Pink Diamond: Character Development in Reverse

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SPECIAL THANKS TO THE TALE OF ROSE QUARTZ DOC: docs.google.com/document/d/1Z...
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Pink Diamond, also known as Rose Quartz, is one of the most controversial characters in not just Steven Universe but animation as a whole! Deceiving both the Great Diamond Authority and the Crystal Gems with her double life, Pink's actions left a bad taste in many fans mouths as she did things like abandon Spinel, bubble Bismuth and swore Pearl to eternal secrecy all in an attempt to run away from her past mistakes and cover up the mess she made. Yet, it's undeniable that while Rose Quartz and Pink Diamond may be two sides of the same coin, the two personas represent two separate points of her journey, with a desire to grow into something better than the person she was made to be. A common sentiment amongst fans is that people are harsh on Pink because we saw her character development in reverse, so today I wanna deep dive into Pink's arc and highlight her true intentions and struggles!
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Hosted, Written and Co-edited by AwestruckVox
Co-edited by Joshua Criger
0:00 - Intro
2:38 - Plugs
3:50 - Born into Toxicity
9:28 - Manscaped
12:19 - Just As Important As You
16:18 - Pink Pearl
18:26 - Spinel & Pearl
24:58 - The Birth of Rose Quartz
27:48 - The Zoo
29:46 - Declaration of War
31:55 - Pearl
34:51 - Bubbling Bismuth
37:29 - Staged Shattering
40:56 - Lion
43:19 - Meeting Greg
This video, including all pictures and clips used is a critique and is covered under "fair use" under section 107 of the US Copyright Act 1976. If you would like to see the shows and episodes in full. Purchase them online or the DVD sets by their respective owners.

[@RoundtableVids]

Get 20% OFF + Free International Shipping with promo code “ROUNDTABLE” at manscaped.com #TCSociety Visit manscaped.com/tcs to learn more about how to check yourself, or make a donation to @tcsociety today to save lives! He can add a picture of the product with it. #ManscapedPartner

[@thefantasticretroreviewer3941]

Groovy video

[@Ueslx.600]

Hi

[@thefantasticretroreviewer3941]

@@Ueslx.600 Hey

[@godzilla7595]

Please🙏 do a part 2 of the Steven universe fusion✍️ we never get like spinel & pink pearl🩷💔 or lapis & blue D💧💎 or jasper & yellow D⚡️💎 we would love😍🤩 to see them👋🫶✌️

[@thefantasticretroreviewer3941]

@@godzilla7595 This made your day better

[@Jonathan_Collins]

I always saw Pink Diamond has a child and Rose has an adult. Has how I see it, this reveal makes sense. Pink Diamond probably was always away from the world and there for had a spoiled life. When she had Earth she had the chance to grow up. That's what I see it.

[@RumiNyx]

I think you mean as, not has 😊 ( not trying to be mean, sometimes i use voice to text and it messes up like that)

[@Joekerz666]

​@@RumiNyxlegitimately no reason to correct someone over such a small word when people can still understand the message

[@Victoria-_]

Me too!

[@SilverScribe85]

Same

[@changingpeopleslivesmoon2993]

Same

[@thatredactedguy]

I love the take that Pink Diamond’s mindset was “nothing I do matters because I don’t matter”

[@zyrkish]

it's sad to see that mindset especially since she was raised around the obsessive idea that she was special but was also very flawed and treated as so, also shows how much the diamonds and everything they did affected her

[@veronicapiccinini7956]

Of course she would think that way about herself. The Diamonds never gave her some recognition, not even a consolation prize. And if Pink was a “glorified mascot”, then Steven is quite the extreme opposite, a kid hero, which now as I grow older, I realized that he’s basically a “glorified child soldier” who grew up too fast, never got the chance to have a normal life, simply because he’s an demigod whether he likes it or not, always ready to help others because they are too emotionally stunted to do things by themselves.

[@nobody-xh6ii]

What's painful about that mindset is that once someone has been pushed to that point it's sssooo hard to break out of it. No matter how many times they are told 'you matter' anything can set that person backwards into once again believing and cementing the fact they believe they do not matter. It's a painful, vicious cycle that cannot be undone. It can be pushed at bay for a while but once things start to 'trigger' that mindset it's rearing it's ugly head right back into the spotlight. In turn, these people go to multiple extremes regardless of what happens. They either want to prove their worth by doing things out of desperation or deliberately destroying everything they built with others out of self destructive behavior.

[@hayleyyeager8008]

Steven needed to realize that he has been listening to his mother’s whole story in reverse. She was abused, she lashed out and hurt her pearl and abandoned Spinel, she faked her death, and she secretly imprisoned Bismuth. But she has done some good too. She created the crystal gems, accepted gems like Amethyst and Steven, created a healing fountain, accepted humans like Greg, she abandoned her old personality to become someone better. Maybe she wanted Steven to take her place because he was the only one who can make peace with gems and humans more than she ever could. I wish Steven and Pink Diamond (not a cloud form of her) could talk to each other and give Steven closure about his mother.

[@tylerdw100]

The thing about Steven's mother is that while yes was flawed and make mistakes but also make brought a lot of bunch of pain to everyone on both sides and run away from her problems and never own up to them. If she wanted Steven to take her place to bring peace could have been fine but it obvious that plans have holes and Steven didn't like that.Her character arc was an redemption story; Redemption and Forgiveness are not the same thing and it up to different perspective rather if that person deserve forgiveness and Steven's mother is probably happy if peoples dont forgive her and that include her son but to understand her. If anything, I can compare Steven's mother to Tony Stark and Steven to MCU Peter Parker; Yes, we are sad Tony gone but he could have made things worse if he survived just like Steven's mother. At least, That my opinion.

[@hayleyyeager8008]

@@tylerdw100 She was always bare footed

[@kaykay8855]

He does realize but unfortunately that doesn’t negate the trauma that she was the cause of.

[@hayleyyeager8008]

@@kaykay8855 True. Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl were also the cause of some of his trauma as well.

[@kaykay8855]

@@hayleyyeager8008 true

[@GameJam230]

Oh my God I just realized something I don't think I ever did before. The reason why Pearl doesn't like shape-shifting. It's because of her experience having been made to transform into Rose Quartz so that she could "shatter" Pink Diamond. She was told to take those secrets to her grave, and transformation was just a constant reminder of it. But in Future, we see she got over it and was able to play Steven Tag.

[@SolarBlyze]

It's also why she has an aversion to eating. She saw Pink 'eat' the gem shards that would convince others of her shattering. That action is a reminder of what they did.

[@gabidoo9304]

@@SolarBlyzeI never caught this part! I love that I can still learn about this show more

[@holleighgram]

Bro how many tracks of audio are going on here at 30:56? There the v/o, the kingdom hearts music, some weird beat, and then audio from the show. Great work on your video essays and analysis as always.

[@GameJam230]

@@holleighgram something tells me you meant to post that as a separate comment in the video, not a reply to my comment lol

[@plushdragonteddy]

@@SolarBlyze AAA oh my god that's so tragic

[@vilmublues752]

I remember the creators stated somewhere that Pink did _not_ "Diamond command" Spinel: the only reason Spinel stood still and waited is because she believed in Pink so much, which made her feel all the more humiliated and heart-broken because she could have moved at any point during all those years if she had just chosen to. It's important part of Spinel's characterization that she has free will (like how Rebecca also emphasizes that Spinel chose to do her villainous acts while perfectly aware that her victims were innocent and she had no real moral justification for her own actions.) Another thing I'd like to point out is the fact that Amethyst considered Rose a mother figure according to Rebecca (they had even thought about making an episode about them, but sadly it never happened.) And Rose did not tell Amethyst about any of the Homeworld caste system and ideals because she wanted Amethyst to live completely free of it (which she could do as a rare Gem who did not have any preprogrammed information as a result of her defect.) I think the episode title "Your Mother and Mine" implies that Garnet also considered Rose like a mother figure, but for Amethyst she was like explicitly a one.

[@anubis7457]

Man, tbf to Rose it must suck when all you want is to be friends with someone but while they like you, they only see you as a parental figure or leader. It’s probably why she liked humans so much…

[@cheebuu3360]

This comment actually made me realize why Amythest is such a chill and "lazy" character who's first priorities are enjoying herself. All other gems are born with a job and purpose, but not only did she come out defected, but she was never taught those ideals. Like wow I liked her before but that just really clicked for me!

