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Nanosec (episode)

2008-04-13T08:32:05Z

70.171.8.145: /* Miscellaneous trivia */

{{picsneeded|Screenshots}}
{{disambig2|an episode of Transformers Animated|the supervillain the episode is named for|Nanosec}}

{{episodenav|animated|season=1|8|http://transformers.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Transformers_Animated_episodes|prev=The Thrill of the Hunt|next=Along Came a Spider}}

'''Bumblebee's self-proclaimed title as "fastest thing on wheels" is threatened by Nanosec, a super speedster crook on a deadly mission that could destroy all of Detroit.'''

==Synopsis==
During a nighttime fireworks display, a small-time thief named Nino Sexton takes advantage of the distraction to pull a heist not far from [[Detroit|Detroit's]] boardwalks. He eludes the easily bamboozled police drones, but makes the mistake of trying to steal the not-so-easily-bamboozled [[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] for a getaway car. Bumblebee toys with the crook for a bit, showing off his speed, but [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] arrives and tells him to knock it off. As they argue, Sexton tries to leave, but Bulkhead stops him with his wrecking ball—which cracks apart the boardwalk, sending all three plunging down. The two 'bots hit the water while Sexton hangs on desperately to a shattered board. He is saved in the nick of time by [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]], who turns him in to the police.

Meanwhile, in [[Isaac Sumdac|Professor Sumdac's]] private lab, his attempt to construct a servo for [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] fails, as Megatron knew it would. The [[Decepticon]] says that [[Destronium]] is necessary to build parts of sufficient quality, but Sumdac responds that the only available Destronium is a small amount synthesized on Earth.

The next day, Prime reprimands Bulkhead and Bumblebee, then says that Bumblebee will spend the day working with [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] and Bulkhead on using his head instead of his thrusters. This upsets [[Sari Sumdac|Sari]], who has been looking forward to sharing with 'Bee one of her dad's latest prototypes: a set of turbo boosters. Bumblebee's all too eager to get them attached, but [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] absolutely nixes the idea. Sari protests that her dad's equipment is perfectly safe.

Across town, a technician reports to Professor Sumdac that there are problems with the new turbo-blade cyber suit as the test subject hurtles helplessly around the test track. Sumdac resignedly asks for the design specs so he can work out the bugs. Once the suit is perfected, it will increase human speed and reaction time a thousandfold. Megatron insists that the Destronium take priority, but Sumdac notes that the available sample is too unstable; transporting it from across town would leave it useless—or worse, highly explosive—unless it could be delivered in under ten minutes. He notes that nothing is that fast, but Megatron eyes the display of the plans for the cyber suit.

Shortly, Nino Sexton is informed that someone has posted his bail, though the police drone has no info on who it was. Bemused, he walks outside, where a delivery drone hands him a package "from a friend." Nino opens it to find the cyber suit.

In traffic, Bumblebee refuses to slow down and blend in. He points out that a riderless motorcycle hardly blends in either, so Prowl generates a holographic driver, but Bumblebee still refuses to cooperate—until a traffic jam forces him to do so. When a group of police vehicles speed by, Bumblebee takes the excuse to put on his own police roof light and do some "blending".

The police turn out to be responding to a sudden rash of thefts by a hyper-fast Nino Sexton. Just after one theft, a teller comments in shock that the money vanished in a nanosec. Nino overhears and decides he likes the name. He then proceeds to elude the police easily, then encounters Bumblebee. This time, [[Nanosec]] gets away, and Bumblebee can only marvel at his speed. However, for all his speed, Nanosec finds his big bags of loot rather heavy, and he pauses to catch his breath—only to be confronted by Prowl. The crook soon escapes, but Bumblebee's had time to catch up. He's still not fast enough to overtake Nanosec before the speedster zooms through a railroad crossing with a train closing in fast. Losing his nerve at the last second, Bumblebee slams on the brakes but gets stuck on the tracks. Bulkhead manages to grab the train in time to save 'Bee from getting crushed and holds it long enough that his buddy can get out of the way.

As Nanosec rejoices in his escape, he is contacted by Megatron, who is using a strobing signal that can only be detected at ultra-high speeds. Megatron offers Nanosec a substantial reward—$50 million—for delivering the Destronium. As a downpayment, he provides an ATM code that delivers a large amount of cash out of Isaac Sumdac's private bank account. All he has to do is get the Destronium from the lab to [[Sumdac Tower]] within ten minutes.

At the Autobots' base, Bumblebee continues to try to beat his speed record, but to no avail. As he begs Ratchet to give him the turbo booster upgrade, Nanosec heists the Destronium from Sumdac Labs. Prime arrives to announce Nanosec's latest activity and location, and commands everyone to roll out to capture the villain. A dejected Bumblebee thinks it's impossible, but Sari holds up her All Spark key and says there might be a way.

As Nanosec races into town, Prime stops him with a spread of negative-friction lubricant, but once he lassos the criminal out of the puddle, Nanosec's speed allows him to turn Prime's grappling lines against him. Prime calls for back-up, so Sari activates Bumblebee's newly installed boosters with her key. Prime finally manages to catch Nanosec by his legs, but Bumblebee rockets into him, out of control, allowing the villain to escape. 'Bee and Sari nearly zoom off the edge of a half-built bridge, but Prime's line catches them. Even so, it's a struggle for the Autobot leader to hold them, so 'Bee throws it in reverse. This gets him away from the drop, but otherwise doesn't help much.

Down the road, Ratchet uses his magnets to catch Nanosec, then checks the container he was carrying. He quickly realizes the danger involved—if the Destronium detonates in its current state, it could wipe out half of Detroit. Then Bulkhead notices Nanosec, whose hood has come off, now has grey hair when he used to be a redhead. Just then, Bumblebee rockets by, still out of control and now in reverse, again knocking Nanosec free to resume his delivery. Ratchet suggests Bee switch to robot mode, which is a MUCH bigger help. Prime catches up and orders Ratchet to disable the boosters, but there's no time; Nanosec has to be caught and stopped NOW. Prime tells everyone to roll out—without any vehicle mode modifications, thank you. As they proceed, Bulkhead wonders if the Destronium turned Nanosec's hair white, but Prowl responds that loss of hair color in organics is a sign of aging. Realizing what's going on, Bumblebee activates his boosters (which are apparently under control now) and races after Nanosec, using his head AND his thrusters. Once he catches up to the slowing speedster, 'Bee easily zaps the Destronium out of his grasp and rolls off with it. He then taunts the criminal into pursuing him at top speed until Nanosec becomes literally too old for this stuff and collapses.

By this time, the Destronium is very near its flash point, and according to Ratchet, the only safe place to take it is the upper atmosphere. With a two-stage boost assist from Bulkhead and Prowl, Bumblebee manages to use his thrusters to take the Destronium high enough and chuck it away before it explodes. Ratchet and Prime then slow him down and cool him off during his reentry. As the media cover Nanosec's arrest and the averted disaster, Prime congratulates everyone on a job well done, and Prowl even offers to race Bumblebee back to the plant, but 'Bee says he and Sari will walk.

