#steven bomb 6 spoilers

[novantinuum]

Pink Onyx AU- An Analysis and Theory Post, Part 1

[Part 1- You are here!] | [Part 2] | [Part 3] | [Part 4] | [Part 5]

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Howdy! Those of you who have followed me for a while have probably been seeing my reblogs of the @pink-onyx-au comic made by @ceephorsshitshow. Well, today I wanna share with you something a little different than my usual SU meta… because today I’m gonna analyze this really cool fan work with the same level of seriousness as I do canon. (Like. Seriously. This first post alone is really, really long. I put most of it under a cut.)

This particular comic is a very special one for me to watch unfold, because it’s evident that a lot of deep care and attention to detail has been poured into its creation. There’s fascinating bits of expanded character development to chew into here, as well as plenty of mysteries and lingering questions for us readers to muse and theorize over. If you follow me for Steven Universe and haven’t read this AU yet I highly recommend you check it out. The most basic pitch is that it explores what a fusion between Steven and Jasper might look like, and does a LOT of deep-diving into the similarities and differences of both of those characters’ psyches.

Here’s the episode masterpost on tumblr.

And you can find it on Tapas, too! 

(Note: For the purposes of these posts, I was given permission by the comic artist to post screenshots of various pages where relevant in this discussion. For each frame used I will list the episode and page number for easy reference. Additionally, this post and all future ones on the topic will contain full spoilers for the comic thus far.)

Now with all that introductory stuff out of the way, here we go!

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So, on the final page of the most recent update, we get one hell of a visual plot bomb for Steven as ol’ Onyx unfuses:

(Episode 9: Page 22)

He’s now visually expressing remnants of his corruption, where before he was not.

And it’s this mysterious plot point in particular that got me wanting to analyze this comic more deeply in the first place. This is completely new for him in this story. Thus far, he’s never expressed any of these remnants when he’s just himself- not in the way Jasper does. So it made me wonder… how might this shift in his appearance play into the ultimate trajectory of the plot? How does Steven suddenly showcasing corruption scars integrate into the larger story that is being spun here about him and Jasper and how they relate to each other?

Well, there’s a lot of comic details and story lore we need to unpack first before I can take my best theorizer’s stab at this. Let’s dig right in.

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Prelude: The analyst’s treasure is in the speech bubbles

Anyone who’s been a fan of this comic for a while has probably noticed these fun visual details already, but I’m going to take a moment to break down what I believe each speech bubble style signifies for folks who may not have context. It’ll make some of my analysis later a bit easier, too, ahah.

So. Speech bubbles. What kinds do we have here? 

(Episode 1: Page 6)

Style number one: Solid with black text

This style is standard for non-fused characters, and is also utilized when a fused character is speaking whilst in a state of internal harmony.

Steven is pink and Jasper is orange, of course. Onyx’s speech bubbles are a distinct darker pink, and the main three Crystal Gems get their own colors as well. More minor characters get white bubbles.

(Episode 1: Page 10)

Style number two: Scribbly pink lettering overlaying black text

Whenever you see this type of speech bubble, it’s a sign that there is some level of internal discord going on within Steven or Onyx that is related to their diamond side. It usually shows up when one of the two is in pink mode, but from what I can tell this is not a solid rule.

(Episode 2: Page 12)

Style number three: Pink/orange mixed bubbles

This is how we see Onyx talking for a good portion of the early comic. Their speech bubbles are a clean mix of Steven’s pink and Jasper’s orange. And most vitally, the color on the top and the tail signifies which of them is “fronting” at that moment.

(Episode 3: Page 11)

Style number four: White bubble with solid pink text

So far, this style has only been used to represent dialogue that is being spoken by Steven’s gem half exclusively. Which makes things very interesting, as in Steven’s own remembrances of shattering Jasper on the very first page of the comic, the line “I have been holding back!” is shown in this specific style, instead of the scribbly pink lettering that signifies internal discord.

There is one additional sub-style here- and this is the one moment where we get Onyx’s mixed bubble but WITH the solid pink text. 

