“You’re one of them. One of the Crystal Gems.”



Ocean Gem concludes the story we began in Mirror Gem, and it follows noted ocean-lover James Cameron’s trend from Aliens and Terminator 2: Judgment Day: after a tightly-paced small-scale suspense story, the sequel doubles down on the cast, the action, and the stakes, all while transforming its female lead from survivor to ultimate badass.



In true finale form (or midseason finale in this case, although the delineation seems arbitrary given the other seasons span 26ish episodes) this episode is huge. I love the panning shot that kicks us off, containing virtually every character we’ve met so far (Yellowtail and Mayor Dewey are just off-screen). I love it so much I made it into a panorama!

We know the Crystal Gems will always save the day, and if we think they can’t, they’ll always find a way. But do the people of this world believe in Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl (and Steven)? So far, not really. The denizens of Beach City are distinctly uninterested in the magical goings-on around them, which is what makes Ronaldo such an exception (despite his weirdly unenthused face above). In fact, the most prominent reaction we’ve seen to Gem shenanigans gemanigans shenanigems was Kofi’s justified complaints over his shop getting wrecked. Seeing everyone here reminds us that the Crystal Gems are much more than adventurers fighting monsters on missions. They’re defenders of human life, and Steven earns his wings by remembering that here more than any of his seniors.



Humans can also pull their own weight: for the first time, Connie and Greg are deputized Crystal Gems (Connie’s shirt even has a picture of our sun, blending the star icon with an earthling twist). In fact, native earthlings are everywhere in Ocean Gem, which might seem strange for an episode that revolves around a brand new Gem. Isn’t Lapis way more interesting?

Maybe she is, but Ocean Gem’s dual focus subtly informs the future of the show. It’s a microcosm of the greater conflict that defines the series’s backstory: some Gems want to use Earth’s resources to their advantage, and other Gems want to protect its inhabitants from the consequences. And it reinforces one of the series’s main themes: forming relationships and helping each other may be harder and less obvious than fighting, but it’s worth it.

It’s so important that we meet Lapis Lazuli first. Peridot is indoctrinated and slow to come around, and Jasper is a ruthless bully, but Lapis immediately shows Steven (and children of all ages in the audience) that being on an opposing side doesn’t make someone evil. And it goes a step further than this lesson requires, because Lapis isn’t even nice—she’s awful quick to fight, and drips with disdain at the concept of caring about Earth—but she’s still worth reaching out to.

Deducing this his own is a gigantic step for Steven. Together with his first battle-ready shield summon, his freely-given magical spit, and his defense of humanity after encountering an alternate point of view, this cements his status as a Crystal Gem and a hero.



And then he’s saved by known human Connie when the tower falls, and praised by a whole crowd of humans when he gets home, because no matter how mystical he is, he’s still Greg’s son too. And while it’s easy to perceive Steven as oblivious while we figure out Gem lore at a much faster pace than him, remember that he knows these people better than we ever will from our brief windows into their lives.

This is the connection with humanity Rose never truly had. He’s making Onion smile, for crying out loud. Through Steven, Rose can learn how to love like Greg does. I wonder if there’s a good song about that? If there was, this scene would be really good place to put it. Maybe just an instrumental version, that might do the trick.

(Facetiousness aside, Love Like You isn’t just about Rose and Greg, but it’s at least a little about Rose and Greg.)

If Beach City’s residents are on one end of the spectrum and Lapis is on the other, Steven’s second act ground team is right in the middle. The quiet, funny, sweet, informative drive through the empty ocean evokes Lion’s run across the water in Lion 2: The Movie, complete with Steven and Connie as his riders. It’s a beautifully paced sequence, from Garnet’s excellent physical comedy to a wordless stretch of driving to Pearl (with the assist from Amethyst) contextualizing Lapis with all the monsters we’ve encountered. The montage of past foes begins with the Mother Centipeetle in full berserk force, and ends with her gem, bubbled by Steven three episodes ago. Gems can make a change, he knows it, and it’s elegantly shown to be on his mind as he interacts with Lapis.

Say what you will about her methods, but Lapis’s escape plan makes for some stunning visuals. Our human peanut gallery is at its best when in awe of the sight, with Connie flummoxed over how much magical destiny stuff is happening, and Greg speaking for all of us about album cover potential.

Lapis showcases her mastery of water by going full Wizard of Oz, and a hint of Mirror Gem’s eeriness returns when she briefly echoes Steven’s “NOOOO!” once more. The ensuing battle is a glorious blend of chaos and humor: each participant has a moment to shine, with Amethyst and Pearl getting nice throwbacks to Tiger Millionaire and Steven the Sword Fighter, and Garnet finally letting loose with a ground-shaking flurry of punches.

I love how the threat of each opponent escalates by flipping the mood. The Gems’ serious counterparts turn cartoonish as their aquatic powers are used, while Steven and Connie’s goofy charge is cut short by AquaSteven drowning them with his fists. Greg makes a funny aside about how dangerous this all is, only to prove it by breaking his leg. It’s not life-threatening, but the injury is specific enough to add real weight to the threat. How many cartoon fights have ended with an actual, diagnosable consequence instead of generic pain?

Beyond the self-evident merits of a well-made action sequence, the fight further clarifies just how strong Lapis can be. It’s one thing for Steven to make a new friend, but it’s that much more impressive that he can talk down someone who clearly has the upper hand.

(I’ve already discussed the conclusion, but boy is the music pretty. With apologies to Rose, Greg, and Peridot, Lapis definitely has my favorite leitmotif.)

Lapis’s misadventures are far from over, and Garnet and Pearl interrupt Steven’s happy ending from afar to assure us that there’s more to come. For the second episode in a row, we close on a diamond-shaped star. The Homeworld storyline has been sparked, and it’s good to know that when the plot hits the fan again, Steven is more than ready to stand on his own two feet.

Greg, on the other hand…

Future Vision!

Twice in three episodes, starting here, Steven’s authority figures make a pun on the term “grounded,” leading up to the Great TV Ban of Fusion Cuisine .



. When Steven finally sums up his feelings about meeting a new Gem, he uses the same words Greg sings for a new Gem in Story for Steven : “What are you doing here?”

: “What are you doing here?” “Hey, mind imagining that two seasons from now, everyone will be friends and play baseball against a team made of feisty half-Garnets?” No prob,

If every pork chop were perfect, we wouldn’t have inconsistencies…

Erm, when did Connie get here? Why was she left outside before the episode’s events instead of dropped off at Steven’s? It’s not a big deal at all and it streamlines the episode, but she’s super unsupervised way too often for someone with such safety-conscious parents.

I understand that Lapis Lazuli needs to be reintroduced for viewers that haven’t seen Mirror Gem, but Steven’s incredulous reaction to hearing her name is bizarre. Pearl is expositing to a kid who just went through this and was in the middle of talking about it when the episode begins. The Crewniverse could’ve easily had one of the many loitering civilians (especially the ever-curious Connie) ask who Lapis was to prompt the primer instead.

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

I’ve always enjoyed Ocean Gem, but to me it suffers next to its predecessor; the tone Mirror Gem strikes is just perfect, and I prefer fantastic mood over big fireworks. So I watched them a week apart instead of back-to-back for the first time ever to write this review, and it made me appreciate Ocean Gem a lot more than I thought I did. I still prefer Mirror Gem, but Ocean Gem is pretty fantastic.

(And for the record, I prefer Alien to Aliens but Judgment Day to Terminator.)

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