Original airdate: January 27th, 2014
Production code: 1020-012
The Crystal Gems have come to a desert where pillars and other architecture are being formed at random from the sand. As they approach the source of this anomaly, Steven stays behind, only to be approached by a giant pink lion. When his back is to the wall, Steven realizes the lion is actually incredibly docile and decides to make friends with it. The gems return with Amethyst carrying the artifact that made the sand, a jeweled pillow, which Pearl warns not to let drop back on the sand. Steven gets them to understand Lion isn't a threat quickly, but they don't really think it's his friend and make him leave it behind.
Back at Steven's house, Steven and Amethyst sleep around with the pillow on top of some cushions. Steven answers a scratching sound on the door to discover Lion followed him home. Overjoyed, Steven doesn't let Lion inside because Amethyst is sleeping, but tries to play with him outside. When Lion is non-responsive, Steven takes him to the boardwalk for pizza. When the other people inside Fish Stew Pizza hear about Lion, they come out to see him, but Lion has already left by the time they get out the door.
Embarrassed, Steven walks back to his house and finds Lion scratching on the door again. Lion breaks down the door and stares at the pillow. This makes Steven think Lion was only after the pillow, so he runs out the door and tosses it in anger. It lands on the beach and reforms its defenses, alerting the Gems right before it engulfs Steven. Steven tries to climb up the sand structure to get the pillow off the sand, but tumbles on the climb up. He's saved from the fall by Lion, who Steven realizes really was on his side, and together they force their way into the sandstorm's center and grab the pillow. Although Pearl is still skeptical, Garnet nonchalantly agrees to let Lion stay.
We Iris Out over Lion's eye once Steven makes him wink.
Tropes
- Ask a Stupid Question...:Steven: I'm ordering for two.
Ronaldo: Steven's pregnant?!
Steven: I don't think so. - Bizarrchitecture: The Desert Glass builds structures with no rhyme or reason, just to build them.
- Bowdlerise: In UK airings, Ronaldo's line about Steven being pregnant was cut.
- Comically Missing the Point: Ronaldo goes outside to see Lion, sees nothing, and assumes Lion is invisible.Steven: What? It's not invisible. He's pink.
Ronaldo: Pink? How can he be invisible and pink? - Death Glare: Onion shoots a rather mean stare at Steven when he thinks he was pranking him about having a lion.
- Double-Meaning Title: The title refers to Steven's new pet lion and is a pun on people thinking Steven is lying about it.
- Eating Lunch Alone: Steven complains about Lion leaving after he ordered food for them both, meaning he "had" to eat the the whole pizza himself.
- Good All Along: Steven believes Lion was following him to get the desert glass, but this turns out to be untrue, and Steven instead concludes he was trying to protect them from it.
- Glowing Eyes of Doom: Lion's eyes glow white several time, making him look more intimidating even when he's not doing anything.
- I Choose to Stay: Steven pretends that Lion was planning to leave at the episode's end, then dramatically decided to stay with Steven. Lion of course just stood around the whole time.
- Impossible Insurance: When Lion starts scratching on Steven's door, he says it's "Probably some kid come to sell me lava insurance."
- It Was Here, I Swear!: Steven tries to show off Lion to Onion, Kiki, and Ronaldo, but Lion wanders off before they come out.
- Lame Comeback: After Pearl bubbles the desert glass.
- Locked Out of the Fight: When the desert glass lands on the sand, Steven gets trapped inside a sand wall that the Crystal Gems can't break into.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Amethyst refuses to bubble the desert glass after recovering it, preferring to carry it around like a trophy and leave it lying around Steven's house. Steven ends up throwing it out onto the beach when angry, making it regrow everything.
- Offscreen Teleportation: Lion gets to Beach City from a remote desert that's probably in another continent in a few hours. Future episodes would suggest Lion LITERALLY teleported.
- Saying Sound Effects Out Loud: Steven makes Lion close one of his eyes while saying "wink".
- Thirsty Desert: Parodied, as Steven almost immediately gets tired and starts crawling around when in the desert.Pearl: It'll be safer if you stand up and walk.
Steven: You... don't understand. This... is how... you're supposed to act in the desert. - Triumphant Reprise: Lion's mysterious yet cute cat-like theme from when Steven first meets him is remixed into one for his Big Damn Heroes moment during the climax.
- Trust-Building Blunder: Steven tries to get Lion to catch him after he jumps off a ledge, but Lion doesn't care at all. Steven wisely decides not to jump, falls off anyway, and the sand at the bottom keeps him from being significantly injured.
