During my long lurks here, I've occasionally thought about an old debunked geological theory from Medieval or Renaissance Europe. Basically, a number of philosophers got the idea in their heads that various gems are created from the literal interbreeding between different minerals. So you get some jade and some granite, leave them alone together for a little while so they can get intimate, and eventually get a whole other kind of stone.

Unfortunately, I don't remember what the theory was called, and the only reference to it that I've seen at all is from an old episode of History Bites that I'd seen over 15 years ago (and possibly even just imagined). I'd love to at least know the name of the theory so I can learn more about it, because it always makes me think about how fusions work in Steven Universe. What I wouldn't give to be able to compare notes and see how much the show borrowed from that theory.

itavin wrote:

Theorizing [Pearl was originally pink pearl and killed PD with rose's influance and rose took the blame on herself, cause why not? Make pearl feel bad for me wanting to bang greg so that she will live in torment of killing her owner and getting nothing for it other then a couple of fusions with her. Also, how the fuck can you shatter someone with a sword? Makes no sense.]

OnlyInThisLight wrote:

[ I think that's the clue that Rose didn't kill Pink Diamond.  Rose's Sword cuts through the Gem's physical form, leaving the Gem itself completely unharmed.  Blue Diamond heard that it was the sword that shattered her.  So someone lied to her, or, at some point Rose destroyed Pink Diamond's physical form, and that was seen has her shattering her, but something else happened to Pink Diamond herself.  This puts into question if Pink Diamond was ever even shattered in the first place.  She may be bubbled and hidden by Rose or Yellow Diamond, she may have disappeared of her own volition to live a different kind of life.]

dollface wrote:

That's a really important point. The properties of [Rose's sword were demonstrated with Bismuth] in such a way that even at the time, it felt foreboding. It was certainly a heavy, hard-hitting episode on its own, but particularly in light of [the doubt these most recent episodes brought to the story, it seems as if Rose's sword's particular ability has to come up again in a big way.]
Alternatively, [Yellow Diamond reacts in a fairly suspicious way, but at this point it almost feels too obvious to be true ("the Butler-Diamond did it!") and her furious response could also be chalked up to disbelief that a gem so far below herself would speak accusingly (and by extension disrespectfully) toward a Diamond. This outburst isn't too hard to dismiss given Yellow's more heated and authoritarian characterization compared to Blue.] And of course, as unrealistic as it may be to hope for this,[ it's worth noting that Pearl has shown exceptional skill with a sword and her association with sword fighting has been well-established, perhaps more than any gem's, including Rose. Her ability to move with precision and finesse might be enough to allow her to get close to Pink Diamond, but it doesn't guarantee anything; however, we never have learned who Pearl "belonged" to before the rebellion, how high in that court she was, or how/when she rebelled... and I can see at least one reason why PD's Pearl wouldn't have cried out to warn her...]
Of course, Eyeball-Ruby does say that she "saw [the shattering] with her own eye" and that she wielded a "huge sword" [unlike Pearl's, at least that we have seen] but I'm not convinced yet that this wholly discounts any theories that [Pink Diamond isn't truly shattered, or that Rose may not have been the one to do it.] Not yet, at least!

Yams wrote:

Things of interest:

The old broken fusion statue underneath homeworld, specifically a fusion of 2 different gems. So multi-gem-fusion was not always a bad thing, hmmm?

The tunnels upon tunnels of kindergartens; as stated, homeworld has drained itself of resources and can no longer produce new gems. An interesting thought; a species that can not survive and grow without destroying the planets they live upon. Can this be solved somehow?

White Diamond is everywhere and yet nowhere.

So Lion is, essentially, a zombie lion?

The popular theory going around now is that Pearl shattered Pink Diamond, but I simply don't buy it???

The new fusion gem; is she a Pearl and a Ruby??? Inquiring minds wish to know. She definitely has Sardonyx and Garnet vibes going on.

I NEED TO SEE WHAT THESE AGATES ARE ALL ABOUT MAN. They're like, the personal bodyguards of Diamonds or something??

