Recap / Steven Universe S3E22 "Earthlings"

"Us worse gems stick together, right?"
"That's why we're the best."

Original airdate: August 8th, 2016

Production code: 1031-102

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Picking right up after the events of Beta, Steven and Peridot are gaping in shock that Jasper has turned her Kindergarten into a cage for corrupted Gems. Peridot suggests returning to the temple for the other Crystal Gems, but Amethyst is gone.

She's sidling along a ledge, as Jasper monologues to a captured gem beast, wondering how they became the messes they are now. She swears she'll never let Earth twist her the way it has twisted the monsters she has taken captive. Steven looks confused; he knows from Lapis and the Crystal Gems that the Diamonds caused the corrupted gems, but Jasper doesn't?

Jasper: You're like this because you deserve it. We all only ever get what we deserve. Right, Amethyst?

Amethyst, startled that Jasper knew she was there when she was trying to be sneaky, falls off her ledge and brazenly declares she's here for a rematch. Jasper is willing enough to fight even though she's obviously not changed her opinion of Amethyst as a runt not worth her time.

Peridot is brave enough to say that Earth isn't a worthless shell, and to announce, however anxiously, that she's a Crystal Gem now. She goes on to say that Earth has so much life on it.

Peridot: That's what I'm doing here now. Living. Earth can set you free!

Jasper is disgusted that Peridot has gone to the other side. Peridot boasts she can control metal, but her powers are still fairly weak. Jasper mops the floor with Amethyst, who finally drops to the ground in defeat.

Amethyst: No matter what I do, no matter how hard I work, I can't beat her.

Steven finally has enough of Amethyst trying to compare herself to Jasper.

Steven: Stop comparing yourself to Jasper! You're nothing like Jasper! You're like me because we're both not like anybody! And yeah, it sucks. But at least I've got you. And you've got me! So stop leaving me out of this.

Steven's impassioned speech gets through to Amethyst, and she takes Steven's offered hand to help her up. She decides impulsively to pull him into a hug, and suddenly: there's an explosion resulting in huge violet-purple mushroom cloud!

When it dissipates, Steven and Amethyst are gone. In their place stands an adorable fusion of the two of them.

New Fusion: What a beeeaaaauuuuutiful day!

As Jasper roars in dismay at the sight of yet another fusion, the new fusion ponders who they are, assembling Steven's shield and Amethyst's whip into a Killer Yo-Yo the size of a truck tire as they think about it.

New Fusion: I feel like Amethyst would know this. A Rose Quartz...and an Amethyst...make a ...Smoky Quartz.

The fight is back on! Jasper shouts a taunt at the new fusion asking if that's the only trick the Crystal Gems know. Smoky sarcastically retorts that they have all sorts of tricks. They demonstrate them by knocking Jasper around with the yo-yo.

Peridot is delighted to see Jasper getting her head handed to her, and laughs uproariously between attempts to get the metal to do as she commands. Enraged by the laughter, Jasper rushes into her spin attack. Smoky deftly avoids it, swinging out of the way, and letting Jasper crash into the wall of the Kindergarten. She hits with such impact that she puts multiple fissures in the cliffside. The makeshift jail cells come apart, and all the gem beasts and fusion experiments escape. Everything Jasper tries, Smoky counters, quipping and mocking the Ultimate Quartz all the while.

Jasper's fury overtakes her common sense and, in the worst rage yet at being defeated by yet another fusion, decides to try fusing herself. She picks the blue-green corrupted gem from Gem Hunt and Steven Vs. Amethyst, which is still in its cage and desperately trying to chew its way free. She fuses with the gem and laughs in anticipation of being able to fight Smoky Quartz on her own level. It does not work out that way.

Jasper's fusion with an unwilling, unintelligent and corrupted participant is no match for the very simpatico Smoky Quartz. They whip out two more yo-yos and whirl them like fans, propelling the Jasper fusion high into the air. As the fusion gets above the height of the clifftops, the Jasper fusion breaks. The Corruption monster may not be able to think and communicate like a regular gem, but it definitely does not like being fused with Jasper, and would rather run away.