(Episode 3: Page 11)

I believe these two styles pretty much mean the same thing… only, the white/pink text is either viewed within memory or a metaphoric fusion mindscape where we the viewer are actually “seeing” Steven’s instability, and thus can “see” his gem half as a separate entity there. While, in reality, this is an argument Onyx is having with the disparate pieces of themself.

(Episode 4: Page 9)

Style number five: Pink/orange tye-dye mixed bubbles

When you see that darker shade of pink start dappling into the standard mixed bubbles, this indicates that there are small whispers of Onyx’s true personality beginning to surface, instead of them constantly being wrested back and forth between Steven and Jasper’s conscious control.

(Episode 4: Page 16)

Style number six: Pink/orange mixed bubbles, but with a darker pink tail

From this page onwards, Onyx’s speech bubbles always have their darker pink shading the tail no matter who is fronting. Sometimes there are little lines of another color etched out of it, and sometimes the tail is solid dark pink. I like to believe that when it’s solid, it means that Onyx is just a little closer to reaching a fully harmonious state than when it’s not.

(Episode 9: Page 6)

Style number seven: Onyx speech/thought bubbles with a hint of pink/orange underlying

This style seems to signify moments where it’s still Onyx fully in control of themself and their actions/words/thoughts, but they’re taking subtle influence from their components or accessing their memory a bit.

These are all of the distinct styles I have caught so far, but quite honestly, it would not surprise me if I am missing something. All of this to say… pay close attention to the speech bubbles. They can tell you a lot about Onyx’s state of mind throughout the story.

Now with all this established, I’d like to finish off this first post with my first big discussion point.

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Question One: What does Jasper actually know about Steven’s “meltdown,” if anything?

The AU author recently solidified this comic’s placement in the SUF timeline in an ask response, saying that the first episode takes place just a week after Steven’s corruption event.

I’m glad this point was clarified, because it was super vital information which deeply influenced the way I analyzed Steven’s actions and responses in my recent re-read… it means this experience is still super raw for him. This is VERY important and we’ll get back to this in more depth later in future posts. But first, let’s explore what Jasper knows of this event.

The full extent of her knowledge is unclear-

(Episode 1: Page 6)

In Episode 1, Steven briefly alludes to his corruption as seen above… referring to it as “[his] meltdown.” Notably, Jasper does not seem to ask any questions about this stray comment. This COULD suggest that she knows what happened to him a week prior via hearsay, but given the context of the rest of the scene and the fact that she’s as isolated as she is out here I genuinely wonder if she thinks Steven’s so-described “meltdown” is his shattering of her.

This idea would make a good deal of sense, as she doesn’t start to make any commentary on the topic of corruption at all until they’re actually fused- with Steven bringing it up first.

(Episode 2: Page 14)

On this page, Steven takes note of Onyx’s very visible spikes (which are Overtly in the same placement as his own when he was corrupted), and initiates the musing upon his own corruption himself.

With the way Jasper phrases her response, the vibe I get is that she somehow gleans a bit of ambient shared knowledge about what happened to him through their fusion.

(Episode 2: Page 15) 

“That human form you wear must have been hiding your markings.” This quote is SUPER vital. We’ll come back to this later on in this post series, too.

(Episode 2: Page 15)

It’s clear that Jasper doesn’t REALLY understand what he went through or what caused it, since she then outright mistakes the casual woes and body pains of organic life as corruption. (As seen above.) 

(Episode 8: Page 4)

But later on, she outright relates to him over their shared experience of past corruption, so she must at least know enough from mere ambient thought-sharing by this point to recognize it happened.  

It’s obvious that she’s barely scratched the surface on fully understanding her fusion partner, though. Neither of them have. It’s gonna take a lot of fusion, comedic mishaps, and genuine conversation to get there. All in good time, I’m sure.

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Please do join me tomorrow at 7am PST for the next post in this series! This has been a blast to write up and muse upon.