I agree with a lot of these things.  [ We have two prominent suspects; Pearl and YD.  Pearl setting up PD’s shattering b/c she belonged to PD is very popular but I don’t know that Pearl has it in her.  What if PD was shattered by someone else and Rose saved Pearl from shattering?
YD also seemed suspicious during the trial.  The lawyer gem made some really good points about how Rose couldn’t have done it and that there should have been a huge entourage that could have either prevented it or at least been witness to it.  When Lawyer Gem pointed out it could have been orchestrated by a diamond YD shut the whole thing down.

OnlyInThisLight is right that Rose’s sword doesn’t shatter.  That’s why the Bismuth episodes were so important.  Actually, I agree with OnlyInThisLight’s whole statement.

Also: the lack of WD for the trial further supports my theory that WD is a fusion of the three Diamonds.  Note there was no Green Diamond.
And yes…  I think we have now established how Lion came into being.  A little unsettling but there we have it.
I totally got Sardonyx vibes from what I am calling “Off Color Cotton Candy Garnet†.  She may seem less well put together because she may not be 100% comfortable being herself in such an oppressive society.  Garnet, and the other fusions on Earth, have had a positive and nurturing environment. 

And finally; Caterpillar Fusion was awesome!]

I don't know how I could have possibly missed this, but I'm pretty jazzed about this even though it's a year old-- storyboard artist Katie Mitroff drew Jasper and Lapis as Juri and Shiori. The crew sure isn't shy about referencing Utena!

Majorly spoiler-heavy text coming up:
[There are problems with the Pearl Did It theory which make it difficult for me to accept:

1. If the timeline from the SU wiki is correct, Pearl was already a member of the Crystal Gems for somewhere around 750 years when PD was shattered, and would have been recognized in an instant, just like Rose.

2. Pearl's operational colour isn't pink. Her holograms are blue. Her spear/trident is blue. She blushes aquamarine blue. She was definitely not PD's Pearl, considering how much the Pearls seem to take on aspects of their masters (see Yellow Pearl and Blue Pearl). Even if she were disguised as the Pearl of one of PD's subordinates, the gem hierarchy would have made even that meeting impossible to go the way it went. "One of my own subjects sent a mere Pearl to speak with me instead of coming in person? What hubris! Poof that Pearl and bring me its master!"

3. All of the witnesses saw Rose do the deed. As much as Pearl may have motive, there's no way she'd be able to stretch herself to look like Rose.

Personally, I think that the gem who did it was a Diamond. But not YD. It was (brace yourselves)... Pink Diamond herself! There are two possible narratives, depending on PD's state of mind:

1. PD had a huge change of heart regarding Earth's future and/or Gem society, partly due to the actions of the rebellion, and had secret communications with the Crystal Gems toward the end of her reign. It was both she and Rose who staged the ambush together, in an effort to free Earth from Gem control and to shake up Homeworld's hierarchy.

2. PD had one of her own bubbled Rose Quartzes perform the ambush in order to frame Steven's mom. The Crystal Gems say that Rose Quartz shattered PD. But all of those gems are named Rose Quartz, the same way that all Rubies are named Ruby and all Amethysts are named Amethyst.

Both of these options leave open the possibility that PD isn't dead. As much as she might do everything she can to achieve her goals, it's difficult to believe any Diamond would make the ultimate sacrifice for it. My personal preference is the the first one. Let's face it, staging your own death just to spite someone sounds way too petty for a Diamond who's responsible for countless billions of Gems. Plus, what would have even been the point, considering that Rose is the most wanted Gem in the universe? Most enticingly, though, we still don't know what's inside that chest in Lion's mane. My money is on PD hiding inside there in her dormant state, entrusted to her former rival until such time that the world is ready for her to re-emerge.

As an aside, there's something that's bugged me about the discourse around Bismuth getting bubbled. I recall someone being unnerved that she had to be trapped for all eternity inside her gem instead of being released through death. Is it really a fate worse than death? Or an act of mercy? Bismuth was obsessed with shattering enemy Gems, which is against Rose's philosophy. But she would only be a danger to others while other Gems are still her enemy. In some far-off future where Gems and Crystal Gems are no longer at odds against each other, there would no longer be a need to use the Breaking Point. At that time, it would finally be possible to release Bismuth without her being a threat. Rose saved Bismuth from herself before she could bloody her hands and become irredeemable.]