Jasper: No! We can win if we stay together!

This does not convince the gem monster. The fusion breaks and both Jasper and her captive beast fall to earth, the latter on the bottom and flattened into an impact crater left by the former. The corrupted gem takes the chance to escape.

Jasper: No one I fuse with ever wants to stay.

The declaration is an uncharacteristically vulnerable and sad one for Jasper, but she quickly laughs it off, and gets up to continue the fight. But before she can make another move, her skin begins to erupt with lesions and growths in the color of the monster she fused with.

Smoky Quartz: [all humor gone] It's corruption!

The shock of seeing Jasper showing signs of corruption after fusing with a corrupted gem shocks them into de-fusing. Steven and Amethyst watch as the corruption begins to spread. Amethyst warns Steven to be careful, but he rushes forward with a hand slicked with his healing spit. He believes he has a chance to help Jasper since this corruption is new and incomplete.

Jasper refuses to permit Steven to get close enough to try. She slashes at him and throws him across the desert floor, slicing his shirt open.

Grim but preferring to accept corruption over being helped by “Rose Quartz”, Jasper says she understands now that Rose got an army by waiting for gems to be so lost and broken that they'd follow anyone to feel like less of a failure.

Steven objects to being called Rose again. He tells Jasper he's not Rose, but his insistence that he's Steven falls on deaf ears. He tries instead to encourage her to fight the encroaching corruption, which only serves to get her more furious and speed the corruption's spread.

Jasper: I've been fighting ever since I broke free of the Earth's crust! Because of what you did to my colony! Because of what you did to my planet! Because of what YOU did to my Diamond!
Steven: [confused] I... Yellow Diamond?
Jasper: [incredulous and even more enraged] Wha-uh... MY Diamond! YOUR Diamond! PINK DIAMOND!!!!

Though Steven, Amethyst and Peridot are confused at Jasper's impassioned tirade, it's too late. Jasper can say no more. The rage has helped the corruption along, and Jasper is lost, becoming a Gem beast herself.

It's about to charge, when Peridot finally gets enough control over metal to fling one of the cage bars through the beast's body. Impaled, it poofs.

Amethyst now has a touch of sympathy for Jasper and bubbles her.

Amethyst: Come here, sis.

The battle won, Steven, Amethyst and Peridot warp back to the farm. They're both exhausted after fighting Jasper, and Amethyst declares she doesn't want to anything for a month. But there's no rest for the weary.

Back at the barn, Garnet and Pearl stand beside Lapis Lazuli who has five water bubbles floating above her, each containing one member of the Ruby Squad, who have come back to earth aboard the Roaming Eye.

Amethyst: Ugh.

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Tropes:

