Steven Universe: Made Of Honor

July 5, 2018 6:12 PM - Season 5, Episode 22

Preparations for the big wedding proceed, but there is an unexpected guest.
posted by JHarris (14 comments total)

The group hug at the end, I cried, I actually cried.

I'm amazed by how right it feels to have Bismuth back in the mix. She was only in one episode, but her presence on the screen is so strong! It just feels like... she SHOULD be there. It feels natural. That's partly due to great writing for Bismuth, but also because Uzo Aduba's voice acting is amazing.

WE NEED AN UPDATED CRYSTAL GEMS THEME SONG WITH BISMUTH AND PERIDOT (AND LAPIS, PRETTY PLEASE) AND HONORARY GEM CONNIE.
posted by duffell at 6:22 PM on July 5, 2018 [8 favorites]

This has been my favorite episode so far in the bomb even though it felt slightly rushed. Bismuth did have a lot to catch up to though.

I'm sad that we didn't get Peridot's reaction to the news that Steven is technically a diamond but I'm still hoping they haven't told her yet.
posted by Memo at 6:35 PM on July 5, 2018 [1 favorite]

ahhh BISMUTH!! what a wonderful surprise! there's a crazy maturity level to Steven realizing that it was time for her to come back, and even if it might be rushed, it still feels so right.

Yeah I'm also waiting on Peridot's reaction, but somehow I feel like it would only be somewhat more emotional than Greg's reaction. She wasn't as invested in Rose as the original team.
posted by numaner at 6:39 PM on July 5, 2018 [2 favorites]

I don't know what it is with how my room gets all dusty when I put SU on.
posted by runcibleshaw at 7:25 PM on July 5, 2018 [4 favorites]

Oh, man, that bomb was awesome.

I'm really happy to see Bismuth again. And yet! Stephen bubbled Bismuth because she tried to kill him because she wanted to kill Gems, which was the same reason that Rose had bubbled her: a fundamental disagreement on strategy and ethics.

Stephen thought Rose was a hypocrite because she shattered Pink Diamond and then bubbled Bismuth for suggesting shattering other gems -- but now we know Rose didn't shatter anyone.

But Bismuth still meant to shatter Gems.

Has Bismuth changed her opinion on how to fight off Homeworld? Stephen still doesn't believe in shattering anyone. Where does this leave them?
posted by suelac at 8:11 PM on July 5, 2018

The bomb isn't over yet. One more episode, tomorrow: "Reunited."
posted by JHarris at 8:53 PM on July 5, 2018

It seems like Bismuth was really thrown back by seeing a corrupted Gem firsthand. She says "I really thought all our problems would disappear if we could just shatter a Diamond... guess she ended up taking my advice." And then looks up at the corrupted Gems, who were hurt because of that decision.

Now that she's seen the consequences, maybe Bismuth's not so keen on the idea of shattering?

Also, the gag of Bismuth sticking her head in the lava to yell her feelings out was just like... same, Bismuth. Same.
posted by nonasuch at 9:11 PM on July 5, 2018 [8 favorites]

Oh, me too nonasuch. Me too. Like, of all of the Gems, Bismuth is still the closest to the war. She had a bit under a day of time in her special, and other than that she's fresh from the war. She never had those millennia to process. It's some heavy, heavy shit to have to wade through, and man, I'd have go and retreated to the forge too if I were her.

I'm so glad she's back though. I love the voice work and her presence and her seriousness - she seems more thoughtful than the others, less hysterical. Her own wonderful addition to the team. I wonder how she and Peri will work together, what with Bismuth being a metal and Peri having metal bending powers.
posted by Jilder at 11:20 PM on July 5, 2018 [2 favorites]

There's one episode left of the current bomb, and it looks like a 30 minute story. Back before it started, Cartoon Network provided a bingo card for the event. Here it is.

So far, we've had Pearl Panics (an easy one), Pink Diamond Backstory, We may have what could be considered a minor gem battle when Bismuth poofed the corrupted Biggs but it doesn't seem worthy of a Bingo space, Ruby Learns An Instrument, An Old Gem Returns, Flashback Episode, Steven Cries (a very easy one), New Amethyst Shapeshift, New Song, Pizza Is Consumed and Ruby Moves In With Greg.

(Note: that already scores one Bingo on the card, with a second if Peridot Fights A Trash Can.)

The remaining spaces are: Peridot Fights a Trash Can, Uncle Andy Saves The Day, Gem Battle, Beach City Is Destroyed, Someone Gets A New Look, New Fusion, Steven Goes To Space, Ronaldo Acts Out An Anime, Kiki +Pearl Become BFFs, A Gem Gets Shattered, Diamond Fusion, New Opening (I think there's a reasonable chance of this one, now Bismuth is around indefinitely), Onion Steals A Spaceship (oh please oh please oh please!) and Jasper Returns.
posted by JHarris at 12:04 AM on July 6, 2018 [2 favorites]

Reviewing the episode, it becomes clear that not only did Bismuth not know about the corruption of the other Crystal Gems or the bubble room, but --it's possible to miss this on a first watch-- she didn't know the story of Rose shattering Pink Diamond either. That means that she was still filling her role as Pink Diamond half of her time at that point. I wonder if Bismuth inadvertently coming close to discovering her deception was why Rose bubbled her? I wonder if Bismuth's bubbling was a factor in Pink Diamond deciding to stop playing both sides and devote herself to being Rose all the time?
posted by JHarris at 2:27 AM on July 6, 2018 [1 favorite]

JHarris, I would say yes and yes! If Bismuth had not been bubbled, for example, she would have almost certainly attempted to get other gems on her side (and apparently there was an army's worth of those). Things would have gotten out of Rose/PD's control very quickly.

I find PD very believable for this reason. A charismatic being with incredible powers, raised with very little in the way of teaching/ethics, bored with her role, gets into an incredible mixup and has to deal with massive consequences that affect her entire world/many others. Once the corruption blast happens, there wasn't much she could do to fix anything, until she got the idea of making Steven.

One big question: did she have any idea about the Cluster? I'm inclined to say no, because I can't imagine her just thinking "Oh Steven will deal with that." I think it was inserted without her knowledge at some point after the war.
posted by emjaybee at 11:18 AM on July 6, 2018 [2 favorites]

hahaha so I'm catching up on my Recent Activity and I caught my comment in an episode of Handmaid's Tale where I quoted a character who said "Cows don't get married" and even though there's a poignancy to that moment, I'm laughing now because of Ruby's "If you want to drink the cow, you gotta put a ring on it"
posted by numaner at 11:57 AM on July 6, 2018 [4 favorites]

emjaybee: It's been a while since I saw Bismuth's special, but yeah, I think you're right. One of the other gems (Pearl?) mentions that Bismuth was very popular with the other gems, and given how charismatic a character she is I can totally believe that.
posted by Jilder at 7:42 PM on July 6, 2018 [2 favorites]

My spouse's comment after this episode: "Steven's main superpower is Emotional Labor."
posted by kyrademon at 1:09 AM on September 7, 2018 [7 favorites]