[@mittanym3097]

💯 I totally see that in both Amethyst and Garnet. I mean, Garnet was kinda "born" right in front of Rose

[@vilmublues752]

@@mittanym3097 Yup, for similar reasons, Garnet was unusually scared of Blue Diamond. Because she basically threatened to kill her when she was just "born."

[@empath3577]

She never came back for Spinel, she caused a meaningless civil war with her kind leading both sides, allowed a human zoo to be built under her name, imprisoned bismuth and never told anyone, ordered Pearl to never speak of her actions to anyone, faked her death, trapped Lapis in a mirror, got all the gems on earth corrupted by the diamonds when they heard of her shattering, kept secrets from the remaining crystal gems and left them without telling them the truth. I can't say if Pink Diamond knew about the cluster but if she did, I can't see her as a misunderstood person. I see her as a being that rushed for power and was too short sighted.

[@SMM5]

A head canon I have is that Pink Pearl wasn’t only under white’s control because Pink damaged her, but because she used that opportunity to stand up for Pink and express her own frustrations with how they treat Pink, to which White responds the way she does with anyone who says something that contradicts her perfection complex

[@milagroshernandez9351]

I feel like white puppeting her around was used to torment pink, to make her feel bad that a gem was so damaged by her that white had to take over and 'make everything better' the diamond dynasty was kind of fucked

[@kizz8262]

same! Since the pearls seem to take a little of their diamond's personality and maybe even feelings and goals.

[@synbeast0241]

I’d put it as far as (thinking while typing), Pink Pearl did tht & both instances & both diamonds responded poorly/appropriately for their character. Pink is inherently off color & exists in/as White: White’s polar opposite, which for an infinite being makes sense bc balance, it’s just a loop/will always be there, it’s similar between Yellow & Blue as they’re equals; which, now tht I say tht is probably just how White & Pink fell in line, but also, White blushes pink & calls herself off color, especially whn she loses control/“power”/is wrng. As for Pink, she carried the full weight of being White’s one personal flaw, the diamonds’ Spinel, & both being traumatized & pacified by the gems constantly tht she’s supposed to be just like, atop her internalizing the bad combo as the healer of the bunch. Pink Pearl standing up to Pink, especially pre passive aggressive Pink tht left Spinel, & White who probably found Pink less amusing & just generally dealt with her less, got some of the worst snapshots of their character development/affect on others. White collecting Pink Pearl was probably to save face & stop her from both thinking & acting on such “wrng” behavior, but it’s possible b4 Pink was a leaver she could’ve just demanded she go away/nvr “see” her again out of rage/self loathing & Pink Pearl had to bc she was her pearl. I wonder if the eye itself is significant to the trauma, maybe she saw something.

[@vegetassaiyanqueen25]

Whenever i think of Rose and Steven i think of the quote "Just because your mother didnt break ALL the generational curses doesnt mean she didnt break any" I know with my own mother i sometimes get upset at how she reacts or handles things but she honestly did so amazingly great especially in comparison to her own mother ...and my sister is doing even better with her own kids

[@YikYakTikTak]

It always came across to me, that Pink thought the other Diamonds would go to her garden and take back Spinel. She already was under the perception that no one would/could listen to her because the others had the real control, so she thought they would go and reclaim Spinel after she was gone. It doesn’t make what she did right, but I don’t think she ever would have thought that Spinel would sit in the garden and basically languish for 1000’s of years

[@clarisacalderon9555]

true...i mean its not like she had planned to abandon spinel forever...diamonds and gems in generalhave a odd concept of time regardless and she seemed to want to handle the colony and do a good job..prove o herslef and the other diamonds and spinel was potentially going to be in the way when she was trying to be more responsible...and then of course thr realizatons happened and the rebellion and the war...by that point she was so busy that it made sense that rose might not have gne back to get her..and its not like she had a choice to at all with all the cystal pads being broken. it would make sense to assume someone migt go to chekc it out eventually and at least spinel was safe.

[@BlackMagicRose3]

Honestly I always thought it was kinda a plot hole that they didn’t get Spinel. They kept the human zoo going and didn’t destroy the rosé quarts but didn’t go where pink spent the majority of her time?

[@peepawfart]

@@BlackMagicRose3 Yeah thats kind of weird because they *knew* the garden existed. They *knew* spinel existed. Blue would visit Earth again and again to grieve for Pink.... but just allowed the one place she spent most to rot and waste away???

[@tommyboyio1363]

​@@BlackMagicRose3 My only thought is they wanted to "Preserve the garden in an untouched state" and spinel happened to get shafted cause that.

[@TheJadedJames]

Pink didn’t plan to abandon Spinel, she just forgot about her. Pink wasn’t “evil” but she was a narcissist

[@alliesangalli1757]

I think the reverse character development of Rose does a really good job at humanizing her while not excusing her actions. We see the heights she was able to reach, so it hurts to see the lows she reached too. It kinda puts the audience in the same position as the characters betrayed by her.

[@rantarnation4566]

Haha. Humanize.

[@aleksabanjevic8316]

If we saw her character development from the front, she'd be overhyped, the way she was in the show, at least I think so

[@tinkrtailr]

It almost feels like the Diamonds were technically born equal, but due to Pink's short stature, the others treated her like a child; which, in turn, caused Pink to act like a child. She was probably stuck in a very precarious place: an adult who never got to be one. Once she got to Earth, she finally got to be herself and explore what being an adult meant to her. And as Earth was the first place she could be herself, she became desperate to protect it and everything on it. It's almost like freeing Earth from Diamond control was a parallel to Pink ridding herself of the other Diamonds.

[@PerseusToons]

It definitely feels like "Love Like You" was sung from Pink Diamond's perspective

[@Planag7]

It quite literally was.

[@peachykeen53]

💯

[@gabidoo9304]

Woah I’ve never thought of it like that, you mean like pink diamond singing about Steven? I’ve always just imagined it like ruby and sapphires love

[@Dill_pickle707]

I've always imagined it was rose singing about greg lol

[@mariasol214]

For me, it always felt like it was Rose/Pink singing about Steven

[@bobbinpink]

I've always thought bringing lion back to life must've been an accident. just like steven and lars, she didn't know she could bring organic beings back to life, so when lion died she cried over his death and accidentally brought him back. she never did it before and never did it again after lion, because that breaks the natural cycle of life she's grown to love on earth. it's not natural to never die and I think she'd be against resurrecting organic beings. mortality and the ability to change and grow up was something she really admired in organic beings in general, especially humans.

[@Banana-xk1gs]

thats an amazing interpretation!!

[@peeblekitty5780]

and i'm sure that's a part of why she wanted to give herself up and have/become steven (a mortal being that's a _part_ of the world instead of just an immortal alien observer)

[@UnicornOfRainbows]

My thought process on Rose bubbling Bismuth was that she was afraid other gems would agree with Bismuth if she told them the truth. If she told them about the Breaking Point, they might have wanted to use it, and Rose didn't want any more gems to be shattered. And sure, I think lots of gems would have backed up Rose and agreed to not using it, but she didn't know that. She didn't think people would support her over Bismuth because she thought Bismuth was incredible and knew she very well-loved by the Crystal Gems. And as you said, she was the one who painted herself as a villain. She knew the stories she told made the The Crystal Gems hate the Diamonds. She had every reason to believe they might want to take more drastic measures for the sake of their freedom.

[@shadenox8164]

Bismuth also seemed to want to use the breaking point on more than just the Diamonds as well to be fair. The way she talked about it with Steven at least it was pretty clear she thought it would be used against Homeworld gems in general, she never specified just the Diamonds.

[@lorettabes4553]

@@shadenox8164 Bismuth definitely seemed to get really dark. I can see why Rose might've thought: I cannot change her mindset. During a time of war. But letting others believe she died was oof

[@shadenox8164]

@@lorettabes4553 Yeah, it feels more like she panicked rather than actually thought this one through.