• Acrofatic: Smoky Quartz is as heavyset as one would expect a fusion of Steven and Amethyst to be, but shows off Steven's dodging skills from "Steven Vs. Amethyst". None of Jasper's attacks even hit them!
• Alas, Poor Villain: Jasper is revealed as a vengeful, loyal soldier who roars at Steven for everything Rose Quartz (from her perspective) did to her colony, to her planet and to Pink Diamond, and is desperately lonely when everyone she fuses with leaves her. She loses herself to Corruption and bubbled by Amethyst, who sadly acknowledges her as a sister for the first time.
• Aloof Big Sister: Amethyst calling Jasper "sis" after she's corrupted, poofed and bubbled confirms she sees her as this. Notably, Jasper also acts much more contemptuous than in "Crack the Whip", treating Amethyst almost like an Annoying Younger Sibling who's not worth her time, unlike when Jasper was pleased to Curb-Stomp Battle Amethyst and shatter her.
• Apologetic Attacker: Steven shouts "heads up" when he causes an injector to fall between Jasper and Amethyst.
• Badass Adorable: Smoky Quartz is a jovial, fun loving fusion... who is also fully capable of mopping the floor with Jasper.
• Badass Boast: Smoky Quartz gives one to Jasper when asked if fusion is the only trick the Crystal Gems know.
  Smoky Quartz: I've got plenty of tricks. Ever see "sink-the-dink"? (floors Jasper with three quick smacks of their Killer Yoyo)
• Beware the Silly Ones:
  • Smoky Quartz is playful, but is strong enough to overwhelm Jasper.
  • Peridot, when sufficiently motivated, can use her metal manipulation powers to hurl a piece of scrap metal straight through a Corrupted Jasper's chest.
• Big Entrance: Smoky Quartz forming is heralded by a sizable purple explosion that forms a mushroom cloud.
• Big Fun: Smoky Quartz, being a fusion of Steven and Amethyst, is very playful and fun loving.
• Bittersweet Ending: Jasper is finally defeated and her plan to amass a monster army to attack the Gems with is foiled, and Steven finally manages to fuse with Amethyst while helping her overcome her feelings of inferiority towards Jasper...but ultimately, Steven is unable to get through to Jasper, who succumbs to corruption and becomes a Gem Monster despite his attempts to save her.
• Blinded by Rage: Peridot's taunts in tandem with Smoky Quartz's yoyo skills end up enraging Jasper enough for her to free all of the Corrupted Gems she imprisoned and later drives her to try and fuse with a Corrupted Gem, transforming her into Zebra Jasper
• Body Horror: Jasper's corruption starts with the lesions and spikes on one forearm, which transforms into a claw. It grows to cover her body, and in her fully corrupted form there are spikes in place of her eyes.
• Break the Haughty:
  • Invoked by Jasper, who says that the Crystal Gems took everything from Peridot, including her dignity. Peridot claims this isn't the case.
  • Jasper suffers a Villainous Breakdown when Steven tries to save her from Corruption.
• Cain and Abel: After the fight, Amethyst tenderly refers to Jasper as "sis" as she bubbles her gem, a subtle way of acknowledging that for all the hostility and attempts to poof each other, they still both came from the same place.
• Call-Back:
  • Peridot attempts to reason with Jasper the way she did with Yellow Diamond. Much like Yellow Diamond, Jasper isn't willing to listen to Peridot.
  • Steven tries to heal Jasper the way he healed Lapis, but fails to because Jasper doesn't share Lapis's desperation.
  • Amethyst affectionately calling herself and Steven the "worst Gems" was a reference to "Steven vs. Amethyst", where each of them was trying to convince the other that they were worse ("Now I'm the worst Crystal Gem." and "May the worst Gem lose!").
• Cannot Keep a Secret: Steven lets slip that he, Peridot and Amethyst are the only Crystal Gems at the Beta Kindergarten.
• Change the Uncomfortable Subject: Peridot mentions her control over metal as one of the things she's learned while on Earth. At this moment, the metal bar she was unsuccessfully trying to move falls on its own, so she skips ahead to her main point.
• Chekhov's Gun: As Peridot is trying to convince Jasper that the Earth can set her free, the metal bar she had been trying to dislodge falls to the ground. When Jasper charges, Peridot shoots the bar through Jasper's chest, poofing her.
• Cliffhanger: Like "Beta", the episode ends with a cliffhanger, this time showing that the Ruby Squad has returned, and that Lapis has contained them in five separate water bubbles.
