Heartwarming / Steven Universe: The Movie

Main Heartwarming Index | Season 1A | Season 1B | Season 2 | Season 3 | Season 4 | Season 5 | The Movie | Future

---

Isn't it, isn't it, isn't it love?

Steven Universe is no stranger to Heartwarming Moments, but for this movie, Sugar and co. really show how all-loving Steven has remained even after two years.

Spoilers Off applies to all Moments pages, so ALL spoilers are unmarked! Proceed with caution.

---

• While the scene with the Diamonds begging Steven to stay is mostly funny, it's also pretty heartwarming how much the Diamonds are trying to change and become better people. Even if they're still struggling with it, it's still an enormous improvement over who they were before.
  • Steven seems to understand this as well, even if he isn't very close to them. His only complaint when he returns to his house, after evading the Diamonds' pleas for him to stay, is an exasperated "they want to smother me with attention 24/7."
  • The Diamonds begging Steven to stay at the beginning of the movie also has another layer of heartwarming: look at the way they're practically piling on top of each other to talk to Steven. Compare this to the last few episodes of Season 5: the mere mention of White is enough to distress Blue, it's revealed that after Pink's "shattering" the Diamonds had drifted apart, and during "Change Your Mind" both Blue and Yellow are afraid to confess their unhappiness to White for fear of her anger. By the beginning of the movie, they're completely in sync with each other, harmonizing beautifully during their songs and we see Blue leaning over White when they're bending down to talk to Steven.
  • Blue and Yellow Pearl, in the brief time we see them, seem much more at ease with their duties. Blue, in particular, is as happy as we've ever seen her, and she's absolutely adorable.
  • One big thing: White Diamond might be displeased at Steven not doing what she wants, but she doesn't get angry, and she fully accepts him chastising her.
  • One other big thing: Look at the Diamond Symbol that Storybook!Steven is holding up in the intro. It's reversed to have Pink on top and White on the bottom. This shows just how much things have changed, to allow such a thing to even be included as part of a message to the whole of Gemkind.
  • The fact that the Diamonds are now calling Steven by his real name is heartwarming in and of itself, given that they'd spent the last few seasons calling him by his mother's name.
  • The whole scene comes off as the Diamonds just wanting to bond with Steven, who's essentially their grandson, and make the distinction between him and Pink clear while still wanting to connect with him as one of the the last remnants of their family member. Even if it is smothering, it's still sweet when you realize how far they've come through the grieving process.
• Connie and Steven are just adorable together, especially with the way that Connie kisses Steven on the cheek before leaving for space camp, and his reaction to it.
  • Plus, considering Steven's visibly aged during the Time Skip, it means Connie has nothing to fear and she'll grow up with Steven as she wanted.
• Seeing all the uncorrupted Gems happily mingle in Beach City.
  • Furthermore, seeing them helping the evacuees at Little Homeworld. Bismuth makes a little doll for one of the babies, Snowflake can be seen passing out blankets, and Lapis and Peridot happily provide entertainment for the small children.
• Ever since "Mr Greg", Greg and Pearl have become much better friends. At the beginning of the movie, Greg is teaching Pearl how to play bass! They're basically hanging out and having a good jam session. It's nice to see them completely relaxed with each other after all that character development.
  • The sly look on her face when she explains why she's using the long-A sound to refer to the "bass" indicates that she's doing this intentionally. Pearl is CRACKING JOKES. With GREG. You probably would never have expected that from the earliest on-screen interactions between them, and it's beautiful.
  • During the song Happily Ever After, Greg jokingly calls Pearl "the boss", and she smiles back and responds "Heck yes I am!". The whole interaction shows her character development - from basically a mindless robot after she initially formed, to a completely independent person of her own.
  • When Pearl loses her memory and is back to her default servant mindset, the way she reforms basically causes her to see Greg as her new "master". Greg notably does not like this and is adamantly against her acting so slavishly. Some of it is played for laughs, with Pearl referring to Greg as "Um-Greg" and Pearl cranking up the hamminess by announcing his arrival unnecessarily, but all in all Greg has just as much respect for Pearl's autonomy as the rest of the Crystal Gems and wants to help bring her memories back.
• During "Happily Ever After", Steven and the Gems are running in a line, mirroring the show opening but with one essential difference. In the show, Steven was trailing behind them, chasing after to try and keep up. Here it's Steven who is taking the lead while the Gems follow after him. It's the perfect way of showing just how much Steven has grown and how far he's come as a Crystal Gem.