[@sanobunz]

i remember hearing that she was attacked and defended herself somewhere and the bubbling was a last ditch effort to make sure she didn't tell anyone. if bismuth kept it a secret that spread or expressed it publicly, she probably would have confronted her directly and remind her of the point of the crystal gems and earth's independence

[@mundoatena1674]

Also, Bismuth was at a mentality of shattering anyone who disagreed with her plan, she was dangerous to the rebellion itself

[@veronicapiccinini7956]

You know what? I like this “Redemption in reverse”. It proves that putting people on a pedestal is wrong, unhealthy and unfair. Everyone has flaws, which makes people unique to each other. Do you know why red diamonds are the rarest of the bunch? Because they have many “impurities” or “flaws”. Same concept applies to humans.

[@ultima1594]

Pink/Rose is without a doubt my favorite character in Steven Universe. I feel like she gets overly blamed for the trauma Steven goes through. None of them knew about the cluster, none of them the diamonds would come back. 90% of Steven’s trauma is from the Crystal Gems putting him through dangerous situations, while Rose said she just wanted him to be his own person and a human being. Not saying that to bash the gems, but that is literally what happened. Also, she never realized that there were flaws in her logic and relationships, because no one ever stopped her. Which isn’t her fault. You can’t get mad at someone for not knowing something. Alas, social media has destroyed the concept of nuance.

[@zyrkish]

the part about the gems being steven's main cause of trauma made me realize and rethink how much the characters actually successfully deflected their flaws and mistakes onto Pink because she's apparently the "start of it all" thats so goddamn sad n outrageous wtf

[@nyczdarkalex]

"90% of Steven's trauma is from the Crystal Gems putting him through dangerous situations, while Rose said she just wanted him to be his own person and a human being." I one hundred percent agree with this. I get that Rose made decisions that would come back to haunt Steven, but I also genuinely feel that the Crystal Gems raising Steven while stuck in their own grief from Rose giving up her form for Steven and trauma from the war really screwed up Steven's development as a human being. Pink/Rose is also one of my favorite characters because she's an imperfect hero and I relate to her as someone who had anger issues as a child who learned to mostly grow out of them. I get why people dislike her, but to blame her for everything that Steven goes through is just bad faith criticism. The Gems expected way too much from Steven at a young age and also treated him terribly at times. I think Amethyst is the closest to telling Steven that he shouldn't have to solve everyone's problems and it's easily one of the most important points of the show because it emphasizes that Steven really had this monumental legacy on his shoulders when he was literally a child.

[@ultima1594]

@@nyczdarkalex exactly. She never wanted him to follow her legacy.

[@aff77141]

@@nyczdarkalex And even worse, Amethyst is the youngest of the other gems meaning she's had less time to get used to humans and especially the developement of human children. They all had ages to understand humans but chose not to, only really caring about earth as the place they happened to live and because Rose cared, even in a presumably 10(or was he 12? half gem age weirdness or what have you) year span before allowing him to get involved in fights

[@shadenox8164]

@@aff77141 Actually argurably because of how young she was and the fact she never had any life before Earth, Amethyst was in the best position to understand humans the most. Garnet and Pearl had to unlearn things they had been conditioned to see and believe, Amethyst had no such expectations placed on her at any point which made it easy for her to adapt to change. But that was also kind of detrimental to her developing a sense of self too. She kinda had the opposite upbringing to Rose.

[@kubat4925]

Regarding Lapis, I think Crystal Gems just assumed that she may be corrupted too, or in a state where she's not actually self-aware. The gems were actually terrified to learn that Lapis in fact can respond to the outside world without given command, that she actually was aware of her surroundings. And as they still didn't know if Lapis wasn't some monster or not, they'd rather bubble her. Finding out a Prime Lapis Lazuli was in that mirror all along was a shocker. Pearl didn't even think that the gem inside that mirror could be that powerful.

[@yourhorseyepona7309]

U may be right. Part of the reason that episode scared me is cuz it's seems out of character for the Crystal Gems to leave Lapis in the mirror like that. That episode still scares me cuz even if accidental, its still tragic for Lapis.

[@kubat4925]

@@yourhorseyepona7309 Crystal Gems were scared too dw.

[@thebigmystery7841]

I think this is proven even further by the fact that it wasn't JUST crystal gems that got left to become corrupted. Just like Nephrite, who tried to evacuate but couldn't. Think of the panic the gems had when they did not know if the gem in that in the mirror was a crystal gem or not. The same fear they had when they saw peridot. They have no idea if this is someone who would help or if they would go and tell all of homeworld that the Earth still had gems on it that could fight back. While its sad she was trapped and tragic that she was left...they really didnt have a clue until they messed with the gem itself, as lapis wasn't responding to their questions either. It was just a tragic happenstance unfortunately.

[@padparadscha9921]

whats even more interesting to me is that pearl is in her 80s outfit, so she was only found recently (relative to gem time)

[@izzymcgee2527]

I think the best takeaway one can have from Pink Diamond is to learn from her mistakes and not put her on a pedestal. At least that's what I'd like the show to convey if it ever returns. We already got some of that when Steven said "Pink Diamond ran from you, Rose Quartz tried to fight you. Let me try to help you."

[@Victoria-_]

Exactly!!

[@jennifervan75]

When did he say that?

[@izzymcgee2527]

@@jennifervan75 In Change Your Mind in the Homeworld arc

[@JojoZXA]

Honestly, I see myself reflected in Pink. I suffer from serious mental illness (bipolar type 2 and c-ptsd), and as a result have carried a stigma that I'm a waste of resources and overall useless because of my inability to hold a job. To my self image, I was nothing more than a broken product. Not a person. A failure from birth. Growing up, my family never quite understood my ailment and gave up on me. I was allowed to rot and fester in my room without the love and care that was *desperately* needed, and as a result I would lash out. In that lashing out, I did things that cannot and should not be forgiven. All that I saw was my pain, and never how it affected anyone else. Now at 29, I'm in a much better place and try earnestly to be the person I needed as a kid. Rose/ Pink, for all her flaws, tried to change. Tried to do better. But without support failed, and spiraled into her literal self destruction. Like you said, she is a cautionary tale, and one that applies to a surprising amount of people.

[@mountainhorse9419]

Beautifully put, and good luck on your continued journey. It sounds like you're doing a great job confronting, changing, and growing.

[@Moonsong227]

A pink diamond analysis video in 2024? Stars yes!

[@changingpeopleslivesmoon2993]

Let’s gooooo

[@lorettabes4553]

woohoo!

[@BluffsCastle]

That one video showing Pink Diamond's development in order >>>>

[@lorettabes4553]

Omg yes

[@warpedmushie]

from a diamond to a rose

[@Truck-kun11]

A great example of how people tend to focus purely on the negatives when they are shown last. It's no wonder that when someone asks "The good news or the bad news?" everyone always wants to hear the bad ones first

[@ArcDragoon]

Though that tends to be the truth. The problem here is that Rose/Pink Diamond's negatives were awful. It is like if you found out your grandfather was a Nazi commander. Rose, when they did slowly reveal her irresponsibleness backwards, it was fine. It was perfectly reasonable to have it written that Rose locked up and lied to the Crystal Gems about Bismuth. That is a character trait that you can walk backwards from. But once you knew that Rose was Pink Diamond, there is no walking backwards. It doesn't matter if Pink Diamond felt remorse when they got to Earth, because it is heavily implied that Gemworld had been doing this for ages on other planets. The Gems were space Nazis long before Pink Diamond made the decision to defend Earth. And this is what really tripped up Rose's backwards "redemption."

[@Truck-kun11]

@@ArcDragoon However, they were very clear in showing that she never had any real participation and that she was practically a mascot while the other Diamonds were the real Space Nazis.

[@ArcDragoon]

@@Truck-kun11 Her whole role was to celebrate every time the Diamonds did something. Pink Diamond threw celebrations for every time they conquered a planet. And this went on for tens if not hundreds or more thousands of years. The Gem Empire was not in its infancy. If Pink Diamond was born at the start of the Earth invasion, and this was why she didn't know better, that would be fine. But that is not what happened. Pink was there for a long time. An ignorant character can only exist for so long, before it becomes intentional.

