More than Meets the Eye, Part 1

2011-12-16T19:54:50Z

74.105.13.98:

{{episode
|series=G1toon
|ep=1
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=1
|next2=More than Meets the Eye, Part 2
|series3=''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|The Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=1
|next3=More than Meets the Eye, Part 2
|image=FHE-MTMTE.jpg
|caption=Admit it. As a kid, you longed to own this, and were only marginally satisfied if your parents instead merely dubbed it from the rental tape.
|title="More than Meets the Eye, Part 1"
|production code=4023
|airdate=[[September 17]], 1984
|written by=[[George Arthur Bloom]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
|packaged with=[[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys#Universe (2008)|Optimus Prime]]
}}

'''In search of energy, the Autobots leave Cybertron and are pursued by the Decepticons.'''

==Synopsis==
[[Image:MTMtE Part1 Cybertron.jpg|left|200px|thumb|[[Star Wars (franchise)|A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away...]]]]

On [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], many [[MYA|millions of years ago]], the [[Autobot|Autobots]] are on the verge of extinction. Eons of war with the [[Decepticon|Decepticons]], their bitter enemies, have drained the planet's once plentiful resources. Autobots [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] are scraping together [[Conductor|energy conductors]], and narrowly avoid capture by a Decepticon patrol. They arrive at [[Great Dome|Iacon]], the Autobots' headquarters. There, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]], the [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]], confers with his lieutenants [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], and [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] on the plan to leave Cybertron on a mission to search for new sources of energy. This plot is overheard by the Decepticon spies [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] and [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]].

[[Image:MTMtE Part1 Arkcrash.jpg|left|200px|thumb|One does not simply walk into Mordor... one apparently rams one's ship into it.]]

Inside [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Cybertron)|their base]], [[Decepticon leader]] [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] plots to intercept the Autobots, and leaves his [[second-in-command| first lieutenant]] [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] in charge of Cybertron.

The Autobots blast off aboard an [[Ark (G1)|Autobot spaceship]], followed by the [[Nemesis (G1)|Decepticon cruiser]]. An asteroid collision forces them to use up most of their energy clearing a path through the resulting storm. The Decepticons take advantage of this vulnerability and attack. Both ships spin out of control, crashing on nearby [[Earth]].

Four million years pass. It is the year 1984, and volcanic activity stirs the half-buried ''Ark'', awakening the computer systems aboard. [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] sends out a [[Sky Spy]] satellite to reconnoiter this new world, and scans examples of terrestrial machinery in order to reformat the Transformers into new [[Alternate mode|alt modes]]. The Decepticon [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] is awakened first, and he revives the other Decepticons. Megatron observes that much time has passed since the crash. An impudent [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] leaves a parting shot at the dormant Autobots, unwittingly knocking Optimus Prime into the repair beam and causing him to be the first Autobot to be revived.

[[Image:MTMtE Part1 Prime repair.jpg|left|200px|thumb|The light! It burns!]]

Megatron decrees that their mission is to drain Earth of its resources in order to build an ultimate weapon and conquer the universe (as you do). To start, they'll need a base of operations, so he puts Starscream in charge of converting the area for the construction of a [[Victory (G1)|new star cruiser]]. The Decepticon [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] trashes a nearby power station to serve as raw materials.

Meanwhile, Optimus Prime dispatches [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] and [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] to scout the area. They find the Decepticons, and Cliffjumper brashly takes a shot at Megatron. He misses, and the Decepticons unleash Laserbeak in pursuit. Hound is blasted and injured.

[[Image:MTMtE Part1 OilRig battle.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Do yourself a favor, don't smoke at a Cybertronian waterpark.]]
Autobot medic [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] and [[Hauler]] come to fetch Hound. Meanwhile, Decepticons [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] spot an Earth vehicle coming to investigate the destruction of the power station. [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] intercepts the vehicle, frightening the human workers away.

Hound is repaired, and reports what he overheard: that the Decepticons are on the hunt for energy. Prime has Jazz assemble a battle group to go after them. The Decepticons attack an off-shore oil rig, where [[Sparkplug Witwicky|William "Sparkplug" Witwicky]] and his son [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]] work. They begin gathering energon cubes, but are interrupted by the Autobots.

