(This is a character analysis of Lapis Lazuli)
Here we go, my first essay on Reddit, and it's defending one of the more controversial characters of Steven Universe: Lapis Lazuli, more specifically, her decisions in the episode 'Jailbreak'.
Many people think that because Lapis agreed to fuse, it was fully consensual, but it's actually a bit more complicated than that, and the context of her past is important. Let's start at the beginning:
First, Lapis was trapped in The Mirror for millennia, and treated as an item with which one could gain information. After being abandoned, she spent an unfathomable period of time alone. It isn't implausible that after enough time, she may have started to believe she had never been a person at all. The damage this kind of solitary confinement inflicted on her sense of identity, and sense of agency cannot be understated, as it is the basis for everything to come.
Lapis seeing the Galaxy Warp, where she had been abandoned in The Mirror.
Things changed with the Crystal Gems, and later Steven; she finally had someone to talk to, and could begin to regain the belief that she was a person, and deserved to be treated as such. When she finally escaped her eons of isolation, she lashed out at the Crystal Gems like a cornered animal, and fled to Homeworld, only to discover that it had changed without her. The disillusionment she felt upon returning to her home must have been immense. After 6000 years of dreaming of returning home, she finds it a hollow shell of what she had once known it to be. We get to see a bit of this shock in the episode 'The Message', where she tells Steven how advanced Homeworld has become, how she can barely recognize it, and most importantly: not to fight back when Peridot and Jasper arrive. To top it off, once she had returned, she was met with cruel and ironic fate; being once again imprisoned and interrogated.
Lapis warning Steven of Peridot and Jasper.
Then, on the ship, we see her telling Steven to "do what they want" so that "maybe they'll go easy on us". It's clear that Lapis is in a mindset where freedom is no longer a possibility to her, and after repeatedly being treated as a thing, (first in The Mirror, t
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Backstory - I purchased my authentic malachite about a year ago after loving my onyx & tiger's eye version. Malachite is such a gorgeous stone, I had to have it. However, my naive self did not heed the warning of my SA about how sensitive malachite is to water. My SA gave the same warning about my tiger's eye and onyx but I did everything from showering/swimming/sauna with them and they were fine. Fast forward to now and my poor malachite is so dull and faded. I was sad to think I may have to shell out another $4.5K+ on a new one. My SA told me it's nearly impossible to polish malachite back to it's former glory so I went on the hunt for an alternative. I paid $950 USD for Miss Chen's version and I think it is on par to the authentic. So much so I doubt I'll ever go back to buying authentic 😝
Link to Photos Authentic vs. Rep
Stone - The malachite stone is a 10/10 match to when my auth was fresh. Great coloring and streaks of white.
Gold - I am not sure if it's because I have been wearing my bracelets for the past year but the gold in the auth seems slightly darker than the rep. However, it could just be due to me being gross and never really cleaning my jewelry lol
Engraving - Slightly different with the VCA lettering on the auth being bigger than the rep. Unless someone is an SA or a eagle eyed rep lady who is breathing down your arm to see the bracelet, no one will know the difference.
Hardware - Not sure what this is called but the circle end where you clasp the bracelet is a tiny bit smaller on the rep. Again, not something you'd notice. The shape of the clasp tail end is slightly different as well.
Beading - Here is where I will say it's the most noticeable if you have the auth and the rep right next to each other. From the top, it's a perfect match but when viewed on the side, the beading of the rep is not as neat or rounded. I have a photo with the rep and auth stacked to detail the difference. Will I still stack my rep with my auth? Yes, I don't think it takes away from the look.
Hope this helps!