• Clipped-Wing Angel: When she fights Steven and Amethyst fused as Smokey Quartz, Jasper finally snaps at being beaten again by a "fusion" and decides to fuse with one of the Gem Monsters. This ends up biting her huge in the the ass as the power increase wasn't near what she needed, and also ended up infecting her with whatever the corruption was after they defused. Her corrupted form is demonstrably weaker than she was before, going from nearly indestructible to impaled and poofed by Peridot's ferrokinesis.
• Confusion Fu: Smoky Quartz's fighting style is this, particularly when it comes to using their Killer Yo-Yo to attack from unexpected angles and in unpredictable ways. Even the one kick they throw comes after performing a spin to distract Jasper.
• Continuity Nod: One of the monsters Jasper captured is similar to the larger Gem Mutant from "Nightmare Hospital", while another matches the Tardigrade that Garnet dragged out of the ocean in "Love Letters".
• Cowardly Lion: Despite strongly advising Amethyst not to fight Jasper in the previous episode, Peridot is quick to lend her support when the confrontation is under way, loudly proclaiming her new allegiance to the Crystal Gems and getting under Jasper's skin by taunting her. Even though her inexperience at using her newfound ferrokinesis prevents her from directly contributing to most of the fight, she never stops trying to help, and it finally pays off when she succeeds in impaling the corrupted Jasper.
• Curbstomp Battle:
  • Although Amethyst gets to show off how much she's improved, even knocking Jasper back when she was unprepared for it, nothing after that does any real harm to her.
  • The battle with Smoky is the other way around, and only Jasper fusing with the Corrupted Quartz causes Smoky any trouble, and even then she can't actually land a blow.
• Curb Stomp Cushion: Though Amethyst is still no match for Jasper, she does much better here than in their previous match and actually lands a few impressive hits.
• Deadpan Snarker: Jasper is quite sassy in this episode.
  "Isn't that right, Amethyst?"
  "Is it sinking in yet?"
  "Anyone else got something to say?"
• Didn't Think This Through: Jasper fuses with a Corrupted Gem to defeat Smoky Quartz, only for the Corrupted Gem to want no part of it and cut and run the first chance it gets. To make matters worse, the Corruption starts to mutate her after the fusion ends.
• Does This Remind You of Anything?: Jasper's disdain for Gems who "shape themselves outside their purpose" calls to mind about discrimination against groups such as minorities or transgender people.
  • Jasper fuses with a gem monster, and when she unfuses, she says no one who fuses with her ever wants to stay. Since her fusion Malachite appears to be a metaphor for a toxic relationship, this seems to be a metaphor for one who is an abusive partner in every relationship they go into.
  • Her corruption has also been compared to getting an STD, considering that she fuses with a gem that's been corrupted and that some people believe that fusion is a metaphor for sex. Peridot saying, "Ew! That's disgusting!" when Jasper gets corrupted doesn't help.
• The Dog Bites Back: The Corrupted Gem Jasper abused into serving her and attempted to fuse with decides to break free from her and run, rather than help her fight Smoky Quartz.
• Double-Meaning Title: 'Earthlings' can refer to all of the four main characters- Jasper and Amethyst, both made in Earth Kindergartens, Steven, who's a Half-Human Hybrid, and Peridot, who's accepted a new life on Earth.
• Dramatic Irony: Jasper seems unaware that the Corruption she sees as a weakness in the Gems left on Earth was actually caused by the Diamond Authority she so highly reveres.
• Dual Wielding: For most of their fight, Smoky Quartz uses a single yo-yo, but pulls out an extra two after Jasper fuses.
• 11th-Hour Superpower: Steven and Amethyst end Jasper's status as Arc Villain by finally forming Steven's first successful fusion with another Gem, Smoky Quartz.
• Epic Fail: Peridot tries to show off her metal powers to Jasper, but can't manage to dislodge a single metal bar. It finally falls free after the battle is over, after several failed attempts.
• Epiphany Comeback: Amethyst once again gets overpowered by Jasper despite her training...but then Steven tells her You Are Not Alone. Amethyst realizing he's right and accepting his help defeating Jasper results in them fusing into Smoky Quartz, who turns the tables on Jasper.
