MediaWiki - User contributions [en]

Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2

2012-06-21T01:23:46Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation and technical errors */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=38
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=29
|prev2=Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1
|next2=A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=40
|prev3=Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1
|next3=The Ultimate Doom, Part 1
|image=Desertion of the Dinobots 2 title shot.JPG
|caption=''Dessert of the Dinobots'', tonight on Food Network.
|title="Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2"
|production code=#700-37
|airdate=[[October 22]], 1985
|written by=[[Earl Kress]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''With the Dinobots having deserted the dying Autobots, Spike and Carly must find them and save the Autobots.'''

:''Japanese title:'' ダイノボットの逃亡 PART II (''Dinobot no Tōbō PART II'', "Desertion of the Dinobots PART II")
:''Portuguese name:'' '''A Deserção dos Dinobots Parte 2'''
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''I Dinorobots disertano-Parte 2''' ("Deserting Dinobots-Part 2")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''La diserzione dei Dinobots - II''' ("Desertion of the Dinobots - II")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:DesertionDinobots2 Shockwave humans.JPG|left|200px|thumb|The sign on my house said "no humans or solicitors"!]]

The [[space bridge]] doors open, and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] and [[Carly]] find themselves facing the business end of [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]'s gun arm! He fires a ray that vaporizes Carly's car right out from under them. Fleeing through [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Cybertron)|Decepticon Headquarters]], the two humans manage to take refuge inside a small hole in a computer, a space where Shockwave won't fire after them for fear of damaging the equipment. Carly attempts to work the machine, but is hit by a surge of electricity and falls into a nearby pit, damaging the computer, but also twisting her ankle in the process. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] contacts Shockwave and orders him to send [[Cybertonium]] before the [[Decepticon]]s die, but Carly's tinkering has left the Space Bridge non-functional.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots2 Swoop humans.JPG|right|200px|thumb|Humans collect Transformers. Me Swoop collects humans!]]

Using Wheeljack's thumb radio, Spike makes contact with [[Sparkplug Witwicky|Sparkplug]], who is pretty much the only person standing at Autobot Headquarters, as the Autobots are all shut down. Sparkplug uses [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] to guide them out of the computer and toward [[Wheeljack's workshop|Wheeljack's old lab]]. Carly gets them through the door, but before they can start looking for Wheeljack's stash of Cybertonium, someone or something starts pounding on the roof. Spike finds a rifle and blasts the intruder, who is revealed to be... [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]]!

The errant Dinobot explains that the Dinobots were captured by the Decepticons after a fight in Decepticon Headquarters, and taken to the [[Cybertonium Pit]]. The three are guided by Sparkplug to the [[Mass Transit System]]. Unfortunately, the tube carrying their car is damaged, and they can no longer communicate with Sparkplug. Deep underground, the three are nearly killed when they activate old defense systems. Swoop saves the day, but his wings are damaged.

Reaching the surface, they find an abandoned city, which has clearly seen better days. Carly discovers a records room, with a datatrack which explains the history of the [[Great War (G1)|terrible war between the Autobots and Decepticons]]. Swoop says that he never knew the war had gone on for so long, but they are soon captured by a [[Sentinel (G1)|Sentinel]].

[[Image:DesertionDinobots2 Grimlock kill drones.JPG|left|200px|thumb|Taste like chicken.]]

Taken to the Cybertonium Pit, they discover that Shockwave altered the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]' [[memory circuit]]s, making them think they're loyal to the Decepticons. Carly is able to repair their memory circuits, and the Dinobots thank Carly and Spike for rescuing them (except [[Slag (G1)|Slag]], of course). Now that the Dinobots are themselves, Spike comes up with an escape plan. He and [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] start arguing, so the Sentinel decides to remove the humans. When the force field surrounding them comes down, the Dinobots destroy the drones. The Dinobots take the kids to an access tube, and Grimlock carries them up.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots2 Dinobots Cybertonium.JPG|right|200px|thumb|"Me Grimlock always have room for Jell-o!"]]

Meanwhile, Sparkplug sends a message to Cybertron, saying that he has managed to direct the space bridge to land outside the [[Ark (G1)|Autobot base]]. Shockwave contacts Megatron, saying that he has sufficient Cybertonium, and the Space Bridge is repaired, but that he has lost control of the destination site. Having overheard this, the Dinobots overwhelm Shockwave, and although Shockwave is able to hit Swoop, the Dinobots and humans manage to escape back to Earth with a shipment of Cybertonium.

At the Autobot base, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] awards Spike and Carly with medals, making them "[[Honorary Autobot]]s". Grimlock decides to follow the Autobot leader's orders, and the Dinobots rejoin the [[Autobot]]s... until Grimlock no longer feels like following Prime's orders.

{{-}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (6)
*[[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] (7)
*[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] (8)
*[[Slag (G1)|Slag]] (9)
*[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] (10)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (13)

|c2=
*[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] (1)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (5)

|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (2)
*[[Carly]] (3)
*[[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (4)

|c4=
*[[Early war history records Transformers|History records Transformers]] (11)
*[[Sentinel (G1)|Sentinel robots]] (12)
}}

==Quotes==
"That was my car, not an Autobot. Decepticreep!" 
"I don't think he cares, Carly."
:—'''Carly''' and '''Spike''' after Shockwave destroys Carly's car

"The more I see of this planet, the more I like it." 
"The more I see of it, the more tired I get."
:—'''Carly''' as she marvels at Cybertron while '''Spike''' despairs over the huge stairs

[[Image:DesertionDinobots2 Mass transit junction.jpg|thumb|right|200px| ]]
'''Spike'''/'''Carly''': WHOA! 
'''Swoop''': Why you make ''that'' noise? 
'''Spike''': Because we just left our stomachs back up there. Hoh-oh!" 
'''Swoop''': Me glad me not have stomach to leave. 
:—Spike and Carly get a tiny bit of motion sickness sympathy from Swoop.

"Metal of good old days not so good!"
:—'''Swoop''' doesn't think much of the traps in the tunnels. He's going to think even less of the [[Quintesson|guys who built them]].

"Almost forgot — me Swoop can transform!"
:—In standard Dinobot fashion, '''Swoop''' hits on a solution for getting around with a damaged ''Pterodactyl'' wing.

"Millions of years ago, Cybertron was a planet of peace...until the Decepticons, lusting for power, began a terrible war. Not designed for combat, the Autobots were overwhelmed and subjugated by their evil opponents. While many Autobots fled Cybertron, a few valiant survivors devised new tactics and launched a counter-offensive on their arch-foes. And thus began a terrible series of wars. Many times, both sides have claimed victory, but this has been short-lived, for the Autobots have overthrown Decepticon tyrants, and, likewise, Decepticon treachery has toppled many a peaceful Autobot ruler. And to this day, the war rages on."
:— A '''computer''' telling the history of the Autobot-Decepticon conflict

[[Image:Grimlock01.JPG|right|200px|thumb|Me Grimlock say YOU PREGNANT.]]
"No! Me hate you!" 
"Well, I'm not nuts about you, either!" 
"Me not do what you say!" 
"You lunky bag of bolts, you can't do anything!"
:—'''Grimlock''' and '''Spike''' fake a fight within the Cybertonium Pit.

'''Slag''': Even though Dinobots not like it... 
'''Snarl''': ...We take orders from you now... 
'''Grimlock''': ...Until ''next time'' me Grimlock no '''''feel''''' like it. 
:—A warm fuzzy moment, Dinobot style.

==Notes==
===Animation and technical errors===
* An establishing shot shows us a pile of nonfunctional Autobots. Among them is Jazz, now back in his complete robot mode after being stuck as a half-car, half-robot last episode. In the same shot, Prowl's head crest is white instead of red, Jazz's tires are white, Bumblebee's groin is gray instead of yellow, and Brawn's gauntlets are yellow instead of gray.

*One of Teletraan I's displays labels Spike and Carly's location as "DECEPTKON COMPUTER BRAIN".

* Where's Spike been carrying that rather largish [[photon light]] he pulls out? It's way too big to fit in a pocket.

* Carly's "oop!" happens before she actually stumbles. She's calmly saying "Let me lean on your shoulder" while nearly pitching face-first into the ground.

*Predictably, the entrance to Wheeljack's lab looks completely different than when we saw it in "Divide and Conquer". So does the access panel for the door. Neither of those looked like the entrance seen in "The Ultimate Doom, Part 3", but that seems to have been a back door.

* As is common in the cartoon universe, the metal ceiling of Wheeljack's lab cracks and crumbles like rock.

* Swoop's wing damage is missing in the very next shot of him after it happens ("Must've triggered switch!"). And then it's back when he tries to avoid some heat-seeking missles. ("Wing won't work!").

* After he's shot by the Decepticon guard, Swoop falls over with a very organic-sounding thump.

* The Dinobots are all busily loading, loading, loading while they declare that they don't want to leave the Cybertonium pits. But when Carly decides to check Snarl's circuits, he's just standing there doing nothing.

* Would anybody recognize Slag if they colored his face ''right''?
** The front of Slag's checkguard is white instead of red as Carly fixes him.
** His whole face is white as the energy fence deactivates, and again as he returns to robot mode and escapes from the pit.
** The "side panels" of his head are white as Optimus Prime starts to address the Dinobots (his eyes are also colored red, and next to him, Sludge has empty white voids instead of eyes.)
** White cheekguard-fronts again as Slag speaks his final line. His chest plate is also gray instead of white.

* During the "history of Cybertron" segment, there are a [[Early war history records Transformers|pink and a grey generic]] who are among the Decepticons that round up a group of Autobots. They are seen again shortly afterwards... among a group of (if the narration is something to go by) ''Autobots'' who show off their newly-acquired transformation abilities.

* After their escape, the Dinobots stop to figure out which way to go; in this shot, Grimlock's head is light gray, and Slag's dino head is light gray instead of yellow.

*During the final scene, Swoop can be seen being repaired (presumably having his blown-up wing replaced, since he only has one), but his intact wing is the same color as the bed he's lying on, and his beak is red. And Ratchet, standing at the foot of the bed, is red and gray.

===Continuity errors===
* Victor Caroli's voiceover recap incorrectly describes the Autobots as "energy depleted"; in actuality, they're suffering mechanical breakdowns.

*At the end of Part 1, Shockwave fires (with two guns!) into the opening Space Bridge elevator door, triggering a huge explosion (which the "in our last episode" recap is kind enough to replay for us at the episode's start.) At the opening of this episode, however, he's just standing there when the elevator doors open, aiming his gun arm; his hand-held pistol is gone. After a second, he fires a ray that vaporizes Carly's car out from under its two human passengers, but doesn't cause any human-eviscerating explosions. It's not the first time that ''The Transformers'' has solved an unsolvable problem by just ignoring it, but it's one of the most flagrant.

*Incidentally, the ability to vaporize an entire automobile's worth of mass would seem to be a pretty useful power for an evil robot, but it's never seen outside of this episode's opening sequence.

*Also incidentally, Shockwave sure does stand there for an awfully long time, letting the clearly-still-alive humans run off into his headquarters.

[[Image:Dotdinos2 teletraan simulation.jpg|thumb|right|200px| ]]
* Improbable viewpoints:
** Most of the monitor imagery in this episode is simulated pictures constructed by Teletraan I to keep Sparkplug abreast of Spike and Carly's progress. All well and good, but it does seem to rule out any possibility that all those other unlikely camera views in all those other episodes were super-realistic computer simulations.
** Is Megatron collapsed against the video monitor console... or do the Decepticons have a camera on the floor?

*Spike and Carly happen upon a stack of energon cubes, and the script makes a point of having Spike wonder aloud where they came from, since Cybertron is supposed to be out of energy. Does nobody remember that whole [[The Ultimate Doom, Part 2|sending energon]] [[Divide and Conquer|to Cybertron]] thing the Decepticons had going on?

* Superhuman Spike:
** Spike manages to hold back an approximately 20+ foot tall metal door weighing several tons from crushing him and Carly.
** He also lifts a metal gun that's bigger than he is!
** Both he and Carly manage to hang on to Swoop's giant metal claws through a gut-wrenching series of aerial maneuvers. They're both fine when he drops them before crashing.

*When Carly and Spike reach Wheeljack's lab, Carly opens the door without ever knowing the pass code. It's not impossible that she got the code from [[Chip Chase]], who systematically guessed the code in "[[Divide and Conquer]]", but it does seem a bit on the unlikely side. Wheeljack also has a Decepticon symbol on his doorway, presumably put there by the Decepticons who sealed the entrance... but it wasn't there either of the last two times we saw the lab.

*Carly's ankle somehow repairs itself. Or was she faking just to get Spike to carry her everywhere? Maybe she found something in Wheeljack's lab that could heal her ankle or function as a brace.

* It's a cartoon convention that a missile can't harm you unless it physically hits you, no matter how close it gets, so we can cut ''The Transformers'' a little slack in this regard. However, the absurdity of it is a bit flagrant as Swoop dodges missiles in the extremely tight confines of a hallway, where the missiles have several chances to explode basically right next to him.

* The Decepticon drones don't keep watch over the pit as Carly reprograms the (stationary) Dinobots.

*Sparkplug says he's altered the space bridge destination by tapping into the Decepticons' computers. He never mentions how he managed to build an entire space bridge receiver ring right outside Autobot Headquarters. There has also been some previous indication that the space bridge appears at random, uncontrolled locations. Perhaps the receiver ring is part of the deal?

===Continuity notes===
*When Swoop escapes the Decepticon guards, he is shown flying over [[Great Dome|Iacon]] as the Autobots left it in "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1]]".
* Gadgets and powers:
** As mentioned above, Shockwave can ''vaporize'' things with a ray from his gun arm. What things? Cars, robots, machinery, just about anything, it would seem. How have the Decepticons not won the war with this guy on their side??
** Swoop can launch a couple of stubby little missiles out of his upper chest.
** The Dinobots' memory circuits can be bypassed via something or other in their chests. It sounds bizarre, but Bumblebee apparently had memory chips in his chest in "Transport to Oblivion", and Brainstorm later declares that he and his compatriots all have "auxiliary memory circuits" in their chests.
* Swoop and the humans wander into what appears to be an abandoned underground city on Cybertron. The notion of Cybertron cities being built one atop the next would be revisited in the ''Beast Machines'' cartoon, many years later.
* This episode gives us a rare glimpse into Cybertron's past via a sort of mini-documentary:
** The footage features a ''ton'' of totally made-up robot and vehicle designs.
** The ships used by fleeing Autobots in the datatracks are the [[Vanguard-class Deep Space Interceptor|same type]] as the Ark.
** The documentary suggests that the Autobots created the art of transforming, something that "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]" corroborates.
** This was the first episode where a Transformer that isn't a hologram or a clone is shown to be destroyed.
* For the most part, this is the last time the Dinobots would be shown as rebellious, intimidating warriors in the original animated continuity, as by their next appearance in ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'' they are happy to work with other Autobots, and by [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Season 3]], are generally used as comedic foils.
* Since Cybertron clearly sucked up a bunch of Earth's atmosphere in "[[The Ultimate Doom, Part 1]]", we can forgive Carly and Spike's ability to breathe there. (Of course, Cybertron was human-inhabitable even before that incident, as demonstrated by Chip's visit in "[[Divide and Conquer]]".) Awful handy of it to have human-compatible gravity (which it would need anyway to actually hold on to that atmosphere.)

===Real-world references===
[[Image:DisertionDinobots2 humans medals.JPG|right|200px|thumb|"I got shot through space, my car was disintegrated, I got lost and injured on an alien planet, captured by giant evil robots and made to act as slave mining labor, all to save your lives, and all I get is this lousy medal? That's it, I want a new car. And it better not be one of the Autobots acting like a car."]]

* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** Spike's laser shot hits Swoop with the sound of Ben Kenobi and Darth Vader cutting through some machinery on the Death Star.
** The same sound is used as part of the heat-seeking missiles' engines.
** ''Falcon'' engine rumble as Swoop starts his "fancy flying", then ''Falcon'' engine burst, then Death Star superlaser, the TIE Fighter engine as he finally crashes.

===Trivia===
*Carly doesn't appear entirely thrilled with the whole "honorary Autobots" thing. Not surprising, considering everything that happened to her in this episode.

*"Photon Light" sounds redundant.

*This episode probably has the smallest number of Decepticons in it than any other. I guess Megatron wanted more screen time.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Video Gems|A.M.T. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Channel 5]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1990 — ''Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots 3-D (Channel 5) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1998 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Malofilm|Behaviour]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 4 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/desertion_of_the_dinobots_part_2.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1

2012-06-21T00:22:20Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical errors */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=37
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=28
|prev2=Megatron's Master Plan, Part 2
|next2=Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=39
|prev3=The Girl Who Loved Powerglide
|next3=Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2
|image=DesertionDinobots1 resignation.JPG
|caption=Like nobody saw this coming miles away.
|title="Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1"
|production code=#700-36
|airdate=[[October 21]], 1985
|written by=[[Earl Kress]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Dinobots abandon the Autobots as both the Autobots and Decepticons begin to suffer malfunctions.'''

:''Japanese title:'' ダイノボットの逃亡 PART I (''Dinobot no Tōbō PART I'', "Desertion of the Dinobots PART I")
:''Portuguese name:'' '''A Deserção dos Dinobots Parte 1'''
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''I Dinorobots disertano-Parte 1''' ("Deserting Dinobots-Part 1")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''La diserzione dei Dinobots - I''' ("Desertion of the Dinobots - I")

==Synopsis==
At a laboratory, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the [[Autobot]]s are being shown [[Ultra Plane|a new drone fighter]] by a human professor. However, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] is out to steal the fighter's blueprints from the laboratory. [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] and [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]], who are inside [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], provide a distraction, while [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] destroys the drone. Prime orders the Autobots to inspect the wreckage for any clues. Shortly after this, the [[Decepticon]]s attack the lab, but the Autobots arrive and are able to send them packing.

[[Image:G1 Grimlock Megs bite.JPG|left|200px|thumb|Me Grimlock want to munch Megatron!]]

After some fun at the [[Fun A Rama Park]], [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], [[Carly]], and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] go to pick [[Sparkplug Witwicky|Sparkplug]] up at the airport. While there, they discover a Decepticon base in an [[Hangar|airplane hangar]]. Bumblebee calls Prime for reinforcements, but the Autobots with Prime are too far away. Contacting the [[Ark (G1)|Autobot base]], [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] sends the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] to assist. The Dinobots quickly trash the Decepticons. In retaliation, Megatron orders the Decepticons to blast the planes, causing a massive explosion that damages the Dinobots and allows the Decepticons to retreat. [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]], [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], and [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] arrive to put out the fires and take the Dinobots back to base. [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] and Wheeljack begin repairs on the Dinobots, while the other Autobots rebuild the airport.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Rumble Megs.JPG|right|200px|thumb|What is it, little buddy? Are you lost? Timmy fell down the well?]]

Meanwhile, the Decepticons are flying through the air back to [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Earth)|their base]]. All of a sudden, Ravage ejects from Soundwave, transforms and lands on the ground below. Megatron demands an explanation, but Soundwave says that Ravage initiated the ejection without a reason. Soon, however, the Decepticons fall from the sky, and [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] begins attacking Megatron, though he doesn't know why and he can't stop himself. Megatron flicks him away and concludes that they are suffering from bad [[energon]]. The group heads off to get some new [[Energon cube|cubes]] from a powerplant to refuel themselves.

At the Autobot base, the Dinobots are repaired, and Prime, still rebuilding the airport, tries to send them to stop the Decepticons. [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] angrily refuses, saying he's tired of taking the Autobot leader's orders and saving the Autobots whenever they need help. The Dinobots leave the base, intending to fight whenever they want to. At the power plant, the Autobots arrive to stop the Decepticons, but both factions begin to suffer from debilitating malfunctions. After an indecisive battle, Megatron orders the Decepticons to retreat.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Autobots tired.JPG|left|200px|thumb|Cybertonium chairs seemed like a good idea at the time, but now...]]

Back at the base, the Autobots are suffering power failures now, as well as other problems (Wheeljack can't move, [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]]'s legs are stuck in [[alternate mode]], and [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is holding his own severed head!). [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] concludes that they are suffering from [[Cybertonium]] depletion. However, Cybertonium only exists on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. Fortunately, [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] is sending a shipment over the [[space bridge]], but the Autobots are in no condition to retrieve it themselves. Sparkplug, Spike, and Carly decide to track down the Dinobots.

As the three look for the Dinobots, they find that they have been discovered by the Dinobots. Grimlock is less than pleased to have been followed by the humans, and decides to crush them. Sparkplug lays it on thick when he says they need the Dinobots' "brilliant help." [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]], however, saves the humans from getting smushed because he wants to hear about the "brilliant" part. Sparkplug explains the situation, but Grimlock doesn't care. However, when Spike mentions Cybertonium, Grimlock realizes the Cybertron connection, and decides to help (despite [[Slag (G1)|Slag]]'s refusal and [[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]]'s confusion). The Dinobots attack the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]], who are retrieving the Cybertonium, but the Dinobots simply get into the space bridge and head for Cybertron. Shockwave attempts to stop them. Guess what happens.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 car fly.JPG|right|200px|thumb|WHEEEEE!]]

At the Autobot base, Sparkplug contacts Grimlock, who refuses to return and help the "bossy Autobots". Carly resolves that she and Spike must head for Cybertron themselves. Prime attempts to stop them, but finally succumbs to the effects of Cybertonium depletion. Sparkplug stays to man [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] to help the kids. Spike and Carly manage to drive past [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] using Carly's car, but Shockwave is waiting for the two humans on the other side.

[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2|To be continued...]]
{{-}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (1)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (2)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (3)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (4)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] (8)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (13)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (18)
*[[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] (19)
*[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] (20)
*[[Slag (G1)|Slag]] (21)
*[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] (22)
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (23)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (27)
*[[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] (28)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (29)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (30)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (31)
*[[Grapple]] (32)
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] (33)

|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (7)
*[[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] (9)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (10)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (11)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (16)
*[[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] (17)
*[[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (24)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (25)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (26)
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] (34)
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] (35)
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] (36)
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] (37)
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]] (38)
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] (39)
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] (40)
*[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] (41)

|c3=
*[[Greene]] (5)
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (12)
*[[Carly]] (14)
*[[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (15)
}}

==Quotes==
'''Wheeljack''': Dinobots, we got a job for you. 
'''Grimlock''': Me Grimlock no like orders. 
'''Slag''': Me Slag no like ''anything''. 
'''Wheeljack''': We really need your help. Why won't you give us a hand? 
'''Grimlock''': Me don't know why not. So we help. This time. 
'''Wheeljack''': I've ''got'' to work on their personality circuits. 
:—Wheeljack learns that even the Dinobots don't know why they have a bad attitude.

"So much for your secret hideout, Megatron; even the moronic Dinobots found it!"
:—'''Starscream''' as the Dinobots attack the Decepticons' airbase.

"Decepticons, CHARGE!"
:—'''Megatron''' decides to try a new tactic when losing.

"I warned you guys there was trouble!" 
"You always say there's trouble, Red."
:—'''Red Alert''' and '''Hoist'''

"It's the Aurobrroughs... THE AURRROOBBRRURURRUGHRRR!!!!"
:—'''Megatron''' after the effects of Cybertonium depletion busted his vocal circuits

"Hey, I'm stuck! I can't transform! [''Ironhide kicks him; Jazz transforms''] OW! Thanks...I think."
:—'''Jazz'''

'''Sparkplug''': The Autobots are dying, and only you can save them. 
'''Grimlock''': No care about Autobots! Me Grimlock Dinobot! 
'''Spike''': If you don't help, the Decepticons will get all the Cybertonium they need. 
'''Grimlock''': Cybertonium? Cybertron! Okay, us do it! 
'''Slag''': No! Us no want to. 
'''Sludge''': What he say? 
'''Grimlock''': Me Grimlock. Me leader! Me say us do it!
:—Grimlock's unassailable logic convinces the Dinobots

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Shockwave Dinobots.JPG|right|150px|thumb|You Shockwave not so tough without black sticky stuff.]]
"Stowaways?! Stand back!" 
"WE NO STAND BACK!"
:—'''Shockwave''' and '''Grimlock''', right before the Dinobots kick Shockwave's [[Diode|diodes]].

"It's...too...risky! Ohh..."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' warns Spike and Carly of the danger of traveling to Cybertron alone, right before he nearly crushes them while passing out.

"I feel kinda stupid talking into my thumb."
: —'''Spike''' in agreement with the audience for the first and last time.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical errors===
* Despite the variety of engine sound effects, the experimental plane is just flying in a straight line in the first shot.
* Blaster's forehead is red (like the rest of his helmet) instead of white as Optimus gives the order to [[roll out]].
* Mirage's transformation is somewhat "cheated", as he simply melds into car mode instead of turning around at the waist like he is supposed to.
* Starscream's face is white instead of medium gray as he enters the lab facility.
* The scientist that Starscream tosses aside gets up and runs away, despite having been ''thrown'' a good 15 or 20 feet to the floor.
* Blaster's arm phases through Mirage's box-of-turning-invisible. While not physically impossible, he appears to be standing far enough in front of Mirage that the box should be behind him.
* After grabbing Megatron's cannon, Mirage reappears without his customary energy sound effect.
*The merry-go-round at the fair features horses that are suspended from the roof, rather than attached to floor-to-ceiling posts like a real carousel.
* The outside of the airport, where Bumblebee discharges his passengers and transforms, is ''completely deserted''. They seem to have wandered into the loading docks or something.
* Slag's face and head are gray instead of red as he says his "no like anything" line.
* The top of Starscream's cockpit cowling is yellow instead of gray as he scolds Megatron for retreating.
* Snarl appears to tear the entire hangar door apart, but after he moves past the "camera", we see that half the door is still intact.
* As Slag tears though the hangar door, by rights his hind end should be visible through the hole Snarl just made, but it only magically becomes visible as he walks through the hole he made.
* Blitzwing's head is purple instead of yellow just before he transforms to attack Bumblebee.
** And again after he falls out of the sky.
*** And again as Soundwave ejects Ravage at the power plant.
**** And ''again'' as the Decepticons try to retreat from the power plant. Was this an alternate color scheme or something?
* Megatron's audio appears to drop out for a second or two as he tosses Rumble aside; he says "Get... ...fool!" with timing that would be just right for the more explicable "Get off me, fool!"
*Thundercracker is miscolored as Starscream when Swoop attacks him.
* Spike, Carly and Sparkplug are inside the terminal when Megatron gets thrown into it. A second later, they're back on the flightline with the Dinobots.
* The sound crew missed the part where Hoist is ''towing'' the derelict airliner carrying the Dinobots; they applied what sounds like an idling jet engine noise over the scene.
* The building that Powerglide and Ironhide construct changes shape between shots, and doesn't appear to have any doors or windows. There's also a parked airplane practically on top of the foundation before they start laying bricks. Ironhide's method of brick-laying fails to put any mortar into the vertical brick joints. The bricks also go from regular bricks to concrete blocks between shots.
* Megatron's Decepticon symbol is missing after he bashes Rumble aside in the desert.
* Slag's head guards are white instead of red as he agrees with Grimlock's refusal of orders. (Should they be white? Yes, yes, no!)
* The energon cubes at the power plant are semi-glowing in a strange purple color, rather than the usual bright pink.
* Prime clips through the concrete fence at the power plant as the Autobots arrive to stop the Decepticons.
*Jazz is colored as Red Alert when the Autobots transform at the power station.
*Megatron's gun mode is entirely white when Starscream is about to shoot Optimus.
[[Image:Dotd1 sparkplug repairs wheeljack.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Just one little vertical line. Supposed to be over there on the right.]]
* Wheeljack is missing the little windshield line on the top/side of his chest as Prime answers Ironhide's question about what is happening to them. It's missing again as Sparkplug repairs him in the next scene.
* Red Alert has white tires on his shoulders in the first pan of the disabled Autobots at Autobot Headquarters.
* As Wheeljack says that Cybertonium is only found on Cybertron, his whole helmet is light gray instead of dark gray, rather than just his three "fins".
* Scrapper's vehicle mode ''bends'' like rubber as he backs away from the Dinobots.
* Scrapper has two eyes instead of his usual single visor as he turns to track Swoop.
* Long Haul's portion of Devastator is shown plopping into place... long after both he and Hook (who forms the part that comes ''after'' Long Haul) have already driven up and transformed.
*When the Dinobots first appear on Cybertron, Shockwave has both his hands. In the next scene, however, his left hand blaster is there. He was last seen with two hands back in "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1]]".
* Improbable viewpoints:
** Teletraan I kindly provides Sparkplug with a view of Grimlock ''inside [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Cybertron)|Decepticon Headquarters]] on Cybertron''!
* So... the sound guys have never seen a car before? They don't know what a car does? 'Cause they put in a flight sound effect as Carly's car vaults over Devastator's foot and into the space bridge ring.
* The animation of Shockwave reacting to and turning toward the space bridge elevator is recycled when Spike and Carly arrive. Not an explicit error by itself, but it creates a continuity disjoint with the next shot, as Shockwave abruptly goes from empty-handed to holding a blaster.
* There's nothing in the space bridge elevator when Shockwave blasts it.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Dotd1 sneakiest soundwave.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Seriously, Blaster doesn't recognize this guy by now?]]
[[Image:DesertionDinos1 BlastergrabsRavage.jpg|thumb|right|200px|And yet he doesn't seem surprised at all when this happens.]]
* The opening scene is bizarre. Soundwave is sitting in Ironhide's cargo compartment. Ironhide somehow failed to notice Soundwave climbing into him, and continues to fail to notice him sitting there. Blaster somehow fails to notice Soundwave sitting ''right in front of him''. Of particular note, in "[[Heavy Metal War]]" Ironhide is apparently able to detect the Decepticons by himself, without relying on Teletraan I.
* Ironhide doesn't even seem to acknowledge Soundwave until he tells Prime, and yet he only saw Blaster and Ravage battle against one another.
* Considering the ultra plane was in full view of the Autobots and Dr. Green the whole time, how did none of them see Starscream flying over the fighter and dropping a bomb on top of it?
* We never do find out where Sparkplug is coming home from or what he was doing there in his snazzy blue suit.
* Bumblebee and Spike apparently just wander onto the airport's flightline, unquestioned, to investigate the Decepticon hangar.
* Superhumans Spike, Carly, and Sparkplug:
**Neither Spike nor Carly and Sparkplug are harmed by Megatron flying through a huge plate glass window right in front of them. (As noted above, they shouldn't even be there.)
* On a related note, though Bumblebee and the three humans are standing right next to the Dinobots, none of them are harmed by the planes exploding, while the Dinobots get blown to kingdom come.
* The Autobots lament having to repair the Dinobots using only tools available to them on Earth, despite having easily built them on Earth with those same tools.
* For some reason, Blitzwing blasting Jazz in the side causes a huge crevasse to open up beneath Jazz.
* The space bridge must have been seriously fine-tuned since its first appearance. The Dinobots make the trip just fine, despite appearing to flail about randomly as they make the trip. Even an Earthly automobile makes it through (and its human passengers survive, which means the space bridge portal has a pressurized atmosphere.) Previously, an unpiloted test vehicle vanished into the ether because it lacked guidance.
* Shockwave blasts the elevator door as Spike and Carly arrive on Cybertron, creating a huge explosion. They are only saved by power of retcon, as the next episode decides that the immediate firing and huge explosion simply didn't happen.

===Kid Rhino release===
*On the [[Rhino Entertainment|Kid Rhino]] DVDs, the visuals drop out completely for a second or so, replaced by a black screen, after Blaster's fight with Ravage. This error is also on the Madman Region 4 DVD.

===Continuity notes===
*This episode throws some confusion on the origin of the newer second-season characters such as Perceptor, Blaster, Blitzwing, etc. Previously it could be assumed they had simply arrived from Cybertron or some other planet. But the fact that their Cybertonium deteriorates in exact sync with the earlier characters suggests that they were also aboard the Ark and went through the same four million year slumber as the 1984 characters. Why we didn't see any of them for the first year is therefore a bit of a mystery within the context of the stories.
* The Dinobots' discontent was previously hinted at in "[[Atlantis, Arise!]]" and "[[Day of the Machines]]". They seemed much happier in the later two-parter "[[Dinobot Island, Part 1|Dinobot Island]]".
* Apparently the Dinobots just stand around in their own little cubby hole in the Ark, waiting patiently for someone to open the door and talk to them. Which is strangely placid of them.
[[Image:Dotd1 malfunctioning ironhide.jpg|thumb|right|200px|You've got the touch! ]]
[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Powerglide no head.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Some parts are made to detach if excessive force is applied. ]]
[[Image:G1Cartoon37 Generic.jpg|right|thumb|200px|A [[generic]] Transformer from Mirage's flashback. Perhaps one of his [[Mirage's friends|friends]]?]]
* Gadgets and powers:
** To prepare the viewer for the forthcoming mechanical failures of the Autobots, several of them use their stock powers, such as Jazz's [[sound and light show]] and Mirage's invisibility.
** To inspect the vault door, Soundwave retracts his hand and brings forth a three-pronged wirey sensor thing. It's only [[Soundwave (ROTF)|slightly creepy]].
** Carly switches off Bumblebee's equilibrium circuits by pressing a button inside his chest armor (which sure pops open easily. Bee had better hope the Decepticons don't find out about that feature.)
** Bumblebee uses a wrist communicator to radio Optimus. Though a common device for both sides, this one looks different than the more rectangular ones Bumblebee has used in the past—spheroid and with a little antenna on top.
** Inferno fires [[fire-retardant foam]] (or something like it) from a nozzle that emerges from a hatch on his cab (even though Inferno already sports several ''visible'' nozzles designed to serve the same purpose.)
** The deterioration of the Transformers' [[cybertonium]] leads to a series of mechanical failures:
*** Grapple apparently loses his fine motor control.
*** Megatron's audio circuits malfunction.
*** Soundwave spontaneously ejects Ravage.
*** The Decepticons lose their flight abilities.
*** Rumble can't stop himself from attacking Megatron.
*** Jazz can't transform, and later winds up half-car, half-robot.
*** Ironhide's hand won't retract to fire his liquid nitrogen.
*** Mirage only becomes black and white instead of invisible.
*** Ravage spontaneously returns to cassette mode in mid-battle.
*** Jazz's sound and light show fails to activate.
*** Blitzwing can't stop his own forward motion in tank mode.
*** Powerglide's head... falls off??
*The Constructicons appear to be functioning perfectly well in this episode. What this says about their origin controversy is unknown.
* We get treated to the one-time appearance of a uniquely designed Transformer on Cybertron. He's medium brown and appears to have Snarl's dinosaur tail halves on his back; he transforms to a purple flying saucer-like thing.
[[Image:ShockwaveDesertionOfTheDinobots1.jpg|right|200px|thumb|It is not logical to not have a blaster when you turn into that model of blaster.]]
*In the final scene, Shockwave fires a gun that looks exactly like his own [[alternate mode]]. (Presumably, the animators mistook his weapon mode for a hand-held weapon.) He also is shown with two hands in one shot, just like his very first appearance. Can he retract one and replace it with his familiar gun arm? Or is it just an animation screwup? You be the judge!
*This episode establishes that the Dinobots are better-armored in their beast modes.
* '''[[Dinobot Island, Part 2|< <]]''' What makes Starscream the leader? Megatron's blown his vocal components! '''[[Triple Takeover|> >]]'''

===Real world references===
* EJK, the facility where all the information on the Ultraplane is stored, is named for episode writer Earl J. Kress.
* This episode contains enough ''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]'' sound effects to make you think you're watching events in a galaxy far, far away:
** The opening shots of the experimental jet are soundtracked with diving X-Wings and the TIE Fighter engine roar.
** After exiting Ironhide's cargo compartment, Soundwave launches with the ''Millennium Falcon'' engine burst.
** Some ''Falcon'' ambient engine noise (flying over the surface of Yavin IV) is heard as Starscream flies toward the ultra plane.
** The ultra plane explosion is soundtracked with the Death Star firing sequence noise.
** ''Falcon'' engine burst as Megatron retreats from the lab.
** Death Star firing/Alderaan exploding again, as Thundercracker and Thrust take off to attack the Dinobots, followed by more X-Wings diving.
** ''Falcon'' engine burst again as the Transformer on Cybertron that Mirage watches on a monitor takes off.
** ''Falcon'' engine roar as Swoop dives to snatch Carly's car out from under Grimlock's foot.

===Trivia===
* The hangar that the Decepticons are hiding in is labeled "hangar" in huge white letters. This is so you know that it is, indeed, a hangar and not a [[Giant Decepticon insignia|well hidden Decepticon base]].
* Mirage totally goes toe-to-toe with Megatron and manages to hold his own for a bit. Impressive!
* Slag sounds strangely ''upbeat'' when he says "Me Slag no like anything."
* When the Dinobots leave the Autobot base, Sludge and Snarl appear much shorter than the others. If the Dinobots were at all consistent with the dinosaurs they are based on, Sludge should be much larger than the others (foreshortening perhaps?).
* A faint female voice can be heard moaning as Blaster and Soundwave rock the [[Ironhide (G1)|van]]...

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Video Gems|A.M.T. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Channel 5]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1990 — ''Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots 3-D (Channel 5) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1998 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Malofilm|Behaviour]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 4 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/desertion_of_the_dinobots_part_1.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1

2012-06-21T00:21:27Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical errors */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=37
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=28
|prev2=Megatron's Master Plan, Part 2
|next2=Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=39
|prev3=The Girl Who Loved Powerglide
|next3=Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2
|image=DesertionDinobots1 resignation.JPG
|caption=Like nobody saw this coming miles away.
|title="Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1"
|production code=#700-36
|airdate=[[October 21]], 1985
|written by=[[Earl Kress]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Dinobots abandon the Autobots as both the Autobots and Decepticons begin to suffer malfunctions.'''

:''Japanese title:'' ダイノボットの逃亡 PART I (''Dinobot no Tōbō PART I'', "Desertion of the Dinobots PART I")
:''Portuguese name:'' '''A Deserção dos Dinobots Parte 1'''
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''I Dinorobots disertano-Parte 1''' ("Deserting Dinobots-Part 1")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''La diserzione dei Dinobots - I''' ("Desertion of the Dinobots - I")

==Synopsis==
At a laboratory, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the [[Autobot]]s are being shown [[Ultra Plane|a new drone fighter]] by a human professor. However, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] is out to steal the fighter's blueprints from the laboratory. [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] and [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]], who are inside [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], provide a distraction, while [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] destroys the drone. Prime orders the Autobots to inspect the wreckage for any clues. Shortly after this, the [[Decepticon]]s attack the lab, but the Autobots arrive and are able to send them packing.

[[Image:G1 Grimlock Megs bite.JPG|left|200px|thumb|Me Grimlock want to munch Megatron!]]

After some fun at the [[Fun A Rama Park]], [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], [[Carly]], and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] go to pick [[Sparkplug Witwicky|Sparkplug]] up at the airport. While there, they discover a Decepticon base in an [[Hangar|airplane hangar]]. Bumblebee calls Prime for reinforcements, but the Autobots with Prime are too far away. Contacting the [[Ark (G1)|Autobot base]], [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] sends the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] to assist. The Dinobots quickly trash the Decepticons. In retaliation, Megatron orders the Decepticons to blast the planes, causing a massive explosion that damages the Dinobots and allows the Decepticons to retreat. [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]], [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], and [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] arrive to put out the fires and take the Dinobots back to base. [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] and Wheeljack begin repairs on the Dinobots, while the other Autobots rebuild the airport.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Rumble Megs.JPG|right|200px|thumb|What is it, little buddy? Are you lost? Timmy fell down the well?]]

Meanwhile, the Decepticons are flying through the air back to [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Earth)|their base]]. All of a sudden, Ravage ejects from Soundwave, transforms and lands on the ground below. Megatron demands an explanation, but Soundwave says that Ravage initiated the ejection without a reason. Soon, however, the Decepticons fall from the sky, and [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] begins attacking Megatron, though he doesn't know why and he can't stop himself. Megatron flicks him away and concludes that they are suffering from bad [[energon]]. The group heads off to get some new [[Energon cube|cubes]] from a powerplant to refuel themselves.

At the Autobot base, the Dinobots are repaired, and Prime, still rebuilding the airport, tries to send them to stop the Decepticons. [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] angrily refuses, saying he's tired of taking the Autobot leader's orders and saving the Autobots whenever they need help. The Dinobots leave the base, intending to fight whenever they want to. At the power plant, the Autobots arrive to stop the Decepticons, but both factions begin to suffer from debilitating malfunctions. After an indecisive battle, Megatron orders the Decepticons to retreat.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Autobots tired.JPG|left|200px|thumb|Cybertonium chairs seemed like a good idea at the time, but now...]]

Back at the base, the Autobots are suffering power failures now, as well as other problems (Wheeljack can't move, [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]]'s legs are stuck in [[alternate mode]], and [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is holding his own severed head!). [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] concludes that they are suffering from [[Cybertonium]] depletion. However, Cybertonium only exists on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. Fortunately, [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] is sending a shipment over the [[space bridge]], but the Autobots are in no condition to retrieve it themselves. Sparkplug, Spike, and Carly decide to track down the Dinobots.

As the three look for the Dinobots, they find that they have been discovered by the Dinobots. Grimlock is less than pleased to have been followed by the humans, and decides to crush them. Sparkplug lays it on thick when he says they need the Dinobots' "brilliant help." [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]], however, saves the humans from getting smushed because he wants to hear about the "brilliant" part. Sparkplug explains the situation, but Grimlock doesn't care. However, when Spike mentions Cybertonium, Grimlock realizes the Cybertron connection, and decides to help (despite [[Slag (G1)|Slag]]'s refusal and [[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]]'s confusion). The Dinobots attack the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]], who are retrieving the Cybertonium, but the Dinobots simply get into the space bridge and head for Cybertron. Shockwave attempts to stop them. Guess what happens.

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 car fly.JPG|right|200px|thumb|WHEEEEE!]]

At the Autobot base, Sparkplug contacts Grimlock, who refuses to return and help the "bossy Autobots". Carly resolves that she and Spike must head for Cybertron themselves. Prime attempts to stop them, but finally succumbs to the effects of Cybertonium depletion. Sparkplug stays to man [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] to help the kids. Spike and Carly manage to drive past [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] using Carly's car, but Shockwave is waiting for the two humans on the other side.

[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2|To be continued...]]
{{-}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (1)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (2)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (3)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (4)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] (8)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (13)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (18)
*[[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] (19)
*[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] (20)
*[[Slag (G1)|Slag]] (21)
*[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] (22)
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (23)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (27)
*[[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] (28)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (29)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (30)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (31)
*[[Grapple]] (32)
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] (33)

|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (7)
*[[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] (9)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (10)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (11)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (16)
*[[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] (17)
*[[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (24)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (25)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (26)
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] (34)
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] (35)
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] (36)
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] (37)
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]] (38)
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] (39)
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] (40)
*[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] (41)

|c3=
*[[Greene]] (5)
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (12)
*[[Carly]] (14)
*[[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (15)
}}

==Quotes==
'''Wheeljack''': Dinobots, we got a job for you. 
'''Grimlock''': Me Grimlock no like orders. 
'''Slag''': Me Slag no like ''anything''. 
'''Wheeljack''': We really need your help. Why won't you give us a hand? 
'''Grimlock''': Me don't know why not. So we help. This time. 
'''Wheeljack''': I've ''got'' to work on their personality circuits. 
:—Wheeljack learns that even the Dinobots don't know why they have a bad attitude.

"So much for your secret hideout, Megatron; even the moronic Dinobots found it!"
:—'''Starscream''' as the Dinobots attack the Decepticons' airbase.

"Decepticons, CHARGE!"
:—'''Megatron''' decides to try a new tactic when losing.

"I warned you guys there was trouble!" 
"You always say there's trouble, Red."
:—'''Red Alert''' and '''Hoist'''

"It's the Aurobrroughs... THE AURRROOBBRRURURRUGHRRR!!!!"
:—'''Megatron''' after the effects of Cybertonium depletion busted his vocal circuits

"Hey, I'm stuck! I can't transform! [''Ironhide kicks him; Jazz transforms''] OW! Thanks...I think."
:—'''Jazz'''

'''Sparkplug''': The Autobots are dying, and only you can save them. 
'''Grimlock''': No care about Autobots! Me Grimlock Dinobot! 
'''Spike''': If you don't help, the Decepticons will get all the Cybertonium they need. 
'''Grimlock''': Cybertonium? Cybertron! Okay, us do it! 
'''Slag''': No! Us no want to. 
'''Sludge''': What he say? 
'''Grimlock''': Me Grimlock. Me leader! Me say us do it!
:—Grimlock's unassailable logic convinces the Dinobots

[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Shockwave Dinobots.JPG|right|150px|thumb|You Shockwave not so tough without black sticky stuff.]]
"Stowaways?! Stand back!" 
"WE NO STAND BACK!"
:—'''Shockwave''' and '''Grimlock''', right before the Dinobots kick Shockwave's [[Diode|diodes]].

"It's...too...risky! Ohh..."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' warns Spike and Carly of the danger of traveling to Cybertron alone, right before he nearly crushes them while passing out.

"I feel kinda stupid talking into my thumb."
: —'''Spike''' in agreement with the audience for the first and last time.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical errors===
* Despite the variety of engine sound effects, the experimental plane is just flying in a straight line in the first shot.
* Blaster's forehead is red (like the rest of his helmet) instead of white as Optimus gives the order to [[roll out]].
* Mirage's transformation is somewhat "cheated", as he simply melds into car mode instead of turning around at the waist like he is supposed to.
* Starscream's face is white instead of medium gray as he enters the lab facility.
* The scientist that Starscream tosses aside gets up and runs away, despite having been ''thrown'' a good 15 or 20 feet to the floor.
* Blaster's arm phases through Mirage's box-of-turning-invisible. While not physically impossible, he appears to be standing far enough in front of Mirage that the box should be behind him.
* After grabbing Megatron's cannon, Mirage reappears without his customary energy sound effect.
* While grappling with Mirage to get his Fusion Cannon back, Megatron suddenly appears in the hole in the wall he made with the Fusion Cannon intact. The instant switch from tussling with Mirage to retreating leaves a gap in the pacing of the scene.
*The merry-go-round at the fair features horses that are suspended from the roof, rather than attached to floor-to-ceiling posts like a real carousel.
* The outside of the airport, where Bumblebee discharges his passengers and transforms, is ''completely deserted''. They seem to have wandered into the loading docks or something.
* Slag's face and head are gray instead of red as he says his "no like anything" line.
* The top of Starscream's cockpit cowling is yellow instead of gray as he scolds Megatron for retreating.
* Snarl appears to tear the entire hangar door apart, but after he moves past the "camera", we see that half the door is still intact.
* As Slag tears though the hangar door, by rights his hind end should be visible through the hole Snarl just made, but it only magically becomes visible as he walks through the hole he made.
* Blitzwing's head is purple instead of yellow just before he transforms to attack Bumblebee.
** And again after he falls out of the sky.
*** And again as Soundwave ejects Ravage at the power plant.
**** And ''again'' as the Decepticons try to retreat from the power plant. Was this an alternate color scheme or something?
* Megatron's audio appears to drop out for a second or two as he tosses Rumble aside; he says "Get... ...fool!" with timing that would be just right for the more explicable "Get off me, fool!"
*Thundercracker is miscolored as Starscream when Swoop attacks him.
* Spike, Carly and Sparkplug are inside the terminal when Megatron gets thrown into it. A second later, they're back on the flightline with the Dinobots.
* The sound crew missed the part where Hoist is ''towing'' the derelict airliner carrying the Dinobots; they applied what sounds like an idling jet engine noise over the scene.
* The building that Powerglide and Ironhide construct changes shape between shots, and doesn't appear to have any doors or windows. There's also a parked airplane practically on top of the foundation before they start laying bricks. Ironhide's method of brick-laying fails to put any mortar into the vertical brick joints. The bricks also go from regular bricks to concrete blocks between shots.
* Megatron's Decepticon symbol is missing after he bashes Rumble aside in the desert.
* Slag's head guards are white instead of red as he agrees with Grimlock's refusal of orders. (Should they be white? Yes, yes, no!)
* The energon cubes at the power plant are semi-glowing in a strange purple color, rather than the usual bright pink.
* Prime clips through the concrete fence at the power plant as the Autobots arrive to stop the Decepticons.
*Jazz is colored as Red Alert when the Autobots transform at the power station.
*Megatron's gun mode is entirely white when Starscream is about to shoot Optimus.
[[Image:Dotd1 sparkplug repairs wheeljack.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Just one little vertical line. Supposed to be over there on the right.]]
* Wheeljack is missing the little windshield line on the top/side of his chest as Prime answers Ironhide's question about what is happening to them. It's missing again as Sparkplug repairs him in the next scene.
* Red Alert has white tires on his shoulders in the first pan of the disabled Autobots at Autobot Headquarters.
* As Wheeljack says that Cybertonium is only found on Cybertron, his whole helmet is light gray instead of dark gray, rather than just his three "fins".
* Scrapper's vehicle mode ''bends'' like rubber as he backs away from the Dinobots.
* Scrapper has two eyes instead of his usual single visor as he turns to track Swoop.
* Long Haul's portion of Devastator is shown plopping into place... long after both he and Hook (who forms the part that comes ''after'' Long Haul) have already driven up and transformed.
*When the Dinobots first appear on Cybertron, Shockwave has both his hands. In the next scene, however, his left hand blaster is there. He was last seen with two hands back in "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1]]".
* Improbable viewpoints:
** Teletraan I kindly provides Sparkplug with a view of Grimlock ''inside [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Cybertron)|Decepticon Headquarters]] on Cybertron''!
* So... the sound guys have never seen a car before? They don't know what a car does? 'Cause they put in a flight sound effect as Carly's car vaults over Devastator's foot and into the space bridge ring.
* The animation of Shockwave reacting to and turning toward the space bridge elevator is recycled when Spike and Carly arrive. Not an explicit error by itself, but it creates a continuity disjoint with the next shot, as Shockwave abruptly goes from empty-handed to holding a blaster.
* There's nothing in the space bridge elevator when Shockwave blasts it.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Dotd1 sneakiest soundwave.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Seriously, Blaster doesn't recognize this guy by now?]]
[[Image:DesertionDinos1 BlastergrabsRavage.jpg|thumb|right|200px|And yet he doesn't seem surprised at all when this happens.]]
* The opening scene is bizarre. Soundwave is sitting in Ironhide's cargo compartment. Ironhide somehow failed to notice Soundwave climbing into him, and continues to fail to notice him sitting there. Blaster somehow fails to notice Soundwave sitting ''right in front of him''. Of particular note, in "[[Heavy Metal War]]" Ironhide is apparently able to detect the Decepticons by himself, without relying on Teletraan I.
* Ironhide doesn't even seem to acknowledge Soundwave until he tells Prime, and yet he only saw Blaster and Ravage battle against one another.
* Considering the ultra plane was in full view of the Autobots and Dr. Green the whole time, how did none of them see Starscream flying over the fighter and dropping a bomb on top of it?
* We never do find out where Sparkplug is coming home from or what he was doing there in his snazzy blue suit.
* Bumblebee and Spike apparently just wander onto the airport's flightline, unquestioned, to investigate the Decepticon hangar.
* Superhumans Spike, Carly, and Sparkplug:
**Neither Spike nor Carly and Sparkplug are harmed by Megatron flying through a huge plate glass window right in front of them. (As noted above, they shouldn't even be there.)
* On a related note, though Bumblebee and the three humans are standing right next to the Dinobots, none of them are harmed by the planes exploding, while the Dinobots get blown to kingdom come.
* The Autobots lament having to repair the Dinobots using only tools available to them on Earth, despite having easily built them on Earth with those same tools.
* For some reason, Blitzwing blasting Jazz in the side causes a huge crevasse to open up beneath Jazz.
* The space bridge must have been seriously fine-tuned since its first appearance. The Dinobots make the trip just fine, despite appearing to flail about randomly as they make the trip. Even an Earthly automobile makes it through (and its human passengers survive, which means the space bridge portal has a pressurized atmosphere.) Previously, an unpiloted test vehicle vanished into the ether because it lacked guidance.
* Shockwave blasts the elevator door as Spike and Carly arrive on Cybertron, creating a huge explosion. They are only saved by power of retcon, as the next episode decides that the immediate firing and huge explosion simply didn't happen.