==Stats==

*'''Written by:''' [[Marty Isenberg]]
*'''Directed by:''' [[Matt Youngberg]] & [[Shunji Oga]]
*'''Original airdate:''' January 26, 2008

===Featured characters===
(''Numbers indicate order of appearance.)''
{|border=5 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=5 align=center style="border:#800000"

! style="background:#FFEEEE" | [[Autobot]]s
! style="background:#EEEEFE" | [[Decepticon]]s
! style="background:antiquewhite" | [[Human]]s
|-
| style="background:#FFEEEE" valign="top" |
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (2)
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (3)
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (4)
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (8)
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (9)

| style="background:#EEEEFE" valign="top" |
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] (6)

| style="background:antiquewhite" valign="top" |
*[[Nanosec]] (1)
*[[Isaac Sumdac]] (5)
*[[Sari Sumdac]] (7)
*[[Captain Fanzone]] (10)
|}

==Quotes==
"I'm kinda new to this planet, but I believe you're supposed to pay for those things before you run off with them."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' holding Nanosec after he robs the warehouse

"Couldn't I just ask your Autobot friends to help?" 
"NO! I...do not wish them to see me in this weakened state."
:—'''Megatron''' tells '''Isaac Sumdac''' the absolute truth, for once. Sort of.

'''Bumblebee:''' "Turbo boosters! Suh-weet!" 
'''Optimus:''' "You're not actually thinking of hooking these things up to yourself, are you?" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "Oh, of course not! I was gonna ask the doc-bot to do it for me." 
'''Ratchet:''' "Have you got your processor up your exhaust port? These things are untested, incompatible—" 
'''Sari:''' "And totally wicked fast!"
:—'''Bumblebee''' gets a few mixed signals.

"I ain't nobody's errand boy...uuunless the price is right!"
:—'''Nanosec''' hustling Megatron

'''Prowl:''' "The point of this exercise is to blend into your environment." 
'''Bumblebee:''' "Oh, right! 'Cause nothing says 'blend' like a motorcycle driving itself." 
''Prowl generates a hologram of a policeman driver for himself'' 
'''Prowl:''' "Happy?"
:—Houston, we have [[Mustache Man]] sighting.

"Word of advice: Super speed doesn't equal super strength."
:—'''Prowl''' tells it like it is.

"You know, there might be another way to get that turbo booster upgrade." 
"But, Prime's orders—" 
"Were to catch Nanosec. He didn't say HOW."
:—'''Sari''' plays the little devil on '''Bumblebee'''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s shoulder.

'''Bumblebee:''' "You ROCK!" 
'''Sari:''' "No, YOU rock!" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "No, YOU rock!" 
'''Sari:''' "No, YOU rock!" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "I said YOU rock!" 
'''Sari:''' "I said YOU rock!" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "YOU rock!" 
'''Sari:''' "YOU rock!"
:—Mercifully, the exchange ends here.

"Transform and roll out! ''(to Bumblebee)'' In your ORIGINAL vehicle mode!"
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

"How do you suppose this Nanosec fellow got hold of my experimental turbo suit?" 
"I suspect it was an inside job."
:—Delightfully layered-meaning dialog between '''Prof. Sumdac''' and '''Megatron'''

"Race you back to the plant?" 
"If it's all the same to you, I think we'll walk."
:—'''Prowl''' and '''Bumblebee'''

==Other notes==

===Continuity errors===
* Prof. Sumdac seems woefully dim about his own creation, stating that nothing could be fast enough to bring the Destronium across town in time, '''right after''' talking about the turbo suit. However, as the suit has just been shown to have problems, perhaps Sumdac is instead exercising some sensible caution by not even considering using it.

* Ironically, judging from the position of the train at the time Bumblebee stopped on the tracks, he ''would'' have made it if he'd kept going.

* It's an odd ATM that accepts credit card code without swiping or inserting the card itself.

* Comparing Megatron's directions to a map of the Detroit-Monroe area, he seems to recommend taking a primarily north-south route, which seems to be the shortest distance. However, Prime says Nanosec's taking I-94, the east-west highway, which would require a substantially longer route. Even given his super speed, why would Nanosec make it harder on himself to make the 10-minute deadline? (It's possible maps.megatron.com's route doesn't use highways, meaning more traffic lights, but the map's semi-fictionalized, so it's hard to tell.)

* Apparently, news spreads as fast as Nanosec can run. No one seems to be around to hear him say he likes the name after he hears the teller use the word, yet within a few hours, Prime and Sari somehow know his name as well. Maybe he quickly put up some P.R.?

* Sumdac claims that the Destronium has to be delivered quickly, or it will become too unstable. Yet Ratchet says moving the substance at high speed is what makes it volatile. So it was a lose-lose situation from the beginning. Perhaps Megatron needs to run a few more self-diagnostics before he starts his galactic conquest gig again...

* What would Megatron actually ''do'' with the destronium, even if he got it, without letting Sumdac know about it? He needs ''help'' to get his body back.

===Animation errors===
*As Bumblebee is about to go over the closed bridge, just before he goes into reverse, Sari's All Spark key is stuck in his ignition...and also depicted hanging from its lanyard around her neck.

===Transformers references===
* Bumblebee uses the term "Big Bot", which was also [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor's]] affectionate name for [[Optimus Primal]] in ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''.

* Megatron is made up of [[Destronium]] circuits. The Decepticons are called [[Destron]]s in Japan. Or maybe they got it from [[Destro|a certain Scottish arms dealer...]]

* Bumblebee's battle mask bears a striking similarity to the toy-face of the original [[Generation 1]] [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] toy.

* Sumdac's new police drones, first seen (sort of) in [[Total Meltdown]], have been adopted by the Detroit police department...they still need to work out some bugs.

* Prowl can project a hologram of a police officer riding him...and the hologram has a [[Moustache Man|mustache]].

* Although this may not be intentional, Sari finding a loop-hole in Optimus's orders is similar to [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]] doing it with [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] in the second episode of [[Beast Machines]].

===Real-world references===
* Going by the semi-fictional map Megatron provides, Sumdac Tower appears to be near the interchange of I-96 and State Highway 39, while the lab with the Destronium is somewhere near the suburb of Berlin, just east of I-75. For comparison, the robot plant shown in "[[Transform and Roll Out!]]" is on the lakeshore in Monroe, about six miles further southwest.

===Miscellaneous trivia===
* This is the first time Bumblebee uses his battle mask.
* This is also the first time we see Bumblebee's rocket boosters. He loses them during atmospheric reentry, but it's possible he'll get them back.
* In the previous week's episode, "[[The Thrill of the Hunt]]", Ratchet repaired his war wound—the exposed circuitry on the dorsal side of his left forearm—when he installed his EMP generator, regained from the bounty hunter [[Lockdown]]. Only a few shots in this episode provide a view of that part of his arm, and most of them show it as whole. However, the one good view available—after the Destronium theft, when Bumblebee is begging Ratchet to install the boosters—distinctly shows the war wound still present. It's possible he's left the generator unattached so he may continue to remember the circumstances of its loss [[Arcee (Animated)|"for those who can't,"]] as he puts it.
* In this episode, Bumblebee tries to be responsible, while Sari is the one who opts for breaking the rules. Wow. That's a role reversal from [[Unicron Trilogy|previous fictions]].
* Isaac Sumdac is still using Megatron's hand as a chair. For a fleshling, he's got bolts of steel.
* Bumblebee ran Nanosec, already slowed enough to make them equal, into old age on purpose for no apparent reason. That is '''COLD'''.

