Mr. Greg

Did You Know?

• Series creator Rebecca Sugar rewrote "It's Over, Isn't It?" several times, calling it "the hardest song I've written to date."
• In 2017, the episode was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program.

Plot

Steven and Greg are amazed to learn that Greg's song "Comet" was used as the basis for a successful burger commercial jingle. They debate how to spend the $10 million Greg received for the jingle, agreeing that the best things in life are free. They decide to take a vacation to Empire City, and Steven suggests Pearl join them. Pearl and Greg are reluctant, but Steven is optimistic. In Empire City, they stay at Le Hotel, where the staff joins in a song about the hotel's opulence. Greg asks Pearl to dance, but she refuses, ending the song. Later, while Steven and Greg sleep, Pearl sings about her feelings for Rose Quartz and her jealousy over Rose and Greg's love, expressing her regrets. Steven and Greg wake during the song, and Greg flees to the hotel bar. Steven reveals he invited Pearl so she and Greg could work out their differences. He plays a song on the piano, urging them to talk about their feelings for Rose. After discussing their feelings, the hotel staff cheers them, and Greg receives the bill. The three depart, with Greg and Pearl chatting amiably as Steven observes their improved relationship.

Production

The musical episode "Mr. Greg" was crafted by storyboarders Joe Johnston and Jeff Liu, with Johnston moving on to become the show's supervising director full-time afterward. Animation direction came from Ki-Yong Bae and Jin-Hee Park, while Jasmin Lai handled art direction. A spinning camera shot in the song "It's Over, Isn't It?" took inspiration from a similar moment in the film Victor/Victoria's "Crazy World." Shelby Rabara, who voices Peridot, supplied the tap-dancing sounds for Pearl and Steven in the title track. The episode contains seven songs: "Like a Burger," "Don't Cost Nothing," "Empire City," "Mr. Greg," "It's Over, Isn't It?," "Both of You," and a reprise of "Don't Cost Nothing." Johnston, Ben Levin, and Jeff Liu wrote "Mr. Greg," with Liu on guitar and Levin on bass. Series creator Rebecca Sugar wrote "It's Over, Isn't It?" and "Both of You," which were arranged by the show's music team Aivi & Surasshu, with strings by Jeff Ball. Sugar rewrote "It's Over, Isn't It?" multiple times, describing it as the most difficult song she had ever written.

Broadcast and reception

"Mr. Greg" first aired on Cartoon Network on July 19, 2016, during the "Steven's Summer Adventures" programming event. The episode drew about 1.549 million American viewers on its debut and earned a Nielsen rating of 0.43, meaning it reached 0.43% of households. Critics universally praised the installment. The A.V. Club's Eric Thurm gave it an A−, calling it "delightful" despite being "a little on the nose." Thegeekiary.com's KK Bracken and Laura B highlighted its catchy music, bombastic animation, sharp one-liners, and hilarious visual gags. ND Medina of iDigitalTimes compared the songs to those in Hamilton, calling them "some of the catchiest tunes," and singled out "It's Over, Isn't It?" as the show's "most magnificently gay" moment since Ruby and Sapphire's episode. In 2017, the episode received a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program.