• The Secret Handshake Steven and Amethyst came up with in the Time Skip interim is cute, but then you realize it ends with them clasping hands and pulling each other into a hug - exactly how they first fused into Smoky Quartz. No wonder it's the final piece to restoring Amethyst's memories.
• Spinel, after she loses her memories, is a boundlessly energetic, perpetually upbeat bundle of adorableness. Her silly personality and her Rubber-Hose Limbs just make everything she does so damn cute! ^note Pink doesn't know what she missed out on!
• Bismuth, Lapis, and Peridot all cheering Steven up after the Crystal Gems lose their memories, especially considering that all three of them used to be his enemies.
  • Lapis in general, specifically how much she’s grown as a person over the Time Skip. She’s cheerful, friendly, and generally seems to be genuinely happy with her life; a far cry from the scared, temperamental Broken Bird we’ve been watching since season one. It feels like she’s finally managing to put her Dark and Troubled Past behind her and move on.
  • Peridot is horrified by how close she came to also being reset and going back to being the mindless Empire servant she started out as, very much valuing all the development she's gone through and the friendships she's made as a result.
  • Bismuth once attacked Rose and then Steven under the belief that they weren't willing to do what had to be done for the cause. Later she laments that decision, feeling she can no longer be a part of the group because she attacked the person who allowed them to believe in the future and stay together. Contrast where she was in made of honor with her here, declaring with such passion that she believes in the Crystal Gems and in particular Steven really is wonderful.
• It's a small moment, but as Ruby expresses amazement at Sapphire's future vision, Sapphire blushes.
• In a sad kind of way, the amnesiac Ruby is completely calm in the face of being shattered, and is simply glad that, even if for only a little while, she got to be with Sapphire.
  Sapphire: Ruby, I'm sorry! I told you you wouldn't last the day.
  Ruby: Well, I'm glad fate allowed me to meet...you. [smiles as Steven's shield breaks]
• The way Sapphire saves Ruby from the falling anvil, a lovely reversal of Ruby saving Sapphire during "The Answer".
  • The entire fusion sequence is beautiful, showing Ruby!Garnet and Sapphire!Garnet slowly dancing together, before finally getting in sync and becoming one whole Garnet.
  • The fact that even though Ruby and Sapphire haven't regained their memories yet, they fused and fell in love with each other all over again. They were meant to be together no matter what!
  • The song Garnet sings during the sequence, "Isn't It Love", is adorable as she realizes she's made of love.
• When Garnet falls off-screen in Greg's garage, Spinel can be seen kneeling beside her in concern.
• The amnesiac Garnet's and Spinel's interactions are very cute. They both Squee before the concert starts and the two are seen dancing adorably during it.
  • Amnesiac Amethyst and Spinel also seem to get along well. Once Amethyst gets her memories back, Spinel still considers her a friend, much to the latter's confusion.
• The entire sequence of Steven helping Amethyst recover her memories is likely the most touching of the three gems recovering their memories. Steven finds Amethyst shape-shifting into and mimicking Vidalia's old paintings of her, and seems unable to do anything but copy others and say what they say. Steven concludes that singing and dancing must be part of the piece to her memories, and starts a song and dance about how, no matter what happens to her, he'll always be by her side. Amethyst dances with Steven and sings along, but initially, this is just her mimicking him. As the song continues though, Steven slowly attempts to awaken her memory through call-backs to prior episodes involving time they spent together, starting with Amethyst playing ski-ball with Steven, teaching her how to enjoy eating through french fries, with her mimicking Steven until she's no longer copying but singing with Steven as she begins singing and talking on her own on the train from On the Run. The song continues with Steven assuring her he'll be there for her "no matter what" as she inspects the hole she came out of in the Kindergarten. As they ride back home on the train, Amethyst rests her head on Steven's shoulder, and even before her memories are fully reignited by their signature handshake, it's already made clear that the main "piece" to get her memories back wasn't the paintings or eating or her Kindergarten hole, but her relationship with her brother Steven and love they have for each other as family.
  • During this entire sequence, Spinel is there watching them with a fascinated smile and joining in at a few points. This shows that Spinel has no problem sharing her "best friend" with anyone else or if he cares about others too. She just wants to feel included and not be left behind.
• Several times, the amnesiac Garnet is shown just looking absolutely delighted at being herself. For a character who's normally The Stoic, seeing her look genuinely so happy is adorable.
• Steg is this in a way when you remember that Greg wanted to fuse with Rose once a long time ago to better connect with her, but couldn't. At last, through their son, Greg finally gets to fuse with her gemstone at least, which is often said to be all of what remains of Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz.
