Line #137 Recap/StevenUniverseS4E4MindfulEducation


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_3150.png]]
2
3	'''Original airdate:''' August 25th, 2016
4
5	'''Production code:''' 1040-108
6
7	----
8
9	Connie arrives at the beach house and knocks on the door. She has an uncharacteristically grim expression. She knocks, and Steven answers, with a shiny bald head.
10
11	->'''Steven:''' Lovely day isn't it?\
12	'''Connie:''' Yeah, I guess...
13
14	Connie walks past without even noticing and begins unpacking her bag for training. Steven makes a quip about inheriting male pattern baldness from his father, but it showing up unexpectedly overnight. Connie doesn't bat an eye, responding absently. Steven. frustrated and confused by Connie's reactions simply blurts out:
15
16	->'''Steven:''' Connie, I'm ''bald''!\
17	'''Connie:''' Oh. What happened?
18
19	Steven reveals he was just joking with a bald cap. He starts to ask Connie if she is okay, but Garnet and Pearl arrive. Pearl points out how excited Garnet is to sit in on this special training. Connie asks if she was supposed to bring something, but the Gems say themselves is enough as they'll be training to fight as Stevonnie.
20
21	Garnet, excited, has made a sign cheering on Steven and Connie on one side, and cheering on Stevonnie on the other.
22
23	->'''Steven:''' Ha! Fusion joke.
24
25	Shortly up in the Sky Arena, Pearl begins training by having two holo-Pearls fuse into a giant holo-Pearl to fight Stevonnie. Steven and Connie do their FusionDance and Stevonnie is ready to fight! Garnet spins her sign around, and the fusion fight is on!
26
27	Stevonnie puts Steven's floating powers to use which confuses the fusion for only a tiny second. They realize the power for what it is and go in to finish the fight on the surprised holo-Pearl fusion. But as they go in for the coup de grace, the face of a startled boy appears, and...
28
29	->'''Stevonnie:''' ''[Connie's voice]'' I'm sorry!
30
31	The fusion has lost their cohesion and Stevonnie falls apart. Garnet and Pearl make sure the kids are unhurt. As Steven asks what happened, Connie gives a pained grunt and runs off. He follows, finding Connie huddled in a ball on the stairs. When Steven asks if she's all right, Connie tells him she did something terrible at school and doesn't know what to do about it. Steven tries to comfort Connie by touching her shoulder but she pushes him away and explains that she accidentally beat up a boy at her school; someone she didn't even know. He bumped into her unexpectedly and her Gem training just kicked right in without her thinking about it. She explains she was so embarrassed she just ran away. Steven tries to console his friend by telling her she didn't mean to hurt anyone, and that sometimes you do hurt people by accident.
32
33	->'''Steven:''' You just have to try not to think about it.
34
35	Before he can offer any more advice, Garnet joins them. She takes them back to earth, and sits with them on the beach. She explains that a fusion must be balanced to hold together. Imbalance can cause a fusion to lose touch with reality, hallucinate, and fall apart.
36
37	->'''Garnet:''' That is to say, if one of you is falling apart, your fusion will as well.
38
39	She goes on to explain to the kids that in order for their fusion to be balanced, they must understand their feelings by seeing them clearly without running from them. She tells them they need to form Stevonnie once again. Steven and Connie look to each other, agree, and without getting up from their seats on the sand, Stevonnie has replaced them sitting in the space between them.
40
41	Garnet begins taking them through a guided meditation: she explains that they're safe in the darkness and they can hear the waves and let the sound fade away.
42
43	->'''Garnet:''' Here comes a thought.
44
45	Stevonnie and Garnet are together on the mindscape. As Garnet describes how an intrusive thought can take over and cause a person to focus on it to the point of losing touch and giving it far more importance than it deserves.
