References in Steven Universe

Steven Universe contains a wide variety of cultural references. If you find a reference, feel free to add it.

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.
 * In another reference to the same anime, the way Lion summons Rose's Sword in "Lion 2: The Movie" is similar to how the character Anthy summons the Sword of Dios.
 * The Classroom Gems shorts bear a striking resemblance to the science lessons at the end of each episode of the Gainax anime Gunbuster.
 * 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 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 the Cowboy Bebop episode "Speak Like a Child".
 * Lion's pink field of fur, in his magical dimension that is his mane, is similar to the golden fields, formed by the Ohms' tentacles, in the film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.
 * 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. This happens most significantly when Amuro Ray and Lalah Sune "speak" during Lalah's death.
 * The device Hopper's use to measure power levels is similar to a scouter from the Dragon Ball universe.
 * 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 an iconic rapid punching move which has been paid homage in many other popular series.
 * During Garnet's training in "Garnet's Universe", she increases her power while holding a pose similar to the most common pose in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z.
 * Her hair's increase in size with increases in power level resembles the transformation of a Super Saiyan.
 * Garnet's fight with her Water Clone in "Ocean Gem" is a reference to JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, mirroring Star Platinum's ability to throw thousands of punches in seconds.
 * 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 ORAAAA.gif 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.
 * In "Story for Steven", when Rose jumps and lands near Greg, she landed like Princess Serenity did in Sailor Moon.
 * At the end of most episodes, a star iris closes on someone and pops. This is a reference to Kirby: Right Back at Ya! as the same thing happens when an episode ends.
 * In the episode "Sworn to the Sword", Connie's outfit nearly resembles one of Son Gohan's in Dragon Ball Z.
 * When Jasper tries to hit Garnet with the gem destabilizer in "Jail Break", her position is almost identical to Sailor Moon's in Sailor Moon R.Bez naslovakkkk.png
 * Alexandrite opening her second mouth in "Super Watermelon Island" could be a possible reference to Eva Unit 01 going on berserk mode from the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion.
 * In the episode "Barn Mates", when one of the Rubies get out of their ship, it could be a possible reference to Dragon Ball Z.
 * In the episode "Barn Mates" Lapis's face highly resembles One Punch Man's face because of the simplicity of the design.
 * Lapis Lazuli's design highly resembles Fantaman of to the old anime show Ōgon Bat, and they both bear the same dark blue chin-length hair.
 * In the episode "Too Far", when Peridot saved Amethyst, the scene was very similar when Seiya fell on Usagi in Sailor Moon: Sailor Stars. Susmreference.png
 * Jasper's current appearances bears resemblance to Vegeta from Dragon Ball Z, along with her personality of becoming more powerful than they need to be, a recurring problem for the protagonists, came from an evil extraterrestrial race, Vegeta calling Goku "Kakarot" and Jasper calling Steven "Rose Quartz".
 * In the episode "Beta", Lapis' dance when playing the tambourine is similar to that of the dance that Yui Hirasawa performed in the anime K-On!.
 * In "Bismuth", following each commercial break is an eye catcher signaling the return to the show. They feature chibi versions of the Crystal Gems using a Warp Pad, alluding to the style of similar eyecatchers used in anime, such as Sailor Moon R, Yu Yu Hakusho and PreCure 
 * In "Restaurant Wars", Kofi and Mr. Fryman's reactions resemble ones from the anime Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma.
 * "Kiki's Pizza Delivery Service" makes multiple references to animes.
 * The episode title is a reference to the Studio Ghibli film Kiki's Delivery Service.
 * After clearing Kiki's mind of the cheese, two pizza slices can be seen as they look towards the horizon. This is a reference to the famous ending of the animated film The End of Evangelion.
 * Steven's rocket shoes may be a reference to Astro Boy.
 * Steven's elbow rockets are similar to the joint rockets of Cyborg 004 from the Cyborg 009 series.
 * When Steven throws the giant pizza cutter, the way he raises his hands and throws it is very similar to the Spirit Bomb from the manga/anime series Dragon Ball Z.
 * "Beach City Drift" has references inspired by the hit manga and anime series Initial D.
 * The racing site where Kevin and Stevonnie raced resembles the famous Akina Pass in Initial D.
 * Greg's Dondai Supremo is based on a 1992 Volkswagen Golf MK2, with elements borrowed from a 1986 Toyota Sprinter Trueno (AE86). Similarly, it resembles Takumi Fujiwara's AE86 from Initial D.
 * Kevin's Himitsu X-12 is based on a 1991 Mazda RX-7 Type R (FD3S). Similarly, it resembles Keisuke Takahashi's RX-7 in Initial D.
 * The scene where Eyeball leaves her pod in "Barn Mates" is a reference to a similar Dragon Ball Z scene, where villainous character Vegeta also leaves a pod that has landed and has a device that covers his left eye with a red-tinted lens, resembling the Ruby's gem placement and color.
 * The drawings that Steven does in Peridot's card resemble the style of anime cartoons loosely, with big shiny eyes and minimal noses. ("Barn Mates")
 * Navy's pose when she crash lands on Earth in "Room for Ruby" is strikingly similar tp the Dragon Ball Z scene where Yamcha is shown laying on the ground dead after being killed by Saibamen.
 * The black cape and gloves that Lars is seen wearing in "Lars of the Stars" is similar to the cape and gloves Captain Harlock wears in Space Pirate Captain Harlock.

