What could #StevenBomb mean?

#StevenBomb wrapped a lot of stuff up with some fairly lore-heavy episodes, but it still left us with some unanswered questions about more of the backstory. Even more interesting, however, are the questions about where the show will take us from here.

Since we have a couple big questions, we’ll get our thoughts out about these questions out over the next couple of weeks. These posts will be linked to in the master speculation post, here, while our thoughts about the backstory we feel more confident in will go in the master lore implications post.

The nature of the Crystal Gem Rebellion

We know about when it was and why it happened, and even a good theory about how it ended, but we have little information about how it was actually fought. The mural from Serious Steven gives a very interesting implication about at least one foe the Crystal Gems may have defeated, but it’s only barely been teased at so far.

What will happen in season two?

We have a few interesting potential threats floating around: Peridot, Malachite especially. There are also several plot threads from season one that have yet to be resolved, and it’s anyone’s guess which ones will turn out to be significant. Still, assumptions can be made.

The homeworld: its rulers

• Strength means power
• Fusions are looked down on

The Diamond Authority (and props to the Gems if they actually use that name for their ruling body) is probably a small collection of the most powerful Gems in existence. Rose Quartz may actually have been one, but that’s another speculation for another time.

The homeworld: its current state

• Technology has definitely advanced in effectiveness, not just in appearance
• The homeworld is probably still weak

On second examination, this seems to fit better with speculation than with more likely lore implications. It certainly won’t be going onto the Backstory page until we learn more, so its proper place is here.

Jasper implied a lot about the homeworld in just a few words about fusions, and the Quartizine Trio couldn’t even scratch the paint on Peridot’s ship. Most importantly, however, Jasper was the only escort sent with Peridot; she expected to face much more serious resistance from the Crystal Gems – a larger remnant of her army and (she hoped) Rose Quartz herself – but was not even being a match for Garnet (i.e. one strong soldier).

It could be overconfidence, since Jasper seemed insulted by the weak state of the Crystal Gems rather than relieved, but sending one Gem and one ship to take care of an army still seems quite bold if they have the resources available to send more.