  • Steg's design becomes this too; he's a cool, badass rockstar who owns the stage, but is also a laid back, caring, compassionate person: he's a mix of 1) how Rose saw Greg, 2) how Steven always saw Greg, and 3) who Rose and Greg likely hoped their son would grow up to be.
  • The fact that it only took them seconds to fuse despite it being their first time and Steven's failing powers deserves a mention. As does the length of time they managed to maintain the fusion, seemingly effortlessly.
  • Not only that, but he trusts his son IMPLICITLY to fuse with him, without any real questioning, despite the risk, and never fusing before. Now that's TRUE familial love!
• At first, Amnesia Pearl not stirring even in the slightest at the sight of Rose seems like Tearjerker territory, it quickly becomes Heartwarming as it leads into what actually ends up being the final piece to bring her memories back: It's not Rose, it's the feeling of freedom Rose gave her. It's the ultimate symbolism of how Rose and her loyalty to Rose no longer defines who she is. She's finally free.
  • Throughout the series, Pearl's devotion to Rose was strongly implied to be due to Pearl being made to worship and obey her Diamond. But this scene suggests that Pearl's feelings weren't just some program or some infatuation, but a true, deep, meaningful love that comes from her own free will. She chose to love Rose.
  • Amethyst’s quick thinking when trying to restore her memories is lovely too. From outright referring to Rose as “the love of [Pearl’s] life” and shapeshifting into her, something she has obvious bad associations with, to the way she leaps into the air with her, holds her, and falls into an easy fusion— it looks like she’s finally understanding she’s important to Pearl too.
  • Also when Amethyst suggests they need to "hit [Pearl] where it hurts" by shapeshifting into Rose, there's a quick pause as Steven hesitates, glancing back at Pearl and Greg, and Greg says, "If that's what it takes." Then we remember Amethyst had shapeshifted into Rose before, to mock Greg way back in season one, that shapeshifting upsets him in particular as well. It makes this a Heartwarming moment because Steven remembers his father's feelings about it, and Greg is willing to go through with it in order to help Pearl regain her memories.
• Although it ends in tears, seeing Pink and Spinel playing together and being happy is just adorable.
• The moment Steven learns of Spinel's backstory, he starts trying to comfort her, knowing what it's like to feel abandoned and hurt.
  • And even though he isn't surprised by what his mother did to her friend and clearly disappointed in her again, he still accepts it and doesn't hold it against her, not forgetting that she also suffered beforehand.
  • As he tries convincing her to help him save the Earth, he sings "Found", expressing his hope that Spinel will be able to heal in time and open her heart to others. It only takes a few verses before she starts singing along, looking at Steven in wonder as she follows him back to Earth.
  • As Steven reassures her that she'll find someone who will treat her with more dignity, it's clear on Spinel's face as she sings the lyrics with him that Steven, a half-gem that she was set to kill barely a day ago, was treating her exactly like that compared to her original owner/friend.
  • The kicker is when she sings the last verse by herself, "Today, right here, right now, I already feel found." She's crying Tears of Joy with the realization that Steven is going to make sure she isn't abandoned again. Which makes the Third-Act Misunderstanding all the more tragic...
  • Steven having all the kindness and integrity to do what his mother should've done millennia ago: taken Spinel along with them.
  • Though it's sadly ruined by the Third-Act Misunderstanding, as mentioned above, seeing Spinel's hopeful and friendly behavior around Steven after "Found" is adorable. She truly wants to believe him, follows him into his home and leans against him for comfort when the other Gems are shocked to see her. When Steven asks her if he can ask for a favor, she responds in a genuine, grateful tone, "Are you kidding? Anything." After stopping the injector, Steven thanks her and she playfully retorts, "Aw gee, what are friends for?" It leads to many wishing we'd see more of their interactions at just trying to be friends and hoping another season might provide it.
• Steven breaking the rejuvenator. Spinel tries to goad him into using it on her by taunting him, saying that she knows he wants to do it. But he refuses and destroys the device. In spite of everything Spinel has done, Steven truly wants to help her above all else.
• When Spinel starts fighting Steven again, we have a moment of pure adorableness:
  Garnet: [innocently] Steven? Why are you fighting? Aren't we all friends?
• When Garnet remembers, there’s a shot of her reforming her wedding rings, remembering she’s not just a relationship, she’s a marriage.
