History Recap / StevenUniverseS1E48TheReturn

* AdultFear:
** Greg is understandably worried that he might lose his son to invading aliens, and yet he knows he has to let Steven help because it's the only chance the Gems have.
** The Crystal Gems want to keep Steven out of the fight, and they keep telling him to run.

Greg and Steven are talking after having gotten the fry bits. Steven explains about the robonoids, and Greg admits he finds it all rather scary. He asks Steven if being a Crystal Gem isn't too much for him. Suddenly, before Steven can finish his sentence, there's the thunderous BOOM of something entering the atmosphere; every window in the city is shattered and everyone knocked off their feet. It is a giant green hand, and it is pointing directly at the Temple of the Crystal Gems.

-->'''Steven:''' ... Is that ... ''my'' luggage?

-->'''Garnet:''' I know you think we don't trust you. And that more often than not, we treat you like a human child. But the truth is we rely on you. Your voice inspires us, binds us, reminds us why we decided to protect the planet. We need you now to do that -- for them. And if anything happens, you need to be there to protect them like your mother did. It's your destiny.

Steven is sufficiently convinced and rides off with Greg in the evacuation convoy. The Gems wave good bye, with smiles on their faces--that disappear in anguish, worry and sad tears as soon as he can no longer see them; Garnet remarks this is everything they can do for him and soon calls the other two to get themselves together for what's to come. As they drive off, Steven says he hopes that Peridot and her reinforcements realize how nice humanity is and decide not to do anything mean. Greg is fondly reminded that this exact thing is true of Rose, but goes on to say he doubts they would care for humanity any more than they did last time, but regrets it as Steven curiously asks what he means. Greg is quick to remind Steven he wasn't there and only knows what Rose told him about it, and remarks that the Gems should have told him before but, of course, they don't want him to see them like ''that''. Steven, now more curious, keeps asking; what don't the Gems want him to see them like!?

-->'''Greg:''' LIKE ''ALIENS'', STEVEN! ''Aliens who invaded Earth!'' [...] All they do is try to make up for it but they just can't forgive themselves. Do you understand? Look, they were doing something awful to the planet and your mother couldn't stand it anymore; she told me that's why she had to turn on her own kind. She gave up everything just to stop what they started here and drive the invading Gems off of Earth.\\

-->'''Steven:''' Dad. Turn the car around. ''Please''.

...and punches Greg's dashboard hard enough to trigger the air bag and blow Steven clean out of the car. He bubbles himself to safety, and Greg accepts that his son is going back to help the Gems. Steven says he'll find some way to get back -- and as if on cue, Lion arrives to give him a ride home.

En route, Steven calls Connie and, in response to the curt directions of Dr. Maheswaran's voicemail, leaves a short message explaining that he and the Crystal Gems might all die. On the beach, the Gems are trying to defend Earth with all they've got. Amethyst and Pearl have formed Opal and fired a barrage of arrows -- to no more effect than the laser light cannons.

-->'''Steven:''' This is my home. And you are my family! And I'm ... I'm a Crystal Gem too!

He leaps in front of the trio and manifests his shield, now several times larger than normal, stopping the laser in its tracks. Jasper turns around and recognizes not only the power but the rose-thorn spiral as belonging to Rose. She seems to think Steven is Rose, having for some reason taken a small, weak form. Jasper commands Peridot to fire again, this time to separate the Gems; Amethyst and Pearl are pushed away while Jasper goes for Steven, only to have Garnet get in the way, who once more commands Steven to run. Jasper primes a weapon she calls a Gem Destabilizer and strikes Garnet with it. Lines climb the Gem leader's body splitting her into pieces like a cutting laser, before she finally vanishes in a puff of smoke, leaving the two gems on her hands to fall to the beach before the eyes of a horrified Steven.

-->'''Jasper:''' I was there, you know? Back at the first war for this garbage planet. I fought your armies, I respected your tactics, but THIS [Steven]?-- THIS is SICK! I don't know what you're planning Rose, but look: Your base is taken, your army has fallen, and ''you''? ''You. Have.'' '''''FAILED!'''''