{{epstub}}
[[Category:Animated episodes]]<div id="wikia-credits"> From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</div>

Megatron Rising - Part 1

2008-04-03T23:58:31Z

70.171.8.145: /* Quotes */

{{episodenav|animated|15|season=1|prev=Nature Calls|next=Megatron Rising - Part II}}

[[Image:MegRisingRebuilt.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Oh SHIT, what are we gonna do now?!]]

'''Prime begins to doubt his leadership abilities as the Decepticons mobilize for a big invasion of Earth.'''

==Summary==

[[Image:MegRisingBodyLab.jpg|left|thumb|This is what happens when you don't have proper rust proofing.]]

[[Detroit]] is in the midst of a blizzard, and as Isaac Sumdac starts to repair Megatron's body he comments that they were fortunate to have found it beforehand, while at the same time praising it for being well-constructed enough to withstand 50 years of exposure to the elements. Megatron silently gloats that Cybertronian technology is more powerful than any force on Earth. The bad weather causes a blackout and forces [[Sumdac Tower]] onto its backup generator; when Sumdac decides this will force a delay in the repairs, Megatron alternates between bluster and sweet-talk to try to get his way, but it's no use. Megatron attempts to call Lugnut again for assistance.

Lugnut and Blitzwing have just finished rebuilding themselves (after some squabbling over the last piece) in a distant forest. Starscream mocks them for in-fighting and reminds them that he is their new chosen and sworn sovereign; his two subjects retort that they serve him only under threat, not by choice. At that moment, Megatron successfully contacts Lugnut, whose newly reverential and respectful attitude both pleases and confuses (''but mostly pleases'') Starscream. When Starscream finds out Lugnut "thinks" he's hearing Megatron, the new leader is infuriated, and in his anger almost exposes that fact that it was himself, and not the Autobots, who defeated Megatron in the first place. Megatron orders Lugnut to retrieve the [[Sari Sumdac's key|Key]] and bring it to him; Starscream then notices that, regardless of the source, Lugnut is indeed being contacted by someone. He orders Lugnut and Blitzwing to obey the strange orders for now, while he himself will track the transmissions to their source and see who is trying to undermine his authority.

As the Decepticons move out, the Autobots' HQ computer notices their increased activity. The Autobots are worried about a possible full-scale Decepticon invasion. As if Optimus Prime wasn't stressed enough, Bulkhead and Prowl then take the opportunity to finally tell him bout the continued survival of the [[Dinobot (Animated)|Dinobots]] on [[Dinobot Island (Animated)|Dinobot Island]]. Prime is furious that his orders were disobeyed, but decides that given the circumstances they should try to use all resources available--but insists that he will lead the new mission to contact the Dinobots.

Optimus Prime is especially worried about the Key, both because Sari can't protect it, and because she once again is using it as a toy (this time for model-plane dogfighting). When he orders her to turn it over, Sari angrily reminds him that she was chosen for this role by the [[All Spark (Animated)|AllSpark]] itself. Prime then orders Ratchet to magnetically take the key from her, and, reluctantly, Ratchet obeys. Sari feels heartbroken and betrayed, and flees the base. An upset Bumblebee defends Sari's role as part of the team, to which Optimus responds that since Bumblebee has been such a poor team performer who makes so many mistakes, he isn't a good character witness. Bumblebee retorts that the Autobots' desperate, seemingly hopeless situation means Optimus isn't a good leader--then he leaves in pursuit of Sari. Prime orders Ratchet to take the Key to the [[Ark (Animated)|Autobot spaceship]] beneath Lake Erie, and they all depart.

Sari walks down the street, dejected and pouting about how untrustworthy the Autobots turned out to be. But she's being watched--by Blackarachnia, who abducts the girl and mockingly praises her for seeing the light. Still hoping to cure herself of her techno-organic body, Blackarachnia attempts to bargain with Sari to hand over the key. They exchange "snappy banter" for a while, which leaves Blackarachnia bored. When Sari again mentions how the Autobots no longer trust her, Blackarachnia tells her more about her own sad past and how only the power of the AllSpark can give her back a normal life. Sari seems moved....

En route to the Autobot ship, Ratchet is ambushed by Blitzwing and Lugnut, in a battle about as one-sided as Bambi vs Godzilla. He seems to challenge Blitzwing to a battle to the finish--but the three-faced robot simply freezes Ratchet solid and cracks off his crystallized arm, taking the Key with it.

On Dinobot Island, the Autobots are confronted by the Dinobots who--again--are hostile to trespassers. Prime seemingly worsens the situation, as a stranger with a heavy-handed attitude. When their familiar protector Prowl reveals himself and tries to speak, the Dinobots calm down slightly (though Prime is further frustrated to learn the [[Meltdown (Animated)|extent of his troops' misadventures]] on Dinobot Island). But in the end, the Dinobots refuse to help against the Decepticons, saying they don't want to help any robots--they ''fight'' robots. Optimus points out that the Dinobots are robots themselves.... prompting them to begin fighting each other. When Ratchet calls and informs Prime of the key's theft, the Autobots to return to the mainland. Bulkhead asks what their next course of action is, and Prime admits he doesn't know, thinking that Bumblebee was right about Prime being unfit for command.

[[Image:Megatron rising 1 Starscream freakout.jpg|thumb|150px|Bumblebee violated rule number 37 of the good guy code: never interrupt the villain during the monologue.]]
Starscream traces the source of Lugnut's messages back to Sumdac Tower. Blasting his way in, he is shocked to find Megatron alive--but regains his composure at the sight of his former leader dismantled and helpless. The two have an elaborately deceptive conversation about loyalty: Megatron knows Starscream betrayed him, but Starscream doesn't know he knows and wants to [[Wikipedia:The Incredibles|"monologue"]] a bit before delivering the final blow. Meanwhile, Bumblebee's search for Sari leads him to the tower; when he spots Starscream through the wrecked wall, he squeezes himself into an elevator and prepares for a one-on-one battle (after using the classic "cellphone interference" ploy to avoid talking to Optimus). Right when Starscream is finally about to finish Megatron off, Bumblebee charges in, stingers blasting wildly--striking Starscream at full force and causing no damage at all. Starscream effortlessly thrashes Bumblebee, more angry at having his monologue interrupted than anything else. During this diversion, Megatron activates some of the lab machinery, propelling both Starscream and Bumblebee out of the lab and onto the tower roof.

[[Image:MegRisingHeadKey.jpg|left|thumb|Cyber Key power!]]

Dr. Sumdac rushes in, hearing the disturbance. At first Megatron keeps up his usual act, warning that the Decepticons will be back soon and that he needs his new body immediately. The doctor agrees, trying to repair it as quickly as possible, while Megatron observes the rooftop action on a viewscreen and tries to electrocute Starscream through a spotlight. Lugnut and Blitzwing arrive, praising their leader, and finally it's time for the charade to end. Seeing Megatron, Blitzwing finally understands that Lugnut wasn't crazy. Lugnut forces Sumdac to genuflect to Megatron, who in turn gloats at the sight and how easily he was able to lie to his captor. Blitzwing inserts the Key into Megatron's head; its power is now his to command. Megatron quickly (''and beautifully'') repairs himself, using metal from the lab as patch-up material when necessary; in the process he steals Sumdac away to an as-yet-undisclosed location.

