven even admits that it’s something his mom would do. Then he ends up almost doing the exact same thing. He gets Spinel to stop the drill, but then ignores her. He’s too focused on his happily ever after, and Spinel even calls him out on his selfishness.

For all the show’s focus on change, Steven’s ironically fallen into the same trap the Diamonds were in. By the time of the film, he wants things to stay that way forever. He forgot what it means to change, and thus screws up with Spinel. That almost costs him everything.

Steven Universe: The Movie’s Lesson

That, to me, is the ultimate lesson of Steven Universe: The Movie. No matter how perfect things may get, things won’t stay the same forever. Once Steven accepts that, and that there may always new hardships on the horizon, he gets his powers back.

The movie then ends how’d you expect. Spinel’s redeemed and the Diamonds adopt her since they see so much of Pink in her, Steven and the others rebuild Beach City, and everyone accepts that there will always be more challenges ahead. And I think they’re fine with that, just like I am.

Steven Universe could’ve easily ended with A Battle of Heart and Mind with everyone getting their happily ever after. Steven Universe: The Movie shows the world, though, that Rebecca Sugar and the crew are not only willing to continue the show, but they’re willing to try new things. Rebecca Sugar has more adventures planned.

Bottom line, I loved this movie, I’d pay money to see it adapted onto Broadway, and I want to see it won an Emmy next year.

I Give “Steven Universe: The Movie” a 5/5.