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Isn’t Steven Universe some American cartoon? Why would the sub for it be relevant to discussions of any kind of politics? What am I missing? Note that I haven’

Isn’t Steven Universe some American cartoon? Why would the sub for it be relevant to discussions of any kind of politics? What am I missing? Note that I haven’t seen the cartoon, but from adverts it seemed pretty banal rather than political.

stcredzero 8y ago
Why would the sub for it be relevant to discussions of any kind of politics? What am I missing? The show has been pointed at by conservatives as an example of gender/identity politics. However, the ethos of the show is that we really should accept people no matter how they were born, and judge them on the quality of their relationships. What's more, this isn't transmitted by saying it, rather by showing it. IMO, more careful observation shows that it's actually the opposite of identitarian media, despite surface appearances. Occasionally, some identitarian rah-rah comes up there, and I feel the need to point out that we're all in this together, and isn't that what the characters show us? from adverts it seemed pretty banal rather than political. It transcends the political, like all good, honest art should.
- Pharmakon 8y ago
  Huh... well I live and learn, thanks for the detailed answer.
  - stcredzero 8y ago
    There's one episode that on the surface, or to a child, would be a completely banal story of a kid helping his dad clean out the garage. There's of course, an emotional subtext of people thinking about the past, and past relationships, and people they've lost. Then, there's another subtext, invisible to a child, where there's the story of a widower who has an affair with the friend of his dead wife. It's one of those cartoons that's one thing on the surface, but has other things for the adults.
- bloopernova 8y ago
  I recently started watching this with my wife, we're up to episode 30-something. I've been enjoying it very much so far, due to the deeper messages and "grown-up" subplots. The exploration of its themes of acceptance and personal growth very much resonate with me. Thank you for bringing it up in a thread like this where there's a lot of anger, fear and hate below the surface.

stcredzero 8y ago

Why would the sub for it be relevant to discussions of any kind of politics? What am I missing? The show has been pointed at by conservatives as an example of gender/identity politics. However, the ethos of the show is that we really should accept people no matter how they were born, and judge them on the quality of their relationships. What's more, this isn't transmitted by saying it, rather by showing it. IMO, more careful observation shows that it's actually the opposite of identitarian media, despite surface appearances. Occasionally, some identitarian rah-rah comes up there, and I feel the need to point out that we're all in this together, and isn't that what the characters show us? from adverts it seemed pretty banal rather than political. It transcends the political, like all good, honest art should.

Pharmakon 8y ago
Huh... well I live and learn, thanks for the detailed answer.
- stcredzero 8y ago
  There's one episode that on the surface, or to a child, would be a completely banal story of a kid helping his dad clean out the garage. There's of course, an emotional subtext of people thinking about the past, and past relationships, and people they've lost. Then, there's another subtext, invisible to a child, where there's the story of a widower who has an affair with the friend of his dead wife. It's one of those cartoons that's one thing on the surface, but has other things for the adults.
bloopernova 8y ago
I recently started watching this with my wife, we're up to episode 30-something. I've been enjoying it very much so far, due to the deeper messages and "grown-up" subplots. The exploration of its themes of acceptance and personal growth very much resonate with me. Thank you for bringing it up in a thread like this where there's a lot of anger, fear and hate below the surface.