Steven Universe

"♫ I will fight to be everything that everybody wants me to be when I'm grown!♫"

- Steven singing about his reason of protecting the Earth.

Steven Quartz Universe is the titular main protagonist of the Cartoon Network television series by the same name, Steven Universe. He is a member of the Crystal Gems and the only one who has a gender. He is the son of Rose Quartz, the late founder and original leader of the Crystal Gems.

Appearance
Steven is relatively short with a thick build. He has curly black hair and black pupils. He wears a red T-shirt with a gold star on the front. He also wears blue jeans and red sandals. His gem, a rose quartz which used to belong to his mother, is where his belly button should be.

Personality
Steven has a fun and musical personality; he likes to sing and play on his ukulele. He enjoys adventures and wants to save the world with his fellow Crystal Gems, Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl, even though he doesn't have control over his gem yet. He looks up to them like sisters and takes their advice to heart. Steven has a very unique way of handling problems, often making them worse before solving them. What he lacks in magical ability he makes up for by being resourceful, optimistic, and confident in himself. He tries to fix problems on his own first before seeking help, fueled by his happy-go-lucky attitude.

Abilities
Being half-human, it is unknown if he has all the abilities of a regular Gem. But so far he has demonstrated the ability to heal with his spit, unlike his mother who healed with her tears, summon a weapon, shapeshift, and summon a magic bubble to protect him which is nearly indestructible. One unique dexterity about him is that he is able to change his age depending on his psyche, while fullblood Gems do not age. It is true that he can fuse,(In Alone Together)But it is not shown that he can retreat into his gem and regenerate as of yet.

In spite of Steven being half-Gem, he doesn't have enough training to regularly summon his weapon, a pink shield. He was able to summon his shield in the episode "Ocean Gem" when Lapis was going to attack Connie. But he will likely gain more control of his powers over the course of the show. He can fuse with Connie, a human, to form Stevonnie and is the only known Gem to fuse with a human.

Rose Quartz
Rose is Steven's mother, although he never met her face to face since she gave up her physical form to create him, and he only hears about her. Rose's absence left a particular void in Steven's life, as he grew up without a motherly figure to love. Steven is therefore unsure of what to feel about her despite wanting to, which is rather difficult for him as everyone else knows how to feel about her. As put by Steven himself in "Steven Floats", his feelings for his mother are complicated. Regardless, Steven is willing to defend Rose, like when he snapped back at Lars when he called her weird.

After Steven had got to see the video tape Rose had left him in "Lion 3: Straight to Video", he was moved to tears when she expresses her love for him and grows more curious about the person Rose was. When Steven is sometimes troubled by the burden of being a Crystal Gem, he takes solace in continuing Rose's legacy by protecting the world like she wanted him to. As revealed in "Steven vs. Amethyst" though, Steven has doubts that he cannot measure up to Rose's greatness, which is why he works diligently to become a worthy successor to her legacy. He has also developed a habit of clutching his gemstone when he has something on his mind, possibly to seek support from Rose.

Steven harbors great feelings of guilt over Rose giving up her "life" to give birth to him. He keeps this hidden deep down inside of him and rarely expresses it. One notable exception is in "Joy Ride" where he confesses to the cool kids that he suspects that the Crystal Gems are blaming him for Rose not being around anymore, shocking the teenagers. Recently he also feels that he will never live up to the standard set by his mother in the eyes of the other Gems, and is one of the reasons he is training harder to master his powers and combat skills. In "Earthlings", he tells Amethyst that it sucks not being like anybody expressing his frustration of not being as powerful or skilled as his mother.

"Back to the Moon" and "Bubbled" cause Steven to have even more doubt on what he thinks about Rose after learning about the fact she shattered Pink Diamond during the Rebellion, first mentioned by Eyeball, then confirmed by Garnet later on. In "Mindful Education", one of Stevonnie's hallucinations is the giant head of Rose Quartz staring down menacingly at them, further highlighting Steven's doubts on what he should think of his mother.