Still ready to sell my first born child for a Steven Bomb about Pearl's backstory and how she met Rose. Any takers?

Along with witnessing Stevonnie in action with shield and sword in hand, which we finally got a couple seasons ago, that is right at the top of my SU bucket list.

The Pearl/Rose backstory, I mean, not the whole thing with your first born. Don't do that. Seriously. Rose/Pearl good. Human trafficking bad.

Last edited by Flah (06-25-2017 09:55:39 PM)

Flah wrote:

Majorly spoiler-heavy text coming up:
[There are problems with the Pearl Did It theory which make it difficult for me to accept:

1. If the timeline from the SU wiki is correct, Pearl was already a member of the Crystal Gems for somewhere around 750 years when PD was shattered, and would have been recognized in an instant, just like Rose.

2. Pearl's operational colour isn't pink. Her holograms are blue. Her spear/trident is blue. She blushes aquamarine blue. She was definitely not PD's Pearl, considering how much the Pearls seem to take on aspects of their masters (see Yellow Pearl and Blue Pearl). Even if she were disguised as the Pearl of one of PD's subordinates, the gem hierarchy would have made even that meeting impossible to go the way it went. "One of my own subjects sent a mere Pearl to speak with me instead of coming in person? What hubris! Poof that Pearl and bring me its master!"

3. All of the witnesses saw Rose do the deed. As much as Pearl may have motive, there's no way she'd be able to stretch herself to look like Rose.

Personally, I think that the gem who did it was a Diamond. But not YD. It was (brace yourselves)... Pink Diamond herself! There are two possible narratives, depending on PD's state of mind:

1. PD had a huge change of heart regarding Earth's future and/or Gem society, partly due to the actions of the rebellion, and had secret communications with the Crystal Gems toward the end of her reign. It was both she and Rose who staged the ambush together, in an effort to free Earth from Gem control and to shake up Homeworld's hierarchy.

2. PD had one of her own bubbled Rose Quartzes perform the ambush in order to frame Steven's mom. The Crystal Gems say that Rose Quartz shattered PD. But all of those gems are named Rose Quartz, the same way that all Rubies are named Ruby and all Amethysts are named Amethyst.

Both of these options leave open the possibility that PD isn't dead. As much as she might do everything she can to achieve her goals, it's difficult to believe any Diamond would make the ultimate sacrifice for it. My personal preference is the the first one. Let's face it, staging your own death just to spite someone sounds way too petty for a Diamond who's responsible for countless billions of Gems. Plus, what would have even been the point, considering that Rose is the most wanted Gem in the universe? Most enticingly, though, we still don't know what's inside that chest in Lion's mane. My money is on PD hiding inside there in her dormant state, entrusted to her former rival until such time that the world is ready for her to re-emerge.

As an aside, there's something that's bugged me about the discourse around Bismuth getting bubbled. I recall someone being unnerved that she had to be trapped for all eternity inside her gem instead of being released through death. Is it really a fate worse than death? Or an act of mercy? Bismuth was obsessed with shattering enemy Gems, which is against Rose's philosophy. But she would only be a danger to others while other Gems are still her enemy. In some far-off future where Gems and Crystal Gems are no longer at odds against each other, there would no longer be a need to use the Breaking Point. At that time, it would finally be possible to release Bismuth without her being a threat. Rose saved Bismuth from herself before she could bloody her hands and become irredeemable.]

Still ready to sell my first born child for a Steven Bomb about Pearl's backstory and how she met Rose. Any takers?

Along with witnessing Stevonnie in action with shield and sword in hand, which we finally got a couple seasons ago, that is right at the top of my SU bucket list.

The Pearl/Rose backstory, I mean, not the whole thing with your first born. Don't do that. Seriously. Rose/Pearl good. Human trafficking bad.