  • When she returns to normal, the Crystal Gems immediately come in for a group hug; Steven glomps her in immense relief Amethyst swings in laughing and hangs over Garnet's shoulder, and Pearl walks over into Garnet's arms on the verge of tears that her oldest friend is back. And as it sinks in for them all, Steven's face becomes more joyful as his family is whole once again.
  • When Garnet is reforming from her 'cotton candy' self to her present self, you can see Ruby and Sapphire dancing together.
• Garnet’s final piece is about truth, probably remembering finding out the truth about Rose and how she got through it together, referring to both Ruby and Sapphire and her friends.
  • Her song, "True Kinda Love". Especially when you actually listen to the lyrics, you realize that she's singing it to Spinel. Compare this to "Stronger Than You", where she was merely boasting about her existence as a loving relationship, here she's trying to get Spinel to realize that they aren't her enemy and that her lashing out at them isn't going to fix anything.
    Garnet: Oh, when a difficult day goes by
    Keeping it together is hard, but that's why
    You've got to try
    You've got to try
    And when there's a thundering storm outside
    Underneath the covers you huddle and hide
    Open your eyes
    Open your eyes
  • And then of course, there's Steven's line as he's climbing up the injector:
    Steven: Hey, you, show me that solvable problem
    We can get through this
    I'll do the hardest part with you
• After Alexandrite rescues Cat Steven, she passes her off to Kiki, who hugs her adorably.
• It's mixed with a Tearjerker because it's in the middle of her Villainous Breakdown, but Spinel tearfully admits that, beneath all the pain and anger, she really does want to be Steven's friend.
• As Spinel finally breaks down in tears at the climax of the fight, admitting that she herself doesn't enjoy what she's doing, and whimpers that she just wants to be a good friend, Steven reaches out to her right away. Never mind that she attacked his friends, stripped him of his powers, and nearly destroyed the Earth... Steven Universe will always offer a hand to those who want it.
  • Also, right when the injector is about to blow up, the distance between Steven and Spinel is noticeably smaller than when Steven disables his shield (That shorter distance enables him to rescue her from the explosion as well). It indicates that the two immediately drew closer to each other when they sensed danger, with presumably Steven wanting to protect Spinel, and Spinel opening her heart to him once again, in return.
• As the injector kicks into overdrive and starts destroying Beach City, the Crystal Gems immediately leap into action to save all the townspeople. And once the crisis is over, they’re shown helping the townsfolk and corrupted Gems rebuild the town. It really shows how much closer the Crystal Gems have become with the people of Beach City over the years; compare it to back in season one, where the Crystal Gems didn’t even care enough to rebuild the damage they did to Fish Stew Pizza's storefront in "Beach Party" or fix the blackout they caused in "Political Power". Here, they don’t hesitate once to risk their lives for the town’s sake.
  • Even before the crisis, the town is full of humans and Gems living side by side- the boardwalk, the concert, the beach.
• Steven finally realizing what his missing piece is: his ability to change, and to inspire change in others.
• Yellow and Blue briefly mentioning that the Diamonds were all talking. They can now freely talk to each other, especially White, without fear.
• Spinel getting Happily Adopted by the Diamonds at the end is extra special because of the Diamonds' character development. They approach it from the healthy angle that they "know that you're not her" and aren't trying to force Spinel (like they originally did with Steven) to be Pink for them. They just appreciate that she was Pink's friend, reminds them of Pink, and loved her like they did. Spinel, in turn, appreciates them for the same reasons.
  • On top of that, Spinel not only gets one new friend to start over with— she gets three! And they are friends she's already familiar with, who will let her live in their palace with them and never die or abandon her.
    • Basically, she went from being a forgotten castaway to being a precious friend to the three most powerful beings in the universe, who- in their own words- just want to love and adore her. Not only that, but she still has Steven, who can visit her anytime.
    • Even better, the Diamonds love Spinel for who she is NOW, not for who she used to be. Over the course of the movie, it's revealed that Spinel is actually very ashamed over her "change for the worst". However, Blue immediately exclaims that she's adorable in her current form, and the other Diamonds clearly agree.
    • Given how much love and attention the Diamonds have to give now that they've recovered from past hurts and essentially "retired" (from their previous roles as galactic conquerors), it also means they have more than enough love and attention to lavish upon Spinel - worth making up for 6000 years of abandonment and loads more. And can you imagine how much laughter Spinel could bring into their lives?
    • Take note of when the camera focuses on their hands reaching down towards Spinel. In the show, this shot was done to represent their might and authority, usually the three holding their hands out together to demonstrate a power or to symbolize their oppression. Here, they're genuinely reaching out their hands as a sign of comfort.
