STEVEN UNIVERSE S5 Episode 26 & 27 REACTION (FULL)

Escapism is a microcosm of some of the themes Season 6 could have explored if the show hadn’t been forcibly cut short for having a gay wedding, then uncancelled after they had already cut and reworked the story to end at Change Your Mind. It’s also escapism for the show’s creator, pretending she still has time for these silly sidequests and doesn’t have to deliver a rushed final product thanks to executive meddling. One of those “more for us than for you” type of deals. If you think you’re unsatisfied, imagine the fans who heard this song three years early at a convention and spent those next three years speculating wildly that it might have been sung by: Lapis, Sapphire, Opal, Pearl in a Flashback, Pink Diamond in a Flashback, Blue or Yellow Diamond, one of the Off Colors, A secret Homeworld gem who belongs to White Diamond’s court,

Bryan Matola

I totally understand being annoyed with escapism 😭😭 my first watch I was also pissed to hell. It’s one of those episodes that I think is appreciated more in a rewatch just cause that’s when you’re actually able to chill out and appreciate it as a bigger picture sorta deal, like a “oh hey classic Steven low stakes gags :)” even though it’s in the middle of big plot stuff. Did you guys like the Homeworld gems that fused during the ball? They were really sweet to me. I liked their kitty ears with the hair and how their cheek gems looked like little pikachu blushies. To me it also just reinforced that there’s a LOT of gems on Homeworld who do yearn for the sort of life Steven and his family wanna promote and shows that yeah, white diamonds rule and standards are ass. Did y’all also like seeing white pearl frown? 👀that spooked me when I watched. I thought girlie was about to start smiting everyone haha

samphonia

I think that is a really good analysis. The two warring tribes on the island show the two sides of Steven and this episode shows that the only way to reach the people he needs to reach is by combining both sides and finding a middle solution.

I find Escapism really clever, actually. It's setting expectations for the finale by showing us what sort of solutions will *not* work here. In Escapism, we learn that neither martyrdom (as represented by the Baby Melon cult) nor direct confrontation (as represented by the Warrior!Steven cult) are going to suffice to resolve the problems represented by the Diamonds. Or, to put it another way, Steven will be able to achieve his goals neither by following in the footsteps of Pink Diamond (using self-martyrdom to avoid direct confrontation altogether), nor by following in the footsteps of Rose Quartz (the warrior approach, all confrontation with little in the way of finesse). He's going to have to find some different approach, something his mother was never able to manage. Given how many fans at the time seemed to expect that the ending was going to be resolved by some big battle scene or something like that, I understand why they might have considered it important to use the traditional calm-before-the-storm episode to set some expectations for the finale.

SK Elkins

I actually liked Escapism. Not only is the song beautiful, but I think the episode just fits with show. Emotions have always been SO important at every turn, and while this was still a struggle for Steven, this episode I took as a type of palate cleanser for the audience between a lot of heavy stuff. The fans get really serious about the show and the plot is serious itself, but to me it pulls you back and reminds you that it’s mainly a very lighthearted and comforting show. Sorry if this doesn’t make sense but I wasn’t sure exactly how to word my thoughts.

Carissa