Steven Universe is about a boy raised by three alien women in a seaside town. The Crystal Gems are magical beings whose bodies are projections from gemstones, and long ago they rebelled against their own empire to protect Earth. Steven's mother, Rose Quartz, led that rebellion, then gave up her physical form to bring him into the world. He has her gem in his belly button and no idea what he's supposed to do with it.
Rebecca Sugar created the series for Cartoon Network, making her the first woman to create a series for the network solo. It premiered in 2013, ran for five seasons until 2019, and was followed by a feature-length musical film and the epilogue series Steven Universe Future. It's widely remembered for its songs, its gentle approach to conflict, and its LGBTQ+ representation, which was groundbreaking for a children's cartoon at the time.
- Creator
- Rebecca Sugar
- Network
- Cartoon Network
- Run
- 2013–2019 (main series)
- Follow-ups
- Steven Universe: The Movie (2019), Steven Universe Future (2019–2020)
- Setting
- Beach City, Delmarva
The Crystal Gems
The Crystal Gems began as Rose Quartz's rebels and became Steven's family. The original trio raise him, and more Gems join as the series goes on, mostly former enemies who discover Earth is worth protecting.
Steven Universe
Half-human, half-Gem
Steven is the cheerful, kind son of Greg Universe and Rose Quartz. His powers include a shield, healing spit and the ability to fuse, and they tend to show up when he's protecting someone. He starts as a boy who wants to be like the Gems and becomes the person who brings an end to an ancient war through empathy rather than force. Future then looks at what that responsibility has cost him.
- Voice
- Zach Callison
Garnet
Leader of the Crystal Gems
Garnet is calm, confident and almost always right, partly because she has future vision. She's the team's strongest fighter and Steven's steadiest role model. In season one, the show reveals that she's a fusion of Ruby and Sapphire, two Gems who chose to stay together. To Garnet, being a fusion is simply what love looks like.
- Voice
- Estelle
Amethyst
Crystal Gem · Shapeshifter
Amethyst is the youngest Crystal Gem and the most fun: messy, food-loving and fond of shapeshifting for laughs. She was made on Earth in a Gem "Kindergarten" and came out smaller than intended, which haunts her. Her arc is about stopping comparing herself to the Gem she was supposed to be. She's Steven's closest thing to a big sister.
- Voice
- Michaela Dietz
Pearl
Crystal Gem · Swordswoman
Pearl is precise, anxious and devoted, a skilled sword fighter and engineer who was built to serve. She loved Rose Quartz completely, and much of her story is about grief and about building a self that doesn't depend on anyone else. She keeps one of the show's biggest secrets, and her songs are among its best.
- Voice
- Deedee Magno Hall
Lapis Lazuli
Water-controlling Gem
Lapis spent thousands of years trapped inside a mirror before Steven freed her. She can control vast amounts of water and is deeply traumatised, wary of everyone and desperate not to be used again. Her story deals with abuse, recovery and the right to walk away. She later lives in a barn with Peridot, which becomes one of the show's most loved settings.
- Voice
- Jennifer Paz
Peridot
Homeworld technician turned Crystal Gem
Peridot arrives as a snooty Homeworld technician sent to check on a buried weapon. Stranded on Earth, she slowly realises she likes it there, and her defection culminates in a memorable call to Yellow Diamond. She's the show's comic engine in later seasons, obsessed with a TV drama called Camp Pining Hearts, and she discovers she can bend metal.
- Voice
- Shelby Rabara
Bismuth
Blacksmith of the rebellion
Bismuth forged the Crystal Gems' weapons during the war. She was bubbled by Rose Quartz for thousands of years after proposing a weapon that could shatter Gems outright. Her return forces Steven to face the fact that his mother made hard and sometimes wrong choices, and her anger is treated as fair.
- Voice
- Uzo Aduba
Rose Quartz
Founder of the Crystal Gems
Rose is Steven's mother, seen in flashbacks and memories. Everyone remembers her as warm and loving, and the series slowly reveals how much she kept hidden. Her secret identity reframes the whole show, and Steven's arc is in part about refusing to inherit her mistakes.
- Voice
- Susan Egan
Homeworld and the Diamonds
Homeworld is the Gem empire, ruled by the Diamonds and organised by a strict caste system where each Gem has a fixed purpose. Its villains are rarely evil for the sake of it; most are trapped in roles they were made for.
White Diamond
Leader of the Diamond Authority
White Diamond is the oldest and most powerful Diamond, ruling from a gleaming ship and treating all other Gems as extensions of herself. She can drain colour and will from Gems to control them. She's the series' final obstacle, and her defeat comes from Steven making her see herself clearly.
