References in Steven Universe

Steven Universe contains a wide variety of cultural references. This is an incomplete list of references.

Anime/Manga

 * Pearl's battle with Holo-Pearl has multiple fight sequences identical to ones from the anime Revolutionary Girl Utena. Furthermore, the sky arena in "Sworn to the Sword" is reminiscent to the dueling arena in the same show.
 * The Classroom Gems shorts bear a striking resemblance to the science lessons at the end of each episode of the Gainax anime Gunbuster.
 * Lapis Lazuli resembles Aoki Lapis, a VOCALOID released for the VOCALOID3 engine, in terms of name and appearance.
 * Steven's wrestling identity could be a reference to Tiger Mask, a Japanese masked wrestler from the self-titled manga/anime Tiger Mask. Steven and the main character, Tiger, are both wrestling characters whose stage identities are bad guys and later become heroes.
 * At the end of "House Guest", there is a Sailor Moon volume in Steven's drawer.
 * According to Jeff Liu, storyboard artist on Steven Universe who created some animated sequences of "Garnet's Universe", Garnet’s final move was inspired by Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann.
 * Garnet's final move also bears a resemblance to Mazinger's Rocket-Punch.
 * Ringo's transformation also shares the same colors and characteristics of the Sailor Scouts from Sailor Moon.
 * Garnet removing her weighted hair is a reference to Piccolo Jr. in Dragon Ball Z, who wears weighted headgear and shoulder pads. While debatable, Garnet removing her weighted hair could also be a reference to Rock Lee's battle with Gaara from Naruto, where Lee removed the weights from under his legwarmers in order to increase his speed.
 * Hoppy's attack is similar to Haruko's in Fooly Cooly (episode 6/FLClimax.)
 * Hoppy's character design is a direct reference to the main character in the manga Usagi Yojimbo.
 * Near the end of "The Test", the Crystal Gems congratulate Steven while a piano cover of the opening theme plays, almost exactly like the final scene of the show Neon Genesis Evangelion.
 * The Kindergarten's cliffs are full of holes that match their Gems' exact size and shape, a reference to Junji Ito's one-shot horror manga, The Enigma of Amigara Fault.
 * In the episode "Lion 3: Straight to Video", the video tape Steven and Sadie watched resembles what Spike and Jet received in Cowboy Bebop.
 * Ruby and Sapphire's fusion dance in "Jail Break" is a reference to Pazu and Sheeta's dance in Hayao Miyazaki's Castle in the Sky.
 * In the episode "Chille Tid", when Lapis Lazuli and Steven are talking during Steven's second dream, the space in which the scene occurs is similar to the mental space used when Newtypes mentally make contact with each other in Mobile Suit Gundam, most significantly when Amuro Ray and Lalah Sune "speak" during Lalah's death.
 * The device Hopper uses to measure power levels is similar to a scouter.
 * The explosion of the device after someone exceeds their power levels is similar.
 * The power level reader skipped the number "9,000" during its rise even in increments of thousands, possibly to avoid reference to the "Over 9,000" meme, from Dragon Ball.
 * Garnet's "super fast punching" during her training resembles Kenshiro's Hokuto Hyakuretsu Ken technique from the Fist of the North Star series. The attack is a iconic rapid punching move which has been paid homage in many other popular series.
 * During Garnet's training, she increases her power while holding a pose similar to the most common pose in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z.
 * She takes off her hair (weight), similar to how Piccolo takes off his cape and helmet.
 * Her hair's increase in size with increases in power level resembles the transformation of a Super Saiyan.
 * The dance that Gems use to form Fusion Gems is inspired by the fusion dance from the manga and anime, Dragon Ball Z.
 * In the episode "Steven the Sword Fighter", Amethyst is flying on a cloud, which could be a reference to the Flying Nimbus, a cloud used as a mode of transportation from Dragon Ball Z which originates from the story Journey to the West.
 * The scene where Lion runs over the ocean in "Lion 2: The Movie" is a reference to some scenes from Digimon.
 * Dr. Gero's name can be seen in "Nightmare Hospital". who is an antagonist in Dragon Ball Z known for creating the Red Ribbon Androids. The designation Patient 20 can be seen under the name, which refers to Gero's designation as Android 20 within the anime.

