The latest episode of Steven Universe is titled "Love Letters." "Love Letters" tackles the tricky situation of saying “no” to a guy who insists that his love is Real and True, starring Garnet, the queen of stable relationships. “No” is a complete sentence: it’s a topic that’s been done before (including on Rebecca Sugar’s previous show Adventure Time), but it’s still a topic that’s endlessly relevant.
As for Garnet’s involvement? Now there’s a space rock who knows a thing or two about Real and True love. The episode where her identity as a fusion is revealed is one of my top 5 favorite episodes. On to the show!
Love Letters starts off with Connie and Steven taking selfies on a beautiful day. Their selfie struggle is interrupted when Steven’s old mail carrier Jamie comes down the beach. Steven leaps over to say hi and introduce Jamie to Connie. Apparently, Jamie is fresh back from his bus to Kansas, now the thespian capital of the United States. Yikes, didn’t know Steven Universe was set in a dystopia of proportions quite so nightmarish.
Jamie has a load of mail for Steven because he’s the only mail carrier who knows where Steven lives. (And I thought my local post office was bad.) Intrigued by Jamie’s natural sense of drama and theatre, Connie excitedly asks Jamie about his thespian experience. Then, radiant Garnet bursts from the sea, her magnificent form dewy with ocean water. I fell in love immediately, so I can scarcely blame Jamie for being thunderstruck with awe. Still no sign of Jasper and Lapis’ monstrous fusion, if you were wondering.
Later on, Jamie swings by again, this time with only one piece of mail: a special pink envelope with a heart on it, which he nervously hands to Steven. Then he flees. At first, his run is stiff and sweaty with terror; then he bounds down the beach like a gazelle, ululating and elated at his own courage.
Garnet’s flat and commanding voice makes the next scene particularly funny. Stars in his eyes, Steven announces to Garnet that she has a letter. The letter is a love letter from Jamie, and boy, is it an experience. Florid with metaphor, turgid with simile, Jamie’s love letter… is an invitation to dinner next Friday at the Crab Shack.
Steven tries to explain that a date with Jamie is out of the question, but Connie insists that Jamie’s effort needs to be repaid in kind, at least with a polite letter back. Garnet instructs, “Start with the letter ‘n’. The letter ‘o.’ Period.” When Steven prompts her for more so they can match at least the length of Jamie’s empurpled missive, Garnet adds calmly, “The end, forever, and even after that.” After Steven adds a cheerful “Yours truly, Garnet,” the letter is complete.
Steven and Connie head down to Beach City to find Jamie and deliver Garnet’s response. To Steven’s dismay, Jamie reveals that his attempts to follow his dreams in Glorious Kansas were met with nothing but failure after failure. Tears in his eyes, he says mistily that one more rejection might crush his heart. Blithely Connie moves to hand him the letter, but sensitive Steven says no.
Back at the house, Connie and Steven try to redo the letter. Connie is truly a born fanfiction writer: “I’ve watched some episodes of a torrid soap opera before, so I’m confident that I get the jist of romance.” I hope they weren’t Spanish soap operas. Connie matches the elevated level of purple in Jamie’s original letter, but without really matching Garnet’s staunch and uncompromising level of Do Not Want. Steven and Connie mail the letter.
Later that night, Jamie appears at the rain, calling for Garnet. He has completely misunderstood Steven and Connie’s polite and ambiguous refusal letter. Steven frantically tries to spare Jamie’s feelings and tell him the truth, but before he can, Garnet appears. Jamie slowly crumbles as Garnet unequivocally and unambiguously states, “I am not, nor will I ever be interested. Go away.” (Oh, if only it were that easy.)
“Yay me!” says Steven, pained, as Jaime runs off theatrically into the night.
The next day, there’s a new mailwoman searching for Steven’s house. (Is this Sadie’s mom or big sister?! Because they look -- and sound -- quite a lot alike.) She reveals that Jamie has totally fallen apart. Upon hearing Connie and Steven’s wails over Jamie’s shattered spirit, Garnet decides she needs to handle this personally.
As Jamie lets the mail he was supposed to deliver flutter into the ocean, Garnet parks her massive form next to his.“Love takes time and love takes work. At the very least you have to know the other person. And you literally have no idea who or what I am,” Garnet says firmly.
Jamie has played the part of lovesick fool so convincingly, he has convinced even himself. Talk about Shakespearean -- Jamie has fully pulled a Romeo over Rosaline, but Garnet is not his Juliet. Garnet encourages him to bring his gifts to local theatre, slaps him heartily on the back and walks away. Jaime ends the episode with his spirits slightly lifted by Garnet’s good advice and with a whole lot of mail to retrieve from the ocean.
It’s always good to see Garnet get the spotlight. Estelle’s smooth, musical voice and gentle accent are a treat for the ears, and Garnet’s forthright personality leads to a lot of funny moments. We don’t learn anything new about Garnet per se, but I always enjoy seeing this powerful warrior’s empathetic and nurturing side. She lets Jamie down hard, but doesn’t let him stay in the doldrums, and in fact takes the initiative to lift him out of them. The Crystal Gems are here to save the day, but that doesn’t always mean by punching it. Sometimes saving the day can be as small as encouraging one humble aspiring thespian to keep at it.
But it doesn't mean saying "yes" when you don't mean it. And I'm glad that message stayed loud and perfectly clear.
