“Welcome to Earth.”

Peridot’s one-on-one episodes with Pearl, Amethyst, and Garnet reflect Jasper’s initial take on the three heroes. Our newest recruit sees them as a shameless display, a puny overcooked runt, and a lost defective pearl. We have a pretty good sense of what Jasper was talking about in terms of the first two: we know Amethyst emerged late and is small, and what Homeworld thinks of Garnet as a permanent fusion. But Pearl’s description remains a tantalizing mystery until Back to the Barn.

For one thing, calling Pearl “a” pearl is our first indication that Gems aren’t unique, and calling her “defective” hints at a power dynamic where pearls are pretty low on the totem pole. Then in Friend Ship we hear Pearl talk about herself in the same belittling way, explaining how inferior she feels with a defeated “I’m just a pearl.”

It’s not hard to guess that pearls are a subservient underclass, but it’s awful to watch Peridot confirm it in such a matter-of-fact way, blithely objectifying Pearl and dismissing any notion that the lead character most defined by intelligence has any thoughts to offer. Peridot’s objection to Pearl’s drilling idea before repeating it verbatim as her own idea is a classic gag, amplified by the terrific silent conversation between Amethyst and Pearl that ensues, but it speaks volumes about Peridot’s specific feeling of superiority over Pearl.

It might not make much sense for Peridot and Pearl to waste a day fighting each other when the world could blow up at any moment, but this reinforces that Peridot isn’t as logical as she pretends to be. It unfortunately does make sense that she feels so strongly about enforcing Pearl’s caste: we see all the time in real life how easily the anger of oppressed people can be directed towards oppressing people they see as lower than them. Sure, peridots have it bad, but at least they aren’t pearls, right?

I love the way Pearl handles this situation, as we sort of expect her to be the bigger Gem because she’s the good guy and she’s in Mom Mode, but we know how sensitive she can get. I’m glad that she gets angry instead of sad when Peridot belittles her, because why on Earth would she take Peridot seriously? Still, we see how embarrassing it is to be addressed with such condescension, and to have somebody (particularly an outsider) try to put her in a place she overcame thousands of years ago.

In a weaker episode, Pearl would be so above it all that Peridot would get madder and madder in the face of an iron wall of maturity. It’s a tried and true comedy dynamic, encapsulating Pearl’s obvious superiority to contrast with Peridot’s insistence that she’s inferior. It would probably be funny. But Back to the Barn hasn’t forgotten that Pearl is no saint, and while she does try to take the high road, nobody’s perfect: despite taking the Cluster seriously, she’s more than willing to spend an episode trying to one-up her new rival.

This of course takes the form of the Robolympics, which also veers away from the story we might expect (and not just because we’re suddenly pitting two robots against each other for a whole episode). At first it looks pretty predictable, with Pearl and Peridot trading victories to show how they’re not so different, all ending in a tie. The ultra-specific categories are hilarious enough to make up for this stale structure: the ballet and art sections are great, but my favorite has to be the quick cut to a rock-paper-scissors game. If we end it at the tie, it’s an amusing but by-the-numbers episode about two enemies learning to see past their differences.

But then it keeps going, and two big things happen. First, when the final fight begins, it’s Pearl who throws the first blow, which is a nice continuation of her less-than-magnanimous attitude. Second, and more importantly, she loses. Like, really badly. She made an elegant machine, and Peridot made an angry brick that can smash Pearl’s around like the Hulk with a puny god. There are so many competition episodes that end with ties that it’s a little shocking to see an actual clear-cut victor, and it’s even better that it’s Peridot, our antagonist, who prevails. And she does so right after Pearl gives her a triumphant punch in the face and a speech about why she’s wrong.

Subverting the standard plotline of this sort of episode is great on its own, but it crucially creates a situation where Peridot thinks her violent victory matters in a show about communication and love. Steven’s speech may be about Pearl, and the camera might cut to Pearl as he makes it, but it’s not for Pearl. Pearl already knows that Steven loves her, and while it’s sweet and affirming to be defended, she wasn’t seriously doubting her own abilities in this episode. Peridot’s the one who needs to learn the lesson.

And she gets it from Garnet, who has been quiet all episode while Amethyst hoots and hollers.

And Garnet bestows the lesson using the exact words she heard from Rose Quartz when her own life changed forever, which we’ll see in just two episodes.