    • Before departing for Homeworld, Spinel flashes a genuine smile towards Steven, finally at peace with herself. Steven in turn smiles back, happy that Spinel will get a chance to heal from her trauma and start over.
    • Also, their desire to adopt her as she is now is made even sweeter by the fact that Spinel earlier lamented that she felt she was "not good enough for Pink". Well, it turns out she's good enough for the other three Diamonds!
    • Let's not forget this from a grander context: The other three Diamonds had abused Pink for so long and partially contributed to Pink neglecting her in the garden, yet at the end of the movie, they prove to be better caring parents to Spinel than Pink Diamond was to her in 6000 years. Yes, the former galactic conquerors actually manage to beat an All-Loving Heroine with a Universally Beloved Leader status when it comes to taking care of their loved ones. You could argue that for the four of them, this was their greatest second chance at forging a healthy familial relationship. Even if no one else would forgive them for their past sins, at least they would still have each other.
• Lars is shown to still hang out with the Off-Colors whenever he appears on screen, such as baking Ube rolls for them and attending Sadie's concerts with them.
  • The fact that Lars is confident enough to not want to hide his hobbies anymore.
• The Diamonds are basically portrayed as overbearing but nonetheless well-meaning aunts/grandmas to Steven, from trying to get Steven to stay longer with them to theatrical (and thankfully harmless) guilt-trips, from popping in to his home at the wrong time and then (their combined ships!) unabashedly making heart-signs when saying goodbye.
  • When White does her silly guilt-trip, wailing about how it's boring without Steven and she'll juuuust have to wait for him to visit again, and stomps away, Steven can't help but exclaim, "Aw come on, don't be like that!" It's a small moment, but the interaction is sweet just for how lighthearted and normal it all is.
  • White Diamond's ultra sincerely polite response to Steven asking if the Diamonds remember Spinel. It's just a nice little touch.
    White Diamond: I'm sorry, who?
• White Diamond is very much a crowning moment of heartwarming throughout the movie, in how far she's changed as a character. It's heavily implied that her obsessive, perfectionist self was a front to help her deal with the grief of losing Pink Diamond. As far as the stages of grief are concerned, Yellow represents anger, Blue represents depression, and White represents denial. Her disillusioned mindset of thinking she could make everything better was the only thing keeping her from having a breakdown, and it's after this breakdown happens that White begins to heal with the other Diamonds. Her Heel-Face Turn may very well come across as insincere and still in need of a lot of work, but it's there.
  • Some people might say that White Diamond's behaviour towards Steven comes across as insincere, and an attempt just to be on his good side - but then look at how she behaves around Spinel, a Gem she's probably spoken to only once or twice in the past. White Diamond is friendly and sweet to her, not seeing her as beneath her, not demanding Spinel to return to her former self or using her mind control on her. White is even the one who makes the decision to take Spinel back to Homeworld.
    • Ever compassionate, can you imagine it, even with us at our worst. That line alone speaks volumes to how these three have changed for the better, particularly the line, "Even with us at our worst." Keep in mind that, while they're singing this, they're doing so to a huge crowd of Gems- many whom were likely under their rule when they were tyrants. You don't exactly acknowledge the fact that you screwed up to that many people without there being at least a degree of sincerity to it.
  • We get a shot of the Crystal Gems (and Connie and Greg) witnessing this interaction: there's mostly confusion, but there's also Garnet shaking her head in amusement.
• "The Finale" is truly a masterpiece, with Steven, the Crystal Gems, Connie, Greg, and all of Beach City sing their hopes for the future. While Steven knows he might have to continue to confront the demons of his mother's past, he is going to face them with determination and ensure that his hard fought ending stays that way.
  • As the montage of time goes through, the Gems are shown interacting with the humans several sweet ways; Lapis and Peridot are entertaining some residents in one, Bismuth gives a baby a Gem toy, Lars is doing a cookout for everyone, the Gems help clean up Beach City, and best of all, the passage of times shows that the damage done by Spinel's machine has healed for the most part, only leaving the craters where her machine was and exploded. The greenery is back and Beach City is once again at peace.
  • The last part has Steven, the Gems, and Connie singing the climax of the song, with Steven declaring his determination to face whatever comes next with his friends by his side. Greg walks over with a bouquet of flowers (with a single rose in it to represent Pink/Rose Quartz), and Steven accepts it as he sings with Tears of Joy in his eyes: "Happily ever after never ends."

---