A battle erupts on the drilling platform. Megatron blasts the rig's supports, tipping it into the ocean. It bursts into flames. Realizing the humans are in danger, Optimus Prime tries to save Spike and Sparkplug while the Decepticons retreat with their energon plunder.

'''[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2|To be continued...]]'''

{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] (1)
* [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] (2)
* [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] (9)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (10)
* [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] (11)
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] (12)
* [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (15)
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (16)
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (17)
* [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] (18)
* [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] (21)
* [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (22)
* [[Hauler]] (23)
* [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (28)
* [[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (29)
* [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (30)
* [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] (31)
* [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] (32)
* [[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (33)
* [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] (34)
|c2=
* [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (3)
* [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] (4)
* [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (5)
* [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]] (6)
* [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (7)
* [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] (8)
* [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (13)
* [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] (14)
* [[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (19)
* [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (20)
* [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] (25)
|c3=
* [[Joe (MTMTE)|Joe]] and his coworker (24)
* [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] (26)
* [[Sparkplug Witwicky]] (27)
}}

==Quotes==
"Prime told me there'd be days like this." 
"And you didn't believe him?" 
"I do now!"
:—'''Bumblebee''' and '''Wheeljack''' under fire.

"When do we start the search mission?" 
"Soon as you're ready to launch."
:—'''Prowl''' is told to hurry up by '''Optimus Prime'''.

"Fear not, Megatron. Cybertron shall remain as you leave it."
:—'''Shockwave''', more accurate than he realizes.

"Leakin' lubricant!"
:—'''Ironhide'''

"What about materials?" 
"Use your imagination!"
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Megatron'''

"Here's something to keep you warm."
:—'''Megatron''' as he ignites the oil spill.

==Notes==
===Animation and technical errors===
'''Minor art and coloring errors'''
* Soundwave's mouthplate doesn't move during his "Autobots are set to launch" line.
* As Megatron gives Shockwave his orders, Starscream is missing his canopy lines, and Soundwave's eject button is blue, while his backpack is white.
* The retracting segments of Iacon's dome appear to come out of solid, unbroken metal. The interior shot of the bridge also shows the segments retracting incorrectly. Since the ship is upright at a 90-degree angle, the retracting segments should go from camera-right to camera-left, down the length of the ship.
* Sideswipe's missing his shoulder launcher as he mans an Ark console.
* Starscream has a red "collar" around his neck as he prepares the tractor beam.
* When Soundwave tosses Ratchet into a console aboard the Ark, the Autobot Medic is sporting a Decepticon symbol in the center of his chest windshield, most likely the result of the animator carrying over Soundwave's design.
* As Starscream fires on the Autobot ship, the top segment of his canopy is red instead of gray in some frames.
* As the gathered Decepticons gaze at the desert from atop the volcano, Skywarp's arm cannon is colored teal.
* Part of Megatron's fusion cannon is white as he says "we'll set up here".
* Soundwave's eject button is blue instead of white as Megatron orders him to plan the new space cruiser.
* Megatron is missing his barrel as he speaks to his newly revived troops. In a close-up, he has a "five o'clock shadow", as the central segment of his face is a darker shade than the rest of it.
[[Image:Mtmte1 prepare the energon cubes.jpg|thumb|right|200px|]]
* After landing at the power plant, Soundwave's eject button is blue, instead of... y'know what? Let's just say the colorists screwed up this little detail ''all the freaking time'', and leave it at that.
* As Starscream talks about his plans with Soundwave and Rumble standing behind him, the tip of Soundwave's shoulder cannon is colored entirely black.
* Cliffjumper's mirror housings are white instead of red as he delivers his "moonbeam" line.
* Ratchet's Autobot symbol is gray before he jumps off the cliff.
* Prime's running light housings are white instead of red as he orders Jazz to organize a battle unit.
* In the pan across the battle unit, Sideswipe's helm is red instead of black, and the top of Trailbreaker's chest is white instead of black.
* The center segment of Megatron's fusion cannon is white as the wrenches & etc. bounce off of him.
* Soundwave's cheekguards are blue instead of white as he starts making energon cubes.
* Starscream is missing his wing insignia as Megatron returns to his robot form.