- Voice
- Christine Ebersole
Yellow Diamond
Diamond · Military commander
Yellow Diamond is the efficient, impatient ruler who wants Earth destroyed. Her coldness turns out to be a way of not feeling grief for the Diamond she believed was shattered. She's one of the clearest examples of how the show turns villains into people.
- Voice
- Patti LuPone
Blue Diamond
Diamond · Mourner
Blue Diamond is consumed by sorrow for her lost sister and projects it as a wave of sadness everyone around her feels. She's gentler than Yellow and more willing to listen, which makes her the first Diamond Steven reaches.
- Voice
- Lisa Hannigan
Jasper
Homeworld warrior
Jasper is a powerful quartz soldier who fought in the war and despises the Crystal Gems. She's obsessed with strength and with Pink Diamond's memory. Her toxic fusion with Lapis, Malachite, is one of the show's darkest storylines.
- Voice
- Kimberly Brooks
Spinel
Villain of the movie
Spinel is a cartoonish, rubbery Gem who was abandoned in a garden for six thousand years by Pink Diamond. She arrives in the film bent on revenge, and her story is about what it feels like to be forgotten by someone you loved.
- Voice
- Sarah Stiles
Blue Pearl and Yellow Pearl
Diamond attendants
The Pearls who serve Blue and Yellow Diamond. They begin as near-silent servants and show small signs of personality as the Diamonds change, a quiet reflection of the series' larger story about freedom.
The fusions
Fusion is when two or more Gems, or Gems and humans, dance together and merge into a new being. The show uses it as a metaphor for relationships of all kinds. A healthy fusion is balanced and happy; an unhealthy one is a trap.
Stevonnie
Steven and Connie
A tall, graceful teenager formed by Steven and Connie. Stevonnie experiences the world as a new person, and the show treats them as non-binary. Their first appearance is one of the series' landmark episodes.
Opal
Amethyst and Pearl
A serene, four-armed archer who only holds together when Amethyst and Pearl are getting along, which is not always.
Sugilite
Garnet and Amethyst
A huge, wild fusion with a wrecking ball, who enjoys being fused far too much and refuses to un-fuse.
Sardonyx
Garnet and Pearl
A theatrical showwoman with a hammer. Pearl's secret attempts to form her bring one of the show's best conflicts.
Malachite
Lapis and Jasper
A monstrous fusion created when Lapis traps Jasper under the ocean. A picture of mutual destruction.
Alexandrite
Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl
The full Crystal Gems in one giant body, with several mouths and very strong opinions.
Smoky Quartz
Steven and Amethyst
A yo-yo-wielding comedian built from shared insecurity and humour.
Obsidian
Steven and all the Crystal Gems
A giant fusion that appears late in the series and resembles the Crystal Gems' temple.
Beach City and Steven's family
Beach City is a small seaside town on the fictional Delmarva peninsula. Its residents start as background comedy and become a community, which is a big part of why the show feels so warm.
Greg Universe
Steven's dad
Greg is a former rock musician who now runs a car wash and lived in his van for years. He's a relaxed, deeply loving father, honest about his limits and always on Steven's side. His flashback episodes, about meeting Rose and giving up his career, are some of the most affecting in the show.
- Voice
- Tom Scharpling
Connie Maheswaran
Steven's best friend
Connie is a bookish, serious girl who becomes Steven's best friend, training partner and eventual girlfriend. Trained in sword fighting by Pearl, she wields Rose's sword. She's sheltered at first and grows into someone who chooses her own path, including pushing back on her strict parents.
- Voice
- Grace Rolek
Lars Barriga
Donut shop clerk
Lars is a sulky teenager who works at the Big Donut and is embarrassed by everything, especially Steven. A dramatic turn in space gives him one of the show's biggest transformations, literally and emotionally.
- Voice
- Matthew Moy
Sadie Miller
Donut shop clerk
Sadie is Lars' sweet, patient coworker and longtime crush. Her arc, which ends with her breaking free of a job and a mother that boxed her in, mirrors the show's broader interest in finding your own voice.
- Voice
- Kate Micucci
Ronaldo Fryman
Conspiracy blogger
Ronaldo runs a blog about the town's supernatural events and is usually wrong in the details while being right about the big picture. He's a gentle parody of online fandom.
Lion
Steven's pet
A giant pink lion with a pocket dimension in his mane. He never speaks and has a mysterious history with Rose Quartz.