• Establishing Character Moment: Smoky Quartz's first few moments of existence consist of them throwing their arms to the sky while yelling "WHAT A BEAUTIFUL DAY!" at the top of their lungs, forming their Killer Yoyo while absentmindedly trying to remember what their name is supposed to be...then giving Jasper a Badass Boast and flooring her with said Killer Yo-Yo.
• Everything Makes a Mushroom: Steven and Amethyst fusing into Smoky Quartz causes a mushroom cloud-style explosion. This might be a nod to real world Smoky Quartz having some radioactive elements to it.
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good:
  • Jasper starts to grasp how Rose (and now Steven) convince Gems to join their side, but views it as manipulation rather than friendship, and cannot get why they protect Earth.
  • She also cannot comprehend that Earth is anything but worthless without the Gems having performed Hostile Terraforming and turning it into a colony. This aspect is played somewhat more tragically, as it's clear she's a product of her environment no different than Peridot was, albeit far more fanatical in her beliefs.
  • She also continues to misinterpret Fusion as strictly a combat maneuver, as opposed to The Power of Friendship and The Power of Love given physical form. This really bites her in the rear, since this belief results in her deciding to fuse with the nearest possible partner (a corrupted gem) for a power boost- which turned out to be a Clipped-Wing Angel and infected Jasper with The Corruption.
• Fantastic Racism: Jasper shows no sympathy for Gems who have no place in Homeworld's Hive Caste System, including not only rebels like the Crystal Gems, but also flawed or Corrupted Gems.
• Final Battle: Of Jasper's arc. Notably, the entire episode is more or less a fight, a rarity for the show.
• Foreshadowing: When Jasper explains the order of the Diamonds' rule, the four Diamond symbol appears, rather than the three Diamond symbol, foreshadowing that Pink Diamond might have been given the Un-person treatment by Homeworld, but still means a great deal to Jasper herself.
• Fusion Dance:
  • Steven and Amethyst fuse into Smoky Quartz.
  • Jasper fuses with the Corrupted Quartz Gem to form a hulking beast, but she's still unable to overpower Smoky Quartz and the Corrupted Gem breaks free despite Jasper's efforts to hold the fusion together.
• Gone Horribly Wrong: Jasper's attempt to go One-Winged Angel to counter Smoky Quartz ends up infecting her with The Corruption, resulting in her Karmic Transformation into a Corrupted Gem herself.
• Guile Hero: When Peridot can't reason with Jasper, and with her unable to fight in direct combat, she resorts to taunting Jasper so as to throw off her focus on the battle.
• "Hell, Yes!" Moment: Steven and Amethyst fusing into Smoky Quartz. Their first line of existing and their smirk after introducing themselves makes it clear they know things are going to go differently this time.
• Heroic Second Wind: Amethyst loses badly to Jasper and begins to slip into a Heroic BSoD...until Steven tells her You Are Not Alone and encourages her, resulting in her accepting his help and the two fusing into Smoky Quartz.
• Hoist by Her Own Petard: Jasper's attempt to go One-Winged Angel by fusing with a Corrupted Gem backfires when it turns out to have passed the Corruption on to her.
• Hope Spot:
  • Amethyst's opening attack in her fight with Jasper manages to stagger her back and her follow up slams her hard into a wall, making it seem like her training has paid off...then Jasper decides to stop humoring her and every other attack she can throw at her ends in a No-Sell.
  • When Steven prepares to heal Jasper, it seems that his compassion may get through to her. Then she slashes him and refuses his help.
• I Just Want to Be Normal: Steven stops short of wishing he was otherwise, but acknowledges that being the being the first and only Half-Human Hybrid in existence has definite downsides.
  Steven: Stop trying to be like Jasper. You're nothing like Jasper! You're like me! Because we're both not like anybody. And yeah... it sucks.
• I Resemble That Remark!: Peridot's response to Jasper saying that she's been stripped of everything (her limb enhancers, her status, her dignity!) is to say that she "still has one of those things." Given the context, it's possible that she means that she still has one (useless) limb enhancer.
• Immediate Sequel: Takes place immediately after "Beta" ends.
• Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: After Jasper has been corrupted, she's beaten by Peridot shooting a metal bar straight through her chest.
