“ |
Oh, good... You didn't need me at all... |
” |
—Amethyst |
"Crack the Whip" is the 18th episode of the third season of Steven Universe and the 96th episode overall.
Official Synopsis[]
Amethyst is left in charge of Steven and Connie, and there will be no training while she's around![2]
Plot[]
Pearl and Garnet are getting on the Warp Pad while Steven tries to talk to them. They interrupt him, telling Amethyst to "hold down the fort" as they are going back to the Great North to look for Jasper. Just then, Connie and Lion arrive, and Steven tells Pearl that she was supposed to be training with Connie that day. Pearl apologizes and says that they will do it next week when Jasper is not running loose, and Garnet says that that would be the best-case scenario. Then they warp out. Amethyst asks Connie what she wants to do with her day off from training.
Later, Steven and Connie practice fighting on the beach while Amethyst watches. Connie feels that her sword form is a little off, but Amethyst tells her to not worry about it. She suggests that Connie is thinking too much and should rely on her guts in a real fight. Amethyst asks them what their guts feel like and Steven admits to feeling hungry. They head over to the Big Donut for some food. Amethyst shapeshifts into Lars and takes a substantial number of donuts. Steven apologizes to Sadie for Amethyst's behavior, and along with Connie, pays for the food. They are later seen eating their donuts and drinking soda on a bench. Afterward, Steven, Connie, Amethyst, and Lion have fun around Beach City.
They run around the town, ride the Ferris Wheel, and listen to music. Eventually, Steven and Amethyst go into the water, and Connie soon joins them after a little coaxing. While Steven and Connie splash each other, the ground starts to shake and Biggs Jasper climbs out of the water onto the beach, directly in front of Sour Cream. After the Gem shakes the water off, Sour Cream runs away. The Gem lunges at Steven and Connie, but Amethyst then uses her whip to wrap it up and poof it. As Steven bubbles it and sends it to the Burning Room, he informs Amethyst that the Gem monster looked like the one he and Connie had fought in the Great North.
Then the Snow Monster rises from the ocean with Jasper on her back. Jasper then reveals that she is collecting Corrupted Gems to form an army and asks where the rest of the Crystal Gems are. Steven starts to tell her that the others are not here but is cut off by Amethyst. Amethyst tells Steven and Connie to fight the Corrupted Gem while she takes on Jasper. Jasper and Amethyst proceed to fight while Jasper insults Amethyst, including questioning why Rose Quartz kept her around, and wears her down by spin dashing and kicking her. Steven and Connie continue to fight the Gem, but Steven shows concern for Amethyst since he sees her being beaten. Eventually, Jasper's crash helmet slams Amethyst into the ground, poofing her.
Steven and Connie see this and go to get Amethyst back from Jasper. As they run toward her to attack, they fuse into Stevonnie and kick Jasper, causing her to drop Amethyst's gemstone. They land and catch the gemstone. Jasper then expresses her disgust that Steven, who she still calls Rose, has fused with a human. She jumps on top of the retreating Corrupted Gem and rushes at Stevonnie, who places down Amethyst's gemstone before jumping on top of Lion. The Gem Monster and Lion butt heads and Stevonnie rushes at Jasper, throwing their shield at her and hitting her in the head with Rose's Sword, which pushes Jasper down with enough force that she poofs the Corrupted Gem.
Amethyst reforms with a new outfit ready to fight, looking around for Jasper. Amethyst looks ahead to see Stevonnie in control of the situation. Jasper realizes she has been defeated and gets angry because a fusion once again beat her. After collecting the Snow Monster's gemstone, she walks back into the ocean, claiming she will be back. Stevonnie says "Hm, I guess she lives in the ocean now.", then turns around and unfuses, informing Amethyst that they defeated Jasper. Amethyst is surprised that they fused and were able to defeat Jasper. She then becomes depressed, realizing that they did not need her as Steven and Connie run back to the Beach House.
