Steven Universe: Together Breakfast Rewatch

December 29, 2014 3:58 AM - Season 1, Episode 4

Anxious to bond with the Gems, Steven makes everyone breakfast, but they're too busy in the Temple doing their own things. He's determined to share his meal with the others....

Writers and storyboarders: Ian Jones-Quartey, Rebecca Sugar, and Paul Villeco.

posted by JHarris (6 comments total)

Of interest to tourists in the Gem Temple:

• This episode establishes what the interior of the Temple is like, which is: pretty strange. It seems unfair at first that the Gems get to hang out there but Steven doesn't, but it's established pretty well that the place is dangerous. Later episodes make it seem that they go out of their way to spend a lot of time in Steven's room, which, containing as it does the Warp Pad they use to get Gem ruins, is a good base of operations anyway.
• The Temple Door is interesting -- it's actually a multi-destination dimensional portal! From observation, following are what seem to be the rules of the door. Gems can use it to go to their rooms. The matching gem on the door glows, and then it opens directly there. The way that the door opens shows whose room it goes to. If the door opens in a red and black 'Y' shape, it goes to Garnet's Room (the one with the bubbling pit and the gem bubbles), a gooey purple ribbon-shape goes to Amethyst's pool and junkpile at the bottom of the fountain, and a vertical line with a circle goes to Pearl's room at the top of the fountain. All these chambers are connected inside the temple; the door is just a shortcut. It seems like, from the outside, a Gem can only open a portal that goes to their room, but once it's open it's two-way until it closes. On the other hand, any Gem can leave by any portal. Steven uses his arm to block Pearl's door from closing here, so there must be some safety mechanism.
• The big picture of Steven's mother, Rose Quartz, is visible over the front door while Steven is applying the chocolate syrup to the waffles. It's not the first time we've seen it, but it's worth pointing out once. We don't get to see her animated until episode 35.
• Here's a more mysterious matter about that door. There are five gems on it, each at one point of the star emblem, and when someone enters, the matching gem glows... except. Garnet has two gems, one on each hand, and when she opens it, two of the door gems glow. Why does she have two Gems? Speculation: Could Garnet actually be a Fusion that the component parts of which forgot their individuality, as nearly happened with Sugilite in Coach Steven? Rebecca Sugar said in an AMA that the mystery of the door gems will be revealed.... (BTW, that link is pretty much required reading for any S.U. fan.)
• Blink and you'll miss it: when Steven's in Amethyst's "room," you can see a mask resting on her junkpile. It looks a bit like the face of the Earl of Lemongrab. Also in there: a pile of gold coins (Adventure Time much?), growing plants including a palm tree, a safe, and various household appliances.
• When Steven is falling down the shaft beneath the Crystal Heart, he falls through a bright pink area, which he says doesn't feel so bad. It's established later: he's falling through Rose's room.
• This is where it's established what happens to all the gems collected and bubbled after killing monsters: they float around in the air in Garnet's room. As for why, well, that's for later.
• What is up with the scroll that Garnet burns? It produces a dark evil cloud that the guys have to fight. But what's drawn on it looks ominous on its own, and when Steven snaps a picture with his phone, Garnet takes it too. Is there some greater significance to that image?
• "Now it has all the power of a breakfast! We have to destroy it!"
• The ending, where the group gather to enjoy Steven's replacement breakfast, is a bit weird in light of later episodes, because we find out that Gems don't need to eat, and in fact Pearl actively hates eating (discovered in Fusion Cuisine). However, in So Many Birthdays, Pearl says she likes pie....

posted by JHarris at 4:08 AM on December 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

This show has gotten so far up in my head. Of course that much should be obvious by now. I should be able to keep up the one post per day pace until I reach the beginning of Small Dollar's posts, provided no one's against that. I don't like to think I'm cluttering up FanFare.
posted by JHarris at 2:46 PM on December 29, 2014

In case someone returns to this thread later....

The animation is sometimes kinda janky in these early episodes. One thing I noticed: when Amethyst returns to her room that Pearl has "organized," you hear the sound of the door closing behind here, but it doesn't. It remains open! When Pearl goes through it a few moments later though, it's closed.
posted by JHarris at 5:41 PM on January 18, 2015

Finally working my way into this series now that Amazon lets you buy the whole thing. This episode was the sweetest/most fun to me so far. (I've watched some later ones out of order, so I'm filling in gaps now).

The little silences at the intro/end kind of get to me, when the music stops but you can still hear the ocean. Sort of ominous and sad, an odd little twist to whatever goofyness occurred. You hear ocean noise occasionally sometimes during pauses in the action, and it gives the same sort of melancholy feel to things.
posted by emjaybee at 4:07 PM on March 12, 2015

This episode is when I fell in love with the show (and with Garnet).

"I have to burn this too."
"My apps!"
posted by Foosnark at 8:49 AM on August 27, 2015 [1 favorite]

I proper lolled at that. It's such a great gag, considering that his apps are probably the only thing likely to survive a burning.
posted by comealongpole at 5:42 PM on August 22, 2016