===Kid Rhino release===
*On the [[Rhino Entertainment|Kid Rhino]] DVDs, the visuals drop out completely for a second or so, replaced by a black screen, after Blaster's fight with Ravage. This error is also on the Madman Region 4 DVD.

===Continuity notes===
*This episode throws some confusion on the origin of the newer second-season characters such as Perceptor, Blaster, Blitzwing, etc. Previously it could be assumed they had simply arrived from Cybertron or some other planet. But the fact that their Cybertonium deteriorates in exact sync with the earlier characters suggests that they were also aboard the Ark and went through the same four million year slumber as the 1984 characters. Why we didn't see any of them for the first year is therefore a bit of a mystery within the context of the stories.
* The Dinobots' discontent was previously hinted at in "[[Atlantis, Arise!]]" and "[[Day of the Machines]]". They seemed much happier in the later two-parter "[[Dinobot Island, Part 1|Dinobot Island]]".
* Apparently the Dinobots just stand around in their own little cubby hole in the Ark, waiting patiently for someone to open the door and talk to them. Which is strangely placid of them.
[[Image:Dotd1 malfunctioning ironhide.jpg|thumb|right|200px|You've got the touch! ]]
[[Image:DesertionDinobots1 Powerglide no head.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Some parts are made to detach if excessive force is applied. ]]
[[Image:G1Cartoon37 Generic.jpg|right|thumb|200px|A [[generic]] Transformer from Mirage's flashback. Perhaps one of his [[Mirage's friends|friends]]?]]
* Gadgets and powers:
** To prepare the viewer for the forthcoming mechanical failures of the Autobots, several of them use their stock powers, such as Jazz's [[sound and light show]] and Mirage's invisibility.
** To inspect the vault door, Soundwave retracts his hand and brings forth a three-pronged wirey sensor thing. It's only [[Soundwave (ROTF)|slightly creepy]].
** Carly switches off Bumblebee's equilibrium circuits by pressing a button inside his chest armor (which sure pops open easily. Bee had better hope the Decepticons don't find out about that feature.)
** Bumblebee uses a wrist communicator to radio Optimus. Though a common device for both sides, this one looks different than the more rectangular ones Bumblebee has used in the past—spheroid and with a little antenna on top.
** Inferno fires [[fire-retardant foam]] (or something like it) from a nozzle that emerges from a hatch on his cab (even though Inferno already sports several ''visible'' nozzles designed to serve the same purpose.)
** The deterioration of the Transformers' [[cybertonium]] leads to a series of mechanical failures:
*** Grapple apparently loses his fine motor control.
*** Megatron's audio circuits malfunction.
*** Soundwave spontaneously ejects Ravage.
*** The Decepticons lose their flight abilities.
*** Rumble can't stop himself from attacking Megatron.
*** Jazz can't transform, and later winds up half-car, half-robot.
*** Ironhide's hand won't retract to fire his liquid nitrogen.
*** Mirage only becomes black and white instead of invisible.
*** Ravage spontaneously returns to cassette mode in mid-battle.
*** Jazz's sound and light show fails to activate.
*** Blitzwing can't stop his own forward motion in tank mode.
*** Powerglide's head... falls off??
*The Constructicons appear to be functioning perfectly well in this episode. What this says about their origin controversy is unknown.
* We get treated to the one-time appearance of a uniquely designed Transformer on Cybertron. He's medium brown and appears to have Snarl's dinosaur tail halves on his back; he transforms to a purple flying saucer-like thing.
[[Image:ShockwaveDesertionOfTheDinobots1.jpg|right|200px|thumb|It is not logical to not have a blaster when you turn into that model of blaster.]]
*In the final scene, Shockwave fires a gun that looks exactly like his own [[alternate mode]]. (Presumably, the animators mistook his weapon mode for a hand-held weapon.) He also is shown with two hands in one shot, just like his very first appearance. Can he retract one and replace it with his familiar gun arm? Or is it just an animation screwup? You be the judge!
*This episode establishes that the Dinobots are better-armored in their beast modes.
* '''[[Dinobot Island, Part 2|< <]]''' What makes Starscream the leader? Megatron's blown his vocal components! '''[[Triple Takeover|> >]]'''

===Real world references===
* EJK, the facility where all the information on the Ultraplane is stored, is named for episode writer Earl J. Kress.
* This episode contains enough ''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]'' sound effects to make you think you're watching events in a galaxy far, far away:
** The opening shots of the experimental jet are soundtracked with diving X-Wings and the TIE Fighter engine roar.
** After exiting Ironhide's cargo compartment, Soundwave launches with the ''Millennium Falcon'' engine burst.
** Some ''Falcon'' ambient engine noise (flying over the surface of Yavin IV) is heard as Starscream flies toward the ultra plane.
** The ultra plane explosion is soundtracked with the Death Star firing sequence noise.
** ''Falcon'' engine burst as Megatron retreats from the lab.
** Death Star firing/Alderaan exploding again, as Thundercracker and Thrust take off to attack the Dinobots, followed by more X-Wings diving.
** ''Falcon'' engine burst again as the Transformer on Cybertron that Mirage watches on a monitor takes off.
** ''Falcon'' engine roar as Swoop dives to snatch Carly's car out from under Grimlock's foot.

===Trivia===
* The hangar that the Decepticons are hiding in is labeled "hangar" in huge white letters. This is so you know that it is, indeed, a hangar and not a [[Giant Decepticon insignia|well hidden Decepticon base]].
* Mirage totally goes toe-to-toe with Megatron and manages to hold his own for a bit. Impressive!
* Slag sounds strangely ''upbeat'' when he says "Me Slag no like anything."
* When the Dinobots leave the Autobot base, Sludge and Snarl appear much shorter than the others. If the Dinobots were at all consistent with the dinosaurs they are based on, Sludge should be much larger than the others (foreshortening perhaps?).
* A faint female voice can be heard moaning as Blaster and Soundwave rock the [[Ironhide (G1)|van]]...

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Video Gems|A.M.T. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Channel 5]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1990 — ''Transformers'' — Desertion of the Dinobots 3-D (Channel 5) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1998 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — Desertion of the Dinobots ([[Malofilm|Behaviour]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 4 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/desertion_of_the_dinobots_part_1.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1

2012-06-21T00:15:02Z

207.151.155.11: /* Continuity errors */

The Master Builders (episode)

2012-05-01T01:01:46Z

207.151.155.11: /* Synopsis */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=32
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=20
|prev2=Dinobot Island, Part 2
|next2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=10
|prev3=Dinobot Island, Part 2
|next3=A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court
|image=MasterBuilders Scrapper Grapple plans.jpg
|caption="Nigel gave me a drawing that said 18 inches. Now, whether or not he knows the difference between feet and inches is not my problem. I do what I'm told." "But you're not as confused as him, are you. I mean, it's not your job to be as confused as Nigel."
|title="The Master Builders" "The Master Builder"
|production code=#700-31
|airdate=[[October 8]], 1985
|written by=[[David N. Gottlieb]] [[Herb Engelhardt]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Grapple and Hoist ally themselves with the Constructicons.'''

:''Japanese title:'' マスタービルダー (''Master Builder'')
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:'' "'''Der Energieturm'''" ("The Energy Tower")
:''Russian title:'' '''Горе-строители''' (''Gore-Stroyiteli'', "The Sorry Builders")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Il grande progetto''' ("The great project")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''I costruttori''' ("The builders")

==Synopsis== how the hell did anyone here miss that?
[[Image:Master builders2.jpg|left|200px|thumb|I think you'll need to join Weight Watchers.]]
[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is flying through the air when [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] attacks him from behind. Powerglide dogdes his attack and and returns fire when he turns around, taking Skywarp out of the air. [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] ambushes Powerglide from behind and shoots him down in jet mode, causing Powerglide to fall out of the sky.
[[Grapple]] shows [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] a working model of a [[Solar Power Tower]] he wants to build and the two of them take it to [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]]. Optimus is occupied at the moment because [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] is teaching him how to play [[basketball]]. Optimus likes Grapple's concept, but rejects the plan because it would be difficult to defend the tower against attack.

The conversation is cut short when [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] alerts them that [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] has been shot down by [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]]. Hoist and Grapple leave to repair the [[Autobot]] plane. After repairs are finished, they start back, with Grapple attempting to convince Hoist to build the tower with him, regardless of Prime's orders, but Hoist points out they can't do it alone

Their conversation is cut short when they are trapped by the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]. [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] says they've left the [[Decepticon]]s and proposes a joint project. Grapple, enamored with his solar tower idea, agrees, but wants proof of their partnership. They promise to bring proof back and fly off.

[[Image:Master builders prime basketball.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Chillin' out, maxin', relaxin', all cool/and shootin' some b-ball outside of the school...]]

On their return to Decepticon headquarters, the Constructions are confronted with several weapons pointed at them, as well as an enraged [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], who confronts them with video tape of their conversation with Grapple. They all swear loyalty to Megatron, and insist they plan to betray the Autobots. Satisfied with their explanation, Megatron lets them go with a present. They return to Grapple and Hoist with "proof", an entire truckload of [[energon]]. Convinced that they are working in good faith, Grapple and Hoist agree to the partnership. The Constructicons are soon stealing construction materials from the humans for the project.

Meantime, Optimus is playing basketball with [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]], [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] and [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]]. After he shuts Tracks down during a drive to the net, Prime notices that Tracks needs maintenance, but no one knows where Hoist is. The Autobot leader sends Powerglide out to find the missing Autobots. Powerglide finds the solar tower and reports back.

[[Image:MasterBuilders Devastator finishing touch.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Look, up in the sky! 
Is it a bird? 
Is it a plane? 
No, it's a sun-focusing sphere. 
Well, that's disappointing...]]

Grapple is in his element, directing the Constructicons as the tower is built, and blissfully unaware of their deception. The Constructicons merge to form [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] in order to place the sun-focusing sphere at the top of the tower. With the last piece in place, the tables turn. Megatron attacks Grapple and Hoist and claims the tower as his own. The Decepticons get to work collecting the energy.

[[Image:MasterBuilders Grapple sunset.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Dammit, I've ruined another garage kit.]]

The Autobots arrive and attack, quickly overwhelming the Decepticons, who retreat behind the tower. The Autobots follow, to find that the Constructicons have formed Devastator and he's not so easy to defeat. Prime tricks Devastator into trying to kick Smokescreen but he kicks the tower instead. A few more rounds of laser fire send Devastator crashing into the tower, demolishing it. Megatron and the Constructicons retreat.

The Autobots dig in the debris to try and find Grapple and Hoist. [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] discovers them encased in a sheet of metal and punches it apart. Grapple and Hoist apologize for the trouble they've caused. Prime is in a forgiving mood, but says they have to clean up the mess themselves. As the others drive off, Grapple and Hoist fondly remember the tower.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (1)
*[[Grapple]] (4)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (5)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (6)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (7)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (9)
*[[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (20)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (21)
*[[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (22)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (24)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (25)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (26)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (27)

|c2=
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] (10)
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] (11)
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] (12)
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] (13)
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]] (14)
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] (15)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (16)
*[[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] (17)
*[[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (18)
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] (23)

|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (8)
*[[Construction Foreman]] (19)
}}

==Quotes==
"Move over, blue skies. Here comes old Powerglide, king of the cloud chasers, sultan of the stratosphere, ace of the air."
:—'''Powerglide''', king of self-esteem.

"Well, if he's not impressed, I'll... be ''de''pressed."
:—'''Grapple''' worries about whether Optimus Prime will agree on his proposal for a Solar Tower.

"Am I 'drooling' correctly?" 
"The word is 'dribbling', Optimus!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Spike''' play basketball.

'''Megatron''': "Ahhh, my loyal Constructicons. You are loyal, aren't you? No! You're traitors! And you can't deny it." 
'''Scrapper''': "Megatron, y-y-you got it all wrong!" 
'''Hook''': "We're still working for you, and for the glory of the Decepticons." 
'''Bonecrusher''': "You see we eavesdropped on their plans." 
'''Long Haul''': "Plans to build a whopper solar tower!" 
'''Scavenger''': "That'd produce megawatts of energy." 
'''Mixmaster''': "Energy we can use to destroy the Autobots. Get it, Get it, heh-huh?"
:— The Constructicons try to explain themselves to a furious Megatron.

'''Bonecrusher''': We'll just help ourselves if you don't mind. 
'''Long Haul''': Or even if you do! 
'''Construction foreman:''' Who me? M-mind? Why should I! hehe... he. [''tears up his blueprints'']
:—The Constructicons rob a hapless building site.

"As soon as my Power Tower is finished, I must find a place to sign my name... in very large letters."
:—'''Grapple''' as the Solar Power Tower is approaching completion.

"Watch out Spike! I'm driving for a layoff!" 
"It's called a layup, Prime! And watch out for Tracks!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' gets basketball lessons from '''Spike'''.

"'Get this.' 'Bring that.' I thought I was finally gonna ''build'' somethin'!"
:—'''Long Haul''' after being told to bring another solar panel.

"Man, look at that! That's so tall, the top is in a different time zone than the bottom!"
:—Observing the Solar Power Tower, '''Spike''' demonstrates that you don't need to understand geography if your best friends are giant robots.

"There'll be other towers to design and build, Grapple." 
"It ''was'' magnificent... for a little while, wasn't it, Hoist?" 
"Incredible. Absolutely incredible."
:—'''Hoist''' and '''Grapple''', amid the ruins of the Solar Power Tower.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* One gun, many lasers:
** Skywarp only has two weapons to fire, yet about a dozen different laser beams are shown streaking past Powerglide.
* Skywarp's under-wing insignia are missing throughout the opening sequence.
* As Wheeljack gives Grapple his thumbs-up, the glow effect of his flashing "ears" is misaligned from the ears themselves at the start and end of the shot.
* Teletraan I gets the radio-muffle on its voice as it announces that Powerglide has been shot down.
* Improbable viewpoints:
** As Scrapper treaties with the Autobots, a random rock opens up, and out pops a video camera. While this does explain how Megatron and Starscream can watch the conversation from Decepticon Headquarters, it begs the question of just how many random rocks the Decepticons had to load up with cameras to ensure that they'd actually catch something.
** The camera's angle changes during Scrapper's speech, even though it's clearly fixed in place.
** The camera's angle has changed ''again'' when Megatron shows it to the Constructicons.
** The view of Grapple and Hoist that Powerglide relays back to Autobot Headquarters is clearly not taken from a moving airplane.
* Scrapper's eyeband turns gray as he points toward Long Haul approaching with the energon cubes.
* As he welds alongside Hoist, Grapple's butt changes from gray to orange.
* Flying Autobots:
** Prime leaps toward the basket with a flight sound effect.
* Tracks is supposed to be emitting some kind of malfunctioning-type of noise as Prime helps him to his feet, but it's barely audible as such.
* Tracks is missing one of his missile launchers as Spike runs up to join the group on the basketball court.
* Scavenger's face is almost entirely dark gray as he discusses his welding troubles with Grapple.
* In a bizarre stylistic decision, the Constructicons' second combination sequence does not feature the transforming sound. Instead, as they convert to their combined forms, they get a sound effect normally reserved for energy effects. Each one glows blue after transforming, accompanied by an even more bizarre tinkling noise.
* As usual, the apportionment of Devastator's components is off; Long Haul forms about 90% of the torso, with Hook forming the remainder (it should be split almost evenly between them.) Everyone else is correct, which puts this episode ahead of most of its contemporaries.
* Not that Devastator isn't [[Scale|out of whack]] in every episode, but when the Autobots first approach them, Scrapper's shovel alone is several times taller than the Autobots. When Devastator is about to kick Smokescreen, one of [[Scrapper (G1)|Devastator's legs]] is roughly three times the size of the Autobot.
* [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] appears for a single shot during the battle, standing alongside Optimus as they rock in the breeze from Devastator's hand-swipe. Though he was playing basketball earlier in the episode, he's completely absent from the battle group before and after this single shot. Best guess is that it should have been Ironhide.
* Devastator's back, ie Long Haul's cargo bed, is purple throughout the episode. It should be green.
* As he and the others fire on Devastator, one of Powerglide's laser blasts doesn't quite line up with the corresponding sound effect.
* Prime is missing the horizontal lines on his tummy grille as the Autobots cheer.
* After Brawn finds the ruined model of the [[Solar Power Tower]], Cliffjumper steps into the frame, colored yellow like Bumblebee.
* As Hoist and Grapple first face Prime, Grapple's front bumper is bent in the middle. This may be meant to signify damage from his captivity... but the damage disappears after this one shot.
* As Prime accepts the pair's apologies, Hoist's right arm is missing, as is the top of Grapple's left arm.
* When Grapple picks up the ruined model, one of its solar panels is gray instead of gold.

===Continuity errors===
* The solar panels seem to be the only essential component of the tower. Why do they need to be up on this huge cumbersome tower?
* In robot mode, Grapple and Hoist could ''easily'' have leaped over the boulder that first blocks their path. We'll give them a pass and say they were just panicked.
* Scrapper leaps ''down'' onto the boulder after the first commercial break... but he already leapt downward off the boulder when dodging the Autobots' fire.
* A giant paper blueprint? Really? The super-advanced space robots haven't switched over to a paperless office yet?
* Optimus's "Battle formation! Roll!" order is kind of strange, since the Autobots already appear to have both items covered.

===Continuity notes===
* Scrapper claims that the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] admired Grapple's work back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. This contradicts the earlier statement in "[[Heavy Metal War]]" that the Constructicons were built recently on Earth, but fits with the later accounts of their history given in "[[The Secret of Omega Supreme]]" and "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]".
[[Image:MasterBuilders Megatron chest compartment.jpg|thumb|right|230px|"Two can play at this game, Soundwave..."]]
* Gadgets and powers:
** Powerglide has a video camera that extends from his nosecone, right in front of his canopy.
** The Autobots can shoot lasers out of their headlights when they drive into battle. The idea never crossed their minds in "[[The Autobot Run]]". One is tempted to fanwank the error away by saying that the events of that episode inspired them to install these extra armaments.
** Tracks has twin missile launchers in his car-mode hood.
** Devastator uses his [[optic weaponry|eye beams]] yet again. He [[The Autobot Run|loves]] [[The Core|those]] things!
** Cliffjumper's [[glass gas]] resembles a snowball or comet, and can be repelled by a strong wind (possibly a call-back to his bio weakness, which says that he must remain upwind of it or fall victim to its effects.)
** Megatron has a compartment in his chest that holds a pair of binoculars.

===Real-world references===
* "Here Comes the Sun!" Grapple says, completing his Solar Power Tower model and quoting the title of a Beatles tune.
* The Autobots make their [[Atlantis, Arise!|second foray into the sports world]], as Spike teaches Optimus Prime about basketball. Prime learns to <s>drool</s> dribble the ball, spins the ball on one finger, and orders Spike to "Compute, quickly!" as he passes the ball to him. Later, Prime quotes the stereotypical sportscaster ("He shoots, he scores!") while driving for a <s>layoff</s> lay up. Later still, he rolls the basketball across his arms and shoulders.
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** When Prime leaps toward the basketball goal, he gets the Death Star firing/Alderaan exploding sound effect sequence.
** Megatron takes off from the ruined power tower with the same sound effect. The Constructicons follow him with the rest of that sound effect, along with some X-Wing Fighter diving sounds.

===Trivia===
[[Image:Masterbuilder.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Master Bait—uh, Builders]]
* When remastered for DVD by [[Rhino Entertainment]], the re-created title card for the episode was incorrectly rendered as "The Master Builder". This title appeared on all associated material included with the DVD set, and can be seen in the screen shot at right. Oddly enough, while the same incorrect title card appears in the 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" edition by Shout! Factory, the correct title appears on the DVD menu and the box set's episode guide.
* The Autobots have a color-coded alert system. When Teletraan I discovered that Powerglide was shot down he called for "condition magenta". When Optimus Prime discovered Grapple and Hoist were working with the Constructions, he called for "disaster code blue" and ordered a strike force to assemble.
* Megatron gave the Constructicons his energon because he says that it's his most precious possession. Was anyone else expecting the [[fusion cannon]]?
* Seriously, can you imagine the [[Scale|size]] of the ball that the Autobots need to play basketball?

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 3 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/the_master_builders.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]
*[http://imdb.com/title/tt0808858/ IMDb's page for this episode]
*[http://teletran93.deepspace93.com/tf2/ep32/ Teletran93's page for this episode]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Master Builders}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

The Master Builders (episode)

2012-05-01T01:00:55Z

207.151.155.11: /* Synopsis */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=32
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=20
|prev2=Dinobot Island, Part 2
|next2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=10
|prev3=Dinobot Island, Part 2
|next3=A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court
|image=MasterBuilders Scrapper Grapple plans.jpg
|caption="Nigel gave me a drawing that said 18 inches. Now, whether or not he knows the difference between feet and inches is not my problem. I do what I'm told." "But you're not as confused as him, are you. I mean, it's not your job to be as confused as Nigel."
|title="The Master Builders" "The Master Builder"
|production code=#700-31
|airdate=[[October 8]], 1985
|written by=[[David N. Gottlieb]] [[Herb Engelhardt]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Grapple and Hoist ally themselves with the Constructicons.'''

:''Japanese title:'' マスタービルダー (''Master Builder'')
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:'' "'''Der Energieturm'''" ("The Energy Tower")
:''Russian title:'' '''Горе-строители''' (''Gore-Stroyiteli'', "The Sorry Builders")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Il grande progetto''' ("The great project")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''I costruttori''' ("The builders")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:Master builders2.jpg|left|200px|thumb|I think you'll need to join Weight Watchers.]]
[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is flying through the air when [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] attacks him from behind. Powerglide dogdes his attack and and returns fire when he turns around, taking Skywarp out of the air. [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] ambushes Powerglide from behind and shoots him down in jet mode, causing Powerglide to fall out of the sky.
[[Grapple]] shows [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] a working model of a [[Solar Power Tower]] he wants to build and the two of them take it to [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]]. Optimus is occupied at the moment because [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] is teaching him how to play [[basketball]]. Optimus likes Grapple's concept, but rejects the plan because it would be difficult to defend the tower against attack.

The conversation is cut short when [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] alerts them that [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] has been shot down by [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]]. Hoist and Grapple leave to repair the [[Autobot]] plane. After repairs are finished, they start back, with Grapple attempting to convince Hoist to build the tower with him, regardless of Prime's orders, but Hoist points out they can't do it alone

Their conversation is cut short when they are trapped by the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]. [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] says they've left the [[Decepticon]]s and proposes a joint project. Grapple, enamored with his solar tower idea, agrees, but wants proof of their partnership. They promise to bring proof back and fly off.

[[Image:Master builders prime basketball.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Chillin' out, maxin', relaxin', all cool/and shootin' some b-ball outside of the school...]]

On their return to Decepticon headquarters, the Constructions are confronted with several weapons pointed at them, as well as an enraged [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], who confronts them with video tape of their conversation with Grapple. They all swear loyalty to Megatron, and insist they plan to betray the Autobots. Satisfied with their explanation, Megatron lets them go with a present. They return to Grapple and Hoist with "proof", an entire truckload of [[energon]]. Convinced that they are working in good faith, Grapple and Hoist agree to the partnership. The Constructicons are soon stealing construction materials from the humans for the project.

Meantime, Optimus is playing basketball with [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]], [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] and [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]]. After he shuts Tracks down during a drive to the net, Prime notices that Tracks needs maintenance, but no one knows where Hoist is. The Autobot leader sends Powerglide out to find the missing Autobots. Powerglide finds the solar tower and reports back.

[[Image:MasterBuilders Devastator finishing touch.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Look, up in the sky! 
Is it a bird? 
Is it a plane? 
No, it's a sun-focusing sphere. 
Well, that's disappointing...]]

Grapple is in his element, directing the Constructicons as the tower is built, and blissfully unaware of their deception. The Constructicons merge to form [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] in order to place the sun-focusing sphere at the top of the tower. With the last piece in place, the tables turn. Megatron attacks Grapple and Hoist and claims the tower as his own. The Decepticons get to work collecting the energy.

[[Image:MasterBuilders Grapple sunset.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Dammit, I've ruined another garage kit.]]

The Autobots arrive and attack, quickly overwhelming the Decepticons, who retreat behind the tower. The Autobots follow, to find that the Constructicons have formed Devastator and he's not so easy to defeat. Prime tricks Devastator into trying to kick Smokescreen but he kicks the tower instead. A few more rounds of laser fire send Devastator crashing into the tower, demolishing it. Megatron and the Constructicons retreat.

The Autobots dig in the debris to try and find Grapple and Hoist. [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] discovers them encased in a sheet of metal and punches it apart. Grapple and Hoist apologize for the trouble they've caused. Prime is in a forgiving mood, but says they have to clean up the mess themselves. As the others drive off, Grapple and Hoist fondly remember the tower.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (1)
*[[Grapple]] (4)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (5)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (6)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (7)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (9)
*[[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (20)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (21)
*[[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (22)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (24)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (25)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (26)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (27)

|c2=
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] (10)
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] (11)
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] (12)
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] (13)
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]] (14)
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] (15)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (16)
*[[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] (17)
*[[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (18)
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] (23)

|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (8)
*[[Construction Foreman]] (19)
}}

==Quotes==
"Move over, blue skies. Here comes old Powerglide, king of the cloud chasers, sultan of the stratosphere, ace of the air."
:—'''Powerglide''', king of self-esteem.

"Well, if he's not impressed, I'll... be ''de''pressed."
:—'''Grapple''' worries about whether Optimus Prime will agree on his proposal for a Solar Tower.

"Am I 'drooling' correctly?" 
"The word is 'dribbling', Optimus!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Spike''' play basketball.

'''Megatron''': "Ahhh, my loyal Constructicons. You are loyal, aren't you? No! You're traitors! And you can't deny it." 
'''Scrapper''': "Megatron, y-y-you got it all wrong!" 
'''Hook''': "We're still working for you, and for the glory of the Decepticons." 
'''Bonecrusher''': "You see we eavesdropped on their plans." 
'''Long Haul''': "Plans to build a whopper solar tower!" 
'''Scavenger''': "That'd produce megawatts of energy." 
'''Mixmaster''': "Energy we can use to destroy the Autobots. Get it, Get it, heh-huh?"
:— The Constructicons try to explain themselves to a furious Megatron.

'''Bonecrusher''': We'll just help ourselves if you don't mind. 
'''Long Haul''': Or even if you do! 
'''Construction foreman:''' Who me? M-mind? Why should I! hehe... he. [''tears up his blueprints'']
:—The Constructicons rob a hapless building site.

"As soon as my Power Tower is finished, I must find a place to sign my name... in very large letters."
:—'''Grapple''' as the Solar Power Tower is approaching completion.

"Watch out Spike! I'm driving for a layoff!" 
"It's called a layup, Prime! And watch out for Tracks!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' gets basketball lessons from '''Spike'''.

"'Get this.' 'Bring that.' I thought I was finally gonna ''build'' somethin'!"
:—'''Long Haul''' after being told to bring another solar panel.

"Man, look at that! That's so tall, the top is in a different time zone than the bottom!"
:—Observing the Solar Power Tower, '''Spike''' demonstrates that you don't need to understand geography if your best friends are giant robots.

"There'll be other towers to design and build, Grapple." 
"It ''was'' magnificent... for a little while, wasn't it, Hoist?" 
"Incredible. Absolutely incredible."
:—'''Hoist''' and '''Grapple''', amid the ruins of the Solar Power Tower.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* One gun, many lasers:
** Skywarp only has two weapons to fire, yet about a dozen different laser beams are shown streaking past Powerglide.
* Skywarp's under-wing insignia are missing throughout the opening sequence.
* As Wheeljack gives Grapple his thumbs-up, the glow effect of his flashing "ears" is misaligned from the ears themselves at the start and end of the shot.
* Teletraan I gets the radio-muffle on its voice as it announces that Powerglide has been shot down.
* Improbable viewpoints:
** As Scrapper treaties with the Autobots, a random rock opens up, and out pops a video camera. While this does explain how Megatron and Starscream can watch the conversation from Decepticon Headquarters, it begs the question of just how many random rocks the Decepticons had to load up with cameras to ensure that they'd actually catch something.
** The camera's angle changes during Scrapper's speech, even though it's clearly fixed in place.
** The camera's angle has changed ''again'' when Megatron shows it to the Constructicons.
** The view of Grapple and Hoist that Powerglide relays back to Autobot Headquarters is clearly not taken from a moving airplane.
* Scrapper's eyeband turns gray as he points toward Long Haul approaching with the energon cubes.
* As he welds alongside Hoist, Grapple's butt changes from gray to orange.
* Flying Autobots:
** Prime leaps toward the basket with a flight sound effect.
* Tracks is supposed to be emitting some kind of malfunctioning-type of noise as Prime helps him to his feet, but it's barely audible as such.
* Tracks is missing one of his missile launchers as Spike runs up to join the group on the basketball court.
* Scavenger's face is almost entirely dark gray as he discusses his welding troubles with Grapple.
* In a bizarre stylistic decision, the Constructicons' second combination sequence does not feature the transforming sound. Instead, as they convert to their combined forms, they get a sound effect normally reserved for energy effects. Each one glows blue after transforming, accompanied by an even more bizarre tinkling noise.
* As usual, the apportionment of Devastator's components is off; Long Haul forms about 90% of the torso, with Hook forming the remainder (it should be split almost evenly between them.) Everyone else is correct, which puts this episode ahead of most of its contemporaries.
* Not that Devastator isn't [[Scale|out of whack]] in every episode, but when the Autobots first approach them, Scrapper's shovel alone is several times taller than the Autobots. When Devastator is about to kick Smokescreen, one of [[Scrapper (G1)|Devastator's legs]] is roughly three times the size of the Autobot.
* [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] appears for a single shot during the battle, standing alongside Optimus as they rock in the breeze from Devastator's hand-swipe. Though he was playing basketball earlier in the episode, he's completely absent from the battle group before and after this single shot. Best guess is that it should have been Ironhide.
* Devastator's back, ie Long Haul's cargo bed, is purple throughout the episode. It should be green.
* As he and the others fire on Devastator, one of Powerglide's laser blasts doesn't quite line up with the corresponding sound effect.
* Prime is missing the horizontal lines on his tummy grille as the Autobots cheer.
* After Brawn finds the ruined model of the [[Solar Power Tower]], Cliffjumper steps into the frame, colored yellow like Bumblebee.
* As Hoist and Grapple first face Prime, Grapple's front bumper is bent in the middle. This may be meant to signify damage from his captivity... but the damage disappears after this one shot.
* As Prime accepts the pair's apologies, Hoist's right arm is missing, as is the top of Grapple's left arm.
* When Grapple picks up the ruined model, one of its solar panels is gray instead of gold.

===Continuity errors===
* The solar panels seem to be the only essential component of the tower. Why do they need to be up on this huge cumbersome tower?
* In robot mode, Grapple and Hoist could ''easily'' have leaped over the boulder that first blocks their path. We'll give them a pass and say they were just panicked.
* Scrapper leaps ''down'' onto the boulder after the first commercial break... but he already leapt downward off the boulder when dodging the Autobots' fire.
* A giant paper blueprint? Really? The super-advanced space robots haven't switched over to a paperless office yet?
* Optimus's "Battle formation! Roll!" order is kind of strange, since the Autobots already appear to have both items covered.

===Continuity notes===
* Scrapper claims that the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] admired Grapple's work back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. This contradicts the earlier statement in "[[Heavy Metal War]]" that the Constructicons were built recently on Earth, but fits with the later accounts of their history given in "[[The Secret of Omega Supreme]]" and "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]".
[[Image:MasterBuilders Megatron chest compartment.jpg|thumb|right|230px|"Two can play at this game, Soundwave..."]]
* Gadgets and powers:
** Powerglide has a video camera that extends from his nosecone, right in front of his canopy.
** The Autobots can shoot lasers out of their headlights when they drive into battle. The idea never crossed their minds in "[[The Autobot Run]]". One is tempted to fanwank the error away by saying that the events of that episode inspired them to install these extra armaments.
** Tracks has twin missile launchers in his car-mode hood.
** Devastator uses his [[optic weaponry|eye beams]] yet again. He [[The Autobot Run|loves]] [[The Core|those]] things!
** Cliffjumper's [[glass gas]] resembles a snowball or comet, and can be repelled by a strong wind (possibly a call-back to his bio weakness, which says that he must remain upwind of it or fall victim to its effects.)
** Megatron has a compartment in his chest that holds a pair of binoculars.

===Real-world references===
* "Here Comes the Sun!" Grapple says, completing his Solar Power Tower model and quoting the title of a Beatles tune.
* The Autobots make their [[Atlantis, Arise!|second foray into the sports world]], as Spike teaches Optimus Prime about basketball. Prime learns to <s>drool</s> dribble the ball, spins the ball on one finger, and orders Spike to "Compute, quickly!" as he passes the ball to him. Later, Prime quotes the stereotypical sportscaster ("He shoots, he scores!") while driving for a <s>layoff</s> lay up. Later still, he rolls the basketball across his arms and shoulders.
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** When Prime leaps toward the basketball goal, he gets the Death Star firing/Alderaan exploding sound effect sequence.
** Megatron takes off from the ruined power tower with the same sound effect. The Constructicons follow him with the rest of that sound effect, along with some X-Wing Fighter diving sounds.

===Trivia===
[[Image:Masterbuilder.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Master Bait—uh, Builders]]
* When remastered for DVD by [[Rhino Entertainment]], the re-created title card for the episode was incorrectly rendered as "The Master Builder". This title appeared on all associated material included with the DVD set, and can be seen in the screen shot at right. Oddly enough, while the same incorrect title card appears in the 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" edition by Shout! Factory, the correct title appears on the DVD menu and the box set's episode guide.
* The Autobots have a color-coded alert system. When Teletraan I discovered that Powerglide was shot down he called for "condition magenta". When Optimus Prime discovered Grapple and Hoist were working with the Constructions, he called for "disaster code blue" and ordered a strike force to assemble.
* Megatron gave the Constructicons his energon because he says that it's his most precious possession. Was anyone else expecting the [[fusion cannon]]?
* Seriously, can you imagine the [[Scale|size]] of the ball that the Autobots need to play basketball?

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 3 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/the_master_builders.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]
*[http://imdb.com/title/tt0808858/ IMDb's page for this episode]
*[http://teletran93.deepspace93.com/tf2/ep32/ Teletran93's page for this episode]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Master Builders}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

The Master Builders (episode)

2012-05-01T00:59:34Z

207.151.155.11: /* Synopsis */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=32
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=20
|prev2=Dinobot Island, Part 2
|next2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=10
|prev3=Dinobot Island, Part 2
|next3=A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court
|image=MasterBuilders Scrapper Grapple plans.jpg
|caption="Nigel gave me a drawing that said 18 inches. Now, whether or not he knows the difference between feet and inches is not my problem. I do what I'm told." "But you're not as confused as him, are you. I mean, it's not your job to be as confused as Nigel."
|title="The Master Builders" "The Master Builder"
|production code=#700-31
|airdate=[[October 8]], 1985
|written by=[[David N. Gottlieb]] [[Herb Engelhardt]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Grapple and Hoist ally themselves with the Constructicons.'''

:''Japanese title:'' マスタービルダー (''Master Builder'')
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:'' "'''Der Energieturm'''" ("The Energy Tower")
:''Russian title:'' '''Горе-строители''' (''Gore-Stroyiteli'', "The Sorry Builders")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Il grande progetto''' ("The great project")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''I costruttori''' ("The builders")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:Master builders2.jpg|left|200px|thumb|I think you'll need to join Weight Watchers.]]
[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is flying through the air when [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] attacks him from behind. Powerglide dogdes his attack and and returns fire when he turns around, taking Skywarp out of the air. [[Starscrean (G1)|Starscream]] ambushes Powerglide from behind and shoots him down in jet mode, causing Powerglide to fall out of the sky.
[[Grapple]] shows [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] a working model of a [[Solar Power Tower]] he wants to build and the two of them take it to [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]]. Optimus is occupied at the moment because [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] is teaching him how to play [[basketball]]. Optimus likes Grapple's concept, but rejects the plan because it would be difficult to defend the tower against attack.

The conversation is cut short when [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] alerts them that [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] has been shot down by [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]]. Hoist and Grapple leave to repair the [[Autobot]] plane. After repairs are finished, they start back, with Grapple attempting to convince Hoist to build the tower with him, regardless of Prime's orders, but Hoist points out they can't do it alone

Their conversation is cut short when they are trapped by the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]. [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] says they've left the [[Decepticon]]s and proposes a joint project. Grapple, enamored with his solar tower idea, agrees, but wants proof of their partnership. They promise to bring proof back and fly off.

[[Image:Master builders prime basketball.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Chillin' out, maxin', relaxin', all cool/and shootin' some b-ball outside of the school...]]

On their return to Decepticon headquarters, the Constructions are confronted with several weapons pointed at them, as well as an enraged [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], who confronts them with video tape of their conversation with Grapple. They all swear loyalty to Megatron, and insist they plan to betray the Autobots. Satisfied with their explanation, Megatron lets them go with a present. They return to Grapple and Hoist with "proof", an entire truckload of [[energon]]. Convinced that they are working in good faith, Grapple and Hoist agree to the partnership. The Constructicons are soon stealing construction materials from the humans for the project.

Meantime, Optimus is playing basketball with [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]], [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] and [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]]. After he shuts Tracks down during a drive to the net, Prime notices that Tracks needs maintenance, but no one knows where Hoist is. The Autobot leader sends Powerglide out to find the missing Autobots. Powerglide finds the solar tower and reports back.

[[Image:MasterBuilders Devastator finishing touch.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Look, up in the sky! 
Is it a bird? 
Is it a plane? 
No, it's a sun-focusing sphere. 
Well, that's disappointing...]]

Grapple is in his element, directing the Constructicons as the tower is built, and blissfully unaware of their deception. The Constructicons merge to form [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] in order to place the sun-focusing sphere at the top of the tower. With the last piece in place, the tables turn. Megatron attacks Grapple and Hoist and claims the tower as his own. The Decepticons get to work collecting the energy.

[[Image:MasterBuilders Grapple sunset.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Dammit, I've ruined another garage kit.]]

The Autobots arrive and attack, quickly overwhelming the Decepticons, who retreat behind the tower. The Autobots follow, to find that the Constructicons have formed Devastator and he's not so easy to defeat. Prime tricks Devastator into trying to kick Smokescreen but he kicks the tower instead. A few more rounds of laser fire send Devastator crashing into the tower, demolishing it. Megatron and the Constructicons retreat.

The Autobots dig in the debris to try and find Grapple and Hoist. [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] discovers them encased in a sheet of metal and punches it apart. Grapple and Hoist apologize for the trouble they've caused. Prime is in a forgiving mood, but says they have to clean up the mess themselves. As the others drive off, Grapple and Hoist fondly remember the tower.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (1)
*[[Grapple]] (4)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (5)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (6)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (7)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (9)
*[[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (20)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (21)
*[[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (22)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (24)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (25)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (26)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (27)

|c2=
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] (10)
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] (11)
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] (12)
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] (13)
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]] (14)
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] (15)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (16)
*[[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] (17)
*[[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (18)
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] (23)

|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (8)
*[[Construction Foreman]] (19)
}}

==Quotes==
"Move over, blue skies. Here comes old Powerglide, king of the cloud chasers, sultan of the stratosphere, ace of the air."
:—'''Powerglide''', king of self-esteem.

"Well, if he's not impressed, I'll... be ''de''pressed."
:—'''Grapple''' worries about whether Optimus Prime will agree on his proposal for a Solar Tower.

"Am I 'drooling' correctly?" 
"The word is 'dribbling', Optimus!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Spike''' play basketball.

'''Megatron''': "Ahhh, my loyal Constructicons. You are loyal, aren't you? No! You're traitors! And you can't deny it." 
'''Scrapper''': "Megatron, y-y-you got it all wrong!" 
'''Hook''': "We're still working for you, and for the glory of the Decepticons." 
'''Bonecrusher''': "You see we eavesdropped on their plans." 
'''Long Haul''': "Plans to build a whopper solar tower!" 
'''Scavenger''': "That'd produce megawatts of energy." 
'''Mixmaster''': "Energy we can use to destroy the Autobots. Get it, Get it, heh-huh?"
:— The Constructicons try to explain themselves to a furious Megatron.

'''Bonecrusher''': We'll just help ourselves if you don't mind. 
'''Long Haul''': Or even if you do! 
'''Construction foreman:''' Who me? M-mind? Why should I! hehe... he. [''tears up his blueprints'']
:—The Constructicons rob a hapless building site.

"As soon as my Power Tower is finished, I must find a place to sign my name... in very large letters."
:—'''Grapple''' as the Solar Power Tower is approaching completion.

"Watch out Spike! I'm driving for a layoff!" 
"It's called a layup, Prime! And watch out for Tracks!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' gets basketball lessons from '''Spike'''.

"'Get this.' 'Bring that.' I thought I was finally gonna ''build'' somethin'!"
:—'''Long Haul''' after being told to bring another solar panel.

"Man, look at that! That's so tall, the top is in a different time zone than the bottom!"
:—Observing the Solar Power Tower, '''Spike''' demonstrates that you don't need to understand geography if your best friends are giant robots.

"There'll be other towers to design and build, Grapple." 
"It ''was'' magnificent... for a little while, wasn't it, Hoist?" 
"Incredible. Absolutely incredible."
:—'''Hoist''' and '''Grapple''', amid the ruins of the Solar Power Tower.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* One gun, many lasers:
** Skywarp only has two weapons to fire, yet about a dozen different laser beams are shown streaking past Powerglide.
* Skywarp's under-wing insignia are missing throughout the opening sequence.
* As Wheeljack gives Grapple his thumbs-up, the glow effect of his flashing "ears" is misaligned from the ears themselves at the start and end of the shot.
* Teletraan I gets the radio-muffle on its voice as it announces that Powerglide has been shot down.
* Improbable viewpoints:
** As Scrapper treaties with the Autobots, a random rock opens up, and out pops a video camera. While this does explain how Megatron and Starscream can watch the conversation from Decepticon Headquarters, it begs the question of just how many random rocks the Decepticons had to load up with cameras to ensure that they'd actually catch something.
** The camera's angle changes during Scrapper's speech, even though it's clearly fixed in place.
** The camera's angle has changed ''again'' when Megatron shows it to the Constructicons.
** The view of Grapple and Hoist that Powerglide relays back to Autobot Headquarters is clearly not taken from a moving airplane.
* Scrapper's eyeband turns gray as he points toward Long Haul approaching with the energon cubes.
* As he welds alongside Hoist, Grapple's butt changes from gray to orange.
* Flying Autobots:
** Prime leaps toward the basket with a flight sound effect.
* Tracks is supposed to be emitting some kind of malfunctioning-type of noise as Prime helps him to his feet, but it's barely audible as such.
* Tracks is missing one of his missile launchers as Spike runs up to join the group on the basketball court.
* Scavenger's face is almost entirely dark gray as he discusses his welding troubles with Grapple.
* In a bizarre stylistic decision, the Constructicons' second combination sequence does not feature the transforming sound. Instead, as they convert to their combined forms, they get a sound effect normally reserved for energy effects. Each one glows blue after transforming, accompanied by an even more bizarre tinkling noise.
* As usual, the apportionment of Devastator's components is off; Long Haul forms about 90% of the torso, with Hook forming the remainder (it should be split almost evenly between them.) Everyone else is correct, which puts this episode ahead of most of its contemporaries.
* Not that Devastator isn't [[Scale|out of whack]] in every episode, but when the Autobots first approach them, Scrapper's shovel alone is several times taller than the Autobots. When Devastator is about to kick Smokescreen, one of [[Scrapper (G1)|Devastator's legs]] is roughly three times the size of the Autobot.
* [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] appears for a single shot during the battle, standing alongside Optimus as they rock in the breeze from Devastator's hand-swipe. Though he was playing basketball earlier in the episode, he's completely absent from the battle group before and after this single shot. Best guess is that it should have been Ironhide.
* Devastator's back, ie Long Haul's cargo bed, is purple throughout the episode. It should be green.
* As he and the others fire on Devastator, one of Powerglide's laser blasts doesn't quite line up with the corresponding sound effect.
* Prime is missing the horizontal lines on his tummy grille as the Autobots cheer.
* After Brawn finds the ruined model of the [[Solar Power Tower]], Cliffjumper steps into the frame, colored yellow like Bumblebee.
* As Hoist and Grapple first face Prime, Grapple's front bumper is bent in the middle. This may be meant to signify damage from his captivity... but the damage disappears after this one shot.
* As Prime accepts the pair's apologies, Hoist's right arm is missing, as is the top of Grapple's left arm.
* When Grapple picks up the ruined model, one of its solar panels is gray instead of gold.

===Continuity errors===
* The solar panels seem to be the only essential component of the tower. Why do they need to be up on this huge cumbersome tower?
* In robot mode, Grapple and Hoist could ''easily'' have leaped over the boulder that first blocks their path. We'll give them a pass and say they were just panicked.
* Scrapper leaps ''down'' onto the boulder after the first commercial break... but he already leapt downward off the boulder when dodging the Autobots' fire.
* A giant paper blueprint? Really? The super-advanced space robots haven't switched over to a paperless office yet?
* Optimus's "Battle formation! Roll!" order is kind of strange, since the Autobots already appear to have both items covered.

===Continuity notes===
* Scrapper claims that the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] admired Grapple's work back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. This contradicts the earlier statement in "[[Heavy Metal War]]" that the Constructicons were built recently on Earth, but fits with the later accounts of their history given in "[[The Secret of Omega Supreme]]" and "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]".
[[Image:MasterBuilders Megatron chest compartment.jpg|thumb|right|230px|"Two can play at this game, Soundwave..."]]
* Gadgets and powers:
** Powerglide has a video camera that extends from his nosecone, right in front of his canopy.
** The Autobots can shoot lasers out of their headlights when they drive into battle. The idea never crossed their minds in "[[The Autobot Run]]". One is tempted to fanwank the error away by saying that the events of that episode inspired them to install these extra armaments.
** Tracks has twin missile launchers in his car-mode hood.
** Devastator uses his [[optic weaponry|eye beams]] yet again. He [[The Autobot Run|loves]] [[The Core|those]] things!
** Cliffjumper's [[glass gas]] resembles a snowball or comet, and can be repelled by a strong wind (possibly a call-back to his bio weakness, which says that he must remain upwind of it or fall victim to its effects.)
** Megatron has a compartment in his chest that holds a pair of binoculars.

===Real-world references===
* "Here Comes the Sun!" Grapple says, completing his Solar Power Tower model and quoting the title of a Beatles tune.
* The Autobots make their [[Atlantis, Arise!|second foray into the sports world]], as Spike teaches Optimus Prime about basketball. Prime learns to <s>drool</s> dribble the ball, spins the ball on one finger, and orders Spike to "Compute, quickly!" as he passes the ball to him. Later, Prime quotes the stereotypical sportscaster ("He shoots, he scores!") while driving for a <s>layoff</s> lay up. Later still, he rolls the basketball across his arms and shoulders.
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** When Prime leaps toward the basketball goal, he gets the Death Star firing/Alderaan exploding sound effect sequence.
** Megatron takes off from the ruined power tower with the same sound effect. The Constructicons follow him with the rest of that sound effect, along with some X-Wing Fighter diving sounds.

===Trivia===
[[Image:Masterbuilder.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Master Bait—uh, Builders]]
* When remastered for DVD by [[Rhino Entertainment]], the re-created title card for the episode was incorrectly rendered as "The Master Builder". This title appeared on all associated material included with the DVD set, and can be seen in the screen shot at right. Oddly enough, while the same incorrect title card appears in the 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" edition by Shout! Factory, the correct title appears on the DVD menu and the box set's episode guide.
* The Autobots have a color-coded alert system. When Teletraan I discovered that Powerglide was shot down he called for "condition magenta". When Optimus Prime discovered Grapple and Hoist were working with the Constructions, he called for "disaster code blue" and ordered a strike force to assemble.
* Megatron gave the Constructicons his energon because he says that it's his most precious possession. Was anyone else expecting the [[fusion cannon]]?
* Seriously, can you imagine the [[Scale|size]] of the ball that the Autobots need to play basketball?

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 3 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/the_master_builders.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]
*[http://imdb.com/title/tt0808858/ IMDb's page for this episode]
*[http://teletran93.deepspace93.com/tf2/ep32/ Teletran93's page for this episode]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Master Builders}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

Dinobot Island, Part 2

2012-05-01T00:38:19Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=31
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=19
|prev2=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next2=The Master Builders
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=9
|prev3=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next3=The Master Builders
|image=DinobotIsland2 Megatronvsdinosaur.jpg
|caption= Why Megatron and [[Nightbird (G1)|Nightbird]] never [[Reproduction|had children]].
|title="Dinobot Island, Part 2"
|production code=#700-30
|airdate=[[September 26]], 1985
|written by=[[Donald F. Glut]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Decepticons' plundering of Dinobot Island's resources causes instabilities in the timestream.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 対決!! ダイノボット PART II (''Taiketsu!! Dinobot PART II'', "Showdown!! Dinobots PART II")
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:'' "'''Die Insel der Dinobots, Teil 2'''" ("Island of the Dinobots, Part 2")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''L'isola dei Dinorobot-Seconda parte''' ("Dinobot Island-Part Two)
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''L'isola dei Dinobots - II''' ("Dinobots Island - II")

==Synopsis==
After forcing the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] into a pool of tar, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] is convinced he's won. He orders the [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] to resume the collection of [[energon]]. However, [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] fears that Megatron's plundering may have disastrous consequences for the island... and the Decepticons.

[[Image:Disland2mammoths.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"I told you we should have taken the left turn, now we have to ask for directions."]]

Meanwhile, the [[Autobot]]s finish repairing the control room. However, [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] alerts them to a temporal anomaly near the library where [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] are. While going to investigate, the Autobots find barbarians making a mess of things. [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] locates Spike and Bumblebee under the rubble of the library, where [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] drills them out. Bumblebee is able to cover Spike and prevent any harm, while the Autobots round up the time displaced viking barbarians and woolly [[mammoth]]s.

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] orders the Autobots not to use lethal force, as they are living creatures here by accident. [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]], and Sideswipe manage to round up the mammoths. Ironhide wrangles the barbarians by squirting them with glue and sticking them to the ground. Optimus knows just where to put them, and the [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]] has them store the mammoths in his trailer (poor [[Roller (G1)|Roller]]), while [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] immobilizes the barbarians. However, the portal is closing fast. The Autobots send the barbarians and mammoths back through the anomaly, which closes just in time.

[[Image:Disland2pirates.jpg|right|175px|thumb|"Ar, excuse me fair mateys, have you seen Captain Jack Sparrow anywhere here? He owes me money! And my, what fine, large booty I see on ye poop deck!"]]

Returning to the [[Ark (G1)|base]], [[Chip Chase]], [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], and [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] begin research into what is causing all this. Before they do, however, two more anomalies are discovered: one at sea, one out in the country. [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]], [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]], and [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] go intercept the sea-based anomaly, which is a pirate ship attacking a man and two women on a yacht. The Autobots free the yacht and push the pirate ship back through the anomaly.

[[Image:DinobotIsland Pt2 InfernospraysCowboys.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"Maybe I'll put out their fire for good!"]]

In the country side, [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], and [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] find that a group of old west outlaws have encountered a biker gang. After a brief rustle between the two gangs, the Autobots force the outlaws back through the wormhole. Resuming their analysis at Autobot headquarters, Chip learns that the disturbances can be traced to Dinobot Island. Optimus Prime orders his team to fly there using [[jet pack]]s.

Meanwhile, the Dinobots have managed to free themselves from the tar pit, thanks to [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] setting it on fire, only to see that Dinobot Island is in danger. Concluding that the Decepticons have done "bad stuff" to the Island, the Dinobots decide it's time to do "more badder stuff" to the Decepticons. The Autobots arrive, and attack the Decepticons. Prime and Megatron trade shots while Warpath takes on Blitzwing in a tank-on-tank duel. Just as the Decepticons get the upper hand, [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] inspires the island's [[dinosaur]] population to attack the Decepticons, forcing them to retreat.