Video Games

 * Some bubbled Gems resemble Pokéballs, most notably the Centipeetle Mother's gem.
 * In the episode "Chille Tid" where Steven is dreaming of flying with Dogcopter, after Pearl upgrades him to rocket boots and the screen goes black, the shot in front of Steven very highly resembles Sparkster's pose from the ending credits of Rocket Knight Adventures on the Sega Genesis.
 * In the episode "Bubble Buddies", the underwater rock formations resembles the ones in the background of underwater levels in Super Mario World.
 * Sugilite bears a striking resemblance to Roy Koopa from the Super Mario Bros. series.
 * A Super Mushroom from the Super Mario Bros. franchise can be seen in Greg's storage unit in "Laser Light Cannon".
 * The "Robot Shooty Thing" spits projectiles out of its mouth similar to a "Snifit" from Super Mario Bros 2.
 * Steven owns toys that resemble Pikachu from the Pokémon series, Moogles from the Final Fantasy series, U-1 from Gitaroo Man, Hero, the main character from Ian Jones-Quartey's concluded webcomic "RPG World", and Sanic (Gotta Go Fast), an internet meme based on Sonic fanart.
 * Golf Quest Mini parodies common Eastern RPG tropes in gameplay, character design, and dialogue.
 * When Holo-Pearl attacks Steven from above, she appears to be using Sephiroth's Hell's Gate move.
 * The Red Eye possesses a Rupee pattern from The Legend of Zelda games.
 * Also, the Red Eye may be a reference to the Moon from The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask.
 * "Teens of Rage" is a tribute to an old Sega Genesis Game called Streets of Rage. Note that they have a slight reference to the character Skate (fights with rollerblades) as a Head with a cap on a skateboard. The game was made by a company called Carpcom, a parody of game developer Capcom.
 * The scene in "Onion Trade" where Steven lists off the various "G.U.Y.S." looks like a Mega Man stage select, specifically Mega Man 3 's, considering Steven's head in the center. Also the character on the bottom left looks similar to an Animal Crossing New Leaf Villager.
 * In the episode "Garnet's Universe", Hopper resembles Frog from Chrono Trigger. She wears an attire similar to Frog's armor, along with a broadsword.
 * The background on this episode (including the mountain Garnet breaks in half with a punch) is very similar to the one used in Super Mario Bros 3.
 * One of Steven's toys in the episode "Future Vision" resembled the character Yoshi from Super Mario World.
 * Amethyst's attack on the Watermelon Stevens, and later on Peridot in the episode "Friend Ship", highly resembles the Spin Dash from Sonic the Hedgehog.
 * Steven appears to have a GameCube and 2 blue controllers in his room. Looking closely, you can see the cases for Animal Crossing and The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.
 * Meat Beat Mania is a parody of SEGA's classic arcade game, Samba de Amigo.
 * The game console Steven is playing in "Rose's Room" resembles a Nintendo 64.
 * There is a Game Boy Color and a Sega Genesis in the Heaven Beetle's room.
 * The professor in Golf Quest Mini resembles Dr. Eggman from the Sonic the Hedgehog games.
 * The dog in the Pet Rock poster in Greg's Van during "We Need to Talk" closely resembles K.K. Slider from the Animal Crossing series.
 * The game Steven and Uncle Grandpa played in "Say Uncle" is very similar to Super Smash Bros. Melee, on the GameCube.
 * The way Amethyst moved down the walls in "Friend Ship" could be a reference to the wall-jump in the Super Mario series.
 * Sir Bearington's name may be a reference to a Dungeons and Dragons character who had gained some measure of fame on the internet.
 * Freddy, Bonnie, and Chica from the Five Nights at Freddy's series appear as plush toys in Steven Universe comic issue #05.
 * Steven occasionally says "Item, I choose you!" in Attack the Light; a reference to the Pokémon saying when chosing a pokémon.
 * Amethyst's Room features a lot of items from the Animal Crossing franchise.
 * A Question block can be seen in Amethyst's Room.
 * In the episode "Steven and the Stevens", the line "No time to explain." is a reference to the game No Time to Explain, a video game where the main character is visited by multiple versions of his future self.
 * In the episode "Lion 3: Straight to Video", When Pearl wakes Steven up, You can see a GameCube next to the TV.
 * In the episode "Future Vision", the wasps that haunt Steven are referenced as Beedrills from Pokémon.
 * In "The Answer", the technique Rose uses against the fusion of three Rubies mirrors Akuma's Shun Goku Satsu, or Raging Demon, from the Street Fighter series.

