Article written by Dylan Bell.
Star Verses the Forces of Evil (or SvtFoE for short) and Steven Universe are two of the best Western animated shows in the past decade, both have been acclaimed by fans and critics alike, myself included. However, which is better? Although this a highly subjective question I will do my very best to uncover which I believe to be superior.
One aspect that unites both of these shows is that they have stellar stories and worlds, each dripping with lore and mystery. I do believe, however, that SvtFoE does this marginally better because one problem that plagues Steven Universe is terrible pacing throughout the story and the sheer amount of time between each droplet of information. Don’t get me wrong, SvtFoE does have some pacing issues, but these problems are minor and do not detract from the enjoyment of the story, unlike Steven Universe where these pacing issues are severe and at times can detract from the enjoyment of the show.
Another aspect these shows have in common is phenomenal characters, both of these shows have characters with enormous emotional depth and mystery, far more then some shows aimed at adults. In this instance I believe Steven Universe has far more emotional characters with attributes of mental health and a plethora of character development for each character. SvtFoE on the other hand does have compelling and interesting characters but doesn’t quite have the emotional depth of Steven Universe. However, I do believe SvtFoE has more mysterious and complex characters, building up unknown figures and delving head first into the duality of good and evil, not to mention some delightful subtext on racism. As I have said previously this category is difficult because both shows excel with characters and if we were only talking about the main character Star in SvtFoE would come first because of her sheer likability, however, when taking into account all characters I believe Steven Universe is slightly better.
One aspect I adore from Steven Universe are the songs that feature in certain episodes that are almost always knockouts. As a lover of music and musicals this gives Steven Universe a slight edge for me personally as SvtFoE does not contain any songs, with the exception of one episode. I do understand that songs are not everyone’s cup of tea so I will not demerit SvtFoE too harshly.
Now the one factor that can make or break TV shows are the antagonists, that may be a stretch but it’s a good segway into our next segment. Now you may be wondering why I didn’t mention this in the characters section, well frankly antagonists are a large and important part of these shows so I believe they deserve their own section.
In regard to villains, both of these shows have a reasonable line-up and realistically which is better will determine which kind of antagonists you prefer. Steven Universe has many antagonists over the five seasons including Jasper, Peridot and the Diamonds along with one off antagonists that appear sparingly. Now all of these characters have been explored very well, however, with the exception of Jasper and (at this stage) White Diamond all other villains have been in one way or another redeemed, forgotten or are no longer a threat. This can be a positive or a negative depending on your outlook. For me personally, I do not mind this action as long as it is justified and in some cases I believe redemption or at least civility was reached too quickly, I still adore these characters but due to pacing issues I believe the show suffers for it.
SvtFoE has an interesting list of antagonists as well as an interesting outlook on what antagonists are. There are four main antagonists to this show, the first being Ludo a primarily comedic villain which only serves to help set up the world at first. The second is the enigmatic and well dressed Toffee, an exceptional villain who is menacing and powerful in every sense of the word and adds an exceptional amount of lore and mystery to the world. The third is Meteora a beautifully complex villain who is understandable and terrifying, well worth the long wait and build up. The final antagonist is highly debated amongst the SvtFoE fanbase because there is no clear sign she is a villain. Without spoiling too much Eclipsa is a wonderfully complicated character long foreshadowed as the evilest, cruellest character we have ever seen, yet when we finally meet her she is delightfully charming and seemingly harmless. As you can probably tell this segment is difficult to decide, however in my opinion SvtFoE has superior villains simply because they are more complicated with deeper and mysterious goals and more importantly SvtFoE isn’t afraid of killing off its villains.
There are many more aspects of these shows that I have neglected to mention simply because I do not have the time to go in depth about every wonderful aspect about each of these shows. However, I believe that the superior show is without a doubt Star vs the Forces of Evil. This show is phenomenally detailed and full of depth and mystery to satisfy all audiences.
I would like to reiterate that both of these shows are fantastic both with their own strengths and weaknesses and both are definitely worth your time. But if you only have the patience or time for one of these instant classics then Star vs the Forces of Evil is the show for you.
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