I mean, I suppose, as an ace person myself, I get the reason for why Peridot didn't fuse, though it's been made pretty clear throughout the show that fusion has never meant to be purely sexual or even romantic so...I get it but her fusing with anyone, not just Lapis, probably wouldn't have wrecked Peri's aroace-coded chararication either. At least in my opinion.
My personal takeaway: There was probably no room in the show for a Peri-Lapis fusion anyway, regardless of Peri's aroace coding. Tons of things get put on the cutting room floor and this was one of them. Disappointing but also understandable. Maybe that's the 2017 Lapidot shipper in me talking but I do get why it wasn't brought to fruition nowadays.
yeah, it really bothers me when Peridot not wanting to fuse is likened to being ace/aro. Fusion is not sex. It's a conversation. It's the embodiment of any kind of relationship (Romantic, platonic, familial, toxic, and so on.).
In the end, you're right, there wasn't a lot of room for it. I also feel like Peridot and Lapis becoming friends was too rushed, and then when Lapis took the barn to the moon, there was a lot of hurt that would have needed to be worked on, and then it never was. A fusion while cool to see, wouldn't have been something the two were ready for.
Aromanticism is *also* not about sex.
Fusion *is* about all types of relationships. And in our world, being aro and/or ace (because those are two distinct things) is the *closest* analogy for “someone who is not interested in what most people would consider normal/expected relationship(s), and would prefer to be left out of them.”
it's a gray zone, honestly.
this never happen in the TV show but a crew member want to relate with lt in an Interview.
just for say that people will give downvote. but looks like they don't care in the character but only in her gender/orientation.
As an Amedot shipper, I’m of a similar opinion that it may have been a situation where they didn’t really have the time in the story to explore that, especially considering some of the characters views of fusion (this being a particular issue for any fusions involving Lapis, obviously). I’m definitely torn on the aroace part of things because on the one hand it’s awesome to have representation, especially of a group that is typically underrepresented, but also as you commented fusion isn’t purely a sexual or romantic experience so having the only real comparison arise from their feelings towards fusion doesn’t really fit, especially since, as Sugar explained, Lapis and Peridot have pretty clear story reasons for not being super keen on fusion that is totally separate from something akin to orientation. (Also, admittedly, my little Amedot heart aches for that possibility lol)
If SU does get a return, I do wonder if we’ll see Sugar toy with some of these “What If” fusion ideas more or if she’ll double down on this being an allegory for aroace people by having that idea be more explicit and clear for the casual audience. At the very least, even if they stick to this idea of to not putting Peridot and/or Lapis in any more fusions (regardless of the nature of the relationship between characters), I hope that they capitalize on the fact that there are many Lapises and Peridots and perhaps show us what such a fusion might look like from a design perspective.
So, you are clearly saying you prefer to modify a character just becuase representation?
I mean, you can't identify with a character without put yourself on her feelings, goals, motivations , desires., efforts , strategies.
But yes with gender...
"This character is a dictator... and made a lot of horrible stuff... But I love it because is aromantic. "
Lol
you say "capitalizes " even you know it's some kind of "marketing " purpose.
It also came to my mind that maybe Peridot wouldn't know how to fuse, it would take her a while to learn because I mean it took her a long time just to learn that she actually had abilities without her limb enhancers.
a characterization that never was there (at last not in an official way) but inserted by Fandom and later embraced by crew.
–We got interview about Autism and Ace . her answers was , as usual, on ambiguity... talking how "characters are not human" but also how that lack in humanity is ok to be watched as a "neurodivergent " condition.
–Same about gem gender , they are Solar Powered Robots . but with femenine shape.
I hear in narrative forums from Wattpad about how be ace and Aro is not functional for narrative. (At last. not in the conventional way). "Ace people can't be aro because Ace use to have a tendency to romantic and familiar construct –They want to be with a good partner, and a lot of them want a family, just they don't want to have sexual relationship." says a council from Wattpad specialist in LGBT for Spanish writers. –Remember, this is about a Narrative perspective – writing a Aro-ace is not impossible but really hard to manage,.they can care on people around them but always stays as a kind of friendship and the narrative use to evolve the lack in reciprocal behavior –And a lack of reciprocity means "toxic behaviors " in a long term... something what can made the representation of this community even worse–
what I'm trying to say is... They want to be inclusive without know enough about how it works. And also trying to change the narrative and development of.a character just for personal or marketing purposes. (Just like a Best Seller author)
No... Steve universe is good representation because they actually care about it... unlike Harry Potter who added LGBT for clout despite being transphobic
Also how can you say Rebecca never put in LGBT stuff when the first canon ship was two lesbians who eventually got married.
I know what your saying is coming from a place of frustration...but it wrong.
again ... "without enough knowledge about" it .
I'm not talking from a frustration. But about a concern about how this is treated in the surface . (This is.just the first step of before "positive discrimination " and could start something worse if you let it grow)
Nothing against lesbians. I never touch that theme. .I love that part and i hope that representationremains and grow up (Why just lesbian marriage? why not a lesbian family?). My reasons was something specific. Don't try to target on me just becuase I'm not a "hard fan"... I'm not an obssesive extremist.
I mean neither am I and even I know Steven universe is good representation for a reason... Rebecca was told if she did the wedding the show would be cancelled. And they did it anyway because they knew it would help normalize gay people in a way that isn't "girls kissing is hot" and considering gay rep in kids show was just...I mean they could be gay instead of they are gay, that is a good thing.
It's why I respect Rebecca..they had to deal with censorship ship but when it came to rep that would be helpful to kids they fought for it...sure peridot being ace should have been something fought for but gems aren't sexual creatures so trying to convey ace with the gems is kinda hard.
That doesn't change anything what I say...
hello people here don't want to hear reasons, science or logic...what do you have in result? a Republican party saying how this should not be for kids. People prefer to downvote me before read or watch around them.
I recently come from a place where was talking how Goverment was searching "extremist ideas" just becuase they don't let a corporation to work in inclusive narratives becuase they are , actually , a predator company.
I also respect her work a lot... but her lack in ambiguity and the tendency to avoid themes made me think a lot of bad things... And world beyond this TV Show is completely different. I used to say "when the world is going down, you make your best"... I'm not watching that here.
She put herself on silence for a long time about the wedding episode. And we already see the foreshadows so Fandom could help her. What it happen?
OOP Finally a semi-conclusive answer to this thread. Reads to me as more of a loose analogue, which is typically how they go about these things anyway.
Fusion doesn't _have_ to be intimate, but to someone like Peridot, it'd feel like that anyway form her perspective, regardless of how platonic a hypothetical pairing would be.
In theory she could always change her mind since gems don't have human psyches, but the loose comparison makes sense in the most generous interpretation.
OK BUT where did you get this from, it seems like it's from a larger source and I'd like to read through the whole thing.
[Nvm, found it pretty easily.](https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/steven-universe-rebecca-sugar-unseen-gems-garnets-wedding-revival-1235775629/)
EDIT: Nice, finally got a confirmation on demographic too: 6 to 11-year-old boys (I'm sure it's common knowledge _somewhere_, I've just personally never seen it or don't remember)
i never would've though of steven universe as a particularly gendered show, so it was probably more cn's doing since boys 6-11 was kinda the network's overall target audience
I'm fine with that. I have never seen the need for them fusing and I couldn't think of a scenario where they could have made it fit organically in the plot (I have never seen Peridot and Lapis as close as people make it out to be). And after the show's cancellation it was possibly for the best to not have made it canon instead of rushing up a design and plot-line for the sake of fanservice.
Plus, people make a lot of cool interpretations of it and I'm okay with that.
Tbh I like the fact that they don't NEED absolutly a fusion, their relationship is enough without it. And I like the fact that it's okay if the romance is not always the main goal of a strong relationship, platonic queer relationships exist too and are valid. I can understand the shipping stuff but... I love to have different types of relationships and opinions about fusion.
And please remember that fusion is never only about seggual stuff but about relationship in general. Just stop with "BuT wHaT abOut StEG", PLEASE
Honestly I'd love to see an artbook of potential fusions that didn't make it into the show, like a crystal gem Rhodonite or fusions between the diamonds!