Greg Universe
Greg Universe is Steven's father. As seen in "Laser Light Cannon" and "Cat Fingers", they share a very strong father-son relationship, and Greg is always emotionally supportive. Although Greg does not live with Steven, they often hang out. In "House Guest", it is shown that Steven and his father used to live together, but as Steven grows older, he moves in with the Crystal Gems for them to teach him about "magical Gem stuff" - something which his father can not do. However, even though Greg knows that Steven is safe in the Crystal Gems' care, he is still slightly apprehensive about Steven going on missions and getting involved in "Gem stuff", which he tries to avoid if Steven brings it up, although there are some instances in which he has joined the Gems in solving problems.

Unlike the Crystal Gems, Greg does not seem too concerned about Rose giving up her life as Steven inheriting her "Gem identity" - other than the latter getting Steven into situations that Greg does not approve of. As such he treats him much more like his own person and Steven does not seem to be feeling any guilt towards Rose's "death" when he is with his father. This is probably because as a human, Greg is much more familiar and comfortable with the idea of offspring as well as death; concepts which are strange and unfamiliar to the asexual and nigh-immortal Gems.

As a result, Steven is very comfortable and relaxed whenever he is in the presence of his dad as he provides a link to the human world, away from "magical Gem stuff". He also looks to Greg for advice on life, Gem affairs, and the like.

Pearl
Pearl acts more like an overprotective sister, mother or aunt (since he is Rose's child) to Steven. Pearl harbors mixed feelings for Steven deep down; while she cares deeply for Steven she also misses his mother, Rose Quartz, very much, as they were very close to each other when she was still alive. However, she shows a deeper affection than most for Steven, admitting to watching Steven once he has fallen asleep. She sees much of his mother in him, as Steven becomes a constant reminder of Rose, which is a bittersweet sentiment to Pearl. These feelings come to the surface in "Rose's Scabbard" where the revelation that Rose had apparently kept secrets from Pearl, her closest friend, and confidant, causes Pearl to break down mentally and run away from Steven and the other Crystal Gems. When Steven pursues her, she shows inward signs of resentment towards him, and Lion, which culminates in her apparent inaction when Steven misses a jump and almost falls to his doom. The two reconcile at the end of the episode, but as revealed in "Joy Ride" Steven no longer feels comfortable talking about the subject of his mom with the other Crystal Gems as he has grown to feel that they blame him for Rose not being around anymore. Even despite recent events, Steven does still feel comfortable enough to talk to Pearl about his problems in "Historical Friction". He unknowingly comforts her in stating that flaws are important to everyone and asks her to tell the real story of William Dewey. During the play, he waves to her while she is encouraging him. When he learns that pearls are made liberally as servants on Homeworld, he declares that she is not common, but she is amazing and tries to be better than she already is as said in "Back to the Barn".

Amethyst
Amethyst acts like an older sister to Steven, often joking around with him and joining him in his misadventures. Pearl often scolds Amethyst for being too reckless with Steven when she misleads him such as in "Cat Fingers", which Amethyst admits is probably accurate. Steven seems to acknowledge Amethyst's reckless nature, calling her out when she did not help him in "Joking Victim" and worrying about her safety in "An Indirect Kiss". However, Steven cares greatly about and loves her, Amethyst loves and cares about Steven as well but doesn't show it too much due to her tomboyish attitude. In "Reformed", Steven misses Amethyst once The Slinker poofs, and he also liked her new forms as he found them funny.

Amethyst also tries to impress Steven because she wants him to like her. Steven secretly feels Amethyst blames him for his mother not being around. Amethyst is becoming more motherly as time passes. An indicator of this is in "Onion Friend" when Amethyst and Vidalia joke about kids, and that Amethyst is becoming more protective of Steven, in dangerous situations (such as grabbing Steven with her whip in "Friend Ship"), and when she lectures/scolds him about the dangers of stretching out his body in "Steven's Birthday". In "Steven vs. Amethyst" Steven tries to convince Amethyst how great she is, and tells her he understand about not being who your supposed to be when he tells her he isn't Rose Quartz which shocks her. "Earthlings" highlights their bond as he explains that he's just like her, that they aren't like anybody else as they are both different from normal gems, and to stop shutting him out, which leads them to fuse into Smoky Quartz. After the battle Amethyst leans into Steven, showing their new found closeness.

