Fusion (Steven Universe)

About

Fusion is an ability Gems can perform in Steven Universe. In the show, two or more Gems can physically merge their bodies to become a larger gem, with intermediate physical appearance and personality. Online, images of fused, conjoined, and meshed characters or items are often captioned with quotes from the show pertaining to fusion. Fusion was also an inspiration for online artists.

Origin

The concept of fusion was introduced in the series in season 1, episode 12, Giant Woman, first aired in February 14th, 2014, in which Amethyst and Pearl fuse to become Opal. The technique, which involve both gems dancing before merging (below, on the left: Pearl and Amethyst fusing), is a reference to the Gattai technique from Dragon Ball Z (below, to the right: Son Goten and Trunks fusing).
Fusion became much more relevant to the plot by the end of the season, when Garnet was revealed to be a fusion between Ruby and Sapphire, and Jasper forcefully fused with Lapis to form Malachite. It also has relevancy in the series' lore, as it's revealed mixed fusion is a taboo in Gem society and the Homeworld created a bastardized fusion-based weapon called the Cluster; finally, it is relevant to the characters' development, for fusions are designed as a metaphor for relationships between their constituent Gems^[1][2].

Relevant Memes

Fusionsonas

Online artists have used the fusion mechanic as an inspiration to design new characters from the fusion of several gems. The earliest recorded example, though, is a hexafusion meme (below, on the left) by Tumblr user Kangaya, posted in January 2014^[3], which uses Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl as the three bases, one month before the concept of fusion was even canonically introduced. This type of fan art became widespread after Giant Woman aired; it was not limited to the existing Steven Universe characters, as many artists also have used their own Gemsonas as a base.

Fusion Is Just A Cheap Tactic To Make Weak Gems Stronger

In Jail Break, the 52nd episode and the finale of season 1, first broadcast on March 12th, 2015, Jasper confronts a recently re-fused Garnet with this tirade:

Oh great. You're both out? And you're fused again? Why? Fusion is just a cheap tactic to make weak Gems stronger. Quit embarrassing yourselves! I've seen what you really are.

This quote has since been used online by fans of Steven Universe, especially in humorous responses to fused of assembled things.

Stronger Than You

In the same episode, immediately after Jasper's tirade, Garnet fights her while singing Stronger Than You, a song celebrating her existence as a fusion. This song immediately became a fan-favorite, leading to many remixes of the melody and parodies of the lyrics. One such parodies, inspired by Undertale and posted on YouTube by alfa995 on December 21st, 2015 under the name "Sans Battle – Stronger Than You"^[4] (below, top left), was viewed more than 85 million times, and became so popular many viewers mistakenly believed it to be the original version.

So This Is What Homeworld Thinks Of Fusion

In episode 7 of season 2, Keeping It Together, first broadcast on June 17th, 2015, Steven and Garnet come across several Clusters, Gem-like entities that were created by forcefully congregating Gem shards, and meant as living weapons. This inspires Ruby, through Garnet's voice, to say the line: "So this is what Homeworld thinks of fusion…" This line was later used by Steven Universe fans, in reaction to weird or horrific occurences of fusion.

Search Interest

External References