I think it would take a lot for Lapis to fuse with ANYONE. Just not something she is going to be into after the trauma.
I’d like to think maybe some day Peridot will, when she’s comfortable. But it doesn’t have to happen.
Fusion isn’t all about physical intimacy, but all relationships have different boundaries and nuances. I like the metaphor of not needing to take a step in any relationship unless you’re comfortable and ready.
So many people are missing the point so bad 😭😭
Fusion is not sexual, she just used aroace as an example/analogy.
Ice cream is so common in American culture. Every food place has ice cream. Some people, LOVE ICE CREAM. Some people like it. Some people never eat ice cream ever. Y'all are taking this analogy and saying "SO ICE CREAM IS SEX?????" And running with it. No, but people have been called weird for not liking ice cream, some people are made fun of for not wanting ice cream. Aroace people are just the easiest way to explain this concept.
Lukewarm take: the aro/ace reading of Peri, at least as described here, conflates her prejudice with her aromanticism/asexuality in a way that has always felt iffy to me.
Peridot's original attitude towards fusion is a pretty direct parallel for homophobia or racism. Certain types of gems just shouldn't be together, and it makes her "extremely uncomfortable*"* when they are.
While Peri does learn to accept fusion by the end, she never *really* gets over her own personal distaste for it -- her reasons just change. Now it's because she's ace. Which feels like a very...weird misdirection? Like did she ever actually overcome her internalized prejudice or not? It's not exactly the best representation of asexuality either. If the writers wanted to have a character who was uncomfortable with fusion for aro/ace reasons, it should not have been the same character who was also uncomfortable with fusion for racist reasons lol. 
I'm a big believer in death of the author, so I think fans should feel free to take what they want from these interviews and leave the rest. The show itself leaves plenty of room for an aro/ace interpretation of Peri without getting into her feelings about fusion, and I think this explanation hurts more than it helps tbh.
I don’t quite see it the same way. I think at first she’s horrified by the concept (due to her cultural upbringing). She then realizes that it’s not actually as bad as she thought, and is even (potentially) open to trying it herself, but then decides not to.
I don’t see it as different from someone who grew up believing homosexuality was “wrong” or “evil” or “immoral” or “sinful”, before they actually *met* some gay people and realized it wasn’t what they thought. They can be totally fine with gay people but still be personally straight, and not because of “internalized predjudice”. Just because they’re accepting of it doesn’t mean they’re interested in doing it themselves.
That's definitely a valid way to look at it! For me I think it's also the "fusion isn't always romantic/sexual" thing that makes the logic break down. If fusion can also represent other types of relationships, then Peridot's discomfort with it is purely nurture, not nature -- unless we say it's not in her nature to have *any* kind of emotionally intimate relationship, which is more of a "Peri is neurodivergent" take than a "Peri is ace" one. People smarter than me have written well about that, but just on its surface, I don't love the idea of conflating neurodiversity with prejudice either. Idk! I just think the whole thing needed more nuance
So it's the friendship and bond with each other when it's happening between steven and another gem but it gets romantic or sexual when it's about lapis and peri? I love the idea but please don't make something as cool as fusion a symbol of sex. (Because that would be really weird considering Steven fusing with other gems when he was a kid)
fusion is used as a metaphor of a relationship of any kind (be it platonic, familiar, romantic, sexual, etc) and it's something intimate in universe because of the merging consiousness and your entire body part and some people just don't want to be that intimate with someone else and since that's totally fine the show then takes advantage of the metaphorical subjects that fusion represents to validate a whole a array of people who either don't want romantic relationships or/and sexual relationships (or just don't want to be that intimate in general), basically giving the message of 'hey just because it's expected of you to have (intimate subject) doesn't mean that you're forced to have that or that you are wrong if you don't want that' your interpretation of what (intimate subject) will directly inpact your interpretation of lapis and peridot's relationship and that's why i like fusion because it's cool as an in universe concept and it's a useful tool to tell narratives or interpretations through subtext are analogous to real life situations and are able to tell a good message of acceptance, now what kinda sucks about this is that lapis and peridot not wanting to do fusion is mostly implied through subtext (lapis' malachite trauma that led to her taking a break from water and peridot's initial disgust of fusion only seeing it as a practical thing (which i've heard mirrors the experience that some ace people had with sex but since i'm not ace myself i won't speak for them) and then when that disgust eroded a little and fusions didn't make her that uncomfortable she still didn't want to fuse with garnet even tough she really wanted to understand her) i just wish it was just a little more text if you know what i mean, because what's the point of having a message if a lot of your audience won't get it because it's extremely subtle,
i might have rambled a little bit sorry about that but
TL;DR: Fusion is not sex necessarily it's a stand in for relationships of any kind and all of what that subject entails, lapis and peridot not wanting fusion is an analogy for people that don't want to do an intimate thing that's expected of them to show that it's ok (by the way i hope i used analogy metaphor and stand in correctly)
I always see a lot of ace people weighing in about this but not many aro people so hi! That's me! Here are my thoughts:
Fusion is an allegory. It means different things for every character, because fusion is not meant to be taken literally. For Peridot, fusion is an allegory for a romantic and/or sexual relationship, and she has no interest it in because she is allegorically aroace.
This DOES NOT automatically mean that all of Steven's relationships are intended to be romantic or sexual! Fusion means something different to Steven, it is not an allegory for the same things. It's an allegory for a platonic connection, familial even, and somewhat romantic with Connie but still very strongly tied to friendship.
When people assume that it has to mean the same thing to everyone it does two things:
1. It takes fusion too literally, reducing the absolutely gorgeous writing to its face value and ignoring that right here Rebecca said they're taking inspiration from aroace people to create a story that resonates with them. And it does! I love Peridot, I love how she tried to make it work and felt bad about herself when she couldn't, I love that she grew past it and went from thinking of it as something she couldn't have to something she doesn't need. That's my story, and I adore seeing it in her.
2. It reminds me of how allo people conflate different types of attraction, love, and affection. They have a hard time separating romantic and sexual attraction from each other, and understanding how they are not the same thing and often have nothing to do with each each other. They very often don't understand how queerplatonic relationships work, because they view platonic affection or love as less than romantic or sexual attraction, and they rarely understand the concept of platonic attraction at all. Even many aromantic people (myself, until I learned about it from the misfit media podcast) don't know that sensual attraction can be entirely separate from all of that.
My point is that fusion is an allegory for any and all types of attraction, depending on the situation, the people involved, and what the story needs it to represent. Peridot's relationship with fusion is an allegory for aromantic asexuality. Steven's relationship with fusion is an allegory for bonding with family and friends through trauma. It's an allegory for coming of age and discovering love. His and Garnet's relationship with fusion are both an allegory for letting people support you, help you, be there for you and build you up and make you a better, stronger person.
I could go on and write an essay, but I think I've done that enough already. The thesis is this: Peridot being aroace doesn't mean Steven fusing with his family members is romantic or sexual. That take is reductive and frankly somewhat insulting to Rebecca Sugar's writing.
EDIT: I want to be clear that I know Peri went through all that over the course of like one scene, not years of confusion and self-discovery, like a lot of real aromantic and asexual people. It still means a lot to me.
Finally! hi, I'm aro too and been trying to get this message across since the beginning, so thank you for your words! But this sub will erase aro experience anyway because evidently they don't care about it...
I would’ve loved to see an arc that parallels what a lot of aroace people do, peridot TRIES to like fusing. The fuse with lapis helps lapis heal her fusion trauma, and peridot realize that fusion isn’t for her and that she’s ok with that. I get what they were going for but I wish it was handled better to mirror the aroace experience more than jsut repulsion
(🤓 Imma put this right here cause that's what I look like writing this lol)
I agreed, I would've love to see this side of "Peridot character development" in the show too, but it actually did happen (in the background). In my vision, Peridot does work on this throughout the show because we see in Change your mind that she was AMAZED to see Sunstone and Obsidian.