[@AdderMoray]

I don't exactly subscribe to a character fighting a war and being stuck between the choice of "do something that is probably under considered and will hurt a lot of people" or "engage in atrocities" consistently choosing the option that isn't the atrocities being a particularly bad person. Rose was a spoiled princess who got some perspective, fumbled her way through an ill thought out war to save billions of lives and free her own people, making a bunch of hard calls that would weigh on her for the rest of her life while simultaneously avoiding the most morally reprehensible options on the table, then made it out of the war with 3 other people and extreme guilt in both classic and surviors flavors She was the realistic version of a hero. Heroes don't make it out of wars with clean hands, they make it out with cleaner hands than the ones they fought against. And the self-aware ones can't forgive themselves for it.

[@daralic2255]

“Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.” Explains most of Roses actions.

[@lordnummy]

I have always looked at Pink Diamond as a leader with no aid. She had to go against everything she knew and loved. The whole idea of "learning" about organic creatures was something she got punished for.

[@yvaincallipso84]

I definitely saw the Diamonds seeing Pink as an annoying little sister. They love and cherish her, want her to be safe and happy, but they don't actually consider that she basically IS their equal.

[@kamy2425]

Another reason to keep Lion a secret could also be that she didn't want this specific power to revive to be known. Cause if Pearl put the pieces together of all the super powers that Rose have, rebirth/immortality seem to be a very exclusive Diamond-level power. If anything, the knowing of that power, would make more and more questions! The reveal would make too MUCH change of her peaceful lifestyle that they currently have. The desert would serve as her own escapism away from the Gems, and Lion was part of that place. So she would keep it and that power a secret.

[@TheLastSane1]

Pearl already knew. However, yeah reviving people might be a bit too much for Garnet to ignore.

[@yourhorseyepona7309]

​@@TheLastSane1my thoughts exactly. Pearl knows shes Pink Diamond, but Garnet, Bismuth, Amythest? They def gonna ask more questions.

[@shadenox8164]

@@yourhorseyepona7309 But they didn't. They just accepted it.

[@crazy13alex]

​​​@@shadenox8164No offense, but @yourhorse was clearly talking about back in the day, during the war. Pink was long gone by the time they learned. Pearl answered what she *knew* and what was *relevant.* They accepted it, because what else could they do? Rose isn't around to answer for anything.

[@spoookley]

ok thank you for finally addressing this! i’ve been saying the literal title of this video for years! she was the youngest of the four, raised with the ideals of power, manipulation, & perfection, but she was the (pink) sheep in the family. the one who’s immature, empathetic, & powerless to break the eternal cycle by herself. she begged to be accepted as another diamond, because that’s the only thing she knows. she begged for her own colony, & immediately upon doing her own research of the life on earth fell in love. time & time again. she had a strong connection with pearl yes, but after watching humanity develop, she would’ve actually seen the affects of enslavement on people & realized that pearl is entirely programmed to be in love with her. that’s why she choose greg. because rose was everything he truly wanted in a person, not because some fascist rock told him to be in love with her, but because he really truly felt it. she recognized that her part in the system is empathy, & she used it the right way in the end. she could’ve stayed with pearl on home world for all eternity, but unconditional love becomes toxic, as seen as how she ended up treating volleyball. volleyball would’ve still loved her even after the physical abuse she went through because pearls are designed to be disposable servants that obey your every command. she may not have even physically abused her & instead gave her a command that contradicted her protocols, like if she asked for her to no longer love her diamond. that much of a contradiction could very well have unintended consequences.

[@aff77141]

Now that you mention it, her hair designs are both very sheep-y, and with white diamond, plus blue and yellow sort of being opposites - i wouldn't be surprised if her original concepts were to be the literal black sheep of the 4. Black Diamond. But it probably didn't suit the pastels very well. Though now I'm itching for a black diamond design...

[@Dracomata]

I think the Spinel insident was a mix mash of Pink diamond's percieved self and her reality. Pink diamond probably didn't think Spinel would actually stand still for thousands of years, figuring she would get bored and go do something else, maybe leave the garden and go be someone else's friend. She probably thought that now that she was gone, Spinel would just fuck off and do whatever she does when Pink is not around. But because she sees herself so lowly and worthless, she didn't realize that Spinel, out of admiration and adoration... would actually just... stand there for that long just because Pink told her to.

[@CutMan567]

I truly believe Rose Quartz is one of the best character ever written on television. In a series with so many deliciously complex and flawed people, she is the crowning achievement and I have secondhand pride for Rebecca and her team for pulling it all off. I don't need to repeat what was said in this video, but she really represents that raw human emotion of resentment and Id. At herself and her life and how there's always an opposite reaction when you feel something that strongly

[@SMM5]

If there’s one take away to get from Pink Diamond, it’s that people, and by proxy their legacies, are always more complicated than what meets the eye People say she’s a horrible person for what she did to Spinel and co, or that she’s a great person for fighting for the freedom of gems, but in reality it’s so much deeper than to be put into a single sentence. In the end, she was a brat who grew into an amazing person, but still lacked accountability for the things she did. Maybe that’s why she had no problem sacrificing herself to give birth to Steven, because there was no way she could live with herself knowing the mistakes she made to lead her there… Wow, ok, that last part was morbid as hell, but I think you all get my point

[@vonnie0_0]

I look at pink/rose the same way, she’s not absolutely good nor is she the most horrible, it’s not all just black and white, she’s a morally grey character. Through the series she learns empathy, maturity, and most importantly, she learned how to love, that’s why the song “Love Like You” is so impactful to me. It’s true her redemption is not so cut and dry, and she left a lot of things unsolved, her lack of responsibility led to Steven having to pick up the pieces... which is also pretty realistic, a lot of people have baggage from their childhood and how their parents treated them. Man, I love this show.

[@1kokokala10]

EXACTLY, that's why I love her so much as a character because literally out of the entire cast, she is the most human!

[@Mildlyinsanespinelfanboy]

She didn’t grow up to an amazing person bruh 💀

[@emperium108]

We are never just our worst moments, nor are we exclusively our best.

[@leonishikino6873]

Yall really gas up this show like it's something special huh? It's a very mid version of OG Gundam.

[@morbidmushrooms]

This did actually change my somewhat limited perspective on pink. She's really complicated and very human in her own way. Short sighted but hopeful and loving.

[@PatchworkRose567]

I will live and die as a Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz fan. Her arc and character is so interacting and feels so human for a gemstone alien. She’s never been an amazing person but tried her best to be a good leader and friend to the gems she met as Rose Quartz. She fought to be nothing like her diamond peers while also learning how to unlearn years worth of behavior.

[@Dimonds456]

Personally, I see a lot of myself in Rose. She just wanted what was best for herself and others, while being raised in a society that prioritized utility over personality- something that is very much true of our real world. When watching the show for the first time in late 2019, I remember deeply relating to her, which became kinda scary considering how visceral people were to her back then. I'm glad people have started looking at her in a new light now. To me, she's evidence that everyone has the potential to be good, and to do it, you have to put in the work. How well she succeeded is up for debate, but her story is a powerful one in many ways.

[@ThePonderer]

I’ve been saying since before the show ended that people needed to be cognizant of how Pink/Rose’ story was being told backwards. It’s not just that we have the layers of mystery around this seemingly great person pulled back to reveal a monster, it’s that we see a bratty, careless, ignorant kid become a mature, loving, wise leader over the course of *centuries…* but it’s delivered to us with all the good stuff frontloaded.

[@thehaloreachbros]

I have always thought that because of the healing tears, colors in the injectors, and the pebbles/watermelons that pinks role was life giver. Blue was in charge of emotion, pink was animation, yellow was inventions and ships for her electric capabilities, and white was control and direction. Which is why they never wanted pink to leave and why era two can't shape shift. They are missing pinks influence and aren't fully as they should be.

[@jonbrewer297]

You mean era 2 can't shapeshift, right?

[@thehaloreachbros]

@@jonbrewer297 yes, oops.

[@shadenox8164]

Yellow's power is over their forms. She mostly used this to forcefully poof them, remember how she could correct a corrupted gem's form while she maintained contact but it wouldn't fix them because everything else was damaged too? I'm never a 100% sure what Pink is, perhaps it is animation. But the other three are Blue - Emotion, Yellow - Form and White - Mind. Animation would actually work I think. But you'll notice these are the three things the corruption wave damaged. Perhaps if Pink had also been involved it would have destroyed them completely like the Diamonds thought it did instead of just damaging them.