Garnet
Garnet acts like a lenient and kind mother, always encouraging him and setting a good example. It is shown that Steven respects her as he always listens whenever she speaks. Steven usually asks Garnet for permission before anyone else, as shown in "Monster Buddies". As shown in the aforementioned episode, Garnet is usually open to letting Steven attempt things that Pearl may not, indicating that she has more trust in him than Pearl. Despite her stoic and somewhat distant nature, the two share an occasionally close and emotional relationship. She becomes emotional as Steven aged rapidly in "So Many Birthdays"; in "Future Vision" she shares her "future vision" to him- which she only does because she thinks he'd understand and it would bring them closer. Immediately after Sapphire and Ruby's re-fusion in "Jailbreak" Garnet acts a lot more emotional and loving towards Steven, indicative of the deep, true love that she has for him that her pre-regeneration self wouldn't, or couldn't, express.

Ruby & Sapphire
Little is known about the relationship between Sapphire, Ruby, and Steven, other than they all care for each other, between Steven and the two halves of Garnet, but since Garnet is a Fusion Gem of the two, it can be assumed that their individual feelings for Steven are similar to, if not the same as, Garnet's feelings for him. This is confirmed in "Keystone Motel", as they both apologize to Steven upon arguing in the diner, which had driven Steven to tears. Sapphire even goes so far as to cry herself, out of guilt. In "Hit the Diamond", Steven is quick to hug both the gems when Garnet un-fuses, but is distressed over the two ignoring the game to flirt with each other, leading him to give them a pep talk/scolding, which both of them listen to. This shows that both Ruby and Sapphire love and respect Steven enough to listen to him.

In "Three Gems and a Baby", it is revealed that Steven first met Ruby and Sapphire when he was only a few months old. Garnet, who thought Steven was a fusion like herself, unfused to get him to do the same. Steven, confused by Garnet's sudden absence, started crying, causing the two to fuse back right after.

Connie Maheswaran
Connie is Steven's best friend. They first see each other at a parade the year before they met. Steven is on a float for the car wash, and Connie is in the crowd; Steven notices she drops her glow bracelet and keeps it in his freezer ever since, to make it last longer. In Connie's debut episode, "Bubble Buddies", he saves her from a falling rock by using his gemstone to summon his bubble. He is initially very awkward and nervous to talk to her, even more so once they are trapped in the bubble because he is trying to stay calm, but is able to relax more once he gives Connie her glow bracelet. After defeating the Gem monster that is attracted to the glow of Connie's bracelet, Connie appears to be amazed by Steven, saying "He was incredible!" in reaction to everything that had happened.

Their friendship has grown and presently, they appear to be close friends. In "Lion 2: The Movie", they are shown casually hanging out. In "An Indirect Kiss", Steven and Connie are shown not to care about things such as sharing the same straw. In this episode, Steven discovers his healing powers, along with fixing Connie's bad eyesight. He also genuinely cares about Connie's safety and well-being as seen in "Winter Forecast", as well as in "Full Disclosure".

In "Alone Together", after they have a dance, they accidentally fuse to form Stevonnie. They are overjoyed by their ability to be fused and enjoy being Stevonnie, although it appears that they cannot control when they fuse. It seems to happen when they dance together while thinking about their feelings for each other. Connie, however, is terrified of the thought of her parents knowing about this or any of the magical things she does with Steven. It is for this reason that she lies to her parents about Steven in "Fusion Cuisine", saying that he had a traditional nuclear family. When he found out she lied, Steven feels hurt, believing that she was embarrassed by him. Fortunately, after she explains that she was simply scared of her parents not letting her see Steven again, he forgives her.

In "Sworn to the Sword", it is shown that Steven and Connie function extremely well in combat as a team, with Steven defending Connie with his shield and protective bubble while Connie attacks using her sword-fighting skills. Together, they manage to defeat multiple versions of Holo-Pearl and their ability to work well as a team was enough to surprise Pearl initially. However, Pearl is able to defeat them after she overcame her initial surprise. Pearl later admits that they work well together after she calmed down.

In "Cry for Help", a [picture of Connie] can be seen in Steven's room. During "Steven's Birthday", he expresses the assumption that Connie will become president as an adult and worries that his stunted growth would make him the "First Boy" when that happens, implying that he wants to marry her. Steven still seems to become awkward whenever Connie is close to him as shown in "Steven's Birthday" when Connie laid her head on Steven's chest.