With the Decepticons gone, the Autobots destroy the [[energon cube]]s, causing the energy inside to return to the places it was taken from, stabilizing Dinobot Island. Optimus declares that the Dinobots have proven that they can control their powers, and the Autobots and Dinobots return home.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (6)
* [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (7)
* [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (9)
* [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (10)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (11)
* [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (12)
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (13)
* [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (14)
* [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (15)
* [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (17)
* [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] (19)
* [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] (20)
* [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (27)
* [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (28)
* [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]] (29)
* [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (30)
* [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] (31)
* [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (32)
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (33)
* [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (34)
* [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (35)
* [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (36)
* [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] (38)
* [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] (39)
* [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (40)
* [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] (41)
* [[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] (42)
|c2=
* [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (1)
* [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (2)
* [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (3)
* [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (4)
* [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] (5)
* [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] (37)
* [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (43)
* [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (44)
* [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (45)
|c3=
* [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (18)
* [[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (8)
* Barbarians (16)
* [[Chip Chase]] (21)
* Yacht captain (22)
* Bikini girls (23)
* Pirates (24)
* Motorcycle gang members (25)
* Wild West outlaws (26)
}}

==Quotes==
"But draining those energies might upset the chronological balance of this island! It already drifts precariously in the sea of time." 
"Scientific gobbledegook, Starscream! Do as I say."
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Megatron''' discuss technobabble.

"OORUBBA REEYO! RUMBUBUH RULLY!" ''[More unintelligible babbling and grunts]''
:— '''The Barbarian''' on his mammoth, making a thought out and well articulated point.

"Remember those creatures are flesh and blood, not unfeeling machines like the Decepticons."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' placing a higher value on woolly mammoths than Decepticons.

"Why, you unwashed primitives! You could have fissured my finish!"
:—'''Sunstreaker''' blasts the barbarians for pounding on him with their weapons.

"We be wantin' your treasure, and the wenches too. Hahahahaha!" 
"Aww, cool off, Long John!"
:—'''Pirate captain''' and '''Cliffjumper'''

"I don't care if the entire ''Earth'' explodes! We can always relocate."
:—'''Megatron''' isn't big on the neighborhood.

"If that stolen energy is taken from this area, this entire galaxy could crumble!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' wonders where Megatron would relocate to then.

"Hey, Blitzwing! ''Tank'' you!"
:—'''Warpath''' attacks Blitzwing in a tank-versus-tank duel

"No! It is impossible! I saw you buried beneath the tar pits!" 
"You wrong. And you ''ugly'', too."
:—'''Megatron''' gets some comeuppance from '''Grimlock''', of all mechs

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* Huffer is drawn mouthing Hound's "New Earth life forms?" line.
* The jewelry store that one of the barbarians smashes into is labeled "Nickel and Dime".
* Sunstreaker has Sideswipe's voice for his "I hope you packed your trunk!" line.
* Sunstreaker and Hound get a very strange non-standard sound effect for their lasers as they try to hold the time warp open.
* Chip's "I can use lots of help" line is slightly cut off, leaving him saying that he can use lots of "hel-".
*When Optimus Prime reacts in surprise to Teletraan I's discovery of two additional time warps, Wheeljack's "ears" flash as Prime speaks, as if he was supposed to speak in unison with Prime, but only Prime's voice is heard.
*When Wheeljack speaks a moment before that, his ears do not light up in unison when he says the "Not another time warp" line. Instead they remain lit up.
* Rather than actually coming ''through'' the time warp, the pirate ship just kind of appears out of thin air in front of the warp.
* The cowboys suffer the same problem; additionally, when they first appear, they're kind of floating above the ground.
*When the lead cowboy fires his pistol, it makes a truncated version of the Decepticon laser sound effect. This being the one and only time in the show when a human gun is unarguably a conventional projectile firearm, it should really make a traditional gunshot noise. Presumably the sound crew either didn't have an actual gunshot sound effect at their disposal, or the show's general ethos prevented them from using it—all other examples of human weapons on the show seem to be firing lasers.
* Tracks' eyes are yellow when he first transforms.
* Tracks fires his [[black beam gun]] energy from his missile launchers, rather than his hand-held weapon.
* Grimlock roars his approval of being de-tarred in Sludge's voice.
* Slag's cheek guards are white instead of red as he proposes melting down the Decepticons. His whole face is light gray instead of red as Grimlock agrees.
* Despite using back-mounted jet packs, the Autobots are shown landing on Dinobot Island with foot thrusters.
* In the pan across the Autobots launching their attack, Beachcomber's whole face is white instead of blue, and Smokescreen is missing all of his reds and yellows.
* When Blitzwing transforms into his tank mode, his head and face are still clearly visible as he drives off-screen. In the next shot, however, his head is concealed.
*When Starscream is shooting Warpath with his null ray, he's colored as Thundercracker.
* Snarl's sword is gray instead of red as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention.
* Blitzwing is missing his tank barrel as he fires alongside Soundwave and Starscream.
* Skywarp has no wing insignia as he gets trampled by the dinosaurs.
* Megatron's Fusion Cannon is knocked off his wrist by the triceratops (see the image at the top of the page) but it magically reappears on hiw wrist when he is shown again.
* Blitzwing, Soundwave, and Starscream all seem to suddenly turn around when they are attacked by the stegosaurus, as they are facing the beast in one shot, but when they are knocked down they are facing the other direction.
* Megatron looks human-sized, or even smaller, compared to those dinosaurs rioting above him.
* Somebody forgot that the Dinobots can fly; they're shown flying away from Dinobot Island with jet packs like the rest of the Autobots.

===Jurassic errors===
Paleontology weeps more in the presence of this episode:
* The size issues are more noticeable than before with animals which topped 16 feet in real life towering over Megatron.

===Continuity errors===
* Grimlock's means of summoning the dinosaurs to fight... strains credibility.
* The Decepticons' firepower somehow fails to reduce the dinosaurs to puddles of charred flesh.
* Does it really take all the Autobots and Dinobots firing at the highly volatile and explosive energon cubes to destroy them?

===Continuity notes===
* The empty energon cubes in this episode have little round tubes at the bottom to draw in energy.
* Gadgets and powers:
** Ratchet uses a welding apparatus that slides in/out of his wrist, similar to the ones used by [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2|Brawn]] and [[Changing Gears|Gears]], but without the hooked tip.
** Sideswipe uses his pistons to dig out Bumblebee. They slide out from his wrists, similar to how they worked in "[[A Plague of Insecticons]]".
** Ironhide fires a white-yellow glue from a tri-barreled wrist attachment, similar to the one he used in "[[Divide and Conquer]]".
** Sideswipe fires lasers... from the tip of his missile.
** Sunstreaker discharges electricity from his fingertips to scare off the barbarians.
** A frequently-recurring gadget appears as Cliffjumper uses his [[hydrofoil]]s to travel out to the pirate ship time warp.
** Seaspray has a bow-mounted radar dish.
** Cliffjumper uses his [[glass gas]], reducing the pirates' swords to shards. He fires it from a gun that emerges from his car-mode front hood.
** Tracks' black-beam gun works on humans!
** Beachcomber fires lasers from his hands.
** Skywarp half-transforms during the battle, extending his legs out from jet mode to get some extra vertical thrust.
** Snarl again fires energy blasts from his sword's tip, as in "[[Heavy Metal War]]"
* Where's the trailer go?
** Optimus Prime's trailer just rolls in from off-screen when he needs it to store the mammoths.
* There is now a retractable metal door on the cone of the Autobot Headquarters volcano.
[[Image:DinobotIslandPt2-Dirge.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"We clocked the T. rex at 32 miles per hour."]]
* Flying Autobots:
** Prime's crew of Autobots explicitly requires jetpacks to fly to [[Dinobot Island (G1)|Dinobot Island]].
** The Dinobots display their usual ability to fly as robots.
* Blitzwing and Warpath face off for the first time, but [[The Golden Lagoon|not the last]].
* First appearances:
** Autobots [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] and [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]]
** Decepticon [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]]
* '''[[The Immobilizer|< <]]''' What makes Starscream the leader? Megatron has... uh... ''maybe'' made a mistake in draining the island's energy! Maybe! '''[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1|> >]]'''

===Real-world references===
* Barbarians, mammoths, dinosaurs, pirates, motorcycle gangs, cowboys, scantily clad bikini chicks—this episode's got it all!
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** Swoop frees himself from the tar pit with a ''Millennium Falcon'' engine sound effect.
** Prime's crew arrives at Dinobot Island with the sound of the ''Millennium Falcon'' flying toward Yavin.
** A ''Star Wars'' laser effect plays as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention, possibly Han Solo blowing the prison block communications console to scrap. 

===Trivia===
* The initial dialogue of the "Barbarian Chieftain" was written out in the [[dialogue script]] as ''"Ura manamabirno! Ramballalala uramala! Ya gagga nagonda! Gagga nagonda! Hai, yamaral! Ira, lura lura! Haya, luramala!"'', and he was supposed to exclaim "''Bunga Dorg!"'' when he confronted Sunstreaker. The actor playing the Barbarian Chieftain does not seem to have stuck to this very closely {{m-}} but, hey, gibberish is gibberish.
*The dialogue script states elsewhere that the barbarian who robs the jewelry store is supposed to be saying ''"Gunda nah? Naga gunda?"'' (CONTENTED GIBBERISH) ''"Wunga ga dindy! Dindy wah!"'', which also doesn't quite seem to be what's said in the finished episode. Besides these examples, no other barbarian dialogue in the episode is scripted.
* The explicit character introductions continue in this episode, with Perceptor and Beachcomber both giving self-explanatory spiels.
* The original script for this episode called for Trailbreaker to protect Dinobot Island from any further external threats by shielding it with one of his [[force field]]s. Although Optimus Prime's line explaining this was deleted during production, the visuals of the episode itself feature something of a vestigial reference to this, with the Autobots all flying off in large groups and Trailbreaker being the last to depart, taking to the air solo. Ultimately, though, it's probably for the better; Trailbreaker's force fields were never shown to be self-sustaining, which this one would have to have been.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Dinobot Island, also includes The Revenge of Bruticus ([[St. Michael Video Library]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1987 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|Starvision]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — The Revenge of Bruticus and Dinobot Island Parts 1 & 2 ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1991 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|The Fun House]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1998 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — Dinobot Island ([[Malofilm|Behaviour]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 3 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/dinobot_island_part_2.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

Dinobot Island, Part 2

2012-05-01T00:18:42Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=31
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=19
|prev2=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next2=The Master Builders
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=9
|prev3=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next3=The Master Builders
|image=DinobotIsland2 Megatronvsdinosaur.jpg
|caption= Why Megatron and [[Nightbird (G1)|Nightbird]] never [[Reproduction|had children]].
|title="Dinobot Island, Part 2"
|production code=#700-30
|airdate=[[September 26]], 1985
|written by=[[Donald F. Glut]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Decepticons' plundering of Dinobot Island's resources causes instabilities in the timestream.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 対決!! ダイノボット PART II (''Taiketsu!! Dinobot PART II'', "Showdown!! Dinobots PART II")
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:'' "'''Die Insel der Dinobots, Teil 2'''" ("Island of the Dinobots, Part 2")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''L'isola dei Dinorobot-Seconda parte''' ("Dinobot Island-Part Two)
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''L'isola dei Dinobots - II''' ("Dinobots Island - II")

==Synopsis==
After forcing the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] into a pool of tar, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] is convinced he's won. He orders the [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] to resume the collection of [[energon]]. However, [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] fears that Megatron's plundering may have disastrous consequences for the island... and the Decepticons.

[[Image:Disland2mammoths.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"I told you we should have taken the left turn, now we have to ask for directions."]]

Meanwhile, the [[Autobot]]s finish repairing the control room. However, [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] alerts them to a temporal anomaly near the library where [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] are. While going to investigate, the Autobots find barbarians making a mess of things. [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] locates Spike and Bumblebee under the rubble of the library, where [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] drills them out. Bumblebee is able to cover Spike and prevent any harm, while the Autobots round up the time displaced viking barbarians and woolly [[mammoth]]s.

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] orders the Autobots not to use lethal force, as they are living creatures here by accident. [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]], and Sideswipe manage to round up the mammoths. Ironhide wrangles the barbarians by squirting them with glue and sticking them to the ground. Optimus knows just where to put them, and the [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]] has them store the mammoths in his trailer (poor [[Roller (G1)|Roller]]), while [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] immobilizes the barbarians. However, the portal is closing fast. The Autobots send the barbarians and mammoths back through the anomaly, which closes just in time.

[[Image:Disland2pirates.jpg|right|175px|thumb|"Ar, excuse me fair mateys, have you seen Captain Jack Sparrow anywhere here? He owes me money! And my, what fine, large booty I see on ye poop deck!"]]

Returning to the [[Ark (G1)|base]], [[Chip Chase]], [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], and [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] begin research into what is causing all this. Before they do, however, two more anomalies are discovered: one at sea, one out in the country. [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]], [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]], and [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] go intercept the sea-based anomaly, which is a pirate ship attacking a man and two women on a yacht. The Autobots free the yacht and push the pirate ship back through the anomaly.

[[Image:DinobotIsland Pt2 InfernospraysCowboys.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"Maybe I'll put out their fire for good!"]]

In the country side, [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], and [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] find that a group of old west outlaws have encountered a biker gang. After a brief rustle between the two gangs, the Autobots force the outlaws back through the wormhole. Resuming their analysis at Autobot headquarters, Chip learns that the disturbances can be traced to Dinobot Island. Optimus Prime orders his team to fly there using [[jet pack]]s.

Meanwhile, the Dinobots have managed to free themselves from the tar pit, thanks to [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] setting it on fire, only to see that Dinobot Island is in danger. Concluding that the Decepticons have done "bad stuff" to the Island, the Dinobots decide it's time to do "more badder stuff" to the Decepticons. The Autobots arrive, and attack the Decepticons. Prime and Megatron trade shots while Warpath takes on Blitzwing in a tank-on-tank duel. Just as the Decepticons get the upper hand, [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] inspires the island's [[dinosaur]] population to attack the Decepticons, forcing them to retreat.

With the Decepticons gone, the Autobots destroy the [[energon cube]]s, causing the energy inside to return to the places it was taken from, stabilizing Dinobot Island. Optimus declares that the Dinobots have proven that they can control their powers, and the Autobots and Dinobots return home.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (6)
* [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (7)
* [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (9)
* [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (10)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (11)
* [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (12)
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (13)
* [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (14)
* [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (15)
* [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (17)
* [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] (19)
* [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] (20)
* [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (27)
* [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (28)
* [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]] (29)
* [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (30)
* [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] (31)
* [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (32)
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (33)
* [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (34)
* [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (35)
* [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (36)
* [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] (38)
* [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] (39)
* [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (40)
* [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] (41)
* [[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] (42)
|c2=
* [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (1)
* [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (2)
* [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (3)
* [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (4)
* [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] (5)
* [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] (37)
* [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (43)
* [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (44)
* [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (45)
|c3=
* [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (18)
* [[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (8)
* Barbarians (16)
* [[Chip Chase]] (21)
* Yacht captain (22)
* Bikini girls (23)
* Pirates (24)
* Motorcycle gang members (25)
* Wild West outlaws (26)
}}

==Quotes==
"But draining those energies might upset the chronological balance of this island! It already drifts precariously in the sea of time." 
"Scientific gobbledegook, Starscream! Do as I say."
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Megatron''' discuss technobabble.

"OORUBBA REEYO! RUMBUBUH RULLY!" ''[More unintelligible babbling and grunts]''
:— '''The Barbarian''' on his mammoth, making a thought out and well articulated point.

"Remember those creatures are flesh and blood, not unfeeling machines like the Decepticons."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' placing a higher value on woolly mammoths than Decepticons.

"Why, you unwashed primitives! You could have fissured my finish!"
:—'''Sunstreaker''' blasts the barbarians for pounding on him with their weapons.

"We be wantin' your treasure, and the wenches too. Hahahahaha!" 
"Aww, cool off, Long John!"
:—'''Pirate captain''' and '''Cliffjumper'''

"I don't care if the entire ''Earth'' explodes! We can always relocate."
:—'''Megatron''' isn't big on the neighborhood.

"If that stolen energy is taken from this area, this entire galaxy could crumble!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' wonders where Megatron would relocate to then.

"Hey, Blitzwing! ''Tank'' you!"
:—'''Warpath''' attacks Blitzwing in a tank-versus-tank duel

"No! It is impossible! I saw you buried beneath the tar pits!" 
"You wrong. And you ''ugly'', too."
:—'''Megatron''' gets some comeuppance from '''Grimlock''', of all mechs

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* Huffer is drawn mouthing Hound's "New Earth life forms?" line.
* The jewelry store that one of the barbarians smashes into is labeled "Nickel and Dime".
* Sunstreaker has Sideswipe's voice for his "I hope you packed your trunk!" line.
* Sunstreaker and Hound get a very strange non-standard sound effect for their lasers as they try to hold the time warp open.
* Chip's "I can use lots of help" line is slightly cut off, leaving him saying that he can use lots of "hel-".
*When Optimus Prime reacts in surprise to Teletraan I's discovery of two additional time warps, Wheeljack's "ears" flash as Prime speaks, as if he was supposed to speak in unison with Prime, but only Prime's voice is heard.
*When Wheeljack speaks a moment before that, his ears do not light up in unison when he says the "Not another time warp" line. Instead they remain lit up.
* Rather than actually coming ''through'' the time warp, the pirate ship just kind of appears out of thin air in front of the warp.
* The cowboys suffer the same problem; additionally, when they first appear, they're kind of floating above the ground.
*When the lead cowboy fires his pistol, it makes a truncated version of the Decepticon laser sound effect. This being the one and only time in the show when a human gun is unarguably a conventional projectile firearm, it should really make a traditional gunshot noise. Presumably the sound crew either didn't have an actual gunshot sound effect at their disposal, or the show's general ethos prevented them from using it—all other examples of human weapons on the show seem to be firing lasers.
* Tracks' eyes are yellow when he first transforms.
* Tracks fires his [[black beam gun]] energy from his missile launchers, rather than his hand-held weapon.
* Grimlock roars his approval of being de-tarred in Sludge's voice.
* Slag's cheek guards are white instead of red as he proposes melting down the Decepticons. His whole face is light gray instead of red as Grimlock agrees.
* Despite using back-mounted jet packs, the Autobots are shown landing on Dinobot Island with foot thrusters.
* In the pan across the Autobots launching their attack, Beachcomber's whole face is white instead of blue, and Smokescreen is missing all of his reds and yellows.
* When Blitzwing transforms into his tank mode, his head and face are still clearly visible as he drives off-screen. In the next shot, however, his head is concealed.
*When Starscream is shooting Warpath with his null ray, he's colored as Thundercracker.
* Snarl's sword is gray instead of red as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention.
* Blitzwing is missing his tank barrel as he fires alongside Soundwave and Starscream.
* Skywarp has no wing insignia as he gets trampled by the dinosaurs.
* Megatron looks human-sized, or even smaller, compared to those dinosaurs rioting above him.
* Somebody forgot that the Dinobots can fly; they're shown flying away from Dinobot Island with jet packs like the rest of the Autobots.

===Jurassic errors===
Paleontology weeps more in the presence of this episode:
* The size issues are more noticeable than before with animals which topped 16 feet in real life towering over Megatron.

===Continuity errors===
* Grimlock's means of summoning the dinosaurs to fight... strains credibility.
* The Decepticons' firepower somehow fails to reduce the dinosaurs to puddles of charred flesh.
* Does it really take all the Autobots and Dinobots firing at the highly volatile and explosive energon cubes to destroy them?

===Continuity notes===
* The empty energon cubes in this episode have little round tubes at the bottom to draw in energy.
* Gadgets and powers:
** Ratchet uses a welding apparatus that slides in/out of his wrist, similar to the ones used by [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2|Brawn]] and [[Changing Gears|Gears]], but without the hooked tip.
** Sideswipe uses his pistons to dig out Bumblebee. They slide out from his wrists, similar to how they worked in "[[A Plague of Insecticons]]".
** Ironhide fires a white-yellow glue from a tri-barreled wrist attachment, similar to the one he used in "[[Divide and Conquer]]".
** Sideswipe fires lasers... from the tip of his missile.
** Sunstreaker discharges electricity from his fingertips to scare off the barbarians.
** A frequently-recurring gadget appears as Cliffjumper uses his [[hydrofoil]]s to travel out to the pirate ship time warp.
** Seaspray has a bow-mounted radar dish.
** Cliffjumper uses his [[glass gas]], reducing the pirates' swords to shards. He fires it from a gun that emerges from his car-mode front hood.
** Tracks' black-beam gun works on humans!
** Beachcomber fires lasers from his hands.
** Skywarp half-transforms during the battle, extending his legs out from jet mode to get some extra vertical thrust.
** Snarl again fires energy blasts from his sword's tip, as in "[[Heavy Metal War]]"
* Where's the trailer go?
** Optimus Prime's trailer just rolls in from off-screen when he needs it to store the mammoths.
* There is now a retractable metal door on the cone of the Autobot Headquarters volcano.
[[Image:DinobotIslandPt2-Dirge.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"We clocked the T. rex at 32 miles per hour."]]
* Flying Autobots:
** Prime's crew of Autobots explicitly requires jetpacks to fly to [[Dinobot Island (G1)|Dinobot Island]].
** The Dinobots display their usual ability to fly as robots.
* Blitzwing and Warpath face off for the first time, but [[The Golden Lagoon|not the last]].
* First appearances:
** Autobots [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] and [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]]
** Decepticon [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]]
* '''[[The Immobilizer|< <]]''' What makes Starscream the leader? Megatron has... uh... ''maybe'' made a mistake in draining the island's energy! Maybe! '''[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1|> >]]'''

===Real-world references===
* Barbarians, mammoths, dinosaurs, pirates, motorcycle gangs, cowboys, scantily clad bikini chicks—this episode's got it all!
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** Swoop frees himself from the tar pit with a ''Millennium Falcon'' engine sound effect.
** Prime's crew arrives at Dinobot Island with the sound of the ''Millennium Falcon'' flying toward Yavin.
** A ''Star Wars'' laser effect plays as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention, possibly Han Solo blowing the prison block communications console to scrap. 

===Trivia===
* The initial dialogue of the "Barbarian Chieftain" was written out in the [[dialogue script]] as ''"Ura manamabirno! Ramballalala uramala! Ya gagga nagonda! Gagga nagonda! Hai, yamaral! Ira, lura lura! Haya, luramala!"'', and he was supposed to exclaim "''Bunga Dorg!"'' when he confronted Sunstreaker. The actor playing the Barbarian Chieftain does not seem to have stuck to this very closely {{m-}} but, hey, gibberish is gibberish.
*The dialogue script states elsewhere that the barbarian who robs the jewelry store is supposed to be saying ''"Gunda nah? Naga gunda?"'' (CONTENTED GIBBERISH) ''"Wunga ga dindy! Dindy wah!"'', which also doesn't quite seem to be what's said in the finished episode. Besides these examples, no other barbarian dialogue in the episode is scripted.
* The explicit character introductions continue in this episode, with Perceptor and Beachcomber both giving self-explanatory spiels.
* The original script for this episode called for Trailbreaker to protect Dinobot Island from any further external threats by shielding it with one of his [[force field]]s. Although Optimus Prime's line explaining this was deleted during production, the visuals of the episode itself feature something of a vestigial reference to this, with the Autobots all flying off in large groups and Trailbreaker being the last to depart, taking to the air solo. Ultimately, though, it's probably for the better; Trailbreaker's force fields were never shown to be self-sustaining, which this one would have to have been.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Dinobot Island, also includes The Revenge of Bruticus ([[St. Michael Video Library]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1987 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|Starvision]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — The Revenge of Bruticus and Dinobot Island Parts 1 & 2 ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1991 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|The Fun House]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1998 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — Dinobot Island ([[Malofilm|Behaviour]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 3 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/dinobot_island_part_2.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

Dinobot Island, Part 2

2012-05-01T00:16:03Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=31
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=19
|prev2=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next2=The Master Builders
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=9
|prev3=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next3=The Master Builders
|image=DinobotIsland2 Megatronvsdinosaur.jpg
|caption= Why Megatron and [[Nightbird (G1)|Nightbird]] never [[Reproduction|had children]].
|title="Dinobot Island, Part 2"
|production code=#700-30
|airdate=[[September 26]], 1985
|written by=[[Donald F. Glut]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Decepticons' plundering of Dinobot Island's resources causes instabilities in the timestream.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 対決!! ダイノボット PART II (''Taiketsu!! Dinobot PART II'', "Showdown!! Dinobots PART II")
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:'' "'''Die Insel der Dinobots, Teil 2'''" ("Island of the Dinobots, Part 2")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''L'isola dei Dinorobot-Seconda parte''' ("Dinobot Island-Part Two)
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''L'isola dei Dinobots - II''' ("Dinobots Island - II")

==Synopsis==
After forcing the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] into a pool of tar, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] is convinced he's won. He orders the [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] to resume the collection of [[energon]]. However, [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] fears that Megatron's plundering may have disastrous consequences for the island... and the Decepticons.

[[Image:Disland2mammoths.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"I told you we should have taken the left turn, now we have to ask for directions."]]

Meanwhile, the [[Autobot]]s finish repairing the control room. However, [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] alerts them to a temporal anomaly near the library where [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] are. While going to investigate, the Autobots find barbarians making a mess of things. [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] locates Spike and Bumblebee under the rubble of the library, where [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] drills them out. Bumblebee is able to cover Spike and prevent any harm, while the Autobots round up the time displaced viking barbarians and woolly [[mammoth]]s.

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] orders the Autobots not to use lethal force, as they are living creatures here by accident. [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]], and Sideswipe manage to round up the mammoths. Ironhide wrangles the barbarians by squirting them with glue and sticking them to the ground. Optimus knows just where to put them, and the [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]] has them store the mammoths in his trailer (poor [[Roller (G1)|Roller]]), while [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] immobilizes the barbarians. However, the portal is closing fast. The Autobots send the barbarians and mammoths back through the anomaly, which closes just in time.

[[Image:Disland2pirates.jpg|right|175px|thumb|"Ar, excuse me fair mateys, have you seen Captain Jack Sparrow anywhere here? He owes me money! And my, what fine, large booty I see on ye poop deck!"]]

Returning to the [[Ark (G1)|base]], [[Chip Chase]], [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], and [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] begin research into what is causing all this. Before they do, however, two more anomalies are discovered: one at sea, one out in the country. [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]], [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]], and [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] go intercept the sea-based anomaly, which is a pirate ship attacking a man and two women on a yacht. The Autobots free the yacht and push the pirate ship back through the anomaly.

[[Image:DinobotIsland Pt2 InfernospraysCowboys.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"Maybe I'll put out their fire for good!"]]

In the country side, [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], and [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] find that a group of old west outlaws have encountered a biker gang. After a brief rustle between the two gangs, the Autobots force the outlaws back through the wormhole. Resuming their analysis at Autobot headquarters, Chip learns that the disturbances can be traced to Dinobot Island. Optimus Prime orders his team to fly there using [[jet pack]]s.

Meanwhile, the Dinobots have managed to free themselves from the tar pit, thanks to [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] setting it on fire, only to see that Dinobot Island is in danger. Concluding that the Decepticons have done "bad stuff" to the Island, the Dinobots decide it's time to do "more badder stuff" to the Decepticons. The Autobots arrive, and attack the Decepticons. Prime and Megatron trade shots while Warpath takes on Blitzwing in a tank-on-tank duel. Just as the Decepticons get the upper hand, [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] inspires the island's [[dinosaur]] population to attack the Decepticons, forcing them to retreat.

With the Decepticons gone, the Autobots destroy the [[energon cube]]s, causing the energy inside to return to the places it was taken from, stabilizing Dinobot Island. Optimus declares that the Dinobots have proven that they can control their powers, and the Autobots and Dinobots return home.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (6)
* [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (7)
* [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (9)
* [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (10)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (11)
* [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (12)
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (13)
* [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (14)
* [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (15)
* [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (17)
* [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] (19)
* [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] (20)
* [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (27)
* [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (28)
* [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]] (29)
* [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (30)
* [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] (31)
* [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (32)
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (33)
* [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (34)
* [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (35)
* [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (36)
* [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] (38)
* [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] (39)
* [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (40)
* [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] (41)
* [[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] (42)
|c2=
* [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (1)
* [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (2)
* [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (3)
* [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (4)
* [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] (5)
* [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] (37)
* [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (43)
* [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (44)
* [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (45)
|c3=
* [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (18)
* [[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (8)
* Barbarians (16)
* [[Chip Chase]] (21)
* Yacht captain (22)
* Bikini girls (23)
* Pirates (24)
* Motorcycle gang members (25)
* Wild West outlaws (26)
}}

==Quotes==
"But draining those energies might upset the chronological balance of this island! It already drifts precariously in the sea of time." 
"Scientific gobbledegook, Starscream! Do as I say."
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Megatron''' discuss technobabble.

"OORUBBA REEYO! RUMBUBUH RULLY!" ''[More unintelligible babbling and grunts]''
:— '''The Barbarian''' on his mammoth, making a thought out and well articulated point.

"Remember those creatures are flesh and blood, not unfeeling machines like the Decepticons."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' placing a higher value on woolly mammoths than Decepticons.

"Why, you unwashed primitives! You could have fissured my finish!"
:—'''Sunstreaker''' blasts the barbarians for pounding on him with their weapons.

"We be wantin' your treasure, and the wenches too. Hahahahaha!" 
"Aww, cool off, Long John!"
:—'''Pirate captain''' and '''Cliffjumper'''

"I don't care if the entire ''Earth'' explodes! We can always relocate."
:—'''Megatron''' isn't big on the neighborhood.

"If that stolen energy is taken from this area, this entire galaxy could crumble!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' wonders where Megatron would relocate to then.

"Hey, Blitzwing! ''Tank'' you!"
:—'''Warpath''' attacks Blitzwing in a tank-versus-tank duel

"No! It is impossible! I saw you buried beneath the tar pits!" 
"You wrong. And you ''ugly'', too."
:—'''Megatron''' gets some comeuppance from '''Grimlock''', of all mechs

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* Huffer is drawn mouthing Hound's "New Earth life forms?" line.
* The jewelry store that one of the barbarians smashes into is labeled "Nickel and Dime".
* Sunstreaker has Sideswipe's voice for his "I hope you packed your trunk!" line.
* Sunstreaker and Hound get a very strange non-standard sound effect for their lasers as they try to hold the time warp open.
* Chip's "I can use lots of help" line is slightly cut off, leaving him saying that he can use lots of "hel-".
*When Optimus Prime reacts in surprise to Teletraan I's discovery of two additional time warps, Wheeljack's "ears" flash as Prime speaks, as if he was supposed to speak in unison with Prime, but only Prime's voice is heard.
*When Wheeljack speaks a moment before that, his ears do not light up in unison with the words he saying with the "Not another time warp" line.
* Rather than actually coming ''through'' the time warp, the pirate ship just kind of appears out of thin air in front of the warp.
* The cowboys suffer the same problem; additionally, when they first appear, they're kind of floating above the ground.
*When the lead cowboy fires his pistol, it makes a truncated version of the Decepticon laser sound effect. This being the one and only time in the show when a human gun is unarguably a conventional projectile firearm, it should really make a traditional gunshot noise. Presumably the sound crew either didn't have an actual gunshot sound effect at their disposal, or the show's general ethos prevented them from using it—all other examples of human weapons on the show seem to be firing lasers.
* Tracks' eyes are yellow when he first transforms.
* Tracks fires his [[black beam gun]] energy from his missile launchers, rather than his hand-held weapon.
* Grimlock roars his approval of being de-tarred in Sludge's voice.
* Slag's cheek guards are white instead of red as he proposes melting down the Decepticons. His whole face is light gray instead of red as Grimlock agrees.
* Despite using back-mounted jet packs, the Autobots are shown landing on Dinobot Island with foot thrusters.
* In the pan across the Autobots launching their attack, Beachcomber's whole face is white instead of blue, and Smokescreen is missing all of his reds and yellows.
* When Blitzwing transforms into his tank mode, his head and face are still clearly visible as he drives off-screen. In the next shot, however, his head is concealed.
*When Starscream is shooting Warpath with his null ray, he's colored as Thundercracker.
* Snarl's sword is gray instead of red as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention.
* Blitzwing is missing his tank barrel as he fires alongside Soundwave and Starscream.
* Skywarp has no wing insignia as he gets trampled by the dinosaurs.
* Megatron looks human-sized, or even smaller, compared to those dinosaurs rioting above him.
* Somebody forgot that the Dinobots can fly; they're shown flying away from Dinobot Island with jet packs like the rest of the Autobots.

===Jurassic errors===
Paleontology weeps more in the presence of this episode:
* The size issues are more noticeable than before with animals which topped 16 feet in real life towering over Megatron.

===Continuity errors===
* Grimlock's means of summoning the dinosaurs to fight... strains credibility.
* The Decepticons' firepower somehow fails to reduce the dinosaurs to puddles of charred flesh.
* Does it really take all the Autobots and Dinobots firing at the highly volatile and explosive energon cubes to destroy them?

===Continuity notes===
* The empty energon cubes in this episode have little round tubes at the bottom to draw in energy.
* Gadgets and powers:
** Ratchet uses a welding apparatus that slides in/out of his wrist, similar to the ones used by [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2|Brawn]] and [[Changing Gears|Gears]], but without the hooked tip.
** Sideswipe uses his pistons to dig out Bumblebee. They slide out from his wrists, similar to how they worked in "[[A Plague of Insecticons]]".
** Ironhide fires a white-yellow glue from a tri-barreled wrist attachment, similar to the one he used in "[[Divide and Conquer]]".
** Sideswipe fires lasers... from the tip of his missile.
** Sunstreaker discharges electricity from his fingertips to scare off the barbarians.
** A frequently-recurring gadget appears as Cliffjumper uses his [[hydrofoil]]s to travel out to the pirate ship time warp.
** Seaspray has a bow-mounted radar dish.
** Cliffjumper uses his [[glass gas]], reducing the pirates' swords to shards. He fires it from a gun that emerges from his car-mode front hood.
** Tracks' black-beam gun works on humans!
** Beachcomber fires lasers from his hands.
** Skywarp half-transforms during the battle, extending his legs out from jet mode to get some extra vertical thrust.
** Snarl again fires energy blasts from his sword's tip, as in "[[Heavy Metal War]]"
* Where's the trailer go?
** Optimus Prime's trailer just rolls in from off-screen when he needs it to store the mammoths.
* There is now a retractable metal door on the cone of the Autobot Headquarters volcano.
[[Image:DinobotIslandPt2-Dirge.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"We clocked the T. rex at 32 miles per hour."]]
* Flying Autobots:
** Prime's crew of Autobots explicitly requires jetpacks to fly to [[Dinobot Island (G1)|Dinobot Island]].
** The Dinobots display their usual ability to fly as robots.
* Blitzwing and Warpath face off for the first time, but [[The Golden Lagoon|not the last]].
* First appearances:
** Autobots [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] and [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]]
** Decepticon [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]]
* '''[[The Immobilizer|< <]]''' What makes Starscream the leader? Megatron has... uh... ''maybe'' made a mistake in draining the island's energy! Maybe! '''[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1|> >]]'''

===Real-world references===
* Barbarians, mammoths, dinosaurs, pirates, motorcycle gangs, cowboys, scantily clad bikini chicks—this episode's got it all!
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** Swoop frees himself from the tar pit with a ''Millennium Falcon'' engine sound effect.
** Prime's crew arrives at Dinobot Island with the sound of the ''Millennium Falcon'' flying toward Yavin.
** A ''Star Wars'' laser effect plays as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention, possibly Han Solo blowing the prison block communications console to scrap. 

===Trivia===
* The initial dialogue of the "Barbarian Chieftain" was written out in the [[dialogue script]] as ''"Ura manamabirno! Ramballalala uramala! Ya gagga nagonda! Gagga nagonda! Hai, yamaral! Ira, lura lura! Haya, luramala!"'', and he was supposed to exclaim "''Bunga Dorg!"'' when he confronted Sunstreaker. The actor playing the Barbarian Chieftain does not seem to have stuck to this very closely {{m-}} but, hey, gibberish is gibberish.
*The dialogue script states elsewhere that the barbarian who robs the jewelry store is supposed to be saying ''"Gunda nah? Naga gunda?"'' (CONTENTED GIBBERISH) ''"Wunga ga dindy! Dindy wah!"'', which also doesn't quite seem to be what's said in the finished episode. Besides these examples, no other barbarian dialogue in the episode is scripted.
* The explicit character introductions continue in this episode, with Perceptor and Beachcomber both giving self-explanatory spiels.
* The original script for this episode called for Trailbreaker to protect Dinobot Island from any further external threats by shielding it with one of his [[force field]]s. Although Optimus Prime's line explaining this was deleted during production, the visuals of the episode itself feature something of a vestigial reference to this, with the Autobots all flying off in large groups and Trailbreaker being the last to depart, taking to the air solo. Ultimately, though, it's probably for the better; Trailbreaker's force fields were never shown to be self-sustaining, which this one would have to have been.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Dinobot Island, also includes The Revenge of Bruticus ([[St. Michael Video Library]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1987 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|Starvision]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — The Revenge of Bruticus and Dinobot Island Parts 1 & 2 ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1991 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|The Fun House]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1998 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — Dinobot Island ([[Malofilm|Behaviour]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 3 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/dinobot_island_part_2.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

Dinobot Island, Part 2

2012-05-01T00:13:48Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=31
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=19
|prev2=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next2=The Master Builders
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=9
|prev3=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|next3=The Master Builders
|image=DinobotIsland2 Megatronvsdinosaur.jpg
|caption= Why Megatron and [[Nightbird (G1)|Nightbird]] never [[Reproduction|had children]].
|title="Dinobot Island, Part 2"
|production code=#700-30
|airdate=[[September 26]], 1985
|written by=[[Donald F. Glut]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Decepticons' plundering of Dinobot Island's resources causes instabilities in the timestream.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 対決!! ダイノボット PART II (''Taiketsu!! Dinobot PART II'', "Showdown!! Dinobots PART II")
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:'' "'''Die Insel der Dinobots, Teil 2'''" ("Island of the Dinobots, Part 2")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''L'isola dei Dinorobot-Seconda parte''' ("Dinobot Island-Part Two)
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''L'isola dei Dinobots - II''' ("Dinobots Island - II")

==Synopsis==
After forcing the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] into a pool of tar, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] is convinced he's won. He orders the [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] to resume the collection of [[energon]]. However, [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] fears that Megatron's plundering may have disastrous consequences for the island... and the Decepticons.

[[Image:Disland2mammoths.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"I told you we should have taken the left turn, now we have to ask for directions."]]

Meanwhile, the [[Autobot]]s finish repairing the control room. However, [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] alerts them to a temporal anomaly near the library where [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] are. While going to investigate, the Autobots find barbarians making a mess of things. [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] locates Spike and Bumblebee under the rubble of the library, where [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] drills them out. Bumblebee is able to cover Spike and prevent any harm, while the Autobots round up the time displaced viking barbarians and woolly [[mammoth]]s.

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] orders the Autobots not to use lethal force, as they are living creatures here by accident. [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]], and Sideswipe manage to round up the mammoths. Ironhide wrangles the barbarians by squirting them with glue and sticking them to the ground. Optimus knows just where to put them, and the [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]] has them store the mammoths in his trailer (poor [[Roller (G1)|Roller]]), while [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] immobilizes the barbarians. However, the portal is closing fast. The Autobots send the barbarians and mammoths back through the anomaly, which closes just in time.

[[Image:Disland2pirates.jpg|right|175px|thumb|"Ar, excuse me fair mateys, have you seen Captain Jack Sparrow anywhere here? He owes me money! And my, what fine, large booty I see on ye poop deck!"]]

Returning to the [[Ark (G1)|base]], [[Chip Chase]], [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], and [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] begin research into what is causing all this. Before they do, however, two more anomalies are discovered: one at sea, one out in the country. [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]], [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]], and [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] go intercept the sea-based anomaly, which is a pirate ship attacking a man and two women on a yacht. The Autobots free the yacht and push the pirate ship back through the anomaly.

[[Image:DinobotIsland Pt2 InfernospraysCowboys.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"Maybe I'll put out their fire for good!"]]

In the country side, [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], and [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] find that a group of old west outlaws have encountered a biker gang. After a brief rustle between the two gangs, the Autobots force the outlaws back through the wormhole. Resuming their analysis at Autobot headquarters, Chip learns that the disturbances can be traced to Dinobot Island. Optimus Prime orders his team to fly there using [[jet pack]]s.

Meanwhile, the Dinobots have managed to free themselves from the tar pit, thanks to [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] setting it on fire, only to see that Dinobot Island is in danger. Concluding that the Decepticons have done "bad stuff" to the Island, the Dinobots decide it's time to do "more badder stuff" to the Decepticons. The Autobots arrive, and attack the Decepticons. Prime and Megatron trade shots while Warpath takes on Blitzwing in a tank-on-tank duel. Just as the Decepticons get the upper hand, [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] inspires the island's [[dinosaur]] population to attack the Decepticons, forcing them to retreat.

With the Decepticons gone, the Autobots destroy the [[energon cube]]s, causing the energy inside to return to the places it was taken from, stabilizing Dinobot Island. Optimus declares that the Dinobots have proven that they can control their powers, and the Autobots and Dinobots return home.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (6)
* [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (7)
* [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (9)
* [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (10)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (11)
* [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (12)
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (13)
* [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (14)
* [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (15)
* [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (17)
* [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]] (19)
* [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] (20)
* [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (27)
* [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (28)
* [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]] (29)
* [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (30)
* [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] (31)
* [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (32)
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (33)
* [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (34)
* [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (35)
* [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (36)
* [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] (38)
* [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] (39)
* [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (40)
* [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] (41)
* [[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] (42)
|c2=
* [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (1)
* [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (2)
* [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (3)
* [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (4)
* [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] (5)
* [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] (37)
* [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (43)
* [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (44)
* [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (45)
|c3=
* [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (18)
* [[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (8)
* Barbarians (16)
* [[Chip Chase]] (21)
* Yacht captain (22)
* Bikini girls (23)
* Pirates (24)
* Motorcycle gang members (25)
* Wild West outlaws (26)
}}

==Quotes==
"But draining those energies might upset the chronological balance of this island! It already drifts precariously in the sea of time." 
"Scientific gobbledegook, Starscream! Do as I say."
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Megatron''' discuss technobabble.

"OORUBBA REEYO! RUMBUBUH RULLY!" ''[More unintelligible babbling and grunts]''
:— '''The Barbarian''' on his mammoth, making a thought out and well articulated point.

"Remember those creatures are flesh and blood, not unfeeling machines like the Decepticons."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' placing a higher value on woolly mammoths than Decepticons.

"Why, you unwashed primitives! You could have fissured my finish!"
:—'''Sunstreaker''' blasts the barbarians for pounding on him with their weapons.

"We be wantin' your treasure, and the wenches too. Hahahahaha!" 
"Aww, cool off, Long John!"
:—'''Pirate captain''' and '''Cliffjumper'''

"I don't care if the entire ''Earth'' explodes! We can always relocate."
:—'''Megatron''' isn't big on the neighborhood.

"If that stolen energy is taken from this area, this entire galaxy could crumble!"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' wonders where Megatron would relocate to then.

"Hey, Blitzwing! ''Tank'' you!"
:—'''Warpath''' attacks Blitzwing in a tank-versus-tank duel

"No! It is impossible! I saw you buried beneath the tar pits!" 
"You wrong. And you ''ugly'', too."
:—'''Megatron''' gets some comeuppance from '''Grimlock''', of all mechs

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* Huffer is drawn mouthing Hound's "New Earth life forms?" line.
* The jewelry store that one of the barbarians smashes into is labeled "Nickel and Dime".
* Sunstreaker has Sideswipe's voice for his "I hope you packed your trunk!" line.
* Sunstreaker and Hound get a very strange non-standard sound effect for their lasers as they try to hold the time warp open.
* Chip's "I can use lots of help" line is slightly cut off, leaving him saying that he can use lots of "hel-".
*When Optimus Prime reacts in surprise to Teletraan I's discovery of two additional time warps, Wheeljack's "ears" flash as Prime speaks, as if he was supposed to speak in unison with Prime, but only Prime's voice is heard.
* Rather than actually coming ''through'' the time warp, the pirate ship just kind of appears out of thin air in front of the warp.
* The cowboys suffer the same problem; additionally, when they first appear, they're kind of floating above the ground.
*When the lead cowboy fires his pistol, it makes a truncated version of the Decepticon laser sound effect. This being the one and only time in the show when a human gun is unarguably a conventional projectile firearm, it should really make a traditional gunshot noise. Presumably the sound crew either didn't have an actual gunshot sound effect at their disposal, or the show's general ethos prevented them from using it—all other examples of human weapons on the show seem to be firing lasers.
* Tracks' eyes are yellow when he first transforms.
* Tracks fires his [[black beam gun]] energy from his missile launchers, rather than his hand-held weapon.
* Grimlock roars his approval of being de-tarred in Sludge's voice.
* Slag's cheek guards are white instead of red as he proposes melting down the Decepticons. His whole face is light gray instead of red as Grimlock agrees.
* Despite using back-mounted jet packs, the Autobots are shown landing on Dinobot Island with foot thrusters.
* In the pan across the Autobots launching their attack, Beachcomber's whole face is white instead of blue, and Smokescreen is missing all of his reds and yellows.
* When Blitzwing transforms into his tank mode, his head and face are still clearly visible as he drives off-screen. In the next shot, however, his head is concealed.
*When Starscream is shooting Warpath with his null ray, he's colored as Thundercracker.
* Snarl's sword is gray instead of red as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention.
* Blitzwing is missing his tank barrel as he fires alongside Soundwave and Starscream.
* Skywarp has no wing insignia as he gets trampled by the dinosaurs.
* Megatron looks human-sized, or even smaller, compared to those dinosaurs rioting above him.
* Somebody forgot that the Dinobots can fly; they're shown flying away from Dinobot Island with jet packs like the rest of the Autobots.

===Jurassic errors===
Paleontology weeps more in the presence of this episode:
* The size issues are more noticeable than before with animals which topped 16 feet in real life towering over Megatron.

===Continuity errors===
* Grimlock's means of summoning the dinosaurs to fight... strains credibility.
* The Decepticons' firepower somehow fails to reduce the dinosaurs to puddles of charred flesh.
* Does it really take all the Autobots and Dinobots firing at the highly volatile and explosive energon cubes to destroy them?

===Continuity notes===
* The empty energon cubes in this episode have little round tubes at the bottom to draw in energy.
* Gadgets and powers:
** Ratchet uses a welding apparatus that slides in/out of his wrist, similar to the ones used by [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2|Brawn]] and [[Changing Gears|Gears]], but without the hooked tip.
** Sideswipe uses his pistons to dig out Bumblebee. They slide out from his wrists, similar to how they worked in "[[A Plague of Insecticons]]".
** Ironhide fires a white-yellow glue from a tri-barreled wrist attachment, similar to the one he used in "[[Divide and Conquer]]".
** Sideswipe fires lasers... from the tip of his missile.
** Sunstreaker discharges electricity from his fingertips to scare off the barbarians.
** A frequently-recurring gadget appears as Cliffjumper uses his [[hydrofoil]]s to travel out to the pirate ship time warp.
** Seaspray has a bow-mounted radar dish.
** Cliffjumper uses his [[glass gas]], reducing the pirates' swords to shards. He fires it from a gun that emerges from his car-mode front hood.
** Tracks' black-beam gun works on humans!
** Beachcomber fires lasers from his hands.
** Skywarp half-transforms during the battle, extending his legs out from jet mode to get some extra vertical thrust.
** Snarl again fires energy blasts from his sword's tip, as in "[[Heavy Metal War]]"
* Where's the trailer go?
** Optimus Prime's trailer just rolls in from off-screen when he needs it to store the mammoths.
* There is now a retractable metal door on the cone of the Autobot Headquarters volcano.
[[Image:DinobotIslandPt2-Dirge.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"We clocked the T. rex at 32 miles per hour."]]
* Flying Autobots:
** Prime's crew of Autobots explicitly requires jetpacks to fly to [[Dinobot Island (G1)|Dinobot Island]].
** The Dinobots display their usual ability to fly as robots.
* Blitzwing and Warpath face off for the first time, but [[The Golden Lagoon|not the last]].
* First appearances:
** Autobots [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] and [[Seaspray (G1)|Seaspray]]
** Decepticon [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]]
* '''[[The Immobilizer|< <]]''' What makes Starscream the leader? Megatron has... uh... ''maybe'' made a mistake in draining the island's energy! Maybe! '''[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1|> >]]'''

===Real-world references===
* Barbarians, mammoths, dinosaurs, pirates, motorcycle gangs, cowboys, scantily clad bikini chicks—this episode's got it all!
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** Swoop frees himself from the tar pit with a ''Millennium Falcon'' engine sound effect.
** Prime's crew arrives at Dinobot Island with the sound of the ''Millennium Falcon'' flying toward Yavin.
** A ''Star Wars'' laser effect plays as Grimlock fires to get the dinosaurs' attention, possibly Han Solo blowing the prison block communications console to scrap. 

===Trivia===
* The initial dialogue of the "Barbarian Chieftain" was written out in the [[dialogue script]] as ''"Ura manamabirno! Ramballalala uramala! Ya gagga nagonda! Gagga nagonda! Hai, yamaral! Ira, lura lura! Haya, luramala!"'', and he was supposed to exclaim "''Bunga Dorg!"'' when he confronted Sunstreaker. The actor playing the Barbarian Chieftain does not seem to have stuck to this very closely {{m-}} but, hey, gibberish is gibberish.
*The dialogue script states elsewhere that the barbarian who robs the jewelry store is supposed to be saying ''"Gunda nah? Naga gunda?"'' (CONTENTED GIBBERISH) ''"Wunga ga dindy! Dindy wah!"'', which also doesn't quite seem to be what's said in the finished episode. Besides these examples, no other barbarian dialogue in the episode is scripted.
* The explicit character introductions continue in this episode, with Perceptor and Beachcomber both giving self-explanatory spiels.
* The original script for this episode called for Trailbreaker to protect Dinobot Island from any further external threats by shielding it with one of his [[force field]]s. Although Optimus Prime's line explaining this was deleted during production, the visuals of the episode itself feature something of a vestigial reference to this, with the Autobots all flying off in large groups and Trailbreaker being the last to depart, taking to the air solo. Ultimately, though, it's probably for the better; Trailbreaker's force fields were never shown to be self-sustaining, which this one would have to have been.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Dinobot Island, also includes The Revenge of Bruticus ([[St. Michael Video Library]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1987 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|Starvision]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — The Revenge of Bruticus and Dinobot Island Parts 1 & 2 ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1991 — ''Transformers'' — 1: The Revenge of Bruticus / 2: Dinobot Island (Parts 1 and 2) ([[Entertainment UK|The Fun House]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1998 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — Dinobot Island ([[Malofilm|Behaviour]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 3 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/dinobot_island_part_2.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

The Core

2012-04-29T22:27:08Z

207.151.155.11: /* Continuity notes */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=28
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=49
|prev2=Cosmic Rust (episode)
|next2=Blaster Blues
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=7
|prev3=The Autobot Run
|next3=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|image=TheCore Devastator zapped.jpg
|caption=
|title="The Core"
|production code=#700-27
|airdate=[[October 29]], 1985
|written by=[[Dennis Marks]]
|animation studio=[[AKOM]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Megatron tries to drill his way to the center to the Earth, while the Autobots take control of Devastator with mind-controlling Dominator Discs.'''

:''Japanese title:'' デバスターを倒せ! (''Devastor o Taose!'', "Defeat Devastor!")
:''German ''Generation 2'' title:''' "'''Erde in Gefahr'''" ("Earth in Danger")
:''Brazilian title:'' '''O Núcleo'''
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Al centro della Terra''' ("To the center of Earth")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Il nucleo''' ("The core")
:''Russian title'': '''Ядро''' (''Yadro'', "The Core" )
==Synopsis==
[[Image:Coredevastatorattacks.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"Devastator use boulder as ball and Autobots as pins!"]]