Up on the roof, Starscream is about to finish off Bumblebee, and down on the street the Autobots are just arriving to try to help, but all are reduced to staring in horror and disbelief as Megatron blasts up into the sky, an armored colossus.

{{-}}
==Stats==

*'''Written by:''' [[Marsha Griffin]]
*'''Directed by:''' [[Irineo Maramba]], [[Ciro Nieli]], & [[Kentaro Mizuno]]
*'''Original airdate:''' March 29, 2008
*'''Animation studio:'''

===Featured characters===
(''Numbers indicate order of appearance.)''
{|border=5 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=5 align=center style="border:#800000"

! style="background:#FFEEEE" | [[Autobot]]s
! style="background:#EEEEFE" | [[Decepticon]]s
! style="background:antiquewhite" | [[Human]]s
|-
| style="background:#FFEEEE" valign="top" |
* [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (7)
* [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (8)
* [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (9)
* [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (10)
* [[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (11)
* [[Grimlock (Animated)|Grimlock]] (13)
* [[Snarl (Animated)|Snarl]] (14)
* [[Swoop (Animated)|Swoop]] (15)
| style="background:#EEEEFE" valign="top" |
* [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] (2)
* [[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] (4)
* [[Lugnut]] (5)
* [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] (6)
* [[Blackarachnia (Animated)|Blackarachnia]] (12)
| style="background:antiquewhite" valign="top" |
* [[Isaac Sumdac]] (1)
* [[Sari Sumdac]] (3)

|}

==Quotes==

'''Lugnut''': "And the universe will rejoice! All hail your grand and glorious return!" 
'''Starscream''': "Okaaay, what's ''his'' malfunction?" 
'''Calm Blitzwing''': "Technical glitch. It happens." 
'''Crazy Blitzwing''': "A lot, actually! Ahahahaha!" 
'''Lugnut''': "It is ''not'' a glitch! It is Megatron, and he commands us to deliver him the key!" 
'''Starscream''': "Megatron?! Did you just say Megatron? Did he just say ''MEGATRON''?! ''THERE IS NO MEGATRON!'' MEGATRON IS OFFLINE! TERMINATED! I DID IT MYSEL{{m-}}''saw'' it myself."
:{{m-}}'''Starscream''', you master of deception, you.

"Lugnut! Blitzwing! Do as our mystery caller commands! Track the energy signal and find that key! Meanwhile, I will locate the source of the transmission." 
"And locate our grand and glorious leader!" 
"Uh, fine, yes, whatever."
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Lugnut'''. Screamer's the master of deception, we say!

"The fate of the Earth and Cybertron hang in the balance and all I've got in my command are a bunch of undisciplined, insubordinate MALFUNCTIONS!"
:{{m-}}'''Optimus Prime''' has quite the bad temper when he's dissatisfied with his troops. ''[[Megatron (BW)|Yesssss.]]''

"What's your damage, Prime? Sari is a part of this team!" 
"Considering your own history of mistakes, you aren't exactly the greatest character witness, Bumblebee."
:—'''Bumblebee''' and '''Optimus Prime''' exchange harsh words. Ouch.

'''Angry Blitzwing''': "The key, Autobot!" 
'''Ratchet''': "You'll have to pry it from my cold, offline servo." 
''[Blitzwing switches to his calm face, freezes Ratchet, then switches to his crazy face]'' 
'''Crazy Blitzwing''': "Well, it's not exactly offline, but it's certainly cold. Ahahahaha!" 
:{{m-}}'''Blitzwing''' cheats by stealing the key from '''Ratchet''' instead of fighting for it.

'''Grimlock''': "Cycle and car robots good! Truck robot bad!" 
'''Prowl''': "Truck robot good. Our ''friend''." 
'''Grimlock''': "Hmmmm...friend?"
:{{m-}}'''Prowl''', the Dinobot whisperer

"Evil forces are about to invade this planet and destroy everything in their path. If we want to survive, we must join forces and fight them together." 
"Dinobots not need robots to fight! Dinobots destroy robots!" 
"In case you haven't noticed, Dinobots ''are'' robots."
:{{m-}}'''Optimus Prime''' gives '''Grimlock''' a dose of reality.

"Look what the capacitor dragged in." 
"Megatron?! Alive? And looking...magnificent, as always." 
"Starscream. How good it is to be reunited with such a ''devoted'' and ''faithful'' subject in my time of need." 
"I would have come sooner, o grand and illustrious leader, but naturally we all assumed you perished at the hands of the Autobot scum. What...great...joy to discover you did not." 
"Yes. Delight is written all over your face."
:{{m-}}'''Megatron''' and '''Starscream''' exchange warm and heartfelt pleasantries.

"'''YOU INTERRUPTED MY SPEECH!'''"
:{{m-}}'''Starscream''' seriously freaks out when Bumblebee shoots him.

'''Lugnut''': "We have come for our glorious leader, Megatron!" 
'''Megatron''': "I am here, Lugnut." 
'''Lugnut''': "Oh, Master, I am not worthy! I am not worthy{{m-}}...what happened to your body?" 
'''Megatron''': "...long story." 
'''Calm Blitzwing''': "So, you didn't have voices in your head..." 
'''Crazy Blitzwing''': "...you had a ''head'' in your head!"
:{{m-}}Typical Decepticon reunion.

"''Decepticons?'' But, you told me you were an Autobot." 
"And I hated every moment of that humiliating charade."
:{{m-}}'''Isaac Sumdac''' finally learns the truth, and from '''Megatron''' himself.

{{-}}

==Other notes==
===Continuity errors===
* When Bulkhead brings up the Dinobots, Optimus says that they were destroyed, "weren't they?" However, the last time the Dinobots were mentioned was in "[[Survival of the Fittest]]", when Optimus thought the Dinobots were ''missing,'' and also suspected they were involved in the kidnapping of Sari. He has no known reason to think they were ''destroyed.''

* Despite her initial sarcasm, Sari has apparently forgotten (or is willing to forget) how Blackarachnia's use of the All Spark key nearly killed Sari herself and all organic life for miles around. She also doesn't seem to mind being kidnapped onto a rooftop again. Lesson: Never betray a kid's trust; it makes them act '''really''' stupid.

* Not so much an error as just an oddity: When Starscream stands over a dangling Bumblebee on the Sumdac Tower rooftop, Megatron sends a power surge through a roof fixture and zaps Starscream. When the scene cuts back to the roof a few minutes later, Bumblebee's back on the roof, which he likely managed while Starscream was stunned, and Screamer's confronting him again. However, with no time given for them to talk or react about the transition, the previous roof scene may as well not have happened.

===Animation Errors===
[[Image:Sari's leg.jpg|right|200px|thumb|It's a new fashion trend.]]

* The [[scale|size of Megatron's head]] fluctuates greatly between scenes, often appearing gigantic even compared to large characters.

* When Sari is telling Blackarachnia about the Autobots taking away her key, her right leg is drawn awkwardly... almost as if it's growing out of her skirt. Though this is very likely in order to prevent a [[Teletraan 15|pre-teen panty shot]].