46
47	->'''Garnet:''' ''♫ Take a moment, remind yourself to take a moment to find yourself. Take a moment to ask yourself if this is how we fall apart. But it's not. It's okay. You've got nothing to fear. I'm here. ♫''
48
49	Stevonnie embraces Garnet's lesson and the mindscape reveals Connie's memory of hurting the boy. But even though she feels terrible, Steven is still there. The meditation ends with all four components of the two fusions lying together on the mindscape watching thoughts go by without acting on them.
50
51	->'''Garnet and Stevonnie:''' ''♫ It's just a thought. We can watch them go by from here. ♫''
52
53	Another training day arrives, and Connie is her usual bright, cheerful, and spirited self. She explains to Steven that she apologized, explained, and that it all worked out. Jeff, the boy she injured, understood. She shows a picture of him with his arm in a sling, but he's smiling to show no hard feelings. To Connie's delight, Jeff even wants to learn from her when he's better. Feeling much more confident and ready to fight as Stevonnie once again, Connie goes to change.
54
55	Steven glances at Rose's sword and sees one of the thought butterflies from the mindscape Stevonnie shared with Garnet... but soon they're back in the Sky Arena fighting holo Pearl again. Pearl compliments Stevonnie on their technique. As Stevonnie moves in for a sword thrust, Stevonnie begins hallucinating again: the sword thrust has [[TraumaButton triggered]] Steven within Stevonnie. An image of Bismuth appears before their eyes, and Steven cries out in frustration and dismay.
56
57	->'''Stevonnie:''' ''[Steven's voice]'' Oh no. It's coming from me now!
58
59	Garnet yells encouragement to them. Pearl asks what's happening, but Stevonnie is able to focus on Garnet's advice. As they prepare to return to the fight, though a new hallucination appears: Jasper, succumbing to corruption. The image grows huge and lurches toward Stevonnie, Steven tearfully trying to explain himself to Jasper. But then Jasper becomes the Eyeball member of the Ruby Squad.
60
61	Stevonnie is still physically one being but Steven and Connie begin having a conversation as the imaginary enemies grow larger and loom ever closer.
62
63	->'''Stevonnie:''' ''[Steven's voice]'' I tried to help you. You wouldn't listen. I-I told you to stop. I had no choice I'm sorry, I shouldn't -- ''[Connie's voice]'' It's okay! It's okay to think about it! ''[Steven's voice]'' I thought I could, but it's so much! I can't do it!
64
65	The trio of defeated enemies burst into rays of light and converge, coruscating and morphing until they become an enormous image of Rose Quartz, glaring down on Stevonnie with anger and disapproval. Stevonnie [[DramaticDrop drops their sword]] and backs away, right off the edge of the Sky Arena.
66
67	The startling realization that they're falling knocks Stevonnie out of fusion, leaving Connie and Steven in freefall! Connie, still level headed, immediately suggests they fuse again because they can hover and be safe. But Steven is completely overcome with his guilt and grief. Connie angles herself so her fall collides with Steven so she can grab him.
68
69	->'''Steven:''' I didn't want to hurt anyone! I'm ''sorry''! None of them would let me help them! I had no choice!\
70	'''Connie:''' It's okay!\
71	'''Steven:''' No, it's not!\
72	'''Connie:''' But it's okay to think about it!
73
74	Connie goes on to console Steven when he protests how bad he feels. She tells him he has to feel how he feels, accept it, and move on. She explains that's how it was for her with her classmate. Steven accepts it, and they fuse back into Stevonnie. The hallucinations loom toward them again but Stevonnie can embrace Garnet's advice from both parts of themselves now. They breathe through it, and use their floating power to drift safely to earth again.
75
76	Laughing with relief from having fused again in time to survive, and having learned that being honest with themselves helps recover from the thoughts which seem overwhelming, Stevonnie drops to lie in the grass and watch the clouds go by.
77
78	->'''Stevonnie:''' ... I'm here.
79	----
80	!!Tropes:
81	* AnAesop:
82	** It's better to think and talk about your problems than keep them bottled up and let them fester.
83	** Sometimes, unpleasant things really couldn't have happened better than they did. It's okay and even natural to feel bad about it, as that's part of the process of moving on.