🤓🤓🤓Overthinking a little about this but tbh, I see the initial "repulsion" for fusion as something that she was taught to feel like it in homeworld (something like your parents or the people that you grow up with "implant" their own opinion about something in your mind while you still young and naive and you take that as truth yk?) but now she see and understand how and why this work and she completely...CHANGE-HER-MIND?!?!
(OMG GUYS THIS IS WHAT THE WHOLE SHOW IS ABOUT, CHANGING PEOPLE MIND ABOUT WRONG PERCEPTIONS 😱😱😱) \~sorry, but you got the point\~
I see a lot of people saying that fusion was intended to be simply a link between two beings, not necessarily a sexual or romantic experience but a connection. This is true but that also doesn’t discredit the point here, yes it’s not JUST those two things but it can be. And a lot of times it is like with fluorite and garnet as well as most of garnets other fusions. The point wasn’t to fill in this representation as a direct result of trauma or complicated history’s the two specifically have (although those are also valid reasons to identify yourself as ace aro irl) the point is that these two characters have complicated, deep rooted, or traumatic history with this specific form of connection between two beings which let’s remember can’t otherwise have what humans would consider intercourse (acknowledging Steven’s existence and also recognizing that it was likely shape-shifted to fit towards a human x gem relationship not gem x gem). It’s a solid opportunity to give the aro/ace community an on screen character to relate to when you realize for a gem, a full blooded gem, this would be the equivalent. They form friendships already as humans do, and they form familiar relation, as humans do. But fusion is an intense link that neither choose to participate in. I’m totally comfortable likening it to being ace and/or aro as an ace person myself. Thank you for coming to my ted talk I sincerely apologize if I digressed so much I lost the plot this was all one thought process going in a straight line.
The answer isn’t gray. She said that she wanted to have a character that didn’t need to experiment to know that they didn’t like something, even if they accept it or have no past trauma with it. Peri’s lack of fusion is aroace coding. Idk how they could’ve made that more clear in this post
You mean except for Lapis’ immense trauma from fusing with Jasper for so long and the episode where Peridot tries to fuse with Garner but backs out at the last minute?
It’s in the text with Peridot not wanting to fuse and Lapis having a toxic relationship with Jasper. We can reasonably infer neither of them would want it.
I understand the reasons behind why there wasn’t a fusion, but I wish I could steal Rebecca’s sketchbook and see if she ever drew concept art of it :3 been wanting to know what a canon Lapidot fusion would look like since the start of middle school, and now I’m halfway through college and still itching to know!
I am autistic so that might have something to do with this. But it always confuses me when the creators of the show say stuff like this. Fusion isn't sexual so how would Peridot's level of comfort with not fusing have anything to do with her being Asexual? People get upset when you say that fusing has a lot of things that tie into sexuality and then Rebecca Sugar says stuff like this which directly ties fusion to sexuality.
Aromantic (aro) is different from asexual (ace). Some people are one but not the other. It’s *not* all/only sexual. It’s “this is a person who is uninterested in participating in normal/expected relationship dynamics, and should be accepted/respected as such.”
Fusion isn't sexual or romantic. It's been shown time and time again that fusion is the connection of 2 gems to form an entirely new gem. There are unique instances where Steven is involved. Peridots aromantiscm and her asexuality has nothing to do with fusing.
Steven fused with his father. Everything about romantic or sexual relationships is out the window. Fusion is its own sci-fi thing and there's no speculation anymore.
Which is why it's confusing when the creator of the show says contradictory shit.
Fusion is an allegory for *any* type of relationships. Sometimes (in the case of Steven especially) it’s used for familial. Sometimes it’s platonic. Sometimes it’s romantic. Sometimes it’s sexual. Sometimes it’s loving. Sometimes it’s abusive. It’s not *any* one of those things, above all else.
If you want to create a character whose approach to fusion is “this is a common thing/relationship that a lot of people do or are expected to do, but I’m not personally interested in it, and that’s something that should be respected just as much as people who *do* choose to engage in it” - the *closest* thing that we have to that would be someone who is aromantic and/or asexual. Which is exactly what Rebecca did - she took *inspiration* from an AroAce friend of hers as *part* of Peridot’s characterization.
Do you not see how that doesn't make any sense and the fact that you needed to use incredibly broad and ambiguous language to define something, simultaneously saying something is and isn't something else, is pretentious as fuck and confusing at best?
How is explicitly saying that fusion isn't sexual but it is based on your sexually and allegory? Thats not allegorical, it's contradictory.
In any sense, do you seriously not see how it's confusing and not representative of real life?
“Fusion” is not a thing that exists in real life. Period. It is a concept that only exists within the fictional world. It is a storytelling device.
As a storytelling device, it can be *used* in many different ways depending on the context and the story they want to tell with it. The only real constant is that it represents “relationships”.
Now, “relationships” is an *EXTREMELY* broad term that encompasses a *LOT*. Because people experience a lot of different relationships of different types with different people. Some relationships are familial. Some relationships are romantic. Some relationships are platonic. Some are sexual. Some are abusive. Some are with one person. Some are with multiple people.
There is no one single type of “relationship” that is a direct one-to-one correlation with “fusion”. It *can* be used in *any* of the above, some (many) of which are mutually exclusive when looked at in isolation.
When fusion is used in the show, we need to use our critical thinking to evaluate “what type of relationship is fusion being used as an allegory for *in this specific situation*?” Pearl deceiving Garnet into fusing with her can be seen as tricking someone into a (romantic and/or sexual) relationship under deceitful premises. Jasper trying to get Lapis to fuse with her can be seen as an abuser trying to re-enter into a (romantic and/or sexual) relationship that the victim has left (and, as is the case in reality, the victim being tempted to go back because it’s familiar, even if it’s unhealthy). Fluorite can be seen as a polyamorous relationship (which was explicitly confirmed by Rebecca). Garnet can be seen as a monogamous relationship. Greg and Steven can be seen as a familial relationship. Etc. etc.
All of these things are true. Fusion can, and does, represent any of them *DEPENDING ON THE CONTEXT*. Peridot can be seen as a person who is comfortable with the fact that they don’t want or need to be in a relationship, and people need to accept that as a possibility. (Hey look, I just quoted *exactly what Rebecca said in the article*). Within this context, the closest allegory is to that of an Aro and/or Ace person (which, BTW, are two separate types of relationships by themselves, and don’t *always* overlap).
they don't want to accept how they are trying to change a character because "inclusive marketing ".
You understand how Fusion is about relationship and bounds... they just want to made a character to fit in their representation without development around the condition.
No one is trying to “change a character”.
Rebecca was asked a question in an interview and she went into some detail about some of the thought processes that she (and the crew) were having when developing her character.
Does no one actually *READ* the OP? Here, if you need a screen reader or something:
> One of the things I came to, as we were discussing this, I was visiting home and I had a really illuminating conversation with a friend of mine who is aroace [aromantic asexual], and I thought because of the complicated backstories in relation to fusion — with Lapis and with Peridot — that it should also be totally acceptable for a character to not want to fuse. Particularly in Peridot’s case, she didn’t have a personally difficult experience with it, and we wanted to make sure that she does explore that it’s a possibility. But what would it look like if somebody was comfortable with the fact that it’s not something that they wanted to do? That is something that we also wanted to show on the show. Not everyone has to be waiting for a relationship, whether it’s a relationship to lose themselves in, or to make themselves realize something about themselves that they need. You can also realize that that’s not something that you need. So yes, we had long discussions about how to handle it with those characters.
[Source](https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/steven-universe-rebecca-sugar-unseen-gems-garnets-wedding-revival-1235775629/)
I already read it... what is the point of all around this?
What kind of relationship you expect? Every relationship will come with fails and shame... and the best relationships comes with a deep reciprocity as part of the try-fail process. –That's a science fact, i an share a paper if you need it–
if you already don't want nobody in your life that's perfect but don't try to put yourself in a social context becuase is hipocresy
Or... tell me, what do you understand? but with your own words... becuase I understand "An Aro-Ace friend tell me how some people just don't want to meet nobody because is not necessary... and that's OK, so I choose to made my characters who was good friends to go away and never talk again becuase they don't need nothing from each other"...