Movies

 * In the episode "Lion 2: The Movie", the movie Dogcopter 3 is an allusion to two other movies, Disney's Bolt and The War of the Worlds.
 * How Steven put his initials at the bottom of Ranger Guy in "Onion Trade" resembles how Andy, from the first Pixar animated movie Toy Story, puts his name at the bottom of his toys.
 * At the end of "Lion 2: The Movie", Lion's head is in a logo with a ribbon around it, similar to the lion that's in the Metro Goldwyn Mayer's logo.
 * The episode name "Lars and the Cool Kids" has a title similar to the movie titled Lars and the Real Girl.
 * Greg's statement about the seeds after Steven's Hurricane Spin Spit in "Watermelon Steven" is a direct reference to a similar quote in Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Oddyssey.
 * The episode "Winter Forecast" shares many parallels to the famous film Groundhog Day.
 * The episode name "Lion 3: Straight to Video" may be a reference to video releases of movies, or direct-to-video movies that never came out in theaters (for example, The Hunchback of Notre Dame II)
 * The way Ruby and Sapphire's dialogue within Garnet is presented in the episode "Keeping it Together" is likely a reference to Smeagol from The Lord Of The Rings, changing camera angles and expression to show which side of her was speaking.
 * In the episode "Keystone Motel", many scenes at the Keystone Motel and The Best Diner in the World are a reference to Disney's "A Goofy Movie".
 * The name "Doctor West" can be heard from a conversation between two doctors in the episode Nightmare Hospital which may be a reference to Doctor Herbert West, a fictional character known for creating human experiments which is related to the Cluster Gems.
 * In the episode "Back To The Barn", Peridot swinging and smashing Pearl from side to side is a reference to the Avengers, as Hulk did the same to Loki in the movie.