84	* AnimalMotifs: Butterflies feature heavily in this episode, representing the characters' personal issues.
85	* ApologeticAttacker: Steven and Connie talk this way to their hallucinations, Connie to Jeff for hurting him, and Steven for not saving the Gems that he fought.
86	* ArtShift: The [[DreamSequence Dream Sequences]] are animated in a subtly {{Animesque}} style, by Creator/StudioTrigger animation director Takafumi Hori.
87	* BehindTheBlack: While Stevonnie hallucinates, they walk around in a daze and eventually take a step by step back, falling off the arena. Only when the camera goes back to Garnet and Pearl do they worry about Stevonnie's safety.
88	* BlueAndOrangeContrast: Connie's vision of her problem is tinted blue, and later, Steven's shameful thoughts are tinted orange.
89	* BrokenTears: Stevonnie (from Steven) has tears streaming down their face when the butterflies form into Rose.
90	* CallBack:
91	** Stevonnie has hallucinations again, like in "Alone Together" and "Beach City Drift". Garnet explains this as a manifestation of a conflict between the two minds, though it's more literal in this instance.
92	** Bismuth, Jasper, and Eyeball all show up as hallucinations, being the three Gems Steven couldn't talk down.
93	** Rose's appearance in the hallucination is more oblique, but it's likely connected to the fact that her actions caused the problems with the aforementioned Gems in the first place, and since Steven has her gem, he inherits the consequences of her actions.
94	** Ruby and Sapphire seem to be re-enacting their argument from "Keystone Motel", with Sapphire overwhelmed by a spiral of thoughts stretching into the distance and Ruby focusing all her anger on a single thought.
95	** This episode also shows how the "conversation" mentioned in passing in Garnet's song "Stronger Than You" works.
96	** Rose frowning also represents Steven's repeatedly stated concerns of not being able to measure up to perceived expectations of being like Rose.
97	** Connie's battle experience with the Corrupted Gems and Jasper have been affecting her day-to-day life and causing a mild form of PTSD, so that someone running into her during school triggers her to go on the defense.
98	* CharacterDevelopment: Connie's confidence has grown to the point she makes a new friend, the same boy whose wrist she accidentally broke, with ''her'' being the one to instigate the said new friendship.
99	* CompressedHair: Steven hides his hair under a bald cap to prank Connie.
100	* ContinuityNod: Garnet's "Hold the phone, now give the phone to me" was said before by Steven to Greg in "The Message".
101	* CooldownHug: Connie offers one to Steven as they're falling while assuring him that it's all right for him to feel the way he does.
102	* DeathGlare: Since Rose has never looked angry before, the imaginary Rose's scowl at Stevonnie comes off as frightening.
103	* DisneyAcidSequence: "Here Comes a Thought" portrays Garnet and Stevonnie meditating as their components in a featureless MentalWorld confronting butterflies made of light that represent their anxiety.
104	* DontSneakUpOnMeLikeThat: Connie, still jittery from combat training, flips a random kid after he bumps into her in the hallway.
105	* EasilyForgiven: Jeff forgives Connie pretty easily once she explains why she attacked him and apologizes. It's especially notable since he walked away from the ordeal with his arm in a sling.
106	* FailedASpotCheck: At the start, Steven is wearing a bald cap as a prank, and making wisecracks about it, but Connie fails to notice until he actually points it out because she's so distracted by her reaction to Jeff bumping into her in the hall.
107	* {{Foreshadowing}}:
108	** Besides Connie being unusually distant, Jeff's face is what Stevonnie sees right before they de-fuse.
109	** Steven's first piece of advice to Connie is to not think about the feelings over the incident with a grieving expression on his face. After the lesson from Garnet, he sees another butterfly before he and Connie fuse again, hinting that his problems will arise.