[@Ghostface1998]

Pink diamond is such a fascinating character and I remember being so excited to see her. We all remember where we were when Rose was revealed to be pink diamond. It was still wild how small she was compared to the other diamonds.

[@Make2wo]

I think Pink Diamond role was very similar to what Steven role became. Freewill. The ability to think, do and live independently even if their choices benefit group or only themselves . But because Pink was the youngest, no one listened to her. Also the order of things was established, none of the freewill stuff was going to fly.

[@cggrizzlyb92hd35]

We wanted to know the origins of gems, Diamonds, and Homeworld. There's a lot more to it. Like, how are the Diamonds made? What was life of HomeWorld like before and during the war and before Steven?

[@Dripx-]

Recently, Rebecca Sugar put out art of a more grown Steven Universe cast. So basically making Steven, Greg, and Connie looking older. If I recall, she wants to make more Steven Universe so maybe they can go more into detail about how they were created? That is, if CN even approves another season.

[@hueyfreeman6262]

I dont wanna know I love a good mystery

[@leonishikino6873]

Maybe she can answer the question on when the show will get good

[@D3viant517]

Clearly it was the Sneeple who made the diamonds

[@shadenox8164]

@@leonishikino6873 You can stop watching things Steven Universe related and KZbin will stop recommending them you know.

[@android7764]

I'm realizing through this video that growing up & maturing is forgiving Pink Diamond. Not only appreciating her character growth but relating with her through her perspective & nuance of her situation. It's easy to hate her & call her an irresponsible monster who kinda just left Steven with all of her problems to clean up but it's harder to look at all of that & say, I forgive you. Despite how bratty she was & how she appeared, she really lead with the best of intentions & had to make a lot of hard decisions with real consequences. Many of which outlived her & was passed down to Steven. Once you understand where she came from, how she matured and the situation therein, you start to realize how limited her options really were. As toxic as the situation turned out to be for Steven, she kinda had no other choice if she wanted both change for the gems & personal freedom. I have a deeper respect & admiration of Pink Diamond as I too come from a toxic, narcissistic & possessive family of bots that I strive desperately to freely express myself & be an individual. Technically without Pink, the Earth would've just been another colony barren of life. She sacrificed everything she knew to preserve life & creatures she knew nothing about out of her mere curiosity & unconditional love. From that lens she truly was Earths savior.

[@JackHallowLantern]

7:24 This Vulture interview makes it sound like the person conducting the interview already saw Pink/Rose as a villain and decided that was the case before even asking Sugar about it. Sure, they tried to hide their bias by saying that Rose "seems" like a secret villain of the show, but their follow-up question proves their bias against Rose. Their reply to Rose's innocent and sincere worship of those around her is, "Basically, she's love-bombing everyone around her?" Love bombing is an abusive tactic where an abuser will "bomb" someone with love, either before or after some kind of abuse like hitting, yelling, neglecting, etc. has taken place. It's a way for an abuser to "apologize" for their bad behaviour without actually correcting it. A way to convince the person they're abusing that they care when, really, the bad behaviour will continue. Rebecca's previous paragraph answer regarding Rose's character didn't have anything to do with love bombing...but our interviewer seems to be villanizing Rose already, and no answer given by Sugar is going to change their mind. Ironically.

[@TheLeafcuter]

I don't know if I would consider love-bombing an abusive action in-and-of itself, or that it necessarily is always a sign that abuse will happen. If someone were to, for example, be genuinely infatuated with their significant other and showered them in love and gifts - not to excuse or undermine abuse, but to ernestly love their partner - I would call that love-bombing too. It wouldn't be healthy behavior, most certainly it would leave a bad precedent in the relationship for the love-bomber to always one-up themself, or leave their partner with immense guilt because they feel as though they can't live up to the hype. But I don't think I would call that an abuser-abused situation, it would simply be a bad relationship. That being said. Yeah, the interview was definitively framed as though Rose is a villain. The writer does not do a good job at coming off as neutral.

[@kizz8262]

ive always loved Greg and Rose because he's the only one to see her as who she is, and not to be enamoured by her. he's the only one to be ''normal'' with her even if she's different because he's so genuine with her while she's so secretive and scared. he makes her comfortable. I love Pearl, but she never could break Rose's ''shield''' around herself because of their power dynamic and because of the way Pearl leaned into the power dynamic, always seeing her with rose-tinted glasses.

[@WraythSkitzofrenik]

The line "is this not how it works" is extra heartbreaking knowing how poorly she was treated and she sees that she's treated others like that.

[@angryflowerchild7849]

I started watching the show because of Pink Dimond being Rose Quarts. It was a interesting look at the redemption arch. Honestly as much as people get mad at Rose for having Steven and leaving him to clean up her mess, I couldn't help but feel like it make sense since she may love earth but she was never a part of it and by having Steven she could be. Also she would have no concept of what a mother is or really and how much Steven would need her since look how she grew up. Sure the other Dimond's were her family none of them where her actual mother in a human concept.

[@pollystarlight2362]

I think I learned more about Pink from this video and I never had any strong hate towards her, the most negative feelings I ever had towards her was her leaving Spinel behind but I always found her as one of if not the most interesting character in the entire show. She never struck me as the type of character to not love herself. She just saw beauty in almost everyone and never any in herself. She saw something special in all of her teammates. She admired Garnet for being the first fusion between two different gems that she knew of, she loved Amythest for who she was even though she was smaller than an amythest is supposed to be. Rose just found her unique that way and she had love for Pearl too viewing her as an equal despite that going against all the rules they knew of at the time, she seemed to care about Steven enough to give up her life to have him, I do think she genuinely loved him without having to meet him. She knew he would be better than her even without the knowledge that he would fix her mistakes long after her passing. I have been going on for a long time but I would like to say that I understand why the gems didn't release Lapis until Steven did. She was a Homeworld gem who would have just caused issues for the crystal gems and likely wouldn't listen to what they had to say if any of them wanted to calm her down or even recruit her, this applies to Rose as well. If Lapis somehow managed to escape Earth and make it back home, she probably would've ratted about the crystal gems and caused a bigger threat to appear that they probably wouldn't have been able to defeat. It was a long talk but I did want to share my thoughts as well even though there was so much of it. Thanks for hearing me out!

[@Adrian-wq8rz]

i especially agree with your reflection on how we apply human morality to an alien species. a lot of people dont seem to realize that morality is ever changing and shifting, and our morality will never be the same even through different time periods on earth, and especially for different species. to apply human morality to a different species is inherently incorrect and we should find it in ourselves to view these characters through a lens of their own moral values. that being said, it is also true that these characters were made for human audiences. humans have emotions and feelings just like anyone else, and it is okay to feel disgusted or appalled by rose/pinks actions because that is simply how humans view the world. i even think that it is very possible to be disgusted by her actions while also knowing that her species moral values are entirely different to ours. your feelings on a character are not a true reflection of that character, they are simply feelings. all in all, i believe rose is absolutely a character that humans can learn and grow from, and she has an amazing character that was written beautifully. loved the video and your analysis, i cant wait to see more :)

[@patrickkh1245]

Pink damaging pink pearl, forgetting Spinel and raging over not getting a colony happened when pink was a young spoiled brat. All that was before she saw What the diamonds were doing to the planets and before she changed. She idolized her sisters and had to become like them some day. Her actions were a result of them just like white said in the finale. They mentally tortured her. to Lets not forget all the good things she did aswell. Saving the earth, throwing away her title as ruler of earth and fighting to let gems be Who they want to be. Also, rose didnt create Steven to leave all her problems. She couldnt have known of all the things steven would go through. She thought the gem war was over and steven would live a happy life. Also in wars sacrifises has to be made. You cant blame her for corrupting all those gems. They joined her and fought for What they thought was right. Peridot wanted to destroy earth and kill the crystal gems and she changed. No one hates her. The only thing Im a little bit mad about is the Bismuth situation. We dont know totally What happened. Did rose instantly poof her when she showed the breaking point or did bismuth attack her first. I think bismuth attacked rose first since she said «Hey rose, look at This new weapon i made. Im gonna shatter you with it!» so bismuth did trie to shatter rose😅

