Political Power

"Is this happening to ice cream all over town!? This really is a crisis!"

"Political Power" is the 47th episode of the first season in Steven Universe, and the 47th episode overall.

Synopis
The Crystal Gems cause a power outage in Beach City, so Steven helps Mayor Bill Dewey control the situation.

Plot
The Gems (and Steven, who was told to go to bed) gather on the beach, with Pearl testing a new invention, a robot disruptor, on one of Peridot's robonoids. According to her, the device would have the power to create a localized energy blast that would be able to shutdown all of Peridot's robonoids along with Peridot. However, instead of knocking out the robonoid, Pearl's disruptor creates an EMP like effect that knocks out all of the power in Beach City. Pearl sees this as a start and plans to fix up the disruptor using parts from a washing machine.

The next morning, Steven prepares to cook breakfast, only to find the microwave not working. He then hears a knock on the door. Mayor Dewey is there, asking for the Crystal Gems; he claims that he has been mayor long enough to know the power outage was possibly caused by them. Steven calls Pearl up to the door, who tells Dewey that the power should be on either that night at the best, or never at the worst. The distressed mayor says that the people of Beach City need electronic distractions so they do not realize the very town they are living in is a "magnet for disaster." Steven takes responsibility from last night and decides to help Dewey clean up the mess around the town (as Garnet and the other Gems refuse to do so).

They travel in Mayor Dewey's van talking to the citizens and promising that the power will come back on by sundown, all while passing glow sticks and "Vote 4 Dewey" pins. Steven soon learns that Dewey has been lying to the public in the name of politics. Dewey explains that when working for the government, he cannot control the situation, but can control the people's reactions to it in order to keep them safe and prevent rioting. He vaguely relates this problem with a place called Ocean Town.

Back at the temple, Steven overhears the Gems talking about the imminent arrival of Peridot, and any other Gems Lapis Lazuli claims is joining her. They immediately change the subject the moment they see Steven meet up with them.

The sun finally sets and the power has not come back on. The citizens start to riot by tipping over Dewey's van. Steven jumps on the tipped over van and dissolve the commotion, saying that they will get through these tough times together and that Dewey only lied to keep them safe.

Understanding what Dewey went through, Steven returns home to confront the gems about Peridot. Garnet only tells him that Peridot is "a modern Gem with modern Gem technology", and that alone makes them fearful of things to come. Steven assures that they will all figure something out together, just as the power throughout Beach City is finally restored.

Characters

 * Steven
 * Mayor Bill Dewey
 * Garnet
 * Amethyst
 * Pearl
 * Lapis Lazuli (mentioned)
 * Peridot (mentioned)

Beach City Residents

 * Sadie
 * Lars
 * Mr. Fryman
 * Peedee Fryman
 * Ronaldo Fryman
 * Greg Universe
 * Ronaldo Fryman
 * Mr. Smiley
 * Nanafua
 * Jenny
 * Kiki
 * Onion
 * Buck Dewey (non-speaking cameo)
 * Suitcase Sam

Locations

 * Beach City
 * Beach House

Objects

 * Flask Robonoids
 * Quartizine Trio (3x Laser Light Cannon)

Music

 * TBA

Trivia

 * It is revealed that The Quartizine Trio is being stored under the Beach House's porch.
 * Lapis, Peridot, Mayor Dewey, Pearl, Rose, Young Greg, Ronaldo, Steven, Jenny, Sour Cream, Lars, and Mr.Smiley  can be seen in the promo art.
 * This is similar to the school theme of the promo art of The Test, Maximum Capacity, and Open Book.
 * It is revealed that Mayor Dewey has a crush on Pearl.
 * This is after Mayor Dewey called Pearl, "The hot one."
 * He also seemed nervous while he was speaking to her since he had trouble saying words.
 * There was once a town called Ocean Town, but it's unclear what happened to it.
 * It is implied by Mayor Dewey that Ocean Town's mayor could not take control and everyone went crazy. It's further suggested that this event occurred in recent history, from Mr. Fryman's laughing "too soon" after Mayor Dewey jokes about the town's faith.
 * When the citizens are about to revolt against Mayor Bill Dewey his bodyguards can, ironically, be seen as part of the angry mob.

Cultural References

 * The cards Garnet picks up resemble the game Apples to Apples.

Continuity

 * One of Peridot's Flask Robonoids makes another appearance, this time being used to test out Pearl's robot disruptor.
 * The Quartizine Trio from "Rose's Scabbard" is covered with a tarp under the house.
 * Steven eavesdrops on the other Gems discussing Lapis Lazuli's warning in "The Message," brainstorming what to do about Peridot's inevitable arrival and the allegation that she's bringing reinforcements.

Errors

 * In the scene where Pearl is talking with Mayor Bill Dewey, her left eye is missing.
 * In one scene, the donut from Lars's work uniform is missing, in the next scene it's there.
 * In the same scene where the mayor's bodyguards are part of the angry mob, Mr. Smiley's mouth wasn't colored in.

Transcript
View the episode's transcript here.

Videos
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