110	** "Here Comes a Thought":
111	*** Ruby is shown being overwhelmed by a single butterfly and focuses all her energy on it. Meanwhile Sapphire, the seemingly more composed Gem, is overwhelmed by a swarm of butterflies showing that she has hidden anxieties. Eventually after resolving her own issues Ruby comforts Sapphire from her thoughts. This is almost exactly what happens by the end of the episode; with Connie making up with Jeff and letting go of her issues and then helping Steven when his guilt over the fates of Bismuth, Jasper and Eyeball sends him into a HeroicBSOD.
112	*** At the end of the song, Connie and Ruby lie down near each other, then Steven and Sapphire lie down together, hinting at parallels between the characters which will become apparent by episode's end: Connie/Ruby fixating on a single thought, while Steven/Sapphire's thoughts build up until they reach a breaking point.
113	* FreezeFrameBonus: When Stevonnie fly past Holo-Pearl instead of striking her, Garnet already has her sign flipped back to "Steven + Connie" because she already knew that Stevonnie would come unfused with her future vision.
114	* FusionDance:
115	** Stevonnie's dance is actually seen this time, and it's just Steven and Connie doing their own dances before lining up back-to-back.
116	** Pearl has her holograms do a dance (The Robot!) to fuse into a larger hologram.
117	* HairTriggerTemper: In the fusion mental world, Ruby becomes furious at one butterfly and goes running after it.
118	* HalfwayPlotSwitch: Once Connie's issue is resolved, ''Steven's'' hangups start interfering with Stevonnie staying fused.
119	* HeadbuttOfLove: Connie and Steven do one as she offers him a CooldownHug.
120	* HeroicBSOD: Both Connie and Steven go into a state of depression. In Connie's case it's guilt over reflexively flipping a boy and hurting him. In Steven's case, it's guilt over not being able to save Bismuth, Jasper, and Eyeball, as well as [[BrokenPedestal his conflicted feelings about Rose]].
121	* HiddenDepths: Ruby has one little negative thought butterfly which she runs after and screams at. Sapphire is practically drowning in them.
122	* IAmWhatIAm: During their fall, Connie helps Steven with his emotional turmoil, enough so they can fuse and use their floating powers to land. Upon landing safely, Stevonnie collapses happily on the grass and says, "I'm here." Based on the meditation scene, it also doubles as a YouAreNotAlone between Steven and Connie.
123	* LightIsNotGood: Of a sort. In the fusion realm, the butterflies represent one's negative feelings and traumatic experiences.
124	* LockedOutOfTheLoop: Connie didn't learn who Bismuth was, though she does remember Jasper.
125	* MagicPants: Connie's training outfit manages to fit over Steven's normal outfit when they fuse as Stevonnie.
126	* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: Garnet explains Stevonnie's very intense hallucinations as a result of their fusion destabilizing. However, Steven sees a single, brief, and subtle one even while not fused at all. If this is related to his psychic/gem powers or a mundane effect of stress is not explained.
127	* MentalWorld: Garnet takes Stevonnie into the mind of their fusions, which is represented as a mostly empty void where both the fused minds and the component minds exist.
128	* MusicalWorldHypothesis: The entire scene in the MentalWorld is sung.
129	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Connie is full of guilt after she instinctively threw a boy to the ground when he bumped into her.
130	* MyGreatestFailure: Steven regards his inability to save and talk down Bismuth, Jasper, and Eyeball as this.
131	* NotQuiteFlight: Stevonnie is confirmed to have Steven's floating powers, which takes them by surprise the first time. However, it isn't as intuitive for them as Smoky Quartz, or even Steven, seems to find it, since they appear to be running in midair for it to take effect. Unlike Steven or Smoky, however, Stevonnie also seems able to increase their momentum while floating by running, while Steven is limited to his already existing momentum, and Smoky has to use their yoyo.
132	* OhCrap:
133	** Connie had this at school after flipping Jeff.
134	** Garnet and Pearl when Stevonnie freaks out and fails against the Holo-Pearls. They have this reaction again when Stevonnie falls from the arena during the next training session.
135	** Stevonnie has this when Steven realizes that ''his'' issues are emerging.
