will it ever be this hype again

>>83787938
no

Lapis was the first direct exposure to a much larger world. Now that it's been revealed though, most of what they can do will just be part of that world.

It will be hard to do something as impactful,

>>83787938
just wait til Bismuth is unbubbled

>>83787938
When Homeworld shows actual serious interest in earth again and starts to invade with legit forces instead of disposable scouts

>>83787938
No. The Diamond Authority seems to be composed of petty prima donna dictators, easily thwarted technology, and astoundingly stupid troops.

Cluster could've been hype, but then it was remedied in like a minute and will probably be the ace up the CG's sleeve so Steven won't have to actually kill any of the bad guys.

>>83788261
So I gotta ask; What the hell would have been a better solution for the Cluster? What would have been acceptable?

>>83791142
Nothing really. It was the most logical solution given the constraints of the show.

>>83791242
It's just a bit annoying to have people act like there was ever a possibility for much more to spawn from this.

It couldn't have formed because that would mean earth would be destroyed, which isn't going to happen, especially not right at the beginning of season 3. So it's doomed to be nothing more than large ball of shards during this encounter, so that leaves the only options to be contain or shatter, and I doubt people would have been satisfied with the shatter option either (it possibly would have been acceptable to them if it was accomplished through a Steven + Peridot fusion, but it seemed too early for that to happen anyway considering Peri doesn't even have a proper weapon yet) Yet people act like it was somehow a huge letdown. I just don't understand what people expected.

>>83791411
Kinda the same but I also understand some of the letdown. There was a lot of build up and different characters reminding us that it MUST be destroyed. So when it didn't happen with absolute zero spectacular fireworks the end of this whole cluster arc, I could see why it invited some negative reactions.

But yeah personally I think this was the best solution. Very much in tune with the show and a pacifist character like Steven. We've also been reminded before that these were former crystal gems, so having two present CG attacking the cluster without showing any mercy or emphaty wouldn't be okay. And basically everything else you stated already, but I have a gut feeling this won't be the last thing we hear or see about the cluster anyway.

Also honestly I love the interaction between Steven and Peridot and the sincere feelings we've seen these characters display during this episode, the most. Looking back at it, it still makes me smile and feel complete warmth

>>83791911
That's fair I guess.

>I have a gut feeling this won't be the last thing we hear or see about the cluster anyway.

If this was the last we heard of the cluster, then I would totally be on board with the disappointment. There are too many signs pointing towards the cluster being a future ally/superweapon to simply wave it off.

>>83791911
>But yeah personally I think this was the best solution. Very much in tune with the show and a pacifist character like Steven.
And also the most logical. The way they handled the cluster was unlike anything we've seen before, but all the elements that make it possible were established well in advance, and it's the exact sort of thing that Steven would try to do if he could. Plot twists that take existing story elements and put them together in new and unexpected ways are always nice.

Honestly, it would've been more of an asspull if they were actually capable of harming or destroying it somehow. Having Steven encounter someone he can't talk down and has to destroy is a perfectly workable idea, but if Steven Universe is going to have a "main character is forced to grow up and accept a harsh reality" plotline, the dose of reality needs to make more sense than the alternative.

>>83791411
Eh one of the major gem technologies in the show that we've seen is the Warp Pad network

There's an entire system of them spread around the Earth, the Gems could have teleported the Cluster to space or something to let it form

>>83792541
Maybe I should have said logical too, because what you're saying is completely true

>>83791142
>>83791242
>>83791411
>>83791911
>>83792541
It was a good ep but I think it could have been better if either:

- They had a way in mind to stop it from the get go (use Alexandrite to break it up? drill a hole in it and drop in the Shooting Star a la Armageddon? Some Star Trek inverse tachyon beam-type plan from Peridot?)

- They had played up the fact that even with the drill they had no way to stop it a bit in advance

Either could have increased the tension a bit and made Steven's solution a bit more satisfying, the reveal in the middle of the ep that no one had thought about it just made the Gems seem stupid especially when you think back to how they prepared leading up to The Return - definitely made me enjoy it a little less. Conclusion was good with the idea of having the shards bubble each other preventing it from coming across as an asspull in a way that a "Steven has some gay ass anime vision quest' ending very easily could have

There will never be another moment like Ocean Gem provided, no. It's the moment where the show reveals it's hand after 25 episodes of charming slice-of-life comedy and light action/adventure. They're never going to be able to recapture that "oh shit, there's a lot more going on here than first appeared" feeling again because it's impossible.