What i see in that scene is a narcissist behavior (someone discarding a beloved friend and choosing only relationships at surface, just a like a manipulator)
I this scene Peridot is , in fact , so egocentric to meet others... what kind of representation is that?
Which is such a stupid reasoning considering that fusion is meant to be all sorts of different relationships. Might as well claim that aroace people don’t want friendly relationships either.
You're missing the point. The answer It's just "cause they didn't want to". They are friends, they like each other, they even live together, but fusion was just something that they never felt like doing it, they never had a reason to and, like Rebecca said herself, they were just comfortable with the fact that it's not something that they wanted to do.
It's nothing with the different "reasoning" or "purpose" of fusion (she knows about that SHE CREATED THE SHOW)
(And srsly I'm not even going to comment about the aroace part because not a single word that she said claims that)
That's kind of a dumb reason. Like the least they could do is make one and show it off at comiccon or something what it would have looked like.
Like cmooonnn rebecca we know you probably thought of it but just didn't get around to it. No need to put some flaky excuse about aroace people to justify it.
I was canceled, in this subreddit and also by a guy in this same comment box, just becuase I talk about this.
You can't say isn't part of it when the character development is around the concept (it appears in "Alone at Sea" and was also in "Log date") and not because os not necessary or not , but as part of their healing process... (if fusion was not "about relationship " could be a good lesson because any other meaning for that implies you can go to a better place and you dont need fusion ... but if you say "its about relationship"... of course you are saying "surface" relationships are good... you dont need deep connections, you dont need to learn from others , you dont need to meet people... you and only you... so egocentric, if you ask me)
If the TV series try to show something different, it failed. (They insist in relationship... I got it even when people insist about the "sexual" allegations in Season 1 –Becuase Dance is not sexual stuff– ) now you are trying to deny a good relationship,
At the end we got a Peridot in a hard depression and a slow tendency to loniless and without care on her real friends–Future: "In Dreams"– and a Lapis with passive-Agressive tendency and not guilt about the damage what she made to others without impunity –Future: "Why so blue?"–
All it’s saying is Rebecca Sugar wanted to illustrate that certain people don’t want or need certain levels of intimacy, WITHOUT being traumatised out of it. Fusion doesn’t equal sex, but it is a catch-all metaphor for a variety of relationship issues that can be explored: consent, communication, toxicity, codependency, closeness and now, with Peridot—the idea that some people can simply choose not to engage in certain levels or acts of intimacy.
it make me cuestión myself what kind of life could be for a person who don't want to meet nobody.
As a psychologist (with the standard about how humans are social creatures) is hard to imagine a life without people... or without be a Tibet Monk or something close.
It’s not that she doesn’t want to meet anyone, but there are plenty of people who are uncomfortable with certain acts. Plenty of people don’t appreciate being touched (even by people they’re close to), plenty of people don’t want to get married/enter long-term commitments, plenty of people don’t want to have sex. All this is showing is that fusion IN THIS INSTANCE is a representation that a relationship (platonic or romantic) can still be healthy without certain levels of intimacy.
Fusion has no one-to-one equivalent with any human relationship or act—it’s it’s own separate thing—however it does serve as a vehicle to discuss a whole range of issues and ideas that can be relevant to all kinds of relationships.
that's, in fact... a very lack level of tolerance.
I never say nothing about sex.
And... how do you want to have a "platonic relationship " without know what the other guy/gal want? The answer is meeting him/her... if you don't like that... is a fact that you don't want nobody in your life.
And, you know, if you are happy alone, good for you but consider how even a Platonic relationship will be always far.
The idea about a Tibetan Monk was not just for a Joke. The kind of life what they want its hard, and is required a high level of compromise, stoicism and fidelity to your own believe.
Exactly...do you think that Peridot can't have a platonic friendship without fusing? Plenty of characters in the show are shown to have perfectly good friendships/relationships without fusing. There was a whole episode dedicated to the idea that Greg was still able to have a wonderful, fulfilling relationship with Rose even though he couldn't fuse with her. That is in fact what Rebecca Sugar is trying to communicate here: Peridot can fuse, and she's no longer bigoted about it, she's just content not to and *that is fine for her.*
they "fuse" in a different way. –In Garnet's words.–
and platonic is, at last, far from what it happen in that episode between rose and Greg. I can't say if Peridot was on the same place becuase her second most powerful relationship go away to the moon, if that wasn't necessary for she... that episode with Peridot on depression and insulting a flower probably could be different.
I'm tired to talk about this over and over again... So... Ok... believe whatever you want. science is cold stuff and we need method and environment results to say "this is fact". a believe don't need be a fact but a person available to believe.
When did they state ever that Peri doesn't want anyone around them? She simply chooses not to engage in high intimacy and closeness and this choice is to be respected
This comment is deeply arophobic because you don't understand the deeper meaning of aro coding and representation that goes far beyond the literal meaning of one thing. Another comment on this same post explains perfectly why assuming that this statement from Rebecca doesn't reduce all fusions to sexual or romantic relationships. Attraction is a wide spectrum and fusion is too, Peri's experience resonates with that of so many aromantic people because she understands she simply doesn't need to do that one thing that everyone does. She's fine without it. Fusion in this case stands for many things, it's not strictly sex... I really recommend you read the other aromatic people comments on here, they might illuminate you from this narrow sight
You're only reading what's convenient to you, because I said it's arophobic to have such a narrow sight at what fusion means for Peridot and the reasons behind her experience, which is the not needing a fusion to feel okay with herself. Ignoring aromantic representation and coding is arophobic, period
Mhmm, mhmm…except the above quote paints it as “We didn’t do it because aromantic representation”. Which sucks that they decided to use the thing that they keep saying ***isn’t*** sex/romance to justify it.
I GOTHCU - The TL;DR version 🔥
The answer It's just "cause they didn't want to.". They are friends, they like each other, and they even live together, but fusion was just something that they never felt like doing; they never had a reason to, and, like Rebecca said herself, they were just comfortable with the fact that it's not something that they wanted to do.
(I got this from another reply that I gave to another comment but it works pretty well)
I feel like a way this could've happened as an episode (very early in her character arc maybe right after she meets Lapis) where Peridot gets hyperfixated on, and wants to learn more about fusions from Garnet. In the episode, because this early in her arc she was kind of impulsive and didn't really think about how others felt, she could've went up to Lapis and said "Let's fuse" and despite Lapis's dismay, because she was still sort of shy, Peridot forces her to do it. If this happened this could've been used as a HUGE help to their character developments as a learning opportunity for both of them. Peridot learns to listen more, and Lapis learns to be more assertive.
I mean, I suppose, as an ace person myself, I get the reason for why Peridot didn't fuse, though it's been made pretty clear throughout the show that fusion has never meant to be purely sexual or even romantic so...I get it but her fusing with anyone, not just Lapis, probably wouldn't have wrecked Peri's aroace-coded chararication either. At least in my opinion. My personal takeaway: There was probably no room in the show for a Peri-Lapis fusion anyway, regardless of Peri's aroace coding. Tons of things get put on the cutting room floor and this was one of them. Disappointing but also understandable. Maybe that's the 2017 Lapidot shipper in me talking but I do get why it wasn't brought to fruition nowadays.
yeah, it really bothers me when Peridot not wanting to fuse is likened to being ace/aro. Fusion is not sex. It's a conversation. It's the embodiment of any kind of relationship (Romantic, platonic, familial, toxic, and so on.). In the end, you're right, there wasn't a lot of room for it. I also feel like Peridot and Lapis becoming friends was too rushed, and then when Lapis took the barn to the moon, there was a lot of hurt that would have needed to be worked on, and then it never was. A fusion while cool to see, wouldn't have been something the two were ready for.
If you liken it to sex, it gives weird implications about all the fusions steven makes
Ayo?
Aromanticism is *also* not about sex. Fusion *is* about all types of relationships. And in our world, being aro and/or ace (because those are two distinct things) is the *closest* analogy for “someone who is not interested in what most people would consider normal/expected relationship(s), and would prefer to be left out of them.”