* For a brief moment, right when Ratchet contacts Prime to inform him of his loss of the key, the ol' Bot's arm can be seen with the "missing EMP Generator hole" again, but it quickly disappears, then re-appears when he fights Blitzwing and Lugnut.

* Starscream's Decepticon insignia is occasionally upside-down.

===Transformers references===
* Prime finally refers to [[Dinobot Island]] by that name.

===Real-world references===
* Ratchet's remark to Blitzwing about prying the key from his cold, offline servo is a reference to an NRA slogan.
* The scene of Megatron's head reattaching to his body via a series of small pistons that join and then draw together is similar to the "repair" sequences in 1999's ''The Iron Giant''.

===Miscellaneous trivia===
* The Decepticon symbol on Megatron's body that was so clear [[Nature Calls|last episode]] is nowhere to be seen now. Of course, neither is the chestplate it resided on.

* The R/C Plane Sari was flying resembles a MiG-15 Fighter.

* We learn the Prowl and Bullhead not only didn't tell Prime that the Dinobots were still around, but also didn't tell him that [[Meltdown]] was the one behind Sari's kidnapping in "[[Survival of the Fittest]]". So, when they returned with Sari after the events of that episode, they apparently told him ''none'' of the truth. What ''did'' they tell him?

* This is the first episode in which we see an extended transformation sequence for Starscream.

* When Megatron's energized body sends out cables to its detached hand, in which Prof. Sumdac is sitting, the hand grips around Sumdac, then is yanked under the flooring and over to the body, where it opens back up—with Sumdac no longer within it. (Nothing up Megatron's sleeve!)

* At one point during Starscream's transformation, he strongly resembles the Gerwalk mode of the [http://www.new-un-spacy.com/macrossplus/yf-19.htm YF-19 Alpha One] from the anime ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macross_Plus Macross Plus],'' one of the apparent influences for his alternate mode.

* It appears that Grimlock has gotten over his hatred of [[Car Robots]], but [[Grimlock (G1)|he still hates Optimus Prime]].

[[Category:Animated episodes]]<div id="wikia-credits"> From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</div>

Nanosec (episode)

2008-04-03T23:46:10Z

70.171.8.145: /* Quotes */

{{picsneeded|Screenshots}}
{{disambig2|an episode of Transformers Animated|the supervillain the episode is named for|Nanosec}}

{{episodenav|animated|season=1|8|http://transformers.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Transformers_Animated_episodes|prev=The Thrill of the Hunt|next=Along Came a Spider}}

'''Bumblebee's self-proclaimed title as "fastest thing on wheels" is threatened by Nanosec, a super speedster crook on a deadly mission that could destroy all of Detroit.'''

==Synopsis==
During a nighttime fireworks display, a small-time thief named Nino Sexton takes advantage of the distraction to pull a heist not far from [[Detroit|Detroit's]] boardwalks. He eludes the easily bamboozled police drones, but makes the mistake of trying to steal the not-so-easily-bamboozled [[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] for a getaway car. Bumblebee toys with the crook for a bit, showing off his speed, but [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] arrives and tells him to knock it off. As they argue, Sexton tries to leave, but Bulkhead stops him with his wrecking ball—which cracks apart the boardwalk, sending all three plunging down. The two 'bots hit the water while Sexton hangs on desperately to a shattered board. He is saved in the nick of time by [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]], who turns him in to the police.

Meanwhile, in [[Isaac Sumdac|Professor Sumdac's]] private lab, his attempt to construct a servo for [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] fails, as Megatron knew it would. The [[Decepticon]] says that [[Destronium]] is necessary to build parts of sufficient quality, but Sumdac responds that the only available Destronium is a small amount synthesized on Earth.

The next day, Prime reprimands Bulkhead and Bumblebee, then says that Bumblebee will spend the day working with [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] and Bulkhead on using his head instead of his thrusters. This upsets [[Sari Sumdac|Sari]], who has been looking forward to sharing with 'Bee one of her dad's latest prototypes: a set of turbo boosters. Bumblebee's all too eager to get them attached, but [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] absolutely nixes the idea. Sari protests that her dad's equipment is perfectly safe.

Across town, a technician reports to Professor Sumdac that there are problems with the new turbo-blade cyber suit as the test subject hurtles helplessly around the test track. Sumdac resignedly asks for the design specs so he can work out the bugs. Once the suit is perfected, it will increase human speed and reaction time a thousandfold. Megatron insists that the Destronium take priority, but Sumdac notes that the available sample is too unstable; transporting it from across town would leave it useless—or worse, highly explosive—unless it could be delivered in under ten minutes. He notes that nothing is that fast, but Megatron eyes the display of the plans for the cyber suit.

Shortly, Nino Sexton is informed that someone has posted his bail, though the police drone has no info on who it was. Bemused, he walks outside, where a delivery drone hands him a package "from a friend." Nino opens it to find the cyber suit.

In traffic, Bumblebee refuses to slow down and blend in. He points out that a riderless motorcycle hardly blends in either, so Prowl generates a holographic driver, but Bumblebee still refuses to cooperate—until a traffic jam forces him to do so. When a group of police vehicles speed by, Bumblebee takes the excuse to put on his own police roof light and do some "blending".

The police turn out to be responding to a sudden rash of thefts by a hyper-fast Nino Sexton. Just after one theft, a teller comments in shock that the money vanished in a nanosec. Nino overhears and decides he likes the name. He then proceeds to elude the police easily, then encounters Bumblebee. This time, [[Nanosec]] gets away, and Bumblebee can only marvel at his speed. However, for all his speed, Nanosec finds his big bags of loot rather heavy, and he pauses to catch his breath—only to be confronted by Prowl. The crook soon escapes, but Bumblebee's had time to catch up. He's still not fast enough to overtake Nanosec before the speedster zooms through a railroad crossing with a train closing in fast. Losing his nerve at the last second, Bumblebee slams on the brakes but gets stuck on the tracks. Bulkhead manages to grab the train in time to save 'Bee from getting crushed and holds it long enough that his buddy can get out of the way.

As Nanosec rejoices in his escape, he is contacted by Megatron, who is using a strobing signal that can only be detected at ultra-high speeds. Megatron offers Nanosec a substantial reward—$50 million—for delivering the Destronium. As a downpayment, he provides an ATM code that delivers a large amount of cash out of Isaac Sumdac's private bank account. All he has to do is get the Destronium from the lab to [[Sumdac Tower]] within ten minutes.

At the Autobots' base, Bumblebee continues to try to beat his speed record, but to no avail. As he begs Ratchet to give him the turbo booster upgrade, Nanosec heists the Destronium from Sumdac Labs. Prime arrives to announce Nanosec's latest activity and location, and commands everyone to roll out to capture the villain. A dejected Bumblebee thinks it's impossible, but Sari holds up her All Spark key and says there might be a way.