At an underground cavern near a waterfall, the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] are digging with a massive drill. However, the rock they're drilling through breaks, and only some quick work on [[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]]'s part plugs it up. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] orders Mixmaster to look over [[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]]'s sensory equipment, while [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] does his daily whine-about-Megatron's-nefarious-plan bit. Megatron counters that if they manage to tap into the Earth's molten core, it will give the [[Decepticon]]s geothermal energy, a limitless power source. Starscream counters that if they breach the core, the Earth runs the risk of exploding. However, Megatron doesn't care: he's placed a [[space bridge]] near the drilling site, which will take the Decepticons to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] if the Earth's stability should be threatened.

[[Image:Coreautobotsinnet.jpg|right|175px|thumb|This is the worst tent ever!]]

Meanwhile, [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Gears (G1)|Gears]], [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]], and [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] are driving around in that general area, when Sunstreaker realizes that there should be a river where they're driving through. The Autobots head to investigate, and see Mixmaster and Scavenger. The Autobots [[Transformation|transform]] to attack, only to see that the Constructicons have disappeared, and to fail to notice [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] above them. Informed by [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]], Megatron orders the Constructicons to destroy the Autobots and form [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. The Decepticon [[combiner]] knocks the Autobots off the cliff, but Mirage goes invisible on them. He remains undetected as Devastator attacks the others, and finds the drill. As Mirage rejoins the group, Jazz does a [[sound and light show]] which distracts Devastator, allowing Mirage and Sunstreaker to lasso his legs with a rope, allowing the Autobots to escape.

[[Image:Coredevastator%26prime.jpg|left|175px|thumb|Devastator has no idea how to start transforming 20th Anniversary Prime.]]

At the [[Ark (G1)|Autobot base]], the Autobots use [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] to calculate what will happen if the drill hits the Earth's core. The result will be total annihilation, but the Autobots have little hope of defeating the Decepticons with Devastator. [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Chip Chase]] present [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] with their new [[dominator disc]]s, which will be placed on the individual Constructicons and take control of them when they form Devastator. Convinced, Optimus Prime orders a commando team to plant the discs on the Constructicons. Heading for the drilling site, [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] freezes the falls, causing the drill to heat up. [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] orders the Constructicons to the surface, during which the Autobots plant a disc on each Constructicon. As the commandos are pulled out, Starscream has them dead to rights, but Megatron orders him to let them pass, saying that he knows of their plan to control Devastator. As Megatron positions the Decepticons, he orders the Decepticons to attack. The Decepticons fire on the still moving Autobots, who break formation, as the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] transform to [[bring the rain]] on the Autobots. Megatron orders the Constructicons to form Devastator, who grabs Prime. Wheeljack activates the discs, and Optimus orders Devastator to release him. Devastator follows the Autobot leader's orders, and attack the Decepticons. Megatron orders the Decepticons to retreat to the cave, and Devastator seals them in. Optimus orders the Autobots to break off, as they can finish the Decepticons at their leisure.

[[Image:Corediagramscene.jpg|right|175px|thumb|I didn't know the Earth's centre was made from green layers.]]

Within the caverns, Starscream whines about being trapped, not having enough water to keep drilling, and so on. However, Megatron reveals that this was all part of his plan: he has a device that will override the dominator discs and stored enough water to continue drilling for some time. He just didn't tell Starscream because he's a terrible actor. At the Autobot base, the Constructicons are helping with repairs, when an earthquake hits. Realizing that the Decepticons are still drilling, the Autobots head to put them out of commission. However, Megatron is aware of their coming, watching them through the Constructicons' eyes. The Autobots and Devastator head for the cave, and Devastator is set to destroy it, at which point Megatron uses his control switch to deactivate the discs. Devastator begins attacking the Autobots, so Wheeljack tries to boost power to the discs. Unfortunately, this fries Devastator's [[Circuits|logic circuits]] and sends him into a killing frenzy, attacking both Autobot and Decepticon alike.

[[Image:Coremegs%26wheeljack.jpg|left|175px|thumb|Take off your clothes and come on in!]]

Finally, the drill hits the core, and the cave—and the earth itself—begin to come apart. Unfortunately, Devastator's rampage has damaged the drill's controls. Megatron orders the Decepticons to the space bridge, but Devastator damages it. Optimus convinces Megatron to give his control switch to Wheeljack, who uses it to deactivate the discs and bring Devastator back to normal. Devastator then heads to destroy the drill, while the Decepticons flee for their [[Spark|lives]]. Devastator succeeds, but is surprised by Megatron's absence. Chip tells Devastator that he ran, but Devastator believes that "Noble Megatron" merely left to plan their next attack and leaves (he really is as dumb as a post). Chip is somewhat saddened, as he was hoping that Devastator would join the Autobots. Optimus tells him not to let go of his dreams.

{{-}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (8)
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (9)
* [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (10)
* [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (11)
* [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (12)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (17)
* [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (19)
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (20)
* [[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (24)
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (25)
* [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (26)
|c2=
* [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] (1)
* [[Hook (G1)|Hook]] (2)
* [[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] (3)
* [[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]] (4)
* [[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] (5)
* [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (6)
* [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (7)
* [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (13)
* [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (14)
* [[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] (15)
* [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] (16)
* [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (21)
* [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (22)
* [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] (23)
|c3=
* [[Chip Chase]] (18)
}}

==Quotes==
"Autobots, move out!"
:—'''Sunstreaker''', thinking he outranks Jazz and Prowl.

"It's like shooting [[dynametal duck]]s in a beryllium barrel."
:—'''Starscream''' wonders if they store [[beryllium baloney]] in beryllium barrels.

"Traitor!"
:—'''Starscream''' to Megatron. No, you read that right.

"I do this only for the benefit of my Decepticons. It grieves me that you may also profit."
:—'''Megatron''', agreeing to ally with the Autobots and lying through his teeth (he's doing it to save his own chassis).

"What's the matter, Chip?" 
"I guess I was hoping Devastator might join the Autobots for good, but that's probably just a dumb old dream." 
"Hang on your dreams, Chip. The future is built on dreams. Hang on."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' gives '''Chip Chase''' valuable words to live by.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
This being one of the Season 2 AKOM episodes, many characters have unusual color schemes which persist through the entire episode. This includes:
* Megatron's gun barrel is dark gray.
* Gears' truck mode is red with blue fenders instead of blue with a red camper top. His white robot bits are colored light gray.
* Prowl is a light gray instead of white.
* Optimus Prime's backpack is white instead of red.
* Chip has a blue jacket instead of brown. This is ''good'', though. It means that, unlike a lot of cartoon humans, he actually changes clothes.
* The circle on Bumblebee's back is dark gray instead of yellow.

Errors not attributable to model sheets include:
* It seems unlikely that the metal ring surrounding the drill would fracture in exactly the same way as the rock surrounding it.
* Hook's first transformation is bizarre. His crane-mode cab just kind of disappears into his stomach... only to reappear as his foot a second later.
* Scavenger's voice gives the "emergency!" lines that follow, but Scrapper is shown. It's not clear from the animation who's actually speaking, though.
* When the Constructicons are all shown zapping the fissure shut, all the other cracks are gone.
* Subsequent shots of the drill show no trace of the Constructicons' ad hoc ground repairs. Did they pave them over??
* Missing Seeker insignia:
** When he's first seen sitting at the console, Starscream is missing the Decepticon emblems on his wings.
** Starscream has only one wing emblem as he watches Megatron walk through the holographic rock wall.
** The Seekers are all missing their wing emblems as the Decepticons launch their counterattack on the approaching Autobots in the canyon.
** Starscream's missing his wing emblems yet again as he turns and says "You thought of everything".
** Starscream's got only one emblem as he runs crying to Devastator for help. Seriously, how hard is it to keep track of two emblems?
* It's not indisputably an error, but Starscream's hand makes none of the typical whirring/sliding noises as he retracts it and replaces it with the drill (which, holy cow, where does he ''keep'' that thing?)
* The animation of the Autobots driving up the slope out of the riverbed is crude and mistimed—Mirage drives all the way into the slope before he tilts to start climbing it. The other Autobots all tilt up as a group, even though they're in a line.
* Laserbeak's missing his transformation sound as he returns to Soundwave's chest compartment after sighting the Autobots.
* As Laserbeak plays back the Autobots' words, a second voice seems to be echoing Jazz's "Constructicons!"
* As the Constructions all transform to vehicle mode, both Hook and Mixmaster suffer from their feet failing to become the corresponding part of their vehicle modes. All of the Constructicons have completely changed positions from where they were standing in the preceding shot.
* The boulder that Devastator uses against the Autobots is never seen to hit bottom.
* As usual, Devastator's combination sequence is screwed up. In addition to lacking any transformation noise, Long Haul only forms about half of his actual contribution, with Hook getting the rest. At least they got the other four guys correct!
* Three of the Constructicons are shown monitoring the drill, while at the same time Devastator is outside fighting the rest of the Autobots. In the same scene, Starscream's missing one of his wing emblems yet again.
* As Devastator falls from Sunstreaker and Mirage's snare, he has two eyes instead of his usual visor.
* Wheeljack has some strange white areas on his head when he's first seen inside Autobot Headquarters.
* The center line on Scrapper's face mask disappears as he orders the Constructicons to the surface.
* The Constructicons' elevator isn't animated, making them appear to just levitate into the air in vehicle mode. A whirring effects noise, and a lack of glow effects, makes it seem that this was ''not'' supposed to be the levitation beam used earlier by Starscream and Megatron. A second later, however, they ''do'' drive off the levitation beam, complete with glow effect.
* There is ''no way'' Ironhide has room for that much of the water-freezing liquid inside him.
* Appearing/disappearing Autobots:
** Ironhide is shown retreating into the cage at the bottom of the cliff, even though he was never shown to have left the top of the cliff. He seems to have taken Sunstreaker's place. As the cage begins to rise, Sunstreaker reappears (with a strangely miscolored or off-model head), but Jazz is missing.
** The roster of Autobots on the return mission to the cave fluctuates all over the place. Prowl, Jazz, Ironhide and Sideswipe are shown leaving Autobot HQ (and Devastator apparently just sits there while the Autobots move out!) When they arrive at the cave, Hound and Wheeljack have replaced Prowl and Ironhide. After Chip is trapped in the cave, Ratchet shows up among Devastator's victims. After the commercial break, Ironhide is back with the group. As the earthquakes begin, Sunstreaker shows up out of nowhere to rescue Chip.
* Five Autobots fit inside Prime's pyramid cage, which then fits inside his trailer. Huge trailer, or tiny Autobots?
* As he ejects Ravage, the inside of Soundwave's chest compartment is bright yellow.
* Devastator's second combination sequence contains the same visual errors as the first one; plus, Hook's mass includes Bonecrusher's scoop.
* Once the Autobots subjugate Devastator, he's seen swatting Skywarp, but the next shot is of Thundercracker spinning out of control. Then Thundercracker immediately flies back in ''again'' and is swatted off, screaming in Starscream's voice. The shot following that has Skywarp standing with the other Decepticons.
* Wheeljack's roof is orange instead of white as Chip leans out his window.
* As Devastator blasts the Decepticons' cave shut, the frozen falls spontaneously unfreeze for no apparent reason.
* Bumblebee is with the cheering Autobots as Devastator flies out of the canyon, despite not being seen anywhere else in the episode.
* Again, the metal in Autobot Headquarters splits as though it were rock.
* After Hook repairs Jazz, he drives over to Devastator and transforms into ''nothing but his head''.
* When Devastator blasts the cave entrance open again, the falls are once again frozen!
* Skywarp and Starscream both have yellow nosecones as they transform back into robot mode en route to the space bridge.
* When the combined doohickeys zap Devastator back under control causing the Constructicons to disengage, the left arm transforms into Scrapper, while the right leg transforms into Bonecrusher.
* Megatron has a red Decepticon symbol when he orders the Constructicons to stop the drill.
* Third Devastator sequence: worst one yet! Scrapper's not really visible at all. ''Scavenger'' and Mixmaster form not only the legs but also half of Long Haul's bits (the same incomplete half that Long Haul himself formed the first time around!) Long Haul then ''splits in two'' to become the rest of Devastator's torso, including everything formed by Hook, ''and'' Bonecrusher and Scavenger's vehicle treads. Bonecrusher and ''Hook'' then form the arms. When he's finished forming, Devastator's torso plate is green instead of purple.
* Wheeljack's ears don't flash as he and Prime snicker at Chip's "Mr. Nobility" line.
* Though maintaining a consistent scale has [[Scale|never been a particularly important issue]] in Transformers fiction, this episode is a particularly notable offender, with Devastator's relative size fluctuating wildly: in some scenes Megatron appears to be almost half his height, whilst at other times the Autobots barely come up to the top of his ''foot''. In one scene, vehicle mode Bonecrusher seems to be almost as high as robot-mode Megatron. Chip's scaling is also wildly variable: when Sunstreaker rescues him from the cave, he appears knee-high to the Autobots, but in the very next scene he has suddenly become as large as Wheeljack.

===Continuity errors===
* Megatron's assertion that the Earth's core is the richest source of energy in [[Milky Way|the galaxy]] is not even remotely true, even within the bizarre realm of the cartoon's physics. Heck, just within our own little [[solar system]], the [[Sun]] is immeasurably more potent.
* Why the heck is Sunstreaker giving orders to a group that includes Prowl and Jazz?
* What kind of tree branch (growing out of a cliff, no less) is strong enough to support a falling Transformer?
* Jazz and Sunstreaker both use wrist-rockets to lower themselves into the canyon. According to the tech specs, that's really supposed to be Wheeljack's schtick.
* How does freezing the waterfall stop the whole river? Wouldn't it make more sense to break the dam that's diverting the river upstream?
* How did the Constructions not notice the Autobots as they were placing the Dominator Disks on them?
* How ''did'' Megatron figure out the Autobots' strategy?
* Is Devastator ''really'' the only one who can stop the drill? Can't anybody just shoot the thing at its source?
* Why do the Constructicons all feel the need to simultaneously transform to robot mode (then have a little out-of-character heroic chat) when ordered to transform to Devastator? This is one of the episodes where they are assumed to need to be in vehicle mode—which they are already in—to combine.
* The whole countdown to the Earth's core, down to the ''second'', is patently ridiculous. The boundary of the Earth's core is not nearly so neatly defined. And penetrating it with such a comparatively tiny drill would be unlikely to shatter the planet.
* While counting down the time before the drill hits the Earth's core, Prime says 10 seconds, then Megatron says 1 second immediately thereafter. Somehow, 9 seconds disappear without any editing or time lapse. A lot more than 1 second elapses before Devastator destroys the drill.
* How did Devastator get all the way from near the earth's surface to near its core so quickly? How did he slow himself at the end to avoid crashing? And how did he withstand the heat down there, when his component parts [[Heavy_Metal_War|are not even very keen on ordinary lava]]?
* Where did the fleeing Decepticons think they were ''going'', anyway?

===Continuity notes===
*Megatron takes a jab at Starscream's acting abilities, which we witnessed just [[A Prime Problem|one episode ago]]. He's no [[Shia LaBeouf|Beef]], but hey, he's just starting [[Megatron's Master Plan, Part 2|his]] [[Starscream's Ghost|career]] at this point.
* Gadgets and powers: Starscream has a rifle which he attempts to use on the retreating Autobots after they place Dominator Disks on Devastator. Everyone's arms are completely hollow in this episode. One character after the next retracts their hands into their wrists:
** Starscream reveals an improbably large drill in place of his retracted hand.
** Mirage has a tow cable in his wrist.
** Ironhide retracts his hands to fire an improbably huge torrent of blue liquid that freezes the waterfall.
** Sunstreaker, Jazz, and Wheeljack all retract their hands and replace them with wrist-rockets. Wheeljack is ''supposed'' to be able to do this according to his tech spec, but it's never been explicitly shown before (he flew without retracting his wrists in "[[A Plague of Insecticons]]" and "[[S.O.S. Dinobots]]".)
** Jazz also has a grappling hook/tow line. Of all these gimmicks, this is the only one that's actually appeared before, way back in "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]" and [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 3|Part 3]].
** Hook uses his crane-mode hook as a welding tip.

===Real-world references===
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** As often happens, Laserbeak gets the TIE Fighter engine sound just after he flies over the Autobots.

===Trivia===
* Prime sure goes along with the notion of enslaving one of his enemies pretty readily, huh? What happened to his ol' "Freedom is the Right of All Sentient Beings" schtick?
* After all the fuss the others go through while getting into the canyon (wrist rockets, grappling hook slides), Prowl just ''jumps'' down.
* Jazz skips his dominator disk onto Scavenger, like skipping a rock on water. Stylish!
* When Megatron orders a retreat, cat-mode Ravage flies off into the air alongside his comrades.
* Megatron stops Starscream from sniping the Autobots as Optimus Prime reels them up the cliff, arguing that killing six Autobots would be pointless since he plans on having Devastator destroy all the Autobots at the right moment. When that moment comes, there are still only (give or take) six Autobots to be had. Should have gone with your gut, Starscream.
* This episode is one of a trio, including "[[City of Steel]]" and "[[The Autobot Run]]", that was animated by the Korean studio [[AKOM]]. They are distinguished by simplistic art, prominent use of the Constructicons, surprisingly high frame rates, some Hanna-Barbara-style animation shortcuts, and various character model oddities, such as Optimus Prime's white backpack (which would show up again in "[[The Rebirth, Part 1|The Rebirth]]") and Chip Chase's blue jacket... not to mention a ''crapload'' of animation errors. Sheesh, AKOM.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1995 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Megatron Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1999 — ''The Transformers'' — Decepticon Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 2 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/the_core.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Core}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

A Prime Problem

2012-04-29T21:23:36Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=27
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=22
|prev2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|next2=City of Steel
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=31
|prev3=Enter the Nightbird
|next3=The Insecticon Syndrome
|image=Primedeux.jpg
|caption=Double your pleasure...
|title="A Prime Problem"
|production code=#700-26
|airdate=[[October 2]], 1985
|written by=[[Dick Robbins]] [[Bryce Malek]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Unknown Filipino animation studio]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Megatron creates a clone of Optimus Prime to lure the Autobots to their doom.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 二人のコンボイ (''Futari no Convoy'', "Two Convoys")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Un problema per Commander''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Un problema per Optimus Prime''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:PrimeProblem Decepticons at crevasse.jpg|left|200px|thumb|All right, who wants to dive first?]]

The Decepticons discover a crevasse in the [[Earth]] from which is emanating strange energy readings. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] stops [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] from diving straight in, and orders [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] to send in an [[autoscout]]. They quickly determine that the crevasse is full of dangerous [[korlonium crystal]]s, which destroy anything with electronic [[circuits|circuitry]] on contact, and decide to try to trick the [[Autobot]]s into entering the crevasse. To that end they retire to their nearby [[Incredibly tall rocket|temporary operations base]].

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the Autobots show up at the scene shortly, but before they can learn more about the lights, they are attacked by a Decepticon squad led by Starscream. Megatron dispatches [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who knocks Prime over a cliff with a few well-aimed shots and puts him out of commission. The Decepticon then beams holographic pictures of the Autobot leader back to Megatron, who uses them to create a [[Optimus Prime clone|remote-controlled clone]] out of a [[clone synthesizer]].

[[Image:PrimeProblem Megatron prime splitscreen.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Speed, I will not let you race in this race!]]

While the real Optimus is still clambering out of the pit he fell into, the clone leads the Autobots back to base. There are some awkward moments when the clone addresses [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] as "[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]]", fails to work [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]], and doesn't even remember giving Teletraan I a check up earlier that day, but the Autobots are distracted by the perimeter alarm sounding — the real Optimus Prime has arrived back at base. Under the clone's leadership, the Autobots prepare to shoot the real Prime as an impostor, but Ironhide stops them, announcing that no one's shooting anyone until they determine who's really Optimus Prime.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Twin primes rev up.jpg|left|200px|thumb|THIS is how you REALLY blow off steam!]]

Teletraan I scans both Primes, but is unable to determine which of them is fake. The clone excels at sharp-shooting, and when it's the real Prime's turn, the rocky outcrop they're using as a target falls on him. Fortunately Optimus shrugs the rubble off. A race to the end of the flats and back is even less conclusive. Any further tests are interrupted by Teletraan I reporting an increase in activity from the crevasse — in reality the work of Megatron's [[energy amplifier]]s. Ironhide announces he's taking command while Optimus Prime's identity is uncertain and the Autobots set out for the crevasse.

Naturally, they soon run into a Decepticon ambush. From the Decepticon base, Megatron and Starscream watch the fight. Megatron has decided that to win the Autobots' trust completely, the false Prime will have to destroy a Decepticon. Furthermore he's picked Starscream to take the fall. Starscream isn't too enthusiastic about this plan, and makes a run for it. He's seen leaving the base by [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], who then watch Laserbeak drag the protesting Decepticon back to base, enabling the pair to slip in unnoticed. Megatron explains the part of his plan that he neglected to mention earlier: that the Prime clone will only be destroying a clone of Starscream. Windcharger and Spike watch the production of Starscream's clone, and start back to warn the Autobots, but are spotted — Spike is captured by Laserbeak while Windcharger falls into the crevasse.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Windcharger scrap.jpg|right|200px|thumb|No bacon on the salad!]]
Out on the battlefield, both Autobots and Decepticons alike are surprised when the [[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] joins in and immediately challenges one of the Optimus Primes to a duel to the death. The Decepticon at first gets the upper hand, but is blown apart when he stops to gloat. The rest of the Decepticons flee. Now convinced that the clone is the real thing after the battle, the Autobots follow the clone to the crevasse, ignoring the warnings from the real Optimus. But before they are led to their doom, Windcharger pulls up from the crevasse and reveals the truth, letting them know that the Decepticons have Spike captive.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Prime pats Spike.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Prime rubs Spike's head for good luck.]]

The clone says to disregard Windcharger's report and Spike's plight, and orders the Autobots forward into the crevasse. Ironhide declares the clone to be the fake, because the real Prime would save Spike. The Autobots shoot the fake Optimus into oblivion and follow Prime on a rescue mission. The Decepticon rocket base quickly launches, dropping Spike in mid-air, but fortunately [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is able to execute a mid-air rescue. Optimus assures Spike that he's the real thing, and pets the boy like a puppy.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (5)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (7)
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (8)
*[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (9)
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] (10)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (18)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (19)
*[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (20)
*[[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (21)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (22)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (23)
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (24)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (25)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (26)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (27)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (28)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (30)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (31)
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (32)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (33)
|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (1)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Autoscout]] (4)
*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (12)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (13)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (14)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (15)
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (16)
*[[Optimus Prime clone]] (17)
*[[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] (29)
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (11)
}}

==Quotes==
"It's just such ignorance which forever relegates you to the ranks of underlings, Starscream!"
:—'''Megatron'''

"All the danger you can handle is already here, Floptimus Prime!"
:—'''Starscream''' comes up with a clever insult.

"I'm sorry there are only three of you. Clobbering less than four Decepticons at a time is boring."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

''"Laserbeak... you tin-foil turkey!"''
:—'''Optimus Prime''' dishes out the trash talk like a pro.

'''Optimus Prime clone''': Bumblebee, come over here. The computer's not responding to my input.... Bumblebee, I'm speaking to you. 
'''Ironhide''': You talking to me? 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': Of course. 
'''Ironhide''': But I'm not Bumblebee, I'm Ironhide, Prime. 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': I meant Ironhide, naturally.
:—The fake Optimus Prime totally flubs Ironhide's name, even though Ironhide's the only other one there, and the Southern-fried lug still doesn't get it...

"I don't mind hitting the dirt, but I don't enjoy eating it!"
:—'''Gears'''

"No, DO NOT! ARGH, my magnificent creation, vaporized! With Prime's replica destroyed, we must escape, now!"
:—'''Megatron''', not being at all melodramatic.

"Is it really you, Optimus Prime? I mean ''really?''" 
"Yes, Spike. This time I am definitely me. Or I. Myself. Oh, whoever I am. Put 'er there, partner."
:—A cautious but hopeful '''Spike''' questions '''Optimus Prime''', who doesn't do the best job of keeping a sentence together.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* The entire episode has strangely desaturated colors, even the indoor scenes. The outdoor scenes are mostly washed with a dusk-like yellow and blue, even away from the strange light of the crystals.
* When Megatron grabs Starscream, his insignia is gray, he's missing the black "eye liner" above his optics and his dark gray helemet details are colored light gray.
* Soundwave's optics turn white a couple of times, first when ejecting the autoscout, and then when ejecting Laserbeak for the first time.

* A strange animation shortcut has Optimus pick up Thundercracker to throw him. The camera angle changes, and suddenly it's Starscream that he's throwing. The next shot shows all three Seekers lying defeated, so it may or may not be an actual error. (The same color/character changing trick is used in "[[The Ultimate Doom, Part 1]]".)

* When Megatron orders him to eject Laserbeak, Soundwave's chest is blue instead of light gray. (The subsequent animation of Soundwave turning and ejecting the cassettebot is recycled from the episode's opening scene, and recycled again when Soundwave sends Laserbeak to retrieve Starscream.)

* Improbable viewpoints:
** Does Megatron have a camera that flies alongside Laserbeak to take a video of him? How else to account for the third-person camera angle that he gets on his screen as he talks to Laserbeak? Considering how often Laserbeak himself is dispatched for the purpose of obtaining video footage, this would be ludicrous.
** Megatron seems to have filled the whole valley with [[The Master Builders|cameras in rocks]]. He's able to keep constant tabs on the battle from a variety of viewpoints, including one head-on shot of the Autobots that travels with them as they run! There's no indication that these are the viewpoints of his troops (one comes right from just a foot or two above ground level.)

* When the Prime clone is first shown, it is several heads taller than Megatron. They should be the same height.

* Megatron has blue eyes as he tests out his voice control of the clone.

* The clone's eyes are white instead of blue when Ironhide stops the Autobots from destroying Prime.

*Bumblebee's arm briefly changes to gray when he asks Teletraan I who the real Optimus Prime is.

* Teletraan I's initial statement ("Detail comparison forthcoming") is strangely muffled, as if coming over an AM radio broadcast.

* Wheeljack's ears don't flash as he says "take your positions".

* After the clone announces that they'll spring any traps that need to be sprung, the real Prime's mouthplate disappears.

* Starscream's arm lasers disappear and reappear as he agrees with Megatron's plan to have the clone destroy a Decepticon.

* Starscream sports a red Decepticon [[insignia]] when he objects to Megatron's plan.

[[Image:Starscream clone G1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|So often, in fact, you'd be hard-pressed to get a screencap that didn't show it that way.]]
* Starscream's chest-cockpit is repeatedly colored entirely yellow, missing the bit of gray that it's supposed to have near the bottom. In fact, through the course of the episode, it's colored wrong more frequently than right.

* As he and Spike climb the mountain and spot Laserbeak, Windcharger is sporting a red Decepticon insignia.

* Starscream's eyes turn blue when he dodges Laserbeak's first attack.

* Windcharger's head is a darker gray than his body when he ducks to avoid Laserbeak outside the mountain, and again when Ratchet identifies the fake Prime.

* Laserbeak makes no transformation sound as he returns to Soundwave's chest compartment.

* When Starscream's clone takes a few steps out of the clone synthesizer, his headgear is colored blatantly white.

* Laserbeak is magically ejected from Soundwave's chest when he starts to chase Windcharger and Spike.

* The animators seem to have forgotten that the [[incredibly tall rocket]] is a ship / base. Soundwave is seen entering the control room through a rocky tunnel.

* The clone Prime, after ordering Jazz to "hit the deck", just stands there for a remarkably long time doing nothing.

* Megatron's gun barrel is dark gray as he orders Starscream to say his line.

* After the fake Starscream is destroyed by the fake Optimus, Starscream is seen standing next to the other Decepticons (it's not even a coloring error as Thundercracker and Skywarp are both standing next to him).

* In a hilariously placed dialogue flub, Optimus calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer", just as he's trying to convince the Autobots that he's the real Prime.

* A moment later, as Megatron tosses Spike out of the ship, Peter Cullen's delivery of Prime's line makes it sound like Prime is calling Spike "Splick."

* Powerglide catches Spike by swooping beneath him a second before Spike hits the rocks. But slamming into a metal airplane really wouldn't be much better for a human than slamming into the rocky ground.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Primeproblem prime and clone.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I'm the real Optimus Prime, Stick." "It's ''Spike'', Prime. Now if only we could devise a way to figure out who's the real you!"]]
[[Image:IncrediblyTallRocket1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Decepticons already blew through all their camouflage budget.]]
[[Image:PrimeProblem Corlonium crystals.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Even more powerful than the Earth's molten core? The ruby crystals of Burma? Oil? Explosive meteorites? Volcanoes?]]
* The basic premise of the episode—that nobody can tell which Optimus Prime is real—requires all the Autobots (and Spike) to be ''incredibly'' stupid. Nobody thought to take the two Primes into separate rooms and grill them about things only the real Prime would know? Not even ''Prime himself'' thinks to suggest this? Even after Windcharger and Spike observe that something's very wrong with Prime, nobody puts two and two together when the real Prime shows up? The fake Prime's bloodthirsty response doesn't make it flagrantly obvious who's the fake? Nobody thinks to mark one of the Primes to tell them apart? Races and sharpshooting contests are supposed to prove who's who? Nobody gets suspicious at how easily Starscream is utterly annihilated?
** On the other hand, the ''real'' Optimus Prime calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer" and Spike "Splick," so maybe we should cut the Autobots a little slack.

* Megatron makes it even easier for the Autobots; he calls Ironhide "Bumblebee", despite being able to identify Ironhide by name in "[[The Autobot Run]]", and flagrantly sets himself for discovery by mucking around with Teletraan I, asking ridiculously leading questions of the Autobots, and responding to the real Prime's appearance with an uncharacteristic "KILL IT NOW" reaction.

* Furthermore, why didn't Megatron just have Laserbeak kill, capture or disable Optimus Prime while he was down, thus avoiding all the "two Optimus Primes" trouble in the first place??

* Heck, if it's so easy to make perfect reproductions of the strongest Autobot, why not just make a ton of them and overwhelm the Autobots? Why not just make a ton of ''Megatron'' clones and overwhelm the Autobots?

* Megatron describes the crystals as "the most rare and dangerous form of raw energy in this [[solar system]]". More dangerous and rare than [[electro-cell]]s, [[Crystal of Power|Crystals of Power]], the [[Energy crystal|crystals]] on [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], the [[Sun]], etc.? Really?

*It doesn't make much sense that Megatron knows about the korlonium crystals and Starscream doesn't, considering it's established that Starscream is a ''scientist'' and has visited the [[Solar System]] before.

* Though the [[incredibly tall rocket|temporary base]] is mostly camouflaged as a mountain peak, there are some mechanical bits at its base that remain undisguised. Luckily for Megatron, nobody seems to notice.

* "It is Optimus Prime!" declares a shocked Soundwave as the clone is revealed. Was he just not paying attention to what Megatron was doing for the last few minutes, up to and including his saying "Now to begin the '''''cloning''''' process!"?

* As Megatron feeds lines to the newly-created clone, the clone's vocal inflections don't really match those of Megatron.

* Megatron should be saying everything that the clone says on-screen, but is silent as the clone first meets up with Jazz and Trailbreaker.

* The cloning machine also somehow manages to clone Prime's trailer even though Prime was scanned in his robot mode.

* After the Decepticons retreat, why does the Prime clone lead the Autobots back to [[Ark (G1)|headquarters]], instead of investigating the energy source that drew them there in the first place?

[[Image:PrimeProblem Jazz is in the way.jpg|200px|thumb|right|"Y'know, I'd trust you more if you'd stop pointing your gun at me for no reason."]]
* Only Jazz and Trailbreaker are seen withdrawing alongside the Prime clone, even though half a dozen Autobots are present at the battle.

* It's only an error retroactively, but when both Primes get X-rayed, neither one possesses the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in his chest cavity. In fact their chest interior design is completely different than the design from [[The Transformers: The Movie|the movie]].

* If the clone is completely remote controlled, then what is clone Optimus Prime doing while Megatron is not wearing his control helmet? (seen several times, such as the beginning of the second battle and when Megatron gloats to Spike.)

* The clone's order for Jazz to "hit the deck" is completely useless; Jazz wasn't even remotely in Prime's way. (After this moment of tactical idiocy, Megatron takes a moment to gloat about his "brilliant scenario of Autobot destruction". We dare say this is ''ironic!'')

* Powerglide and Warpath both just show up out of nowhere during the final battle.

===Other notes===
[[Image:Autoscout2.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Totally toy-makable. Hasbro, we're waiting!]]
[[Image:G1 APrimeProblem Warpath shot.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"Hound, do we know that guy?" "Huh? There was a guy?"]]
* This episode features the only appearance of the [[Autoscout]], a cassette drone launched by Soundwave.

* The episode goes an unusually long time before featuring its first [[scene transition]], which finally comes around the six minute mark.

* This episode has the first appearances of [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] and [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]]. However, no explanation of their origins is made, which is made all the more irksome by the fact that this episode was written by the show's own dang story editors. Warpath gets no lines at all.

* Man, Starscream sure is eager to throw away the life of one of his fellow Decepticons, huh? He suggests it be "a trusted officer", which pretty much narrows the selection down to Soundwave (or mayyyybe Reflector). Make of that what you will!

* Laserbeak is pretty hardcore. Optimus is easily able to overpower Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp with his bare hands, yet a few blasts from Laserbeak take him down. Laserbeak also manages to open a pretty nice can of whoop-ass on Starscream when Starscream tries to run away; then he captures Spike and causes Windcharger to fall to his near-death.

* Based on the absurdity of this episode, "WE MUST HAVE A RACE" has become a popular fandom meme any time two things might be remotely confused with one another.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 1999 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Volume 1: Prime Threat ([[The Original Transformers|Kid Rhino]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/a_prime_problem.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Problem}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

A Prime Problem

2012-04-29T21:20:47Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=27
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=22
|prev2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|next2=City of Steel
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=31
|prev3=Enter the Nightbird
|next3=The Insecticon Syndrome
|image=Primedeux.jpg
|caption=Double your pleasure...
|title="A Prime Problem"
|production code=#700-26
|airdate=[[October 2]], 1985
|written by=[[Dick Robbins]] [[Bryce Malek]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Unknown Filipino animation studio]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Megatron creates a clone of Optimus Prime to lure the Autobots to their doom.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 二人のコンボイ (''Futari no Convoy'', "Two Convoys")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Un problema per Commander''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Un problema per Optimus Prime''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:PrimeProblem Decepticons at crevasse.jpg|left|200px|thumb|All right, who wants to dive first?]]

The Decepticons discover a crevasse in the [[Earth]] from which is emanating strange energy readings. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] stops [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] from diving straight in, and orders [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] to send in an [[autoscout]]. They quickly determine that the crevasse is full of dangerous [[korlonium crystal]]s, which destroy anything with electronic [[circuits|circuitry]] on contact, and decide to try to trick the [[Autobot]]s into entering the crevasse. To that end they retire to their nearby [[Incredibly tall rocket|temporary operations base]].

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the Autobots show up at the scene shortly, but before they can learn more about the lights, they are attacked by a Decepticon squad led by Starscream. Megatron dispatches [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who knocks Prime over a cliff with a few well-aimed shots and puts him out of commission. The Decepticon then beams holographic pictures of the Autobot leader back to Megatron, who uses them to create a [[Optimus Prime clone|remote-controlled clone]] out of a [[clone synthesizer]].

[[Image:PrimeProblem Megatron prime splitscreen.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Speed, I will not let you race in this race!]]

While the real Optimus is still clambering out of the pit he fell into, the clone leads the Autobots back to base. There are some awkward moments when the clone addresses [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] as "[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]]", fails to work [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]], and doesn't even remember giving Teletraan I a check up earlier that day, but the Autobots are distracted by the perimeter alarm sounding — the real Optimus Prime has arrived back at base. Under the clone's leadership, the Autobots prepare to shoot the real Prime as an impostor, but Ironhide stops them, announcing that no one's shooting anyone until they determine who's really Optimus Prime.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Twin primes rev up.jpg|left|200px|thumb|THIS is how you REALLY blow off steam!]]

Teletraan I scans both Primes, but is unable to determine which of them is fake. The clone excels at sharp-shooting, and when it's the real Prime's turn, the rocky outcrop they're using as a target falls on him. Fortunately Optimus shrugs the rubble off. A race to the end of the flats and back is even less conclusive. Any further tests are interrupted by Teletraan I reporting an increase in activity from the crevasse — in reality the work of Megatron's [[energy amplifier]]s. Ironhide announces he's taking command while Optimus Prime's identity is uncertain and the Autobots set out for the crevasse.

Naturally, they soon run into a Decepticon ambush. From the Decepticon base, Megatron and Starscream watch the fight. Megatron has decided that to win the Autobots' trust completely, the false Prime will have to destroy a Decepticon. Furthermore he's picked Starscream to take the fall. Starscream isn't too enthusiastic about this plan, and makes a run for it. He's seen leaving the base by [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], who then watch Laserbeak drag the protesting Decepticon back to base, enabling the pair to slip in unnoticed. Megatron explains the part of his plan that he neglected to mention earlier: that the Prime clone will only be destroying a clone of Starscream. Windcharger and Spike watch the production of Starscream's clone, and start back to warn the Autobots, but are spotted — Spike is captured by Laserbeak while Windcharger falls into the crevasse.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Windcharger scrap.jpg|right|200px|thumb|No bacon on the salad!]]
Out on the battlefield, both Autobots and Decepticons alike are surprised when the [[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] joins in and immediately challenges one of the Optimus Primes to a duel to the death. The Decepticon at first gets the upper hand, but is blown apart when he stops to gloat. The rest of the Decepticons flee. Now convinced that the clone is the real thing after the battle, the Autobots follow the clone to the crevasse, ignoring the warnings from the real Optimus. But before they are led to their doom, Windcharger pulls up from the crevasse and reveals the truth, letting them know that the Decepticons have Spike captive.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Prime pats Spike.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Prime rubs Spike's head for good luck.]]

The clone says to disregard Windcharger's report and Spike's plight, and orders the Autobots forward into the crevasse. Ironhide declares the clone to be the fake, because the real Prime would save Spike. The Autobots shoot the fake Optimus into oblivion and follow Prime on a rescue mission. The Decepticon rocket base quickly launches, dropping Spike in mid-air, but fortunately [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is able to execute a mid-air rescue. Optimus assures Spike that he's the real thing, and pets the boy like a puppy.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (5)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (7)
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (8)
*[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (9)
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] (10)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (18)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (19)
*[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (20)
*[[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (21)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (22)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (23)
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (24)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (25)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (26)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (27)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (28)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (30)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (31)
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (32)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (33)
|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (1)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Autoscout]] (4)
*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (12)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (13)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (14)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (15)
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (16)
*[[Optimus Prime clone]] (17)
*[[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] (29)
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (11)
}}

==Quotes==
"It's just such ignorance which forever relegates you to the ranks of underlings, Starscream!"
:—'''Megatron'''

"All the danger you can handle is already here, Floptimus Prime!"
:—'''Starscream''' comes up with a clever insult.

"I'm sorry there are only three of you. Clobbering less than four Decepticons at a time is boring."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

''"Laserbeak... you tin-foil turkey!"''
:—'''Optimus Prime''' dishes out the trash talk like a pro.

'''Optimus Prime clone''': Bumblebee, come over here. The computer's not responding to my input.... Bumblebee, I'm speaking to you. 
'''Ironhide''': You talking to me? 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': Of course. 
'''Ironhide''': But I'm not Bumblebee, I'm Ironhide, Prime. 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': I meant Ironhide, naturally.
:—The fake Optimus Prime totally flubs Ironhide's name, even though Ironhide's the only other one there, and the Southern-fried lug still doesn't get it...

"I don't mind hitting the dirt, but I don't enjoy eating it!"
:—'''Gears'''

"No, DO NOT! ARGH, my magnificent creation, vaporized! With Prime's replica destroyed, we must escape, now!"
:—'''Megatron''', not being at all melodramatic.

"Is it really you, Optimus Prime? I mean ''really?''" 
"Yes, Spike. This time I am definitely me. Or I. Myself. Oh, whoever I am. Put 'er there, partner."
:—A cautious but hopeful '''Spike''' questions '''Optimus Prime''', who doesn't do the best job of keeping a sentence together.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* The entire episode has strangely desaturated colors, even the indoor scenes. The outdoor scenes are mostly washed with a dusk-like yellow and blue, even away from the strange light of the crystals.
* When Megatron grabs Starscream, his insignia is gray, he's missing the black "eye liner" above his optics and his dark gray helemet details are colored light gray.
* Soundwave's optics turn white a couple of times, first when ejecting the autoscout, and then when ejecting Laserbeak for the first time.

* A strange animation shortcut has Optimus pick up Thundercracker to throw him. The camera angle changes, and suddenly it's Starscream that he's throwing. The next shot shows all three Seekers lying defeated, so it may or may not be an actual error. (The same color/character changing trick is used in "[[The Ultimate Doom, Part 1]]".)

* When Megatron orders him to eject Laserbeak, Soundwave's chest is blue instead of light gray. (The subsequent animation of Soundwave turning and ejecting the cassettebot is recycled from the episode's opening scene, and recycled again when Soundwave sends Laserbeak to retrieve Starscream.)

* Improbable viewpoints:
** Does Megatron have a camera that flies alongside Laserbeak to take a video of him? How else to account for the third-person camera angle that he gets on his screen as he talks to Laserbeak? Considering how often Laserbeak himself is dispatched for the purpose of obtaining video footage, this would be ludicrous.
** Megatron seems to have filled the whole valley with [[The Master Builders|cameras in rocks]]. He's able to keep constant tabs on the battle from a variety of viewpoints, including one head-on shot of the Autobots that travels with them as they run! There's no indication that these are the viewpoints of his troops (one comes right from just a foot or two above ground level.)

* When the Prime clone is first shown, it is several heads taller than Megatron. They should be the same height.

* Megatron has blue eyes as he tests out his voice control of the clone.

* The clone's eyes are white instead of blue when Ironhide stops the Autobots from destroying Prime.

*Bumblebee's arm briefly changes to gray when he asks Teletraan I who the real Optimus Prime is.

* Teletraan I's initial statement ("Detail comparison forthcoming") is strangely muffled, as if coming over an AM radio broadcast.

* Wheeljack's ears don't flash as he says "take your positions".

* After the clone announces that they'll spring any traps that need to be sprung, the real Prime's mouthplate disappears.

* Starscream's arm lasers disappear and reappear as he agrees with Megatron's plan to have the clone destroy a Decepticon.

* Starscream sports a red Decepticon [[insignia]] when he objects to Megatron's plan.

[[Image:Starscream clone G1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|So often, in fact, you'd be hard-pressed to get a screencap that didn't show it that way.]]
* Starscream's chest-cockpit is repeatedly colored entirely yellow, missing the bit of gray that it's supposed to have near the bottom. In fact, through the course of the episode, it's colored wrong more frequently than right.

* As he and Spike climb the mountain and spot Laserbeak, Windcharger is sporting a red Decepticon insignia.

* Starscream's eyes turn blue when he dodges Laserbeak's first attack.

* Windcharger's head is a darker gray than his body when he ducks to avoid Laserbeak outside the mountain, and again when Ratchet identifies the fake Prime.

* Laserbeak makes no transformation sound as he returns to Soundwave's chest compartment.

* When Starscream's clone takes a few steps out of the clone synthesizer, his headgear is colored blatantly white.

* The animators seem to have forgotten that the [[incredibly tall rocket]] is a ship / base. Soundwave is seen entering the control room through a rocky tunnel.

* The clone Prime, after ordering Jazz to "hit the deck", just stands there for a remarkably long time doing nothing.

* Megatron's gun barrel is dark gray as he orders Starscream to say his line.

* After the fake Starscream is destroyed by the fake Optimus, Starscream is seen standing next to the other Decepticons (it's not even a coloring error as Thundercracker and Skywarp are both standing next to him).

* In a hilariously placed dialogue flub, Optimus calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer", just as he's trying to convince the Autobots that he's the real Prime.

* A moment later, as Megatron tosses Spike out of the ship, Peter Cullen's delivery of Prime's line makes it sound like Prime is calling Spike "Splick."

* Powerglide catches Spike by swooping beneath him a second before Spike hits the rocks. But slamming into a metal airplane really wouldn't be much better for a human than slamming into the rocky ground.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Primeproblem prime and clone.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I'm the real Optimus Prime, Stick." "It's ''Spike'', Prime. Now if only we could devise a way to figure out who's the real you!"]]
[[Image:IncrediblyTallRocket1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Decepticons already blew through all their camouflage budget.]]
[[Image:PrimeProblem Corlonium crystals.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Even more powerful than the Earth's molten core? The ruby crystals of Burma? Oil? Explosive meteorites? Volcanoes?]]
* The basic premise of the episode—that nobody can tell which Optimus Prime is real—requires all the Autobots (and Spike) to be ''incredibly'' stupid. Nobody thought to take the two Primes into separate rooms and grill them about things only the real Prime would know? Not even ''Prime himself'' thinks to suggest this? Even after Windcharger and Spike observe that something's very wrong with Prime, nobody puts two and two together when the real Prime shows up? The fake Prime's bloodthirsty response doesn't make it flagrantly obvious who's the fake? Nobody thinks to mark one of the Primes to tell them apart? Races and sharpshooting contests are supposed to prove who's who? Nobody gets suspicious at how easily Starscream is utterly annihilated?
** On the other hand, the ''real'' Optimus Prime calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer" and Spike "Splick," so maybe we should cut the Autobots a little slack.

* Megatron makes it even easier for the Autobots; he calls Ironhide "Bumblebee", despite being able to identify Ironhide by name in "[[The Autobot Run]]", and flagrantly sets himself for discovery by mucking around with Teletraan I, asking ridiculously leading questions of the Autobots, and responding to the real Prime's appearance with an uncharacteristic "KILL IT NOW" reaction.

* Furthermore, why didn't Megatron just have Laserbeak kill, capture or disable Optimus Prime while he was down, thus avoiding all the "two Optimus Primes" trouble in the first place??

* Heck, if it's so easy to make perfect reproductions of the strongest Autobot, why not just make a ton of them and overwhelm the Autobots? Why not just make a ton of ''Megatron'' clones and overwhelm the Autobots?

* Megatron describes the crystals as "the most rare and dangerous form of raw energy in this [[solar system]]". More dangerous and rare than [[electro-cell]]s, [[Crystal of Power|Crystals of Power]], the [[Energy crystal|crystals]] on [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], the [[Sun]], etc.? Really?

*It doesn't make much sense that Megatron knows about the korlonium crystals and Starscream doesn't, considering it's established that Starscream is a ''scientist'' and has visited the [[Solar System]] before.

* Though the [[incredibly tall rocket|temporary base]] is mostly camouflaged as a mountain peak, there are some mechanical bits at its base that remain undisguised. Luckily for Megatron, nobody seems to notice.

* "It is Optimus Prime!" declares a shocked Soundwave as the clone is revealed. Was he just not paying attention to what Megatron was doing for the last few minutes, up to and including his saying "Now to begin the '''''cloning''''' process!"?

* As Megatron feeds lines to the newly-created clone, the clone's vocal inflections don't really match those of Megatron.

* Megatron should be saying everything that the clone says on-screen, but is silent as the clone first meets up with Jazz and Trailbreaker.

* The cloning machine also somehow manages to clone Prime's trailer even though Prime was scanned in his robot mode.

* After the Decepticons retreat, why does the Prime clone lead the Autobots back to [[Ark (G1)|headquarters]], instead of investigating the energy source that drew them there in the first place?

[[Image:PrimeProblem Jazz is in the way.jpg|200px|thumb|right|"Y'know, I'd trust you more if you'd stop pointing your gun at me for no reason."]]
* Only Jazz and Trailbreaker are seen withdrawing alongside the Prime clone, even though half a dozen Autobots are present at the battle.

* It's only an error retroactively, but when both Primes get X-rayed, neither one possesses the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in his chest cavity. In fact their chest interior design is completely different than the design from [[The Transformers: The Movie|the movie]].

* If the clone is completely remote controlled, then what is clone Optimus Prime doing while Megatron is not wearing his control helmet? (seen several times, such as the beginning of the second battle and when Megatron gloats to Spike.)

* The clone's order for Jazz to "hit the deck" is completely useless; Jazz wasn't even remotely in Prime's way. (After this moment of tactical idiocy, Megatron takes a moment to gloat about his "brilliant scenario of Autobot destruction". We dare say this is ''ironic!'')

* Powerglide and Warpath both just show up out of nowhere during the final battle.

===Other notes===
[[Image:Autoscout2.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Totally toy-makable. Hasbro, we're waiting!]]
[[Image:G1 APrimeProblem Warpath shot.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"Hound, do we know that guy?" "Huh? There was a guy?"]]
* This episode features the only appearance of the [[Autoscout]], a cassette drone launched by Soundwave.

* The episode goes an unusually long time before featuring its first [[scene transition]], which finally comes around the six minute mark.

* This episode has the first appearances of [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] and [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]]. However, no explanation of their origins is made, which is made all the more irksome by the fact that this episode was written by the show's own dang story editors. Warpath gets no lines at all.

* Man, Starscream sure is eager to throw away the life of one of his fellow Decepticons, huh? He suggests it be "a trusted officer", which pretty much narrows the selection down to Soundwave (or mayyyybe Reflector). Make of that what you will!

* Laserbeak is pretty hardcore. Optimus is easily able to overpower Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp with his bare hands, yet a few blasts from Laserbeak take him down. Laserbeak also manages to open a pretty nice can of whoop-ass on Starscream when Starscream tries to run away; then he captures Spike and causes Windcharger to fall to his near-death.

* Based on the absurdity of this episode, "WE MUST HAVE A RACE" has become a popular fandom meme any time two things might be remotely confused with one another.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 1999 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Volume 1: Prime Threat ([[The Original Transformers|Kid Rhino]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/a_prime_problem.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Problem}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

A Prime Problem

2012-04-29T21:19:02Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=27
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=22
|prev2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|next2=City of Steel
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=31
|prev3=Enter the Nightbird
|next3=The Insecticon Syndrome
|image=Primedeux.jpg
|caption=Double your pleasure...
|title="A Prime Problem"
|production code=#700-26
|airdate=[[October 2]], 1985
|written by=[[Dick Robbins]] [[Bryce Malek]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Unknown Filipino animation studio]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Megatron creates a clone of Optimus Prime to lure the Autobots to their doom.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 二人のコンボイ (''Futari no Convoy'', "Two Convoys")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Un problema per Commander''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Un problema per Optimus Prime''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:PrimeProblem Decepticons at crevasse.jpg|left|200px|thumb|All right, who wants to dive first?]]

The Decepticons discover a crevasse in the [[Earth]] from which is emanating strange energy readings. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] stops [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] from diving straight in, and orders [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] to send in an [[autoscout]]. They quickly determine that the crevasse is full of dangerous [[korlonium crystal]]s, which destroy anything with electronic [[circuits|circuitry]] on contact, and decide to try to trick the [[Autobot]]s into entering the crevasse. To that end they retire to their nearby [[Incredibly tall rocket|temporary operations base]].

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the Autobots show up at the scene shortly, but before they can learn more about the lights, they are attacked by a Decepticon squad led by Starscream. Megatron dispatches [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who knocks Prime over a cliff with a few well-aimed shots and puts him out of commission. The Decepticon then beams holographic pictures of the Autobot leader back to Megatron, who uses them to create a [[Optimus Prime clone|remote-controlled clone]] out of a [[clone synthesizer]].

[[Image:PrimeProblem Megatron prime splitscreen.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Speed, I will not let you race in this race!]]

While the real Optimus is still clambering out of the pit he fell into, the clone leads the Autobots back to base. There are some awkward moments when the clone addresses [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] as "[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]]", fails to work [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]], and doesn't even remember giving Teletraan I a check up earlier that day, but the Autobots are distracted by the perimeter alarm sounding — the real Optimus Prime has arrived back at base. Under the clone's leadership, the Autobots prepare to shoot the real Prime as an impostor, but Ironhide stops them, announcing that no one's shooting anyone until they determine who's really Optimus Prime.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Twin primes rev up.jpg|left|200px|thumb|THIS is how you REALLY blow off steam!]]

Teletraan I scans both Primes, but is unable to determine which of them is fake. The clone excels at sharp-shooting, and when it's the real Prime's turn, the rocky outcrop they're using as a target falls on him. Fortunately Optimus shrugs the rubble off. A race to the end of the flats and back is even less conclusive. Any further tests are interrupted by Teletraan I reporting an increase in activity from the crevasse — in reality the work of Megatron's [[energy amplifier]]s. Ironhide announces he's taking command while Optimus Prime's identity is uncertain and the Autobots set out for the crevasse.