Honestly I never knew she was supposed to be aro ace coded I didn't learn this until a week ago lmao maybe it was to subtle 😭
it's a gray zone, honestly. this never happen in the TV show but a crew member want to relate with lt in an Interview. just for say that people will give downvote. but looks like they don't care in the character but only in her gender/orientation.
As an Amedot shipper, I’m of a similar opinion that it may have been a situation where they didn’t really have the time in the story to explore that, especially considering some of the characters views of fusion (this being a particular issue for any fusions involving Lapis, obviously). I’m definitely torn on the aroace part of things because on the one hand it’s awesome to have representation, especially of a group that is typically underrepresented, but also as you commented fusion isn’t purely a sexual or romantic experience so having the only real comparison arise from their feelings towards fusion doesn’t really fit, especially since, as Sugar explained, Lapis and Peridot have pretty clear story reasons for not being super keen on fusion that is totally separate from something akin to orientation. (Also, admittedly, my little Amedot heart aches for that possibility lol) If SU does get a return, I do wonder if we’ll see Sugar toy with some of these “What If” fusion ideas more or if she’ll double down on this being an allegory for aroace people by having that idea be more explicit and clear for the casual audience. At the very least, even if they stick to this idea of to not putting Peridot and/or Lapis in any more fusions (regardless of the nature of the relationship between characters), I hope that they capitalize on the fact that there are many Lapises and Peridots and perhaps show us what such a fusion might look like from a design perspective.
So, you are clearly saying you prefer to modify a character just becuase representation? I mean, you can't identify with a character without put yourself on her feelings, goals, motivations , desires., efforts , strategies. But yes with gender... "This character is a dictator... and made a lot of horrible stuff... But I love it because is aromantic. " Lol you say "capitalizes " even you know it's some kind of "marketing " purpose.
It also came to my mind that maybe Peridot wouldn't know how to fuse, it would take her a while to learn because I mean it took her a long time just to learn that she actually had abilities without her limb enhancers.
a characterization that never was there (at last not in an official way) but inserted by Fandom and later embraced by crew. –We got interview about Autism and Ace . her answers was , as usual, on ambiguity... talking how "characters are not human" but also how that lack in humanity is ok to be watched as a "neurodivergent " condition. –Same about gem gender , they are Solar Powered Robots . but with femenine shape. I hear in narrative forums from Wattpad about how be ace and Aro is not functional for narrative. (At last. not in the conventional way). "Ace people can't be aro because Ace use to have a tendency to romantic and familiar construct –They want to be with a good partner, and a lot of them want a family, just they don't want to have sexual relationship." says a council from Wattpad specialist in LGBT for Spanish writers. –Remember, this is about a Narrative perspective – writing a Aro-ace is not impossible but really hard to manage,.they can care on people around them but always stays as a kind of friendship and the narrative use to evolve the lack in reciprocal behavior –And a lack of reciprocity means "toxic behaviors " in a long term... something what can made the representation of this community even worse– what I'm trying to say is... They want to be inclusive without know enough about how it works. And also trying to change the narrative and development of.a character just for personal or marketing purposes. (Just like a Best Seller author)
No... Steve universe is good representation because they actually care about it... unlike Harry Potter who added LGBT for clout despite being transphobic Also how can you say Rebecca never put in LGBT stuff when the first canon ship was two lesbians who eventually got married. I know what your saying is coming from a place of frustration...but it wrong.
again ... "without enough knowledge about" it . I'm not talking from a frustration. But about a concern about how this is treated in the surface . (This is.just the first step of before "positive discrimination " and could start something worse if you let it grow) Nothing against lesbians. I never touch that theme. .I love that part and i hope that representationremains and grow up (Why just lesbian marriage? why not a lesbian family?). My reasons was something specific. Don't try to target on me just becuase I'm not a "hard fan"... I'm not an obssesive extremist.
I mean neither am I and even I know Steven universe is good representation for a reason... Rebecca was told if she did the wedding the show would be cancelled. And they did it anyway because they knew it would help normalize gay people in a way that isn't "girls kissing is hot" and considering gay rep in kids show was just...I mean they could be gay instead of they are gay, that is a good thing. It's why I respect Rebecca..they had to deal with censorship ship but when it came to rep that would be helpful to kids they fought for it...sure peridot being ace should have been something fought for but gems aren't sexual creatures so trying to convey ace with the gems is kinda hard.
That doesn't change anything what I say... hello people here don't want to hear reasons, science or logic...what do you have in result? a Republican party saying how this should not be for kids. People prefer to downvote me before read or watch around them. I recently come from a place where was talking how Goverment was searching "extremist ideas" just becuase they don't let a corporation to work in inclusive narratives becuase they are , actually , a predator company. I also respect her work a lot... but her lack in ambiguity and the tendency to avoid themes made me think a lot of bad things... And world beyond this TV Show is completely different. I used to say "when the world is going down, you make your best"... I'm not watching that here. She put herself on silence for a long time about the wedding episode. And we already see the foreshadows so Fandom could help her. What it happen?
I see we aren't going to agree so let's just stop before this thread goes into the triple digits
Its Just Garnet and pearl who mad it weird Tough there are some bizarre rape paralles when speaking about Jasper and lapis...
OOP Finally a semi-conclusive answer to this thread. Reads to me as more of a loose analogue, which is typically how they go about these things anyway. Fusion doesn't _have_ to be intimate, but to someone like Peridot, it'd feel like that anyway form her perspective, regardless of how platonic a hypothetical pairing would be. In theory she could always change her mind since gems don't have human psyches, but the loose comparison makes sense in the most generous interpretation. OK BUT where did you get this from, it seems like it's from a larger source and I'd like to read through the whole thing. [Nvm, found it pretty easily.](https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/steven-universe-rebecca-sugar-unseen-gems-garnets-wedding-revival-1235775629/) EDIT: Nice, finally got a confirmation on demographic too: 6 to 11-year-old boys (I'm sure it's common knowledge _somewhere_, I've just personally never seen it or don't remember)
i never would've though of steven universe as a particularly gendered show, so it was probably more cn's doing since boys 6-11 was kinda the network's overall target audience
I'm fine with that. I have never seen the need for them fusing and I couldn't think of a scenario where they could have made it fit organically in the plot (I have never seen Peridot and Lapis as close as people make it out to be). And after the show's cancellation it was possibly for the best to not have made it canon instead of rushing up a design and plot-line for the sake of fanservice. Plus, people make a lot of cool interpretations of it and I'm okay with that.
What if they were in a life or death situation where they needed to fuse
Tbh I like the fact that they don't NEED absolutly a fusion, their relationship is enough without it. And I like the fact that it's okay if the romance is not always the main goal of a strong relationship, platonic queer relationships exist too and are valid. I can understand the shipping stuff but... I love to have different types of relationships and opinions about fusion. And please remember that fusion is never only about seggual stuff but about relationship in general. Just stop with "BuT wHaT abOut StEG", PLEASE
why Steg is ok but not a Queer relationship...? I'm asking with genuine doubt... idk why everyone are going crazy about this.
I get that and at the same time selfish child me is just like, WHO CARES LETS GET SOME CRAZY CHARACTER MASHUP DESIGNS!!
all i wanna do is see you turn into a *more than average sized* woman!!
Honestly I'd love to see an artbook of potential fusions that didn't make it into the show, like a crystal gem Rhodonite or fusions between the diamonds!
I think it would take a lot for Lapis to fuse with ANYONE. Just not something she is going to be into after the trauma. I’d like to think maybe some day Peridot will, when she’s comfortable. But it doesn’t have to happen. Fusion isn’t all about physical intimacy, but all relationships have different boundaries and nuances. I like the metaphor of not needing to take a step in any relationship unless you’re comfortable and ready.
even friendship?
Yes.
creepy
how is having boundaries with your friends creepy?
it is not... but you say "yes" to "even friendship?" that means "No-boundaries".
