Kindergarten Kid

"Kindergarten Kid" is the 1st episode of the fourth season in Steven Universe and is the 104th episode overall.

Synopsis
A monster problem surfaces.

Plot
The Crystal Gems look around the Beta Kindergarten in search for imprisoned Corrupted Gems. Steven points one out, and Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl poof the one on their side. Pearl expresses how Jasper keeping the corrupted Gems in cages was disturbing to her, but Amethyst points out the similarity to what they are doing with the corrupted gems back at the Crystal Temple. Garnet explains Rose Quartz's method: a Gem is cared for in the stasis of a bubble, so they can't hurt the Crystal Gems or get hurt themselves. Steven and Peridot see a corrupted Gem which acts in a humorously stupid way to Peridot, who exclaims that she can't believe the corrupted Gem used to be a proper Gem.

Garnet call forward Pearl and Amethyst and tells them to get ready, for this particular corrupted Gem is "flighty." Steven asks Peridot if there are any corrupted Gems like this on Homeworld, to which Peridot responds that there was nothing of the sort. Garnet lets the corrupted Gem out and gets charged by said Gem as a result. Amethyst tries to reel it back with the whip but gets dragged off. Pearl shoots at the corrupted Gem to no success as it runs back to throw Amethyst at her. The corrupted Gem scales the wall up to higher ground and successfully retreats. Peridot laughs at how terrible the trio was at how it got outsmarted by a thing with bestial instincts. Pearl explains how it is harder than it looks, but Garnet suggest in no "play by play" since mistakes can happen, even when Garnet can "see the future."

Amethyst challenges Peridot to see if Peridot can do a better performance. Peridot accepts to help, referring to how she saved Steven and Amethyst from the wrath of Jasper. It will also be a great chance to show off her Ferrokinesis. Steven wants to go with Peridot on her hunt to help the corrupted Gem. After Steven catches up, Peridot asks if he came to bring her back. Steven does not, but warns Peridot that it usually takes all of the Crystal Gems to capture a corrupted Gem. Peridot states the problem: the Crystal Gems try to out-brute it. Because of this, Peridot's plan is to outsmart it and considers depending on Steven's experience with the corrupted Gems to form a duo the corrupted Gem has no chance against.

The corrupted Gem returns and runs over Steven and Peridot, who give chase afterward. Steven and Peridot stealthily sneak up on the corrupted Gem that is currently under an Injector. Peridot attempts to use her Ferrokinesis to make this injector fall onto the monster by removing its legs. This does not succeed, as the drill embedded in the sandstone can sustain its weight. Peridot is angry at this and kicks where the legs dropped. As this happens, the wall with the drill begins to crumble. Steven tells Peridot to move out of the way, and Peridot thanks Steven for telling her. She kicks the wall again, and a couple of boulders fall onto her. The corrupted Gem attempts to run away. Steven fights it back with his shield, and the injector falls onto Peridot, making Steven run over, sacrificing the chance to capture the corrupted Gem.

Peridot presents her second "Peri-plan": Peridot has cannibalized the injector to make a rudimentary cannon. The weapon will be used to take out the corrupted Gem from a distance. The corrupted Gem comes on the scene, and Peridot prepares to open fire. However, the cannon delays the shot and, after Peridot bangs the cannon, backfires and crashes Peridot into the wall behind her while being buried by boulders. The corrupted Gem walks up to Steven and then begins to attack them. Afterward, Peridot executes plan C and attempts to use simple physics to capture the corrupted Gem because "relying on the injectors introduced too many complicating variables." This plan involves a giant boulder, and Peridot's plan is to get the corrupted Gem under the boulder to drop it on the corrupted Gem's head. The grandest positive of the plan is that nothing can fall on the duo again. The corrupted Gem approaches behind Steven and Peridot and scares them off the edge and, as a bonus, taps the boulder to let it fall on them. It crushes Peridot and has her roll away. Steven gives chase, and the boulder goes through a loop-de-loop erosion to run over Steven. He shields himself but makes himself do a loop-de-loop and hit Peridot's boulder that does another loop-de-loop until it stops halfway and falls on Peridot once more.

At night, Steven is cooking a marshmallow near the fire. Peridot in the distance celebrates her devised plan, which is a construction of the injector with one side supported by a stack of its legs. Due to it lacking proper support, it crashes, to Peridot's displeasure. Peridot questions if she can master this, but Steven lets her know that even if her "Peri-plans" don't work, they were really funny, and the others Crystal Gem members will think so, too, when they go back. Peridot disagrees, for she strives for victory before going back or forward. She claims to be smarter than the average Peridot and questions how she can fail against a corrupted Gem who relies on bestial instincts, or in her words, a "barely functional, stupid, cloddy dumb-dumb." Steven tells Peridot that they aren't dumb but just think differently. Peridot, checking her Earth vocabulary, then considers herself a monster to prove a point, stating that she slams her face into hard objects and throws her tongue in the air for fun, and asks how that is not dumb in her eyes. It is concluded the corrupted Gem was lucky not to fall for Peridot's plans rather than what Steven interpreted it to be intelligence.