[@dannod9961]

How the hell you have this much time to write all this….. the video just dropped

[@justinbuergi9867]

Bismuth didn’t actually say that. That was a joke she made. She showed rose the weapon, fully unaware that she was a diamond. And rose couldn’t see a gem get shattered in her war against herself so she poofed her. Rather than explaining things

[@patrickkh1245]

@@dannod9961i wrote a whole document in preperations for a video like this or a comment saying pink is a villain😂 Im very serious when it comes to this topic ok😭

[@user-ro7kt4te6p]

Yes.. that’s the video

[@milagroshernandez9351]

Yes pink was spoiled bratty and hurt others heck abused others but she was also being infantilized, hurt and abused, she did horrible things that she never faced accountability for but she also did many great things- yes she kept a secret but from her perspective she was right to do so, whether it be her own awful family or people she had rallied against the diamonds it would be a bad move to come out and some of her actions she couldn't have faced responsibility for even if she wanted to despite how awful they were, she fought for something noble, no more colonization, no more slavery, no more abuse she learned the mentality she was taught was wrong she won but the victory turned pyrrhic, and she learned to move on make the best of her dark past she had no other options after that, she created steven out of love- I just love how complicated she is

[@Karlossus_]

28:46 Bismuth, Peridot, and Lapis piloted the Diamond's Arm Ships, so control over the Diamond vessels isn't exclusive to their owners

[@MaidenOfHusbands]

You guys genuinely have no idea how much I ADOREEEEE Pink Diamond and Rose Quartz. She can't get out of my head. I think about her so much. I love her story and character so bad.. It's insane. Everyone started to collectively agree to hate Pink Diamond once they found out what she did to Spinel, but when I was watching that scene, I fell even more in love with Pink Diamond. I came out of the movie feelin bad cuz it just made Pink Diamond's character so much better for me, lmao. I don't understand why I have to dislike this character because of the fact that she does bad things and because I dislike those bad things she's done.... Allow me to like a purposely morally gray or evil character because of those actions that morally gray or evil character is making to make them morally gray or evil. People like to excuse every other character's wrongdoings because of the things they went through, but never want to excuse Pink Diamonds actions for what she went through.... I knew Pink Diamond's redemption was done in reverse because we were literally introduced to Rose Quartz... No matter what we were shown, at the end of her life, she was as good as she was ever going to be up until that point. People hate Pink Diamond for starting the war, when that doesn't really make sense because she wasn't actually necessarily lying to any of the rebellion or anything. It wouldn't really work if Pink Diamond stayed Pink Diamond and tried to convince the gems to rebel against The Diamonds, because they are gems literally listening to a diamond.. that they also know for a fact is a diamond and could hurt or manipulate them in some way. She basically had to be Rose to do that. Her being a diamond would make things ungenuine for her, so she was Rose. I don't know why people are so mad at Rose for starting the rebellion and wanting to save the earth and the humans... I genuinely don't understand that part, because why are we mad that a character tried to save her people and people on a completely different planet...? Why are we mad that Rose Quartz wanted her gems to be free from The Diamonds...? People genuinely believe the gems being controlled to such a high degree is better than what Pink Diamond did in the whole Steven Universe series... That's like using a real world equivalent to letting LGBT be legal, and then thinking it was better for the LGBT to stay banned and imprisoned for showing gayness, because of how modern day is today with lgbts BECAUSE of lgbt being illegal and worthy of being tortured..... And what she did to Bismuth was messed up, for sure, but that's what makes me like her character so much. I am confused as to why people don't understand how to like the bad characters when it comes to Steven Universe, but if it's a show like She-Ra, it's very obvious and okay to like Catra for being an evil character... especially when Catra never tried to change and didn't change until the very end to have Adora x Catra make more sense. You can't compare their crimes, obviously, but Pink still seems like the better character in a way. And no, Catra not "lying" to people doesn't somehow make her better and less evil. People were even allowed to like Bellos from The Owl House because people weren't this stupid when it came to evil or morally grey characters. People literally fuck with Lapis and Jasper, more than Pink Diamond. People fuck with the other diamonds more than Pink Diamond... Especially Blue Diamond... who abused Pink. The media literacy and so on when it comes to Steven Universe is so below baby level, that it's actually kind of scary to hear some of these people talk about this show and the characters.

[@MaidenOfHusbands]

Damn.. all that yappin. Ain't readin all that my damnself

[@mikecampbell8063]

Beautiful and well said

[@the-real-paralian]

@@MaidenOfHusbands lol, it would probably be a lot more readable if you added spaces between paragraphs- -like this! text walls are really hard to read 😂

[@monikakomodzinska2283]

preach! Very well said!

[@MaidenOfHusbands]

@@the-real-paralian or, you can understand people don't care and move on, especially when your comment had nothing to do with the discussion

[@Moonsong227]

Fun fact: with the diamonds at the heights they are, if they all stand in their usual arrangement, their gems make a perfect diamond. Might be explain their height differences

[@leetbeats5092]

I also hated Pink Diamond after the big reveal, but after time, I also grew to like her. She is an impressive character

[@StarLightGem]

I actually LOVE how what you think about Rose is a question of personality and moral

[@isaaccook1890]

I've always though of Yellow and Blue as older siblings to Pink rather than parents. Imagine a household where You have twins and a third child that's ten years younger or something.

[@Christakay2012]

Love this vid. I always was so confused about what was going on with Rose. She always seemed so distant from everything they were doing. This makes so much sense why. I really hope that one day they can make a series about Pink Diamond and we can kind of walk through her shoes on how her life really went.

[@ryuspiritvtuber]

Guess Sai Scribbles was right all this time. Steven Universe was a show about how miscommunication can affect the relationship.

[@MrSasunaru101]

Bismuth would have caused a civil war within the crystal gems and would have gotten them all shattered. The only choice was to contain her somewhere she wouldn’t hurt herself or others.

[@Im_alivexx]

Very true tbh

[@itsdodger1176]

The decision to bubble her initially was probably a more spur of the moment I can't have this idea spreading right now action, but the decision to keep her bubbled long after the war and even beyond her own death was definitely her running away from a complicated problem she should have tried solving properly.

[@SilverScribe85]

Liliy Peet and her wife have openly voiced their hatred towards Pink MANY times over. I, on the other hand understood the full depth of Pink's character the moment Single Pale Rose premiered. To start with, she's a character who's been grossly underestimated and overlooked by her fellow Diamonds for thousands of years; her own family. Couple that with the cruel society of Homeworld and Pink would surely develop a poor moral compass along with a skewed outlook of how things should go. Then, she comes to Earth and sees it as a planet of freedom...which is a concept that even we, as Americans have a deep problem fully understanding. There are people who, like Pink assume that just because a society is freer than others; it gives them free reign to do whatever they please. With this poor understanding, Pink (through Rose) didn't quite grasp the importance of certain things like relationships or responsibilities. Yet in spite of ALL of this, she had truly good intentions behind her actions. Sadly, people (both in the series and outside of it) seem to forget about these intentions and see them as horrible crimes; Steven being a huge example. As a boy; even after learning the truth, Steven still saw the good his mom was trying to do. But as a teen, he not only saw his mom as an irresponsible monster but his dad as well (which is pretty insane)

[@kayleighdriessen]

If only we got to personally know more about her through being Pink diamond then Rose Quartz then Steven, her best and worst actions have kickstarted most of the conflict that went throughout most of the series as a whole. From a wider perspective each and everyone one of us go through what we in fiction refer to as "character development" for better or worse and sometimes remain the same a certain way but never remain stagnant as clearly seen with Pink. And I love the idea of Pink having been born as the first "imperfect/overcooked Gem" and the other Diamons too used to their little perfect empire might feel annoyed to even threatened by seeing their little sister's imperfection seap into their lives and often dismiss or scold her for simply being herself like from bothering them with "silly questions" to the point of even questioning Homeworld-society as a whole, and her son Steven goes on to portray everything wonderful even if oftentimes dangerous about anything imperfect or out of our control but those who embrace their imperfections can learn from their mistakes while those who might consider themselves perfect thinks they're above making mistakes and that's a shame, no wonder self-love and embracing imperfections are such strong central themes in Steven Universe.