[neo-kid-funk]

Thinking about how 2016 was like literally the best time of my life when it came to my interests like:

-Haikyuu Season 2 episodes came out on like Tuesdays (I would literally be waiting for the schoolbus after school watching the new episodes shaking so bad because I was excited)

-Yuri on ice episodes coming out on Thursdays (and the kiss being spoiled on tumblr before I got to watch the actual episode,, and then me accidentally spoiling it for my friend bc I reblogged like every post w the kiss I saw)

- RWBY volume 3 on Sundays but seeing spoilers on tumblr the day before bc people that had roosterteeth subscriptions couldn't wait one day 😭😭

-Miraculous ladybug episodes being released on youtube in like parts in the French dub and I'd have to watch it before my mom would make me get up to start cleaning

-BTS released their wings album and the whole conspiracy that Jin was gonna leave the band bc of "awake" and the lyrics 'I can never fly' even tho the album was called wings. And then me only listening to BTS that entire year

-o yah and Steven universe releasing "Steven bombs" like once in a blue moon and me dying for more progress in the story only for it to be like 6 episodes about the fucking mailman, and me truly believing that Lapis Lazuli was secretly Blue Diamond

-O yah and playing mystic messenger for the first time and deadass falling in love with Yoosung

I would do anything to go back to that year I swear 😭😭

[shirii]

buff orange giant and smol blue gem x 2

[sublimebeeessry]

Something that’s reeeeeeeeeeeeeally bugging me more than anything else about Steven in the bomb is him blaming himself for getting his friends caught. That is actually a literally dangerous lesson. He answered a question honestly from Peridot two years ago and aliens without context rounded the people he named up. Like, he is in NO WAY responsible for that. And plenty of people who blame themselves for circumstances beyond thier control don’t need more fuel for the fire.

And then it just becomes fuel for him not fusing, not fighting well, and keeping in a panic instead of working with Connie. Lars isn’t the only one that lost his nerve. But at least Lars was a human panicking at his second encounter with violent alien beings.

[seventeendeer]

You seen the Aquamarine? Just cause her combo of being absolutely adorable and childish but also a demon spawn from hell reminds me heaps of your Chara interpretation (in a good way) :>

NOW THAT YOU MENTION IT .....

I love Aquamarine, what a terrible little nightmare spawn

I feel like it’s something Frisk and Asriel would tease Chara about after watching the episode, and Chara would h a t e it and extend that hatred to this poor defenseless cartoon character

the others will be wondering how in the world she could possibly be redeemed, while Chara’s just, wishing her a gruesome death

they will not be compared to someone so screechy, thank you very much

Chara will only accept comparisons to the most menacing of villains

[technoiisms-blog]

dude. dude they are

@ificouldbegin-to-be

[urbanqhoul]

Just a doodle cuz I honestly love the fuck out of em’~

[rosemarymagic]

Do you think the gems could ride lion to get Steven? Or maybe they’ll rapid build a spaceship with peridot and lapis? but i feel like that would just take too long...

[fractured-butterfly]

//*STEVEN BOMB 6 SPOILERS* (OOC)

// Steven is finally going to meet the Diamonds. I am freaking out right now when they find out that he is Rose Quartz. Omg, Pearl crying when she realized he was giving himself up to The Diamonds to protect them. I just...holy shit I started tearing up too. I feel bad for Topaz. That she is forced to fuse for missions and nothing else. I have a feeling she is going to join The Crystal Gems. I hope she does. I actually love Aquamarine when I know everybody else doesn't. I actually laughed when she was like: "Look, I am crying. Oh wait! That's just my gem!" As another way of saying she doesn't give two fucks about anything. My body is ready for this season! Bring on the Diamonds!

[bare1ythere]

I just finished watching the Steven Bomb

I LOVE LARS SO MUCH MORE

DID YOU SEE THE SHIRT HE WAS WEARING???

[girlwiththegreenhat]

oh fuck

@jess4ever12 just pointed out to me that lars never left the ship in that last episode of steven bomb 6

GET READY FOR WACKY HOMEWORLD ADVENTURES STARING STEVEN AND LARS

[bitchininlife]

I don’t know if this has been done, but I had an idea while I was trying to fall asleep so there’s a shitty meme

[mugglew]

«What makes you think I’m so special?»

[transjakeenglish]

I spent like an hour on this

[quartzcontentment]

Sadie: When I die I want Lars to lower my coffin into the ground so he can let me down one last time

[gemster]

tag yourself I’m Amethyst