“ | Even though we've already won the fight for Earth, we're still trying to keep it safe! There are battle-damaged Gems that are still around, and they're not like us. Something's really wrong with them. They're like horrible monsters. We have to poof their bodies away, and then keep their Gems inside of bubbles, so they can't form again and hurt anybody. Maybe someday I'll be able to heal what's wrong with them, but I'm not sure how. Mom couldn't fix them either. For now, we're keeping them safe inside the Temple. | „ |
~ Steven |
The Gem Monsters, also known as Corrupted Gems, are major antagonists of the Cartoon Network TV series Steven Universe.
Throughout the series, the Crystal Gems hunt, collect and bubble their gemstones to their temple to keep Earth safe from them. They take on monstrous forms and have special abilities. Some of them like the Centipeetle Mother and Big Bird are able to make smaller copies of themselves. In Ocean Gem, it's revealed that the Gem Monsters are corrupted gems who were former Crystal Gems and possibly Homeworld Gems who became unable to sustain sentience and humanoid forms when the Diamonds sent out a Corrupting Light.
As a last ditch effort in the war for Earth, the Great Diamond Authority sent out a Corrupting Light which corrupted Gems from both Homeworld and the Rebellion that had been left on Earth, most likely a means of ensuring the rebellion couldn't directly threaten Homeworld.
Second-hand corruption can occur to a non-corrupted Gem through fusion with a corrupted one, as Jasper started corrupting after fusing with the Snow Monster and forming a semi-corrupted fusion.
Corruption is depicted as a tear in the mind of a Gem, rather than physical damage on their gemstone and as such is harder to heal than a cracked Gem: in fact there is currently no known way for reversing the effects of corruption.
Steven's healing spit only partially and temporarily healed the Centipeetle Mother, and she reverted to her corrupted form shortly after. But even so it is acknowledged as a major step in trying to heal the Corrupted Gems even though Steven's attempt went only so far, saying that it was the best that they have seen it work. She indicated that Rose Quartz was unable to heal the Corrupted Gems to the same extent her son, Steven, had done.
Known Corrupted Gems[]
- Nephrite (currently uncorrupted)
- Obelisk (unknown if corrupted)
- Desert Glass (unknown if corrupted)
- Heaven Beetle (currently uncorrupted)
- Earth Beetle (currently uncorrupted)
- Bixbite (currently uncorrupted)
- Gem Cave Creature (probably uncorrupted)
- Larimar (currently uncorrupted)
- Big Bird (probably uncorrupted)
- Invisible Gem Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Lighthouse Gem Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Nephrite's crew (currently uncorrupted)
- Unknown Giant Gem Monster (status unknown)
- Watermelon Tourmaline (currently uncorrupted)
- Orange Spodumene (currently uncorrupted)
- Water Bear(currently uncorrupted)
- Slinker (probably uncorrupted)
- Great North Gem Monsters (currently uncorrupted)
- Zebra Jasper (unfused; component gems currently uncorrupted)
- Ocean Jasper
- Jasper
- Cobbled Beta Kindergarten Monster (status unknown)
- Green Striped Beta Kindergarten Monster (status unknown)
- Red Striped Beta Kindergarten Monster (status unknown)
- Purple Striped Beta Kindergarten Monster (currently uncorrupted)
- Spotted Beta Kindergarten Monster (status unknown)
- Beta Kindergarten Water Bear (status unknown)
- Tongue Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Flower Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Snowflake Obsidian (currently uncorrupted)
- Monster Steven (currently uncorrupted)
Comicbook[]
Steven Universe[]
- Obelisk (probably uncorrupted)
- Rainbow Cloud Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Snowbeast (probably uncorrupted)
- Slug Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Plant Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Old Book Gem (probably uncorrupted)
- Invisible Manta Ray (probably uncorrupted)
- Clock Tower Gem (probably uncorrupted)
- Unknown Giant Bird (probably uncorrupted)
- The Perils of Pweepwee (probably uncorrupted)
- Unknown Bird Gem Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Slime Gem Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Unknown Lizard Gem Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Red Eel Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Monster Lizard Gem (probably uncorrupted)
- Mole Gem Monster (probably uncorrupted)
- Frozen Fragment (probably uncorrupted)
- Scorching Shard (probably uncorrupted)
Steven Universe: Too Cool for School[]
- Mollusks (probably uncorrupted)
Steven Universe and the Crystal Gems[]
- Glass Ghost (probably uncorrupted)
- Unknown Ant Gem Monster (probably uncorrupted)