'''Not-so-minor errors'''
[[Image:Sunstorm Cartoon.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Then again, Thundercracker has ''two'' wings.]]
* The Decepticon "welcoming committee" is often stated to contain a constantly-changing roster, but close examination reveals that it's ''almost'' consistent:
** The initial shot shows [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]], [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], and [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]].
** The second shot shows a vaguely Thundercracker-colored Seeker (the blue is deeper than Thundercracker's color, and there's extra bits of white and gray) alongside two completely different Seekers (a purple one with a flamethrower, and Sunstorm.
** The third shot, as Wheeljack barrels through them, shows a total of five Seekers, too small to be identified. If that darker blue guy from the second shot was supposed to be Thundercracker, and you're willing to believe that several of the Decepticons managed to be off-camera in all the other shots, then the numbers actually add up. (Your wiki editors acknowledge that this probably ''was'' a goof.)
** The final shot of the group shows Starscream ordering Skywarp and Thundercracker to pursue the Autobots; both have lines in their normal voice, so they were clearly supposed to be there.
* Starscream's two lines during this scene are performed by two different actors in two different voices, neither resembling the high rasp he'll shortly establish as his normal voice. The second voice is clearly Frank Welker, sounding close to his Megatron voice.
* Bumblebee steps out of Wheeljack and immediately fires a shot in the completely opposite direction from their attackers. Was he testing his gun??
* Bumblebee is repeatedly shown to be a hovercar... yet somehow he's got wheels and an axle when the Seekers manage to hit him.
* Bumblebee is repeatedly shown to be ''wider'' than Wheeljack in vehicle mode, yet he has no trouble driving right into Wheeljack's cargo compartment. He ''keeps'' driving in until he's completely out of sight, even though we can see at least half of the compartment.
[[Image:ArkCartoon1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|If it's supposed to be transparent, then it probably shouldn't be blocking out the scenery behind it.]]
* The Ark's exhaust comes from ''behind'' the thruster ports.
* Bluestreak is colored like Prowl as the Autobots stumble around in the wake of the asteroid collision; Trailbreaker, meanwhile, has one white and one gray hand.
* Presumably, an impact is supposed to be knocking Jazz out of the pilot's seat; what the animation actually shows, however, is Prime saying "Jazz!", to which Jazz responds by spontaneously flying out of his seat.
* Immediately after a shot of Optimus Prime rallying his troops to prepare to repulse Decepticon boarders ("Prepare for battle!"), the same animation is re-used, but this time with Megatron's voice urging his troops to "Attack! Attack!" When the episode was re-done for the ''[[Generation 2 (cartoon)|Generation 2]]'' series, this scene was amended by placing a shot of Megatron sitting on this throne from earlier in the episode over the image, shouting the command. (In the same shot, Prowl's eye is missing.)
* A shot of Soundwave being kicked out of frame by Ironhide is immediately followed by Soundwave sparring with Ratchet.
* After Ratchet is thrown into the console, Optimus Prime and Megatron enter the frame, struggling with each other. Megatron is missing his fusion cannon in this shot, but it reappears when the angle changes to show them grappling as Prime asks for a status report.
* Ratchet is shown being thrown by Soundwave, but after Optimus Prime asks for a status report, Ratchet is seen fighting with Thundercracker on the other side of the room.
* As the above shot pans across the bridge to the right, we see Soundwave has teleported from one side of the bridge to the other, slumped against a console.
* In the pan shot on the Ark when the Transformers find out they're going to crash, there are TWO Soundwaves and TWO Starscreams.
* As the Ark rocks and sends the combatants tumbling, the left arm of the second Soundwave turns into an extended smear of gray paint for a couple of frames.
* The voice that reports about g-forces is Prowl's, but he's struggling with Starscream and doesn't seem to have time to read a console or make a report or anything. Although it's hard to tell due to the ship shaking, Jazz's mouth seems to be moving, and he ''does'' seem to be looking at machinery.
* Quite a few generic robots are mixed in among the identifiable inert Transformers in the crashed ship.
* The land around the volcano changes frequently between shots. Sometimes it's rocky desert; other times it's got forests and a river, sometimes both at once. This trend would continue throughout the whole series.
* Starscream has no transformation sound as he lands at the power plant.
* When Optimus Prime assigns Hound his mission, the establishing shot has Cliffjumper with Bumblebee's yellow colors.
* Hound's voice carries a soundproof-roof echo as he comments on how different Earth is.
* In the long shot of the Decepticons building their base, Soundwave appears in Sideswipe's colors.
* Hound says that he got shot in the drive train, but Laserbeak shot him topside. Did the shot go straight through him??
* Reflector's three component robots are standing shoulder-to-shoulder as they turn to look at the truck, but are standing in a line in the next shot.
* After Thundercracker informs Soundwave about the approaching vehicle, there's a [[scene transition]]. The final frame of the scene transition is faded into an image of Sparkplug and Wheeljack working on Optimus Prime from "Divide and Conquer".
* Rumble isn't a big guy, but he should at ''least'' be a few feet taller than a human. He's shown the same height as Sparkplug.
* Ironhide and Starscream are shown sparring with poles, while Prowl and Thundercracker have a shootout from cover. In the very next shot, Ironhide is taking on Skywarp and Thundercracker, while Starscream is now busy with Huffer and Gears, and Prowl is grappling with a Reflector. In the shot after that, Prowl is suddenly free from Reflector and charging toward Skywarp.
* A red robot of indeterminate character model is shown retreating with the Decepticons. It looks a bit like an upside-down Sideswipe.
* When Rumble knocks Spike into the water, his father yells "Pike!" instead of "Spike". Perhaps he was meant to be warning his son about carnivorous fish, but ''of course'' pike live in fresh water, not salt.