And this lesson was given by the person who gave Pearl all the neuroses she’s working through in the first place.

Man, Steven Universe is a pretty good show.

Amethyst has been on a roll since Cry for Help as far as bonding with Pearl is concerned, and here we see another huge step away from their first season feuding. The last time Amethyst watched Pearl in a duel, she was rooting for Holo Pearl. But here she’s all in on Pearl whooping Peridot, and is amped up even after her friend loses, and it’s super sweet to watch. This is the dynamic that makes Last One Out of Beach City so much fun, and it’s a welcome development now that the Crystal Gems have more external foes to focus their negative energy on. And it’s awesome that this new direction doesn’t mean Amethyst has stopped messing with Pearl (see again their nonverbal conversation), because that’s neither realistic nor entertaining. (More on Amethyst’s streak of positivity when it finally hits a road bump next episode.)

It’s so awesome that we go back to the barn. We first came here in the wake of Lapis Lazuli, where (and I’ve kept my word about not calling it this until now) we enter the show’s Space Age, adding a cosmic plot to the more grounded misadventures of the early series. Space Race is another Pearl episode, so we get some neat mirroring and an in-universe reason for Pearl to suggest the barn in the first place. Our first rural outing saw the crew build a rocket to the stars, but now they’re headed in the opposite direction. Pearl fails at both of her missions, but instead grows closer with Steven each time.



By the way, this is how you make Steven childish without being a jerk. Suggesting a competition might not be the best way to resolve Pearl and Peridot’s argument: one could even compare the Robolympics to his actions in Sadie’s Song, where he’s just as sincere and enthusiastic but secretly selfish (considering he prioritizes his desire for a robot contest over the impending apocalypse). The difference is his level of emotional intelligence. In Back to the Barn, he senses he tension between his two friends and tries to deescalate it, even if that method happens to be something he enjoys. While his exclamation that giant robots shouldn’t fight unfortunately gilds the lily (really, we get the joke about the unusually peaceful robot contests by now), he’s genuinely trying to mediate the conflict. His primary motivation isn’t selfish and he easily reads when things aren’t going well.

(I promise I’m not going to trash Sadie’s Song in every episode from now on, but guh it’s just so easy.)

Peridot’s prejudice is hardly cured by the end of the episode. Her reluctant overtures of friendship to Pearl are still dripping with condescension, even as Pearl explains basic Earth concepts like how to hold a drill properly and what wheels are—I actually disliked the “Peridot doesn’t know what wheels are” element in my first viewing, as it seemed a little too ridiculous for a tech specialist from an advanced alien race to not recognize one of the most basic tools in existence, but the show actually does a good job showcasing how Gems rely on creepy leg technology for mobility. Regardless, Peridot’s growing pains aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, and while we do fall into a bit of a structural rut in her Crystal Gem episodes (Step 1: Peridot’s a jerk, Step 2: Peridot realizes she’s wrong, Step 3: Peridot apologizes), the overall quality of these episodes alleviates the sameness.

Discrimination against pearls, which is a magical blend of racism and classism, isn’t going anywhere. We’ll soon see it again in Message Received, where we learn that even Steven is capable of innocently ignorant statements about pearls. But as with Garnet’s issues homophobia fusionphobia and Amethyst’s upcoming arc about ableism, it’s refreshing to see these struggles depicted as important, but not character-defining. Being different from a perceived norm comes with difficulties, but we need the sort of nuance Steven Universe provides to associate these serious issues with characters that actually feel real, or else all we’re getting is suffering porn. Now if only we had bigots as willing to change as Peridot, Earth would be all set!

Future Vision!



Peribot will return soon in Message Received .

. On top of “Welcome to Earth,” two more phrases here are echoed in future episodes. Peridot’s snide “Who do you belong to?” and Pearl’s insulted “Nobody!” get a merrier light when Bismuth subs in for Peridot, and Pearl gets to throw “That will be all” back at another demeaning Gem in, er, That Will Be All .

. The fact that Pearl did belong to somebody, and not just anybody, makes any episode that talks about the role of a pearl fascinating to rewatch after A Single Pale Rose.

We’re the one, we’re the ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!



Back to the Barn does excellent work tempering a heavy message about prejudice with a silly episode about robots without losing any of the oomph. This is the arc that keeps on giving.

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