One of my favorite scenes from this episode was this one.
Yellow is trying to make them see that her actions are expected by White to uphold their perfect society that they have created. But as soon as Steven asked what was so perfect about it.
She immediately stopped and looked at Blue, who is still laying on the ground after Yellow attack.
Yellow realizes that in trying to uphold these perfect standards White has set; shes hurt one of the few people she holds dear in her life.
And immediately falls to her knees after that realization sinks in.
That moment when Diamond Days brings you to the incredibly obvious realization that Steven Universe is an always has been a show about parenthood from a child’s perspective
And how basically the entire show (even most of the “fillers” people love to dunk on) take on a whole new level of meaning when read as build to this emotional climax.
If you look at it from a certain perspective, Diamond Days (and in a way–all of SU) is a metaphor for transphobia and dead naming.
Steven has spent his life being compared to Rose. Rose is gone. It’s Steven now. Everyone remembers and misses Rose, but his family loves Steven.
When Blue speaks to Yellow, she says, “She prefers to go by Steven now.” And all of the diamonds refer to him as “she/her/Pink.”
When White (substitute a trans/homophobic grandma if you will) demands him to Look like Pink again, he snaps. “SHE’S GONE!”
White tells him that he’s deceived himself and that Pink is still in there. She’s not. When Steven sees that it is–in fact–HIM inside of his gem, he is so overjoyed.
Idk. Just like all of the misgendering and deadnaming in this season got to me. It made me understand the trans community in a way that I’ve tried and failed to do myself.
However, as Steven himself sang,
“I don’t need you to respect me, I respect me. I don’t need you to love me, I love me. I just need you to know-You could know me if you changed your mind.”