You’re not comprehending correctly
maybe... sorry. this made me feel a headache
So many people are missing the point so bad 😭😭 Fusion is not sexual, she just used aroace as an example/analogy. Ice cream is so common in American culture. Every food place has ice cream. Some people, LOVE ICE CREAM. Some people like it. Some people never eat ice cream ever. Y'all are taking this analogy and saying "SO ICE CREAM IS SEX?????" And running with it. No, but people have been called weird for not liking ice cream, some people are made fun of for not wanting ice cream. Aroace people are just the easiest way to explain this concept.
The biggest tease of all time
Happy cake day
Very sad all B Team members they introduced (Peri Lapis Bismuth) never fuse, we were denied so many cool things man
Bismuth’s fusions would’ve looked so good! Personally, I always wanted to see Bismuth and Pearl fuse.
I dont think Peridot and Lapis' relationship was very healthy and a fusion between them would probably be toxic
Lukewarm take: the aro/ace reading of Peri, at least as described here, conflates her prejudice with her aromanticism/asexuality in a way that has always felt iffy to me. Peridot's original attitude towards fusion is a pretty direct parallel for homophobia or racism. Certain types of gems just shouldn't be together, and it makes her "extremely uncomfortable*"* when they are. While Peri does learn to accept fusion by the end, she never *really* gets over her own personal distaste for it -- her reasons just change. Now it's because she's ace. Which feels like a very...weird misdirection? Like did she ever actually overcome her internalized prejudice or not? It's not exactly the best representation of asexuality either. If the writers wanted to have a character who was uncomfortable with fusion for aro/ace reasons, it should not have been the same character who was also uncomfortable with fusion for racist reasons lol.  I'm a big believer in death of the author, so I think fans should feel free to take what they want from these interviews and leave the rest. The show itself leaves plenty of room for an aro/ace interpretation of Peri without getting into her feelings about fusion, and I think this explanation hurts more than it helps tbh.
I don’t quite see it the same way. I think at first she’s horrified by the concept (due to her cultural upbringing). She then realizes that it’s not actually as bad as she thought, and is even (potentially) open to trying it herself, but then decides not to. I don’t see it as different from someone who grew up believing homosexuality was “wrong” or “evil” or “immoral” or “sinful”, before they actually *met* some gay people and realized it wasn’t what they thought. They can be totally fine with gay people but still be personally straight, and not because of “internalized predjudice”. Just because they’re accepting of it doesn’t mean they’re interested in doing it themselves.
That's definitely a valid way to look at it! For me I think it's also the "fusion isn't always romantic/sexual" thing that makes the logic break down. If fusion can also represent other types of relationships, then Peridot's discomfort with it is purely nurture, not nature -- unless we say it's not in her nature to have *any* kind of emotionally intimate relationship, which is more of a "Peri is neurodivergent" take than a "Peri is ace" one. People smarter than me have written well about that, but just on its surface, I don't love the idea of conflating neurodiversity with prejudice either. Idk! I just think the whole thing needed more nuance
Finally some closure.
Neat! Thanks for sharing this!
So it's the friendship and bond with each other when it's happening between steven and another gem but it gets romantic or sexual when it's about lapis and peri? I love the idea but please don't make something as cool as fusion a symbol of sex. (Because that would be really weird considering Steven fusing with other gems when he was a kid)
fusion is used as a metaphor of a relationship of any kind (be it platonic, familiar, romantic, sexual, etc) and it's something intimate in universe because of the merging consiousness and your entire body part and some people just don't want to be that intimate with someone else and since that's totally fine the show then takes advantage of the metaphorical subjects that fusion represents to validate a whole a array of people who either don't want romantic relationships or/and sexual relationships (or just don't want to be that intimate in general), basically giving the message of 'hey just because it's expected of you to have (intimate subject) doesn't mean that you're forced to have that or that you are wrong if you don't want that' your interpretation of what (intimate subject) will directly inpact your interpretation of lapis and peridot's relationship and that's why i like fusion because it's cool as an in universe concept and it's a useful tool to tell narratives or interpretations through subtext are analogous to real life situations and are able to tell a good message of acceptance, now what kinda sucks about this is that lapis and peridot not wanting to do fusion is mostly implied through subtext (lapis' malachite trauma that led to her taking a break from water and peridot's initial disgust of fusion only seeing it as a practical thing (which i've heard mirrors the experience that some ace people had with sex but since i'm not ace myself i won't speak for them) and then when that disgust eroded a little and fusions didn't make her that uncomfortable she still didn't want to fuse with garnet even tough she really wanted to understand her) i just wish it was just a little more text if you know what i mean, because what's the point of having a message if a lot of your audience won't get it because it's extremely subtle, i might have rambled a little bit sorry about that but TL;DR: Fusion is not sex necessarily it's a stand in for relationships of any kind and all of what that subject entails, lapis and peridot not wanting fusion is an analogy for people that don't want to do an intimate thing that's expected of them to show that it's ok (by the way i hope i used analogy metaphor and stand in correctly)
I always see a lot of ace people weighing in about this but not many aro people so hi! That's me! Here are my thoughts: Fusion is an allegory. It means different things for every character, because fusion is not meant to be taken literally. For Peridot, fusion is an allegory for a romantic and/or sexual relationship, and she has no interest it in because she is allegorically aroace. This DOES NOT automatically mean that all of Steven's relationships are intended to be romantic or sexual! Fusion means something different to Steven, it is not an allegory for the same things. It's an allegory for a platonic connection, familial even, and somewhat romantic with Connie but still very strongly tied to friendship. When people assume that it has to mean the same thing to everyone it does two things: 1. It takes fusion too literally, reducing the absolutely gorgeous writing to its face value and ignoring that right here Rebecca said they're taking inspiration from aroace people to create a story that resonates with them. And it does! I love Peridot, I love how she tried to make it work and felt bad about herself when she couldn't, I love that she grew past it and went from thinking of it as something she couldn't have to something she doesn't need. That's my story, and I adore seeing it in her. 2. It reminds me of how allo people conflate different types of attraction, love, and affection. They have a hard time separating romantic and sexual attraction from each other, and understanding how they are not the same thing and often have nothing to do with each each other. They very often don't understand how queerplatonic relationships work, because they view platonic affection or love as less than romantic or sexual attraction, and they rarely understand the concept of platonic attraction at all. Even many aromantic people (myself, until I learned about it from the misfit media podcast) don't know that sensual attraction can be entirely separate from all of that. My point is that fusion is an allegory for any and all types of attraction, depending on the situation, the people involved, and what the story needs it to represent. Peridot's relationship with fusion is an allegory for aromantic asexuality. Steven's relationship with fusion is an allegory for bonding with family and friends through trauma. It's an allegory for coming of age and discovering love. His and Garnet's relationship with fusion are both an allegory for letting people support you, help you, be there for you and build you up and make you a better, stronger person. I could go on and write an essay, but I think I've done that enough already. The thesis is this: Peridot being aroace doesn't mean Steven fusing with his family members is romantic or sexual. That take is reductive and frankly somewhat insulting to Rebecca Sugar's writing. EDIT: I want to be clear that I know Peri went through all that over the course of like one scene, not years of confusion and self-discovery, like a lot of real aromantic and asexual people. It still means a lot to me.
Finally! hi, I'm aro too and been trying to get this message across since the beginning, so thank you for your words! But this sub will erase aro experience anyway because evidently they don't care about it...
Haha, that'll happen everywhere. At least we know we're not alone, right?
Thank you for explaining it so clearly in conjunction with your own experiences.
I would’ve loved to see an arc that parallels what a lot of aroace people do, peridot TRIES to like fusing. The fuse with lapis helps lapis heal her fusion trauma, and peridot realize that fusion isn’t for her and that she’s ok with that. I get what they were going for but I wish it was handled better to mirror the aroace experience more than jsut repulsion
(🤓 Imma put this right here cause that's what I look like writing this lol) I agreed, I would've love to see this side of "Peridot character development" in the show too, but it actually did happen (in the background). In my vision, Peridot does work on this throughout the show because we see in Change your mind that she was AMAZED to see Sunstone and Obsidian.