• Improbable Weapon User: Smoky Quartz's weapon is a Killer Yo-Yo the size of Steven's shield. In their hands, it's a very effective and versatile weapon.
• Incoming Ham: The first thing Smoky Quartz does upon being formed? Throw their arms into the air and yell "WHAT A BEAUTIFUL DAY!"
• Ironic Echo: While not the exact words, Jasper echos Pearl's opinion of Amethyst as being the 'one good thing' to come out of the circumstances of her creation. Only in her case, she considers herself the one good thing to ever come out of Earth.
• Irony: Jasper's taunts to Amethyst during their first fight got under her skin and enraged her to the point of not thinking straight. In this case, Peridot's taunting has the same effect on Jasper.
• I Shall Taunt You: Peridot laughing at Jasper each time Smoky Quartz lands a hit of their yo-yo on her makes Jasper more and more enraged, to the point where she makes a lot of mistakes, including accidentally releasing all but one Gem Monster from their cages.
• I Take Offense to That Last One: When Jasper is saying how Peridot has lost her limb enhancers, her status, and her dignity, she protests that she still has one of those things. It's debatable whether she means dignity (because she's much more satisfied with her life), status (Peridot still thinks she's the Crystal Gems' leader), even her limb enhancers (because she actually has exactly one of them left that Steven kept).
• It's Personal: Jasper's grudge against Rose stems from whatever incident happened between Rose Quartz and Pink Diamond.
• Jerkass Has a Point: While slowly becoming corrupted, Jasper states to "Rose" she "realizes" how she is able to recruit soldiers: she waits until after they have lost and are utterly nothing, so she can indoctrinate them with her own way of thinking, because those with nothing to lose will follow anybody. While this may at first seem like Sanity Slippage, Jasper technically isn't wrong. Amethyst was found at the Kindergarten after the war ended, and had she been found, she would've likely either been subjected to humiliation or shattered. Rose was only willing to give Garnet (who is the first fusion of her kind and made up of a Sapphire close to a Diamond with future seeing abilities, and a thermokinetic soldier Ruby) a chance after she leaves Blue Diamond and escapes to Earth, with the implication it had been a while after they had seen each other.
  • This also applies to her son, Steven. Steven only gives Lapis a chance after she explains that she meant no malice and was only trying to return home. Steven - and by extension, the Crystal Gems - only give Peridot a chance after she is incapable of fighting back and has no Limb Enhancers. In fact, Jasper uses her as one such example, noting that she know is a Crystal Gem after they have stripped her of her precious Limb Enhancers, position on Homeworld, and dignity.
• Karmic Transformation: Jasper has spent who knows how long capturing and abusing Corrupted Gems to try and force them to be her personal army, especially the one she forced to fuse with her, while demeaning them. In the end, forcing one to fuse with her causes her to contract The Corruption, turning her into a mindless Gem Monster just like them.
• Killer Yo-Yo: Smoky Quartz combines Steven's shield and Amethyst's whip into a giant yo-yo.
• Laughing Mad: Jasper comments how nobody she fuses with wants to stay with her, then starts to cackle.
• Locked Out of the Loop: It appears that Jasper doesn't know that the Diamonds are responsible for the Corruption of the Gems remaining on Earth.
• Mood Whiplash: From Smoky's comedic self-congratulation after winning the battle to the played-dead-serious corruption of Jasper.
• Morphic Resonance: Smoky Quartz has Amethyst's bangs, plump lips, boots, and tank top as well as Steven's hair color, hair length, shirt, and pants. Their heavyset nature comes from both, and Steven's shield becomes a Killer Yo-Yo, with Amethyst's whip being the string.
• Multi-Armed and Dangerous: Smoky Quartz has three arms, one right arm and two left.
• No-Sell: Although Amethyst is able to knock Jasper back with one of her hits, and make her stagger a bit with some of her following moves, nothing she does really causes any damage to her. Even her strongest attack merely causes a Smoke Shield.
• "Not So Different" Remark:
  • Jasper while fighting Amethyst mentions how they both came from the Earth's crust. Amethyst even calls her "sis" when the fight is over.