Naturally, they soon run into a Decepticon ambush. From the Decepticon base, Megatron and Starscream watch the fight. Megatron has decided that to win the Autobots' trust completely, the false Prime will have to destroy a Decepticon. Furthermore he's picked Starscream to take the fall. Starscream isn't too enthusiastic about this plan, and makes a run for it. He's seen leaving the base by [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], who then watch Laserbeak drag the protesting Decepticon back to base, enabling the pair to slip in unnoticed. Megatron explains the part of his plan that he neglected to mention earlier: that the Prime clone will only be destroying a clone of Starscream. Windcharger and Spike watch the production of Starscream's clone, and start back to warn the Autobots, but are spotted — Spike is captured by Laserbeak while Windcharger falls into the crevasse.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Windcharger scrap.jpg|right|200px|thumb|No bacon on the salad!]]
Out on the battlefield, both Autobots and Decepticons alike are surprised when the [[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] joins in and immediately challenges one of the Optimus Primes to a duel to the death. The Decepticon at first gets the upper hand, but is blown apart when he stops to gloat. The rest of the Decepticons flee. Now convinced that the clone is the real thing after the battle, the Autobots follow the clone to the crevasse, ignoring the warnings from the real Optimus. But before they are led to their doom, Windcharger pulls up from the crevasse and reveals the truth, letting them know that the Decepticons have Spike captive.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Prime pats Spike.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Prime rubs Spike's head for good luck.]]

The clone says to disregard Windcharger's report and Spike's plight, and orders the Autobots forward into the crevasse. Ironhide declares the clone to be the fake, because the real Prime would save Spike. The Autobots shoot the fake Optimus into oblivion and follow Prime on a rescue mission. The Decepticon rocket base quickly launches, dropping Spike in mid-air, but fortunately [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is able to execute a mid-air rescue. Optimus assures Spike that he's the real thing, and pets the boy like a puppy.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (5)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (7)
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (8)
*[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (9)
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] (10)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (18)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (19)
*[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (20)
*[[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (21)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (22)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (23)
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (24)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (25)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (26)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (27)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (28)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (30)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (31)
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (32)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (33)
|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (1)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Autoscout]] (4)
*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (12)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (13)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (14)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (15)
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (16)
*[[Optimus Prime clone]] (17)
*[[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] (29)
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (11)
}}

==Quotes==
"It's just such ignorance which forever relegates you to the ranks of underlings, Starscream!"
:—'''Megatron'''

"All the danger you can handle is already here, Floptimus Prime!"
:—'''Starscream''' comes up with a clever insult.

"I'm sorry there are only three of you. Clobbering less than four Decepticons at a time is boring."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

''"Laserbeak... you tin-foil turkey!"''
:—'''Optimus Prime''' dishes out the trash talk like a pro.

'''Optimus Prime clone''': Bumblebee, come over here. The computer's not responding to my input.... Bumblebee, I'm speaking to you. 
'''Ironhide''': You talking to me? 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': Of course. 
'''Ironhide''': But I'm not Bumblebee, I'm Ironhide, Prime. 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': I meant Ironhide, naturally.
:—The fake Optimus Prime totally flubs Ironhide's name, even though Ironhide's the only other one there, and the Southern-fried lug still doesn't get it...

"I don't mind hitting the dirt, but I don't enjoy eating it!"
:—'''Gears'''

"No, DO NOT! ARGH, my magnificent creation, vaporized! With Prime's replica destroyed, we must escape, now!"
:—'''Megatron''', not being at all melodramatic.

"Is it really you, Optimus Prime? I mean ''really?''" 
"Yes, Spike. This time I am definitely me. Or I. Myself. Oh, whoever I am. Put 'er there, partner."
:—A cautious but hopeful '''Spike''' questions '''Optimus Prime''', who doesn't do the best job of keeping a sentence together.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* The entire episode has strangely desaturated colors, even the indoor scenes. The outdoor scenes are mostly washed with a dusk-like yellow and blue, even away from the strange light of the crystals.
* When Megatron grabs Starscream, his insignia is gray, he's missing the black "eye liner" above his optics and his dark gray helemet details are colored light gray.
* Soundwave's optics turn white a couple of times, first when ejecting the autoscout, and then when ejecting Laserbeak for the first time.

* A strange animation shortcut has Optimus pick up Thundercracker to throw him. The camera angle changes, and suddenly it's Starscream that he's throwing. The next shot shows all three Seekers lying defeated, so it may or may not be an actual error. (The same color/character changing trick is used in "[[The Ultimate Doom, Part 1]]".)

* When Megatron orders him to eject Laserbeak, Soundwave's chest is blue instead of light gray. (The subsequent animation of Soundwave turning and ejecting the cassettebot is recycled from the episode's opening scene, and recycled again when Soundwave sends Laserbeak to retrieve Starscream.)

* Improbable viewpoints:
** Does Megatron have a camera that flies alongside Laserbeak to take a video of him? How else to account for the third-person camera angle that he gets on his screen as he talks to Laserbeak? Considering how often Laserbeak himself is dispatched for the purpose of obtaining video footage, this would be ludicrous.
** Megatron seems to have filled the whole valley with [[The Master Builders|cameras in rocks]]. He's able to keep constant tabs on the battle from a variety of viewpoints, including one head-on shot of the Autobots that travels with them as they run! There's no indication that these are the viewpoints of his troops (one comes right from just a foot or two above ground level.)

* When the Prime clone is first shown, it is several heads taller than Megatron. They should be the same height.

* Megatron has blue eyes as he tests out his voice control of the clone.

* The clone's eyes are white instead of blue when Ironhide stops the Autobots from destroying Prime.

*Bumblebee's arm briefly changes to gray when he asks Teletraan I who the real Optimus Prime is.

* Teletraan I's initial statement ("Detail comparison forthcoming") is strangely muffled, as if coming over an AM radio broadcast.

* Wheeljack's ears don't flash as he says "take your positions".

* Spike says "Gee, even their transforms are the same" after Cliffjumper proposes a race and tells them to transform. The correct term should be transformations.

* After the clone announces that they'll spring any traps that need to be sprung, the real Prime's mouthplate disappears.

* Starscream's arm lasers disappear and reappear as he agrees with Megatron's plan to have the clone destroy a Decepticon.

* Starscream sports a red Decepticon [[insignia]] when he objects to Megatron's plan.

[[Image:Starscream clone G1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|So often, in fact, you'd be hard-pressed to get a screencap that didn't show it that way.]]
* Starscream's chest-cockpit is repeatedly colored entirely yellow, missing the bit of gray that it's supposed to have near the bottom. In fact, through the course of the episode, it's colored wrong more frequently than right.

* As he and Spike climb the mountain and spot Laserbeak, Windcharger is sporting a red Decepticon insignia.

* Starscream's eyes turn blue when he dodges Laserbeak's first attack.

* How does Starscream get rapid-fire Null Rays when he's fighting Laserbeak?

* Windcharger's head is a darker gray than his body when he ducks to avoid Laserbeak outside the mountain, and again when Ratchet identifies the fake Prime.

* Laserbeak makes no transformation sound as he returns to Soundwave's chest compartment.

* The animators seem to have forgotten that the [[incredibly tall rocket]] is a ship / base. Soundwave is seen entering the control room through a rocky tunnel.

* The clone Prime, after ordering Jazz to "hit the deck", just stands there for a remarkably long time doing nothing.

* Megatron's gun barrel is dark gray as he orders Starscream to say his line.

* After the fake Starscream is destroyed by the fake Optimus, Starscream is seen standing next to the other Decepticons (it's not even a coloring error as Thundercracker and Skywarp are both standing next to him).

* In a hilariously placed dialogue flub, Optimus calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer", just as he's trying to convince the Autobots that he's the real Prime.

* A moment later, as Megatron tosses Spike out of the ship, Peter Cullen's delivery of Prime's line makes it sound like Prime is calling Spike "Splick."

* Powerglide catches Spike by swooping beneath him a second before Spike hits the rocks. But slamming into a metal airplane really wouldn't be much better for a human than slamming into the rocky ground.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Primeproblem prime and clone.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I'm the real Optimus Prime, Stick." "It's ''Spike'', Prime. Now if only we could devise a way to figure out who's the real you!"]]
[[Image:IncrediblyTallRocket1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Decepticons already blew through all their camouflage budget.]]
[[Image:PrimeProblem Corlonium crystals.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Even more powerful than the Earth's molten core? The ruby crystals of Burma? Oil? Explosive meteorites? Volcanoes?]]
* The basic premise of the episode—that nobody can tell which Optimus Prime is real—requires all the Autobots (and Spike) to be ''incredibly'' stupid. Nobody thought to take the two Primes into separate rooms and grill them about things only the real Prime would know? Not even ''Prime himself'' thinks to suggest this? Even after Windcharger and Spike observe that something's very wrong with Prime, nobody puts two and two together when the real Prime shows up? The fake Prime's bloodthirsty response doesn't make it flagrantly obvious who's the fake? Nobody thinks to mark one of the Primes to tell them apart? Races and sharpshooting contests are supposed to prove who's who? Nobody gets suspicious at how easily Starscream is utterly annihilated?
** On the other hand, the ''real'' Optimus Prime calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer" and Spike "Splick," so maybe we should cut the Autobots a little slack.

* Megatron makes it even easier for the Autobots; he calls Ironhide "Bumblebee", despite being able to identify Ironhide by name in "[[The Autobot Run]]", and flagrantly sets himself for discovery by mucking around with Teletraan I, asking ridiculously leading questions of the Autobots, and responding to the real Prime's appearance with an uncharacteristic "KILL IT NOW" reaction.

* Furthermore, why didn't Megatron just have Laserbeak kill, capture or disable Optimus Prime while he was down, thus avoiding all the "two Optimus Primes" trouble in the first place??

* Heck, if it's so easy to make perfect reproductions of the strongest Autobot, why not just make a ton of them and overwhelm the Autobots? Why not just make a ton of ''Megatron'' clones and overwhelm the Autobots?

* Megatron describes the crystals as "the most rare and dangerous form of raw energy in this [[solar system]]". More dangerous and rare than [[electro-cell]]s, [[Crystal of Power|Crystals of Power]], the [[Energy crystal|crystals]] on [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], the [[Sun]], etc.? Really?

*It doesn't make much sense that Megatron knows about the korlonium crystals and Starscream doesn't, considering it's established that Starscream is a ''scientist'' and has visited the [[Solar System]] before.

* Though the [[incredibly tall rocket|temporary base]] is mostly camouflaged as a mountain peak, there are some mechanical bits at its base that remain undisguised. Luckily for Megatron, nobody seems to notice.

* "It is Optimus Prime!" declares a shocked Soundwave as the clone is revealed. Was he just not paying attention to what Megatron was doing for the last few minutes, up to and including his saying "Now to begin the '''''cloning''''' process!"?

* As Megatron feeds lines to the newly-created clone, the clone's vocal inflections don't really match those of Megatron.

* Megatron should be saying everything that the clone says on-screen, but is silent as the clone first meets up with Jazz and Trailbreaker.

* The cloning machine also somehow manages to clone Prime's trailer even though Prime was scanned in his robot mode.

* After the Decepticons retreat, why does the Prime clone lead the Autobots back to [[Ark (G1)|headquarters]], instead of investigating the energy source that drew them there in the first place?

[[Image:PrimeProblem Jazz is in the way.jpg|200px|thumb|right|"Y'know, I'd trust you more if you'd stop pointing your gun at me for no reason."]]
* Only Jazz and Trailbreaker are seen withdrawing alongside the Prime clone, even though half a dozen Autobots are present at the battle.

* It's only an error retroactively, but when both Primes get X-rayed, neither one possesses the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in his chest cavity. In fact their chest interior design is completely different than the design from [[The Transformers: The Movie|the movie]].

* If the clone is completely remote controlled, then what is clone Optimus Prime doing while Megatron is not wearing his control helmet? (seen several times, such as the beginning of the second battle and when Megatron gloats to Spike.)

* The clone's order for Jazz to "hit the deck" is completely useless; Jazz wasn't even remotely in Prime's way. (After this moment of tactical idiocy, Megatron takes a moment to gloat about his "brilliant scenario of Autobot destruction". We dare say this is ''ironic!'')

* Powerglide and Warpath both just show up out of nowhere during the final battle.

===Other notes===
[[Image:Autoscout2.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Totally toy-makable. Hasbro, we're waiting!]]
[[Image:G1 APrimeProblem Warpath shot.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"Hound, do we know that guy?" "Huh? There was a guy?"]]
* This episode features the only appearance of the [[Autoscout]], a cassette drone launched by Soundwave.

* The episode goes an unusually long time before featuring its first [[scene transition]], which finally comes around the six minute mark.

* This episode has the first appearances of [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] and [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]]. However, no explanation of their origins is made, which is made all the more irksome by the fact that this episode was written by the show's own dang story editors. Warpath gets no lines at all.

* Man, Starscream sure is eager to throw away the life of one of his fellow Decepticons, huh? He suggests it be "a trusted officer", which pretty much narrows the selection down to Soundwave (or mayyyybe Reflector). Make of that what you will!

* Laserbeak is pretty hardcore. Optimus is easily able to overpower Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp with his bare hands, yet a few blasts from Laserbeak take him down. Laserbeak also manages to open a pretty nice can of whoop-ass on Starscream when Starscream tries to run away; then he captures Spike and causes Windcharger to fall to his near-death.

* Based on the absurdity of this episode, "WE MUST HAVE A RACE" has become a popular fandom meme any time two things might be remotely confused with one another.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 1999 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Volume 1: Prime Threat ([[The Original Transformers|Kid Rhino]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/a_prime_problem.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Problem}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

A Prime Problem

2012-04-29T21:09:06Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=27
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=22
|prev2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|next2=City of Steel
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=31
|prev3=Enter the Nightbird
|next3=The Insecticon Syndrome
|image=Primedeux.jpg
|caption=Double your pleasure...
|title="A Prime Problem"
|production code=#700-26
|airdate=[[October 2]], 1985
|written by=[[Dick Robbins]] [[Bryce Malek]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Unknown Filipino animation studio]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Megatron creates a clone of Optimus Prime to lure the Autobots to their doom.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 二人のコンボイ (''Futari no Convoy'', "Two Convoys")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Un problema per Commander''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Un problema per Optimus Prime''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:PrimeProblem Decepticons at crevasse.jpg|left|200px|thumb|All right, who wants to dive first?]]

The Decepticons discover a crevasse in the [[Earth]] from which is emanating strange energy readings. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] stops [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] from diving straight in, and orders [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] to send in an [[autoscout]]. They quickly determine that the crevasse is full of dangerous [[korlonium crystal]]s, which destroy anything with electronic [[circuits|circuitry]] on contact, and decide to try to trick the [[Autobot]]s into entering the crevasse. To that end they retire to their nearby [[Incredibly tall rocket|temporary operations base]].

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the Autobots show up at the scene shortly, but before they can learn more about the lights, they are attacked by a Decepticon squad led by Starscream. Megatron dispatches [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who knocks Prime over a cliff with a few well-aimed shots and puts him out of commission. The Decepticon then beams holographic pictures of the Autobot leader back to Megatron, who uses them to create a [[Optimus Prime clone|remote-controlled clone]] out of a [[clone synthesizer]].

[[Image:PrimeProblem Megatron prime splitscreen.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Speed, I will not let you race in this race!]]

While the real Optimus is still clambering out of the pit he fell into, the clone leads the Autobots back to base. There are some awkward moments when the clone addresses [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] as "[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]]", fails to work [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]], and doesn't even remember giving Teletraan I a check up earlier that day, but the Autobots are distracted by the perimeter alarm sounding — the real Optimus Prime has arrived back at base. Under the clone's leadership, the Autobots prepare to shoot the real Prime as an impostor, but Ironhide stops them, announcing that no one's shooting anyone until they determine who's really Optimus Prime.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Twin primes rev up.jpg|left|200px|thumb|THIS is how you REALLY blow off steam!]]

Teletraan I scans both Primes, but is unable to determine which of them is fake. The clone excels at sharp-shooting, and when it's the real Prime's turn, the rocky outcrop they're using as a target falls on him. Fortunately Optimus shrugs the rubble off. A race to the end of the flats and back is even less conclusive. Any further tests are interrupted by Teletraan I reporting an increase in activity from the crevasse — in reality the work of Megatron's [[energy amplifier]]s. Ironhide announces he's taking command while Optimus Prime's identity is uncertain and the Autobots set out for the crevasse.

Naturally, they soon run into a Decepticon ambush. From the Decepticon base, Megatron and Starscream watch the fight. Megatron has decided that to win the Autobots' trust completely, the false Prime will have to destroy a Decepticon. Furthermore he's picked Starscream to take the fall. Starscream isn't too enthusiastic about this plan, and makes a run for it. He's seen leaving the base by [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], who then watch Laserbeak drag the protesting Decepticon back to base, enabling the pair to slip in unnoticed. Megatron explains the part of his plan that he neglected to mention earlier: that the Prime clone will only be destroying a clone of Starscream. Windcharger and Spike watch the production of Starscream's clone, and start back to warn the Autobots, but are spotted — Spike is captured by Laserbeak while Windcharger falls into the crevasse.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Windcharger scrap.jpg|right|200px|thumb|No bacon on the salad!]]
Out on the battlefield, both Autobots and Decepticons alike are surprised when the [[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] joins in and immediately challenges one of the Optimus Primes to a duel to the death. The Decepticon at first gets the upper hand, but is blown apart when he stops to gloat. The rest of the Decepticons flee. Now convinced that the clone is the real thing after the battle, the Autobots follow the clone to the crevasse, ignoring the warnings from the real Optimus. But before they are led to their doom, Windcharger pulls up from the crevasse and reveals the truth, letting them know that the Decepticons have Spike captive.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Prime pats Spike.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Prime rubs Spike's head for good luck.]]

The clone says to disregard Windcharger's report and Spike's plight, and orders the Autobots forward into the crevasse. Ironhide declares the clone to be the fake, because the real Prime would save Spike. The Autobots shoot the fake Optimus into oblivion and follow Prime on a rescue mission. The Decepticon rocket base quickly launches, dropping Spike in mid-air, but fortunately [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is able to execute a mid-air rescue. Optimus assures Spike that he's the real thing, and pets the boy like a puppy.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (5)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (7)
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (8)
*[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (9)
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] (10)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (18)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (19)
*[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (20)
*[[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (21)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (22)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (23)
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (24)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (25)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (26)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (27)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (28)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (30)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (31)
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (32)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (33)
|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (1)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Autoscout]] (4)
*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (12)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (13)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (14)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (15)
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (16)
*[[Optimus Prime clone]] (17)
*[[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] (29)
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (11)
}}

==Quotes==
"It's just such ignorance which forever relegates you to the ranks of underlings, Starscream!"
:—'''Megatron'''

"All the danger you can handle is already here, Floptimus Prime!"
:—'''Starscream''' comes up with a clever insult.

"I'm sorry there are only three of you. Clobbering less than four Decepticons at a time is boring."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

''"Laserbeak... you tin-foil turkey!"''
:—'''Optimus Prime''' dishes out the trash talk like a pro.

'''Optimus Prime clone''': Bumblebee, come over here. The computer's not responding to my input.... Bumblebee, I'm speaking to you. 
'''Ironhide''': You talking to me? 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': Of course. 
'''Ironhide''': But I'm not Bumblebee, I'm Ironhide, Prime. 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': I meant Ironhide, naturally.
:—The fake Optimus Prime totally flubs Ironhide's name, even though Ironhide's the only other one there, and the Southern-fried lug still doesn't get it...

"I don't mind hitting the dirt, but I don't enjoy eating it!"
:—'''Gears'''

"No, DO NOT! ARGH, my magnificent creation, vaporized! With Prime's replica destroyed, we must escape, now!"
:—'''Megatron''', not being at all melodramatic.

"Is it really you, Optimus Prime? I mean ''really?''" 
"Yes, Spike. This time I am definitely me. Or I. Myself. Oh, whoever I am. Put 'er there, partner."
:—A cautious but hopeful '''Spike''' questions '''Optimus Prime''', who doesn't do the best job of keeping a sentence together.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* The entire episode has strangely desaturated colors, even the indoor scenes. The outdoor scenes are mostly washed with a dusk-like yellow and blue, even away from the strange light of the crystals.
* When Megatron grabs Starscream, his insignia is gray, he's missing the black "eye liner" above his optics and his dark gray helemet details are colored light gray.
* Soundwave's optics turn white a couple of times, first when ejecting the autoscout, and then when ejecting Laserbeak for the first time.

* A strange animation shortcut has Optimus pick up Thundercracker to throw him. The camera angle changes, and suddenly it's Starscream that he's throwing. The next shot shows all three Seekers lying defeated, so it may or may not be an actual error. (The same color/character changing trick is used in "[[The Ultimate Doom, Part 1]]".)

* When Megatron orders him to eject Laserbeak, Soundwave's chest is blue instead of light gray. (The subsequent animation of Soundwave turning and ejecting the cassettebot is recycled from the episode's opening scene, and recycled again when Soundwave sends Laserbeak to retrieve Starscream.)

* Improbable viewpoints:
** Does Megatron have a camera that flies alongside Laserbeak to take a video of him? How else to account for the third-person camera angle that he gets on his screen as he talks to Laserbeak? Considering how often Laserbeak himself is dispatched for the purpose of obtaining video footage, this would be ludicrous.
** Megatron seems to have filled the whole valley with [[The Master Builders|cameras in rocks]]. He's able to keep constant tabs on the battle from a variety of viewpoints, including one head-on shot of the Autobots that travels with them as they run! There's no indication that these are the viewpoints of his troops (one comes right from just a foot or two above ground level.)

* When the Prime clone is first shown, it is several heads taller than Megatron. They should be the same height.

* Megatron has blue eyes as he tests out his voice control of the clone.

* The clone's eyes are white instead of blue when Ironhide stops the Autobots from destroying Prime.

*Bumblebee's arm briefly changes to gray when he asks Teletraan I who the real Optimus Prime is.

* Teletraan I's initial statement ("Detail comparison forthcoming") is strangely muffled, as if coming over an AM radio broadcast.

* Wheeljack's ears don't flash as he says "take your positions".

* Spike says "Gee, even their transforms are the same" after Cliffjumper proposes a race and tells them to transform. The correct term should be transformations.

* After the clone announces that they'll spring any traps that need to be sprung, the real Prime's mouthplate disappears.

* Starscream's arm lasers disappear and reappear as he agrees with Megatron's plan to have the clone destroy a Decepticon.

* Starscream sports a red Decepticon [[insignia]] when he objects to Megatron's plan.

[[Image:Starscream clone G1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|So often, in fact, you'd be hard-pressed to get a screencap that didn't show it that way.]]
* Starscream's chest-cockpit is repeatedly colored entirely yellow, missing the bit of gray that it's supposed to have near the bottom. In fact, through the course of the episode, it's colored wrong more frequently than right.

* As he and Spike climb the mountain and spot Laserbeak, Windcharger is sporting a red Decepticon insignia.

* Starscream's eyes turn blue when he dodges Laserbeak's first attack.

* Windcharger's head is a darker gray than his body when he ducks to avoid Laserbeak outside the mountain, and again when Ratchet identifies the fake Prime.

* Laserbeak makes no transformation sound as he returns to Soundwave's chest compartment.

* The animators seem to have forgotten that the [[incredibly tall rocket]] is a ship / base. Soundwave is seen entering the control room through a rocky tunnel.

* The clone Prime, after ordering Jazz to "hit the deck", just stands there for a remarkably long time doing nothing.

* Megatron's gun barrel is dark gray as he orders Starscream to say his line.

* After the fake Starscream is destroyed by the fake Optimus, Starscream is seen standing next to the other Decepticons (it's not even a coloring error as Thundercracker and Skywarp are both standing next to him).

* In a hilariously placed dialogue flub, Optimus calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer", just as he's trying to convince the Autobots that he's the real Prime.

* A moment later, as Megatron tosses Spike out of the ship, Peter Cullen's delivery of Prime's line makes it sound like Prime is calling Spike "Splick."

* Powerglide catches Spike by swooping beneath him a second before Spike hits the rocks. But slamming into a metal airplane really wouldn't be much better for a human than slamming into the rocky ground.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Primeproblem prime and clone.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I'm the real Optimus Prime, Stick." "It's ''Spike'', Prime. Now if only we could devise a way to figure out who's the real you!"]]
[[Image:IncrediblyTallRocket1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Decepticons already blew through all their camouflage budget.]]
[[Image:PrimeProblem Corlonium crystals.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Even more powerful than the Earth's molten core? The ruby crystals of Burma? Oil? Explosive meteorites? Volcanoes?]]
* The basic premise of the episode—that nobody can tell which Optimus Prime is real—requires all the Autobots (and Spike) to be ''incredibly'' stupid. Nobody thought to take the two Primes into separate rooms and grill them about things only the real Prime would know? Not even ''Prime himself'' thinks to suggest this? Even after Windcharger and Spike observe that something's very wrong with Prime, nobody puts two and two together when the real Prime shows up? The fake Prime's bloodthirsty response doesn't make it flagrantly obvious who's the fake? Nobody thinks to mark one of the Primes to tell them apart? Races and sharpshooting contests are supposed to prove who's who? Nobody gets suspicious at how easily Starscream is utterly annihilated?
** On the other hand, the ''real'' Optimus Prime calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer" and Spike "Splick," so maybe we should cut the Autobots a little slack.

* Megatron makes it even easier for the Autobots; he calls Ironhide "Bumblebee", despite being able to identify Ironhide by name in "[[The Autobot Run]]", and flagrantly sets himself for discovery by mucking around with Teletraan I, asking ridiculously leading questions of the Autobots, and responding to the real Prime's appearance with an uncharacteristic "KILL IT NOW" reaction.

* Furthermore, why didn't Megatron just have Laserbeak kill, capture or disable Optimus Prime while he was down, thus avoiding all the "two Optimus Primes" trouble in the first place??

* Heck, if it's so easy to make perfect reproductions of the strongest Autobot, why not just make a ton of them and overwhelm the Autobots? Why not just make a ton of ''Megatron'' clones and overwhelm the Autobots?

* Megatron describes the crystals as "the most rare and dangerous form of raw energy in this [[solar system]]". More dangerous and rare than [[electro-cell]]s, [[Crystal of Power|Crystals of Power]], the [[Energy crystal|crystals]] on [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], the [[Sun]], etc.? Really?

*It doesn't make much sense that Megatron knows about the korlonium crystals and Starscream doesn't, considering it's established that Starscream is a ''scientist'' and has visited the [[Solar System]] before.

* Though the [[incredibly tall rocket|temporary base]] is mostly camouflaged as a mountain peak, there are some mechanical bits at its base that remain undisguised. Luckily for Megatron, nobody seems to notice.

* "It is Optimus Prime!" declares a shocked Soundwave as the clone is revealed. Was he just not paying attention to what Megatron was doing for the last few minutes, up to and including his saying "Now to begin the '''''cloning''''' process!"?

* As Megatron feeds lines to the newly-created clone, the clone's vocal inflections don't really match those of Megatron.

* Megatron should be saying everything that the clone says on-screen, but is silent as the clone first meets up with Jazz and Trailbreaker.

* The cloning machine also somehow manages to clone Prime's trailer even though Prime was scanned in his robot mode.

* After the Decepticons retreat, why does the Prime clone lead the Autobots back to [[Ark (G1)|headquarters]], instead of investigating the energy source that drew them there in the first place?

[[Image:PrimeProblem Jazz is in the way.jpg|200px|thumb|right|"Y'know, I'd trust you more if you'd stop pointing your gun at me for no reason."]]
* Only Jazz and Trailbreaker are seen withdrawing alongside the Prime clone, even though half a dozen Autobots are present at the battle.

* It's only an error retroactively, but when both Primes get X-rayed, neither one possesses the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in his chest cavity. In fact their chest interior design is completely different than the design from [[The Transformers: The Movie|the movie]].

* If the clone is completely remote controlled, then what is clone Optimus Prime doing while Megatron is not wearing his control helmet? (seen several times, such as the beginning of the second battle and when Megatron gloats to Spike.)

* The clone's order for Jazz to "hit the deck" is completely useless; Jazz wasn't even remotely in Prime's way. (After this moment of tactical idiocy, Megatron takes a moment to gloat about his "brilliant scenario of Autobot destruction". We dare say this is ''ironic!'')

* Powerglide and Warpath both just show up out of nowhere during the final battle.

===Other notes===
[[Image:Autoscout2.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Totally toy-makable. Hasbro, we're waiting!]]
[[Image:G1 APrimeProblem Warpath shot.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"Hound, do we know that guy?" "Huh? There was a guy?"]]
* This episode features the only appearance of the [[Autoscout]], a cassette drone launched by Soundwave.

* The episode goes an unusually long time before featuring its first [[scene transition]], which finally comes around the six minute mark.

* This episode has the first appearances of [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] and [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]]. However, no explanation of their origins is made, which is made all the more irksome by the fact that this episode was written by the show's own dang story editors. Warpath gets no lines at all.

* Man, Starscream sure is eager to throw away the life of one of his fellow Decepticons, huh? He suggests it be "a trusted officer", which pretty much narrows the selection down to Soundwave (or mayyyybe Reflector). Make of that what you will!

* Laserbeak is pretty hardcore. Optimus is easily able to overpower Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp with his bare hands, yet a few blasts from Laserbeak take him down. Laserbeak also manages to open a pretty nice can of whoop-ass on Starscream when Starscream tries to run away; then he captures Spike and causes Windcharger to fall to his near-death.

* Based on the absurdity of this episode, "WE MUST HAVE A RACE" has become a popular fandom meme any time two things might be remotely confused with one another.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 1999 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Volume 1: Prime Threat ([[The Original Transformers|Kid Rhino]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/a_prime_problem.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Problem}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

A Prime Problem

2012-04-29T20:59:22Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=27
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=22
|prev2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|next2=City of Steel
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=31
|prev3=Enter the Nightbird
|next3=The Insecticon Syndrome
|image=Primedeux.jpg
|caption=Double your pleasure...
|title="A Prime Problem"
|production code=#700-26
|airdate=[[October 2]], 1985
|written by=[[Dick Robbins]] [[Bryce Malek]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Unknown Filipino animation studio]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Megatron creates a clone of Optimus Prime to lure the Autobots to their doom.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 二人のコンボイ (''Futari no Convoy'', "Two Convoys")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Un problema per Commander''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Un problema per Optimus Prime''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:PrimeProblem Decepticons at crevasse.jpg|left|200px|thumb|All right, who wants to dive first?]]

The Decepticons discover a crevasse in the [[Earth]] from which is emanating strange energy readings. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] stops [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] from diving straight in, and orders [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] to send in an [[autoscout]]. They quickly determine that the crevasse is full of dangerous [[korlonium crystal]]s, which destroy anything with electronic [[circuits|circuitry]] on contact, and decide to try to trick the [[Autobot]]s into entering the crevasse. To that end they retire to their nearby [[Incredibly tall rocket|temporary operations base]].

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the Autobots show up at the scene shortly, but before they can learn more about the lights, they are attacked by a Decepticon squad led by Starscream. Megatron dispatches [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who knocks Prime over a cliff with a few well-aimed shots and puts him out of commission. The Decepticon then beams holographic pictures of the Autobot leader back to Megatron, who uses them to create a [[Optimus Prime clone|remote-controlled clone]] out of a [[clone synthesizer]].

[[Image:PrimeProblem Megatron prime splitscreen.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Speed, I will not let you race in this race!]]

While the real Optimus is still clambering out of the pit he fell into, the clone leads the Autobots back to base. There are some awkward moments when the clone addresses [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] as "[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]]", fails to work [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]], and doesn't even remember giving Teletraan I a check up earlier that day, but the Autobots are distracted by the perimeter alarm sounding — the real Optimus Prime has arrived back at base. Under the clone's leadership, the Autobots prepare to shoot the real Prime as an impostor, but Ironhide stops them, announcing that no one's shooting anyone until they determine who's really Optimus Prime.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Twin primes rev up.jpg|left|200px|thumb|THIS is how you REALLY blow off steam!]]

Teletraan I scans both Primes, but is unable to determine which of them is fake. The clone excels at sharp-shooting, and when it's the real Prime's turn, the rocky outcrop they're using as a target falls on him. Fortunately Optimus shrugs the rubble off. A race to the end of the flats and back is even less conclusive. Any further tests are interrupted by Teletraan I reporting an increase in activity from the crevasse — in reality the work of Megatron's [[energy amplifier]]s. Ironhide announces he's taking command while Optimus Prime's identity is uncertain and the Autobots set out for the crevasse.

Naturally, they soon run into a Decepticon ambush. From the Decepticon base, Megatron and Starscream watch the fight. Megatron has decided that to win the Autobots' trust completely, the false Prime will have to destroy a Decepticon. Furthermore he's picked Starscream to take the fall. Starscream isn't too enthusiastic about this plan, and makes a run for it. He's seen leaving the base by [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], who then watch Laserbeak drag the protesting Decepticon back to base, enabling the pair to slip in unnoticed. Megatron explains the part of his plan that he neglected to mention earlier: that the Prime clone will only be destroying a clone of Starscream. Windcharger and Spike watch the production of Starscream's clone, and start back to warn the Autobots, but are spotted — Spike is captured by Laserbeak while Windcharger falls into the crevasse.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Windcharger scrap.jpg|right|200px|thumb|No bacon on the salad!]]
Out on the battlefield, both Autobots and Decepticons alike are surprised when the [[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] joins in and immediately challenges one of the Optimus Primes to a duel to the death. The Decepticon at first gets the upper hand, but is blown apart when he stops to gloat. The rest of the Decepticons flee. Now convinced that the clone is the real thing after the battle, the Autobots follow the clone to the crevasse, ignoring the warnings from the real Optimus. But before they are led to their doom, Windcharger pulls up from the crevasse and reveals the truth, letting them know that the Decepticons have Spike captive.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Prime pats Spike.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Prime rubs Spike's head for good luck.]]

The clone says to disregard Windcharger's report and Spike's plight, and orders the Autobots forward into the crevasse. Ironhide declares the clone to be the fake, because the real Prime would save Spike. The Autobots shoot the fake Optimus into oblivion and follow Prime on a rescue mission. The Decepticon rocket base quickly launches, dropping Spike in mid-air, but fortunately [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is able to execute a mid-air rescue. Optimus assures Spike that he's the real thing, and pets the boy like a puppy.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (5)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (7)
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (8)
*[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (9)
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] (10)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (18)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (19)
*[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (20)
*[[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (21)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (22)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (23)
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (24)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (25)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (26)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (27)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (28)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (30)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (31)
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (32)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (33)
|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (1)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Autoscout]] (4)
*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (12)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (13)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (14)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (15)
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (16)
*[[Optimus Prime clone]] (17)
*[[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] (29)
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (11)
}}

==Quotes==
"It's just such ignorance which forever relegates you to the ranks of underlings, Starscream!"
:—'''Megatron'''

"All the danger you can handle is already here, Floptimus Prime!"
:—'''Starscream''' comes up with a clever insult.

"I'm sorry there are only three of you. Clobbering less than four Decepticons at a time is boring."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

''"Laserbeak... you tin-foil turkey!"''
:—'''Optimus Prime''' dishes out the trash talk like a pro.

'''Optimus Prime clone''': Bumblebee, come over here. The computer's not responding to my input.... Bumblebee, I'm speaking to you. 
'''Ironhide''': You talking to me? 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': Of course. 
'''Ironhide''': But I'm not Bumblebee, I'm Ironhide, Prime. 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': I meant Ironhide, naturally.
:—The fake Optimus Prime totally flubs Ironhide's name, even though Ironhide's the only other one there, and the Southern-fried lug still doesn't get it...

"I don't mind hitting the dirt, but I don't enjoy eating it!"
:—'''Gears'''

"No, DO NOT! ARGH, my magnificent creation, vaporized! With Prime's replica destroyed, we must escape, now!"
:—'''Megatron''', not being at all melodramatic.

"Is it really you, Optimus Prime? I mean ''really?''" 
"Yes, Spike. This time I am definitely me. Or I. Myself. Oh, whoever I am. Put 'er there, partner."
:—A cautious but hopeful '''Spike''' questions '''Optimus Prime''', who doesn't do the best job of keeping a sentence together.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* The entire episode has strangely desaturated colors, even the indoor scenes. The outdoor scenes are mostly washed with a dusk-like yellow and blue, even away from the strange light of the crystals.
* When Megatron grabs Starscream, his insignia is gray, he's missing the black "eye liner" above his optics and his dark gray helemet details are colored light gray.
* Soundwave's optics turn white a couple of times, first when ejecting the autoscout, and then when ejecting Laserbeak for the first time.

* A strange animation shortcut has Optimus pick up Thundercracker to throw him. The camera angle changes, and suddenly it's Starscream that he's throwing. The next shot shows all three Seekers lying defeated, so it may or may not be an actual error. (The same color/character changing trick is used in "[[The Ultimate Doom, Part 1]]".)

* When Megatron orders him to eject Laserbeak, Soundwave's chest is blue instead of light gray. (The subsequent animation of Soundwave turning and ejecting the cassettebot is recycled from the episode's opening scene, and recycled again when Soundwave sends Laserbeak to retrieve Starscream.)

* Improbable viewpoints:
** Does Megatron have a camera that flies alongside Laserbeak to take a video of him? How else to account for the third-person camera angle that he gets on his screen as he talks to Laserbeak? Considering how often Laserbeak himself is dispatched for the purpose of obtaining video footage, this would be ludicrous.
** Megatron seems to have filled the whole valley with [[The Master Builders|cameras in rocks]]. He's able to keep constant tabs on the battle from a variety of viewpoints, including one head-on shot of the Autobots that travels with them as they run! There's no indication that these are the viewpoints of his troops (one comes right from just a foot or two above ground level.)

* When the Prime clone is first shown, it is several heads taller than Megatron. They should be the same height.

* Megatron has blue eyes as he tests out his voice control of the clone.

* The clone's eyes are white instead of blue when Ironhide stops the Autobots from destroying Prime.

*Bumblebee's arm briefly changes to gray when he asks Teletraan I who the real Optimus Prime is.

* Teletraan I's initial statement ("Detail comparison forthcoming") is strangely muffled, as if coming over an AM radio broadcast.

* Wheeljack's ears don't flash as he says "take your positions".

* After the clone announces that they'll spring any traps that need to be sprung, the real Prime's mouthplate disappears.

* Starscream's arm lasers disappear and reappear as he agrees with Megatron's plan to have the clone destroy a Decepticon.

* Starscream sports a red Decepticon [[insignia]] when he objects to Megatron's plan.

[[Image:Starscream clone G1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|So often, in fact, you'd be hard-pressed to get a screencap that didn't show it that way.]]
* Starscream's chest-cockpit is repeatedly colored entirely yellow, missing the bit of gray that it's supposed to have near the bottom. In fact, through the course of the episode, it's colored wrong more frequently than right.

* As he and Spike climb the mountain and spot Laserbeak, Windcharger is sporting a red Decepticon insignia.

* Starscream's eyes turn blue when he dodges Laserbeak's first attack.

* Windcharger's head is a darker gray than his body when he ducks to avoid Laserbeak outside the mountain, and again when Ratchet identifies the fake Prime.

* Laserbeak makes no transformation sound as he returns to Soundwave's chest compartment.

* The animators seem to have forgotten that the [[incredibly tall rocket]] is a ship / base. Soundwave is seen entering the control room through a rocky tunnel.

* The clone Prime, after ordering Jazz to "hit the deck", just stands there for a remarkably long time doing nothing.

* Megatron's gun barrel is dark gray as he orders Starscream to say his line.

* After the fake Starscream is destroyed by the fake Optimus, Starscream is seen standing next to the other Decepticons (it's not even a coloring error as Thundercracker and Skywarp are both standing next to him).

* In a hilariously placed dialogue flub, Optimus calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer", just as he's trying to convince the Autobots that he's the real Prime.

* A moment later, as Megatron tosses Spike out of the ship, Peter Cullen's delivery of Prime's line makes it sound like Prime is calling Spike "Splick."

* Powerglide catches Spike by swooping beneath him a second before Spike hits the rocks. But slamming into a metal airplane really wouldn't be much better for a human than slamming into the rocky ground.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Primeproblem prime and clone.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I'm the real Optimus Prime, Stick." "It's ''Spike'', Prime. Now if only we could devise a way to figure out who's the real you!"]]
[[Image:IncrediblyTallRocket1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Decepticons already blew through all their camouflage budget.]]
[[Image:PrimeProblem Corlonium crystals.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Even more powerful than the Earth's molten core? The ruby crystals of Burma? Oil? Explosive meteorites? Volcanoes?]]
* The basic premise of the episode—that nobody can tell which Optimus Prime is real—requires all the Autobots (and Spike) to be ''incredibly'' stupid. Nobody thought to take the two Primes into separate rooms and grill them about things only the real Prime would know? Not even ''Prime himself'' thinks to suggest this? Even after Windcharger and Spike observe that something's very wrong with Prime, nobody puts two and two together when the real Prime shows up? The fake Prime's bloodthirsty response doesn't make it flagrantly obvious who's the fake? Nobody thinks to mark one of the Primes to tell them apart? Races and sharpshooting contests are supposed to prove who's who? Nobody gets suspicious at how easily Starscream is utterly annihilated?
** On the other hand, the ''real'' Optimus Prime calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer" and Spike "Splick," so maybe we should cut the Autobots a little slack.

* Megatron makes it even easier for the Autobots; he calls Ironhide "Bumblebee", despite being able to identify Ironhide by name in "[[The Autobot Run]]", and flagrantly sets himself for discovery by mucking around with Teletraan I, asking ridiculously leading questions of the Autobots, and responding to the real Prime's appearance with an uncharacteristic "KILL IT NOW" reaction.

* Furthermore, why didn't Megatron just have Laserbeak kill, capture or disable Optimus Prime while he was down, thus avoiding all the "two Optimus Primes" trouble in the first place??

* Heck, if it's so easy to make perfect reproductions of the strongest Autobot, why not just make a ton of them and overwhelm the Autobots? Why not just make a ton of ''Megatron'' clones and overwhelm the Autobots?

* Megatron describes the crystals as "the most rare and dangerous form of raw energy in this [[solar system]]". More dangerous and rare than [[electro-cell]]s, [[Crystal of Power|Crystals of Power]], the [[Energy crystal|crystals]] on [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], the [[Sun]], etc.? Really?

*It doesn't make much sense that Megatron knows about the korlonium crystals and Starscream doesn't, considering it's established that Starscream is a ''scientist'' and has visited the [[Solar System]] before.

* Though the [[incredibly tall rocket|temporary base]] is mostly camouflaged as a mountain peak, there are some mechanical bits at its base that remain undisguised. Luckily for Megatron, nobody seems to notice.

* "It is Optimus Prime!" declares a shocked Soundwave as the clone is revealed. Was he just not paying attention to what Megatron was doing for the last few minutes, up to and including his saying "Now to begin the '''''cloning''''' process!"?

* As Megatron feeds lines to the newly-created clone, the clone's vocal inflections don't really match those of Megatron.

* Megatron should be saying everything that the clone says on-screen, but is silent as the clone first meets up with Jazz and Trailbreaker.

* The cloning machine also somehow manages to clone Prime's trailer even though Prime was scanned in his robot mode.

* After the Decepticons retreat, why does the Prime clone lead the Autobots back to [[Ark (G1)|headquarters]], instead of investigating the energy source that drew them there in the first place?

[[Image:PrimeProblem Jazz is in the way.jpg|200px|thumb|right|"Y'know, I'd trust you more if you'd stop pointing your gun at me for no reason."]]
* Only Jazz and Trailbreaker are seen withdrawing alongside the Prime clone, even though half a dozen Autobots are present at the battle.

* It's only an error retroactively, but when both Primes get X-rayed, neither one possesses the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in his chest cavity. In fact their chest interior design is completely different than the design from [[The Transformers: The Movie|the movie]].

* If the clone is completely remote controlled, then what is clone Optimus Prime doing while Megatron is not wearing his control helmet? (seen several times, such as the beginning of the second battle and when Megatron gloats to Spike.)

* The clone's order for Jazz to "hit the deck" is completely useless; Jazz wasn't even remotely in Prime's way. (After this moment of tactical idiocy, Megatron takes a moment to gloat about his "brilliant scenario of Autobot destruction". We dare say this is ''ironic!'')

* Powerglide and Warpath both just show up out of nowhere during the final battle.

===Other notes===
[[Image:Autoscout2.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Totally toy-makable. Hasbro, we're waiting!]]
[[Image:G1 APrimeProblem Warpath shot.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"Hound, do we know that guy?" "Huh? There was a guy?"]]
* This episode features the only appearance of the [[Autoscout]], a cassette drone launched by Soundwave.

* The episode goes an unusually long time before featuring its first [[scene transition]], which finally comes around the six minute mark.

* This episode has the first appearances of [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] and [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]]. However, no explanation of their origins is made, which is made all the more irksome by the fact that this episode was written by the show's own dang story editors. Warpath gets no lines at all.

* Man, Starscream sure is eager to throw away the life of one of his fellow Decepticons, huh? He suggests it be "a trusted officer", which pretty much narrows the selection down to Soundwave (or mayyyybe Reflector). Make of that what you will!

* Laserbeak is pretty hardcore. Optimus is easily able to overpower Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp with his bare hands, yet a few blasts from Laserbeak take him down. Laserbeak also manages to open a pretty nice can of whoop-ass on Starscream when Starscream tries to run away; then he captures Spike and causes Windcharger to fall to his near-death.

* Based on the absurdity of this episode, "WE MUST HAVE A RACE" has become a popular fandom meme any time two things might be remotely confused with one another.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 1999 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Volume 1: Prime Threat ([[The Original Transformers|Kid Rhino]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/a_prime_problem.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Problem}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

A Prime Problem

2012-04-29T20:58:29Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=27
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=22
|prev2=The Insecticon Syndrome
|next2=City of Steel
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=31
|prev3=Enter the Nightbird
|next3=The Insecticon Syndrome
|image=Primedeux.jpg
|caption=Double your pleasure...
|title="A Prime Problem"
|production code=#700-26
|airdate=[[October 2]], 1985
|written by=[[Dick Robbins]] [[Bryce Malek]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Unknown Filipino animation studio]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Megatron creates a clone of Optimus Prime to lure the Autobots to their doom.'''

:''Japanese title:'' 二人のコンボイ (''Futari no Convoy'', "Two Convoys")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''Un problema per Commander''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Un problema per Optimus Prime''' ("A problem for Optimus Prime")

==Synopsis==
[[Image:PrimeProblem Decepticons at crevasse.jpg|left|200px|thumb|All right, who wants to dive first?]]

The Decepticons discover a crevasse in the [[Earth]] from which is emanating strange energy readings. [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] stops [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] from diving straight in, and orders [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] to send in an [[autoscout]]. They quickly determine that the crevasse is full of dangerous [[korlonium crystal]]s, which destroy anything with electronic [[circuits|circuitry]] on contact, and decide to try to trick the [[Autobot]]s into entering the crevasse. To that end they retire to their nearby [[Incredibly tall rocket|temporary operations base]].

[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the Autobots show up at the scene shortly, but before they can learn more about the lights, they are attacked by a Decepticon squad led by Starscream. Megatron dispatches [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who knocks Prime over a cliff with a few well-aimed shots and puts him out of commission. The Decepticon then beams holographic pictures of the Autobot leader back to Megatron, who uses them to create a [[Optimus Prime clone|remote-controlled clone]] out of a [[clone synthesizer]].

[[Image:PrimeProblem Megatron prime splitscreen.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Speed, I will not let you race in this race!]]

While the real Optimus is still clambering out of the pit he fell into, the clone leads the Autobots back to base. There are some awkward moments when the clone addresses [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] as "[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]]", fails to work [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]], and doesn't even remember giving Teletraan I a check up earlier that day, but the Autobots are distracted by the perimeter alarm sounding — the real Optimus Prime has arrived back at base. Under the clone's leadership, the Autobots prepare to shoot the real Prime as an impostor, but Ironhide stops them, announcing that no one's shooting anyone until they determine who's really Optimus Prime.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Twin primes rev up.jpg|left|200px|thumb|THIS is how you REALLY blow off steam!]]

Teletraan I scans both Primes, but is unable to determine which of them is fake. The clone excels at sharp-shooting, and when it's the real Prime's turn, the rocky outcrop they're using as a target falls on him. Fortunately Optimus shrugs the rubble off. A race to the end of the flats and back is even less conclusive. Any further tests are interrupted by Teletraan I reporting an increase in activity from the crevasse — in reality the work of Megatron's [[energy amplifier]]s. Ironhide announces he's taking command while Optimus Prime's identity is uncertain and the Autobots set out for the crevasse.

Naturally, they soon run into a Decepticon ambush. From the Decepticon base, Megatron and Starscream watch the fight. Megatron has decided that to win the Autobots' trust completely, the false Prime will have to destroy a Decepticon. Furthermore he's picked Starscream to take the fall. Starscream isn't too enthusiastic about this plan, and makes a run for it. He's seen leaving the base by [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], who then watch Laserbeak drag the protesting Decepticon back to base, enabling the pair to slip in unnoticed. Megatron explains the part of his plan that he neglected to mention earlier: that the Prime clone will only be destroying a clone of Starscream. Windcharger and Spike watch the production of Starscream's clone, and start back to warn the Autobots, but are spotted — Spike is captured by Laserbeak while Windcharger falls into the crevasse.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Windcharger scrap.jpg|right|200px|thumb|No bacon on the salad!]]
Out on the battlefield, both Autobots and Decepticons alike are surprised when the [[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] joins in and immediately challenges one of the Optimus Primes to a duel to the death. The Decepticon at first gets the upper hand, but is blown apart when he stops to gloat. The rest of the Decepticons flee. Now convinced that the clone is the real thing after the battle, the Autobots follow the clone to the crevasse, ignoring the warnings from the real Optimus. But before they are led to their doom, Windcharger pulls up from the crevasse and reveals the truth, letting them know that the Decepticons have Spike captive.

[[Image:PrimeProblem Prime pats Spike.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Prime rubs Spike's head for good luck.]]

The clone says to disregard Windcharger's report and Spike's plight, and orders the Autobots forward into the crevasse. Ironhide declares the clone to be the fake, because the real Prime would save Spike. The Autobots shoot the fake Optimus into oblivion and follow Prime on a rescue mission. The Decepticon rocket base quickly launches, dropping Spike in mid-air, but fortunately [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] is able to execute a mid-air rescue. Optimus assures Spike that he's the real thing, and pets the boy like a puppy.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (5)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (6)
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (7)
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (8)
*[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (9)
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] (10)
*[[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (18)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (19)
*[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (20)
*[[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (21)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (22)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (23)
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (24)
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (25)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (26)
*[[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (27)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (28)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (30)
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (31)
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (32)
*[[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] (33)
|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (1)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (2)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
*[[Autoscout]] (4)
*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (12)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (13)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (14)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (15)
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (16)
*[[Optimus Prime clone]] (17)
*[[Starscream clone (G1)|Starscream clone]] (29)
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (11)
}}

==Quotes==
"It's just such ignorance which forever relegates you to the ranks of underlings, Starscream!"
:—'''Megatron'''

"All the danger you can handle is already here, Floptimus Prime!"
:—'''Starscream''' comes up with a clever insult.

"I'm sorry there are only three of you. Clobbering less than four Decepticons at a time is boring."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

''"Laserbeak... you tin-foil turkey!"''
:—'''Optimus Prime''' dishes out the trash talk like a pro.

'''Optimus Prime clone''': Bumblebee, come over here. The computer's not responding to my input.... Bumblebee, I'm speaking to you. 
'''Ironhide''': You talking to me? 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': Of course. 
'''Ironhide''': But I'm not Bumblebee, I'm Ironhide, Prime. 
'''Optimus Prime clone''': I meant Ironhide, naturally.
:—The fake Optimus Prime totally flubs Ironhide's name, even though Ironhide's the only other one there, and the Southern-fried lug still doesn't get it...