Steven Universe voice cast
The show's cast includes several Broadway and music performers, which made its many songs possible.
| Character | Voice actor | Also known for |
|---|---|---|
| Steven Universe | Zach Callison | Sofia the First |
| Garnet | Estelle | Singer, "American Boy" |
| Amethyst | Michaela Dietz | Voice work |
| Pearl | Deedee Magno Hall | Broadway, The Party (Disney) |
| Greg Universe | Tom Scharpling | The Best Show podcast |
| Connie Maheswaran | Grace Rolek | Voice work |
| Lapis Lazuli | Jennifer Paz | Miss Saigon |
| Peridot | Shelby Rabara | Stage and voice work |
| Bismuth | Uzo Aduba | Orange Is the New Black |
| Rose Quartz / Pink Diamond | Susan Egan | Megara in Disney's Hercules |
| Yellow Diamond | Patti LuPone | Evita, Sweeney Todd |
| Blue Diamond | Lisa Hannigan | Irish singer-songwriter |
| White Diamond | Christine Ebersole | Grey Gardens (Broadway) |
| Spinel | Sarah Stiles | Broadway |
| Lars Barriga | Matthew Moy | 2 Broke Girls |
| Sadie Miller | Kate Micucci | Garfunkel and Oates |
All Steven Universe character names A–Z
A–B
- Alexandrite — fusion
- Amethyst — Crystal Gem
- Bismuth — Crystal Gem
- Blue Diamond — Diamond
- Blue Pearl — Homeworld
C–J
- Connie Maheswaran — human
- Garnet — Crystal Gem / fusion
- Greg Universe — human
- Jasper — Homeworld
L–O
- Lapis Lazuli — Crystal Gem
- Lars Barriga — human
- Lion — pet
- Malachite — fusion
- Obsidian — fusion
- Opal — fusion
P–R
- Pearl — Crystal Gem
- Peridot — Crystal Gem
- Pink Diamond — Diamond
- Ronaldo Fryman — human
- Rose Quartz — Crystal Gem
- Ruby — half of Garnet
S
- Sadie Miller — human
- Sapphire — half of Garnet
- Sardonyx — fusion
- Smoky Quartz — fusion
- Spinel — movie villain
- Steven Universe — protagonist
- Stevonnie — fusion
- Sugilite — fusion
W–Y
- White Diamond — Diamond
- Yellow Diamond — Diamond
- Yellow Pearl — Homeworld
What the characters are really about
Steven Universe asks how you deal with people who have hurt you, and how you take responsibility for harm you didn't cause. Its answer is usually conversation rather than combat:
- Steven inherits his mother's war and her mistakes, and tries to fix them by understanding his enemies.
- The Gems are a found family of very different people, each healing from something.
- Peridot, Lapis and the Diamonds show that enemies can become something else, a running theme our guide to redemption arcs covers.
- Fusion lets the show talk about love, consent and toxic relationships in a way younger viewers can follow.
Rebecca Sugar came to the show from Adventure Time, and its influence shows up in later series like The Owl House. For more from the network, see our Cartoon Network characters guide.
Watch order
- Seasons 1–5 — the main series. Season one is slow, but its back half sets up everything; the story accelerates from season two.
- Steven Universe: The Movie (2019) — a musical set two years after the finale, introducing Spinel.
- Steven Universe Future (2019–2020) — a twenty-episode epilogue about Steven as a teenager dealing with the aftermath.
Frequently asked questions
Who are the main Steven Universe characters?
Steven Universe and the three Crystal Gems who raise him: Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. His father Greg and best friend Connie are the main humans. Lapis Lazuli, Peridot and Bismuth join the team later, and the four Diamonds of Homeworld are the main antagonists.
What is Garnet a fusion of?
Garnet is a permanent fusion of Ruby and Sapphire, two Gems who fell in love. The show reveals this in season one and builds one of its most celebrated episodes around how they first met.
Who is Steven's mom?
Rose Quartz, leader of the Crystal Gem rebellion, who gave up her physical form to give birth to Steven. Later in the series it's revealed that Rose was originally Pink Diamond, one of Homeworld's rulers, who faked her own shattering to protect Earth.
Who voices Steven Universe?
Zach Callison voices Steven. Estelle voices Garnet, Michaela Dietz voices Amethyst, Deedee Magno Hall voices Pearl, Tom Scharpling voices Greg and Grace Rolek voices Connie.
Who is the strongest character in Steven Universe?
White Diamond is presented as the most powerful being in the series, able to drain the colour and will from other Gems. Among the Crystal Gems, Garnet is generally the strongest fighter, and fusions like Alexandrite and Obsidian are stronger still.
What order should I watch Steven Universe in?
Watch the five seasons of the main series, then Steven Universe: The Movie (2019), then the epilogue series Steven Universe Future (2019–2020). The movie and Future follow directly from the main finale.