* BlackComedy: When he arrives at the beach, Steven says to Lion to stay there and if something happens...his dad may need a new son.

* {{Bowdlerise}}: The Cartoon Network UK edit and multiple other regional edits cut off just before Garnet starts to crack and cut back just as she poofs. However, this same scene was shown uncensored in the flashback in "Full Disclosure" in every region except the Middle East and North Africa.
* BrokeYourArmPunchingOutCthulhu: After using his shield powers to save the Gems from Peridot's attack, Steven slumps on the sand and can't fight when Jasper grabs him.
* CallBack:

** When Greg vaguely hints at the civil war between the Crystal Gems and the Homeworld Gems, Steven remembers the Kindergarten from "On the Run", the gem battlefield from "Rose's Scabbard", and Pearl's stories from the same episode.
** Steven manifests his shield again in the same way as he did in "[[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E1GemGlow Gem Glow]]" and in "[[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E26OceanGem Ocean Gem]]": it's the same shape. It has the same pattern. But there's one crucial difference. It ''also'' contains his force field from "[[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E7BubbleBuddies Bubble Buddies]]", and for the first time, is large enough to protect all four gems.
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Despite all the hints sewn across the season that not all Gems are nice, Greg has to spell it out to Steven that most of the Gems are malevolent aliens who tried to do something bad to Earth, and that Rose raised an army to drive them away of which Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl are the only remnants of. Greg's exposition is juxatosposed with flashbacks of the Kindergarten from "On the Run" and the Gem battlefield from "Rose's Scabbard".
* CirclingBirdies: The IrisOut of closing out an episode is essentially [[PaintingTheFourthWall the stars Steven sees when Jasper headbutts him into unconsciousness]].
* CleanCut: Jasper's gem destabilizer neatly bisects Garnet before her body disintegrates apart entirely.
* CoverBlowingSuperpower: PlayedWith. Steven doesn't try to hide anything himself, but Lapis claims he's just a human [[NotWorthKilling so Jasper wouldn't see as a threat]]. Then he outs his powers by using his mother's shield to protect the gems, which makes Jasper take interest. On the other hand, Jasper [[MistakenIdentity mistakes him for Rose]].

* DisintegratorRay: Jasper uses a gem destabilizer to destroy Garnet's physical form, cracking her apart until she disappears in a puff of smoke, leaving only her gems.

* FreezeFrameBonus: Apparently Steven has [[http://41.media.tumblr.com/f237f7cea88a10a3a5017c1e161910fa/tumblr_nl4ceuzbQ51qadqfco1_1280.png Lion as a cell phone contact.]] And Onion, who is TheVoiceless when interacting with anyone but his dad, and TheUnintelligible even then.

* NoSell: Peridot's ship shrugs off the combined might of four light cannons and Opal's arrows without so much as a scratch, even though one destroyed a ''giant gem eye that shrugged off everything else.''

** With a Giant Green Hand that was sent by beings with near-godlike power whose forms are energy projections and are nearly immortal, [[Recap/StarTrekS2E2WhoMournsForAdonais there are more than a few shades of the classic Star Trek episode "Who Mourns For Adonais."]]

* StabTheSalad: The episode opens on an ominous shadow that turns out to just be a closeup of Steven's hand before he bangs on a counter for fry bits.

---> '''Steven:''' What do you--*GlassShatteringSound*

* TheWorfEffect: Garnet, the strongest Crystal Gem, gets taken out in a single hit from Jasper's gem destabilizer as a way of showing just how dangerous things have gotten.

* TheAtoner: The Crystal Gems, as Greg puts it.
* BigSisterInstinct: Lapis is clearly not happy to be there, and lies to protect Steven from Jasper.

* CleanCut: Jasper's gem destabilizer neatly bisects Garnet before her body falls apart entirely.

* CurbStompBattle: Jasper ''effortlessly'' cuts Garnet down.

* FingerGun: Peridot's ship fires its main weapon in this manner.

* GivingSomeoneThePointerFinger: Peridot's ship enters the atmosphere in this pose. Mayor Dewey says that it's never a good thing; he should know, he's a politician.