As Nanosec races into town, Prime stops him with a spread of negative-friction lubricant, but once he lassos the criminal out of the puddle, Nanosec's speed allows him to turn Prime's grappling lines against him. Prime calls for back-up, so Sari activates Bumblebee's newly installed boosters with her key. Prime finally manages to catch Nanosec by his legs, but Bumblebee rockets into him, out of control, allowing the villain to escape. 'Bee and Sari nearly zoom off the edge of a half-built bridge, but Prime's line catches them. Even so, it's a struggle for the Autobot leader to hold them, so 'Bee throws it in reverse. This gets him away from the drop, but otherwise doesn't help much.

Down the road, Ratchet uses his magnets to catch Nanosec, then checks the container he was carrying. He quickly realizes the danger involved—if the Destronium detonates in its current state, it could wipe out half of Detroit. Then Bulkhead notices Nanosec, whose hood has come off, now has grey hair when he used to be a redhead. Just then, Bumblebee rockets by, still out of control and now in reverse, again knocking Nanosec free to resume his delivery. Ratchet suggests Bee switch to robot mode, which is a MUCH bigger help. Prime catches up and orders Ratchet to disable the boosters, but there's no time; Nanosec has to be caught and stopped NOW. Prime tells everyone to roll out—without any vehicle mode modifications, thank you. As they proceed, Bulkhead wonders if the Destronium turned Nanosec's hair white, but Prowl responds that loss of hair color in organics is a sign of aging. Realizing what's going on, Bumblebee activates his boosters (which are apparently under control now) and races after Nanosec, using his head AND his thrusters. Once he catches up to the slowing speedster, 'Bee easily zaps the Destronium out of his grasp and rolls off with it. He then taunts the criminal into pursuing him at top speed until Nanosec becomes literally too old for this stuff and collapses.

By this time, the Destronium is very near its flash point, and according to Ratchet, the only safe place to take it is the upper atmosphere. With a two-stage boost assist from Bulkhead and Prowl, Bumblebee manages to use his thrusters to take the Destronium high enough and chuck it away before it explodes. Ratchet and Prime then slow him down and cool him off during his reentry. As the media cover Nanosec's arrest and the averted disaster, Prime congratulates everyone on a job well done, and Prowl even offers to race Bumblebee back to the plant, but 'Bee says he and Sari will walk.

==Stats==

*'''Written by:''' [[Marty Isenberg]]
*'''Directed by:''' [[Matt Youngberg]] & [[Shunji Oga]]
*'''Original airdate:''' January 26, 2008

===Featured characters===
(''Numbers indicate order of appearance.)''
{|border=5 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=5 align=center style="border:#800000"

! style="background:#FFEEEE" | [[Autobot]]s
! style="background:#EEEEFE" | [[Decepticon]]s
! style="background:antiquewhite" | [[Human]]s
|-
| style="background:#FFEEEE" valign="top" |
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (2)
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (3)
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (4)
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (8)
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (9)

| style="background:#EEEEFE" valign="top" |
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] (6)

| style="background:antiquewhite" valign="top" |
*[[Nanosec]] (1)
*[[Isaac Sumdac]] (5)
*[[Sari Sumdac]] (7)
*[[Captain Fanzone]] (10)
|}

==Quotes==
"I'm kinda new to this planet, but I believe you're supposed to pay for those things before you run off with them."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' holding Nanosec after he robs the warehouse

"Couldn't I just ask your Autobot friends to help?" 
"NO! I...do not wish them to see me in this weakened state."
:—'''Megatron''' tells '''Isaac Sumdac''' the absolute truth, for once. Sort of.

'''Bumblebee:''' "Turbo boosters! Suh-weet!" 
'''Optimus:''' "You're not actually thinking of hooking these things up to yourself, are you?" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "Oh, of course not! I was gonna ask the doc-bot to do it for me." 
'''Ratchet:''' "Have you got your processor up your exhaust port? These things are untested, incompatible—" 
'''Sari:''' "And totally wicked fast!"
:—'''Bumblebee''' gets a few mixed signals.

"I ain't nobody's errand boy...uuunless the price is right!"
:—'''Nanosec''' hustling Megatron

'''Prowl:''' "The point of this exercise is to blend into your environment." 
'''Bumblebee:''' "Oh, right! 'Cause nothing says 'blend' like a motorcycle driving itself." 
''Prowl generates a hologram of a policeman driver for himself'' 
'''Prowl:''' "Happy?"
:—Houston, we have [[Mustache Man]] sighting.

"Word of advice: Super speed doesn't equal super strength."
:—'''Prowl''' tells it like it is.

"You know, there might be another way to get that turbo booster upgrade." 
"But, Prime's orders—" 
"Were to catch Nanosec. He didn't say HOW."
:—'''Sari''' plays the little devil on '''Bumblebee'''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s shoulder.

'''Bumblebee:''' "You ROCK!" 
'''Sari:''' "No, YOU rock!" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "No, YOU rock!" 
'''Sari:''' "No, YOU rock!" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "I said YOU rock!" 
'''Sari:''' "I said YOU rock!" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "YOU rock!" 
'''Sari:''' "YOU rock!"
:—Mercifully, the exchange ends here.

"Transform and roll out! ''(to Bumblebee)'' In your ORIGINAL vehicle mode!"
:—'''Optimus Prime'''

"How do you suppose this Nanosec fellow got hold of my experimental turbo suit?" 
"I suspect it was an inside job."
:—Delightfully layered-meaning dialog between '''Prof. Sumdac''' and '''Megatron'''

"Race you back to the plant?" 
"If it's all the same to you, I think we'll walk."
:—'''Prowl''' and '''Bumblebee'''

==Other notes==

===Continuity errors===
* Prof. Sumdac seems woefully dim about his own creation, stating that nothing could be fast enough to bring the Destronium across town in time, '''right after''' talking about the turbo suit. However, as the suit has just been shown to have problems, perhaps Sumdac is instead exercising some sensible caution by not even considering using it.

* Ironically, judging from the position of the train at the time Bumblebee stopped on the tracks, he ''would'' have made it if he'd kept going.

* It's an odd ATM that accepts credit card code without swiping or inserting the card itself.

* Comparing Megatron's directions to a map of the Detroit-Monroe area, he seems to recommend taking a primarily north-south route, which seems to be the shortest distance. However, Prime says Nanosec's taking I-94, the east-west highway, which would require a substantially longer route. Even given his super speed, why would Nanosec make it harder on himself to make the 10-minute deadline? (It's possible maps.megatron.com's route doesn't use highways, meaning more traffic lights, but the map's semi-fictionalized, so it's hard to tell.)

* Apparently, news spreads as fast as Nanosec can run. No one seems to be around to hear him say he likes the name after he hears the teller use the word, yet within a few hours, Prime and Sari somehow know his name as well. Maybe he quickly put up some P.R.?

* Sumdac claims that the Destronium has to be delivered quickly, or it will become too unstable. Yet Ratchet says moving the substance at high speed is what makes it volatile. So it was a lose-lose situation from the beginning. Perhaps Megatron needs to run a few more self-diagnostics before he starts his galactic conquest gig again...

* What would Megatron actually ''do'' with the destronium, even if he got it, without letting Sumdac know about it? He needs ''help'' to get his body back.

===Animation errors===
*As Bumblebee is about to go over the closed bridge, just before he goes into reverse, Sari's All Spark key is stuck in his ignition...and also depicted hanging from its lanyard around her neck.

===Transformers references===
* Bumblebee uses the term "Big Bot", which was also [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor's]] affectionate name for [[Optimus Primal]] in ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''.