Features[]
Characters[]
- Steven Universe
- Connie Maheswaran
- Amethyst
- Pearl
- Garnet
- Rose Quartz (mentioned)
- Lion
- Jasper (antagonist)
- Lars Barriga (depicted)
- Sadie Miller
- Peedee Fryman (non-speaking cameo)
- Jenny Pizza (non-speaking cameo)
- Kiki Pizza (non-speaking cameo)
- Sour Cream (non-speaking cameo)
- Stevonnie
- Statue of Mayor Dewey
- Ocean Jasper
- Biggs Jasper
- Alexandrite (indirectly mentioned)
Objects[]
Locations[]
- Beach City
- The Great North (mentioned)
Music[]
Instrumental Songs[]
Trivia[]
- This episode's name was first revealed in the episode listing on the Cartoon Network website.[3]
- This episode marks the first time that Stevonnie engages in combat and fights using Rose's Sword and Shield, effectively combining Steven's and Connie's fighting styles.
- This is the second time Amethyst has gained a new outfit due to reforming (excluding flashbacks).
- Her tank top is now white with a jagged hem, her leggings are black, and her boots and the stars on her leggings are mauve.
- Connie would later wear the same blue tank-top and black shorts in "The New Crystal Gems".
Cultural References[]
- "Crack the Whip" is an idiom referring to the disciplining of one's subordinates; "to use your authority to make someone else behave better or work harder".
- "Crack the Whip" is also a simple outdoor children's game that involves physical coordination, and is usually played in small groups, either on grass or ice.
- When Amethyst is surfing at the beach, she shouts, "Bungacowa!" similar to, "Cowabunga!", a slang term commonly used by surfers when expressing happiness and excitement. She first said this in one of Steven's dreams in "Chille Tid". It would later be said by Sunstone in "Change Your Mind".
Continuity[]
- The monsters from the Great North reappear since their capture in "Gem Hunt".
- The Ferris Wheel in "Greg the Babysitter" reappears in this episode.
- This marks the second time Amethyst shouted, "Bungacowa!" The first time was in the episode, "Chille Tid".
- While restocking inventory at the Big Donut, Sadie was humming the jingle for Pepe's Burgers, which was first heard in "Mr. Greg".
- Amethyst once again does not bubble a Gem after poofing her, adding to the many consistent times when she has not been seen bubbling, until the episode "Earthlings" when she bubbles Jasper.
- This is the second episode in which Lion is seen fighting since the events in "Ocean Gem".
- Steven uses his floating power, which he first discovered he had in "Steven Floats", during his training session with Connie.
- Connie mentions freezing up during her and Steven's encounter with the Corrupted Gem during her first official Gem mission in "Gem Hunt".
- Jasper reveals she was hunting Corrupted Gems in "Gem Hunt" to force them to help her combat the Crystal Gems.
- Before retreating, Jasper yells "It's always fusion!", referencing the fact that this is the third time a fusion Gem overpowered her. The first time by Garnet in "Jail Break" and the second time by Alexandrite in "Super Watermelon Island".
- Jasper still thinks Steven is Rose Quartz since "The Return".
Errors[]
- Note: Time is displayed in [mm:ss]; [00:00] refers to the point after the title card is displayed and before the episode's start.
Plot[]
- [08:49] Amethyst's gem disappears from Stevonnie's hand when they block Jasper's crash helmet with their shield. It reappears in Stevonnie's hand a few moments later.
Design[]
- [07:20] The glow bracelets Lion wears all over his body disappear after they meet up with Jasper.
- [07:58] In the close-up shot where Jasper says, "Then she had low standards!", the stripes on her face are not present.
- [09:26] Steven and Connie's clothes should have fused along with their bodies but Stevonnie is only seen wearing Steven's clothes.
- [10:22] Steven and Connie are wearing their footwear despite typically being barefoot when Stevonnie unfuses.
Transcript
View the episode's transcript here.