Video Games

 * Amethyst often runs with her arms trailing behind her, and will move at high velocity and dispose of some enemies by moving in a tightly wrapped and quickly rotating ball in which only her hair is visible, closely mimicking the movement of Sonic the Hedgehog.


 * The warp whistle given to Stevens dad in episode 27 the house guest is a reference to the first legend of zelda game, aswell as to super mario 3
 * Some bubbled Gems resemble Poké Balls, 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, Cloud Strife and 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.
 * The power  level indicator in "Garnet's Universe" resembles a Wii U GamePad.
 * 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 two 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. Its name is also a reference to the Konami rhythm game series, Beatmania.
 * The game console Steven is playing in "Rose's Room" resembles a Nintendo 64.
 * There are 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 choosing a Pokémon.
 * Amethyst's Room features numerous 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 closely resemble Beedrill from Pokémon.
 * In "Super Watermelon Island" Malachite's defeat with Opal's bow resembles Zelda's Final Smash from "Super Smash Bros." by Nintendo.
 * 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.
 * In "Too Far", the way Peridot laughs when she calls Garnet "Two clods walking around like she's one clod" sounds similar to the way Papyrus (from Undertale) laughs. Instead of normal laughter, unlike the other characters from his video game, Papyrus is known for shouting, "NYEH HEH HEH!"
 * In "Gem Drill", the controller that Peridot gives Steven resembles a Nintendo 64 controller.
 * In "Steven vs. Amethyst", Amethyst's GameCube controller clearly reads "DOLPHIN". This could either be a reference to the development name for the GameCube, or to the renowned GameCube emulator, both known as "Dolphin".
 * In "Steven Floats", when Garnet decides to make a move when playing checkers against Steven, a red exclamation point appears, similar to its usage in the Metal Gear Solid franchise.
 * Greg plays a game called Potato Bros. in "Greg the Babysitter", which is a reference to the famous Mario Bros. games.
 * In "Adventures in Light Distortion", Garnet, distorted to a small and squat stature, rolls an oversized ball-shaped Pearl. This may be a reference to the Playstation Katamari series.
 * In "Keeping It Together", on a shelf can be seen a bottle that resembles Lon Lon Milk, a recurring item from the Legend of Zelda series.
 * In "Doug Out", Steven and Connie join Connie's father on a stake out. They find costumes in the back seat of his car and proceed to put them on. Connie then resembles Carmen Sandiego and Steven resembles Luigi.
 * In "Warp Tour", before leaving the Earth, Peridot activates some kind of bomb to deactivate the Flask Robonoids. When the shock wave occurs, all of the robonoids are disabled at the same time, making the high-pitched noise of dying Pikmin.