[@gavinjames645]

When I first started watching steeven universe I made a joke of what if rose was pink diamond. An idea I had is what if their were more diamonds out their in other galaxies/universes. Like for example. 1. Red diamond 2. Orange diamond 3. Brown diamond And of course 4. Black diamond I honestly think that would make a pretty cool concept for Steven universe, another idea I had is what if just like Steven there are other gem/human hybrids, or what if their were male variants of gems.

[@yourhorseyepona7309]

Im interested in the other diamonds and other human/gem hybrids too. That first theory has SO many questions: How is Black Diamond running their "homeworld" and what's their dynamic with Red, Brown, and Orange? If they exist in the same universe in some far off galaxy? What do the Diamonds we know of think of them? That second theory begs the question about other gems grapple with the concept of life, and fact that they too wont see their kids grow up (assuming its not an ability exclusive to Pink Diamond). Not to mention Steven try to guide the gem hybrids, too. That last theory: eeehh, i heard someone say Metals could be the male counterparts to gems, but its not like anyone fleshed it out. It that aint what ur talking about, idk. I guess there's a chance gems can identify as male after some time on earth, but i like the gems as they are 😅.

[@andrewmiguelcastanas1446]

Another thing to point out about the contrast between Steven growing up with the crystal gems and Pink living with the Diamonds is that it proves just how wrong their idea of molding her to be a leader on their empire, they abused, belittled, and ignored Pink and yet still expected her to act more like them. Keep in mind that Steven is not the only one who achieved his best self while living with the gems, Pink also became her best self when she became Rose. Rose is pretty much what the Diamonds wanted Pink to be all along, Rose was respected by the all the Crystal Gems and was known to be inspiring, an excellent tactician (per Jasper's remarks) and responsible, she was feared by the gems of homeworld (except the Diamonds). Pink would've been an excellent Diamond if the others just treated her right the way she was treated by the crystal gems.

[@rileyanthony]

A crystal clear video it’s been a long minute since the last one

[@justinbuergi9867]

Honestly, I’ve always wanted a sequel where rose reappeared on Steven s 18th birthday or whatever (through time travel or a preset program in her gem) and tries to tell Steven about all her mistakes and sins but he cuts her off, saying he knows it all and he’s beat it all. He knows she’s a diamond. He knows about Spinel. He already saved the universe. And then one or both of them get mad that she couldn’t do the same. She couldn’t save anyone. She couldn’t get anyone to listen to her. And because of that, she left Steven behind in a world where things have been trying to kill him since he was a child, a world where he’s undergone trauma so terrifying that it broke him and almost destroyed the entire world. Then they finish talking things through and end on a moment of reconciliation

[@stamourbeaulieu]

Like Steven try shooms or something

[@mcgaming9149]

​@@stamourbeaulieuOr maybe a more genuine talk in Pink's room. Steven knows more about Pink now, so the room's form of her would be more like the real her

[@aff77141]

I think it would be frankly more meaningful if it was preset, and she couldn't say anything back. Another of her many recordings, set to be seen at a specific time. She's dead for all intents and purposes, like a real human, and nothing can be changed anymore. There is no way to talk to the people who set you on the path you're on when they're gone. All he can do is listen to the fact she technically owned up to him and told him everything she was aware of and gave him and the others all she had to give, and make a choice.

[@shadenox8164]

@@mcgaming9149 It would still be nothing more than Steven talking to himself.

[@anthonyluclarocque1765]

My personal headcanon about the diamonds is that white diamond was created first and she then later created the others with blue and yellow emerging first probably at the same time before pink and eventually pink emerged as well so what I'm saying is white diamond is like a mother figure and blue and yellow are like older sister figures to Pink

[@taiall]

I know that we saw Rose's story in reverse and I understand that more. However, I believe that her bratty personality as Pink Diamond still lingered even when she was Rose. Like when she bubbled Bismuth and lied to everyone about it

[@myomayo]

i deeply relate to rose quartz and pink diamond, and before i realized that i did relate to her, i thought she was the perfect morally-gray/grey character. i guess that kinda reflects how i don’t know if i’m bad or good. this video somewhat helped me figure out myself, as well as rose/pink… damn never expected a video about a pink rock alien would help me xd

[@WraythSkitzofrenik]

This is a really refreshing video. I see so many videos calling Pink/Rose trash and being really negative, which is not the point of the characters. Also to the headcanon of Pink being "overcooked" and "defective"... Pink and white diamonds have the same crystal structure, the pink coloration comes from the intense compression of the structure, instead of the presence of chemical impurities like in blue and yellow diamonds. Could be another explanation for why White's flaw makes her blush pink because she puts so much pressure on herself to be perfect and better.

[@Karlossus_]

The Sonic Heroes OST in the background was a throwback I didn't expect

[@VenomtheOne]

WHAT GOES UP MUST GO DOWN

[@Sliferslacker21]

As someone who has been a staunch defender of Pink Diamond/Rose, I'm so glad this was made. She isn't perfect. She never was perfect, even as a Diamond. Compared to the other Diamonds, even regular gems, she always stood out as not really fitting in. She was full of emotion, fun, love, and curiosity, something that wasnt shared by the other Diamonds or their gems.

[@Galaxxi]

THANK YOU FOR THIS VIDEO 👏 i am TIRED of pink diamond & rose quartz slander. she's not a perfect baby who did nothing wrong, but oh my god she's not a villain or the worst diamond either.

[@MasterMemo]

I like the Spinel points. Spinel decided to leave after she got mad after Pink left. Pearl could never reveal Pink's secrets because of her programming. Kind of makes sense to me.

[@natashaivanova7360]

You know, I think an important part of why she was so happy about having Steven, beyond that it meant that she would have the ability to change, is that it meant she could stop existing. Her talking about how she's going to be a part of Steven in the tape almost sounds like someone with *certain* ideations talking about "leaving this world for something better". This relisation is one I had while I was first watching the show and what made me try to look deeper into who Rose was and is led me to eventually sympathise with her. It was certainly interesting having the movie come out and watching having already started viewing in a more sympathetic light than most of the fandom 😅

[@ElizaRose526]

As a person who rewatches SU often, i really appreciate this video. I was young when i first watched SU and i hated Rose. I could not see anything in her other than selfishness and destruction. But as i get older and start to understand how the road to hell is paved with good intentions, i start to understand a bit more about this character. Rebecca Sugar is an amazing person and deserves the world

[@izzymcgee2527]

My biggest gripe with Future is that I wish they'd talk about Pink Diamond more and how everyone feels about her.

[@DreamWriterGames.8282]

You know, even after learning the truth about Rose, I never really hated her. I feel like I understood her even before learning about her life on Homeworld, just because of what we had seen in the flashbacks.

[@thatenbyowen7039]

I love how Steven (and us, in turn) learn about Rose's story in reverse because it also gives the vibes of a child learning that their parents aren't perfect. Steven was told that Rose was a glorious, amazing, practically perfect being. So much so that he starts to break when he learns she wasn't. Granted, she did really messed up things, but it parallels with reality pretty interestingly

[@nmmilton]

1:50 Ay a blink and you'll miss it 2018 Vox. Man, I still remember that video.

[@Scardy]

I always felt people were too harsh towards Pink Diamond, contributing her flaws to bad writing instead of a person trying desperately to be better while not really knowing how to be better.

[@Varrbariouss]

I honestly don’t think what they did in Steven Universe will ever be replicated/ done better than what they did here with Pink Diamond. The best part was seeing the plot twist and rewatching the while seasons again with the new perspective. She is truly a grey character.

[@miahmiller8563]

Pink diamond being mindlessly selfish and truly thinking that nobody would care about her disappearance and everyone would just live happily ever after really put it in prospective for her character. I’ve been watching your videos for years !! And you explained this so perfectly ! Thanks 🙏🏽

[@ericthedreamwarrior2912]

I think the best way to surmise Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz is the proverb said by Samuel Johnson: "Hell was built on good intentions"

[@RedDragonForce2]

This video is amazing! I’ve said somewhere along the way that Pearl never really separated from Pink until she fused with Steven, becoming Rainbow 2.0. I also said that Pink’s place felt like an empty title. Which goes along with her influence on the other gems, but never feeling like an equal to the other Diamonds. The fact that the Diamonds never actually sat down with Pink and taught her anything. Just like the other gems, the Diamonds were born knowing what they needed to do. So Pink (which I enjoy your theory of taking too long to form) being born last, wouldn’t know who she was and what her purpose is because others were already doing it and not showing her how to.

