Gem Hunt

"You weren't supposed to fight. You were supposed to call me, and you did. This was a total success."

"Gem Hunt" is the 17th episode of the third season of Steven Universe and the 95th episode overall.

Official Synopsis
Steven and Connie track a Gem monster through the wilderness but its tracks lead them to mystery.

Plot
Steven, Connie and Pearl warp to the Great North and in front of a large Wailing Stone. Steven takes lots of pictures with Connie's phone per Mr. and Mrs. Maheswaran's requests. The first one he took was of Pearl and Connie smiling, the second one like they were looking for a monster, the third like they made a joke, and the fifth one was where the joke wasn't that funny. The fifth request gets interrupted by Pearl saying that it's enough photography. Steven urges because it was Connie's first mission.

Connie thanks Pearl for accepting her to allow her to come along to help them out find a corrupted gem and takes it as an honor to work along Pearl. Pearl complements Connie about her impressive 'Sword fighting' which have exceeded beyond her expectations, she also states that with her careful supervision, she's confident Connie will be able to accomplish a simple Gem recovery mission. Connie thanks Pearl and promises she won't let her down while Steven takes a picture secretly and whispers "Connie's first mission," while rubbing his cheeks.

While walking on the snow, leaving their footprints, as they venture forward deeper into the ever white snow lands of the North, Pearl asks Connie to recap the mission. Connie replies that Garnet sensed some corrupted gem activity in the North, it was their job to locate it, destabilize it, and bubble it. Pearl tells Connie and Steven that their human body can't last in the extreme cold and to be extra careful. Connie replies that it's okay because she packed all that she needs to survive in the wilderness and Steven says he brought his board games in case they get bored.

As Connie asks how they would know whether a corrupted gem is nearby, a gigantic Aquamarine-colored Red-and-blue spotted Corrupted Gem appears, Pearl exclaims that this is how we find them. As the Corrupted Gem roars, steam evaporates from its ghastly mouth. Connie readies herself while Steven takes a quick snapshot. Pearl exclaims that Connie and Steven have to work together, Connie quickly takes out her sword and Steven summons his shield and ready themselves to a battle but when they were just about to face the beast, another brown rock-based Corrupted Gem that was the same size and shape as the first one appeared, both roar as Pearl summons her spear. The two Gem Mutants seem to be communicating with each other and suddenly charge in the direction of Pearl, Steven and Connie. Pearl quickly tells Steven to bubble them but when he did, the Gem mutants rather jumped above it and ran away onto two different directions rather than face them. Pearl starts doubting ever being 2 Gems at the location, Connie quickly tells Pearl that they should split up. Pearl tells Connie that she's her pupil and knows that her combat skills are excellent but states it being too risky because she has never been to a real fight before. Steven tells Pearl about the Gem Mutants they fought in the Hospital and quickly interrupts Pearl by taking out a Cookie Cat Walkie Talkie to help communicate with each other when necessary and Connie takes out a survival guide book that she read at least 20 times. Both look at Pearl, having to lost a battle of will, she decides to allow it but under the conditions that they would communicate with her the very moment they find the monster because she doesn't want her fighting it alone. She recaps what she says and makes sure Steven and Connie remember it and helps lighten the mood by asking "who's their favorite gem?" Steven gets immediately says Pearl upon which she thanks him. She tells them to be safe as she takes the left path.

Steven and Connie follow the tracks left by the Aquamarine-colored Corrupted Gem. Steven is impressed by Connie's wilderness survival skills, saying that they could be useful if Homeworld invades Earth, though Connie believes that human society could collapse on its own. Pearl interrupts the two with her Walkie Talkie, reminding them to eat if they are hungry. They eat protein bars before they continue on, discussing the nature of Corrupted Gems, and Steven admits that he doesn't know how corruption works. Steven cheers himself up by rolling down a hill, while Connie takes a piece of wood from a fallen tree to snowboard down. Pearl calls again; having had no luck finding any monsters, she suggests regrouping at the temple, but Connie insists that they can take care of things by themselves. Pearl lets them continue.

