Though most of the characters featured on Steven Universe are incredibly complex and well-written, managing to be compelling while still being secretive for much of the show, none have more mystery and intrigue around them as Rose Quartz - formerly known as Pink Diamond.
She's also one of the most controversial, as some are unable to forgive her actions as a Diamond and for not going about things a different way, while others believe she had no other choice and are proud of her sacrifice to start a new life where she had true freedom along with Pearl. Even after the end of Future, there's a lot about Rose that isn't fully apparent, even to dedicated fans.
10 Learning To Be Human
A lot of fans, as well as Pearl, don't think much of Greg and Rose's relationship, aside from the fact that Rose found him 'fascinating' and eventually decided to have a child so she could disappear from her problems, but that really isn't the case, at least not after a bit.
Whenever Greg tried to fuse with Rose and was unsuccessful, Garnet remarks that 'it did work', meaning that the two became closer emotionally, and Greg helped Rose get a deeper understanding of humans.
9 Hidden Aggression?
Although after she became Rose fully, she was depicted as a kind, caring, and colorful individual, fans actually got a fair bit of evidence suggesting she used to be more violent. For one, she's seen smirking before destroying a Ruby fusion, showing that she perhaps used to find enjoyment out of fighting.
She's later seen as being compassionate, though, as she spares Garnet and refused to needlessly kill Gems just to be able to win the war - displaying just how much she changed after being on Earth.
8 Delicate Deception
Although Rose changed a lot after shedding her title as a Diamond and coming to fully reside on Earth, she still had a hidden deceptive side that wasn't revealed until fans finally met Bismuth. Rose had bubbled her instead of simply destroying the Breaking Point, reprimanding Bismuth, but allowing her to still be a Crystal Gem, or at the very least allowing the other Gems to decide what her fate should be.
It begs the question of how often she was completely fine with deceiving people - and although she might not have known how much it truly hurts since she isn't a human, that doesn't make it right.
7 Masterful Tactics
It's easy to forget how curious and childlike Rose seems after coming to Earth since she was also an incredibly masterful tactician. She single-handedly led the Gem Rebellion and gave orders to each Gem, as shown by just how lost the Crystal Gems were without her for a long while until Steven was able to help them start coming into their own.
Jasper herself, even being as fierce and feared a warrior as she was, states that her masterful tactics earned her lots of recognition during her time as a leader.
6 Like Mother, Like Son
Fans were shown throughout the series that many of Rose's gem powers were passed down to Steven, as he possesses the same gem, but there's one, in particular, that's worth mentioning, as it's the most skipped over and also the easiest to miss.
In Future, Steven's emotions begin to interfere with the technology around him, such as cell phones and televisions. We actually do see this with Rose once, during her dance with Greg. She becomes so shocked at something he says, that the music reacts to this and stops completely.
5 Specifics Of The Sword
Rose's sword, as pictured above, next to Pearl, was designed specifically for the leader of the Gem Rebellion to use during the war, and it took into account how her personality grew to become more pacifistic as time went on.
Rose wished to simply poof gems or make them incapable of fighting, rather than fully shattering them, even if it lowered their chances of winning. Her sword was designed specifically for this, being capable of cutting through the body but never the actual gem.
4 Symbol Of Respect
Whenever Rose was still alive and with the Crystal Gems, it's interesting to note that none of them had yet adopted the star designs on their clothes that they share with Steven.
This implies that the star was a symbol of respect for her and something that they all brandished to unite them, once their fearless leader was no longer around to do so. It also makes what used to seem like nothing more than a cute design choice into something that makes the heart ache - ouch.
3 Goddess Connection
Something that isn't stated in the show is that Rose bears a resemblance to Ishtar, who is the Mesopotamian Goddess of Love, along with war, desire, beauty, fertility, combat and political power - most of which fits Rose well, almost creepily so. She was described as being incredibly beautiful and gave up her physical form for love, as well as being heralded as a masterful tactician.
Another example that further connects them is that Ishtar was often depicted with her seven lions, whereas Rose's Lion is seen as a very important symbol representing her.
2 Utterly Unique Ability
Before Rose gave up her physical form to become part of Steven, lots of her powers were unique to her, or only to her and a handful of other gems.
One of these abilities was her unique healing powers, which were presumed to be something that no other gem was capable of, which was stated by Eyeball in "Bubbled" and then further supported in "The Trial." Naturally, she passed these onto Steven, so this would make him the second-ever Gem and only Hybrid with the ability to heal.
1 Meaning Of A Diamond
One of the most fascinating parts about Steven Universe is that typically, gems are designed with traits that mirror what their real-world counterparts represent. Rose - or in this case - Pink is no different, embodying each aspect of what a pink diamond really represents in real life.
Pink diamonds stand for love, creativity and romance, all of which are shown wonderfully in Pink's transition into Rose, allowing her to accept these traits that are a part of her.