Yams wrote:

Pearl's Gem placement coincides with White Diamond's, so if she is a Diamond's Pearl I think it has to be her.

Agree with all the above points on Pearl not to mention [we all saw how hard it was for her to poof Sugilite. MAYBE Pearl could poof a Diamond given the right circumstances. But SHATTER one, with all those Gems around watching, and then leave unscathed??? Even if she shape-shifted it's pretty well-established that Gem colors remain the same, so I don't think anyone would buy a blue/whitish Rose Quartz unless they're a bunch of Rubies. And I don't believe shape-shifting makes you stronger otherwise they'd be using it in battle all the time. I'm on the fence about what really happened but I'm pretty sure it's not Pearl.

Furthermore, I'd think Pearl would be proud and boastful of such a deed had she done it, not nervous and fearful.

I think the point about Bismuth is that Gems are immortal. Put her in suspended animation then revive her in peaceful times. Rather than having her as an enemy, having to shatter her...which I realize is pretty shitty to do, deciding for someone when and how and on what terms to, well, exist, but I do get the thinking behind it.]

I am in the same camp of thought that [Pearl and Rose are not responsible for PD's shattering, if as some have suggested, she was shattered at all.  I also agree that if our Pearl belonged to a Diamond at all it would be White Diamond- if White Diamond is actually her own Gem and not a fusion.]

That’s another thing this last Steven Bomb left us with.  A shot of [the outline of White Diamond ]

https://ladybutterflynebula.tumblr.com/ … while-were

I just did a post about [WD from The Trial where we get a glimpse of her] it seems.

I hope it's not months and months before we get new Steven Universe.

Last edited by LadyButterflyNebula (07-11-2017 10:28:58 AM)

LadyButterflyNebula wrote:

So anyone see the SDCC coverage? 

New game! 

New-new Lars. 

Missing lion?

Oh - have not seen or even heard about!!

The team apologized for the design. There was an explanation that they included it as a complete record of all the places they went and did not end up going. It's like... one sketch in a very large book. Yeah, it's problematic af, but they did not include it into the show. They didn't develop it past a sketch from what I understand. It was done extremely early into the show's planning and was never developed further.

Everyone makes mistakes. Steven Universe is great and it has had missteps and flaws. It's not gonna be perfect and yeah, there's folks and decisions that are gonna be far from it!

I think they knew that Concrete was racist but they included it to make the artbook as it stands a complete record. They didn't want to excise that design for the sake of artistic honesty and I think that while it might be unfortunate, I am glad they were honest and glad they apologized.

If all pork chops were perfect, we wouldn't have any hot dogs.





Incidentally, it never crossed my mind to have Pearl as a potential suspect. Amethyst isn't and Garnet isn't either.

Last edited by Anthiena (07-27-2017 11:05:04 AM)

My awesome friend bought me one of the Lapis plushies from SDCC!


She also got me the Steven Universe Monopoly game. The pieces are so cute.

So Connie's transformation into Anthy is complete:

Yams wrote:

LadyButterflyNebula wrote:

So Connie's transformation into Anthy is complete:

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/IyP_vuMTxM0/maxresdefault.jpg

THAT' what her hairstyle reminded me of!! Couldn't put my finger on it for some reason.

lol the moment I saw her I was like "ANTHY!!!"

Speaking of which check out this amazing fan art:

Yams wrote:

That is so beautiful!

Ok but seriously if we don't start getting answers soon and then they try to sum up everything in some 2-parter finale I'mma flip some desks.

Right?  This Steven-bomb was all very inter-personal, which is nice, but we've moved into a space where these episodes feel like they're holding the over arching narrative back rather than building.  They needed to space these episodes out with some action packed episodes.  The pacing for this season so far is really off.  We started out like a rocket and the rocket just crashed.

Most gems come full grown, but there's been some speculation that diamonds might be special.  The theory is that diamonds might take too much energy to pop out of the ground full grown like other gems - like more energy than a planet has available. So they might come out before they're fully ready and then finish growing. But who knows?

I think she's cute, I can't wait to see more of her!

Last edited by HonorableShadow (01-24-2018 04:35:47 PM)