MovieChat Forums > Steven Universe (2013) Discussion > Anyone else bothered by Garnet's fusion?

Anyone else bothered by Garnet's fusion?

posted 9 years ago by Game_of_Jones
15 replies | jump to latest

I think it's super sweet how Ruby and Sapphire love each other so much but one thing about their fusion into Garnet bugs me. When Amethyst and Pearl fused into Opal, both of their gems were distinct and different. Pearl's Gem was still white and Amethyst's gem was still purple. Likewise when Pearl and Rose fused for Greg, both gems were visible and clearly still different. When Ruby and Sapphire fuse, instead of Garnet having a red gem and a blue gem, she has two red gems. It just makes me wonder if her being a fusion all along wasn't always planned but was instead an afterthought.

In the zombie apocalypse, you don't have to be the fastest runner, you just can't be the slowest.

[–] Lacey_10 9 years ago

I would guess it's because Ruby and Sapphire make a stronger fusion. Pearl and Amethyst don't work well together, so that's why they rarely form Opal. And it's also why they kept their gemstones. They kept their distinct personalities, whereas Garnet is mostly stable.

Also, remember that Ruby and Sapphire's outlines can be seen when Alexandrite separates in Fusion Cuisine (ep 32?). So that shows they planned Garnet being a fusion at least that early. I don't remember if there were any earlier hints.

[–] Anachrony 9 years ago

There were a number of hints throughout. One of the simplest is that there are 5 stones in a star shape around the temple door. They each trigger their own gem to open their personal door. Except Garnet has two gems that she activates, one red and one blue.

[–] Lacey_10 9 years ago

Ah yes, how could I forget the door?

[–] ShadowGenerations 9 years ago

Fusions don't possess the actual gemstones of the individual gems, otherwise their names wouldn't make sense. Example: How could Garnet be called Garnet if her gemstones weren't garnets? fusion's have their own gemstones, but they are located in the same positions as the individual gems' are and retain their same cut and shape.

If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have

[–] Listenupfives 9 years ago

Garnet being a fusion has been planned since as far back as the pilot, and I am not talking about Gem Glow. In the original pilot, Garnet stands between two spires of ruby and sapphire. They even drop hints in the theme song by having Garnet sing "We"; she doesn't just mean her and the other Crystal Gems, she means we as in Ruby and Sapphire. Also, note that when she's chilling on the lounge chair later, two shooting stars are visible in the same shot again hinting at her not being like the others.

Moving on to your second query, there's been a bit of a misconception here. When Opal is formed, Amethyst and Pearl's gems have changed: Amethyst's gem is now coloured like an Australian black opal while Pearl's gem now looks like a Brazilian opal. You see a similar thing happen when Pearl and Rose form Rainbow Quartz in that Pearl's gem is now pinker and Rose's gem is a less vibrant pink.

That said, Garnet's gems aren't red, they are garnet in colour and property because that's who she is now.

[–] Game_of_Jones 9 years ago

Ok but the other thing that gets me is Garnet's arms. Any time the other Gems fuse, like when Amethyst and Pearl fuse, they have 4 arms. Garnet only has 2.

In the zombie apocalypse, you don't have to be the fastest runner, you just can't be the slowest.

[–] ShadowGenerations 9 years ago

That's because she's a more stable fusion. Rainbow Quartz, and to a lesser extent, Stevonnie, only have 2 arms, too. The more stable a fusion is, the less limbs, eyes, etc they have. And also, technically, Malachite has only 2 arms as well, but that's another story.

If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have

[–] loui_b452 9 years ago

That's because she's a more stable fusion. Rainbow Quartz, and to a lesser extent, Stevonnie, only have 2 arms, too. The more stable a fusion is, the less limbs, eyes, etc they have. And also, technically, Malachite has only 2 arms as well, but that's another story.

Exactly. I believe love has something to do with this. We know Ruby and Sapphire to have a near perfect love so it's difficult to to tell that Garnet is actually two Gems fused together. Their synchronicity is so perfect, the only indication that the she is two beings is her third eye and two garnets, but even this is subtle enough to over look. Like Stevonnie, their love was pure and unconditional.