Along with their love for each other Steven and Connie share an equal partnership and friendship. "Beach City Drift" shows their partnership in that they can now fuse into Stevonnie at will and when they un-fuse Connie shows Steven they are obsessed with Kevin. In "Gem Hunt", Steven follows Connie's lead while they are tracking the Gem. Both instances show that he relies on her intelligence and good sense.

Lion
Lion is Steven's "pet" whom he first met in "Steven's Lion" while the Crystal Gems were retrieving the Desert Glass. He has some connection with him, as Steven is the only one who can enter his pocket dimension. Lion, most of the time, does whatever he wants and often ignores or disobeys Steven. Lion is also seen to be caring towards Steven as well as being aware of Steven's needs, like when Lion kept lying on Steven's head to show Steven his pocket dimension where it contained, among other things, a video left by Rose Quartz for Steven, after he said he wanted to know more about her in "Lion 3: Straight to Video".

Sadie Miller
Sadie is one of Steven's friends who, unlike her co-worker Lars, is friendly, considerate and affectionate towards Steven. In "Joking Victim", Steven helps Sadie by working at the Big Donut. Steven also helps Sadie to strengthen her relationship with Lars in "Island Adventure". Steven also filled Sadie's place in Beach-A-Palooza in "Sadie's Song", after realizing how he and her mother ignore her feelings to singing, later he is shown playing his ukulele with her singing having a sad smile on. This could hint he really is sorry and is trying to be more respectful to her wants.

Lars
Lars appears to be annoyed by Steven. He is always making fun of him, although this may only be because he is jealous of Steven for being a Crystal Gem. Steven may be ignorant of this, however, because in "Bubble Buddies", he refers to Lars as his "BFF". However, in "Lars and the Cool Kids", he became angry with Lars and called him a jerk for insulting his mother. As of "Lars and the Cool Kids", Lars and Steven find a way to connect and Lars is seemingly on better terms with Steven. In some ways, Steven looks up to Lars, and is excited at the chance of being able to receive a high-five from him in "Future Vision". However, Steven does not hesitate to call out Lars on his bad behavior at times.

Onion
Onion is Steven's friend whom he talks to in the episode "Bubble Buddies". Steven addresses Onion as if they are good friends. In "Onion Trade", Steven gives his favorite action figure to him as a gift, despite the fact that Onion had originally stolen it. When they are not together, Steven expresses some confusion as to who and what Onion is, being unsure if he is even human in "Marble Madness". In "Onion Friend", Steven and Amethyst stay at Onion's house for dinner. It is there that Onion shows Steven around his room, inviting him to feed his pet snake and show Steven his collection of G.U.Y.S. and G.A.L.S.; he later gives Explorer Gal to Steven as a token of their friendship.

Peedee Fryman
Peedee is Steven's friend whom he helped out in the episode "Frybo". Thanks to Steven, Peedee earned the respect of his father and did not have to wear the Frybo suit anymore. They have a generally professional relationship of customer and cook (despite him usually ordering off the menu) though still enjoy each other's conversation.

Lapis Lazuli
Steven became friends with Lapis in "Mirror Gem" when he is given a mirror by Pearl, which turns out to not work. A little while later, Lapis begins to talk to Steven, and they become good friends, with Steven calling them "Beach Summer Fun Buddies", a nickname to which Lapis agrees.

She wants to get out of the mirror and "tells" Steven how to do so. After she is free, she warns Steven not to trust the Crystal Gems and walks away. In "Ocean Gem", Steven is the one who insists on speaking to her and gets angry when she refuses to do so and hurts him and his friends. However, he understands Lapis' desperation to go home and heals her cracked gemstone, which, as a result, restores her eyes and wings. She thanks Steven before departing back into space. In "The Message", Steven defends her and sings a song all about her and the previous events. When Lapis gives Steven the message, he is very concerned about her, as he was distraught by her unhappiness. In "Jail Break", Lapis fuses with Jasper, forming Malachite, as a way to save Steven. Later in "Chille Tid", while the Gems are searching for Malachite, Steven's motivation is to save her from her fate of being trapped with Jasper. He soon discovers he can communicate with her through his dreams. While talking to her, Lapis refuses his help, saying, "Just let me do this for you!" "Same Old World" expands on their relationship as Steven helps Lapis find a home on earth. She easily carries him on her back and plays around with him in the air. "Barn Mates" expands things further as Steven tries to help Lapis and Peridot get along. "Alone at Sea" shows that Steven cares enough about Lapis to bring her on a trip on Greg's rental boat in order to help her get over her trauma and fear of the ocean because of her experience as Malachite.