Steven starts to throw marshmallows at Peridot, which infuriates her. Steven answers by letting her know what it is like to be a monster: Pretend that a human is screaming at you in fear, to pretend that an Earth animal is chasing her away from her first hiding spot, to pretend an angry green Gem is trying to poof her, and to let her know this form of endless suffering is the monster's life now. This breaks Peridot into a fury and steals the bag of marshmallows to chew on it in a fit of anger, which proves Steven's point. Steven helps recollect Peridot's past experiences and connects the similarities to the corrupted Gem and their perspective on the situation with Steven and Peridot now, concluding it is frustration.

Now daytime, Peridot and Steven hide behind a rock and watch the corrupted Gem shooting its tongues into the air. Beginning plan D, Peridot walks up to the corrupted Gem and starts to "act like a monster." After some time, Peridot kicks the corrupted Gem which triggers it to attack. Steven runs over and tries to convince the corrupted Gem to be bubbled, but is inadvertently knocked away. Peridot continues to wrestle the corrupted Gem until they meet the edge of a cliff and fall off. After the fall, the corrupted Gem has finally poofed, and their Gem is in Peridot's hands as she climbs out of the hole the two made from the fall.

Garnet shows up to Steven's surprise until Garnet says she, Amethyst, and Pearl never left. Amethyst knew the hunt would be funny, and Garnet predicted with her future vision. Peridot showed them she could do it, but admits the task being harder than expected and respects the adversary worthy of her skill. She unintentionally bubbles the Gem and wonders what she should do with it, which Steven suggests tapping the top, sending it "home." The bubble appears inside the barn while Lapis Lazuli was reading a book called "Pretty Hairstylist". She notices, but does not care and goes back to reading.

Characters

 * Steven
 * Peridot
 * Amethyst
 * Garnet
 * Pearl
 * Unknown Corrupted Gem (Debut)
 * Jasper (Mentioned)
 * Lapis Lazuli (Non-Speaking cameo)

Objects

 * Injectors
 * Pretty Hairstylist

Locations

 * Beta Kindergarten
 * The Barn

Songs

 * TBA

Instrumental Songs

 * Little Peridot

Trivia

 * Peridot bubbles a gem for the first time in this episode.
 * It's also shown that Gem Bubbles are sent to wherever the Gem that made it considers to be home. For the Crystal Gems, that's the Crystal Temple. For Peridot, it's The Barn.
 * Peridot's bubbles are shown to be lime green.
 * Peridot reveals that her gem type is extremely resilient to physical trauma and hard to poof (however, she was poofed with ease by Garnet in Catch and Release, causing a possible continuity error).
 * She describes herself as smarter than an average Peridot.
 * Given that she also called herself the "new leader of the Crystal Gems", it is unclear how accurate that statement is.


 * This is the second episode to use the Beta Kindergarten as the title card, the first being "Earthlings."

Cultural References

 * This episode is most likely a parody of "Wile E. Coyote and The Road Runner". Similarities are the desert environment, Peridot and Steven trying to outsmart the corrupted Gem, but always fail to as the corrupted Gem runs away, and one scene where Peridot wrestles the corrupted Gem and, in the end, falls off a cliff with the corrupted Gem in a similar way the Coyote does.
 * The design of the corrupted gem and her behaviors also seem to be a reference to The Road Runner, with blue fur, long avian legs, and a habit of making guttural noises using her tongue (synonymous with the Road Runner's 'Meep Meep' catchphrase).
 * When Peridot says she's "smarter than your average Peridot", this could be a reference to "smarter than your average Bear" commonly referenced from "Yogi Bear"
 * The book Lapis Lazuli was reading, "Pretty Hairstylist", is most likely a reference to the Pretty Cure anime and manga series.

Continuity

 * This episode follows up on the plot of Jasper's corrupted gem army that she imprisoned in the Beta Kindergarten, which was left abandoned after Jasper's corruption and poofing.
 * The book Lapis was reading, "Pretty Hairstylist volume 3", was seen being read by Amethyst on two seperate occasions.

Errors

 * When Peridot is trapped under the rolling boulder, her mouth is closed while she screams.
 * When Peridot is about to squat down, her right shoulder strap and yellow diamond are her skin color for one frame.
 * When Steven walks towrds Peridot after she forms a bubble he walks on a deprestion made by Peridot and the Corrupted gem without falling down.

The Kindergarten Kid