"I don't mind hitting the dirt, but I don't enjoy eating it!"
:—'''Gears'''

"No, DO NOT! ARGH, my magnificent creation, vaporized! With Prime's replica destroyed, we must escape, now!"
:—'''Megatron''', not being at all melodramatic.

"Is it really you, Optimus Prime? I mean ''really?''" 
"Yes, Spike. This time I am definitely me. Or I. Myself. Oh, whoever I am. Put 'er there, partner."
:—A cautious but hopeful '''Spike''' questions '''Optimus Prime''', who doesn't do the best job of keeping a sentence together.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* The entire episode has strangely desaturated colors, even the indoor scenes. The outdoor scenes are mostly washed with a dusk-like yellow and blue, even away from the strange light of the crystals.
* When Megatron grabs Starscream, his insignia is gray, he's missing the black "eye liner" above his optics and his dark gray helemet details are colored light gray.
* Soundwave's optics turn white a couple of times, first when ejecting the autoscout, and then when ejecting Laserbeak for the first time.

* A strange animation shortcut has Optimus pick up Thundercracker to throw him. The camera angle changes, and suddenly it's Starscream that he's throwing. The next shot shows all three Seekers lying defeated, so it may or may not be an actual error. (The same color/character changing trick is used in "[[The Ultimate Doom, Part 1]]".)

* When Megatron orders him to eject Laserbeak, Soundwave's chest is blue instead of light gray. (The subsequent animation of Soundwave turning and ejecting the cassettebot is recycled from the episode's opening scene, and recycled again when Soundwave sends Laserbeak to retrieve Starscream.)

* Improbable viewpoints:
** Does Megatron have a camera that flies alongside Laserbeak to take a video of him? How else to account for the third-person camera angle that he gets on his screen as he talks to Laserbeak? Considering how often Laserbeak himself is dispatched for the purpose of obtaining video footage, this would be ludicrous.
** Megatron seems to have filled the whole valley with [[The Master Builders|cameras in rocks]]. He's able to keep constant tabs on the battle from a variety of viewpoints, including one head-on shot of the Autobots that travels with them as they run! There's no indication that these are the viewpoints of his troops (one comes right from just a foot or two above ground level.)

* When the Prime clone is first shown, it is several heads taller than Megatron. They should be the same height.

* Megatron has blue eyes as he tests out his voice control of the clone.

* The clone's eyes are white instead of blue when Ironhide stops the Autobots from destroying Prime.

*BumbleBee's arm briefly changes to gray when he asks Teletraan I who the real Optimus Prime is.

* Teletraan I's initial statement ("Detail comparison forthcoming") is strangely muffled, as if coming over an AM radio broadcast.

* Wheeljack's ears don't flash as he says "take your positions".

* After the clone announces that they'll spring any traps that need to be sprung, the real Prime's mouthplate disappears.

* Starscream's arm lasers disappear and reappear as he agrees with Megatron's plan to have the clone destroy a Decepticon.

* Starscream sports a red Decepticon [[insignia]] when he objects to Megatron's plan.

[[Image:Starscream clone G1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|So often, in fact, you'd be hard-pressed to get a screencap that didn't show it that way.]]
* Starscream's chest-cockpit is repeatedly colored entirely yellow, missing the bit of gray that it's supposed to have near the bottom. In fact, through the course of the episode, it's colored wrong more frequently than right.

* As he and Spike climb the mountain and spot Laserbeak, Windcharger is sporting a red Decepticon insignia.

* Starscream's eyes turn blue when he dodges Laserbeak's first attack.

* Windcharger's head is a darker gray than his body when he ducks to avoid Laserbeak outside the mountain, and again when Ratchet identifies the fake Prime.

* Laserbeak makes no transformation sound as he returns to Soundwave's chest compartment.

* The animators seem to have forgotten that the [[incredibly tall rocket]] is a ship / base. Soundwave is seen entering the control room through a rocky tunnel.

* The clone Prime, after ordering Jazz to "hit the deck", just stands there for a remarkably long time doing nothing.

* Megatron's gun barrel is dark gray as he orders Starscream to say his line.

* After the fake Starscream is destroyed by the fake Optimus, Starscream is seen standing next to the other Decepticons (it's not even a coloring error as Thundercracker and Skywarp are both standing next to him).

* In a hilariously placed dialogue flub, Optimus calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer", just as he's trying to convince the Autobots that he's the real Prime.

* A moment later, as Megatron tosses Spike out of the ship, Peter Cullen's delivery of Prime's line makes it sound like Prime is calling Spike "Splick."

* Powerglide catches Spike by swooping beneath him a second before Spike hits the rocks. But slamming into a metal airplane really wouldn't be much better for a human than slamming into the rocky ground.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:Primeproblem prime and clone.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I'm the real Optimus Prime, Stick." "It's ''Spike'', Prime. Now if only we could devise a way to figure out who's the real you!"]]
[[Image:IncrediblyTallRocket1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Decepticons already blew through all their camouflage budget.]]
[[Image:PrimeProblem Corlonium crystals.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Even more powerful than the Earth's molten core? The ruby crystals of Burma? Oil? Explosive meteorites? Volcanoes?]]
* The basic premise of the episode—that nobody can tell which Optimus Prime is real—requires all the Autobots (and Spike) to be ''incredibly'' stupid. Nobody thought to take the two Primes into separate rooms and grill them about things only the real Prime would know? Not even ''Prime himself'' thinks to suggest this? Even after Windcharger and Spike observe that something's very wrong with Prime, nobody puts two and two together when the real Prime shows up? The fake Prime's bloodthirsty response doesn't make it flagrantly obvious who's the fake? Nobody thinks to mark one of the Primes to tell them apart? Races and sharpshooting contests are supposed to prove who's who? Nobody gets suspicious at how easily Starscream is utterly annihilated?
** On the other hand, the ''real'' Optimus Prime calls Trailbreaker "Trailblazer" and Spike "Splick," so maybe we should cut the Autobots a little slack.

* Megatron makes it even easier for the Autobots; he calls Ironhide "Bumblebee", despite being able to identify Ironhide by name in "[[The Autobot Run]]", and flagrantly sets himself for discovery by mucking around with Teletraan I, asking ridiculously leading questions of the Autobots, and responding to the real Prime's appearance with an uncharacteristic "KILL IT NOW" reaction.

* Furthermore, why didn't Megatron just have Laserbeak kill, capture or disable Optimus Prime while he was down, thus avoiding all the "two Optimus Primes" trouble in the first place??

* Heck, if it's so easy to make perfect reproductions of the strongest Autobot, why not just make a ton of them and overwhelm the Autobots? Why not just make a ton of ''Megatron'' clones and overwhelm the Autobots?

* Megatron describes the crystals as "the most rare and dangerous form of raw energy in this [[solar system]]". More dangerous and rare than [[electro-cell]]s, [[Crystal of Power|Crystals of Power]], the [[Energy crystal|crystals]] on [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], the [[Sun]], etc.? Really?

*It doesn't make much sense that Megatron knows about the korlonium crystals and Starscream doesn't, considering it's established that Starscream is a ''scientist'' and has visited the [[Solar System]] before.

* Though the [[incredibly tall rocket|temporary base]] is mostly camouflaged as a mountain peak, there are some mechanical bits at its base that remain undisguised. Luckily for Megatron, nobody seems to notice.

* "It is Optimus Prime!" declares a shocked Soundwave as the clone is revealed. Was he just not paying attention to what Megatron was doing for the last few minutes, up to and including his saying "Now to begin the '''''cloning''''' process!"?

* As Megatron feeds lines to the newly-created clone, the clone's vocal inflections don't really match those of Megatron.

* Megatron should be saying everything that the clone says on-screen, but is silent as the clone first meets up with Jazz and Trailbreaker.

* The cloning machine also somehow manages to clone Prime's trailer even though Prime was scanned in his robot mode.

* After the Decepticons retreat, why does the Prime clone lead the Autobots back to [[Ark (G1)|headquarters]], instead of investigating the energy source that drew them there in the first place?

[[Image:PrimeProblem Jazz is in the way.jpg|200px|thumb|right|"Y'know, I'd trust you more if you'd stop pointing your gun at me for no reason."]]
* Only Jazz and Trailbreaker are seen withdrawing alongside the Prime clone, even though half a dozen Autobots are present at the battle.

* It's only an error retroactively, but when both Primes get X-rayed, neither one possesses the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in his chest cavity. In fact their chest interior design is completely different than the design from [[The Transformers: The Movie|the movie]].

* If the clone is completely remote controlled, then what is clone Optimus Prime doing while Megatron is not wearing his control helmet? (seen several times, such as the beginning of the second battle and when Megatron gloats to Spike.)

* The clone's order for Jazz to "hit the deck" is completely useless; Jazz wasn't even remotely in Prime's way. (After this moment of tactical idiocy, Megatron takes a moment to gloat about his "brilliant scenario of Autobot destruction". We dare say this is ''ironic!'')

* Powerglide and Warpath both just show up out of nowhere during the final battle.

===Other notes===
[[Image:Autoscout2.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Totally toy-makable. Hasbro, we're waiting!]]
[[Image:G1 APrimeProblem Warpath shot.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"Hound, do we know that guy?" "Huh? There was a guy?"]]
* This episode features the only appearance of the [[Autoscout]], a cassette drone launched by Soundwave.

* The episode goes an unusually long time before featuring its first [[scene transition]], which finally comes around the six minute mark.

* This episode has the first appearances of [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]] and [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]]. However, no explanation of their origins is made, which is made all the more irksome by the fact that this episode was written by the show's own dang story editors. Warpath gets no lines at all.

* Man, Starscream sure is eager to throw away the life of one of his fellow Decepticons, huh? He suggests it be "a trusted officer", which pretty much narrows the selection down to Soundwave (or mayyyybe Reflector). Make of that what you will!

* Laserbeak is pretty hardcore. Optimus is easily able to overpower Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp with his bare hands, yet a few blasts from Laserbeak take him down. Laserbeak also manages to open a pretty nice can of whoop-ass on Starscream when Starscream tries to run away; then he captures Spike and causes Windcharger to fall to his near-death.

* Based on the absurdity of this episode, "WE MUST HAVE A RACE" has become a popular fandom meme any time two things might be remotely confused with one another.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 1999 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Volume 1: Prime Threat ([[The Original Transformers|Kid Rhino]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/a_prime_problem.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Problem}}
[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

William Fowler

2012-04-29T16:23:30Z

207.151.155.11: /* Notes */

:''William Fowler is a [[human]] from the [[Transformers: Prime (franchise)| Prime]] portion of the [[Aligned continuity family]].''

[[Image:DarknessRising2-Fowler.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Someone buy him a longer tie.]]

Special Agent '''William "Bill" Fowler''' is the type of guy that [[Theodore Galloway]] ''wishes'' he could be. A former US Army Ranger, he's the tough-talking, robot-dissing designated liaison between the [[United States of America|United States government]] and the [[Autobot]]s, who's got the guts to face down [[Starscream (Prime)|the Decepticons]] himself. And he doesn't need any military escort! He can pilot his own damn helicopter! And his own damn jet plane!

Fowler is leery about trusting the Autobots to handle the [[Decepticon]]s by themselves and believes that [[Earth]] can handle its own mess, but for now, while he chews them out and slags them off, he's willing to let them have a chance.

{{bigquote|Pretty big bearings... for a human.|Bulkhead|"[[Darkness Rising, Part 2]]"}}

==Fiction==
===''Prime'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Ernie Hudson]] (English), [[Kenji Nomura]] (Japanese)|[[Jin-uk Hong]] (Korean), [[Dario Oppido]] (Italian), [[Oliver Siebeck]] (German), [[Mario Filio]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Guilherme Lopes]] (Portuguese)}}

Fowler was once a member of the Army Rangers. {{storylink|Nemesis Prime (episode)|Nemesis Prime}}

Agent Fowler visited [[Autobot Outpost Omega One]] to chew the Autobots off over mass traffic accidents caused by [[Vehicon (Prime)|several]] [[Arcee (Prime)|odd]] [[Bumblebee (Prime)|vehicles]], and then demanded to know if this meant the Decepticons were back. When [[Optimus Prime (Prime)|Optimus Prime]] confirmed this, Fowler stated it was time to "wake up" the [[Pentagon]]; he was notably ''un''impressed by Optimus's claim that only the Autobots could stop the Decepticons, clearly not believing it, but to avoid mass human casualties he agreed to give them a shot at sorting it out.

[[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] angrily told Fowler that the Autobots knew how to use appropriate force, but when the agent was gone he noted with respect that Fowler had ''bearings''. Prime noted that Fowler's attitude was due to being afraid for his planet. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}}

[[Image:DarknessRising3-interrogateFowler.jpg|thumb|left|250px|"This is some nice steel. How about telling me who gave them to you?" "Yo mama."]]

Another explosion had Fowler returning to the Autobot base, but he found only Bulkhead there. When [[Miko Nakadai|Miko]]'s guitar gave away the presence of her and her two classmates, he announced he was going to take them into federal custody, but Bulkhead prevented him from phoning his superiors. He stormed out and took off in his helicopter, making a report by radio. Unfortunately, the transmission was intercepted by the Decepticons, who captured him and strung him up by chains. Fowler proved difficult to interrogate, so [[Starscream (Prime)|Starscream]] got out an [[Energon prod]] to soften him up. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 3}}

Fowler was on the verge of breaking and telling Starscream where the Autobot base was, when weapons fire became audible outside the brig. Sensing rescue was near, he became awkward again, provoking Starscream into shocking him into unconsciousness. When he awoke, he was in a dazed, rambling state. The Autobots finally reached his location, only to become locked in a standoff with Starscream, until a random outburst from Fowler caused a distraction, and the Autobots chased Starscream off. Fowler rode back to base in Bulkhead, though his dazed state persisted and he became fixated on pie. Once they reached the base, he was given rudimentary medical attention. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}}

When the Autobots discovered that the Decepticons were using a radio telescope array in [[Texas]], Optimus suggested getting Fowler to put the installation on high alert, but Fowler was still too out of it to comply. He had recovered enough to cheer the Autobots on as they destroyed Megatron's [[space bridge]], and later thanked them for saving him from the Decepticons, and for saving the world, before he left the base. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 5}}

[[Image:Masters&Students-FowlerTopGun.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Wronski Feint his ass!]]
Responding to reports of strange transmissions, Fowler warned other pilots away from the area as he sped there in a new top-secret jet. He came upon the scene of a battle between Optimus, Bumblebee and the Decepticon [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]], the latter of whom seized the opportunity to [[scanning|scan]] Fowler's jet. Fowler retaliated by firing on Skyquake, but the Decepticon launched a number of heat-seeking missiles that Fowler was forced to use evasive maneuvers to avoid. He later came to Bumblebee's aid, picking up the small Autobot who had just disabled Skyquake in mid-air and was plunging toward the ground as a result. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

[[Image:Convoy-Fowlerimpatient.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Why didn't Optimus just turn it off?]]
While transporting the [[Dynamic Nuclear Generation System]] in his jet, Fowler was shot down by what he assumed was a Decepticon. He angrily contacted the Autobots for help in shifting the D.N.G.S. and it was loaded into Optimus's trailer to get transported across country. When the convoy was attacked, it turned out not to be the Decepticons after all, but a human organization known as [[MECH]]. A MECH goon climbed onto Optimus's back to try and unhitch the trailer, and Fowler climbed out to grab the guy, but was unable to get any answers before the man was knocked out of his hand by a passing tree branch. Fowler was then contacted by the MECH operative [[Silas]] who explained they were taking the D.N.G.S. The Autobots passed the device safely off to a train, but a short time later were confronted by Vehicons. Optimus apologetically informed Fowler they'd have to break cover to fight, before placing Fowler on a rock. After Silas informed Fowler by radio that he'd worked out the D.N.G.S. was on the train, Fowler tried to warn Optimus, who was promptly clocked by a tree trunk. Fowler had to hang out on the rock for the rest of the mission, but was able to observe Optimus saving the train from where he was. {{storylink|Convoy (episode)|Convoy}}

Fowler was away when the Autobots attempted to obtain his help in retrieving an [[Energon Harvester]] from a museum. His answer phone claimed he was an intensive training retreat, though Bulkhead was unconvinced and believed him to be lounging at a poolside cabana. They eventually managed to get through to him, and he helped them slip a replica of the Harvester into the museum to replace the original, and also to retrieve Miko, who'd been detained by the museum's [[museum security guard|security guard]]. {{storylink|Deus ex Machina}}

After the Decepticons broke into the [[Kauai Naval Observatory]] in [[Hawaii]], Fowler contacted the Autobots to ask if they'd encountered any Decepticons wearing hula skirts. He was able to tell them that the lens stolen by the Decepticons had a tracking device on it, leading the Autobots to find it in the [[Arctic]]. {{storylink|Out of His Head}}

Fowler was at the Autobot base when they learned that [[Breakdown (Prime)|Breakdown]] had gone missing in the middle of a fight with Bulkhead. He relayed intel that MECH had been spotted on the [[Kamchatka Peninsula]] where the fight had taken place. Optimus immediate took a team to mount a rescue, leaving Fowler at base with Bulkhead and Miko. Bulkhead suggested they watch a film, which Fowler was heartily in favor of, but he subsequently fell asleep while they were watching ''[[Dinolizard vs. Five-Headed Ape]]''. {{storylink|Operation: Breakdown}}

Jack called in Fowler to fend off Airachnid and MECH, and he easily forced Airachnid into retreat with some troops. However, Airachnid was able to scan Fowler's assault chopper, much to Fowler's annoyance that his vehicle had been used for a Decepticon's alternate mode again. When Airachnid and MECH fled, he wasn't surprised to hear MECH had vanished without a trace, and began briefing June Darby on the situation with the Cybertronians, only for Jack to convince him to drop it for tonight. {{storylink|Crisscross}}

Fowler reported on a number of high-tech component thefts by the Decepticons. When he informed the Autobots that the Decepticons were attacking a military laboratory, Optimus told him to have the base evacuated to avoid any loss of human life. {{storylink|One Shall Fall}}

The first thing he did when a number of earthquakes struck simultaneously around the world was call the Autobots and let them know. By the time he arrived at their base, [[Ratchet (Prime)|Ratchet]] had traced the tremors to the Earth's core, and they quickly realized that [[Unicron]], whom Optimus explained was a dark entity from Cybertron's past, was at the center of the planet. Fowler suggested sticking explosives down the hole Unicron originally crawled into, but Optimus believed Earth had formed around Unicron's slumbering form. Fowler stuck around as the Autobots investigated the tremors. {{Storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}}

The humans listened as the Autobots battled giant stone Unicrons, and as Megatron arrived to offer to help the Autobots defeat Unicron. Fowler wondered what would stop Megatron calling in an air strike once he knew where the Autobot base was, but Prime was confident that GroundBridging Megatron in would conceal their position sufficiently. The humans hid when Megatron turned up, but when Raf ran out to confront their foe, Fowler found himself having to drag away Miko after she started yelling at the Decepticon leader. The humans all watched the Autobots and Megatron step through the GroundBridge into Earth's core. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 2}}

[[Image:OneShallRise3-hug.jpg|right|250px|thumb|"I love this town!"]]
Frustrated at not being able to do anything, Fowler almost left the base to go get assistance from the Pentagon, but was distracted by Ratchet's tale of pre-Earth Optimus. When it turned out that Prime's team were all OK, Fowler was compelled to hug a startled June Darby. He and June were waiting at the GroundBridge with the kids, as the Autobots returned to report that Optimus had developed amnesia. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

Fowler wondered if they couldn't just locate Prime the same way the US government located Fowler, via a subcutaneous microchip, but was told Optimus's signal hadn't reappeared. Some time later, when the Decepticons attacked a military base, Fowler alerted the Autobots, but to his frustration they were unable to prevent human injuries or the theft of a power source. Later, it became apparent that in order to bring back Optimus, Jack would have to travel to Cybertron via the Decepticon space bridge. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}}

Fowler hooked Jack up with [[NASA]] to get him a space suit to wear on Cybertron. Not long after Jack and Arcee were sent, [[Breakdown (Prime)|Breakdown]] called Space Bridge Control, demanding a status report. Because [[Bulkhead (Prime)|two]] [[Ratchet (Prime)|of]] the Autobots there had voices that the Decepticon would recognize, and [[Bumblebee (Prime)|the third]] was mute, the task fell to Agent Fowler to imitate the [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicon]] stationed there and say that everything was okay, which went surprisingly well, even when he accidentally asked Breakdown how he was doing! {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}} He and the other humans monitored Jack's progress on Cybertron until the Autobots returned with their restored leader. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}}

[[Image:LooseCannons Wheeljack and Fowler.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Grr.]]
After obtaining the possible coordinates of the MECH base, Fowler attempted to alert Prime, only to find Bumblebee was the only one available to take his call. He later yelled at Ratchet as well. {{Storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 2}} Detecting two [[Transformer]]s fighting near [[Omaha]], Fowler alerted Prime to the situation with his usual subtlety. The Autobots helped newcomer [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] chase off [[Dreadwing (Prime)|Dreadwing]], though Fowler's jet was scanned by the Decepticon in the process. Fowler followed them back to the Autobot base to yell at them some more. {{storylink|Loose Cannons}}

Driving out of a military base, Fowler found himself under attack by what appeared to be Optimus Prime. He was only saved from being killed by the arrival of Bumblebee and Bulkhead, the latter of whom caught his car. Back at the Autobot base, it was quickly established the real Prime wasn't behind the attack, and Fowler fielded calls from the military as the imposter attacked [[Alden Military Base]]. Once they established [[Nemesis Prime (Prime)|Nemesis Prime]] was controlled by MECH, Fowler took part in an assault on the MECH base and kept Silas busy while Optimus finished off their experiment. {{storylink|Nemesis Prime (episode)|Nemesis Prime}}

Fowler was called to a debriefing by [[Bryce|General Bryce]] regarding recent Autobot activities. He did his best to explain what was going on, though he eventually had to resort to getting Optimus to speak to the general in person before his superior's worries were allayed. {{storylink|Grill}}

{{spoiler|Flying Mind|May 5, 2012}}
When Optimus decided to take advantage of the ''Nemesis'' crash to attack the ship, Fowler insisted on coming along. Though the attack ended in failure, they discovered that the warship had achieved sentience and was heading for North America. Fowler and the kids GroundBridged aboard to try and download the Iacon database, but when they discovered that the ship was heading for [[New York City]], Fowler tried to access navigation and was knocked out by the defenses. After disabling the ship's intelligence, the kids helped him back through the GroundBridge. {{storylink|Flying Mind}}
{{--}}

===Titan Magazines ''Prime'' comics===
[[Image:Titan4.1 Fowler with scientists.jpg|thumb|left|200px]]
After a bunch of alarms went off indicating that a nuclear warhead had just become live, Fowler scrambled with a team of scientists and government agents. They quickly arrived at the Autobot base, where Optimus asked how the missile had come to be left in the base. Fowler admitted it looked like a military failsafe in case the Autobots ever turned on the humans, and Prime firmly asked him to take the bomb with him when he left. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.1|The Safe and the Failsafe}}

Fowler was having a bad day—he was suffering from trapped wind, his car was under a snowdrift, his wife received a chicken instead of a turkey from the butcher, and the Decepticons had taken control of a [[Yamal|nuclear ship]] near [[Antarctica]]. Naturally, he took his problems to the Autobots. They could only help with the last one. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.3|Ice Breaker}} After the disappearance of [[Air Force One]], Fowler took the recovered black box to the Autobot base and played the ransom message on it to Optimus. To Fowler's relief, Optimus knew exactly where Starscream had taken the [[President of the United States|President]]. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.6|All the President's 'Bots!}}
{{--}}

===Commercial appearances===
Fowler had summoned the Autobots for a vague special mission. When Ratchet inquired as to backup for this mission, Fowler announced that [[Batman]] had agreed to join the mission. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime|Mission: Impossibly Awesome Marathon}}

==Notes==
[[Image:Convoy-Fowlerqueasy.jpg|thumb|250px|Half the time he's like this, and the other half he's a true badass.]]
*[[Michael Bell]] auditioning for "General Fowler" and [[Ratchet (Prime)|Ratchet]]<ref>http://voiceactors.wordpress.com/2009/12/11/transformers-gi-joe-hasbro-animated-cartoon/</ref> was the first piece of news the fandom received about ''Prime'', even before the title was revealed. Apparently Fowler transitioned from "General" to "Agent" at some point after that in production.
* Which agency Fowler's a Special Agent ''for'' isn't stated; since he specifically refers to the Pentagon as who he'd talk to and [[Crisscross|later]] calls his work "the agency", he's presumably with the Department of Defense's [[wikipedia:Defense Intelligence Agency|Defense Intelligence Agency]].
* The Autobots refer to him as their liaison with "the outside world", though he appears to just represent the United States.
* Fowler must have one ''awesome'' rank if he can decide on his own whether or not the Pentagon is to go on full alert!
* Agent Fowler spouts his own brand of colorful idioms infused with references to Americana when he is surprised or in a tight spot, including:
**"Well I'll be a bald eagle!" in "[[Masters & Students]]".
**"Sure thing buddy, right after you eat my star-spangled shorts." in "[[Darkness Rising, Part 3]]".
**"What in Uncle Sam's beard?" in "Darkness Rising, Part 3".
**"I don't care if Abraham Lincoln is back!" in "[[Loose Cannons]]".
**"Sweet Lady Liberty!" in "[[Flying Mind]]".
* When asked about Fowler's mouth and eyebrows "not animating right", panelists at [[BotCon 2011]] responded that he's "usually hungover".
* His vehicles have been [[scanning|scanned]] by the Decepticons three times now.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''William Fowler''' (ウィリアム・ファウラー ''Wiriamu Faurā'')

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, William}}
[[Category: Fiction-only characters]]
[[Category: Pilots]]
[[Category: Prime humans]]
[[Category: United States military]]

Enter the Nightbird

2012-04-28T18:14:17Z

207.151.155.11: /* Animation or technical glitches */

{{disambig2|the Generation 1 episode|the fictional film|Enter the Nightbird (film)}}
{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=26
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=17
|prev2=Atlantis, Arise!
|next2=Dinobot Island, Part 1
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=30
|prev3=Day of the Machines
|next3=A Prime Problem
|image=EnterTheNightbird Nightbird starscream.jpg
|caption="All right, now hit Starscream in the groin-plate."
|title="Enter the Nightbird"
|production code=#700-25
|airdate=[[September 30]], 1985
|written by=[[Sylvia Wilson]] [[Richard Milton]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Decepticons capture Nightbird, a deadly ninja-bot, and turn her loose on the Autobots.'''

:''Japanese title:'' ナイトバードの影 (''Nightbird no Kage'', "The Shadow of Nightbird")
:''Brazilian title:'' '''A Ninja''' ("Ninja")
:''Russian title:'' '''Poyavlenie Goloobki''' (''Появление Голубки'', "The Appearance of Darling")
:''Italian title, dub 1:'' '''L'arrivo di Ninja''' ("The arrival of Ninja")
:''Italian title, dub 2:'' '''Progetto Nightbird''' ("Project Nightbird")
==Synopsis==
[[Image:Nightbirdandfujiyama.jpg|left|175px|thumb|"No threat... not a threat at all."]]
The [[Autobot]]s are busily constructing [[detection plate]]s, a new invention of [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]]'s which will make the [[Ark (G1)|base]] more secure by detecting intruders. They're interrupted in their work by a call from [[Doctor Fujiyama the Famous Scientist]], requesting their help in guarding his latest invention during its unveiling to the world. His curiosity aroused, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus]] agrees when the doctor informs him that the invention is a sophisticated new robot. The Autobots attend the event, though Wheeljack and [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] are more interested in mocking the invention. Finally Dr. Fujiyama unveils [[Nightbird (G1)|Nightbird]], a "female ninja robot". Predictably, the [[Decepticon]]s attack and immediately have the upper hand because the Autobots won’t fight in a hall crowded with humans. As soon as the humans are cleared out, Optimus orders a counter-attack, personally grappling with [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]]. The Autobots are soon fully occupied, allowing [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] to tear the roof off the building, so that [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] can lasso Nightbird and carry the robot away. Their prize obtained, the rest of the Decepticons retreat.

They retire to Megatron's temporary base, a [[Giant Decepticon insignia|masterfully disguised fortress]], where [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] sets to work reprogramming Nightbird and tripling her power. Her first action on being reactivated is to immediately attack Starscream, which gains Megatron's approval. [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] gives her her new orders — infiltrate Autobot headquarters and steal the [[World Energy Chip]] from [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]].

Meanwhile, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus]] is apologetic for their abject failure to protect the robot, and promises to return it back to Dr. Fujiyama quickly and unharmed. The Autobots return to base, Ratchet carrying the injured [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]]. Nightbird soon arrives at Autobot HQ as well, avoiding a security camera by accessing the base through the top of the [[Mount St. Hilary|volcano]], eavesdropping on [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] and [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]]'s puzzled conversation over the Decepticons' latest plan. She neatly avoids Wheeljack's detection plates by magnetizing her feet and walking along the roof. Reaching Teletraan I, she removes the World Energy Chip, plunging the base into darkness and alerting the Autobots to the intruder.

[[Image:Nightbirdspotlight.jpg|right|175px|thumb|Nightbird wants her own [[The Transformers: Spotlight |spotlight comic]].]]
In her attempt to escape, she first encounters [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] and bashes her way past the startled Autobot. A group of Autobots corners her, but are hampered by the promise they made not to harm her, and she is able to use her ninja abilities to blind them and effect a proper escape. The Autobots pursue her outside, where Optimus spots her on a clifftop and drops her with a stun ray. As [[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] approaches her, she suddenly jumps up and decks him before throwing more spinning blades at his comrades. Optimus stops [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] from firing on her, reminding him again of their promise to Dr. Fujiyama, then attempts to reason with Nightbird. The robot responds by attacking him with her energy sword and stealing his rifle, though she leaves her sword behind.

Watching remotely, Megatron and Bombshell are impressed with Nightbird's work. Starscream less so when Megatron suggests she would make a good replacement for the air commander.

Ratchet and [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] discover the absence of the World Energy Chip and notify Prime. Using [[Hound (G1)|Hound]]'s sensors, the Autobots quickly relocate Nightbird, and Optimus attempts to lure her closer with her sword. She merely takes the weapon and knocks him down. The Autobots continue their attempts, unsuccessfully, to try to bring the ninja 'bot down.

[[Image:Nightbirdprime.jpg|left|175px|thumb|Prime, taking advantage of the fact [[Elita One|Elita]]'s on [[Cybertron (planet)|another planet]].]]
Meanwhile, Starscream has had enough of Megatron's insinuations about replacing him, and decks his leader. He's swiftly restrained by the other Decepticons and trapped in a cage. Megatron turns back to his spying and, seeing that Nightbird has finally been caught by the Autobots in an [[electro mesh prison]], orders the Decepticons out on a mission to rescue her and the World Energy Chip. Optimus is able to retrieve the Chip from Nightbird, but it's dropped in the subsequent Decepticon ambush. After a brief spell in Bombshell's possession, Optimus regains the chip, but Megatron responds by freeing Nightbird from her cage and unleashing her on the Autobots.

[[Image:Nightbirdangry.jpg|right|175px|thumb|Hell hath no fury like a Nightbird scorned.]]
Starscream uses a small missile to free himself from the cage in the Decepticon base, and swiftly reaches the battle in time to watch Nightbird overwhelming Optimus with her combat skills. Seeking revenge, the Decepticon uses his [[null-ray]] on Nightbird, disabling her. Megatron is enraged and calls off the attack so everyone can pursue Starscream.

The Autobots make good on their promise by returning Nightbird unharmed to Fujiyama, who decides to put her in storage. Despite being neutralized, Nightbird casts a final, angered glare out at the cold, cold, world.

{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (1)
* [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (2)
* [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (3)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (4)
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (5)
* [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (6)
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (7)
* [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (10)
* [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (11)
* [[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (15)
* [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (16)
* [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (21)

|c2=
* [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (8)
* [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] (9)
* [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (12)
* [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (13)
* [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (14)
* [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (17)
* [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (18)
* [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (19)
* [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] (20)

|c3=
* [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]]
* [[Doctor Fujiyama the Famous Scientist]]

|c4=
*[[Nightbird (G1)|Nightbird]]
}}

==Quotes==
"Imagine, Autobots playing nursemaid to an Earth robot. It's probably just a glorified wind-up toy."
:—Look who's talking, '''Wheeljack'''.

'''Ratchet''': Dr. Fujiyama's doohickey's under that drape! 
'''Wheeljack''': If it walks, it probably needs a long extension cord. 
'''Ratchet''': Heh heh heh. I wonder if batteries are included? Heh heh heh. 
'''Wheeljack''': When they turn it on, it'll probably blow the lights! 
'''Optimus''': We're here to guard the robot, not make jokes at its expense.
:—Wheeljack and Ratchet, masters of diplomacy

"Ah, why build a robot ninja, doctor? Isn't that rather dangerous?"
:—The '''guy with the white mustache''' asks what we're all thinking.

"I bring you greetings, Optimus Prime...lethal greetings!"
:—'''Megatron'''. His writers don't get paid enough.

"I love warping minds for you, Megatron...love it!"
:—'''Bombshell''', the spokesman for ''Grand Theft Auto''.

"I'm open to suggestions...and you don't need to raise your hands before you speak."
:—Shouldn't '''Optimus Prime''' have said something like "raise your finger components" instead?

"She's not so hot!" 
"She's hot enough to replace you whenever I choose!"
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Megatron''' utter the words that launch a thousand [[fanfic]]s.

"Yes, you're definitely on my replacement list, Starscream.... Hahaha, she's everything I've always wanted!"
:—'''Megatron'''. Aw, all he wanted was some love.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical glitches===
* Throughout the entire episode, the volume of the background music is a notch or two lower than normal, making it sound rather unemphatic.
* The top of Ironhide's torso is colored red instead of gray as Wheeljack says his "nursemaid" line. In the same scene, the bottom of Wheeljack's "ears" aren't flashing along with the rest of them.
* The ''round'' auditorium building somehow contains a ''rectangular'' auditorium. Later shots show the auditorium as having a domed ceiling, which is consistent with the exterior shot but doesn't make a lick of sense spatially. As Optimus apologizes to Dr. Fujiyama later in the episode, the ruined auditorium is suddenly round. Also, the opening pan across the auditorium also shows it to be of ''incredibly '' huge scale.
* As he and Ratchet crack jokes about the robot, the top segment of the side of Wheeljack's chest is colored windshield blue instead of metal armor white.
* For the most part, the episode is ''amazingly'' consistent about where the Autobots are during the unveiling of Nightbird, but as the robot is revealed, Prowl and Mirage are shown right next to each other, when they were a hundred feet apart a second before.
* When Rumble and Frenzy break into the show room, Rumble's pile drivers are rectangular prisms instead of the usual cylinders.
* One gun, many lasers:
** Frenzy's lasers pass right through the fleeing humans without affecting them. He's also somehow firing like 5 or 6 lasers at once from his two guns.
* One of the fleeing humans falls down with debris falling from the ceiling. When someone helps him up, his clothes change from gray to brown as he begins to run again.
* When Thundercracker pulls the roof off the building, Skywarp's appearence is ignored.
* How did Thundercracker flip the roof upside down?
* Laserbeak cuts a portion of the ceiling with a laser, which falls from the the other side of the building onto Ironhide.
* When Optimus Prime gets shot in the back by Megatron, he grunts and oophs in Mirage's voice.
* The "triple power booster" that Bombshell places in Nightbird's torso couldn't possibly fit in the space that's shown.
* Ratchet has no red detailing in ambulance mode as he offers a lift to Brawn.
* Ratchet has a side hatch instead of his usual rear hatch as Mirage loads Brawn into him. Brawn is loaded in sideways, meaning Ratchet is wider than Brawn is tall.
* Mirage's missle changes from gray to black when he loads Brawn into Ratchet.
* Mirage shines a light on Nightbird from an area of his chest that clearly is not a light of any kind.
* The first commercial break totally cuts off the background music in mid-phrase.
* Cliffjumper's brow is missing its details and color as he aims at Nightbird.
* When Nightbird's lightsaber is shot and deactivated, the sound effects continue for about two more seconds before they stop.
* Jazz's mouth disappears for a second as he goes to help Prime to his feet.
* Missing Seeker emblems:
** Skywarp has no wing insignia as he watches the video screen in the [[Giant Decepticon insignia|Decepticon base]].
** Starscream has only one insignia as he punches Megatron. Skywarp has none a second later as he holds Starscream, and again as he backs away from the energy cage.
** Starscream has no insignia as he lands at the battle site.
** Thundercracker and Skywarp have no insignia as the Decepticons fly off after Starscream. In fact, Skywarp doesn't seem to have his insignia at any point during the episode. Seriously, is there a single episode where they didn't screw this up?
* Miscolored Seeker nosecones:
** Starscream's top and bottom cockpit segments are yellow instead of gray as Bombshell challenges him.
** Skywarp and Thundercracker both have all-yellow nosecones as they transform to leave the base.
** Skywarp's nosecone is gray as he and everybody else transforms and launches during the start of the battle.
** Starscream's nosecone goes from all-yellow to all-gray as he leaves the base and transforms.
** Starscream's bottom nosecone segment is yellow instead of gray as he laughs at Megatron. As he transforms and flies off, his nosecone is entirely yellow. Seriously, is there a single episode where they didn't screw ''this'' up?
* Why does Hound's infrared ''beep''? Is it a radar?
* As usual, Mirage only leaves footprints when he's invisible.
* "She jammed it!" Cliffjumper says, when Nightbird throws Bluestreak's missile into his glass gas nozzle. Couldn't he just... pull the missile out?
* The animators missed a note about what Starscream was supposed to do inside the energy cage. He's all like "You can't keep me in here, Megatron! AHHHHHHH!", as if he rushed the cage and got zapped by it or something, but the animation shows him just standing there, which makes it seem like he expects to shout the system down. Sure enough, the original script contains the following direction:
:ANGLE ON MEGATRON as he moves closer to the cage.
:MEGATRON: Well, I don't see why not...!
:Starscream tries to punch at Megatron, but when his fist hits the power grid, it creates ELECTRICAL SPARKS. Starscream draws his hand back, holding it in pain.
:STARSCREAM: (SCREAMS!)<ref name="serpentslair">[http://www.theplumedserpent.com/SerpentsEye/ETN.html "Enter The Nightbird" episode review at The Serpent's Lair]</ref>
* Hound is missing all his chest details as Optimus reacts to Megatron's arrival. It suddenly appears as the Autobots attack.
* What on earth is that weird energy ripple sound effect as Starscream drops out of the sky? As Starscream lands, his eyes are blue instead of red.
* As Starscream knocks out Nightbird, the [[null ray]] gets a truncated Autobot laser sound effect instead of the Decepticon sound.
* A dialog or script editing flub results in Starscream bizarrely gloating "Say good night to your ''Megatron''!" after blasting Nightbird. Per the original script, the line was meant to go "Say good night to your <something>, Megatron!", but whatever the original noun was, it was crossed out in black and the word "Robotessa" was hand-written in its place. <ref name="serpentslair" /> The baffling question of what the heck a "Robotessa" is aside, this hand-written re-write was apparently overlooked when the dialogue script for the recording of the episode was written up, as the spoken line shows no signs of being edited or cut-and-pasted back together, indicating that Chris Latta genuinely spoke it aloud in recording as it appears in the show. It ''would'' make sense if Starscream was addressing it towards Nightbird, but he's not.
* The glow of Nightbird's eyes starts a second before the accompanying sound effect.

===Continuity errors===
* Wheeljack's detection panels don't make any sense. They're just glorified metal detectors, that react to metal, the very thing that the Autobots and Autobot Headquarters are made of. The Autobots put them all over the ''floor'', to detect their flight-capable enemies. So does that mean the Autobots can no longer use that particular corridor?
* The scientists' reactions to Nightbird seem a bit overwrought considering that the robot has yet to do anything besides stand there.
* Dr. Fujiyama assures us that Nightbird is "not meant for battles or assassinations" as we pan over the robot. So... just what ''are'' those short knives and nunchucks and throwing stars meant for? Is Nightbird supposed to ''stab'' her way into "the horizons of robotic research"?
* The Autobots didn't think to post anybody ''outside'' the building? Since that's, y'know, where the Decepticons would come from?
* Why do the Decepticons need a whole new base just for the Nightbird project? What possible advantage does it serve?
* When Prime apologizes for losing Nightbird to the Decepticons, Doctor Fujiyama's response is that no one could have predicted it happening. Except... that's why he called the Autobots in the first place! Being a rather stereotypical Japanese guy, maybe he's just too polite to tell Prime that he botched it.
* This is the only time that Autobot Headquarters is shown to have an elevator going up into the volcano's cone. [[The Ultimate Doom, Part 2|Earlier]] and [[Dinobot Island, Part 2|later]] episodes contradict this notion. And just what are Prowl and Spike doing up there, anyway?
* How come the detection panels don't go off when Nightbird waves her hand next to them?
* Why is Prime helping repair Brawn? Repairs aren't usually his gig.
* Improbable viewpoints:
** Why/how does Ratchet get a third-person view of Optimus and the others when he calls them up via Teletraan I?
** How is Megatron watching the whole battle from his base? Is Laserbeak there keeping tabs or something? Or is this another instance of him putting [[The Master Builders|cameras inside every random rock]]?
* At the end of the second act, Nightbird gets the drop on Prime and raises her sword as if to slice him in half. At the opening of the third act, however, she's just standing there in front of him, idly spinning the sword around, then turns and runs away for no real reason.
* Nightbird's "magnetic feet" reappear later in the episode, when she's climbing... a rock face.
* "Watch how my anti-matter blaster eats up energy!" Megatron says. We feel this amazing breach of science needs no further elaboration. (The intended idea ''may'' have been that the blaster is highly energy-consumptive and could absorb the energy net as a power supply or something; however, what's shown instead is that ''firing'' the gun ''at'' the energy net somehow dissipates it.)
* "I'm so glad you have returned Nightbird... and not a scratch on her chassis!" What about that big hole in her back from just the previous scene?
* "Safely locked up... ''forever''!" Why not just take her to pieces, then?

===Continuity notes===
* Gadgets and powers:
** Nightbird's gadgets: [[Wikipedia:Nunchaku|nunchaku]] (unused), a pair of [[Wikipedia:Sai (weapon)|''sai'' daggers]] (also unused), a wrist-mounted grappling hook, magnetic feet (they also work on rocks!), fist-replacing sawblades, [[Wikipedia:Metsubushi|some kind of spin/make bright light/disappear gimmick]], an endless supply of hip-stored energized [[Wikipedia:Shuriken|shuriken]], a lightsaber, another unused weapon the hilt of which is visible on her "backpack", a glowing magnetic tractor beam, and stereo speaker-nullifying metal donuts. Additionally, she vanishes after jumping over a cliff edge, leading Mirage to wonder if she has the power of invisibility.
** Cliffjumper's [[glass gas]] is a fiery glue-like substance in this episode, which he fires from a retractable wrist nozzle.
** Starscream can fire a tiny little missile from an elevating launcher on his wrist.
* In [[3H Productions|3H]]'s [[Universe (2003 comic)|''Universe'' comics]], Nightbird returned as a savage horde, which forced [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] to kill himself and [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] to destroy them...which goes to show that they ''are'' good for something.
* [[Attack of the Autobots|<<]] '''Brawn vs. Soundwave''' Round 4 goes to Soundwave. Score: Brawn 3, Soundwave 1 [[Child's Play (episode)|>>]]

===Real-world references===
* The title could be a reference to the film ''[[wikipedia:Enter_the_Dragon|Enter the Dragon]]''. This would not be the last time the film is referenced in a Transformers series.
* Although it's subtle, Optimus understands Japanese culture enough to bow when ending the conversation. Quite impressive when you consider no obvious character would have taught him Japanese culture, shown by the fact that he doesn't know what a "ninja" is.
* ''Star Wars'' sound effects:
** Nightbird's lightsaber ignites with the standard Star Wars lightsaber effect, and gets the usual lightsaber-waving sound effects repeatedly when it's used.
** The seeker ball that Luke trains with aboard the ''Millennium Falcon'' can be heard darting about as Nightbird waves her sword at the approaching Optimus Prime.

===Trivia===
* The first ''female'' ninja robot? So are there already a lot of ''male'' ninja robots running around out there?

* Dr. Fujiyama's assertion that "the technical components are irreplaceable, and are needed for research" is... curious. If he built the thing himself, why would it be so impossible to manufacture new parts?

* When the Autobots are chasing Nightbird up a cliff, Cliffjumper can't jump the cliff. This has been the source of much fandom snickering over the years. Congratulations, fandom; you get the joke. Good job.

* Back in the late 1990s, this episode was at the center of a huge and long-running [[fandom]] flap on [[alt.toys.transformers]], initiated by [[Raksha|certain Decepticon fans]] who interpreted Nightbird's scowl as a clear sign that she was a sapient life form, rather than a mindless automaton. In conjunction with certain lines of dialog from Megatron, some fans further concluded that Nightbird could be seen as a romantic foil for Megatron. These arguments and the opposing viewpoints led to much agony for everyone involved.

* The [[Dreamwave Productions|Dreamwave comic]] "[[Infestation (Dreamwave)|Infestation]]" featured Nightbird in her own movie, aptly named ''[[Aztec Theatres|Enter the Nightbird]]''.

* Doctor Fujiyama the ''Famous'' Scientist!

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 2 (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Bumper Collection Special (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 03: Stagione Due Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/synopses/enter_the_nightbird.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]

M1 Abrams Decepticon

2012-04-15T22:55:37Z

207.151.155.11: /* Dark of the Moon */

{{faction|decepticonfilm}}
{{noname-nickname}}
:''The M1 Abrams Decepticon is a Decepticon from the [[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (franchise)|Dark of the Moon]] portion of the [[live-action film series]] continuity.''
[[Image:M1 Abrams Decepticon.jpg|right|225px|thumb|Deep Desert... somebody.]]
The '''M1 Abrams Decepticon''' shares the same [[body-type]] as [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]].

==Fiction==
===''Dark of the Moon''===
The M1 Abrams [[Decepticon]] took part in the fight against the [[Autobot]]s in the battle in [[Chicago]]. Despite his attempts to kill the Autobots, he was one of the first to be killed when [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] landed on him and attacked the active Decepticons in an epic frontal attack. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}

==Notes==
*The M1 Abrams Decepticon reuses the CGI model of Brawl from the [[Transformers (film)|first live-action movie]], but given that Brawl died in that film, it's unlikely this guy was intended to be him. This isn't the first time the "[[Buffalo MPV Decepticon|reused CGI model for incidental character]]" phenomenon has cropped up within the movie universe, but at least this time, some differentiation of color is employed: where Brawl was green, this guy is brown, a bit like Brawl's [[Brawl (Movie)#deepdesert|"Deep Desert" toy]].
*Since Brawl was not actually an M1 Abrams tank, but a redressed tank prop originally made for the film ''[[Wikipedia:xXx: State of the Union|xXx: State of the Union]]'', and Hasbro's toys of Brawl were not [[licensed vehicle alternate modes|licensed]] Abrams tanks either, our makeshift name for this guy is somewhat inaccurate.

[[Category:Dark of the Moon Decepticons]]
[[Category:Live-action-only characters]]

Energon-axe

2011-10-20T22:52:17Z

207.151.155.11:

{{disambig2|Optimus Prime's melee weapon|the Andalite Animorph|Ax}}

[[Image:G1 Prime energon-axe.JPG|right|300px|thumb|Prime's got an axe to grind...right into Megatron.]]
The '''energon-axe''' is an iconic weapon used by [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] whenever he needs a melee weapon. He retracts his hand, and an emitter for the energy axe projects the blade. Despite only using it when he and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] are fighting on [[Sherman Dam|a particular dam]], it was a very memorable ability, so much so that recent rereleases and redesigns of Prime's toy have actually included the axe as an accessory, either replacing or covering a hand.

=
===Generation 1 cartoon continuity=== [[Image:Shermandam.jpg|left|thumb|200px]]
When duelling [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] on top of [[Sherman Dam]], Optimus Prime used his energon-axe against the [[Decepticon]]'s [[energon mace]]. Prime lost the fight when he was distracted by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] calling for help. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 2|More than Meets the Eye, Part 2}}
{{-}}

====The Stargate Battles====
[[Image:Stargatebattles prime cx slice.jpg|right|thumb]]
In the mid-1990s, Optimus Prime helped [[Adle|Professor Adle]] test-drive his new [[C-X]] drone in a mock combat session. When C-X ran out of control thanks to the interference of the time-travelling ghost of [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] (yes, really), Prime was forced to unleash his energon-axe and chop the drone's head off. {{storylink|Divided Views|Divided Views}}

A little later, while investigating Decepticon-made earthquakes that were striking [[Japan]], Prime engaged Megatron in combat on the bed of the Sea of Japan, and they battled with their axe and mace. {{storylink|Activation}}
{{-}}
====''Robot Masters'' online comic====
[[Image:Robotmasters prime vs megses.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While in a battle with Megatron and his [[Megatron (BW)|time-displaced namesake]], Prime's right hand was severed by the latter. Luckily, this didn't affect his ability to summon his axe, which he used to take down both Decepticons in one powerful swing. {{storylink|And Then}}

{{-}}

===Marvel Comics continuity===
[[Image:Boulderdamfight.jpg|right||thumb|]]
{{Noteukonly}}
''As they made their way to the ''Ark'', Ratchet described the energon-weapon battle at Sherman Dam to the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] as a way to illustrate the difficulties the Autobots had in relaying their peaceful intentions to the humans.'' {{storylink|Decepticon Dam-Busters!|Decepticon Dam-Busters!}}

{{--}}

===''Henkei! Henkei! Bun Bun'' manga===
[[Image:Henkei chpt 06 Optimus sword.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While battling [[Megatron (G1)#Henkei! Henkei! Bun Bun manga|Megatron]] to save the life of his human ally [[Wataru Hoshinoumi]], [[Optimus Prime (G1)#Henkei! Henkei! Bun Bun manga|Optimus Prime]] busted out his energon-axe, but was bested by Megatron's [[energon mace]]. An energy boost courtesy of Wataru's [[energon (fuel)|energon]]-manipulating powers got him back on his feet, powering up his axe into a mighty sword that he used to cleave open Megatron's chest, winning the fight. {{storylink|Optimus Prime's Secret}}

Prime got his sword out again for a rematch with Megatron when the Decepticon leader was recuperating from his wounds in a bath of molten energon. Prime went so far as to stab him through the chest and break the sword's blade off inside him, but this only drove Megatron into a frenzy, leading him to use the energon to transform himself into [[Galvatron (G1)#Henkei! Henkei! Bun Bun manga|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|Creation! The New Emperor of Destruction!!}} Galvatron proved virtually undefeatable, until a well-placed shot from [[Starscream (G1)#Henkei! Henkei! Bun Bun manga|Starscream]] re-opened his chest wound, allowing Prime to drive his sword into the gash and tear his opponent wide open. {{storylink|Revenge (issue)|Revenge}}
{{-}}
===''Universe'' cartoon===
[[Image:FfE Optimus Prime Cyclonus.JPG|right|thumb|250px]]
In a skirmish with [[Decepticon]]s, Optimus Prime used his energon-axe to knock out [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]]. {{storylink|Fight for Energon}}
{{--}}
===''Prime'' continuity===
[[Image:WarforCybertron-OptimusPrime.jpg||left|200px|thumb|]]
[[Optimus Prime (Prime)|Optimus Prime]] used a double-headed axe since his days at the [[Hall of Records]], learning to transform it from his body while learning to fight. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}} He could charge it to blow open walls, and would leap into the air with it for finishing moves against [[Soundwave (Prime)|Soundwave]] and [[Trypticon (Prime)|Trypticon]]. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)}}

===''Dark of the Moon''===
Optimus used an energon axe in his fight with Sentinel Prime. He also used it to destroy Megatron after refusing his foe's offer of a truce. {{storylink|Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}

{{--}}

==Toys==
===The Transformers Collection===
[[Image:Tf collection 0 convoy.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
* '''Convoy''' (2003)
** Japanese ID Number: 0
:The ''[[The Transformers Collection|Transformers Collection]]'' reissue of the original [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys|Optimus Prime toy]] comes with a new energon-axe accessory that plugs into either of Prime's wrist holes after you remove his hands.
::*''[http://www.tfu.info/1984/Autobot/OptimusPrime/optimusprime.htm More information on Transformers Collection Optimus Prime at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

===20th Anniversary/Masterpiece===
* '''Optimus Prime''' (2003/2004)

:The energon-axe is again a hand-replacing accessory for ''20th Anniversary'' Optimus Prime, cast in transparent orange plastic.

