1. It blows away gender roles. The main character, Steven, is extremely maternal, friendly, and sweet to everyone, unlike other “tough guy” cartoon boys. He has four guardians: three genderless aliens (who all use she pronouns), the Crystal Gems, and his biological father. The aliens, who present femininely, are easily the strongest characters in the show.
2. Diversity, hoo-boy! Beach City, the setting for most of the show, is filled with characters of all ages, genders and races, all of whom have unique personalities. None of them conform to racial or gender stereotypes and all have varying familial structures.
3. Polymorphic sentient rocks. Yep, you heard me right. Steven’s three alien guardians are actually shape-shifting beings whose being is contained in gems like opals, pearls, amethysts, quartz, etc. Each gem has a special magic weapon they can use, like a sword or whip. Actually one of the best ideas for aliens yet! And with just one cool dance to funky music, two (or more) gems can do a magical transformation and fuse into a bigger, stronger giant alien! Steven is half-gem, half-human.
4. Probably the first confirmed queer relationship in a big-time kids TV show. OK, I don’t think I can say too much without major spoilers, but a certain two gems are very much in love, and nobody questions or denies it.
5. Sweet tunes. Pretty much every episode has a fun original song in it, ranging from electronic jams to guitar ballads. All really high quality. Personally, I spent DAYS listening to “Stronger Than You” over and over again.
6. Really stunning scenery. A simple Google search of “Steven Universe Backgrounds” can give you a good idea of how fabulous the artistic team is for this show. Simple, yet shining and full of sweet pinks, purples, blues and oranges, you’ll probably start drooling over them. I have screenshots as both my phone and computer wallpapers, just so I can see them every day.
7. It’s SUPER FREAKING CUTE. The animation, the plot, the characters themselves, everything about this show leaves the viewer with a smile on their face. Episode #1 is entirely about Steven’s love for ice cream cats! Continuing on the cat theme, Steven has a pet lion, who he is absolutely in love with, and spends a lot of time doing adorable things playing with Lion. In another episode, Steven helps his best friend Connie to overcome her anxiety about dancing in front of others. How much more heartwarming can this get?

Read our article for the inferior Bob’s Burgers [HERE].