  • Peridot makes one when saying that being on Earth has taught her how to live, and how to be free. Jasper like her has felt trapped, and could be free as well.
• Not So Similar: Steven tells Amethyst that she's nothing like Jasper, because she's not what she was made to be.
• Nigh-Invulnerable: Jasper's status as this trope is shown further here, where even Amethyst's strongest attack hitting her dead on can't do more that scuff her chest. It takes Smoky Quartz to actually be able to harm her, and even then it takes a piece of metal being shot straight through her chest and out the other side to poof her after she's become a Corrupted Gem.
• Nurture over Nature: The major difference between Jasper and Amethyst, as both were born on Earth and are both Quartz soldiers despite their respective physical uniqueness. Amethyst was raised on Earth and has grown up being shown the beauty of it and its people, while Jasper has been a Homeworld soldier since the day she was born. As such, while Amethyst wants to protect the Earth and rightly views Jasper as an alien invader, Jasper can't comprehend Earth being anything but a Gem colony could possibly be a good thing to the point of loathing Rose for 'what she's done to her planet,' failing to even consider Peridot's explanation of the value of the planet.
• Offscreen Moment of Awesome: While Steven and Amethyst were fighting Jasper, Lapis managed to capture all five Homeworld Rubies in water bubbles.
• Oh, Crap!:
  • Amethyst has this reaction when Jasper offhandedly reveals she knew that she was sneaking up on her.
  • Smokey Quartz has this reaction when they see Jasper's corruption.
  • Moments before she succumbs to corruption, Jasper seems to be horrified at the revelation that Steven really has no idea why she's so furious at him or who Pink Diamond is.
• One-Winged Angel: Jasper fuses with a Corrupted Gem to form Zebra Jasper. While it gives her a power boost that forces Smoky Quartz to fight much more seriously, it's not enough.
• Painful Transformation: Jasper's corruption does not look pleasant, especially during the end.
• Pet the Dog: Jasper is angry on Peridot's behalf when she believes that "Rose" and Amethyst took away her limb enhancers, thus ensuing the loss of Peridot's status.
• Power Incontinence: Like the first time he fused with Connie, Steven's first fusion with Amethyst isn't intentional, instead resulting from their mutual understanding of each other, and a hug.
• The Power of Friendship: It's Steven and Amethyst's close friendship and understanding of each other that finally allows Steven to fuse with another Gem and form Smoky Quartz, who (fusions being the Anthropomorphic Personification of their components bonds) is more or less the embodiment of this.
• Pun: When Jasper asks Smoky Quartz if fusion is the only trick the Crystal Gems know, they reply that they know lots of tricks, in reference to their weaponized yo-yo.
• Redemption Rejection: Steven and Peridot try to talk Jasper into changing her ways, but Jasper is too bitter about her past with Rose to go for it.
• The Reveal: Two:
  • There is, or was, a Pink Diamond—confirming a long-held fan speculation. It's not revealed what Rose did to her.
  • Jasper is only currently serving Yellow Diamond. As a Beta Kindergartener, she was part of Homeworld's attempt to retake Earth during Rose's Rebellion, and as such was created to serve Pink Diamond.
• Rule of Three: Jasper is defeated yet again by a fusion, Smoky Quartz being the third one on the list. Jasper herself lampshades it.
• Running Gag: Peridot spends a few moments trying to lift a metal bar with her powers, she succeeds when she throws it at Jasper.
• Save the Villain: When Jasper's corruption first starts to spread, Steven tries to help her. She refuses, taking a swipe at him that cuts his shirt.
• Saying Sound Effects Out Loud: Smoky Quartz picks this up from Amethyst, narrating Jasper's fall and crash from several stories in the air.
• Screw This, I'm Out of Here!: Jasper's army runs for it the moment their cages get broken. The Corrupted Gem she fuses with in an attempt to go One-Winged Angel likewise breaks free from her and runs for it the first opportunity it gets.
• Self-Disposing Villain: While Jasper's defeat happens in a Trauma Conga Line sequence of events, the decisive moment when she's eliminated as a serious threat is the result of her deciding to forcibly fuse with a corrupted monster, infecting herself in the process. Rejecting Steven's attempt to heal her seals the deal.
• Shut Up, Kirk!: Jasper refuses Steven's help curing her Corruption, thinking that Rose Quartz is trying to prey on her weakness like all her other misfit recruits.