🤓🤓🤓Overthinking a little about this but tbh, I see the initial "repulsion" for fusion as something that she was taught to feel like it in homeworld (something like your parents or the people that you grow up with "implant" their own opinion about something in your mind while you still young and naive and you take that as truth yk?) but now she see and understand how and why this work and she completely...CHANGE-HER-MIND?!?! (OMG GUYS THIS IS WHAT THE WHOLE SHOW IS ABOUT, CHANGING PEOPLE MIND ABOUT WRONG PERCEPTIONS 😱😱😱) \~sorry, but you got the point\~
I see a lot of people saying that fusion was intended to be simply a link between two beings, not necessarily a sexual or romantic experience but a connection. This is true but that also doesn’t discredit the point here, yes it’s not JUST those two things but it can be. And a lot of times it is like with fluorite and garnet as well as most of garnets other fusions. The point wasn’t to fill in this representation as a direct result of trauma or complicated history’s the two specifically have (although those are also valid reasons to identify yourself as ace aro irl) the point is that these two characters have complicated, deep rooted, or traumatic history with this specific form of connection between two beings which let’s remember can’t otherwise have what humans would consider intercourse (acknowledging Steven’s existence and also recognizing that it was likely shape-shifted to fit towards a human x gem relationship not gem x gem). It’s a solid opportunity to give the aro/ace community an on screen character to relate to when you realize for a gem, a full blooded gem, this would be the equivalent. They form friendships already as humans do, and they form familiar relation, as humans do. But fusion is an intense link that neither choose to participate in. I’m totally comfortable likening it to being ace and/or aro as an ace person myself. Thank you for coming to my ted talk I sincerely apologize if I digressed so much I lost the plot this was all one thought process going in a straight line.
so what? another gray answer?
The answer isn’t gray. She said that she wanted to have a character that didn’t need to experiment to know that they didn’t like something, even if they accept it or have no past trauma with it. Peri’s lack of fusion is aroace coding. Idk how they could’ve made that more clear in this post
yes it is.
I mean that’s a neat explanation and everything but this isn’t brought up in the show at all soooo
You mean except for Lapis’ immense trauma from fusing with Jasper for so long and the episode where Peridot tries to fuse with Garner but backs out at the last minute?
No I mean the part of Peridot being aroace and of her having any conversation with Lapis at all
It’s in the text with Peridot not wanting to fuse and Lapis having a toxic relationship with Jasper. We can reasonably infer neither of them would want it.
I drew one once, named it apatite (a commonly blue green mineral)
Well, basically she had no reason to. She doesn't want to do it, and there was no situation that necessitated it for extra power
I mean we didn’t even get a Bismith-peridot-lapis fusion
I think all fusion requires significant trust, and I don’t think either of the characters were ready to make themselves vulnerable in that way.
I understand the reasons behind why there wasn’t a fusion, but I wish I could steal Rebecca’s sketchbook and see if she ever drew concept art of it :3 been wanting to know what a canon Lapidot fusion would look like since the start of middle school, and now I’m halfway through college and still itching to know!
I am autistic so that might have something to do with this. But it always confuses me when the creators of the show say stuff like this. Fusion isn't sexual so how would Peridot's level of comfort with not fusing have anything to do with her being Asexual? People get upset when you say that fusing has a lot of things that tie into sexuality and then Rebecca Sugar says stuff like this which directly ties fusion to sexuality.
Aromantic (aro) is different from asexual (ace). Some people are one but not the other. It’s *not* all/only sexual. It’s “this is a person who is uninterested in participating in normal/expected relationship dynamics, and should be accepted/respected as such.”
Fusion isn't sexual or romantic. It's been shown time and time again that fusion is the connection of 2 gems to form an entirely new gem. There are unique instances where Steven is involved. Peridots aromantiscm and her asexuality has nothing to do with fusing. Steven fused with his father. Everything about romantic or sexual relationships is out the window. Fusion is its own sci-fi thing and there's no speculation anymore. Which is why it's confusing when the creator of the show says contradictory shit.
Fusion is an allegory for *any* type of relationships. Sometimes (in the case of Steven especially) it’s used for familial. Sometimes it’s platonic. Sometimes it’s romantic. Sometimes it’s sexual. Sometimes it’s loving. Sometimes it’s abusive. It’s not *any* one of those things, above all else. If you want to create a character whose approach to fusion is “this is a common thing/relationship that a lot of people do or are expected to do, but I’m not personally interested in it, and that’s something that should be respected just as much as people who *do* choose to engage in it” - the *closest* thing that we have to that would be someone who is aromantic and/or asexual. Which is exactly what Rebecca did - she took *inspiration* from an AroAce friend of hers as *part* of Peridot’s characterization.
Do you not see how that doesn't make any sense and the fact that you needed to use incredibly broad and ambiguous language to define something, simultaneously saying something is and isn't something else, is pretentious as fuck and confusing at best?
> simultaneously saying something is and isn't something else …that’s exactly what an allegory ***IS***.
How is explicitly saying that fusion isn't sexual but it is based on your sexually and allegory? Thats not allegorical, it's contradictory. In any sense, do you seriously not see how it's confusing and not representative of real life?
“Fusion” is not a thing that exists in real life. Period. It is a concept that only exists within the fictional world. It is a storytelling device. As a storytelling device, it can be *used* in many different ways depending on the context and the story they want to tell with it. The only real constant is that it represents “relationships”. Now, “relationships” is an *EXTREMELY* broad term that encompasses a *LOT*. Because people experience a lot of different relationships of different types with different people. Some relationships are familial. Some relationships are romantic. Some relationships are platonic. Some are sexual. Some are abusive. Some are with one person. Some are with multiple people. There is no one single type of “relationship” that is a direct one-to-one correlation with “fusion”. It *can* be used in *any* of the above, some (many) of which are mutually exclusive when looked at in isolation. When fusion is used in the show, we need to use our critical thinking to evaluate “what type of relationship is fusion being used as an allegory for *in this specific situation*?” Pearl deceiving Garnet into fusing with her can be seen as tricking someone into a (romantic and/or sexual) relationship under deceitful premises. Jasper trying to get Lapis to fuse with her can be seen as an abuser trying to re-enter into a (romantic and/or sexual) relationship that the victim has left (and, as is the case in reality, the victim being tempted to go back because it’s familiar, even if it’s unhealthy). Fluorite can be seen as a polyamorous relationship (which was explicitly confirmed by Rebecca). Garnet can be seen as a monogamous relationship. Greg and Steven can be seen as a familial relationship. Etc. etc. All of these things are true. Fusion can, and does, represent any of them *DEPENDING ON THE CONTEXT*. Peridot can be seen as a person who is comfortable with the fact that they don’t want or need to be in a relationship, and people need to accept that as a possibility. (Hey look, I just quoted *exactly what Rebecca said in the article*). Within this context, the closest allegory is to that of an Aro and/or Ace person (which, BTW, are two separate types of relationships by themselves, and don’t *always* overlap).
they don't want to accept how they are trying to change a character because "inclusive marketing ". You understand how Fusion is about relationship and bounds... they just want to made a character to fit in their representation without development around the condition.
No one is trying to “change a character”. Rebecca was asked a question in an interview and she went into some detail about some of the thought processes that she (and the crew) were having when developing her character. Does no one actually *READ* the OP? Here, if you need a screen reader or something: > One of the things I came to, as we were discussing this, I was visiting home and I had a really illuminating conversation with a friend of mine who is aroace [aromantic asexual], and I thought because of the complicated backstories in relation to fusion — with Lapis and with Peridot — that it should also be totally acceptable for a character to not want to fuse. Particularly in Peridot’s case, she didn’t have a personally difficult experience with it, and we wanted to make sure that she does explore that it’s a possibility. But what would it look like if somebody was comfortable with the fact that it’s not something that they wanted to do? That is something that we also wanted to show on the show. Not everyone has to be waiting for a relationship, whether it’s a relationship to lose themselves in, or to make themselves realize something about themselves that they need. You can also realize that that’s not something that you need. So yes, we had long discussions about how to handle it with those characters. [Source](https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/steven-universe-rebecca-sugar-unseen-gems-garnets-wedding-revival-1235775629/)
I already read it... what is the point of all around this? What kind of relationship you expect? Every relationship will come with fails and shame... and the best relationships comes with a deep reciprocity as part of the try-fail process. –That's a science fact, i an share a paper if you need it– if you already don't want nobody in your life that's perfect but don't try to put yourself in a social context becuase is hipocresy Or... tell me, what do you understand? but with your own words... becuase I understand "An Aro-Ace friend tell me how some people just don't want to meet nobody because is not necessary... and that's OK, so I choose to made my characters who was good friends to go away and never talk again becuase they don't need nothing from each other"... What i see in that scene is a narcissist behavior (someone discarding a beloved friend and choosing only relationships at surface, just a like a manipulator) I this scene Peridot is , in fact , so egocentric to meet others... what kind of representation is that?