* Megatron is made up of [[Destronium]] circuits. The Decepticons are called [[Destron]]s in Japan. Or maybe they got it from [[Destro|a certain Scottish arms dealer...]]

* Bumblebee's battle mask bears a striking similarity to the toy-face of the original [[Generation 1]] [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] toy.

* Sumdac's new police drones, first seen (sort of) in [[Total Meltdown]], have been adopted by the Detroit police department...they still need to work out some bugs.

* Prowl can project a hologram of a police officer riding him...and the hologram has a [[Moustache Man|mustache]].

* Although this may not be intentional, Sari finding a loop-hole in Optimus's orders is similar to [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]] doing it with [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] in the second episode of [[Beast Machines]].

===Real-world references===
* Going by the semi-fictional map Megatron provides, Sumdac Tower appears to be near the interchange of I-96 and State Highway 39, while the lab with the Destronium is somewhere near the suburb of Berlin, just east of I-75. For comparison, the robot plant shown in "[[Transform and Roll Out!]]" is on the lakeshore in Monroe, about six miles further southwest.

===Miscellaneous trivia===
* This is the first time Bumblebee uses his battle mask.
* This is also the first time we see Bumblebee's rocket boosters. He loses them during atmospheric reentry, but it's possible he'll get them back.
* In the previous week's episode, "[[The Thrill of the Hunt]]", Ratchet repaired his war wound—the exposed circuitry on the dorsal side of his left forearm—when he installed his EMP generator, regained from the bounty hunter [[Lockdown]]. Only a few shots in this episode provide a view of that part of his arm, and most of them show it as whole. However, the one good view available—after the Destronium theft, when Bumblebee is begging Ratchet to install the boosters—distinctly shows the war wound still present. It's possible he's left the generator unattached so he may continue to remember the circumstances of its loss [[Arcee (Animated)|"for those who can't,"]] as he puts it.
* In this episode, Bumblebee tries to be responsible, while Sari is the one who opts for breaking the rules. Wow. That's a role reversal from [[Unicron Trilogy|previous fictions]].
* Isaac Sumdac is still using Megatron's hand as a chair. For a fleshling, he's got brass.
* Bumblebee ran Nanosec, already slowed enough to make them equal, into old age on purpose for no apparent reason. That is '''COLD'''.

{{epstub}}
[[Category:Animated episodes]]<div id="wikia-credits"> From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</div>

Total Meltdown

2008-04-03T23:40:28Z

70.171.8.145: /* Quotes */

{{disambig3|Meltdown}}

{{episodenav|animated|5|season=1|prev=Home Is Where the Spark Is|next=Blast from the Past}}

[[Image:Meltdownaproch.jpg|thumb|350px|Mr. Freeze and Clayface's offspring.]]
'''A bio-engineering genius experiments with some of Bumblebee's hydraulic fluid and accidentally transforms himself into Meltdown, whose corrosive touch can melt anything—including Autobots!'''

==Synopsis==

[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus]], [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]], [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] and [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] are observing human society by way of [[television]]. After seeing cars being refueled and demolition derbies, they find a wrestling show hosted by businessman [[Prometheus Black]] as part of his biochemical makeover program (or as Prime puts it, human upgrades). As a demonstration of the upgrades' success, one of his test subjects will be fighting a robot in the ring. To the Autobots shock, the robot is [[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]]! To their greater shock, Bumblebee's puny opponent, [[Colossus Rhodes|Cyrus "Colossus" Rhodes]], activates special pistons on his back that stimulate special steroids in his system, causing him to swell into a muscular bruiser bigger than Bumblebee.

As 'Bee takes a beating, Black converses with [[Captain Fanzone]] in the luxury box. Black believes that this display should prove that he, not Isaac Sumdac, deserves the Detroit Police Department's security materials contract, offering bio-enhanced officers over robotic drones. Then Bumblebee starts using his speed and stingers to get the better of his overgrown opponent. Enraged, Rhodes stimulates the steroids further, growing even huger, then scoops up Bumblebee and chucks him out through the arena wall. He then leaps outside after the small 'bot and starts tossing and smashing everything around to crush 'Bee. The other Autobots arrive and, thanks to Prowl's quick thinking, manage to stop Rhodes. However, during the battle, Bumblebee has become more and more sensitive to size-related comments, taking them personally. Bulkhead's ribbing doesn't help. Across the parking lot, a disgusted Fanzone denies Black the police contract; as much as he hates machines, he'll take them over a berserk, bio-enhanced gorilla. As Black fumes, he discovers a piece of Bumblebee, covered in the Autobot's internal fluids, at his feet, and takes it back to his lab for research.

At the lab, Black combines Bumblebee's fluid sample with his own special steroids, creating an incredibly powerful acid. However, his financier, [[Porter C. Powell]], informs him that, owing to the bad publicity from the wrestling match, his investors have cut all their funding and not even prisons will give him test subjects any more, leaving him no way to continue his research. Furious, he knocks over the containers of his experimental fluid, swearing he'll take matters into his own hands if he must. The acid starts melting through a good portion of his lab, with the fumes setting off alarms. Black stumbles through the fumes, half-blinded, and begins mutating, his flesh developing a greenish, flowing patina. He then emerges from his lab, swearing vengeance, his hand melting a portion of the door jamb where he gripped it.

Later, [[Isaac Sumdac|Professor Sumdac]] unveils the newest model of the Sumdac Systems Police Drone to a rather bored audience of local dignitaries, promising, among other things, that its new recognition software will prevent a recurrence of "that unfortunate incident with the captain's wife." The drone malfunctions badly and explodes, and an angry Fanzone demands the apologetic Sumdac contact them AFTER the bugs are fixed. [[Sari Sumdac|Sari]] then discovers a portion of the drone covered in a greenish residue and takes it to Ratchet, who confirms that it indicates sabotage. The corrosive even melts Autobot alloys, so he requests a few hours to run tests on it. Bumblebee is impatient, drawing more "short" jokes from Bulkhead and even Prowl. Sari insists that the banter can wait, as her dad has to be warned first. Most of the Autobots leave for the Sumdac Tower.

However, Black, now fully mutated and calling himself '''Meltdown''', has already arrived. He melts his way past the robot secretary, with the resulting smoke setting off an alarm, and starts on his way up. As Sumdac wonders what the noise is about, Sari contacts him from within Bumblebee and tells him about the sabotage. Isaac wonders who would sabotage him, then gets his answer as Meltdown dissolves the door.

Outside, Sari warns Bumblebee a bit too late to keep him from running into a force field, the result of the tower's auto-defense mode. Ratchet's magnetics open a hole in the field, but Colossus Rhodes shows up to keep the Autobots occupied. His old weak spot's been reinforced now, so Prowl's previous strategy won't work. Prime orders Prowl and Bumblebee to go into the tower with Sari and save her father, but Rhodes knocks Bulkhead into the force field hole, plugging it before Prowl can get through. Bumblebee and Sari are on their own.