Shows

 * Amethyst saying "Chill it, dude." after she shape-shifted into a blue jay in "Cat Fingers" may be a reference to Mordecai from Regular Show, which Kat Morris and Hilary Florido previously worked on.
 * In some shots, there is an arcade game named Lakewood Plaza Turbo, the title of Ian Jones-Quartey's upcoming cartoon.
 * In the episode "Garnet's Universe", Hoppy's introduction (with the triple screen split) may be a reference to Samurai Jack.
 * The magic power amulet that Hopper mentions in the episode "Garnet's Universe" resembles the Demonic Wishing Eye from the series Adventure Time.
 * In the episode "The Message", when Greg tried to receive the message from the Wailing Stone, it shows a speaker with the "PowerPuff Girls" logo, but just the word "Power".
 * In the episode "Lion 2: The Movie", the giant penny from the cave and the cave itself are a reference to Batman's cave in which he has a giant penny.
 * In the episode "Onion Trade", Steven mentions a G.U.Y.S. toy called Eye Guy, which has the same name as a Mighty Morphin Power Rangers villain, and Ben Tennyson's Omnitrix alien form, Eye Guy, from the Ben 10 franchise.
 * Also in "Onion Trade", Steven suggests to Amethyst "to think like a rich duck", which references to Scrooge McDuck, when trying to swim through the growing pile of G.U.Y.S.
 * In the episode "Island Adventure", when the Crystal Gems teleport back home, Amethyst shifts her head into a fly's head, a reference to The Fly.
 * Steven's transformation in "Cat Fingers" is similar to that of Tetsuo from the movie Akira.
 * The scene where Garnet stops a bomb in "Garnet's Universe" with her hand resembles a scene in Akira, in which Tetsuo stops a missile.
 * In the episode "Sadie's Song", in the pile of Sadie's stuffed animals, one of them looks like Gunter from the Cartoon Network series, Adventure Time.
 * In the episode "Catch and Release", when Steven goes to sleep and says goodnight to his plush toys, the "Playful Kitty" resembles Garfield.
 * In the episode "Sworn to the Sword", after Amethyst compliments Garnet's joke, she claimed to be "Garnet, Master of Comedy", mirroring the catchphrase of Nylocke from the popular series, TOME Terrain of Magical Expertise.
 * In the episode "Cheeseburger Backpack", there are several references to Full House; Jamie resembles Danny Tanner, and Steven says "You got it dude!", one of Michelle Tanner's catchphrases.

Music

 * The title of the song "Drop the Strawberry from "Together Breakfast" is a reference to "dropping the bass" - making the distinctive wobble bass "wubbing" noise which is common in many styles of dubstep music.
 * In the episode "Steven and the Stevens":
 * Steven says that Steven and the Stevens was supposed to be "a lighthearted throwback to early rock & roll". The song "Steven and the Stevens" resembles the style of early rock songs from the fifties and sixties, and Steven 1's pompadour hairstyle resembles the hairstyles which were popular in the 1950s and early 1960s.
 * Steven's ideal personas for each Steven, "the smart one", "the funny one", "the sensitive one" and "the handsome one" resembles the sort of themed stage personas which are common among boy bands, most notably that of the Beatles, and the personalities they prominently portray in the film A Hard Day's Night.
 * Coincidentally, both bands are made up of four members, and both have had their drummer subsequently replaced.
 * "Ste-Ste-Ste Steven" and "Big Fat Zucchini" resemble hard rock, grunge, punk rock and early metal.
 * The way Steven 1 is kicked out of the band over creative differences resembles the sort of backstage drama which has often affected popular, long-running bands.
 * In the episode "The Message", Greg tells Steven, "Don't you know video killed the audio star?" A possible reference to the 1979 song "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles.Buck dewey pizza man.jpg
 * In the episode "Joy Ride", Buck Dewey says to Steven "I only wanted to see you laughing in the pizza rain", a reference to the 1984 song, album and movie Purple Rain by Prince.
 * In "The Message", Queen's 1977 album News of the World can be seen inside Greg's van.Album.png
 * In the episode "We Need to Talk", several of Greg's albums can be seen:
 * An Orange Magic Orchestra album, which is a reference to the Japanese group Yellow Magic Orchestra's album titled Naughty Boys.
 * The Philosophy Majors - Nietzsche's Breakdown resembles the album cover of No Doubt's Tragic Kingdom. The band's name may be a reference to The Philosopher Kings.
 * In the episode "We Need to Talk", Rainbow Quartz's last dance step resembles a voguing dip from the vogue dance.
 * Sardonyx acts like a radio DJ, stage MC or talk show host.
 * In the episode "Onion Friend", Onion owns a poster of The Door in his room; an obvious reference to the 1965 rock band The Doors.
 * In the episode "Steven's Birthday", Greg holds up an album that says "Estella", and has a cover similar to "Shine", an album made by Estelle. This is ironic because Garnet pushed her hand in Greg's face when he shows it to her, but Garnet is voiced by Estelle.