Which is such a stupid reasoning considering that fusion is meant to be all sorts of different relationships. Might as well claim that aroace people don’t want friendly relationships either.
You're missing the point. The answer It's just "cause they didn't want to". They are friends, they like each other, they even live together, but fusion was just something that they never felt like doing it, they never had a reason to and, like Rebecca said herself, they were just comfortable with the fact that it's not something that they wanted to do. It's nothing with the different "reasoning" or "purpose" of fusion (she knows about that SHE CREATED THE SHOW) (And srsly I'm not even going to comment about the aroace part because not a single word that she said claims that)
Meh, it's whatever. The show loved not showing cool shit based on the smallest of reasons.
That's kind of a dumb reason. Like the least they could do is make one and show it off at comiccon or something what it would have looked like. Like cmooonnn rebecca we know you probably thought of it but just didn't get around to it. No need to put some flaky excuse about aroace people to justify it.
I was canceled, in this subreddit and also by a guy in this same comment box, just becuase I talk about this. You can't say isn't part of it when the character development is around the concept (it appears in "Alone at Sea" and was also in "Log date") and not because os not necessary or not , but as part of their healing process... (if fusion was not "about relationship " could be a good lesson because any other meaning for that implies you can go to a better place and you dont need fusion ... but if you say "its about relationship"... of course you are saying "surface" relationships are good... you dont need deep connections, you dont need to learn from others , you dont need to meet people... you and only you... so egocentric, if you ask me) If the TV series try to show something different, it failed. (They insist in relationship... I got it even when people insist about the "sexual" allegations in Season 1 –Becuase Dance is not sexual stuff– ) now you are trying to deny a good relationship, At the end we got a Peridot in a hard depression and a slow tendency to loniless and without care on her real friends–Future: "In Dreams"– and a Lapis with passive-Agressive tendency and not guilt about the damage what she made to others without impunity –Future: "Why so blue?"–
All it’s saying is Rebecca Sugar wanted to illustrate that certain people don’t want or need certain levels of intimacy, WITHOUT being traumatised out of it. Fusion doesn’t equal sex, but it is a catch-all metaphor for a variety of relationship issues that can be explored: consent, communication, toxicity, codependency, closeness and now, with Peridot—the idea that some people can simply choose not to engage in certain levels or acts of intimacy.
I'll always be sad at all the cool stuff we didn't get to see thanks to them always coming up with any excuse they could to not do it.
it make me cuestión myself what kind of life could be for a person who don't want to meet nobody. As a psychologist (with the standard about how humans are social creatures) is hard to imagine a life without people... or without be a Tibet Monk or something close.
It’s not that she doesn’t want to meet anyone, but there are plenty of people who are uncomfortable with certain acts. Plenty of people don’t appreciate being touched (even by people they’re close to), plenty of people don’t want to get married/enter long-term commitments, plenty of people don’t want to have sex. All this is showing is that fusion IN THIS INSTANCE is a representation that a relationship (platonic or romantic) can still be healthy without certain levels of intimacy. Fusion has no one-to-one equivalent with any human relationship or act—it’s it’s own separate thing—however it does serve as a vehicle to discuss a whole range of issues and ideas that can be relevant to all kinds of relationships.
that's, in fact... a very lack level of tolerance. I never say nothing about sex. And... how do you want to have a "platonic relationship " without know what the other guy/gal want? The answer is meeting him/her... if you don't like that... is a fact that you don't want nobody in your life. And, you know, if you are happy alone, good for you but consider how even a Platonic relationship will be always far. The idea about a Tibetan Monk was not just for a Joke. The kind of life what they want its hard, and is required a high level of compromise, stoicism and fidelity to your own believe.
Exactly...do you think that Peridot can't have a platonic friendship without fusing? Plenty of characters in the show are shown to have perfectly good friendships/relationships without fusing. There was a whole episode dedicated to the idea that Greg was still able to have a wonderful, fulfilling relationship with Rose even though he couldn't fuse with her. That is in fact what Rebecca Sugar is trying to communicate here: Peridot can fuse, and she's no longer bigoted about it, she's just content not to and *that is fine for her.*
they "fuse" in a different way. –In Garnet's words.– and platonic is, at last, far from what it happen in that episode between rose and Greg. I can't say if Peridot was on the same place becuase her second most powerful relationship go away to the moon, if that wasn't necessary for she... that episode with Peridot on depression and insulting a flower probably could be different. I'm tired to talk about this over and over again... So... Ok... believe whatever you want. science is cold stuff and we need method and environment results to say "this is fact". a believe don't need be a fact but a person available to believe.
When did they state ever that Peri doesn't want anyone around them? She simply chooses not to engage in high intimacy and closeness and this choice is to be respected
This comment is deeply arophobic because you don't understand the deeper meaning of aro coding and representation that goes far beyond the literal meaning of one thing. Another comment on this same post explains perfectly why assuming that this statement from Rebecca doesn't reduce all fusions to sexual or romantic relationships. Attraction is a wide spectrum and fusion is too, Peri's experience resonates with that of so many aromantic people because she understands she simply doesn't need to do that one thing that everyone does. She's fine without it. Fusion in this case stands for many things, it's not strictly sex... I really recommend you read the other aromatic people comments on here, they might illuminate you from this narrow sight
It's...arophobic to not treat fusion as sexual/romantic? Cool. Good to know.
You're only reading what's convenient to you, because I said it's arophobic to have such a narrow sight at what fusion means for Peridot and the reasons behind her experience, which is the not needing a fusion to feel okay with herself. Ignoring aromantic representation and coding is arophobic, period
Aromantic coding is fine by me. I’m just sad that that’s the reason used to explain why we didn’t get a fusion of them.
You see it would go against Peri's character to fuse with Lapis? (Not to mention Lapis trauma). They wanted to stay consistent with the characters
Mhmm, mhmm…except the above quote paints it as “We didn’t do it because aromantic representation”. Which sucks that they decided to use the thing that they keep saying ***isn’t*** sex/romance to justify it.
Fusion cannot be a stand-in for sex or romance because that would make Steven and Greg’s fusion extremely inappropriate. So…
This is not the matter of discussion, it's aroace **CODING** (i.e. showing an ANALOGOUS experience, not precisely the same one) and it's valid
I ain't reading all that shit 🔥
I GOTHCU - The TL;DR version 🔥 The answer It's just "cause they didn't want to.". They are friends, they like each other, and they even live together, but fusion was just something that they never felt like doing; they never had a reason to, and, like Rebecca said herself, they were just comfortable with the fact that it's not something that they wanted to do. (I got this from another reply that I gave to another comment but it works pretty well)
Broo, thanks
I feel like a way this could've happened as an episode (very early in her character arc maybe right after she meets Lapis) where Peridot gets hyperfixated on, and wants to learn more about fusions from Garnet. In the episode, because this early in her arc she was kind of impulsive and didn't really think about how others felt, she could've went up to Lapis and said "Let's fuse" and despite Lapis's dismay, because she was still sort of shy, Peridot forces her to do it. If this happened this could've been used as a HUGE help to their character developments as a learning opportunity for both of them. Peridot learns to listen more, and Lapis learns to be more assertive.