The two find tracks in a humanoid shape along with the Corrupted Gem's paw-shaped tracks. A blizzard comes, so Connie and Steven take shelter in a hollowed tree. While they drink tea brewed by Connie from pine needles for their Vitamin C, Connie and Steven discuss the humanoid tracks. Steven thinks they could be caused by the Corrupted Gem being half-corrupted, causing it to turn humanoid before turning back into a monster. They hear a roar and follow more tracks to the Aquamarine-colored Corrupted Gem.

The Corrupted Gem is scratching at the rock wall. Pearl calls on the Walkie Talkie, which attracts the Corrupted Gem's attention. Steven finds his hands slipping on the Walkie Talkie's switch, and he throws away the Walkie Talkie. He tries talking to the Gem, but the Gem growls, baring its teeth. Connie takes the Gem's growling as a sign of aggression and she draws her sword; the sword's glint causes the Gem to attack them and it manages to pop Steven's bubble, pushing them out of the Gem's reach. Connie throws a snowball at the Gem to bring its attention to her, but she hesitates to attack, saying that she wasn't prepared for this. Pearl calls again, unaware of Steven and Connie's situation, which causes Connie to regain her resolve. She slides past the Gem, recovers the Walkie Talkie and calls Pearl, informing her that they have found the Gem. Immediately after the call, Jasper charges into the Gem. While Steven rejoins Connie and raises his bubble in fear of Jasper, Jasper easily overpowers the Gem and pulls the gemstone from its body, poofing it with her bare hands. She looks at the Aquamarine gem, with the brown gem in her other hand. Connie realizes that the Gems were running from Jasper.

Pearl arrives, sees Jasper and raises her spear in defense. Jasper chuckles, and shows off the gemstones in her hands to Steven (she still calls him Rose). Steven takes a photo of Jasper and the Corrupted Gems, then Jasper walks away into the blizzard. Pearl is relieved to see Jasper leave, and she tells Connie she would not have brought her on the mission if she knew Jasper would be present. Connie considers her mission a failure, since she found herself unable to fight earlier. However, Pearl considers Connie's mission a total success, since Connie followed Pearl's instructions to call Pearl when they found the Gem. Steven takes a group selfie to celebrate their success. While Connie and Pearl begin walking back, Steven scrolls back to his photo of Jasper and the gems.

Characters

 * Steven
 * Pearl
 * Connie
 * Jasper
 * Garnet (mentioned)
 * Amethyst (mentioned)
 * Rose Quartz (mentioned)
 * Two Corrupted Gems
 * Centipeetle Mother (indirectly mentioned)

Objects

 * Warp Pad
 * Wailing Stone
 * Rose's Sword
 * Cheeseburger Backpack
 * Steven's Phone
 * Two Cookie Cat Walkie Talkies (debut)
 * How to Survive (debut)

Locations

 * The Great North (debut)
 * Gem Homeworld (mentioned)

Songs

 * "Do It for Her" (single verse)

Instrumental Songs

 * Jasper

Trivia

 * This episode's name was first revealed in the episode listing on the Cartoon Network website.
 * Connie has, in fact, been on a gem mission before. She went with the Gems to try and get the ocean back in "Ocean Gem".

Cultural References

 * Connie talking about being prepared for peak oil and the fall of civilization is similar to doomsday preppers.
 * Steven and Connie talking about people dressed up as monsters is a reference to the 1960's cartoon Scooby Doo.

Continuity

 * Pearl first sang "Do It for Her" in the episode "Sworn to the Sword", which is where she first started giving Connie sword fighting lessons.
 * Jasper makes her return since "Alone at Sea", she might have landed there after Lapis Lazuli used her powers to punch her.
 * Steven mentions Connie's experience fighting Cluster Gems from the episode "Nightmare Hospital".
 * Steven mentions healing the Centipeetle Mother to Connie and how Corrupted Gems used to be just like the other Gems before.

Videos
Gem Hunt Gem Hunt pt-br:Gem Hunt Gem Hunt