* TheHeart: Garnet mentions Steven's status as this for the Crystal Gems when telling him that they're sending him away to protect him.
* TheHeavy: Peridot and Jasper.
* LiterallyShatteredLives: Jasper uses a gem destabilizer to destroy Garnet's physical form, cracking her apart until she disappears in a puff of smoke, leaving only her gems.

* MistakenIdentity: Jasper mistakes Steven for Rose Quartz.

* NeckLift: Jasper lifts Steven this way before head-butting him.

* ThePowerOfLove: Steven manifests Crystal Gem-level SuperStrength when he's angry that his father won't turn around and let him help Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl; immediately after hearing from Greg that Rose's shield -- now Steven's shield -- is the only reason the Crystal Gems survived the Homeworld Gems the first time. He is smart enough to realize that if he's not there with his shield, he's essentially condeming the rest of his family to death! He punches the dash hard enough to trigger the airbag! This cannot be done by mere human strength.
* PsychoactivePowers: Either Steven and Lion have a mindlink or Lion can sense when Steven needs him. The van stops after Steven's anger triggers the airbag and blows him out of the van. Steven says he'll find a way to get back to the Gems. Cue Lion arriving.

* [[CirclingBirdies Seeing Stars]]: Combined with PaintingTheFourthWall. The IrisOut of closing out an episode is essentially the stars Steven sees when Jasper headbutts him into unconsciousness.
* ShoutOut: This episode has some obvious visual {{Homage}}s to ''Anime/DragonBallZ''.

* SkewedPriorities: Both Peedee and Ronaldo have this problem. Peedee refuses to leave the store despite the giant hand spaceship bearing down on the town, and Ronaldo is blogging about said spaceship rather than helping to drag Peedee away.
* SmashToBlack: How the episode ends with Jasper headbutting Steven.
* StandardFemaleGrabArea: Jasper drags around Lapis this way; justified because of the weight differences. When Jasper moves onto Steven, a NeckLift is applied instead.

* WarIsHell: Greg says outright that "there's no such thing as a good war".

* {{Bowdlerise}}: The Cartoon Network UK edit cuts off just before Garnet starts to crack and cuts back just as she poofs.

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Despite all the hints sewn across the season that not all Gems are nice, Greg has to spell it out to Steven that most of the Gems are malevolent aliens who tried to do something bad to Earth, and that Rose raised an army to drive them away of which Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl are the only remnants of. Greg's exposition is juxatosposed with flashbacks of the Kindergarten from ''On The Run'' and the Gem battlefield from ''Rose's Scabbard''.

* CoverBlowingSuperPower: PlayedWith. Steven doesn't try to hide anything himself, but Lapis claims he's just a human [[NotWorthKilling so Jasper wouldn't see as a threat]]. Then he outs his powers by using his mother's shield to protect the gems, which makes Jasper take interest. On the other hand, Jasper [[MistakenIdentity mistakes him for Rose]].
* CurbstompBattle: Jasper ''effortlessly'' cuts Garnet down.

* ShoutOut: This episode has some obvious visual {{Homage}}s to ''Anime/DragonballZ''.
* SkewedPriorities: Both Peedee and Ronaldo have this problem. Peedee refuses to leave the store despite the giant hand spaceship bearing down on the town, and Ronaldo is blogging said spaceship rather than helping to drag Peedee away.

%%* GenreSavvy: Peedee sees Steven and Greg approaching and has their order ready by the time they get there.%%

* CleanCut: Jasper's gem destabilizer does this to Garnet.
* CoverBlowingSuperPower: PlayedWith. Steven outs his powers by using his mother's shield to protect the gems, which makes Jasper take interest. On the other hand, Jasper [[MistakenIdentity mistakes him for Rose]].

* FreezeFrameBonus: Apparently Steven has [[http://41.media.tumblr.com/f237f7cea88a10a3a5017c1e161910fa/tumblr_nl4ceuzbQ51qadqfco1_1280.png Lion as a cell phone contact.]]