• So Much for Stealth: Amethyst tries to sneak up on Jasper. It doesn't work.
• Stunned Silence: Peridot's initial reaction to Smoky Quartz.
• Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Even though Amethyst's got an upgrade to her weapon (courtesy of Bismuth) and a whole lot faster and stronger in combat... a few weeks of serious training and a stronger weapon isn't going to overcome the wall between her and Jasper, an enemy who's faster, stronger, and has a FAR stronger weapon and much more combat experience than Amethyst does.
• Sympathy for the Devil: It's kind of hard not to feel bad for Jasper after the Corrupted Gem she forced to fuse with her runs off and Jasper is left to bitterly ask why no one she fuses with stays, then in her final moments of sanity, she's angrily yelling about how she's a failure who spent her whole life fighting for revenge on a person who's no longer even around. Even Amethyst feels sorry for her.
  Amethyst: (sigh) Come here, sis.
• Tempting Fate:
  • Jasper gloats to a Corrupted Gem that "I'll never let this planet twist me like it twisted you" early on, before becoming corrupted herself later.
  • At the end, Amethyst is expressing a desire to not do anything for a month... only for her to see the Ruby Squad immediately afterwards.
• Throwing Your Shield Always Works: Steven throws his shield at an injector at the top of a cliff, and it falls and lands between Jasper and Amethyst.
• Too Fast to Stop: Jasper uses her Rolling Attack in a rage and accidentally crashes into the wall holding most of the Gem monsters, setting them free.
• Took a Level in Badass:
  • Amethyst has taken quite a few...unfortunately, it's not enough to do more than stagger Jasper.
  • Steven finally manages to actually fuse with one of the Gems for the first time, forming the extremely powerful Smoky Quartz.
• Tornado Move: Smoky Quartz uses three yo-yos to create a tornado, lifting the Jasper fusion off the ground.
• Trailers Always Spoil: The whole episode was more or less given away before it even aired! The preview released by Cartoon Network spoils Jasper's presence and current plan, the preview for next episode spoils the Ruby Squad's return, the preview for "Kindergarten Kid" spoils that Jasper was defeated and that Peridot was the one to bring her down, and lastly "Know Your Fusion" spoils Smoky Quartz.
• Villainous Breakdown: Jasper's rants as she's being Corrupted, refusing all of Steven's attempts to help her.
• Wham Episode: Steven and Amethyst fuse into Smoky Quartz (the first time he's ever fused with an actual Gem), Jasper is corrupted after she fuses with a Corrupted Quartz to fight them, and right before she fully Corrupts, she mentions a "Pink Diamond" that Rose apparently did something to, after which Peridot poofs her and Amethyst bubbles her. Then, when they return to the barn, the Ruby Squad is back, floating around in Lapis' water bubbles.
• Wham Line: Jasper's rant as she's being Corrupted:
  Jasper: Help? Help?! I've been fighting from the second I broke free of the Earth's crust, because of what you did to my colony! Because of what you did to my planet! Because of what you did to my Diamond!
  Steven: I... Yellow Diamond?
  Jasper: Wh— My Diamond! YOUR Diamond! PINK DIAMOND!
• Wham Shot:
  • Amethyst brings Steven into a hug... then a purple explosion goes off, heralding Steven's first actual fusion with a Gem: Smoky Quartz.
  • Although it takes a moment to sink in, the image of Jasper with a corrupted arm, and the ensuing shot of it starting to spread.
• Worf Barrage: Amethyst's onslaught on Jasper ultimately does nothing more than annoy her.
• You Are Not Alone: Despite Amethyst's best efforts and a new upgrade to her whip, she's still unable to defeat Jasper on her own. Steven says that he knows how she feels about being inferior, because he himself feels the same about not being Rose Quartz, and because of that they should stick together and tearfully asks Amethyst to not let him out of her fights if he can help her. Thanks to Amethyst understanding she can rely on Steven, Smoky Quartz is born.
• You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!: Amethyst's reaction to Jasper No Selling her attacks.
• Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: Jasper's Motive Rant reveals she is driven by revenge against Rose Quartz for sabotaging the Earth settlement and doing something to their leader — Pink Diamond.

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