===Continuity errors===
[[Image:MTMtE Part1 Cybertron.jpg|thumb|right|200px| ]]
* Later episodes will go to some length to establish that Cybertron is outside of our galaxy. There's even some implication that it's not inside ''any'' galaxy, but that unlikely notion is put to the lie by the very first shots of this episode, which show its surface illuminated by an unseen sun, and the space around it filled with stars.
* Whether for reasons of cost (unlikely considering how much effort was expended on this episode's artwork) or to avoid confusing the kiddies, hardly any of the Transformers were designed to have Cybertronian robot modes (Laserbeak is the sole exception). Thus we get the strange phenomena of, for example, Jazz having a Porsche 911 bumper on his chest, four million years before Porsches were invented. This also leads to some strange transformations, with guys like Bumblebee and Wheeljack not having a single part from their vehicle forms visible in their robot modes.
* Soundwave is in robot mode outside of Iacon, not transforming back to lamppost mode until Jazz is practically on top of him. How could Jazz have failed to notice the big blue Decepticon right in front of him?
[[Image:Shockwave Hands.jpg|thumb|200px|''My honey my baby Don't put Shockwave upon no shelf She said don't gimme no lines And keep your hands... hand... whatever... to yourself!'']]
* During the scene in [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Cybertron)|Decepticon Headquarters]], Shockwave is consistently drawn with two hands. This may not be an error ''per se'', as he shows up a couple of other times with two hands, and plenty of characters can retract their hands and replace them with various gadgets and weapons, but it goes against his toy design and his established character model.
* Two asteroids in deep space just show up out of nowhere and collide? Right by the passing ship? The cosmic improbability beggars the imagination.
* Oddly enough, nobody opens fire during the scuffle when the Decepticons board the Ark... not even Megatron.
* The Transformers' interplanetary cruise is ''incredibly'' short. At no point do they engage any kind of faster-than-light drive, yet somehow they go from Cybertron to Earth in what seems to be a matter of minutes. The only possible gap that might account for this is the scene cut between the Decepticon launch and the asteroid collision.
* The animation would have us believe that the Autobot spacecraft has just been sticking out of the side of this active volcano for ages, without anybody noticing. The intended gist might have been that the eruption uncovered it, but the animation doesn't show it.
[[Image:Cliffgun.JPG|thumb|right|200px|"You see the size of that gun he fired at us? It was bigger than him!"]]
* Cliffjumper somehow stores on his person a cannon that's as big as he is.
* Okay, maybe it's not an actual error. But considering how many ordinary Transformers are shown to have enhanced visual abilities (Hot Rod, Rumble, Arcee, etc.) it seems a tad ridiculous that Thundercracker needs to use Reflector's camera mode to zoom in a little bit on the approaching truck. It's ''insanely'' ridiculous that Reflector produces Polaroid prints. He's not even that kind of camera! (More to the point, he should just be able to see what's visible through his own viewfinder.)
