Steven’s crashout was 100% justified. Let me explain.
I’ve learned that some people don’t like Steven from Steven Universe Future because they think he’s throwing a tantrum over simple things or that he’s being extremely selfish. I’m here to remind you all that Steven isn’t throwing a temper tantrum, he’s experiencing an existential crisis and mental breakdown due to spending his entire childhood fighting corrupted gem monsters, fusion experiments, and gem soldiers from Homeworld who tried to destroy Earth countless times. Steven’s entire life was spent saving the Earth from the Diamonds and from freeing all of Gemkind from the Diamond Authority. He didn’t get a chance to grow up and build structure for himself as he got older because his father Greg and the Crystal Gems didn’t provide him with any structure. Greg just let Steven do whatever he wanted without warning him of any dangers and the Crystal Gems had clearly never understood how to raise a human before.
Steven never got to enjoy any human activities like going to school, going to the doctor, the dentist or doing any other things that humans need to have in order to build structure. Greg never took Steven to school, which means Steven has no education, which means he doesn’t have a diploma and a diploma is needed to get a job. So, without a diploma, Steven can’t find work, which means he’s probably going to end up homeless or at the very least, be forced to live with his dad since his dad is a multi millionaire. However, Steven should not rely on his dad just because he’s rich, Steven needed structure as a kid in order to survive in the world, but his dad never gave that to him, nor did the gems.
It’s also completely unfair that Steven freed all gems from Homeworld’s tyranny, saved the universe from the Gem Empire, helped the gems find their place in the universe and gave them a chance to live their lives freely. What does Steven get in return? NOTHING!!! No gift baskets, no gift cards, not even a “thank you”, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!! Not even after nearly dying a bunch of times or watching his friends and family almost die just to save Earth. All of that pain, all of that suffering, all of that unprocessed trauma just from being a kid and getting nothing in return is beyond disgusting. Also, has anyone noticed how NONE of the humans in Beach City have even dared to question why a young boy is working with three alien women from space to save Earth and not in school like he’s supposed to? That means the humans of Beach City are just as guilty as Greg and the gems. They did nothing to intervene or say that this was wrong. A child should not be responsible for protecting Earth from intergalactic threats, that job belongs to the adults.
I really think that Steven’s life would’ve turned out better if he didn’t have to go to war against Homeworld. He could’ve lived a normal life like everyone else, but sadly, this was inevitable and all he gets to do after Steven Universe Future is drive in his car and travel across the country to discover who he is. I do love the ending of the epilogue, it’s very symbolic and heartwarming, but I just felt extremely bad for Steven throughout the entire series. Let me know what you guys think in the comments below and tell me if you believe that Steven was right to crashout.