Steven Universe Future Reveals Pink Diamond Was Even Worse Than We Thought
by Reuben BaronWARNING: The following contains spoilers for the Steven Universe Future episode "Volleyball."
It's been obvious to longtime Steven Universe viewers that Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz was a complicated character, to say the least. While she was the beloved leader of the Crystal Gems, she was also a manipulative liar who kept humans in zoos and cruelly abandoned friends. The Steven Universe Future episode "Volleyball" contains even bigger revelations about her sordid past and the crimes she never answered for but her loved ones now have the burden of dealing with.
Simply put, Pink Diamond was a domestic abuser. That isn't even presented through the guise of some sort of fantasy metaphor like most of the other times Steven Universe has dealt with upsetting adult themes. Pink had a horrible temper (something already hinted at in the dream sequence in "Jungle Moon"), and she would beat up her original Pearl so badly that not even Steven's healing spit can heal her physically manifesting psychological wounds.
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The Crystal Gems' Pearl had a very different, and mostly more positive, relationship with Pink/Rose. If Pink couldn't control her emotions around her original Pearl (whom Steven nicknames "Volleyball" in this episode for ease of distinguishing between the two), she was too secretive and emotionally withholding around her later Pearl. Because of this, Pearl initially doesn't believe Volleyball's claims, and their argument frustrates Steven so much that, with his newly activating powers, he accidentally traps the two Pearls in a regenerator, a scary parallel for how his mother could "accidentally" brutalize others in her anger.
Trapped together, Pearl apologizes to Volleyball for disbelieving her, accepting that just because she knew one side of Pink/Rose doesn't mean she couldn't have behaved different at other times with other people. Together, they escape the regenerator by forming a giant fusion. It's notable that the Pearl fusion is designed to look like a fusion between Utena and Anthy from Revolutionary Girl Utena, an anime about overcoming abuse that's been a significant influence on Steven Universe.
Volleyball's story is only the most dramatic example of Pink Diamond's big, consistent problem of treating other intelligent beings as lesser-than and disposable. Beating up Volleyball, abandoning Spinel and enslaving humans are different examples of her exhibiting the same pathology as the other Diamonds. As Rose Quartz, she might have changed her behavior, but unlearning these attitudes was a lifetime struggle (even with the love of her life Greg Universe, it took effort for her to see him as an equal). Actually facing the consequences of her past sins was something she avoided, which has caused constant trouble for her son Steven.
Steven Universe isn't a show that really does traditional villains. Everyone has been shown to be redeemable, even the Diamonds. Whether or not redemption is possible, however, there is still the question of whether forgiveness is always achievable or deserved. Even with Volleyball now dealing with her trauma, Pink Diamond's left scars that might not ever heal.
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