* While he is getting repaired by Ratchet, Hound refers to an Energon cube as "some kind of cube", implying that the Autobots don't know what Energon cubes are. The inference that energon cubes are a Decepticon invention holds true for almost the entirety of the pre-movie cartoon, during which time they are never used by the Autobots (something that is even made a plot point in "[[Traitor]]"). We say "almost" because of a contradictory flashback in "[[War Dawn]]" that shows what appear to be energon cubes being used by Autobots nine million years in the past. By the time of the movie, the Autobots are shown to have begun using the cubes, and continue to do so throughout the third season.
* How do the Autobots know where the Decepticons are planning to attack? They organize their battle unit before the Decepticons even learn about the oil platform!
* During Jazz's roll-call of the Autobots, he neglects to call out Cliffjumper's name. The little red guy transforms anyway.
* The large cast frequently gave the animators trouble in remembering which secondary characters should or should not be present, especially concerning the Autobots. Thus, we frequently must catalog appearing/disappearing Autobots:
** Jazz's battle group consists of Prowl, Cliffjumper, Trailbreaker, Wheeljack, Mirage, Sunstreaker, Sideswipe, and Ironhide. Even before they've left headquarters, the problems start, as Ironhide disappears and Ratchet takes his place. Ratchet is still with the group when they arrive.
** Bluestreak joins the group as they fly toward the oil rig.
** Huffer and Brawn are with them as they land on the platform.
** Gears is visible in a wide shot of the battle.
* In what ''universe'' is it legal for a fourteen-year-old American kid to be working on an oil rig, even ''with'' his father?
* Until the oil platform attack, the episode has consistently portrayed the Decepticon forces as Megatron, Soundwave, 3 tapes, 3 jets, and 3 Reflectors. Things start to fall apart here, as a dark blue jet is shown diving alongside Thundercracker. It gets ''much'' worse in the following episodes.
* ''The Transformers'' had a tendency to frequently exaggerate the capabilities of humans to survive being dropped, punched, swatted, hit, etc. As a main protagonist, Spike Witwicky was especially susceptible to this treatment; thus we catalog the adventures of ''Superhuman Spike!'':
** Spike punches Rumble in the back without breaking or even seeming to hurt his fist.
** Spike survives being bashed aside by Rumble's metal fist without even bruising a rib.
* When Starscream fires his [[Null-ray|null-ray]], ice appears on the machinery that the ray hits. However, a null ray only stops the flow of electricity; it doesn't cause freezing. (Megatron prompts him with the strange command to "activate the null ray", as if it's some external piece of equipment.)
* Flying Autobots:
** In this and the following two episodes, the Autobots are all shown flying just as easily as the Decepticons. Once the show went into full production, this ability mostly disappeared, with occasional exceptions due to special abilities (Wheeljack, Sideswipe, the Dinobots), and some [[Roll for It|scripting]], [[Attack of the Autobots|animation]] and [[The Master Builders|sound]] [[Fire on the Mountain|effect]] screw-ups. The change was, in part, to help distinguish the two forces (and perhaps because it doesn't make sense for the Autobots to drive places if they can just fly there instead).

