Back to the Moon

"I was there. I saw it with my own eye. I watched the leader of the crystal gems -- Rose Quartz -- shatter Pink Diamond!"

"Back to the Moon" is the 24th episode of the third season of Steven Universe and the 102nd episode overall.

Synopsis
Steven and the Gems return to the Moon Base.

Plot
Steven, Amethyst and Peridot return from the Beta Kindergarten and are surprised to see the 5 Rubies from Hit the Diamond back from their search for Jasper on Neptune, albeit imprisoned in Lapis Lazuli's water bubbles. One by one, Steven questions the rubies, asking each of them what they are doing back on Earth. Leggy doesn't know why they returned and stands to the side, Army responded with violence, Navy was about to inform the gems about why they returned, but gets nervous and retreats to Leggy, Eyeball outright refused to state their purpose back, but when Doc is questioned, they get their answer. The rubies returned to search Earth for Jasper after they realise they were tricked and were about to attack the Crystal Gems when Amethyst shapes shifts into Jasper. Amethyst proceeds to attempt to persuade the rubies to leave, and to leave "Jasper" on Earth under the guise of holding the Crystal Gems prisoner. The rubies comply, but still need to file a report to Yellow Diamond to tell her their mission was a success. The rubies recall that there's a Diamond Base on the Moon, where they can contact Yellow Diamond. Amethyst agrees and enter the Roaming Eye with the rubies and Garnet, Pearl and Steven. As they travel to the moon, Steven makes a comment on how much more roomy the Roaming Eye is on the inside. Amethyst is beginning to show strain from holding her form as Jasper for an extended time but assures the Crystal Gems that she is fine. When the gems arrive at the Moon Base, Eyeball makes a comment about Pink Diamond, who ran the Earth colonization plan, and was the owner of the Moon Base. Eyeball proceeds to elaborate for Amethyst that Pink Diamond's colony plans were going smoothly: many Quartz-type gems were being produced, efficient use of Earth's resources, and the operation in general was running smoothly. However, that all changed when the quartz soldier Rose Quartz both betrayed Pink Diamond, and shattered her. This information makes Steven extremely uncomfortable and defensive of his mother, stating that Rose would never shatter a gem. The gems appear to be appalled at Steven's reaction and give worried looks to each other before Doc interrupts, stating that the control panel was destroyed and had no choice but to go to Homeworld directly to report to Yellow Diamond. However, Amethyst once again persuades them to leave without Jasper and that she's confident the rubies can do it themselves. As the gems return to the first floor, the rubies begin departing. Relieved, Amethyst returns to her normal form and the Gems praise her for her efforts in maintaining Jasper's form for so long. However, this victory is short-lived as Doc exits the Roaming Eye and offers the gems a ride back to Earth when she sees that Amethyst shape-shifted into Jasper to deceive them. Furious, the Rubies realize they have been tricked and proceed fuse and attack the Gems. Steven opens the airlock and the vacuum of space sucks the Ruby fusion halfway out the door. As the Ruby fusion states that Steven "Can't get rid of them that easy", Garnet and Pearl fuse into Sardonyx and forces the Ruby fusion to defuse from damage, which in turn drags the rubies out into space. However, before Eyeball was forced out, she grabbed Steven and flung him out with her. The episode ends when Amethyst calls out to Steven as he begins drifting in space.

Major Characters

 * Steven
 * Garnet
 * Amethyst
 * Pearl
 * Doc
 * Eyeball
 * Jasper (depicted, mentioned)
 * Pink Diamond (pictured, mentioned)

Minor Characters

 * Lapis Lazuli
 * Peridot (non speaking, cameo)
 * Sardonyx (non speaking, cameo)
 * Army
 * Navy
 * Leggy
 * Blue Diamond (pictured)
 * Yellow Diamond (mentioned, pictured)
 * "White" Diamond (pictured)
 * Rose Quartz (mentioned)

Objects

 * Roaming Eye

Locations

 * The Barn
 * Moon Base
 * Earth

Music

 * TBA

Trivia

 * This episode's name was first revealed in the episode listing on the Cartoon Network website as "Back 2 the Moon."
 * It's revealed by Ruby (Eyeball) that Pink Diamond was shattered by Rose Quartz.
 * When Amethyst shapeshifts into Jasper, she tries to hold that form for an extended period of time, despite the fact that she warned Steven that doing so can cause lasting damage.

Cultural References

 * When Lapis was letting Leggy out of the water sphere she said, "Leggy, come on down." A reference to the signature line of the game show, The Price Is Right.
 * One of the Rubies is given the name "Doc", the name of the de facto dwarf leader from Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Continuity

 * This episode continues from where "Earthlings" left off.
 * The Crystal Gems previously visited the moon in "It Could've Been Great".
 * Sardonyx returns since her brief appearence in "Friend Ship".
 * The Homeworld Rubies Doc, Army, Navy, Eyeball, and Leggy appear again since their debut in "Hit The Diamond".

Errors

 * In the ending of "Earthlings", Steven comes back to the barn using his sandals, but, in this episode, we can see that they have disappeared.
 * When the Roaming Eye is entering the Moon Base, the Earth is visible from both the outside and inside viewpoint, this is impossible as the camera is pointed at two opposite directions.
 * While the Crystal Gems and the Homeworld Rubies are at the bottom of the Moon Base, Steven momentarily has six fingers while holding Garnet's hand.
 * When everyone looks up at Pink Diamond's Mural the stair case is missing.
 * When the Ruby fusion gets sucked out of the Moon Base, Leggy's gem is missing.

Back 2 the Moon, Part 3