Joy Ride

"We just wanted Steven to have some fun. I don't know what's going on with aliens trying to abduct him, and him being his own mom. But it sounds like he's got a lot on his mind."

"Joy Ride" is the 3rd episode in the second season of Steven Universe,and the 52nd episode overall.

Synopsis
The Cool Kids help Steven put some fun back into his life after what has happened to him in recent events.

Plot
Steven and the Crystal Gems are hard at work cleaning up the destroyed pieces of the Gem Warship. A shovel-wielding Steven digs at the sand and unearths a palm-sized fragment; he questions why it's necessary to find every last piece of the wreckage. Garnet states that having a wrecked Gem ship lying around is too dangerous, but doesn't elaborate further. Pearl also suggests starting a search for Peridot's escape pod as well.

Steven heads off alone to dig up more ship fragments, and becomes so invested in his work that he doesn't notice the Cool Kids (Jenny, Buck Dewey, and Sour Cream) calling for him. When they finally do get his attention, standing five feet away, Jenny quips with "Welcome back to Earth," which Steven initially takes literally. The Cool Kids invite Steven to hang out with them; they appreciate how his optimistic nature offsets their teenage angst. But Steven turns them down, saying he's got too much work to do for the day.

That night, as Steven lays in bed, sore from the day's work, Steven sees a slice of pizza hit his window, which he mistakes for 'pizza rain', until he sees Buck and Sour Cream standing below, throwing slices of pizza to get his attention. When Steven comes outside to ask what they're doing, Buck says he "only wanted to see Steven laughing in the pizza rain"; Steven wonders if Buck is making some obscure reference. The Cool Kids invite him along for a night on the town; Steven is bewildered by the concept of hanging out at night, but Buck argues that since he works all day, there's no better time to hang out than at night. Convinced, Steven decides to tag along.

As Steven rides in the front seat of Jenny's Car, the Cool Kids bring up their family issues one by one. Sour Cream wants to be a DJ, but his stepfather doesn't approve, insisting he take up the family business and be a fisherman. Buck's father, Mayor Dewey, is always telling him how to behave so as to protect his own public image. Jenny is annoyed by how her twin sister constantly gets on her case for her wild and reckless lifestyle, and pressures Jenny to be responsible like her. But the Cool Kids all get some much-needed perspective when Steven talks about his family problems; he's recently learned that the Crystal Gems are exiles being hunted down by the Homeworld Gems for their perceived treachery, he's going through an identity crisis about whether he's really his own person or just a reincarnation of Rose Quartz, and he doesn't feel that he can talk to the Crystal Gems about his problems because he thinks they blame him for Rose's death. The Cool Kids are impressed that he can shoulder all of these problems and still maintain his upbeat attitude.

Just then, Sour Cream notices a strange green glow. The group investigates the glow to find Peridot's crashed escape pod. There, Steven tries in vain to get them to leave it alone and return it to the Crystal Gems. Jenny convinces Steven to take selfies with her and the others. After a few pictures, Jenny tells Steven to get inside the pod for a picture, which he does. Inside, the screen encases him within and gives him manual control. Steven tells the other kids that they need to return it to the Crystal Gems but they convince him to stay inside and have fun with it. Convinced, Steven uses the pod to give the kids rides on top, drag race and do stunts. Before he tries to return it, Steven punches the ceiling which causes the pod to flood, shoot out a distress flare and shoot lasers at random. The Crystal Gems notice the flare and run to the field to stop what they believe is Peridot attacking the kids.

Garnet orders the gems to attack the pod with everything they have, almost killing Steven in the process. Before Garnet can land the final blow on the pod, Jenny stops her and explains that Steven is inside. Garnet, upon closer look, sees Steven's silhouette and breaks the pod open. The gems become worried and flustered over Steven and Garnet states that she's disappointed in him. The cool kids come to his aid by telling him that Steven has been through a lot and needed a break. The gems agree with them after realizing that they were too rough on Steven, Garnet ungrounds Steven from watching television as Steven hugs Garnet, and the gems and the kids take selfies together.

