Do you realize it’s been over a decade before Spongebob Squarepants aired “Bubble Buddy?” That’s all I could think of as Steven Universe started this week. With that Spongebob still imprinted in my mind (booboo keys…) and Steven’s history of having minimal acquaintances, I assumed he too would be making poppable companions. I couldn’t have been further from the truth. There were earthquakes, a couple of new characters, and a budding romance.
The Gems mention earthquakes, but we never really circle back to that with so many words. In the midst of that conversation, they notice Steven taking a Sisyphean bike ride on the sand. They quickly realize he’s trying to impress a young girl reading on the sand, and though they can’t wait to get involved, Steven warns them not to interfere as they could really mess with his “funky flow.” Up until this point, I assumed Steven was too young to have feelings like this. He seems so immature that it’s weird to think that he’s developed a serious crush on a girl and is acting on it.
Let’s take a step away from the story to talk more about this love interest of Steven’s—Connie. She’s taller than Steven with a darker complexion than him as well. I wanted to say she was black but assuming that Garnet and Amethyst are black due to their characteristics, I’d say Connie was more Hispanic or Indian. The idea of race seems to never play a part in this world, and why should it? As someone who is mixed, this is an exciting factor of the show because it never fails to make me smile when a couple is interracial, animated or not. That aside, Connie knows a lot about boats due to spending too much time on the various beaches that her father works at as a private security guard. If things get serious with Steven, will we meet the dad – perhaps on a first date?