Movies

 * In the episode "Lion 2: The Movie", the movie Dogcopter 3 is an allusion to two other films, 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 Odyssey.
 * 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 are 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.
 * In the episode "Steven vs. Amethyst", Steven chants "victory, victory" after earning his second Pearl point. This is a possible reference to the movies "Justice League: War" and Justice League: Throne of Atlantis where the character, Billy Batson or "Shazam" constantly chants "victory, victory" to his fellow leaguer, Victor Stone or " Cyborg".
 * Ironically, both Steven and Billy are voiced by Zach Callison
 * A lot of fans have noticed the coincidental resemblance between Steven Universe and Captain America.
 * Both of whom have the same first names; Steven Universe and Steven Rogers. Although, Steven Universe was named after Steven Sugar.
 * Both have a shield to represent them.
 * Both have the same benevolent personality.
 * In "Super Watermelon Island", Steven spawns inside a Watermelon Steven, similar to how Agent Smith spawned inside people in The Matrix films.
 * Steven falling asleep to gain control of a watermelon avatar which looks like him, then giving a speech to a primitive tribe to inspire them to fight back against an alien enemy may be a plot reference to James Cameron's Avatar.
 * In the episode "Bismuth", Steven throws Bismuth's weapon into the lava is a reference to John Connor throwing the Terminator Endoskeleton into the molten steel from Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
 * Beach City Drift's title may be a reference to The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and/or the Japanese MMORPG Drift City.
 * At It's a Wash, the water in the bucket rippling is a reference to the T-Rex water scene from Jurassic Park.
 * When Greg shows pictures of himself longing to buy a Dondai, he shares a plate of spaghetti with it. This is a spoof from the famous spaghetti-eating scene from Disney's Lady and the Tramp.
 * Pearl's 360° solo scene in Mr. Greg is a reference to a similar scene in the 1982 movie Victor/Victoria starring Julie Andrews. Andrews also appears in a tuxedo in that scene.
 * In "Bubbled", just after they clear the asteroid field, Eyeball stands up with her arms raised and proclaims "I'm unstoppable!" before a rock smashes her in the face. This is a likely reference to Boris from the James Bond movie Goldeneye: Just after The Cradle falls, Boris rises from the wreckage and makes the same pose, shouting his catchphrase "I am invincible!" just before being flash-frozen in a torrent of liquid nitrogen.
 * In "Future Boy Zoltron", Zoltron is most likely a reference to Zoltar, an antique arcade fortune teller machine, from Big, a 1988 American fantasy comedy film staring Tom Hanks
 * The song "Mr. Greg" was inspired by the song "Oh, Mr. Kane" from the classic 1941 movie Citizen Kane as well as the Muppets.
 * In the episode "Alternate Ending", a tune plays at 03:28 that bears a remarkable similarity to the theme tune from Dario Argento's 1977 Horror film Suspiria.
 * In the episode, "Adventures in Light Distortion", Steven and the Gems going into gravity warp and holding on tight in the Roaming Eye looks similar to the USS Enterprise entering the wormhole and the crew holding on tight from the 1979 sci-fi movie, Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
 * In "The Good Lars", a picture of an AT-AT Walker from Star Wars can be seen drawn on one of the walls of Lars' house.

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 "Lion 4: Alternate Ending", Greg tells Steven "I used to jam near a waterfall in a treehouse, until a 7th grader with a flute muscled me out" - this is likely a reference to Finn from Adventure Time.
 * 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.
 * In the episode "Super Watermelon Island", when Malachite unfused she looked almost identical to Party Pete in Regular Show when his clone exploded.
 * In the episode "Greg the Babysitter", When Greg shouts, "Rose! Get me off this crazy thing!" he is referencing a catchphrase from The Jetsons, a 1962 American animated sitcom. In both the original source and this episode's shoutout, a future father is stuck on an out-of-control contraption which outputs rotational force and pleads for his future wife to come to the rescue.
 * In the episode "Steven vs. Amethyst", a character resembling Ice Bear from the show We Bear Bears is seen in the Lonely Blade video game character selection screen.
 * In "Gem Hunt" Steven and Connie talking about people dressed up as monsters is a reference to the 1960s cartoon and character Scooby-Doo.
 * In Back to the Moon, as Lapis lets Leggy out of her water sphere she says, "Leggy, come on down", a reference to the signature line of the game show The Price Is Right.
 * The episode "Warp Tour" is a reference to the Star Trek: TNG Episode "Realm of Fear" in which Barclay thinks he sees something in the transporter stream, which no one believes.
 * The general appearance of Rose Quartz is reminiscent in several ways of the character Jem, from the 80's cartoon Jem . Both characters are noteworthy for their overblown clothing (Rose Quartz's voluminous gown, Jem's various stage costumes (including the opening sequence)), both of which are color-matched to their hair. Both have visually distinctive hair: Rose Quartz's curls and Jem's multilayered feathering.
 * In "I Am My Mom" Steven turning himself in to Aquamarine and Topaz and getting captured is a reference to the Star Trek: TNG Episode "The Best of Both Worlds" in which Captain Picard gets captured by the Borg.
 * In "Stuck Together" Steven and Lars getting captured by Aquamarine and Topaz and trapped in Homeworld is a reference to the Star Trek: DS9 Episode "In Purgatory's Shadow" in which Worf, Garak and the real Dr. Julian Bashir are trapped in the Internment Camp 371.
 * In "Lars' Head" Steven returning to Earth is a reference to the Star Trek: DS9 Episode "By Inferno's Light" in which Worf, Garak, Martok and the real Dr. Julian Bashir get rescued aboard the Runabout.
 * The character Soup shares similarities with Frisk from the RPG Undertale
 * In "Lion 4: Alternate Ending", a broken katana in Rose's Landfill resembles the one used by the titular character from Samurai Jack.

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.
 * The episode "Steven and the Stevens" includes several references to the history of rock & pop music in the 20th century:
 * Steven says that Steven and the Stevens were 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.
 * 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.
 * 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.
 * In the episode "When it Rains", Steven refers to the story of how his parents met as "The Ballad of Greg and Rose", a probable reference to the Beatles song The Ballad of John and Yoko.
 * MC Bear Bear can be seen in multiple episodes and is a reference to Kanye West's frequent use of bears on his album covers, and his signature shutter shades during the Graduation album tour.