Characters

 * Steven
 * Garnet
 * Amethyst
 * Pearl
 * Peridot (mentioned)
 * Mr. Smiley (mentioned)
 * Yellowtail (mentioned)
 * Mayor Bill Dewey (mentioned)
 * Kiki (mentioned)
 * Rose Quartz (mentioned)

Cool Kids

 * Buck Dewey
 * Jenny
 * Sour Cream

Locations

 * Beach City
 * Crystal Temple
 * Beach House

Objects

 * Peridot's Escape Pod
 * Jenny's Car

Music

 * TBA

Production Notes

 * TBA

Trivia

 * Jenny reveals that she and Kiki are twins in this episode.
 * It is confirmed that Peridot had made it to Earth, but it's still unknown where she is. Although, it is further implied that she is somewhere in or near Beach City.
 * This is the first episode where Buck Dewey's eyes are seen.
 * Sour Cream talks about his step-dad, who seems to be Yellowtail.
 * This would make Sour Cream and Onion either step-brothers or half-brothers.
 * It was hinted by Rebecca Sugar prior to the episode that Sour Cream and Onion were somehow related.
 * Joy ride.jpgot, Lapis, and Amethyst can be seen in the background for the promo art along with Steven and the cool kids.
 * This is similar to the school theme of the promo art of "The Test", "Maximum Capacity", and "Open Book."
 * The "cool kids" take a picture with the Crystal Gems and seem to resemble each other.
 * Buck Dewey sharing a resemblance to Garnet.
 * Sour Cream sharing a resemblance to Pearl.
 * Jenny sharing a resemblance to Amethyst.
 * Steven reveals that he has become uncomfortable talking about his mom with the Crystal Gems because he feels that they blame him for her not being around any more due to her relinquishing her phsyical form in order to give birth to him.

Cultural References

 * The way Steven reacted to the escape pod as it was filled with a breathable liquid is very similar to a scene from Mission to Mars, a 2000 sci-fi film, as well as the character Shinji Ikari's reaction in the 1995 anime Neon Genesis Evangelion.
 * When Buck Dewey tells Steven he only wanted to see him "laughing in the pizza rain" it was a reference to the artist Prince's popular song, "Purple Rain".
 * Buck Dewey tells Steven "We were about to chill at the parking lot and freak out some squares", as in the 1960s a "square" referred to someone who clung to repressive, traditional, stereotypical, one-sided, or "in the box" ways of thinking. The term was used by hipsters in the 1940s, going along with the fact that the Cool Kids are very open to freedom, and thinking openly.
 * In the overhead view of Steven and Jenny's race, a crop circle can be seen of a pattern similar to the flare, Steven accidentally sets off, which crop circles are commonly associated in the real world with alien visitation and UFOs.

Continuity

 * Steven is seen digging up the debris of the Gem Warship from the events of "The Return" and "Jail Break".
 * Garnet said to Steven that they needed to do this so that no human could take it. But, what Garnet did not know is that at the end of "Full Disclosure", Ronaldo was seen dragging a piece of the warship with him.
 * Wreckage of the Gem Warship is seen in the title card, a pattern that started in "Full Disclosure".
 * Steven still keeps in touch with the "cool kids".
 * Steven's black eye, caused by Jasper in "The Return" and first seen in "Jail Break", has fully healed.
 * Peridot's escape pod from "Jail Break" was found, yet Peridot herself is nowhere to be seen.
 * Steven was un-grounded from his punishment from "Fusion Cuisine".
 * After being knocked about inside Peridot's escape pod, Steven accidentally knocks into a panel shaped like yellow diamond, which sends up a diamond shaped flare possibly signaling Peridot and Jasper's superior, Yellow Diamond, who was mentioned in "The Return".
 * Amethyst mentions Steven rescuing them and their subsequent escape from the Gem Warship during "Jail Break".
 * Steven is un-grounded for the second time, the first time being in "Ocean Gem".
 * Coincidentally, on both occasions he was un-grounded by Garnet.

Errors

 * In one scene, Buck Dewey's shirt can be seen through Steven's hair.
 * When Garnet knocks open the Escape Pod, Steven is shown to have no pupils.

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