136	** The hallucination of Bismuth also bears this expression as she did when Steven had to poof her.
137	* OffscreenInertia: The last we see of Pearl and Garnet is their horrified reaction to Stevonnie falling off the platform, and by episode's end they apparently still don't know Steven and Connie survived.
138	* PensieveFlashback: Stevonnie's MentalWorld allows Steven to directly see Connie's encounter with Jeff through her memory.
139	* PersonalHorror: Steven and Connie are both dealing with this. Connie from attacking a kid who bumped her out of reflex and the AllLovingHero Steven from being unable to save Jasper, poofing Bismuth and sending Eyeball out of his bubble when they were lost in space.
140	* ReflexiveResponse: The result of adventure involving deadly combat is a sharpened fight-or-flight response, and combined with combat training means in that moment you ''know how to fight''. A boy at Connie's school startled her by bumping into her entirely by accident, and got his arm in a sling as a result.
141	* RunningOnTheSpot: When Stevonnie floats, they wave their legs in the air as if they were running, though it's unclear if this is simply from being unused to them or if that's how they work with the mostly human fusion.
142	* ShellShockedVeteran: The final conflict in the episode involves Steven's issues with some of the darker stuff that recently happened.
143	* ShoutOut:
144	** Stevonnie rapidly swinging their legs to slow their descent resembles [[Franchise/{{SuperMarioBros}} Luigi's]] or [[VideoGame/YoshisIsland Yoshi's]] flutter animation in certain games.
145	** While falling from the Sky Arena, Steven and Connie hold onto both hands, bringing to mind Chihiro and Haku's flight at the climax of Anime/SpiritedAway. The fact that Steven's tears usually look like the usual Ghibli-style tears certainly helps.
146	* ShownTheirWork: "Here Comes a Thought" is an accurate (if simplified) explanation of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindfulness mindfulness meditation]], a popular and widely successful form of psychotherapy used to help people deal with depression, stress, anxiety, and PTSD. The episode's title is another direct reference to that technique.
147	* SinsOfOurFathers: Steven's biggest issues (failing to talk down Bismuth, Jasper refusing his help, and Eyeball attempting to murder him) are reflected on the actions his mother did in the past, and now he (as, technically, Rose's reincarnation) has to deal with the consequences despite not being actually responsible.
148	* SkyFace: The butterflies combine to form Rose, and she's [[DeathGlare glaring down at Steven]], a reflection of how she has wound up seriously hurting others despite how others admire her as an AllLovingHeroine, [[BrokenPedestal throwing everything Steven knew about her into question]].
149	* StepfordSmiler: Although Connie delves into this a bit with her conflict with Jeff, Steven is the real example here. He starts the episode pranking Connie with a bald cap and laughing at Garnet's fusion joke, and when Connie comes the next day he's happily reading a book. He's been repressing his grief over not being able to save Bismuth, Jasper, and Eyeball to the point that he has a nervous breakdown when they resurface. If Connie hadn't snapped him out of it, the two of them might have fallen to their deaths because he couldn't work up the nerve to use his floating powers as Stevonnie again.
150	* {{Tuckerization}}: The boy that Connie unintentionally hurts and later apologizes to and befriends is named Jeff, likely named after Jeff Liu, one of the writers and storyboard artists, who also worked on this episode.
151	* VisualPun:
152	** Butterflies are used in this episode as a symbol of repressed fears and anxiety. They're like butterflies in your stomach.
153	** Connie's mental self has butterflies coming out of her backpack; she was carrying some emotional baggage.
154	* WavingSignsAround: Garnet made a sign that says "Go Steven + Connie" on one side and "Go Stevonnie" on the other, for waving around encouragingly while Steven and Connie train together.
155	* YouAreNotAlone: The key to a stable fusion, according to Garnet, is the component minds being there for each other when their individual thoughts become overwhelming.
156	* YouDidEverythingYouCould: Connie comforts Steven on not being able to save Bismuth, Jasper, and Eyeball.

Context Recap / StevenUniverseS4E4MindfulEducation