steven-universe-square Reviews 

“Steven Universe” #1

By | February 9th, 2017
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Steven Universe, as a TV show, is remarkable in terms of characters, morals, and storytelling. It blends great messages, world building, and just a bit of anime inspiration behind a colorful tale of a young boy who summons a shield from a gem on his bellybutton. But does it translate well into comics? Well, let’s take a look and see.

Written by Melanie Gillman
Illustrated by Katy Farina

We’re bringing Steven Universe back to comic books with more Steven, more gems, and more of the characters we all love in an all-new ongoing series! Writer Melanie Gillman (As the Crow Flies) and artist Katy Farina (The Amazing World of Gumball) are teaming up for the start of a new series of adventures for the entire gang. Based on Cartoon Network’s Emmy-nominated series, created by The New York Times best-selling author Rebecca Sugar, Steven Universe follows Steven, the “little brother” to a team of magical guardians of humanity—the Crystal Gems. The show is currently in its fourth season and has earned millions of fans of all ages worldwide. In this kickoff issue, Steven, Lapis, and Peridot rescue a baby songbird on the ground outside the barn and work together to reunite it with its mother.

Where do we begin with Steven Universe? It’s an excellent show, but translating a show into comic form is always tricky, especially when it can’t mess with the show’s storyline. Fortunately, it’s a show that can go from a goofy story about three gems learning about human babies to a high-intensity tale featuring stolen parents, human captivity, and the monarchs behind the gem homeworld in a matter of episodes. So it’s perfectly fitting to do a little fluff episode, where Steven, Lapis, and Peridot raise a baby bird.

So it’s a basic plot, something many a show or family-friendly comic has done before. They care for it, it grows up, and they have to learn to let it go. This isn’t a spoiler, it’s literally every story involving characters caring for an abandoned baby animal. As such, what matters more is the characters.

In that regard, the comic does a fine job. Melanie Gillman (previously known for their webcomic, “As the Crow Flies”) has captured the mannerisms and voices of the characters nicely. Every line can be read in the voice of the actors, and nothing they say or do seems out of character at all. Peridot is particularly well-written, with moments like her desire to see the bird grow into “a larger, more powerful bird, who will do [her] bidding,” and a quick mention of her obsession with the show “Camp Pining Hearts.”

Of course, it takes more than character voice to go from show to comic. Does it have the same heart that fans have come to expect and love? Well, yes. The entire plot is designed to showcase Steven’s caring nature, while still giving Peridot and Lapis some good character moments.

There’s a short but poignant scene near the middle that’s particularly important, where Steven is up late to see if the bird’s mother returns. As he talks to Lapis, Steven ponders “But that’s… just part of being a mom, isn’t it? Making tough decisions.” For those familiar with the show, the history behind Steven’s birth, and the tough decisions his mother has had to make, that’s a very telling line. For those unfamiliar, it’s still a nice moment.

Artistically, it does a good job matching the show as well. It’s colorful, if a bit flat, and every character matches their animated counterpart perfectly. Steven’s wide-eyed wonder, Lapis’s semi-detached expression, and Peridot’s wild motions with every line, match their looks and mannerisms well.

Katy Farina is no stranger to turning cartoons to comics, having also worked on comic versions of “Invader Zim” and “The Amazing World of Gumball.” It’s clear from her illustrations that she’s a fan of the show, as it comes through in every panel.

The scenery, as well, matches that of the show. The barn and field look like they’ve been taken right from screen caps, with coloring and lighting that provide the same sense of homeliness and beauty as the show.

Of course, a comic cannot be analyzed only by how much it looks like the TV show. It has to bring its own flavor and style in order to stand out. We get that in a few ways. There’s a scene where Steven calls the Empire City Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, and the art alone tells a great story. There’s a veterinarian patching up a moose, of all things, while talking on the phone. While it maintains the same simplistic art style, the key character components – tired eyes, tied-up hair, and the way she keeps working while on the phone, tells us all we need to know about the character. It’s a real punch to the gut where she dismisses the baby bird with “It’s not an endangered species,” as the panel shows us the helpless little bird in Peridot’s hands.

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There’s beauty in the simplicity of the art; it’s cartoonish, as it should be, but it’s bright and colorful, and every character has a unique design that screams personality. The baby bird is sufficiently cute in every stage of its life, and the little montage of its growth does a fine job telling the tale.

With both writer and artist as fans of the show, it can almost feel like something out of a fan fiction at times. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though; if it’s a fan-fic, it’s a good fan-fic, the kind that matches the show in such a way that you go “Yeah, I could see that happening.”

In the end, though, it is a little fluff story. It has some nice character moments, and it’s endearing, but it’s not exactly heavy on story. If that’s what you’re looking for, though, it’s a nice read for fans of Steven Universe, and a good start for the comic.

Final Verdict: 7.2 – Fluff, but nice fluff, and properly takes some of the things that make the show great and puts them in comic form. If you’re a fan of the show, you’ll enjoy the comic too.


Robbie Pleasant

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