In the tower, Bumblebee finds the elevator cables melted, so he wheels his way up the shaft while Sari tries to deactivate the force field from the front desk. In Sumdac's office, Meltdown gives vent to all his frustrations, swearing he won't be bested by a fraud like Sumdac, even though he himself is a freak now. Downstairs, Sari finds the force field controls, but her first attempt to deactivate it only makes it stronger. Back upstairs, Bumblebee arrives just in time to knock Meltdown aside, scoop up Isaac and burn rubber. Meltdown's pursuit forces Bumblebee to drive down the stairs, badly shaking up Sumdac, but they reach the ground floor safely. Meanwhile, Sari finally finds the right data port for her All Spark key and shuts down the force field, freeing Bulkhead.

Bumblebee and her father arrive in the lobby just ahead of Meltdown, who has taken a shortcut by...er, melting his way down. Bulkhead arrives and grabs him up, but finds a handful of acid is VERY painful. Still, he refuses to let go.

Outside, Rhodes smacks Prime into a nearby church bell, then seizes up when it rings. Realizing what's going on, Prowl calls for Prime to hit it again. As Prime plays Quasimodo, Ratchet brings the bell down on top of Rhodes, thoroughly disrupting the bruiser's techno-organic circuits and bringing him back to normal (and probably deafening him).

Back in the tower lobby, Meltdown works a hand free and prepares to blast Bulkhead in the face, but Bumblebee takes the shot. As both Autobots collapse, Meltdown approaches Professor Sumdac yet again, but Prime runs up and clocks Meltdown with the church bell. It doesn't prove effective, but Prime quickly suggests stopping him with the one thing that stopped the Autobots: the tower's force field. Sari reactivates it, Ratchet plugs himself into the console to project the field, and Meltdown finds himself contained, unable to melt what he can't touch.

Afterward, Ratchet and Prime praise Bumblebee's courage and Bulkhead apologizes for going a little overboard with his teasing. Bumblebee's learned that even at his size, he's still pretty awesome, but now he won't let the others live it down for a while.

==Stats==

*'''Written by:''' [[Rich Fogel]]
*'''Directed by:''' [[Matt Youngberg]], [[Naoto Hashimoto]]
*'''Original airdate:''' January 19, 2008 

===Featured characters===
(''Numbers indicate order of appearance.)''
{|border=5 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=5 align=center style="border:#800000"

! style="background:#FFEEEE" | [[Autobot]]s
! style="background:antiquewhite" | [[Human]]s
|-
| style="background:#FFEEEE" valign="top" |
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (1)
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (2)
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (3)
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (4)
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (7)

| style="background:antiquewhite" valign="top" |
*[[Prometheus Black|Prometheus Black/Meltdown]] (5)
*[[Sari Sumdac]] (6)
*[[Colossus Rhodes|Cyrus "Colossus" Rhodes]] (8)
*[[Captain Fanzone]] (9)
*[[Porter C. Powell]] (10)
*[[Isaac Sumdac]] (11)

|}

==Quotes==
''Woman on television is fueling her vehicle while wearing a disturbingly large grin.'' 
'''Television:''' "So the next time you fill your tank, be sure to use Super Premium Mega Fuel!" 
'''Bulkhead:''' "That looks like that hurts." 
''Two demolition derby vehicles slam head-on into each other.'' 
'''Prowl:''' ''<gasps>'' "Not as much as that..." 
:—The Autobots discover that there really IS too much violence in television these days.

"That's a human?" 
"Must be a new model." 
:—'''Bulkhead''' and '''Prowl''' comment on Cyrus Rhodes.

"Just stay out of his reach." 
"Which one? The guy in the middle or the two on either side?" 
"Just swing at all of them." 
:—'''Sari''' plays coach to '''Bumblebee'''. She's no [[wikipedia:Mickey Goldmill|Mickey Goldmill]].

"Stand and fight! What are ya, yellow?!" 
"Well, duh." 
:—'''Colossus Rhodes'''' insult is lost on '''Bumblebee'''

"Call off your overgrown gorilla!" 
"Well, it's not like he has an off switch..." 
:—'''Captain Fanzone'''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s demand forces '''Prometheus Black''' to reveal bio-chemical makeovers' one flaw.

'''Ratchet:''' "I'd like to run some more tests. It should only take a few hours." 
'''Bumblebee:''' "That long?" 
'''Bulkhead:''' "His attention span is short, too." 
'''Bumblebee:''' "I heard that!" 
'''Prowl:''' "Apparently, so is his fuse." 
'''Bulkhead:''' "Ooh, the ninja robot gets in a good one!" 
:—Auto-banter

"What the spark was that?"
:—'''Bumblebee''' provides an interesting new euphemism in reaction to the Sumdac Tower's force field.

'''Sumdac:''' "Prometheus, why are you doing this?" 
'''Meltdown:''' "Because you're a fraud!" 
''Sumdac gasps.'' 
'''Meltdown:''' "I am smarter, better-looking, and more educated than you, and yet, everything you touch turns to gold! While everything ''I'' touch..." 
''Statue melts, and Meltdown throws it out through a window.'' 
'''Meltdown:''' "Just...look at me. I'm a freak! But I refuse to be beaten by some simpering nerd who just got lucky!"
:—Meltdown gets closer to the truth than he realizes.

"Sorry about yankin' your crankcase."
:—'''Bulkhead''' with another awkward euphemism

==Other notes==
===Continuity errors===

* Why did Sari have to wait until she and the Autobots were en route to Sumdac Tower to contact her father? Could she not have reached him from the Autobots' base?

*During the battle outside Sumdac Tower, plenty of car alarms are going off from wrecked vehicles, but these don't seem to affect Rhodes the way the car alarm did outside the wrestling arena.

===Transformers references===
* Black angrily asserts that Sumdac is only successful because he "got lucky.". In "Transform and Roll Out!", Sumdac publicly joked that he had "stumbled upon" [[Megatron (Animated)|the secret of his success]].

===Real-world references===
* Sumdac's sabotaged police drone bears a more-than-passing resemblance to the [[wikipedia:ED-209|ED-209]], a police robot from the film [[wikipedia:RoboCop|''RoboCop'']]. Likewise, Sumdac's mention of its faulty identification software is likely a reference to a scene in the film in which the ED-209 runs amok at a demonstration. Coincidentally, ''RoboCop'' also takes place in a futuristic [[Detroit]].

===Miscellaneous trivia===
*Bulkhead can make a chair out of his own back [[kibble]]. Let's hope the Leader class toy can do that.

* Prowl gets called a ninja, finally.

* Although "Total Meltdown" is the fifth episode in production order, it was aired as the eighth episode in the United States.

* In [[Canada]], it aired on YTV on January 19, 2008 at 9:30 a.m., Eastern Time.

* "Total Meltdown" finally aired on Cartoon Network in the United States on February 10, 2008.

* In the United States, as of 2008, the possession of [[Wikipedia:anabolic steroids|anabolic steroids]] without a prescription is punishable by up to seven years in prison. Since Black volunteers the info about Rhodes' use of steroids to Fanzone, the laws must be different in near-future Detroit, or else Black's particular types of steroids are exempt. (Or Rhodes' doctor wrote him a prescription with the decimal point in the wrong place.)

* This is the first episode (counting "Transform and Roll Out!" as one episode) not to feature Megatron. Or any Decepticon for that matter.

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[[Category:Animated episodes]]<div id="wikia-credits"> From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</div>