The same applied to Rainbow Quartz. We know Rose Quartz was very close to Pearl while Pearl loved Rose Quartz more than anything else. As such, while their fusion has two sets of eyes, she only has one set of hands, meaning the two were the closest of the Crystal Gems. Their love is strong on both sides but Pearl's side is stronger thus making their fusion only slightly less stable than Garnet's.



[–] neelay123 9 years ago

But What about Sardonyx? She has four arms but seemed to be just as stable as Rainbow Quartz and more stable than Stevonnie.

[–] ShadowGenerations 9 years ago

Sardonyx isn't quite as stable as RQ since Pearl's connection with Garnet isn't anywhere near as strong as it is with Rose. There's also the fact that unlike RQ and Stevonnie, Sardonyx is made up of 3 Gems. The number of Gems in a fusion is also a factor in its stability. Just look at Alexandrite.

As for Stevonnie, she's made up of two beings with a very strong connection and is more human than Gem, which is why she looks so normal.

If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have

[–] neelay123 9 years ago

Okay. I get what your saying. It will be interesting to see what Steven and Amethyst's fusion looks like. I could see their personalities blending well with one another's.

[–] BigMac8000 9 years ago

As far as their physical traits go (not including the gems themselves) none of it matters.

Gem's are just hologram projections with mass. They could have as many bits or pieces as they wanted most likely. The reason Garnet fuses into one cohesive being is probably because she prefers to be of one-being rather than staying halved like other characters, who keep their own set of eyes or arms. Garnet's chosen to be one simple fusion rather than a complex entity, because they enjoy being that in tune.

Conversely the alteration of gem's is irrelevant because of Stevonnie. Two entities sharing one gemstone implies you don't need 2 separte gems to fuse at all. This means when you do actually fuze, there's plenty of room for choice. Garnet may keep her gems separate because while she is one cohesive entity, having two gems may simply be the difference between dual wielding or single wielding - a strong case could be made that the fact that Garnet uses two fists may imply that she prefers dual wielding them rather than one, stronger weapon such as Opal's bow or Sugilist's.... hammer whip thing.

The point is there's plenty of precedence set that fusion's have choice in their form, and in how they fuse, as well as not necessitating any fusion of gems at all. It also may be a subtle point that Ruby and Sapphire's love means they make garnet whole-heartedly, and fusing their gems would ruin some of their own identity which would weaken the bond - they can't make garnet out of their love (and it was confirmed romantic love by Rebecca Sugar) if they don't have some individuality remaining. It may even reduce some of their fusion's power, as opal seems actually somewhat stronger than garnet. It may be more stable this way, or just be a preference.

In fact, it may be why other people prefer to fuse with garnet and why she's more powerful - not just because they're utilizing 3 gems at once, but because garnet actually has to truly fuze ruby / sapphire / other completely.

It's a question that implies more fun solutions than problems.

[–] ShadowGenerations 9 years ago

Conversely the alteration of gem's is irrelevant because of Stevonnie. Two entities sharing one gemstone implies you don't need 2 separte gems to fuse at all. This means when you do actually fuze, there's plenty of room for choice. Garnet may keep her gems separate because while she is one cohesive entity, having two gems may simply be the difference between dual wielding or single wielding - a strong case could be made that the fact that Garnet uses two fists may imply that she prefers dual wielding them rather than one, stronger weapon such as Opal's bow or Sugilist's.... hammer whip thing.

Stevonnie (and Steven himself, for that matter) is an anomaly and can't be used as an example. Fusions can't choose whether to merge their gems or keep them separate.

If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have

[–] onefinnedfish 8 years ago

It's the same reason Garnet doesn't have 4 arms, she's a perfect stable fusion, so she is more uniform then other fusions are.

It was definitely planned from the start, even from the pilot. Some of her early concept art even has her wearing long gloves to hide her gems, indicating they were trying to hide the fact that she had 2. The temple has also always had 5 gems on it rather then 4.

[–] district-23105 8 years ago

I think the problem you've having is that normally a fusion is a temporary thing, but in Garnet's case, she's a permanent and stable fusion. She said that she works best as a fusion - it's the best possible scenario for the two gems.

So she's taken a more stable form. This does make sense to me. She's even a normal height for a Gem.