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 are 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. Schyste" (also known as IRS), who was 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 bedbugs 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.
 * Sardonyx resembles a stage magician. She appears in a pillar of light that splits apart into curtains and then explodes into a cloud of dragonflies, 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 Amethyst's Room.
 * A Totem is seen in "Maximum Capacity" at Greg's garage.
 * When Steven is walking backward 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.
 * On Mask Island, the Watermelon Steven's have a statue parodying the "Christ the Redeemer" statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
 * Steven's idea of Ronaldo and Kiki pretending to be in love to end a family feud in Restaurant Wars references William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet"
 * The stage of "Hearts and Minds" was also a strategy used by the US government during the Vietnam war to try and convince Vietnam forces to withdraw from combat in Restaurant Wars.
 * Kofi's quote "When pizza's on a bagel, you can eat pizza any time!" is a reference to the slogan of the frozen pizza snack bagels, Bagel Bites.
 * The Hynes brand ketchup is a reference to the popular ketchup brand, "Heinz".
 * The title of Hit the Diamond references to "Hitting the diamond," a popular expression used to mean "play baseball". The bases are arranged in the shape of a diamond when viewed from overhead (as seen here), so the "diamond" is the field.
 * While Steven explains the rules of baseball to the Rubies, an instrumental version of the song "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is played. The song is performed at most professional baseball games and is closely associated with the game.
 * The Beta Kindergarten shown in Beta bears a strong resemblance to Antelope Canyon, located in Arizona, or the Grand Canyon.
 * Empire City's name is likely derived from New York's nickname of "The Empire State".
 * In Steven Floats, Sadie says "Alas, poor Steven, I knew him well," which is a reference to the Shakespeare play Hamlet.
 * Steven also says "Oh, Bother" which happens to be a catchphrase said by Winnie the Pooh.
 * Peridot's tablet in Too Short to Ride has several apps, with most of them serving as references to popular apps in the real world.
 * Tube Tube is a reference to the popular video uploading website "YouTube".
 * On one of Peridot's apps, she's sending a Cheep, which is referencing sending a Tweet on the popular social media site "Twitter".
 * On one of Peridot's apps, is the symbol of the popular game franchise "The Sims".
 * On one of Peridot's apps, is a symbol of a cat, which is a clear, recognizable reference to the game, "Neko Atsume".
 * An icon next to that of TubeTube resembles the icon of the blogging site "Tumblr", but with a purple background instead of blue.
 * The symbols for Facebook, Vine, Tinder and Instagram are also clearly visible.
 * The pop-up advertisement on Peridot's tablet for "cute roommates in [her] area" is a reference to infamous real-life versions of a more mature nature.
 * In Bubbled, Eyeball botches the popular saying "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me." She instead says "fool me once, shame on me; fool me four times... you already fooled me, and you can't fool me again." This is a reference to former U.S. President George W. Bush botching the same saying: "Fool me once, shame on... shame on you... fool me — you can't get fooled again."
 * In Back to the Moon, Eyeball refers to Jasper as the "Facet 9 Kindergarten Quartz that Could," a reference to the popular children's book, The Little Engine That Could.
 * In Storm in the Room, "Rose" holds a football for Steven to kick, then moves it as he flies up in the air and groans of agony. This is a reference to Charles Schultz' comic strip Peanuts.

Steven Universe Referenced in Other Media

 * 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 the thirty-sixth episode of Uncle Grandpa's first season, "Haunted RV", 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 the Grampie Awards short, Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl and Steven appear in the audience.
 * Steven Universe & Clarence - Look at this mess.png the Clarence episode, "Dollar Hunt", Steven's initials can be seen smeared on the refrigerator as Jeff enters the kitchen after Clarence and Sumo had made a mess making Mary's casserole.
 * A boy was dressed as Steven in the episode "Costume Crisis".
 * In the Style Check short, Uncle Grandpa briefly resembled Steven.
 * 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.


 * In the movie Zootopia, there is a restaurant called the Big Donut, possibly being a reference to the Big Donut.
 * In the interactive page 1608 (Hoverboard) of the webcomic xkcd, the gems can be seen on a Warp Pad, along with a coin acting as a bubble inside a starship. Darth Vader also is in the starship, explaining Steven being a half gem.
 * On April 12, 2016, Sony released a Little Big Planet costume pack which was based on the Crystal Gems.Little Big Planet Steven Universe Costume Pack.jpg
 * At one point in the game Danganronpa v3: Killing Harmony, several of the characters are trapped in the same room and Tenko Chabashira, one of the people in the room, asks Himiko Yumeno, also trapped, if her face hurts and that her saliva can heal injuries and offers to spit on her face, probably referencing Steven's healing saliva.