Centipeetle Mother
Steven becomes friends with Centipeetle in "Monster Buddies" when he accidentally pops a Gem bubble which the Centipeetle Mother's gem is in. At first, she is unwary of her surroundings, being scared by the presence of the rest of the Crystal Gems. By approaching her calmly and feeding her Chaaaaps, Steven managed to calm her down, and later train her. She is even willing to risk her life to save Steven from a falling icicle. Steven believes she is not a monster and that he can help heal her in the future.

In "Monster Reunion", Steven defended Centipeetle from the Gems because they believed she would still be unstable, despite Steven healing her, however, she shows a great deal of appreciation after Steven reunites her with her crew.

Peridot
Steven did not really know how to feel about Peridot when they first meet, but he seems to want to befriend her in "Marble Madness", approaching her without fear and even trying to have a friendly conversation with her. Of course, this does not go as well as he hopes and almost gets crushed by her. Despite this, he still believes she can be good and even said that maybe if she sees how nice humans are she might not want to hurt anyone. In "Keeping it Together", Steven is the first to find her. He quietly waits for her to finish her report instead of alerting the others until she notices him. When Peridot asks if the others are with him, Steven tries to lie by shaking his head "no" until he nods "yes" with an apologetic shrug. During the chase, Steven seems to care about her when he asks if she is okay after falling off the wall. In "Friend Ship", Steven is kind to Peridot by wishing her a good morning and weekend. During the battle, instead of being cold and ruthless to her as she does to him and the rest of the Crystal Gems, he teases her instead.

In "Catch and Release", Steven is worried and wants to know what Peridot is trying to say at the Galaxy Warp, and chooses to pop her bubbled gemstone and release her. After he finds out she is short, he calls her cute and teases her, leading to Peridot slapping him in some playful way. After offering her the foot of her limb enhancer suit, Steven becomes the only person Peridot allows into the bathroom after she locks herself in. Peridot seems to take the gesture extremely well and is on much better terms with Steven by the end of the episode. In "When It Rains", Steven comforts Peridot and explains the process of rain and says it is harmless. After Peridot steps out in the rain, she claims she has made up her mind about telling information about the The Cluster, leading to Steven giving permission to go to the Kindergarten only if they hold hands the entire way, due to Steven having to watch over her. Their friendship has been getting stronger, and they are trusting each other more, although in "Too Far", he is visibly upset (or embarrassed) at her calling him a "hybrid abomination".

Returning from a mission to the Moon base, Steven notices a small object in Peridot's hand. Steven asks Peridot into a truck to discuss something. Tricking Peridot, he locks her in the truck to question her about the object. Peridot reveals that is a direct communication line to the Diamonds. Shocked at her apparent betrayal, Steven leaves her locked in the truck and tells the other Gems of what occurred, very upset at Peridot for having learned nothing. Peridot soon escapes and activates her robot to retrieve the communicator.

Once she obtains it after a fight with the Crystal Gems, she opens an interface to Yellow Diamond.

Peridot reports the progress of her mission to her, omitting the interactions of the Crystal Gems. She then pleads a case to Yellow Diamond to stop the Cluster and spare the Earth, which Yellow Diamond spitefully denies. She then orders Peridot to let the Cluster be and report for her next mission. Outraged, Peridot refuses to follow Yellow Diamond's commands and greatly insults Yellow Diamond, marking her a traitor. Steven exclaims that her actions against Homeworld have made her an official Crystal Gem.

When the Cluster was beginning to emerge Steven and Peridot go down in the drill to destroy it. During a brief moment when the possibility of death is very real, Steven expresses no qualms about dying in Peridot's company. During this time he also says his "last words", which are "I love you, Peridot" to her, showing his care for her.