* '''Convoy Complete Edition''' (2006)

:Same as above.

===Robot Masters===
* '''G1 Convoy''' (2004)

:Another clear orange axe that replaces Prime's hand.

* '''G1 Convoy Limited Black Version''' (2005)

:For this [[black repaint]], the energon-axe was decoed in silver.

===Classics===
* '''Optimus Prime''' (20th Anniversary DVD Edition, 2006)

:In this redeco of ''20th Anniversary'' Optimus Prime, the energon-axe remains the same.

===Hybrid Style===
* '''Convoy''' (2006)

:An energon-axe that plugs into the ball-joint socket intended for Convoys many hands.

==Merchandise==
[[Image:HOCPrime axe.jpg|right|150px|thumb|]]
===Heroes of Cybertron===
* '''Optimus Prime with Plasma Weapon''' (2002)

: A modification of the first ''Heroes of Cybertron'' Optimus Prime, with the energon-axe replacing his right hand.

* '''Convoy Vs Megatron''' (2002)

: A Tokyo Toy Show exclusive that includes both energon weapons and normal hands for Optimus Prime and Megatron.

{{-}}
==Notes==

*Generation 1 Prime's energon-axe served as the inspiration for the arm-mounted [[Dual Energon Swords]] sported by live-action movie [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]].

[[Category:Blades]]
[[Category:Energon|Axe]]
[[Category:Generation 1 weapons]]

Generic

2011-10-20T22:50:17Z

207.151.155.11: /* Live-action movie continuity */

[[Image:VictoryMicroCriminalsEp18.jpg|right|500px|thumb|What do any of us turn into?]]
A "'''generic'''" is the fan-coined, unofficial term for any unnamed background [[Transformer]] that is clearly not intended to represent any previously existing and named toy/character. Generics are frequently used to fill out crowd scenes and battles, and often employ repeated standardized designs (especially in the older material such as the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]]).

It is rare that a generic gets a speaking part, but it has happened from time to time. However, if the character is given a name they cease to be a generic and becomes a regular old character (see [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]] for an example of such an apotheosis).

== Notable generics==
===Generation 1 cartoon===
[[Image:GenericDecepticons MTMTE.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I don't know how, but I'm pretty sure the Decepticons were cheating.]]
*[[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] - The comparatively low number of Decepticons in the early episodes of the cartoon led to the filling out of the ranks with numerous generics based on the existing cast, most notably the Seekers.

*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] - At times, there were more than three. Though to be fair, it's speculated that Reflector was just one guy who could clone himself...

* Rumble/Frenzy body types. Just look at the picture to the right.

*[[Junkion (species)|Junkions]] - Hordes of generic Junkions tended to appear whenever the cartoon visited [[Junkion (planet)|that planet]]. Sometimes [[Lithone (species)|Lithone]] character models were repurposed as Junkions.

*Paradrons - The entire population of [[Paradron]] save for [[Sandstorm (G1)|Sandstorm]] were generics, especially their [[Paradron Medic|medics]].

*The "historic footage" from "[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2]]" features a [[Early war history records Transformers|large number of generics]] with completely made-up character models. Some of these models later show up again in "[[The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1]]", "[[The Burden Hardest to Bear]]" and even ''[[The Headmasters (cartoon)|The Headmasters]]''.

=== Marvel comics ===
{{noteukonly}}
[[Image:Generic decepticons marvel 1.jpg|thumb|210px|left|Optimus Prime? Who's that meant to be?]]
* The [[The Transformers (issue)|first issue]] of the Marvel comic featured a very high proportion of generic characters - probably more than any issue of a Transformers comic since. Many of these were recycled from existing character models and some may be simple coloring errors, though a generic that resembles a miscolored [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] leading the Decepticons' assault on the Ark may take more explaining. A number of the generics in battle scenes tote weapons like [[Ion blaster]]s and [[Fusion cannon]]s.

* ''A generic Decepticon technician of a standard design originally created by [[Will Simpson]] for [[Resurrection!|issue #103]] was forcibly upgraded into a [[Straxus (G1)|clone of Megatron]].''

* ''[[Dan Reed]] drew hundreds of generic "zombie" Transformers for the stories "[[City of Fear!]]" and "[[Legion of the Lost!]]"''

===Beast Wars===
[[Image:Agendapt1 generic Predacons.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Wheeeee, best slide ''EVER''!]]
*Numerous generic [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]] were seen being jostled within [[Predacon Command Outpost One]] when the station was struck by the [[transwarp wavefront]]. {{storylink|The Agenda (Part 1)}}

=== Beast Machines ===
* Generation 1 [[character model]]s created for the ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' episode "[[The Agenda (Part III)]]" were modified to represent various generic Cybertronian citizens who were infected with Megatron's transformation lock virus.
* A [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] character model appears in [[Nightscream (BM)|Nightscream]]'s flashback. {{storylink|Forbidden Fruit|Forbidden Fruit}}
* A [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] character model shows up as a corpse in a Vehicon factory. {{storylink|Revelations Part I: Discovery}}

{{collist|2|
[[Image:Bm soundwave.jpg|thumb|center|200px|Soundwave? Never heard of that guy.]]
[[Image:ProwlMaybe BM.jpg|thumb|center|200px|And at long last we have found ''[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]]''!]]
}}

=== Armada ===
[[Image:Prominent generic.png|left|100px|thumb|"I had a bigger role than Overload!"]]
* Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out using Generation 1 cartoon character models, creating several odd instances of classic characters getting remarkably awkward (and often randomly-colored) cameos. (For example, ''Hound is on the side of the Decepticons''. Not to mention a purple Powerglide)

* Depending on who was animating the episode, the masses of [[Mini-Con]]s combined toy-characters with either randomly-colored toy-based models or entirely-new designs... or, in one notable instance, [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]]'s character model!

=== Energon ===
[[Image:EnergonGeneric.jpg|right|150px|thumb|"Absolutely, positively not made of the corpses of other more important characters, SIR!"]]
* Due to the computer generated nature of the graphics, both Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out with generics assembled from parts of other existing or unused character models. [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]]'s original "Wing Dagger" form is one such example of a mixed-and-matched generic character model.

=== Cybertron ===
* Most of the [[Ancient Decepticon]]s were generics, using slightly varied models. Nearly all of these clearly seen looked like their alternate modes were jets or starfighters of varying sort, and almost certainly Cybertronian in origin. They mainly served to be beaten up, and some possibly slagged, by the Autobots, but they did prove helpful in the final struggle.
* Many of the civilian Transformers were generic also, at least two being based off of [[Longrack (Cybertron)|Longrack]] and several being based off of [[Blurr (Cybertron)|Blurr]]. Others were more varied, as with the ancient Decepticons. These featured alternate modes used by characters in previous series, with a few new things, such as a bus and jetliners, being thrown in. It is noteworthy that none of these were ever seen in robot mode, save as silhouettes in "[[Fallen (episode)|Fallen]]". The generic Ancient Decepticons, in contrast, were not seen in vehicle mode, save perhaps for a few brief glimpses.
* In a flashback shot in "[[Honor]]" and in a present-day scene in "[[Challenge]]" various generic [[Jungle Planet (Cybertron)|Jungle Planet]] natives were shown in beast mode. These beast modes included various dinosaurs, a lobster-alt body type shared by at least two, and another shared body type that transformed into an owl.

=== Devil's Due comics ===
[[Image:Joetfii 03a.jpg|left|150px|thumb|I don't know who I am, but apparently I'm awesome.]]
* After the events of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers]] left the Decepticons short on troops, in [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II]] artist [[E. J. Su]] padded out [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]'s Cybertronian forces with nameless, but intricately designed generics. Sadly the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] arrived, and Dinobots vs. generic Decepticons is always going to end badly for the no-names.
* Also notable is the generic "future Decepticon" composed of a mix of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Energon Scorponok]], [[Megatron (Armada)|Armada Megatron]], and topped with [[Sky Garry (ROC)|Sky Garry]]'s head, who appeared on the cover of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3|#3]] (as seen to the left). Part of him was shown in the cliffhanger of issue 2, but despite his appearance on the cover, he did did not appear in the following issue at all. Instead his place was filled by hordes of generic [[Ravage (G1)|Ravages]], [[Sweep|Sweeps]] and Insecticons. Though multiple Insecticons and Sweeps have been previously seen, this is the first time we have seen clones of Ravage.
* At the series' conclusion, Shockwave is tended by a generic [[Decepticon medics|Decepticon medic]], who has a similar design to [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]].

{{-}}

=== Animated ===
Many unnamed generic Decepticons appear at Megatron's funeral in [[Dispatches]].
[[Image:Animated females.jpg|thumb|178px|Because of the [[AllSpark Almanac]]s, we didn't stay unnamed for long.]]
In Season 3, many Generics flesh out crowd scenes. Normally these Generics are just randomly colored characters, but sometimes they have [[Bumper (Animated)|new heads]] and [[Tap-Out (Animated)|posture]], or sometimes even a [[Glyph (Animated)|new gender]]! This is especially noticeable in "[[Decepticon Air]]", "[[This Is Why I Hate Machines]]" and "[[Endgame, Part II]]".
{{--}}

=== Live-action movie continuity===
[[Image:ROTF Protoform army.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Those who didn't fancy fighting nude had to [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|borrow]] [[Long Haul (ROTF)|others']] [[Scrapper (ROTF)|clothes]].]]
Perhaps as an homage to the franchise's long history of generic background characters, or perhaps just to save time, [[Industrial Light & Magic|ILM]] added many re-used and re-colored characters into the backgrounds of the larger battle scenes featured in ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]''.
*A [[protoform]] army with heads resembling [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]].
*The [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]]s [[Long Haul (ROTF)|Long Haul]], [[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage]], [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|Mixmaster]] and [[Scrapper (ROTF)|Scrapper]] appeared in more than one place simultaneously, creating generics.
*A [[Buffalo MPV Decepticon]] resembling [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] from the [[Transformers (2007)|first movie]].
*Hundreds of [[Dynasty of Primes|Prime]] lookalikes during the battle of 17,000 B.C.
{{note| Despite having a recycled character model, [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor's]] presence in the toyline establishes his continuing [[Seeker (body-type)|an age old custom]] rather than being a generic. The same reasoning can be applied to Demolishor and [[Scavenger (ROTF)|Scavenger]].}}
* A [[Scrapper (ROTF) |Scrapper]] is seen in the [[ Dark of the Moon |(film)]] when [[Optimus Prime (Movie) |Optimus Prime]] charges down the street and slashes him with his [[Energon Sword]].

==External links==
*[http://s90690880.onlinehome.us/jhiaxus/pages/generics.htm Generics at the Obscure Transformers Website]
*[http://www.insecticons.com/screencapsarm/s-npcs.html Armada Background Characters at insecticons.com]

{{stub}}

[[Category:Fan terminology]]
[[Category:Fandom]]
[[Category:Generation 1]]

Generic

2011-10-20T22:49:55Z

207.151.155.11: /* Live-action movie continuity */

[[Image:VictoryMicroCriminalsEp18.jpg|right|500px|thumb|What do any of us turn into?]]
A "'''generic'''" is the fan-coined, unofficial term for any unnamed background [[Transformer]] that is clearly not intended to represent any previously existing and named toy/character. Generics are frequently used to fill out crowd scenes and battles, and often employ repeated standardized designs (especially in the older material such as the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]]).

It is rare that a generic gets a speaking part, but it has happened from time to time. However, if the character is given a name they cease to be a generic and becomes a regular old character (see [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]] for an example of such an apotheosis).

== Notable generics==
===Generation 1 cartoon===
[[Image:GenericDecepticons MTMTE.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I don't know how, but I'm pretty sure the Decepticons were cheating.]]
*[[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] - The comparatively low number of Decepticons in the early episodes of the cartoon led to the filling out of the ranks with numerous generics based on the existing cast, most notably the Seekers.

*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] - At times, there were more than three. Though to be fair, it's speculated that Reflector was just one guy who could clone himself...

* Rumble/Frenzy body types. Just look at the picture to the right.

*[[Junkion (species)|Junkions]] - Hordes of generic Junkions tended to appear whenever the cartoon visited [[Junkion (planet)|that planet]]. Sometimes [[Lithone (species)|Lithone]] character models were repurposed as Junkions.

*Paradrons - The entire population of [[Paradron]] save for [[Sandstorm (G1)|Sandstorm]] were generics, especially their [[Paradron Medic|medics]].

*The "historic footage" from "[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2]]" features a [[Early war history records Transformers|large number of generics]] with completely made-up character models. Some of these models later show up again in "[[The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1]]", "[[The Burden Hardest to Bear]]" and even ''[[The Headmasters (cartoon)|The Headmasters]]''.

=== Marvel comics ===
{{noteukonly}}
[[Image:Generic decepticons marvel 1.jpg|thumb|210px|left|Optimus Prime? Who's that meant to be?]]
* The [[The Transformers (issue)|first issue]] of the Marvel comic featured a very high proportion of generic characters - probably more than any issue of a Transformers comic since. Many of these were recycled from existing character models and some may be simple coloring errors, though a generic that resembles a miscolored [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] leading the Decepticons' assault on the Ark may take more explaining. A number of the generics in battle scenes tote weapons like [[Ion blaster]]s and [[Fusion cannon]]s.

* ''A generic Decepticon technician of a standard design originally created by [[Will Simpson]] for [[Resurrection!|issue #103]] was forcibly upgraded into a [[Straxus (G1)|clone of Megatron]].''

* ''[[Dan Reed]] drew hundreds of generic "zombie" Transformers for the stories "[[City of Fear!]]" and "[[Legion of the Lost!]]"''

===Beast Wars===
[[Image:Agendapt1 generic Predacons.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Wheeeee, best slide ''EVER''!]]
*Numerous generic [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]] were seen being jostled within [[Predacon Command Outpost One]] when the station was struck by the [[transwarp wavefront]]. {{storylink|The Agenda (Part 1)}}

=== Beast Machines ===
* Generation 1 [[character model]]s created for the ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' episode "[[The Agenda (Part III)]]" were modified to represent various generic Cybertronian citizens who were infected with Megatron's transformation lock virus.
* A [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] character model appears in [[Nightscream (BM)|Nightscream]]'s flashback. {{storylink|Forbidden Fruit|Forbidden Fruit}}
* A [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] character model shows up as a corpse in a Vehicon factory. {{storylink|Revelations Part I: Discovery}}

{{collist|2|
[[Image:Bm soundwave.jpg|thumb|center|200px|Soundwave? Never heard of that guy.]]
[[Image:ProwlMaybe BM.jpg|thumb|center|200px|And at long last we have found ''[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]]''!]]
}}

=== Armada ===
[[Image:Prominent generic.png|left|100px|thumb|"I had a bigger role than Overload!"]]
* Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out using Generation 1 cartoon character models, creating several odd instances of classic characters getting remarkably awkward (and often randomly-colored) cameos. (For example, ''Hound is on the side of the Decepticons''. Not to mention a purple Powerglide)

* Depending on who was animating the episode, the masses of [[Mini-Con]]s combined toy-characters with either randomly-colored toy-based models or entirely-new designs... or, in one notable instance, [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]]'s character model!

=== Energon ===
[[Image:EnergonGeneric.jpg|right|150px|thumb|"Absolutely, positively not made of the corpses of other more important characters, SIR!"]]
* Due to the computer generated nature of the graphics, both Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out with generics assembled from parts of other existing or unused character models. [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]]'s original "Wing Dagger" form is one such example of a mixed-and-matched generic character model.

=== Cybertron ===
* Most of the [[Ancient Decepticon]]s were generics, using slightly varied models. Nearly all of these clearly seen looked like their alternate modes were jets or starfighters of varying sort, and almost certainly Cybertronian in origin. They mainly served to be beaten up, and some possibly slagged, by the Autobots, but they did prove helpful in the final struggle.
* Many of the civilian Transformers were generic also, at least two being based off of [[Longrack (Cybertron)|Longrack]] and several being based off of [[Blurr (Cybertron)|Blurr]]. Others were more varied, as with the ancient Decepticons. These featured alternate modes used by characters in previous series, with a few new things, such as a bus and jetliners, being thrown in. It is noteworthy that none of these were ever seen in robot mode, save as silhouettes in "[[Fallen (episode)|Fallen]]". The generic Ancient Decepticons, in contrast, were not seen in vehicle mode, save perhaps for a few brief glimpses.
* In a flashback shot in "[[Honor]]" and in a present-day scene in "[[Challenge]]" various generic [[Jungle Planet (Cybertron)|Jungle Planet]] natives were shown in beast mode. These beast modes included various dinosaurs, a lobster-alt body type shared by at least two, and another shared body type that transformed into an owl.

=== Devil's Due comics ===
[[Image:Joetfii 03a.jpg|left|150px|thumb|I don't know who I am, but apparently I'm awesome.]]
* After the events of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers]] left the Decepticons short on troops, in [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II]] artist [[E. J. Su]] padded out [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]'s Cybertronian forces with nameless, but intricately designed generics. Sadly the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] arrived, and Dinobots vs. generic Decepticons is always going to end badly for the no-names.
* Also notable is the generic "future Decepticon" composed of a mix of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Energon Scorponok]], [[Megatron (Armada)|Armada Megatron]], and topped with [[Sky Garry (ROC)|Sky Garry]]'s head, who appeared on the cover of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3|#3]] (as seen to the left). Part of him was shown in the cliffhanger of issue 2, but despite his appearance on the cover, he did did not appear in the following issue at all. Instead his place was filled by hordes of generic [[Ravage (G1)|Ravages]], [[Sweep|Sweeps]] and Insecticons. Though multiple Insecticons and Sweeps have been previously seen, this is the first time we have seen clones of Ravage.
* At the series' conclusion, Shockwave is tended by a generic [[Decepticon medics|Decepticon medic]], who has a similar design to [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]].

{{-}}

=== Animated ===
Many unnamed generic Decepticons appear at Megatron's funeral in [[Dispatches]].
[[Image:Animated females.jpg|thumb|178px|Because of the [[AllSpark Almanac]]s, we didn't stay unnamed for long.]]
In Season 3, many Generics flesh out crowd scenes. Normally these Generics are just randomly colored characters, but sometimes they have [[Bumper (Animated)|new heads]] and [[Tap-Out (Animated)|posture]], or sometimes even a [[Glyph (Animated)|new gender]]! This is especially noticeable in "[[Decepticon Air]]", "[[This Is Why I Hate Machines]]" and "[[Endgame, Part II]]".
{{--}}

=== Live-action movie continuity===
[[Image:ROTF Protoform army.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Those who didn't fancy fighting nude had to [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|borrow]] [[Long Haul (ROTF)|others']] [[Scrapper (ROTF)|clothes]].]]
Perhaps as an homage to the franchise's long history of generic background characters, or perhaps just to save time, [[Industrial Light & Magic|ILM]] added many re-used and re-colored characters into the backgrounds of the larger battle scenes featured in ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]''.
*A [[protoform]] army with heads resembling [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]].
*The [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]]s [[Long Haul (ROTF)|Long Haul]], [[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage]], [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|Mixmaster]] and [[Scrapper (ROTF)|Scrapper]] appeared in more than one place simultaneously, creating generics.
*A [[Buffalo MPV Decepticon]] resembling [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] from the [[Transformers (2007)|first movie]].
*Hundreds of [[Dynasty of Primes|Prime]] lookalikes during the battle of 17,000 B.C.
{{note| Despite having a recycled character model, [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor's]] presence in the toyline establishes his continuing [[Seeker (body-type)|an age old custom]] rather than being a generic. The same reasoning can be applied to Demolishor and [[Scavenger (ROTF)|Scavenger]].}}
* A [[Scrapper (ROTF) |Scrapper]] is seen in the [[ Dark of the Moon |(film)]] when [[Optimus Prime (Movie) |Optimus Prime]] charges down the street and slashes him with his [[Energon Blade]].

==External links==
*[http://s90690880.onlinehome.us/jhiaxus/pages/generics.htm Generics at the Obscure Transformers Website]
*[http://www.insecticons.com/screencapsarm/s-npcs.html Armada Background Characters at insecticons.com]

{{stub}}

[[Category:Fan terminology]]
[[Category:Fandom]]
[[Category:Generation 1]]

Generic

2011-10-20T22:49:10Z

207.151.155.11: /* Live-action movie continuity */

[[Image:VictoryMicroCriminalsEp18.jpg|right|500px|thumb|What do any of us turn into?]]
A "'''generic'''" is the fan-coined, unofficial term for any unnamed background [[Transformer]] that is clearly not intended to represent any previously existing and named toy/character. Generics are frequently used to fill out crowd scenes and battles, and often employ repeated standardized designs (especially in the older material such as the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]]).

It is rare that a generic gets a speaking part, but it has happened from time to time. However, if the character is given a name they cease to be a generic and becomes a regular old character (see [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]] for an example of such an apotheosis).

== Notable generics==
===Generation 1 cartoon===
[[Image:GenericDecepticons MTMTE.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I don't know how, but I'm pretty sure the Decepticons were cheating.]]
*[[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] - The comparatively low number of Decepticons in the early episodes of the cartoon led to the filling out of the ranks with numerous generics based on the existing cast, most notably the Seekers.

*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] - At times, there were more than three. Though to be fair, it's speculated that Reflector was just one guy who could clone himself...

* Rumble/Frenzy body types. Just look at the picture to the right.

*[[Junkion (species)|Junkions]] - Hordes of generic Junkions tended to appear whenever the cartoon visited [[Junkion (planet)|that planet]]. Sometimes [[Lithone (species)|Lithone]] character models were repurposed as Junkions.

*Paradrons - The entire population of [[Paradron]] save for [[Sandstorm (G1)|Sandstorm]] were generics, especially their [[Paradron Medic|medics]].

*The "historic footage" from "[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2]]" features a [[Early war history records Transformers|large number of generics]] with completely made-up character models. Some of these models later show up again in "[[The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1]]", "[[The Burden Hardest to Bear]]" and even ''[[The Headmasters (cartoon)|The Headmasters]]''.

=== Marvel comics ===
{{noteukonly}}
[[Image:Generic decepticons marvel 1.jpg|thumb|210px|left|Optimus Prime? Who's that meant to be?]]
* The [[The Transformers (issue)|first issue]] of the Marvel comic featured a very high proportion of generic characters - probably more than any issue of a Transformers comic since. Many of these were recycled from existing character models and some may be simple coloring errors, though a generic that resembles a miscolored [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] leading the Decepticons' assault on the Ark may take more explaining. A number of the generics in battle scenes tote weapons like [[Ion blaster]]s and [[Fusion cannon]]s.

* ''A generic Decepticon technician of a standard design originally created by [[Will Simpson]] for [[Resurrection!|issue #103]] was forcibly upgraded into a [[Straxus (G1)|clone of Megatron]].''

* ''[[Dan Reed]] drew hundreds of generic "zombie" Transformers for the stories "[[City of Fear!]]" and "[[Legion of the Lost!]]"''

===Beast Wars===
[[Image:Agendapt1 generic Predacons.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Wheeeee, best slide ''EVER''!]]
*Numerous generic [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]] were seen being jostled within [[Predacon Command Outpost One]] when the station was struck by the [[transwarp wavefront]]. {{storylink|The Agenda (Part 1)}}

=== Beast Machines ===
* Generation 1 [[character model]]s created for the ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' episode "[[The Agenda (Part III)]]" were modified to represent various generic Cybertronian citizens who were infected with Megatron's transformation lock virus.
* A [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] character model appears in [[Nightscream (BM)|Nightscream]]'s flashback. {{storylink|Forbidden Fruit|Forbidden Fruit}}
* A [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] character model shows up as a corpse in a Vehicon factory. {{storylink|Revelations Part I: Discovery}}

{{collist|2|
[[Image:Bm soundwave.jpg|thumb|center|200px|Soundwave? Never heard of that guy.]]
[[Image:ProwlMaybe BM.jpg|thumb|center|200px|And at long last we have found ''[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]]''!]]
}}

=== Armada ===
[[Image:Prominent generic.png|left|100px|thumb|"I had a bigger role than Overload!"]]
* Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out using Generation 1 cartoon character models, creating several odd instances of classic characters getting remarkably awkward (and often randomly-colored) cameos. (For example, ''Hound is on the side of the Decepticons''. Not to mention a purple Powerglide)

* Depending on who was animating the episode, the masses of [[Mini-Con]]s combined toy-characters with either randomly-colored toy-based models or entirely-new designs... or, in one notable instance, [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]]'s character model!

=== Energon ===
[[Image:EnergonGeneric.jpg|right|150px|thumb|"Absolutely, positively not made of the corpses of other more important characters, SIR!"]]
* Due to the computer generated nature of the graphics, both Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out with generics assembled from parts of other existing or unused character models. [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]]'s original "Wing Dagger" form is one such example of a mixed-and-matched generic character model.

=== Cybertron ===
* Most of the [[Ancient Decepticon]]s were generics, using slightly varied models. Nearly all of these clearly seen looked like their alternate modes were jets or starfighters of varying sort, and almost certainly Cybertronian in origin. They mainly served to be beaten up, and some possibly slagged, by the Autobots, but they did prove helpful in the final struggle.
* Many of the civilian Transformers were generic also, at least two being based off of [[Longrack (Cybertron)|Longrack]] and several being based off of [[Blurr (Cybertron)|Blurr]]. Others were more varied, as with the ancient Decepticons. These featured alternate modes used by characters in previous series, with a few new things, such as a bus and jetliners, being thrown in. It is noteworthy that none of these were ever seen in robot mode, save as silhouettes in "[[Fallen (episode)|Fallen]]". The generic Ancient Decepticons, in contrast, were not seen in vehicle mode, save perhaps for a few brief glimpses.
* In a flashback shot in "[[Honor]]" and in a present-day scene in "[[Challenge]]" various generic [[Jungle Planet (Cybertron)|Jungle Planet]] natives were shown in beast mode. These beast modes included various dinosaurs, a lobster-alt body type shared by at least two, and another shared body type that transformed into an owl.

=== Devil's Due comics ===
[[Image:Joetfii 03a.jpg|left|150px|thumb|I don't know who I am, but apparently I'm awesome.]]
* After the events of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers]] left the Decepticons short on troops, in [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II]] artist [[E. J. Su]] padded out [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]'s Cybertronian forces with nameless, but intricately designed generics. Sadly the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] arrived, and Dinobots vs. generic Decepticons is always going to end badly for the no-names.
* Also notable is the generic "future Decepticon" composed of a mix of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Energon Scorponok]], [[Megatron (Armada)|Armada Megatron]], and topped with [[Sky Garry (ROC)|Sky Garry]]'s head, who appeared on the cover of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3|#3]] (as seen to the left). Part of him was shown in the cliffhanger of issue 2, but despite his appearance on the cover, he did did not appear in the following issue at all. Instead his place was filled by hordes of generic [[Ravage (G1)|Ravages]], [[Sweep|Sweeps]] and Insecticons. Though multiple Insecticons and Sweeps have been previously seen, this is the first time we have seen clones of Ravage.
* At the series' conclusion, Shockwave is tended by a generic [[Decepticon medics|Decepticon medic]], who has a similar design to [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]].

{{-}}

=== Animated ===
Many unnamed generic Decepticons appear at Megatron's funeral in [[Dispatches]].
[[Image:Animated females.jpg|thumb|178px|Because of the [[AllSpark Almanac]]s, we didn't stay unnamed for long.]]
In Season 3, many Generics flesh out crowd scenes. Normally these Generics are just randomly colored characters, but sometimes they have [[Bumper (Animated)|new heads]] and [[Tap-Out (Animated)|posture]], or sometimes even a [[Glyph (Animated)|new gender]]! This is especially noticeable in "[[Decepticon Air]]", "[[This Is Why I Hate Machines]]" and "[[Endgame, Part II]]".
{{--}}

=== Live-action movie continuity===
[[Image:ROTF Protoform army.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Those who didn't fancy fighting nude had to [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|borrow]] [[Long Haul (ROTF)|others']] [[Scrapper (ROTF)|clothes]].]]
Perhaps as an homage to the franchise's long history of generic background characters, or perhaps just to save time, [[Industrial Light & Magic|ILM]] added many re-used and re-colored characters into the backgrounds of the larger battle scenes featured in ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]''.
*A [[protoform]] army with heads resembling [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]].
*The [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]]s [[Long Haul (ROTF)|Long Haul]], [[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage]], [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|Mixmaster]] and [[Scrapper (ROTF)|Scrapper]] appeared in more than one place simultaneously, creating generics.
*A [[Buffalo MPV Decepticon]] resembling [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] from the [[Transformers (2007)|first movie]].
*Hundreds of [[Dynasty of Primes|Prime]] lookalikes during the battle of 17,000 B.C.
{{note| Despite having a recycled character model, [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor's]] presence in the toyline establishes his continuing [[Seeker (body-type)|an age old custom]] rather than being a generic. The same reasoning can be applied to Demolishor and [[Scavenger (ROTF)|Scavenger]].}}
* A [[Scrapper (ROTF) |Scrapper]]. is seen in [[ Dark of the Moon |(film)]] when [[Optimus Prime (Movie) |Optimus Prime]] charges down the street and slashes him with his [[Energon Blade]].}}

==External links==
*[http://s90690880.onlinehome.us/jhiaxus/pages/generics.htm Generics at the Obscure Transformers Website]
*[http://www.insecticons.com/screencapsarm/s-npcs.html Armada Background Characters at insecticons.com]

{{stub}}

[[Category:Fan terminology]]
[[Category:Fandom]]
[[Category:Generation 1]]

Generic

2011-10-20T22:47:40Z

207.151.155.11: /* Live-action movie continuity */

[[Image:VictoryMicroCriminalsEp18.jpg|right|500px|thumb|What do any of us turn into?]]
A "'''generic'''" is the fan-coined, unofficial term for any unnamed background [[Transformer]] that is clearly not intended to represent any previously existing and named toy/character. Generics are frequently used to fill out crowd scenes and battles, and often employ repeated standardized designs (especially in the older material such as the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]]).

It is rare that a generic gets a speaking part, but it has happened from time to time. However, if the character is given a name they cease to be a generic and becomes a regular old character (see [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]] for an example of such an apotheosis).

== Notable generics==
===Generation 1 cartoon===
[[Image:GenericDecepticons MTMTE.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I don't know how, but I'm pretty sure the Decepticons were cheating.]]
*[[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] - The comparatively low number of Decepticons in the early episodes of the cartoon led to the filling out of the ranks with numerous generics based on the existing cast, most notably the Seekers.

*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] - At times, there were more than three. Though to be fair, it's speculated that Reflector was just one guy who could clone himself...

* Rumble/Frenzy body types. Just look at the picture to the right.

*[[Junkion (species)|Junkions]] - Hordes of generic Junkions tended to appear whenever the cartoon visited [[Junkion (planet)|that planet]]. Sometimes [[Lithone (species)|Lithone]] character models were repurposed as Junkions.

*Paradrons - The entire population of [[Paradron]] save for [[Sandstorm (G1)|Sandstorm]] were generics, especially their [[Paradron Medic|medics]].

*The "historic footage" from "[[Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2]]" features a [[Early war history records Transformers|large number of generics]] with completely made-up character models. Some of these models later show up again in "[[The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1]]", "[[The Burden Hardest to Bear]]" and even ''[[The Headmasters (cartoon)|The Headmasters]]''.

=== Marvel comics ===
{{noteukonly}}
[[Image:Generic decepticons marvel 1.jpg|thumb|210px|left|Optimus Prime? Who's that meant to be?]]
* The [[The Transformers (issue)|first issue]] of the Marvel comic featured a very high proportion of generic characters - probably more than any issue of a Transformers comic since. Many of these were recycled from existing character models and some may be simple coloring errors, though a generic that resembles a miscolored [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] leading the Decepticons' assault on the Ark may take more explaining. A number of the generics in battle scenes tote weapons like [[Ion blaster]]s and [[Fusion cannon]]s.

* ''A generic Decepticon technician of a standard design originally created by [[Will Simpson]] for [[Resurrection!|issue #103]] was forcibly upgraded into a [[Straxus (G1)|clone of Megatron]].''

* ''[[Dan Reed]] drew hundreds of generic "zombie" Transformers for the stories "[[City of Fear!]]" and "[[Legion of the Lost!]]"''

===Beast Wars===
[[Image:Agendapt1 generic Predacons.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Wheeeee, best slide ''EVER''!]]
*Numerous generic [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]] were seen being jostled within [[Predacon Command Outpost One]] when the station was struck by the [[transwarp wavefront]]. {{storylink|The Agenda (Part 1)}}

=== Beast Machines ===
* Generation 1 [[character model]]s created for the ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' episode "[[The Agenda (Part III)]]" were modified to represent various generic Cybertronian citizens who were infected with Megatron's transformation lock virus.
* A [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] character model appears in [[Nightscream (BM)|Nightscream]]'s flashback. {{storylink|Forbidden Fruit|Forbidden Fruit}}
* A [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] character model shows up as a corpse in a Vehicon factory. {{storylink|Revelations Part I: Discovery}}

{{collist|2|
[[Image:Bm soundwave.jpg|thumb|center|200px|Soundwave? Never heard of that guy.]]
[[Image:ProwlMaybe BM.jpg|thumb|center|200px|And at long last we have found ''[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]]''!]]
}}

=== Armada ===
[[Image:Prominent generic.png|left|100px|thumb|"I had a bigger role than Overload!"]]
* Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out using Generation 1 cartoon character models, creating several odd instances of classic characters getting remarkably awkward (and often randomly-colored) cameos. (For example, ''Hound is on the side of the Decepticons''. Not to mention a purple Powerglide)

* Depending on who was animating the episode, the masses of [[Mini-Con]]s combined toy-characters with either randomly-colored toy-based models or entirely-new designs... or, in one notable instance, [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]]'s character model!

=== Energon ===
[[Image:EnergonGeneric.jpg|right|150px|thumb|"Absolutely, positively not made of the corpses of other more important characters, SIR!"]]
* Due to the computer generated nature of the graphics, both Autobot and Decepticon forces were filled out with generics assembled from parts of other existing or unused character models. [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]]'s original "Wing Dagger" form is one such example of a mixed-and-matched generic character model.

=== Cybertron ===
* Most of the [[Ancient Decepticon]]s were generics, using slightly varied models. Nearly all of these clearly seen looked like their alternate modes were jets or starfighters of varying sort, and almost certainly Cybertronian in origin. They mainly served to be beaten up, and some possibly slagged, by the Autobots, but they did prove helpful in the final struggle.
* Many of the civilian Transformers were generic also, at least two being based off of [[Longrack (Cybertron)|Longrack]] and several being based off of [[Blurr (Cybertron)|Blurr]]. Others were more varied, as with the ancient Decepticons. These featured alternate modes used by characters in previous series, with a few new things, such as a bus and jetliners, being thrown in. It is noteworthy that none of these were ever seen in robot mode, save as silhouettes in "[[Fallen (episode)|Fallen]]". The generic Ancient Decepticons, in contrast, were not seen in vehicle mode, save perhaps for a few brief glimpses.
* In a flashback shot in "[[Honor]]" and in a present-day scene in "[[Challenge]]" various generic [[Jungle Planet (Cybertron)|Jungle Planet]] natives were shown in beast mode. These beast modes included various dinosaurs, a lobster-alt body type shared by at least two, and another shared body type that transformed into an owl.

=== Devil's Due comics ===
[[Image:Joetfii 03a.jpg|left|150px|thumb|I don't know who I am, but apparently I'm awesome.]]
* After the events of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers]] left the Decepticons short on troops, in [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II]] artist [[E. J. Su]] padded out [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]'s Cybertronian forces with nameless, but intricately designed generics. Sadly the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] arrived, and Dinobots vs. generic Decepticons is always going to end badly for the no-names.
* Also notable is the generic "future Decepticon" composed of a mix of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Energon Scorponok]], [[Megatron (Armada)|Armada Megatron]], and topped with [[Sky Garry (ROC)|Sky Garry]]'s head, who appeared on the cover of [[G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3|#3]] (as seen to the left). Part of him was shown in the cliffhanger of issue 2, but despite his appearance on the cover, he did did not appear in the following issue at all. Instead his place was filled by hordes of generic [[Ravage (G1)|Ravages]], [[Sweep|Sweeps]] and Insecticons. Though multiple Insecticons and Sweeps have been previously seen, this is the first time we have seen clones of Ravage.
* At the series' conclusion, Shockwave is tended by a generic [[Decepticon medics|Decepticon medic]], who has a similar design to [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]].

{{-}}

=== Animated ===
Many unnamed generic Decepticons appear at Megatron's funeral in [[Dispatches]].
[[Image:Animated females.jpg|thumb|178px|Because of the [[AllSpark Almanac]]s, we didn't stay unnamed for long.]]
In Season 3, many Generics flesh out crowd scenes. Normally these Generics are just randomly colored characters, but sometimes they have [[Bumper (Animated)|new heads]] and [[Tap-Out (Animated)|posture]], or sometimes even a [[Glyph (Animated)|new gender]]! This is especially noticeable in "[[Decepticon Air]]", "[[This Is Why I Hate Machines]]" and "[[Endgame, Part II]]".
{{--}}

=== Live-action movie continuity===
[[Image:ROTF Protoform army.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Those who didn't fancy fighting nude had to [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|borrow]] [[Long Haul (ROTF)|others']] [[Scrapper (ROTF)|clothes]].]]
Perhaps as an homage to the franchise's long history of generic background characters, or perhaps just to save time, [[Industrial Light & Magic|ILM]] added many re-used and re-colored characters into the backgrounds of the larger battle scenes featured in ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]''.
*A [[protoform]] army with heads resembling [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]].
*The [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]]s [[Long Haul (ROTF)|Long Haul]], [[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage]], [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|Mixmaster]] and [[Scrapper (ROTF)|Scrapper]] appeared in more than one place simultaneously, creating generics.
*A [[Buffalo MPV Decepticon]] resembling [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] from the [[Transformers (2007)|first movie]].
*Hundreds of [[Dynasty of Primes|Prime]] lookalikes during the battle of 17,000 B.C.
{{note| Despite having a recycled character model, [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor's]] presence in the toyline establishes his continuing [[Seeker (body-type)|an age old custom]] rather than being a generic. The same reasoning can be applied to Demolishor and [[Scavenger (ROTF)|Scavenger]].}}
* A [[Scrapper (ROTF) Scrapper]]. is seen in [[ Dark of the Moon]] when [[Optimus Prime (Movie) Optimus Prime]] charges down the street and slashes him with his [[Energon Blade]].}}

==External links==
*[http://s90690880.onlinehome.us/jhiaxus/pages/generics.htm Generics at the Obscure Transformers Website]
*[http://www.insecticons.com/screencapsarm/s-npcs.html Armada Background Characters at insecticons.com]

{{stub}}

[[Category:Fan terminology]]
[[Category:Fandom]]
[[Category:Generation 1]]

One Shall Rise, Part 3

2011-10-16T18:29:42Z

207.151.155.11: /* Continuity notes */

{{episode|
|otherseries=''[[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|Transformers: Prime]]'' ep 26
|prev=One Shall Rise, Part 2
|next=
|image=OneShallRise3-together.jpg
|caption=Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends?
|title="One Shall Rise, Part 3"
|airdate=[[October 15]], [[2011]]
|written by=[[Steven Melching]]
|directed by=[[Vinton Heuck]]
|animation studio=[[Polygon Pictures]]
|production company=[[Hasbro Studios]]
}}

'''Jack learns more about Optimus Prime's history on Cybertron while the Autobots continue their battle at the Earth's core.'''

==Synopsis==

As he leads the [[Autobot]]s further toward [[Earth]]'s core, [[Megatron (Prime)|Megatron]] is again seized by a vision of the planet exploding. He notes how [[Unicron]]'s strength grows ever stronger, and continues on. [[Arcee (Prime)|Arcee]] and [[Optimus Prime (Prime)|Optimus Prime]] both voice their mistrust of the [[Decepticon]] leader, though have no choice but to follow him. Unbeknownst to them, several strange mechanical creatures observe the intruders to their dark domain.

Back at [[Autobot Outpost Omega One|base]], [[Ratchet (Prime)|Ratchet]] and the [[human]]s watch a report that outlines how the planet's chaotic weather continues to spiral out of control. Despite [[June Darby|June]]'s efforts to lighten the mood, [[William Fowler|Fowler]] insists that something must be done—even if it means contacting his associates at the [[Pentagon]]. Fowler makes known his uneasiness about teaming up with Megatron, but Ratchet surprises the humans by explaining how such a situation has happened before. Ratchet explains how Optimus Prime and Megatron were once close friends, in the twilight hours of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s [[Golden Age]]. He states that the great Autobot leader was once named Orion Pax, a simple clerk in the [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] Hall of Records. [[Image:OneShallRise3-corresponding.jpg|left|thumb|250px|''Once I called you "Brother"'' 
''Once I thought the chance to make you laugh'' 
''Was all I ever wanted...'' 
''And even now'' 
''I wish that [[Primus|God]] had chose another'' 
''Serving as your foe on His behalf'' 
''Is the last thing that I wanted...!'']] Orion Pax, learning of Cybertron's past, grew concerned about the corruption affecting high places and the [[Caste system|state of inequity]] in society. Orion became inspired by the revolutionary words of Megatronus; a gladiator who took his name from [[The Fallen|one]] of the [[Thirteen original Transformers|thirteen original Primes]]. Megatronus gained a loyal following through his radical and innovatory actions, [[Soundwave (Prime)|Soundwave]] chief among their number. Over time, Megatronus became a mentor figure to Orion Pax, and chose to shorten his name as he left the gladiatorial arena for the political one. Megatron appeared before the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]], voicing his ideas for shaping a new Cybertron by violent means, and demanded to be named the next [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]. Orion protested against Megatron's suggestions before the Council, moving their [[spark]]s and minds as he unknowingly revealed himself to be the one worthy of the title. Megatron severed his ties to Orion and the Council, taking his "Decepticon" followers to begin the [[Great War (Prime)|war]] that consumed Cybertron and vowing to claim the legendary [[Matrix of Leadership]] for himself. Hoping to reverse the damage that had poisoned the planet, Orion journeyed to Cybertron's [[Core]]—where he found himself before the spark of [[Primus]], the creator of all [[Cybertronians]]. Primus sensed the purity of Orion's own spark and bestowed upon him the legendary Matrix, transforming him into Optimus Prime. In the present; [[Miko Nakadai|Miko]] and [[Jack Darby|Jack]] question Optimus's plan to give the Matrix to the Earth's core, asking what could possibly stop Megatron from attempting to claim if for himself now. Ratchet sceptically replies that Megatron only intends to save the Earth so that he may conquer it at a later date.

As they near Unicron's spark, [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] begins to feel the draining effects of the [[Dark Energon]]. [[Bumblebee (Prime)|Bumblebee]] and Arcee help him a short way across the catwalks, but Megatron soon comes to a halt ahead with the realisation that Unicron is preparing to expel them. A huge number of Unicron's drones suddenly swarm into view, surrounding Megatron and the Autobots. They engage the drones in fierce battle, blasting and slashing through their attackers. Arcee is knocked to a lower level, not long before the Dark Energon clouds Bulkhead's vision. He stumbles from the catwalk but manages to grab hold of the platform, and is seized by Bumblebee before he can tumble to his death. Optimus and Megatron fight back-to-back, managing to hold their own against the drones in a spectacular display of effective—if uneasy—teamwork. Bumblebee struggles to hold onto Bulkhead, who insists that the scout lets him go. Optimus seizes Bulkhead just as Bumblebee loses his grip, and hauls him up to safety. As the group quickly becomes overwhelmed, Arcee hitches a ride on one of the drones to catch up with the others and beat a swift retreat.

[[Image:OneShallRise3-SoundwaveAirachnid.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Maybe Megatron should stop having second-in-commands and just skip straight to third-in-commands.]]
Aboard the [[Nemesis (Prime)|Nemesis]], [[Airachnid]] outlines the questionable nature of their leader's recent behaviour. [[Knock Out (Prime)|Knock Out]] asks whether she is suggesting that they abandon Lord Megatron. Airachnid explains how Megatron's undetectable signal implies that he is either offline or at the mercy of Unicron—neither scenario is in the best interests of the Decepticons. She suggests an exodus from Earth, and receives no protests from the surrounding [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicons]]. Her order to retreat to [[Regulon Four]] is denied by Soundwave, who silently challenges her authority. She assumes an aggressive stance, ordering him to step aside. Soundwave does not comply, so she leaps to attack him. Soundwave easily blocks every one of her blows, before lifting her clean into the air. He hurls her back, deploying [[Laserbeak (Prime)|Laserbeak]] to stun Airachnid in a sudden sneak attack. Pinned under Soundwave's foot, much to Knock Out's amusement, Airachnid relinquishes command to the intelligence officer.

Back in the Autobot base, Ratchet notes how he has lost the others' communication links and life signals, most likely caused by interference from the electromagnetic anomalies. Miko asks how they are supposed to know when the others are ready for pickup if contact is impossible—but Ratchet is prevented from responding by the sound of Jack tapping the [[GroundBridge]] key against a railing. Ratchet reveals that the object is actually the [[Key to Vector Sigma]]—one of Cybertron's most precious relics. Ratchet then realises that Optimus entrusted the key to Jack because he did not plan on returning from the planet's core.

Megatron is gripped by yet another painful vision of Unicron whilst he and the Autobots are backed into an enclosed chamber by the attacking drones. Unicron orders him to destroy Optimus. Instead, Megatron saves the Autobot leader by blasting an oncoming drone. He then indicates a closed doorway nearby, stating that Unicron's spark lies just beyond. He explains how, to pass through, they must fool Unicron into believing that they pose no danger, and moves his Dark Energon-infused chest up to the door. It opens in response, and Optimus orders the others to remain outside and provide cover fire while he and Megatron advance.

The passageway beyond leads directly into Unicron's spark chamber, where Optimus prepares to expose the Matrix within his chest. Unicron's spark reacts, striking both invaders with its energy. Unicron again orders Megatron to kill Optimus, forcing him to unsheathe his blade and approach the weakened Prime. Megatron struggles against him, declaring himself to be under the command of no-one. His resistance provokes only an onslaught of pain and a furious reaction from the Chaos Bringer.

The volcano outside erupts violently, and the ground enclosing the Autobot base begins to quake. Ratchet tells the humans to take cover, and moves to shield them from falling debris with his arms.

[[Image:OneShallRise3-unleash.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Care Bear Stare!]]
Unicron's spark adopts the appearance of a face, as Megatron is seemingly freed from his control. Optimus calls upon the power of the Matrix of Leadership, though hesitates as Unicron possesses Megatron's body in a veil of purple flame and declares his own invincibility. Optimus cuts short Unicron's desire to pull the Earth into chaos, and rises to his feet as he too becomes surrounded by a brilliant blue light. Optimus fires the power of the Matrix from his chest directly into Unicron's spark, the resulting wave of energy knocking Megatron back off his feet. His energy drained, Optimus falls to his knees, and Unicron's spark emits a final wail of pain before vanishing into oblivion.

The drones outside suddenly fall from the air, lifeless. The volcano, along with all of the Earth's other natural phenomena, subside back to normality. Ratchet and the humans watch as the monitors flicker online, rejoicing as their team's life signals are all safely re-established. Aboard the Nemesis, however, Soundwave also detects the signature of the Decepticon leader.

[[Image:OneShallRise3-hug.jpg|right|thumb|300px|"You smell like my mom." "I smell like ''his'' mom!"]]
Megatron rights himself in Unicron's now-empty spark chamber, inspecting Optimus's steaming body for a moment before unsheathing his blade. Optimus gazes blearily up at the approaching Decepticon, addressing him as "Megatronus" while asking about their current location. Surprised, Megatron retracts his weapon and helps the Autobot to his feet. Bumblebee, Bulkhead and Arcee soon burst through the wall to assist, but Optimus does not recognise them. A GroundBridge suddenly opens nearby; Megatron claims that the Autobots are their sworn enemies, and provides cover fire as Optimus heads for the vortex. Optimus blankly meets Bumblebee's devastated gaze for a split second, before disappearing through the Bridge. Megatron follows, leaving the shocked Autobots alone in the empty chamber.

Ratchet GroundBridges the team back to base, but is anxious to see that Optimus is not with them. They explain that Optimus is still alive, but did not even know his own name. Ratchet realises that surrendering the Matrix of Leadership caused their leader to lose not only the wisdom of the Primes, but his own memories as well.

Knock Out and the other Decepticons, minus Airachnid, welcome Megatron back aboard the Nemesis. Megatron steps aside to allow Optimus through, and [[Breakdown (Prime)|Breakdown]] automatically moves to attack. Megatron halts him, insisting that this is no way to treat a "long lost comrade", and declares that Orion Pax is one of them.

To be continued…

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (Prime)|Optimus Prime]] (2)
*[[Bumblebee (Prime)|Bumblebee]] (3)
*[[Arcee (Prime)|Arcee]] (5)
*[[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] (6)
*[[Ratchet (Prime)|Ratchet]] (9)
*[[Autobot High Council|High Council]] (14–16)

|c2=
*[[Megatron (Prime)|Megatron]] (1)
*[[Soundwave (Prime)|Soundwave]] (13)
*[[Airachnid]] (18)
*[[Breakdown (Prime)|Breakdown]] (19)
*[[Knock Out (Prime)|Knock Out]] (20)
*[[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicons]] (21)
*[[Laserbeak (Prime)|Laserbeak]] (22)

|c3=
*[[June Darby]] (7)
*[[William Fowler]] (8)
*[[Raf Esquivel]] (10)
*[[Jack Darby]] (11)
*[[Miko Nakadai]] (12)

|c4=
*[[Unicron]] (4)
*[[Core]] (17)
}}

==Quotes==
"Watch out for the quiet ones…"
:—'''Knock Out''' after witnessing Soundwave "veto" Airachnid's motion to leave Earth.

==Notes==
===Animation and technical errors===
*All of the natural disasters around the world abruptly stop when Unicron is beaten. While it might make sense for the earthquakes to stop, tidal waves wouldn't just suddenly fall apart. Forward momentum doesn't just vanish. Similar problems occur with the tornadoes dissipating and the sky clearing.
*At the Earth's core, the Autobots should experience very little gravity, as the total mass of Earth would be reasonably equally distributed around them and therefore the pull of gravity would be cancelled out.

===Continuity errors===
*Why is Bulkhead the only one affected by the Dark Energon?

===Continuity notes===
*The entire backstory given by Ratchet is an adaptation of the first half of ''[[Transformers: Exodus]]''.
* Optimus' blade is still broken after the episode "[[One Shall Fall]]".

===Transformers references===
*Optimus Prime was originally known as Orion Pax, much like [[Optimus Prime (G1)|his namesake]] in the episode "[[War Dawn]]".
*The [[Key to Vector Sigma]] first appeared in ''[[The Transformers (cartoon)|The Transformers]]'' episode "[[The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1]]", and later featured prominently in the first season of ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]''.
*Optimus calls upon the Matrix to "[[Darkest hour|light our darkest hour]]".

===Real-world references===
===Trivia===
*This episode aired in Singapore on [[October 4]], 2011, again preceding its American showing.
*Jack is clearly taking very good care of that Key Optimus gave him... by idly tapping it against a railing.
*This is the first time we've seen Soundwave "get his hands dirty." With how easily he trounces Airachnid, that's probably a good thing for the Autobots.
*According to the flashbacks, Megatron's optics are blue until he is rejected by the Council and storms out angrily.
*Fowler hugs June. Make of that what you will.
*Once more the Thirteen Original Primes make an appearance, as statue busts in the walls of the High Council this time.

[[Category:Prime episodes]]

Jetfire (Movie)

2011-09-10T16:03:59Z

207.151.155.11: /* Notes */

{{factions|decepticonfilm|autobotfilm}}
{{disambig3|Jetfire}}
{{featured}}

:''Jetfire is a [[Decepticon]] and [[Autobot]] from the [[Revenge of the Fallen (franchise)|Revenge of the Fallen franchise]] in the [[Live-action film series|live-action film]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:ROTF_Jetfire.jpg|thumb|351px|Get off my lawn, you young whippersnippers!]]