[@thomasstars139]

I feel like Rose bubbling bismuth was 100% panic moment for Rose. Like, of course she has complicated feelings towards home world but paraphrasing peridot, "It's hard not having feelings from where you came from". Rose does not want to have to kill her parents. So Rose panicked and poofed Bismuth. Now what? Because there's no easy way of explaining why you poofed bismuth without giving away you're pink. Right now the rebellion is still ongoing. Gems have been fighting for their freedom. Gems have been shattering for their freedom. If the truth comes out now who knows what'll happen to the rebellion. They'd probably disperse or fall apart which is not helpful when fighting against the giants that are Diamonds. So you lie, tell everyone Bismuth was shattered and have her legacy live on as a hero. Although after the rebellion I'm not sure why Rose didn't come clean. She and the og gems got the diamonds to finally leave, and there was no seeming big threat to band together to defeat. But maybe this was just another example of how Rose was a bit of a coward, fearing the opinion of the remaining gems would change if word finally got out after everything.

[@BrightBlueInk]

Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz is one of my favorite characters in the show, for all of the reasons you laid out. I also feel like Steven's journey about learning who she was is a lot like as an adult realizing your parents are more human and flawed than you realized as a kid (if you didn't have parents who were obviously bad, anyway).

[@icecschannel6332]

I cannot tell you how much I missed Crystal Clear. Also this video is amazing on the deep dive into Pink Diamonds character

[@XJIcequeen]

This is a great analysis. Gives sympathy to Pink, Pink Pearl, Pearl, Spinel….well almost everybody

[@BeatboxToaster]

I'm glad this video exists. For me, when watching the series, I was like, "Rose is kinda boring, why does everyone love her so much?" And then as the series went on and showed her flaws and introduced her as Pink, I was grateful that she finally had a character and not just a "woobie" adoration for no reason. She was greatly flawed and that made me happy.

[@tjopj]

This is a great take on Rose Quartz. She seems terrible because we see her character arc in reverse, but in reality she was raised in a toxic environment. If we take the other diamond's new powers in Future to mean that they have changed as people (Which seems to be the case), then we are to assume that Rose changed as well. One thing I disagree with on the video though, is I don't think Rose knew she could bring people back from the dead before Lion, because we don't see any other pink immortal beings out there. If she knew she could bring organic life forms back from the dead, it stands to reason she'd do it way more often, at the very least with the whole pride of lions. I think what happened was that Lion was the first one to die in his pride, and Rose, finding his body, started to cry, and her tears brought him back without her intention. I think it makes sense, cause she clearly never brought anyone else back to life, so she was probably aware immortality can be hard for a being that is meant to be mortal. That being said, I do think she might have used those powers on Greg if he had died.

[@JohnnyLancast]

Great video, it’s refreshing to be talking some SU now. You’re definitely doing your part to help bring it back into the public eye and get some chatter that may help get a new series or movie. Hopefully this comment helps with that and the algorithm! 💎

[@yate0128]

Pink is so incredibly well written. She's not perfect. I truly can't remember another character that makes me feel so conflicted 😐 And that's definitely a compliment. I can only hope to create such a divisive character. That viewers can love and hate both, for justified reasons.

[@hannahbecker2309]

The worst part is that she never Admitted she made a mistake or is wrong

[@yate0128]

@@hannahbecker2309 Yeah. If I had to guess, she probably thought actions were better than words. And maybe apologising wouldn't really solve anything.

[@hannahbecker2309]

@@yate0128 yeah. Plus she lied and hurt everyone and she was a toxic friend to spinal.

[@yate0128]

@@hannahbecker2309 Doubtful if she even considered Spinel a 'friend'

[@hannahbecker2309]

@@yate0128 i don't think she did sadly. And i don't blame spinel for being angry at pink diamond for abandoning her for many years. And i am also glad that the end spinel got true friends.

[@Extreme2566]

I saw this post on Spinel yesterday that Spinel's original from is based on mickey mouse(obviously) and Spinel's current form,is based on Oswald the Rabbit.

[@plushdragonteddy]

31:25 "she turned her self-loathing into war propaganda!" DAMN that hits hard !! i haven't paid attention to steven universe in a looong time, but i love seeing the timeline laid out and explained like this. even if i knew a lot of what happened already, it's so helpful to have it all put together and made sense of. and it hits hard !!

[@nicholassims9837]

They should have giving Rose and Pink the Kami and King Piccolo treatment

[@crystallinecrisis3901]

Pink wasn’t a good person but she wasn’t a monster either. She was a flawed being who sought her own desires (whether personal or for others) for good or ill. At her core, she was selfish. That manifested in many ways as she grew into the Rose we knew at the beginning

[@TheLastSane1]

She was self-destructive, she viewed herself as literally worthless. That she had no value, she contributed nothing and took everything. Look at the stories of Pink Diamond to see just how she views herself. She HATES herself. And being that self-destructive always causes collateral damage to those around you.

[@katcie34]

It's interesting that it took seeing Pink's story in reverse made the decision to bring Steven into the world clicked for me. It's actually an extremely common experience for women who grew up with difficult family backgrounds and general low self esteem to turn to motherhood as a way to fill that. There's also the notion of motherhood becoming the suicide of a woman's younger self, shown literally by Pink/Rose ceasing to exist once Steven is born. While Steven Universe offers an incredibly literal interpretation of both of these concepts, it's amazing that I hadn't even thought about it in the years between the original series ending and now.

[@tayloredwards4968]

I'm going to be honest I have mixed feelings about pink diamond. For one she helped gem's embrace who they were and that they shouldn't be ashamed of themselves. But at the same time she lied to everyone. Abandon people who cared about her including her son. And did a lot of terrible things that hurt a lot of people including spinel and blue diamond

[@bobbinpink]

who cares if she hurt blue diamond??? blue abused her for thousands of years and the video explains that she didn't know she mattered to the people around her. she thought they'd be fine without her, because she thought she had no impact in their lives. and the other diamonds, including blue, are the ones who abused her and made her think like that about herself.

[@shadenox8164]

@@bobbinpink Ignorance of consequences isn't an excuse. It's just a reason. He explained in the video that having a reason for something isn't the same as it being okay.

[@bobbinpink]

@@shadenox8164 I know that. but I don't think it's fair to condemn her for not knowing people cared about her when that was the result of thousands of years of abuse. "abandoned people who cared about her" highlighting that she was to blame for abandoning those who >cared< about her seems nonsensical to me, especially while also sympathizing with her abuser who was the one who caused her low self-esteem and inferiority complex. idc if people hate her as long as what they say about her makes sense or isn't downright unfair/cruel. which is why I never mentioned her lies or spinel, I'm only talking about something specific that bothered me about OP's comment.

[@ArceeStarFan]

If they decide to make a sequel series or Spin off series maybe we might get to see more about Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz..

[@AlphaPizzadog]

all i can think about is how she must have given up her form hoping her child would be able to feel love because she thought herself incapable of it as she was. "Steven, we can't both exist. I'm going to become half of you. And I need you to know that every moment you love being yourself, that's me, loving you and loving being you. Because you're going to be something extraordinary. You're going to be a human being." - Rose Quartz

[@michaelwillis19]

Roundtable SU content? Did we time travel if so don't stop

[@nicolewashburn8719]

As a long time Pink Diamond lover and defender it's really nice seeing more people come around to not hating her as much or even liking

[@mercymainly8996]

I couldn't have explained Pink and Rose's development better myself. I've been trying to articulate it to people for years now and you really covered every facet of her character. She's one of, if not, my favorite complex characters ever written. I hope everyone can learn from this video.

[@Yourapplefriend]

This video put together all the thoughts I've so desperately been trying to share with others about Rose for years now. Thank you for making this and for being willing to change your mind on what you think of her.