Sardonyx
Steven finds Sardonyx funny and articulated as in "Cry for Help". It is known that Sardonyx has taken a liking to Steven too.

Opal
Steven first meets Opal in "Giant Woman". He is very eager to meet the fusion when Amethyst and Pearl reveal the information and the concept of fusion to him. First meeting her after she rescues him and Steven Junior from the Bird Monster, he is somewhat intimidated. However, she shows her affection for him by singing her song back to him, which makes him delighted.

Sugilite
Steven first meets Sugilite when he and the Crystal Gems went on a mission to destroy the Communication Hub. Impressed by her immense size and strength, she inspires Steven to become stronger. Sugilite, in turn, enjoys having an audience to her show-off actions. Steven quickly realizes how destructive Sugilite is, but does not seem to have any real issues with her and even looks forward to seeing her destroy the Communication Hub again, despite her attempts to destroy Pearl for having left her behind.

Jasper
When Jasper first arrives on Earth with Peridot and Lapis, Steven seems immediately aware that she could not be reasoned with or befriended. At first, he is unnerved by her violent talk and intimidating stature, and since then he has been terrified of her. Jasper thinks Steven is in fact just Rose Quartz hidden in a weak constitution, possibly after regeneration. In "Chille Tid", Steven is horrified of Jasper, and Jasper immediately attempts to attack him in an incoherent fury. Jasper is possibly one of the only characters in the show that Steven has not expressed some form of compassion with. In "Super Watermelon Island" however, Steven calls out to Jasper as she falls into a crack created by The Cluster, showing that he values her life despite their animosity. This is shown again as he attempted to heal Jasper when she became corrupted in "Earthlings". In "Mindful Education", it is revealed that Steven harbors intense emotional baggage for being unable to help her, Jasper mid-corruption manifesting in one of Stevonnie's hallucinations as a result.

Kevin
In "Beach City Drift", it reveals that his negative experience with Kevin as Stevonnie carried over to Steven full-force, being one of the few characters in the series Steven possesses hostility towards. He expresses a strong, enraged demeanor alien to Steven during and after re-encountering him at his dad's carwash, and is in a sour mood for the rest of the day. He even fuses with Connie and races him in hopes of rubbing it in his face. After realizing his obsession, he and Connie manage to let go of their anger towards him.

Bismuth
First seen the episode by the same name, Steven is quick to respond warmly, showing admiration towards her tales of past battles and laughing indulgently at her jokes. He is also quick to open up to her about his feelings towards his mother and remarks that he's glad she's with them. Upon refusing to resort to the use of the Breaking Point, he continues his attempts to reason with her and upon being forced to destroy her physical form, shows his respect to her by promising to tell everyone what happened, giving her closure before poofing. In "Mindful Education", it is revealed that Steven harbors intense emotional baggage for defending himself against her and impaling her with Rose's sword, Bismuth manifesting in one of Stevonnie's hallucinations as a result.

Trivia

 * Steven's name and appearance is based on Rebecca Sugar's brother Steven Sugar who is a background artist for the show.
 * Steven is the only Gem who's name isn't derived from his gemstone (due to his gemstone, Rose Quartz, being his mom). His middle name, Quartz, does come from his gemstone, however.
 * Steven is also the only Gem that doesn't have a color scheme that matches with their gem.
 * In "Together Breakfast", he had a phone similar to an iPhone, but Garnet snatched it from him to destroy it after he took a picture of a possessed poster.
 * In "Together Breakfast" Steven seems to be surprisingly strong, as he is the only one to defeat the possessed giant Together Breakfast monster by himself without his other Crystal Gems.
 * His middle name is Quartz, which is his mother's last name.
 * In "An Indirect Kiss" Steven is revealed to have healing spit. It went inactive, but has returned as of "Monster Reunion."
 * Steven is voiced by Zach Callison.
 * He is similar to Uncle Grandpa.
 * Both are chaotic heroes.
 * His allies is just like Uncle Grandpa's allies when they are both in insanes.
 * Both are gullibles.
 * Both are annoyings.
 * Interestingly, they finally meet each other in the crossover episode "Say Uncle".
 * He is also similar to Mabel Pines and Star Butterfly.