In his day, '''Jetfire''' was a living legend both in the air and on the battlefield. Sadly, his day has long since passed. His body went south years back. His bunny is dead on the wheel. He's got rust in places he didn't even know he had. Basically, Jetfire's old! An ancient Decepticon [[Seeker (ROTF)|Seeker]], Jetfire was around long before the war broke out, and unlike many, came to see his "comrades" for what they were. This caused him to defect to the Autobots, something virtually unheard of. As a consequence, Jetfire never managed to fully obtain the trust of the others back in the day<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/discover/Battle-Bios.cfm Hasbro Jetfire Battle Bio]</ref>.

He's still a fine asset, powerful and able to activate a [[space bridge]] to teleport across great distances. This is slightly offset by the fact he's so old.
After years without a proper source of energon, he's practically falling apart. His processor gave up the ghost millennia ago. These days he has a hard enough time remembering his name, and he's lucky if his teleporting puts him on the right planet. It makes him a bit crotchety and also leaves him with the nagging feeling he's forgotten something important.

{{quote|[[Relatives|My father]], why, he was a wheel! The ''first'' wheel! And do you know what he transformed into? ''Nothing!'' But he did so ''with honor! Dignity, damn it!''|Jetfire suffers the seven signs of aging|[[Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]}}

==Fiction==
===IDW ''Transformers'' movie comics===
[[Image:Defiance4_Jetfire.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Hopefully I won't end up on some [[earth|godforsaken planet]] and be infested with [[Maximal|disgusting little critters.]]]]
In the distant past, the [[AllSpark]] Cube created [[Thirteen original Transformers|a race]] of powerful, trans-dimensional beings as the first inhabitants of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. The Cube gave these beings mighty powers, as well as terraforming their world, but it was not limitless, and gradually became depleted. The first beings learned that the AllSpark's power could be replenished by harvesting the energy of stars, but they were unable to locate new stars to suit their purposes, despite their amazing ability to travel between dimensions. Once again, the Cube came to the rescue, creating a race of workers who had the ability to change their shape.

Jetfire was among the very first of these new beings, a "[[Seeker (ROTF)|Seeker]]" with the ability to travel across the vastness of space in search of new suns. Once located, he would lead others and his masters back to it so a [[Star harvester|harvester]] could be constructed to drain the energy of these stars, thus replenishing the AllSpark. {{Storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}}

[[Image:JetfireROTF-TalesoftheFallen.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Not a great judge of character, that Jetfire.]]

Jetfire served directly under the [[Prime (rank)|Prime]] who would become [[The Fallen]], finding for him various stars to harvest, believing he was serving the [[Dynasty of Primes]] as a whole, rather than The Fallen's machinations in specific. Over time, The Fallen began to open up to Jetfire, his most loyal and capable Seeker, and told him that the Dynasty no longer served Cybertron's best interests. Jetfire had unwittingly sacrificed a populated star system under The Fallen's misdirection, and became confused.

Still, Jetfire continued to work with The Fallen, despite his doubts. His master and a small army of [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]] drones had fashioned a new, secret faction called the Decepticons with the intention of eventually subverting the Dynasty. Jetfire followed them to a desert on a small blue planet to build another star harvester when [[human|primitive]] life made itself known. The Dynasty arrived soon thereafter to put an end to The Fallen's betrayal. Jetfire realized too late that he was on the wrong side, and so The Fallen warped Jetfire and the other "underlings" ''into orbit'' so that the Primes could face each other alone. As they fell planetward, Jetfire fought the Constructicons, and was eventually victorious, but with a price. He crashed from orbit into the Earth and laid dormant for thousands of years.

[[Image:Sector7_Jetfire.jpg|left|thumb|200px|]]

After he awoke, Jetfire began wandering the Earth {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 3}} periodically adopting new alternate modes to remain hidden. In [[1898]], while disguised as a portion of the [[United States Navy]] vessel the USS ''Maine'', Jetfire sensed energy similar to the Fallen's, and broke away from the wooden housing that form the rest of his alternate mode (inadvertently leading his human crew to believe they had been attacked, thereby initiating the Spanish-American War) that he might settle the score. Tracking the signal to the Arctic, he instead found a near-comatose robot bearing the Decepticon mark instead. Upon discovering that he was ''not'' The Fallen, but someone Jetfire had never heard of named [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], the Seeker just punched him and turned to leave. At this point, Jetfire realized he had an audience: a [[First Seven|group of humans]] who had been studying Megatron, and who reacted to Jetfire's presence by shooting at him. Jetfire promptly seized [[Billy North|his attacker]] and hurled him to his death, while the other humans used explosives to crack the ice sheets and send Jetfire plummeting into the frigid depths. {{storylink|Original}}

[[Image:Sector7 2 Jetfire.jpg|right|thumb|200px|]]

At the bottom of the ocean, Jetfire discovered a subterranean cave network in which he took refuge. Sensing a familiar energy source somewhere on the planet, the Seeker began to seek... but he was growing progressively low on power, and it took him fifteen years of crawling about underground before he could track the signal to its source. Along the way, he was confronted by [[Cave brute|strange, inhuman beasts]] that inhabited the caves, and slew all those that dared attack him. Finally, in [[1913]], addled and sluggish from lack of energy, he found the source of the signal: the AllSpark itself, which was in the process of being excavated by the same humans he had met in the Arctic! Fending off another attack on his person, Jetfire reached for the cube, inadvertently triggering a discharge of [[energon (fuel)|Energon]] from it that brought [[AllSpark Mutation|several surrounding machines to life]], and overloaded his systems. To expend the excess energy, Jetfire promptly teleported via [[space bridge]] to parts unknown. {{storylink|Irreplaceable}}

[[Image:Sector 7 4 Jetfire and Panzer-Giganten.jpg|left|thumb|200px|]]

Jetfire next surfaced in [[1944]], in the form of a Lockheed P-38 Lightning, when he was captured by [[Nazi]] scientists during [[World War II]] and imprisoned in a cryo-chamber in [[Castle Neuschwanstein]]. The Nazis studied his body and mind, reverse-engineering transforming tank-mecha from his systems and prising a map of the cave system from his memory. When [[Sector Seven]]—the government organization which had grown out of that original group of humans Jetfire had fought in the Arctic—got wind of the new Nazi technology, they dispatched a unit led by [[William Simmons]] to find and destroy Jetfire. Simmons was the only survivor of the team, and made it into Castle Neuschwanstein before being confronted by the Nazis' ultimate creation, the [[Panzer-Giganten]], which he tried to destroy by throwing a satchel of explosives at it. The explosives instead struck Jetfire's chamber, freeing the Seeker from his confinement, and he proceeded to stop the Panzer-Giganten by tearing out of its human components. Demanding to know how humans could do something so hideous to their own kind, Jetfire was told by Simmons that it was not his doing, and that he believed his bomb would have killed them all, prompting Jetfire to inquire why he valued his life so little. Simmons retorted that he did value his life, but valued freedom more, something that gave Jetfire pause, reminding him of his reasons for turning on The Fallen millennia before. Seeing a kinship in Simmons and in humanity that he had not felt before, he silently destroyed the castle and everyone in it, then flew Simmons to an Allied outpost before disappearing once more. {{storylink|Weapon (issue)|Weapon}}

[[Image:Sector7 5 Jetfire.jpg|right|thumb|200px|]]

Jetfire's experience with Simmons deeply affected him, and he evidently shadowed the man and his organization over the following five years, taking the form of a Lockheed U-2 spy plane. In [[1954]], he was present when sabotage at Sector Seven's Arctic base left Simmons and a small crew trapped with a rapidly-thawing Megatron. [[Walter Simmons]] called for liquid nitrogen bombs to be dropped on the complex, at which point Jetfire swooped to intervene, transforming and shielding the younger Simmons's wife [[Anne Fischer|Anne]] and [[Philip Nolan]] from the freezing blast. When Jetfire sadly informed Walter that he had been unable to save William, Walter could only ask why he had done anything at all. Jetfire explained that William's nobility had driven him to atone for past sins: before departing, Jefire told him that he was no longer the creature Walter had met in those caves half a century before... and Walter did not have to be either. {{storylink|Frozen}}

[[Image:Talesofthefallen3_Jetfire_Altmode.jpg|thumb|left|200px|]]

At some point in the latter half of the twentieth century, Jetfire was wandering in a desert when an SR-71 Blackbird crashed into him and exploded. Amidst the chaos, he took its form. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 3}}
{{-}}

===''Revenge of the Fallen'' film===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Mark Ryan]] (English), [[Kenji Nomura]] (Japanese), [[Engelbert von Nordhausen]] (German), [[Idzi Dutkiewicz]] (Latin American-Spanish)

Jetfire was one of the Seekers dispatched by The Fallen to locate the [[Matrix of Leadership]] after the [[Dynasty of Primes]] hid it on Earth. However, Jetfire and the other Seekers were unable to locate the [[Tomb of the Primes|Tomb]] that the Primes had forged. The only clue they could find was a riddle: "When dawn alights the Dagger's tip, Three Kings will reveal the Doorway". Eventually, the Fallen abandoned the Seekers and they were forced to go into stasis lock out of a lack of energon.

[[Image:ROTF behold Jetfire.jpg|thumb|left|350px|Why am I in some mausoleum? I ain't dead! ...am I?]]

For many years, a dormant Jetfire had hidden in his alternate mode at the [[Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum]]'s [[wikipedia:Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center|Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center]], until [[Seymour Simmons]], [[Sam Witwicky]], [[Mikaela Banes]], [[Leo Spitz]] and [[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] broke in with a small fragment of the [[AllSpark]]. It was only after the AllSpark shard hit Jetfire that they bothered to check which side he was on. The sight of the Decepticon [[insignia]] sent the humans scrambling for cover, but the surge of energy awoke him. Confused at the "hideous mausoleum" he was held in, Jetfire decided to head outside to get a better handle on where he was. After his attempts at overriding and shooting the doors failed, Jetfire smashed them aside, then wandered about the planes outside, damaging a few. When the humans tried to talk to them, he initially claimed that he couldn't deal with them, as he had a mission, but did ask what planet he was (he wasn't too fond of the name "Earth", feeling it might as well be called "Dirt"). Jetfire inquired on the state of the civil war, and revealed that he had defected to the Autobots (it's an intensely personal decision). This led the smaller Wheelie to defect to a [[Mikaela Banes|human female]] he dubbed "warrior goddess". After the human Sam asked what he was saying, Jetfire, still confused, pounded the ground and shouted that he had a lot of issues regarding his mother, and that his father was the first wheel, who did not transform but performed his functions with honor and dignity. At which point a parachute stored in him suddenly popped open, bringing him down. Sam then tried to explain what was going on.

[[Image:Jetfire-ROTFstandingindesert.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Look, an old man is telling a story!]]
When Sam was finished carving [[Cyberglyphics|Cybertronian symbols]] on the ground, he mentioned Megatron and [[The Fallen]]. Jetfire ranted that The Fallen was the original Decepticon and had left him on Earth to rust. The symbols were a part of Jetfire's mission, and they jogged his memory banks enough to convince him to open a [[space bridge]], teleporting the entire group (including [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], [[Skids (ROTF)|the]] [[Mudflap (ROTF)|twins]], and Wheelie) to [[Egypt]]. Thankful that he had managed to stay on the planet, Jetfire then told them the story of the Dynasty of Primes and The Fallen, Cybertron's first contact with Earth, the [[star harvester]] which could destroy a [[Sun]] and convert it to energon, and the Matrix of Leadership needed to activate it, hidden on Earth. He revealed that only a [[Prime (rank)|Prime]] could kill The Fallen, but he believed that none were left. Sam told him of [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]; this caught the ancient Seeker's interest, revealing eagerness in the Prime's whereabouts, but became distraught to hear of Prime's death. Sam then wondered if the Matrix could restore Optimus to life. Jetfire said it was not the Matrix's intended use, but that the power within was unlike any known. Sadly, this was all Jetfire could do for the group, and after telling them of the riddle, he urged them to hurry off and find the [[Tomb of the Primes]].

[[Image:Jetfire-ROTFripoutspark.jpg|left|thumb|350px|Oh, [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]], you emotionless monster.]]

During the final [[Operation: Firestorm|battle]] around the [[Great Pyramid of Giza]] (which contained the Star Harvester), Jetfire arrived and attempted to "stick" the landing, which didn't go quite as he planned. He immediately decided to "show how they brought the pain in my day", using his axe to slice [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|Mixmaster]] across the chest and decapitate the [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]]. He was critically wounded by a surprise attack from [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]] and although he managed to kill the Decepticon, the injury was fatal. Fortunately, Jetfire was treated to one last wonder, as Sam Witwicky used the Matrix to resurrect Optimus. Jetfire was overjoyed of the moment, hardly believing that he was seeing a living [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]. Unfortunately, The Fallen teleported in and attacked, damaging Optimus and stealing the Matrix, placing it in the harvester. As he lay dying, Jetfire, who felt that during his entire life he'd never done a thing worth doing, offered his parts to Optimus Prime, saying that they would give him "a power like you've never known". Telling Optimus to fulfill his destiny, Jetfire ripped out his spark core and died.

[[Image:ROTF movie Powered-Up Optimus Prime.jpg|right|thumb|300px|I'd rather be a part of someone than in a nursing home!]]

Jetfire's sacrifice was not in vain: within moments of his death, [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] instructed [[Jolt (ROTF)|Jolt]] to begin a full transplant of the afterburners and weapons systems onto Optimus. Now equipped with Jetfire's powerful weapons and engines, Optimus broke through a blockade of debris The Fallen had telekinetically erected around the Pyramid and destroyed the Star Harvester before it could be used against the Earth's Sun. Prime then faced the Fallen and Megatron, using his afterburners to send Megatron flying through some ruins. During the battle, The Fallen pulled off the left wing and afterburner, using them to strike Prime in the face, but Optimus ultimately triumphed and ripped out the Fallen's spark core, killing the treacherous Prime. After the battle, Optimus quickly detached Jetfire's parts. {{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
{{--}}

===''Revenge of the Fallen'' novel adaptation===
Immediately after arriving in Egypt, Jetfire was attacked by [[Ransack (ROTF)|Ransack]]. Calling Jetfire a traitor, the smaller Seeker fired a single shot which bounced off his target, and Jetfire promptly stomped Ransack to death, muttering how he'd never liked that guy. {{Storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (novel)}}

===Toy bios===

Sickened by the war, the Decepticon Jetfire left Cybertron and went into hiding on Earth. When the war came to Earth and woke him up, {{storylink|#Leader Class|Jetfire}} he decided to rejoin the fight on the side of the Autobots and use his might to bring his former comrades to justice. {{storylink|#Fast Action Battlers|Photon Missile Jetfire}}

===Titan Magazines===

Jetfire harkens from a time when warriors stood by a code of honour. He was first sent to Earth by the Fallen, and believed he was working in the best interests of Cybertron, and so was a ''little'' upset to find the Fallen was actually an evil bastard. After seeing the Fallen imprison the [[Dynasty of Primes|other Primes]], Jetfire went into hiding. In [[1998]], he took advantage of the SR-71 being retired to hole up in the National Air and Space Museum as a permanent resident.

At some point, he found himself at odds with the Decepticons' credo and switched sides. ''When'' is not clear. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.8|Jetfire profile}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'' - The Game===
[[Image:Jetfire-ROTFvideogame.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Jetfire only likes to play multiplayer, not solo, if you know what we mean.]]
:''Voice actor:'' [[Clive Revill]]

{{note|On [[August 27]], [[2009]], Jetfire was one of a handful of downloadable characters in a DLC pack for XBox 360 and Sony Playstation 3. He could be used in multiplayer games only.}}

====Xbox 360/Sony PS3/PC====
=====Autobot campaign=====
Jetfire had been dormant for years in the Smithsonian Museum, but that changed after [[Sam Witwicky]] got a tip from [[Seymour Simmons|Agent Simmons]] about his location, and that he would know where the [[Tomb of the Primes|Tomb of the Twelve]] was. Sam woke Jetfire up, and got the sort-of-cryptic clue "When dawn alights the Dagger's tip, Three Kings will reveal the Doorway". After that, Jetfire transported Sam to [[Cairo]] via [[space bridge]] to look for the Tomb, and the Autobots followed.

In Cairo, Jetfire assisted [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] in battle against [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] and [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. The battle went in the Autobots' favor, but Megatron was able to stab Jetfire to death. A while later, Optimus was wearing a new Jetfire suit. {{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)}}

=====Decepticon campaign=====
Starscream was sent to destroy the Smithsonian Museum, where Jetfire laid dormant. He succeeded, but it was too late: both Jetfire and Sam Witwicky had already left for Cairo through a space bridge.

In Cairo, Jetfire battled Megatron alongside [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]]. He was killed. {{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)}}

====Wii/PS2====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Clive Revill]]
Jetfire was hiding in a museum at one point, until [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] found and captured him with some [[drone]]s. Starscream reported to [[The Fallen]] that he had found Jetfire.

Jetfire was kept in the [[Decepticon]] base. After the Decepticons captured [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], Jetfire went to rescue him. Bumblebee thought he was a enemy, but Jetfire explained to Bumblebee that he defected to the [[Autobots]] at one point in the war and about the Fallen's plans. Later he showed Bumblebee some escape pods, and they witnessed the battle with [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. Jetfire put Prime in one of the escape pods, and he left to spy on Megatron and Starscream.

After the two Decepticons got an artifact, Jetfire chased after them but Megatron shot at him. Jetfire followed them by tracking Energon radiation. Meanwhile Starscream found Optimus and attempted to kill him, but Jetfire took the shot that was meant for Optimus. Later he combined with Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (Wii/PS2)}}

===Transformers Autobots/Decepticons===
{{charstubfiction}}
In Autobots, Jetfire appears after you beat [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]. The seeker doesn't appear again until after [[you]] beat Megatron. He doesn't get turned into a corpse backpack, and is standing silently next to [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]].
{{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen: Autobots/Decepticons}}

===Revenge of the Fallen (mobile game)===
Jetfire was an old friend of [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]'s who defected from the Decepticons when [[The Fallen]] changed the Decepticon cause from rebellion to conquest. He ended up on [[Earth]] in [[Egypt]], where he was soundly defeated by [[Devastator (ROTF)|Devastator]]. Before he fell unconscious, he told [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] that Optimus should salvage his parts in order to gain the power needed to defeat [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. While he was unconscious, Optimus did just that, terminating Jetfire's life. {{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (Glu)}}

==Toys==
===Revenge of the Fallen===
====Legends Class toys====
[[Image:ROTF Jetfire 2009 Legends.JPG|right|300px|thumb|It's not the years, honey, it's the mileage.]]
*'''Jetfire''' (Legends, 2009)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''EZ-05'''
[[Image:ROTF Legends Prime Jetfire combo.jpg|thumb|left|Don't I look glorious as a corpse backpack?]]
:[[Size class|Legends]] class ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (toyline)|Revenge of the Fallen]]'' Jetfire transforms from a tiny [[Wikipedia: SR-71 Blackbird|SR-71 Blackbird]] spy plane to a sort of hunchback robot. In a bit of character design accuracy, his left arm has a cane.

:The upper fuselage of the plane mode has a thin rectangular peg to slot into the back of [[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Revenge of The Fallen|Legends class Optimus Prime]] to recreate the powered up mode at the end of the movie. There are no instructions on the packaging making mention of this, but they're hardly needed, as it's as simple as plugging him on and folding his wings backwards.
{{-}}

{{anchor|WarfortheSkies}}
*'''War for the Skies''' (Legends multipack, 2009)
[[Image:KMartROTFJetfire.jpg|thumb|300px|[[Shattered Glass (franchise)|Shattered Glass]] Jetfire.]]

:Available only as part of the [[Kmart]]-[[exclusive]] "War for the Skies" Legends battlepack, this release of Legends class Jetfire is a grey and black [[redeco]] - essentially inverting the colors of the regular toy, give or take a few paint operations.

:He comes with the Legends-class figures [[Blades (ROTF)|Autobot Blades]], [[Thundercracker (Movie)|Thundercracker]] and [[Spinister (ROTF)|Spinister]].
{{-}}

====Voyager Class toys====
[[Image:ROTF_Voyager_JetPowerOptimusPrime_toy.jpg|thumb|301px|Use your friends wisely.]]
*'''Jet Power Optimus Prime''' (Voyager, 2010)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''UA-01'''
**''Accessories:'' 2 rifle/smokestack-fuel tank assemblies, 2 missiles, [[Sword]], Jetfire armour parts
:Jetfire appears in this set as snap-on armour parts for 2007 mold Voyager class Optimus Prime. Obviously the armour fits onto Optimus Prime's robot mode to form the Jet Optimus combination, but when removed can be assembled into a gun platform, or can be fitted to Optimus' vehicle mode as some sort of rocket booster. Optimus Prime himself has been redecoed similarly to Buster Optimus Prime, in that he has an extensive, accurate paint scheme.

{{canceledtoy}}

{{-}}

====Leader Class toys====
[[Image:Jetfire ROTF leader toy.jpg|thumb|right|400px|"You know, I've personally flown over 194 missions, and I was shot down on every one. Come to think of it, I've never landed a plane in my life."]]
*'''Jetfire''' (Leader, 2009)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''RA-13'''
**''Accessories:'' Front landing gear/walking stick, rotary cannon missile launcher, projectile

:Jetfire converts into an [[wikipedia:SR-71 Blackbird|SR-71 Blackbird]] spy plane, quite possibly the largest alternate mode yet for the [[size class|Leader class]] price point.

[[Image:ROTF_Leader_Jetfire_PowerUpPrime_toy.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Jetfire died to become a power mushroom. There have been worse fates.]]

:Jetfire features several electronic lights and sounds; in jet mode, pushing the button on his back activates a "swooshing" noise, while in robot mode, a new button is revealed on his rear that triggers mechanical stomping sounds. Pressing the tab on Jetfire's chest activates his moving [[Mech Alive]] gears and head, accompanied by Jetfire announcing: "Jetfire's mah name!". The European version has the clip abbreviated to "Jetfire" (humorously, the way that the original clip is trimmed cuts off the end of the word, so it sounds like "Jetfi-"). Unlike previous ROTF Leader Class toys, this is not the version sold in the UK. In contrast to the film, where the character speaks with a Yorkshire accent, the toy is positively Scottish. Despite the back of the package showing two lights within Jetfire's torso, he only has one light, on his left side, while the other slot that would normally house the light is replaced with a button that emits Jetfire's transformation noise when the toy is transformed.

:As seen in the movie, he can combine with [[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Revenge of The Fallen|Leader Class Optimus Prime]] to form Prime's powered-up mode, albeit at the cost of Optimus Prime's leg articulation. A few inaccuracies are present in the combination instructions: for instance, while the instructions say to position the cockpit halves behind Prime's shoulders, they actually are meant to sit on top of them (as seen to the left), and feature small grooves into which the small silver triangular prongs lock. In addition, while Optimus' rear cab sections are shown as being folded out like rectangular wings in the instructions, it appears they are intended to sit flat against the sides of the portion of Jetfire that connects to Prime's back. Jetfire has two tabs that sit directly above the panels when folded back which better support the weight of Jetfire. The struts on which Jetfire's engines are mounted also pivot back to allow exactly enough space for the folded cab panels to fit. The remarkably small text written under the cockpit windows is: ''[[Brawley (ROTF)|LT. COL. BRAWLEY]] WARNING THIS AIRCRAFT CONTAINS A SEAT CONTAINING AN EXPLOSIVE CHARGE SEE MAINTENANCE MANUAL BEFORE REMOVING''.

:Amusingly, the figure's kibble likes to fall off during transformation. It makes him a little more screen accurate, after all...

{{-}}

{{picsneeded}}
* '''Jetpower Optimus Prime''' (Leader 2-pack, 2009)
**''Accessories:'' Front landing gear/walking stick, rotary cannon missile launcher, projectile

:This [[TakaraTomy]] Asian market [[exclusive]] Leader class two pack consists of a redecoed Jetfire and an altered [[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Leader Class toys 2|Buster Optimus Prime]]. Jetfire has a more subtle, more [[show-accuracy|movie-accurate]] colour scheme, replacing his white and gunmetal blue parts with gunmetal brown. Buster Optimus Prime has the [[faceplate]]d head of the first release of ''Revenge of the Fallen'' Leader class Optimus Prime, instead of the new head sculpted for Buster Optimus Prime and prop vehicle-accurate blue pin striping instead of CGI-accurate white.

:In mid 2010, this set was released in Australia.
{{-}}

====Fast Action Battlers====
[[Image:Jetfire ROTF FAB toy.jpg|right|thumb|300px|NOBODY MOVE... I dropped me cane...]]
*'''Photon Missile Jetfire''' (Fast Action Battler, 2009)
**''Accessories:'' "Photon Missile" projectile

: [[Fast Action Battlers]] Jetfire is a simplified, roughly Deluxe-sized toy of Jetfire. In vehicle mode, he transforms into a sort of cute, super-deformed SR-71 Blackbird jet. As with most ''Transformers'' toy jets, he has a fair bit of undercarriage junk from his robot mode, though not to the extent of the Leader class toy. In robot mode he has a reasonably accurate depiction of Jetfire's design, though his right arm ends in a spring-loaded projectile launcher shaped like a rotary cannon.It also combines with Optimus Prime.

{{picsneeded|Combined mode with FAB Optimus}}
{{-}}

====Robot Replicas====
[[Image:ROTF Robot Replica Jetfire.jpg|thumb|right|150px|With genuine simulated robo-bursitis!]]
*'''Jetfire''' (Robot Replica, 2009)
**''Accessories:'' Cane

: [[Robot Replicas]] Jetfire is a non-transformable, intended-to-be-accurate representation of his CGI model from the film. He is highly posable, and not much else. Due to his unusually large head and shortened neck, he appears based on the promotional art seen at the very top of this page, whose head and neck are severely foreshortened.
{{-}}

===Transformers (2010)===
====Legends Class toys====
[[Image:TF2010toy-VictoryofTheFallen.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Blue <strike>haired</strike> limbed old <strike>lady</strike> robot.]]
*'''The Victory of The Fallen''' (Legends 5-pack, 2010)
:Jetfire is a redeco of his Legends-class toy with light blue arms, hips, and knees. He comes bundled in a Kmart-[[exclusive]] pack with redecos of Legends-class The Fallen, Optimus Prime, Megatron, and Starscream.

:To date, this is the only Hasbro release of this figure that acknowledges the combining feature between Jetfire and Optimus Prime.
{{-}}

*'''Jetfire''' (EZ Collection, 2010)

:This Japanese exclusive release of Jetfire features much more black colouring than his previous releases, so as to be used with the a similarly-repainted Legends Optimus Prime figure to form the Optimus' powered up combination.

{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===Robot Heroes===
[[Image:Robotheroesmegatronfallenprimejetfireironhide.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Kinda morbid, really.]]
*'''Battle for the Fallen''' (box set, 2009)
:This ''Robot Heroes'' box set of figures comes with [[The Fallen]], [[Megatron (Movie)/toys|Megatron]] (tank mode), [[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys|Optimus Prime]] and Jetfire combined, and [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] (truck mode).
{{-}}

===RPMs - Robot Powered Machines===
[[Image:ROTF-toy_RPM_Jetfire.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Jetfire forgot to tell Hasbro he's claustrophobic]]
*'''Jetfire''' (R.P.M. Mini-Vehicle, 2010)
**''Series:'' '''Metal Heroes'''
**''Number:'' '''02 of 08'''
:''[[Robot Powered Machines]]'' Jetfire is a die-cast Blackbird with wheels. It can stand up to reveal a sculpted image of Jetfire's robot mode, and the wings are jointed so that it fits into the package better. The wheels feature through-axle construction, allowing the toy to roll well on flat surfaces.
{{-}}

*'''Jetfire VS Megatron''' (two-pack, 2010)
**''Series:'' '''Battle Series 2'''
**''Number:'' '''02 of 08'''

:This two-pack contains a silver [[redeco]] of RPM Jetfire and a metallic purple [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]].

:As part of the final wave of RPMs, Battle Series 2 did not get released through normal retail outlets in the United States, instead showing up for sale first in Canada, Asia and Europe. Later, though, it would show up in the US though [[Toys"R"Us|ToysЯUs Express]] mall stores and discount chains like Ross and TJ Maxx.

{{-}}
{{picsneeded}}

===Speed Stars===
[[Image:SpeedStars_MetalHeroes_Jetfire.jpg|thumb|right|300px|]]
*'''Jetfire''' (Mini-Vehicle, 2010)
**''Series:'' '''Metal Heroes'''
**''Number:'' '''02 of 08'''

:Jetfire was also made available in ''[[Speed Stars]]'', the follow-up to ''Robot Powered Machines''. This version has a different color layout from the RPM release, and is less detailed in its [[paint operation]]s.

{{-}}
[[Image:SpeedStars_BattleSeries_JetfireVSMegatron.jpg|thumb|right|300px|He's red, he's blue. [[FIBRIR|Not that confusing]].]]
*'''Jetfire VS Megatron''' (two-pack, 2010)
**''Series:'' '''Battle Series 2'''
**''Number:'' '''02 of 08'''

:Battle Series 2 was released normally in the United States under the ''Speed Stars'' banner, though with various changes. Jetfire's colors are similar to his original RPM toy.

{{-}}

==Notes==
*Acording to Jetfire he was left dormant a long time ago, how did he end up with such a modern alternate mode?

* While all the fictions agree that Jetfire was a Decepticon Seeker who defected and has been stuck on Earth for a long time, none agree on when and why he came to Earth, when and why he defected, or how long he snoozed. Random, confused mythos divergence? Now ''that's'' 80s nostalgia!

* Jetfire's head was redesigned so [[Industrial Light & Magic]] could animate a smirk on the character. This early, mouthless head was still used for the toy designs and promotional art though.<ref>[http://vfxworld.com/?atype=articles&id=4003 Scott Farrar's VFXWorld interview]</ref>

* Jetfire's ancient Cybertronian vehicle mode as seen in [[IDW Publishing]]'s [[Defiance issue 4|''Defiance'' #4]] bears more than a passing similarity with the starship ''[[Axalon (BW)|Axalon]]'' from ''[[Beast Wars (franchise)|Beast Wars]]''.

* Apparently, Jetfire was briefly active during the Cuban Missile Crisis, according to one of his comments in the [[Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)|''Revenge of the Fallen'' video game]]. Specifically when Optimus is fighting Combaticon scouts and Constructicon Warriors in the middle of the map, he'll cry out " I haven't seen this much action since the Cuban Missle Crisis!".

* According to an extended bio unlocked on the [[Hunt for the Decepticons]] website by a code on "The Victory of The Fallen" toys box, Jetfire's body is filled with mysterious, powerful technology lost to the Autobots for centuries, which explains why it gave Optimus the boost he needed to defeat The Fallen.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Jetfire''' (ジェットファイア ''Jettofaia'')
*''Hungarian:'' '''Röptűz''' ("Flyfire")

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.tfu.info/2009/Autobot/MovieJetfire/jetfire.htm Jetfire at TFU.info]

[[Category:Dark of the Moon Decepticons]]
[[Category:Elderly Transformers]]
[[Category:Kmart exclusives]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen Autobots]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen Decepticons]]
[[Category:Seekers]]
[[Category:Transformers (2010) Autobots]]
[[Category:Turncoats]]

Dual Energon Swords

2011-08-16T00:30:16Z

207.151.155.11: /* Fiction */

[[Image:ROTF Prime blades.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Can we say "Mother!"]]
Now, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] may thoroughly believe his credo of "freedom is the right of all sentient beings", but he tends to revoke that in the case of the [[Decepticon]]s. Thus, when entering combat, Prime will use his [[ion blaster]], his [[barrage cannon]], his [[Energon Hooks]], and his '''Dual Energon Swords'''<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/discover/Battle-Bios.cfm Battle Bios at Hasbro.com]</ref> to their fullest effect. Possessing one on each arm, he charges the swords, also known as '''battle blades'''<ref name="ROTFMU"> [[Revenge of the Fallen: The Movie Universe]]</ref>, via a quantum electric generator with a max yield of one thousand degrees Celsius and a burn rate of five kilojoules per second.<ref name="ROTFMU"/>

This makes it a pretty handy weapon. Especially if you have a preference for [[decapitation|going after your enemy's face]].

==Fiction==

===Transformers (2007) movie===
[[Image:Movie2007 Prime sword.jpg|thumb|left|250px|If in the first movie he had one, and in the second movie he had two, then in the third movie, he...ah...]]
While escorting the [[AllSpark (Movie)|All Spark]] to [[Mission City]], Prime and the [[Autobot]]s were set upon by the Decepticons [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] and [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]], the latter of whom went to robot mode on the freeway to confront the Autobots. [[Transformation|Transforming]] himself, Optimus engaged Bonecrusher in a short but fierce battle, with the [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]] punching Bonecrusher off an overpass with sufficient force to knock out one of his optics. Partially blind and more enraged than usual, Bonecrusher began wildly swinging his tail claw, but Optimus ducked behind a support pole and unsheathed his right Energon Sword. Using it to full effect, Optimus sliced off Bonecrusher's arm and then jammed the sword through the Decepticon's neck, decapitating him. {{storylink|Transformers (2007)|Transformers}}
{{-}}

===''Revenge of the Fallen'' movie===
[[Image:ROTF Optimus vs Grindor.jpg|thumb|right|250px|''Roses are red'' ''violets are blue'' ''This poem doesn't rhyme'' '''NOW GIVE ME YOUR FACE!''']]
While trying to rescue [[Sam Witwicky]] from the Decepticons, Optimus was forced into a three-on-one battle against [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]], and [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor]]. After having his mouth plate shattered, Optimus unsheathed the Dual Energon Swords, slicing and dicing his would-be destroyers Starscream and Grindor, repeatedly impaling the former and relieving the latter Decepticon of his right arm, rotors, and ribs using his swords before throwing the right blade into his chest, and removing his head using a set of hooks.

Later, after Optimus Prime was resurrected by [[Matrix of Leadership]] and combined with the parts of [[Jetfire (ROTF)|Jetfire]], he worked his way through the floating ring of debris surrounding the [[Star Harvester]] to reach Megatron and [[The Fallen]]. The battle between them was short, with Optimus slicing off Megatron's [[fusion cannon]] arm with his remaining Energon Sword before sending him flying through some ruins, and ended with Optimus slicing off The Fallen's chin (and several fingers) with the blade and proceeding to ''tear off his face'' with The Fallen's own staff. {{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
{{-}}

===''Dark of the Moon'' movie===
Optimus first used his blade, handheld, after retrieving it from his trailer along with his shield. Shockwave fled the area with his pet Driller, causing Optimus to simply discard his sword until later.

During the Decepticon invasion of Chicago, Optimus swooped in with his flight tech, took Driller head on with machine guns, and decapitated the creature with his sword while flying by. Later on, he swooped on to the battlefield in a different area, impaling and tossing the Audi R8 Decepticon and slicing a protoform in half.He procedded with the charge down the street, and took out a Scapper and a protoform with both of his swords drawn.

==Toys==
===Transformers (2007)===
====Leader class toys====
[[Image:Movie Leader OptimusPrimeBattleMode.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]
*'''Optimus Prime''' ("Premium Series" Leader Class, 2008)
*'''Optimus Prime Battle Mode''' (Leader Class, 2008)

:The first Movie Optimus Prime ''toy'' to feature the Energon Sword was the [[Hasbro]] "Premium" release of [[Size class|Leader class]] Optimus Prime and [[TakaraTomy]]'s Optimus Prime Battle Mode, both of which were extensive [[redeco]]s and minor [[retool]]s in an attempt for greater accuracy. Additionally, the [[Ion blaster]] was replaced by the Energon Sword (here called the "energy sword"), which, through the [[Automorph]]ing [[gimmick]], flips from Optimus's forearm to cover his fist, after which the blade can be slid out of his scabbard. Due to its tacked-on nature, the design of the sword and the mechanism for its deployment aren't very accurate to the depiction in the movie.

:*''For more information, see [[Optimus_Prime_(Movie)/toys#Leader_Class_toys|the Leader class Transformers (2007) section of the Movie Optimus Prime toy article]].''
{{-}}

===Revenge of the Fallen===
====Leader class toys====
[[Image:ROTF Leader OptimusPrime.jpg|right|300px|thumb|I will not stop telling you that I am Optimus Prime. Ever!]]
*'''Optimus Prime''' (Leader, 2009)
*'''Optimus Prime Black Version''' (Leader, 2009)
*'''Buster Optimus Prime''' (Leader, 2009)

:By the time ''Revenge of the Fallen'' rolled around, Hasbro/TakaraTomy had integrated the Energon Swords into Optimus Prime's arm design, resulting in a much more accurate depiction of the weapons. Triggered by a switch on the inner sides of his forearms, two Energon Swords flip out of the outer sides of his arms.

:*''For more information, see [[Optimus_Prime_(Movie)/toys#Leader_Class_toys_2|the Leader class Revenge of the Fallen section of the Movie Optimus Prime toy article]].''
{{-}}

====Voyager class toys====
[[Image:ROTF_Voyager_JetPowerOptimusPrime_toy.jpg|thumb|301px|Use your friends wisely.]]
*'''Jet Power Optimus Prime''' (Voyager, 2010)

:The main drawcard of this extensive repaint of the Voyager class Optimus Prime toy from the 2007 ''Transformers'' toyline is the [[Jetfire (ROTF)|Jetfire]] armour one can attach to him, but he also features a Energon Sword one can attach to his left arm whilst combined with the Jetfire parts.

{{canceledtoy}}

{{-}}

====Fast Action Battlers====
[[Image:ROTF FAB OptimusPrime.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Two blades means ''twice'' the [[Decapitation|fun]]!]]
*'''Double Blade Optimus Prime''' (Fast Action Battler, 2009)
*'''Power Armor Optimus Prime''' (Fast Action Battler, 2010)

:[[Fast Action Battlers]] ''Revenge of the Fallen'' Double Blade Optimus Prime also had Dual Energon Swords, which, like the 2007 Leader class toy, flipped over from his forearms to cover his hands.
{{-}}

====Robot Replicas====
[[Image:ROTF RobotReplicas OptimusPrime.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Finally, he's got the sword! Now where's the other one?]]
*'''Optimus Prime''' (Robot Replica, 2009)
:[[Robot Replicas]] ''Revenge of the Fallen'' Optimus Prime had the Energon Sword molded onto his right arm.
{{-}}

===Transformers (2010)===
====Voyager class toys====
[[Image:TF2010_ROTF_Voy_BattleBladesOptimusPrime.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
*'''Battle Blades Optimus Prime''' (Voyager, 2010)

:Battle Blades Optimus Prime, an all-new Voyager class mold in the ''[[Transformers (2010 toyline)|Transformers'' (2010)]] toyline, and like the larger Leader class figure from the ''Revenge of the Fallen'' line, features two snap-out Energon Swords.
{{-}}

===Dark of the Moon===
====Voyager Class toys====
[[Image:DOTM_Voyager_OptimusPrime_trailer.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
*'''Optimus Prime / MechTech Trailer''' (MechTech Voyager, [[May 14]], 2011)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''DA03'''
**''Accessories:'' MechTech Ion Blaster/Energy Blade, MechTech trailer

:The Japanese release of ''Dark of the Moon'' Voyager Prime includes not only the exclusive trailer, but a [[MechTech]] version of his Ion Cannon that transforms into an Energon Sword (or "Energy Blade"). Like all Voyager-class MechTech weapons, it can be locked in the "deployed" state.
{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===Revenge of the Fallen===
*'''Optimus Prime Statuette''' (2010)

:Released by [[PopBox Collectibles]], this rather expensive, 12-inch-tall polystone statue of Optimus Prime features two sets of swappable hands and Energon Swords.
{{-}}

===Robot Heroes===
[[Image:Rhscorpprime.jpg|right|300px|thumb|He's cute as he violently decapitates [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|rage-filled mechanoids]].]]
*'''Optimus Prime vs. Scorponok''' (2007)

: Packaged with ''[[Robot Heroes]]'' [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]], this Optimus Prime figurine was the very first Movie Optimus Prime piece of merchandise to feature the Energon Sword seen in the 2007 ''Transformers'' movie.
{{-}}

[[Image:Robotheroesoptimusblackout.jpg|right|thumb|300px|After two years, Blackout's still trying to purple nurple him.]]
*'''Optimus Prime & Blackout''' (2009)

:The first ''Revenge of the Fallen'' ''Robot Heroes'' Optimus Prime was an all-new sculpt, featuring two Energon Swords.
{{-}}

:*''For more information, see [[Optimus_Prime_(Movie)/toys#Robot_Heroes|the Robot heroes section of the Movie Optimus Prime toy article]].''

==Notes==
*The inclusion of the Energon Sword in the 2007 ''Transformers'' movie was made after Hasbro/TakaraTomy's toy designs had been locked down, which is why the Optimus Prime toys released during the movie's run lacked the prominently featured melee weapon.
*Optimus's hand is visible underneath his sword when he begins slicing off The Fallen's face, making his toys show-accurate in this respect.
*Optimus holds his blade(s) in Dark of the Moon, rather than being equipped to his forearm. They also appear to be stored in his trailer as seen in the begininng of the film when he retrieves it from the trailer along with his shield.

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Blades]]
[[Category:Energon]]
[[Category:Movie weapons]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen weapons]]

Dual Energon Swords

2011-08-16T00:21:22Z

207.151.155.11: /* Notes */

[[Image:ROTF Prime blades.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Can we say "Mother!"]]
Now, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] may thoroughly believe his credo of "freedom is the right of all sentient beings", but he tends to revoke that in the case of the [[Decepticon]]s. Thus, when entering combat, Prime will use his [[ion blaster]], his [[barrage cannon]], his [[Energon Hooks]], and his '''Dual Energon Swords'''<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/discover/Battle-Bios.cfm Battle Bios at Hasbro.com]</ref> to their fullest effect. Possessing one on each arm, he charges the swords, also known as '''battle blades'''<ref name="ROTFMU"> [[Revenge of the Fallen: The Movie Universe]]</ref>, via a quantum electric generator with a max yield of one thousand degrees Celsius and a burn rate of five kilojoules per second.<ref name="ROTFMU"/>

This makes it a pretty handy weapon. Especially if you have a preference for [[decapitation|going after your enemy's face]].

==Fiction==

===Transformers (2007) movie===
[[Image:Movie2007 Prime sword.jpg|thumb|left|250px|If in the first movie he had one, and in the second movie he had two, then in the third movie, he...ah...]]
While escorting the [[AllSpark (Movie)|All Spark]] to [[Mission City]], Prime and the [[Autobot]]s were set upon by the Decepticons [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] and [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]], the latter of whom went to robot mode on the freeway to confront the Autobots. [[Transformation|Transforming]] himself, Optimus engaged Bonecrusher in a short but fierce battle, with the [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]] punching Bonecrusher off an overpass with sufficient force to knock out one of his optics. Partially blind and more enraged than usual, Bonecrusher began wildly swinging his tail claw, but Optimus ducked behind a support pole and unsheathed his right Energon Sword. Using it to full effect, Optimus sliced off Bonecrusher's arm and then jammed the sword through the Decepticon's neck, decapitating him. {{storylink|Transformers (2007)|Transformers}}
{{-}}

===''Revenge of the Fallen'' movie===
[[Image:ROTF Optimus vs Grindor.jpg|thumb|right|250px|''Roses are red'' ''violets are blue'' ''This poem doesn't rhyme'' '''NOW GIVE ME YOUR FACE!''']]
While trying to rescue [[Sam Witwicky]] from the Decepticons, Optimus was forced into a three-on-one battle against [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]], and [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor]]. After having his mouth plate shattered, Optimus unsheathed the Dual Energon Swords, slicing and dicing his would-be destroyers Starscream and Grindor, repeatedly impaling the former and relieving the latter Decepticon of his right arm, rotors, and ribs using his swords before throwing the right blade into his chest, and removing his head using a set of hooks.

Later, after Optimus Prime was resurrected by [[Matrix of Leadership]] and combined with the parts of [[Jetfire (ROTF)|Jetfire]], he worked his way through the floating ring of debris surrounding the [[Star Harvester]] to reach Megatron and [[The Fallen]]. The battle between them was short, with Optimus slicing off Megatron's [[fusion cannon]] arm with his remaining Energon Sword before sending him flying through some ruins, and ended with Optimus slicing off The Fallen's chin (and several fingers) with the blade and proceeding to ''tear off his face'' with The Fallen's own staff. {{storylink|Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
{{-}}

==Toys==
===Transformers (2007)===
====Leader class toys====
[[Image:Movie Leader OptimusPrimeBattleMode.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]
*'''Optimus Prime''' ("Premium Series" Leader Class, 2008)
*'''Optimus Prime Battle Mode''' (Leader Class, 2008)

:The first Movie Optimus Prime ''toy'' to feature the Energon Sword was the [[Hasbro]] "Premium" release of [[Size class|Leader class]] Optimus Prime and [[TakaraTomy]]'s Optimus Prime Battle Mode, both of which were extensive [[redeco]]s and minor [[retool]]s in an attempt for greater accuracy. Additionally, the [[Ion blaster]] was replaced by the Energon Sword (here called the "energy sword"), which, through the [[Automorph]]ing [[gimmick]], flips from Optimus's forearm to cover his fist, after which the blade can be slid out of his scabbard. Due to its tacked-on nature, the design of the sword and the mechanism for its deployment aren't very accurate to the depiction in the movie.

:*''For more information, see [[Optimus_Prime_(Movie)/toys#Leader_Class_toys|the Leader class Transformers (2007) section of the Movie Optimus Prime toy article]].''
{{-}}

===Revenge of the Fallen===
====Leader class toys====
[[Image:ROTF Leader OptimusPrime.jpg|right|300px|thumb|I will not stop telling you that I am Optimus Prime. Ever!]]
*'''Optimus Prime''' (Leader, 2009)
*'''Optimus Prime Black Version''' (Leader, 2009)
*'''Buster Optimus Prime''' (Leader, 2009)

:By the time ''Revenge of the Fallen'' rolled around, Hasbro/TakaraTomy had integrated the Energon Swords into Optimus Prime's arm design, resulting in a much more accurate depiction of the weapons. Triggered by a switch on the inner sides of his forearms, two Energon Swords flip out of the outer sides of his arms.

:*''For more information, see [[Optimus_Prime_(Movie)/toys#Leader_Class_toys_2|the Leader class Revenge of the Fallen section of the Movie Optimus Prime toy article]].''
{{-}}

====Voyager class toys====
[[Image:ROTF_Voyager_JetPowerOptimusPrime_toy.jpg|thumb|301px|Use your friends wisely.]]
*'''Jet Power Optimus Prime''' (Voyager, 2010)

:The main drawcard of this extensive repaint of the Voyager class Optimus Prime toy from the 2007 ''Transformers'' toyline is the [[Jetfire (ROTF)|Jetfire]] armour one can attach to him, but he also features a Energon Sword one can attach to his left arm whilst combined with the Jetfire parts.

{{canceledtoy}}

{{-}}

====Fast Action Battlers====
[[Image:ROTF FAB OptimusPrime.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Two blades means ''twice'' the [[Decapitation|fun]]!]]
*'''Double Blade Optimus Prime''' (Fast Action Battler, 2009)
*'''Power Armor Optimus Prime''' (Fast Action Battler, 2010)

:[[Fast Action Battlers]] ''Revenge of the Fallen'' Double Blade Optimus Prime also had Dual Energon Swords, which, like the 2007 Leader class toy, flipped over from his forearms to cover his hands.
{{-}}

====Robot Replicas====
[[Image:ROTF RobotReplicas OptimusPrime.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Finally, he's got the sword! Now where's the other one?]]
*'''Optimus Prime''' (Robot Replica, 2009)
:[[Robot Replicas]] ''Revenge of the Fallen'' Optimus Prime had the Energon Sword molded onto his right arm.
{{-}}

===Transformers (2010)===
====Voyager class toys====
[[Image:TF2010_ROTF_Voy_BattleBladesOptimusPrime.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
*'''Battle Blades Optimus Prime''' (Voyager, 2010)

:Battle Blades Optimus Prime, an all-new Voyager class mold in the ''[[Transformers (2010 toyline)|Transformers'' (2010)]] toyline, and like the larger Leader class figure from the ''Revenge of the Fallen'' line, features two snap-out Energon Swords.
{{-}}

===Dark of the Moon===
====Voyager Class toys====
[[Image:DOTM_Voyager_OptimusPrime_trailer.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
*'''Optimus Prime / MechTech Trailer''' (MechTech Voyager, [[May 14]], 2011)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''DA03'''
**''Accessories:'' MechTech Ion Blaster/Energy Blade, MechTech trailer

:The Japanese release of ''Dark of the Moon'' Voyager Prime includes not only the exclusive trailer, but a [[MechTech]] version of his Ion Cannon that transforms into an Energon Sword (or "Energy Blade"). Like all Voyager-class MechTech weapons, it can be locked in the "deployed" state.
{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===Revenge of the Fallen===
*'''Optimus Prime Statuette''' (2010)

:Released by [[PopBox Collectibles]], this rather expensive, 12-inch-tall polystone statue of Optimus Prime features two sets of swappable hands and Energon Swords.
{{-}}

===Robot Heroes===
[[Image:Rhscorpprime.jpg|right|300px|thumb|He's cute as he violently decapitates [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|rage-filled mechanoids]].]]
*'''Optimus Prime vs. Scorponok''' (2007)

: Packaged with ''[[Robot Heroes]]'' [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]], this Optimus Prime figurine was the very first Movie Optimus Prime piece of merchandise to feature the Energon Sword seen in the 2007 ''Transformers'' movie.
{{-}}

[[Image:Robotheroesoptimusblackout.jpg|right|thumb|300px|After two years, Blackout's still trying to purple nurple him.]]
*'''Optimus Prime & Blackout''' (2009)

:The first ''Revenge of the Fallen'' ''Robot Heroes'' Optimus Prime was an all-new sculpt, featuring two Energon Swords.
{{-}}

:*''For more information, see [[Optimus_Prime_(Movie)/toys#Robot_Heroes|the Robot heroes section of the Movie Optimus Prime toy article]].''

==Notes==
*The inclusion of the Energon Sword in the 2007 ''Transformers'' movie was made after Hasbro/TakaraTomy's toy designs had been locked down, which is why the Optimus Prime toys released during the movie's run lacked the prominently featured melee weapon.
*Optimus's hand is visible underneath his sword when he begins slicing off The Fallen's face, making his toys show-accurate in this respect.
*Optimus holds his blade(s) in Dark of the Moon, rather than being equipped to his forearm. They also appear to be stored in his trailer as seen in the begininng of the film when he retrieves it from the trailer along with his shield.

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Blades]]
[[Category:Energon]]
[[Category:Movie weapons]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen weapons]]

Decepticon Miner

2011-08-15T01:13:53Z

207.151.155.11: New page: == Decepticon Miner == The Decepticon Miner was a servant class Decepticon who's first appearance was in the 22nd episode of Transformers:Prime. He doesn't like Ratchet very much. == Tra...

== Decepticon Miner ==
The Decepticon Miner was a servant class Decepticon who's first appearance was in the 22nd episode of Transformers:Prime. He doesn't like Ratchet very much.

== Transformers Prime Cartoon ==

The Decepticon Miner was working a large drilling machine to help harvest energon on Earth, along with some Vehicons. However, an enhanced Ratchet lead an unexpected assault on the group, to which the Decepticon Miner responded by climbing up a cliff in front of his machine. Ratchet easily followed and incapitated him with a large boulder, then procedded to interrogate. Despite trying to act tough with his "foul mouth", Ratchet simply used his blowtorch to torment the answers out of him. It worked. His cries for help, caused by Ratchet's aggressive act of burning the right side of his face, brought the attention of the other Autobots to his location, and he was saved by Optimus, who proclaimation of Ratchet going too far stopped the latter from impaling him the poor guy with his sword. [[Transformers:Prime episode 22]]

== Notes ==
-The Decepticon Miner has a similar appearance to the Vehicons, but he is a light shade of purple, he has kibble, and he has two optical bands on face unlike the Vehicons triangle.

-Ratchet torched his face over the right side of his face. Looks like someone is learing from Micheal bay's movies, huh?