===Continuity notes===
* As the first pilot episode, this episode establishes several iconic aspects of the cartoon and the entire [[Transformers brand]]. The planet Cybertron and its city Iacon both appear in many other media and continuities. The crash of the Ark and the four-million-year slumber of its inhabitants likewise recur in several other versions of the Generation 1 story.
* The orange Seeker from the "welcoming committee", visible for all of about two seconds, was [[Retcon|retroactively established]] to be the neo-G1 character [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]].
[[Image:Cybertronlaserbeak.jpg|thumb|right|200px]]
* We get a look at Cybertronian vehicle forms for Bumblebee, Wheeljack, Skywarp and Thundercracker, Jazz, Soundwave and Laserbeak. Soundwave's toy can totally be configured into that lamp-post mode.
* Trailbreaker's presence alongside Jazz and Prowl on Cybertron is just about the ''only'' indication of his "defense strategist" function in the cartoon.
* Three episodes from now, we will see that Shockwave was true to his word, and Cybertron has not changed one iota in four million years.
* The Decepticon vessel is last seen spiraling out of control, unpiloted, toward Earth. It will be rediscovered in the Season 2 episode "[[Microbots]]". The unnamed ship would finally be given a title almost 15 years later, when it was referred to as the ''[[Nemesis (G1)|Nemesis]]'' in the [[Beast Wars (cartoon)|''Beast Wars'']] episode "[[Nemesis Part 1]]".
* The events of the ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' cartoon take place during the 4 million years in which the Autobots and Decepticons lie dormant in the wreckage of the Ark... a time frame covered by about 5 seconds of footage in this episode.
[[Image:Sky Spy.jpg|thumb|right|200px]]
* As the satellite-like probe (later dubbed a [[Sky Spy]]) leaves the Ark, we see a city skyline in the distance. While the cartoon's animation could never make up its mind about what was around the crashed ship (oceanside cliffs? desert? forests and rivers?), one might take this city to be [[Central City (Earth)|Central City]], later established to have jurisdiction over the land where the Autobot ship rests.
[[Image:MTME1 Reflector camera.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Yep, pretty clearly an SLR.]]
[[Image:Ratchetg1cartoon.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Repair bay optional.]]
* Gadgets and powers:
** Wheeljack deploys a pair of tiny spinning blades from his front bumper, which lets him... drive through fire?
** Laserbeak spies with a pair of cylindrical doodads that come out of the side of his head.
** Rumble demonstrates his earth-quake-making power, which consists of banging the ground with a couple of big pile drivers that replace his arms. This will become one of the cartoon's most frequently-seen special powers, to the point that it eventually would carry over to the Marvel comics as well. (This power also seems to exclude Rumble himself from its effects, as the ground under him never cracks open.)
** Hound pops out a little wrist radar dish that lets him hear what the Decepticons are saying from some distance away.
** Soundwave can display graphics — the space cruiser, in this case — on his chest door.
** Cliffjumper somehow stores on his person a gun that's as big as he is. We don't want to know how he does this. Although it does look like it's collapsible.
** He also has a little cannon that pops out of his vehicle mode's backside. In the original script, this was his [[glass gas]] gun, but in the completed episode, it's merely a laser. His line "it's a gas!" hints at this earlier version, but is rendered out-of-place by the new visuals.
** Laserbeak's cannons are shown to be able to disconnect from him, fly on their own and target Autobots independently. Although an ability actively described in his ''[[The Transformers Universe|Universe]]'' profile, this would be the only time Laserbeak would employ his weapons this way.
** Ratchet is shown splitting into his robot form and his repair bay; however, the repair bay is never seen again.
** Reflector, being a super-advanced space robot, can take a photograph and instantly spit out a paper print of the resulting image. Instant photographs?! It must be THE FUTURE!
** Starscream "activates the <s>noal</s> null ray", which freezes the device it's aimed at.
[[Image:Hauler01-sm.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Frank Lloyd ''Wrong''.]]
* A [[Grapple]]-like crane named Hauler is seen with Cliffjumper, recovering Hound; he's never seen again, however. Fans have speculated that this was to be an earlier release of Grapple's toy, aborted for reasons unknown.
* [[Energon cube]]s make their first appearance here. They have to be compressed before they convert the fuel they have been filled with into energon, at which point they glow a sort of yellowish-white iridescent-y rainbow-y sort of color. The "compressing a stack" aspect of the cubes was quickly done away with after the pilot mini-series, but the rainbow-glow would stick around for a little while before being phased out in favor of a pink-purple coloration that became the standard representation of energon cubes down through ''Transformers'' history.