Culture

 * In the episode "So Many Birthdays", a photo is shown of the Crystal Gems in a boat which is an obvious parody of "Watson and the Shark" a 1778 oil painting by John Singleton Copley, depicting the rescue of Brook Watson from a shark attack in Havana, Cuba.
 * A Spartan helmet is seen in Greg's storage unit.
 * A maneki-neko ("beckoning cat") figurine is seen inside the belly of the Big Bird from the episode "Giant Woman". A Daruma doll and another maneki-neko is also seen held by Garnet in "Reformed".
 * In many cultures, Garnet's third eye represents "sight beyond normal sight" and heightened telekinetic abilities.
 * This is also true as Garnet has Precognition.
 * Tiger Millionaire could be a reference to the professional wrestler, Ted "Million Dollar Man" DiBiase, who was known for flaunting his wealth, being a jerk, and stuffing dollar bills in his opponents' mouths after they lost.
 * Additionally, his outfit bears a resemblance to "Irwin R. Schyster" (also known as IRS), who was actually Ted DiBiase's partner in a tag team.
 * The quarters shown have the face of Thomas Jefferson flipped to the right.
 * Foxman is browsing tumblr on his phone. He can be seen looking at cat images.
 * One of the poses Garnet does while fighting the Watermelon Stevens resembles the Frogner Park Babyfighter statue in Oslo, Norway.
 * In the episode "Warp Tour", Amethyst says "Don't let the warp monster bite" which is a parody of the saying "Sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite".
 * In the episode "We Need to Talk", when Greg refers to Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst as "Harpo, Groucho, and Chico", this was a reference to the Marx Brothers.
 * Sugilite may be based on an Oni, a Japanese demon or ogre, due to the gem being first discovered in Japan by Professor Ken-ichi Sugi.
 * In the episode "Reformed", Amethyst finds an old long nosed gas mask inside her room with the rest of her stuff. The mask itself resembles ones issued to British families during WWII during the London Blitz.
 * In the episode "Sworn to the Sword", Connie's training outfit is a Kalaripayattu uniform, a martial arts gi worn in Kerala.Kalari sword (1).jpg
 * Sardonyx resembles a stage magician. She appears in a pillar of light that splits apart into curtains and then explodes into a cloud of doves, and her outfit resembles a traditional mid-20th century stage magician costume.
 * In the episode "Maximum Capacity", a book labeled Onix with a picture of a Tarsier is seen in Greg's storage unit. Onix is a reference to Unix, an operating system; the book is a reference to O'Reilly Media, a company known for publishing reference books for software with pictures of animals (the Tarsier from their Vi book being their official mascot).
 * "Rose's Battle Flag" shows aesthetic similarities to the Confederate Flag.
 * A Daruma doll can be seen in Amethyst's Room.
 * A Red telephone box can be seen in Amethyts's Room.
 * A Totem is seen in "Maximum Capacity" at Greg's garage.
 * When Steven is walking backwards in "Mirror Gem" he references Michael Jackson's moonwalk and his frequent "hee-hee".
 * Ronaldo is using a streaming website called Weirdstar. This may be a reference to Worldstarhiphop, a site infamous for violent fight videos.

Steven Universe Referenced in Other Media

 * In Star vs. The Forces of Evil, Star turns her teacher into a monster that has a gem similar to Steven's on her navel.
 * In Adventure Time's mini-series, Stakes, a vampire known as The Empress wears a scarf on her head with a jewel matching Steven & Rose Quartz's gemstone, which is used to project ring-shaped beams.
 * In Summer Showers, one of Viola's outfits has a brooch with a jewel matching Ruby's gemstone.
 * In Uncle Grandpa (The Halloween Episode/Special), a boy on a scooter can be seen wearing attire similar to Steven's.
 * The show is also referenced alongside Adventure Time during the commercial for Uncle Grandpa Babies.
 * In Batgirl Volume 4, Issue #41, two women resembling Garnet and Pearl can be seen in a bar on page 6.
 * In the same issue, one of the puzzles Batgirl has to solve resembles Pearl's Chamber.