===Real-world references===
* ''The Transformers'' made heavy use of the sound effects library that sprung out of the movie ''[[Star Wars (franchise)|Star Wars]]''. Fans have a tendency to make tiresome shocked exclamations that Laserbeak sounds like a TIE Fighter; it is therefore instructive to catalog these sound effects, which are used ''far'' more extensively than just a couple of TIE engine roars. About half a dozen sound effects tend to appear in nearly every episode, and at least a dozen total are known to have been used on ''The Transformers''. In this episode:
** The sound of the Death Star firing to destroy Alderaan, and Alderaan's subsequent explosion, is used as Skywarp and Thundercracker strafe Bumblebee and Wheeljack, and again as they abandon their pursuit.
** The sound of the Seeker training sphere aboard the ''Millennium Falcon'', along with Luke's lightsaber humming and igniting, is used as Soundwave begins making energon cubes.
* We also get the lesser-used ''Star Trek'' sliding door sound effect as Soundwave sends Laserbeak after Hound and Cliffjumper.

===Foreign localization===
'''German'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Im Weltraum verschollen'''" (''Generation 2'', "Lost in Space")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[April 30]], [[1994]]

'''Italian'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Fuga da Cybertron'''" ("Escape from Cybertron"), "'''Molto più di quel che appare - I'''" (2008 dub, "More than Meets the Eye - I")
:*''Original airdate:'' ?
::*The 2008 dub renamed Hauler "Grapple" in order to retcon them as the same character.

'''Japanese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Chikyū e no Michi'''" (地球への道, "The Road to Earth")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[July 6]], [[1985]]
::*When [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] releases the [[Sky Spy]], additional narration describing the scene is added.
::*'''Cut:''' Immediately after [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] says, "Megatron, my leader, we are alive again", a few seconds of the close-up of him and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] staring at each other and the fade away into the next scene is cut. Megatron's line, "Quickly, we must revive the other Decepticons", followed by him carrying and dropping [[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]], was also cut. The sequence resumes right after Megatron sets Reflector down next to [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]].
::*When the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] fires the ring of flame around [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] from his flame-thrower, he shouts out the name of his "special attack" in an traditional anime-style manner. It was called the "Fire Attack", by the way.

'''Portuguese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Mais do Que Os Olhos Veem Parte 1'''" (Brazil, "More than Meets the Eye part 1")
:*''Original airdate:'' ?

'''Russian'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Ne vsjo tak prosto (Chast' 1)'''" (Не всё так просто (Часть 1), "Not All Is So Simple (Part 1)")
:*''Original airdate:'' ?

'''Serbian'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Više nego što se vidi prvi deo'''" (''Generation 2'', Више него што се види први део, "More than Meets the Eye Part 1"), "'''Sile zla prvi deo'''" (''Generation 2'', Силе зла први део, "Forces of Evil Part 1")
:*''Original airdate:'' ?

===Trivia===
*Scenes deleted from the original script to this episode include Ratchet working to repair Bumblebee's damage after he and Wheeljack return to Iacon; Rumble destroying a railroad trestle for more construction materials in addition to the power plant; Skywarp and Thundercracker grumbling about being stuck with grunt work as the Decepticons construct their temporary headquarters; Skywarp finding a frisbee and tossing it back and forth to Starscream before Megatron blasts it to bits; and a scene of Brawn, Huffer and Windcharger trying to fight the oil rig fire, only for the rig to collapse out from under them, setting up the opening scene of the next episode in which Huffer is caught in the wreckage. Other differences include Soundwave being the first Decepticon to be restored by Teletraan I, rather than Skywarp, and Teletraan I bouncing its beams off of human satellites, rather than using a [[Sky Spy]].

* Shockwave's appearance hints that Hasbro was already planning for expansion of the toyline. His toy was not among the initial 28 characters advertised by the 1984 Transformers catalog, yet there he is, making a short appearance that obviously sets up the possibility of future appearances. His toy would be one of the very first 1985 toys to see release, and his character would return in the very first post-pilot episode.

[[Image:Cartoon Cybertron Marvel Iacon case 1.jpg|350px|right|thumb|]]
* The episode ends with a preview of "Part 2". While other multi-part Transformers episodes generally refer to the episode by its title ("Next time, on ''The Transformers'': 'The Ultimate Doom'"), this preview uses the series title, ''The Transformers'', as "More Than Meets the Eye" is a retroactive name for the three-part episode, which began as a mini-series before becoming a regular program.

* Many later episodes would mine this one for recycled footage, particularly the line up of transforming Autobots near the end. Transformation sequences (with and without new backgrounds) from this episode appear in "[[Heavy Metal War]]", "[[Blaster Blues]]", and others. Optimus Prime's transformation sequence from this episode is used in ''dozens'' of episodes.

*Imagery of Cybertron from this episode was used to depict Iacon in the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|Marvel story]] "[[And There Shall Come...a Leader!]]". Several buildings are clearly taken from the cartoon, and the most precious comparison has to be the tunnel entrance used by Wheeljack and Bumblebee to get energy conductors to the cartoon's dome-shaped Autobot headquarters, which is exactly the same as the one [[Fusion]] and [[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] used to get shatter bombs to the [[Great Dome]]. The only difference is that the next piece of road for Fusion and Bluestreak is the same road Wheeljack and Bumblebee drove over befóre entering the tunnel.

[[Image:G2DoubleTargetmasters.jpg|right|350px|thumb|The new RCA Colortrak, with Commercial-in-Commercial feature!]]
* The mid-80s [[Family Home Entertainment]] VHS release of "More Than Meets the Eye" was granted the [[wikipedia:Film Advisory Board|Film Advisory Board]] Award of Excellence, proudly displayed on the video box cover above. However, this particular "award" does not reflect the ''quality'' of any work submitted, but rather that the work is "family-friendly". Cheeky, that.

* The three parter was released on video in the United Kingdom in 1986 under the title "Arrival from Cybertron".

* Footage from the [[commercial]] featuring the Autobot [[Targetmaster|Double Targetmaster]] trio was spliced into the [[Generation 2 (cartoon)|Generation 2]] version of this episode by way of the [[Cybernet Space Cube]]. Outside of this, they never actually appeared in the cartoon.

* Footage from this episode was used to represent a historical video in "[[Transform and Roll Out]]", the opening movie for ''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Transformers Animated]]''.
{{--}}

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 1985 — ''The Transformers'' — Volume 1: "More than Meets the Eye" ([[Family Home Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1986 — ''The Transformers'' — Arrival from Cybertron ([[Video Gems|A.M.T. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1988 — ''The Transformers'' — Arrival from Cybertron ([[Video Gems|V.I.P. Video Gems]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 1991 — ''The Transformers'' — Arrival from Cybertron ([[Video Gems|Little Gems Junior Video Club]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 1999 — ''The Transformers: Generation 2'' — More than Meets the Eye ([[Malofilm|Seville Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2001 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Exclusively from Blockbuster ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]])
;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 UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2002 — ''Transformers: Generation 2'' ([[Maverick Entertainment|Sony Wonder]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2002 — ''Transformers'' — Original Series: Volume Two (Sony Wonder) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2002 — ''Transformers'' — Complete Original Series: Deluxe Edition (Sony Wonder) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — First Season Collector's Edition ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Volume One (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 1: Series 1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Season 1 ([[Metrodome]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2006 — The Best of ''The Transformers'' (Madman Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2007 — ''Transformers'' — The Classic Episodes (Metrodome) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2007 — ''Classic Transformers'' — Series One: Part One (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 01: Stagione Uno Parte Prima ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season 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'' — The Complete First Season: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — More than Meets the Eye (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/more_than_meets_the_eye_part_1.html Dossier at the Cybertron Chronicle]

[[Category:Generation 1 episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]
[[Category:MSTF]]
[[Category:Pack-in material]]
[[Category:Universe (2008)]]

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More than Meets the Eye, Part 1

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