{{episode|Ani|14
|title="Nature Calls"
|image=TFA Nature Calls barnacle monster attacks.JPG
|caption=Zoinks! Like, it's the Tar Monster!
|airdate=[[March 22]], [[2008]]
|written by=[[Todd Casey]]
|directed by=[[Ben Jones]] [[Bouakeo Thongkham]] [[Shunji Ōga|Shunji Oga]]
|animation studio=[[The Answer Studio]]
|continuity=[[Animated cartoon continuity]]}}

'''Prowl, Bumblebee and Sari get more than they bargained for when they head out to the remote woods to investigate a mysterious energy signal.'''

==Synopsis==
[[Image:TFA Nature Calls barnacles constructionbots.JPG|left|150px|thumb|The Constructicons have been smothered by lava before, but this is ridiculous.]]

Far outside of Detroit, a lone worker monitoring [[Constructicon (G1)|some oddly coloured]] mining machines hears a strange noise. Alerted, he looks around, but returns to his drink... only to be attacked by ''something''. The construction machines stop their work, and they too get attacked.

Outside Detroit, Prowl, in his [[alternate mode]], looks on at the snow-covered city before a plow comes along and rather rudely covers him in snow. [[Transformation|Transforming]], he rises from the snow with a sad look on his face.

[[Image:TFA Nature Calls mad kids.JPG|right|150px|thumb|You'll be sorry when the wind changes.]]

When Prowl returns to the base, he goes on a rant about Nature's beauty and how humanity destroys it at every turn. Bumblebee and Sari are playing a video game, ignoring his vent. Prowl looks down on Bumblebee and asks if he was listening, where Bumblebee retorts by noting that Prowl is "electrical components" too, nudging his Autobot insignia to activate a [[hologram]] of Prowl. Optimus Prime interrupts the friendly banter by noting that there is a strange energy signature coming from the forest, and he sends Prowl and Bumblebee to investigate. Bumblebee is horrified at the idea at venturing into the tech-less wilderness, while Sari uses the opportunity to go camping with the two Autobots.

[[Image:Camp site.jpg|left|150px|thumb|Nothin' says "unplug yourselves" like a little primitive camping.]]

The three of them head off into the woods, and Bumblebee laments unpaved roads, while Sari is excited, saying that they'll roast marshmallows, tell ghost stories and the like. When they prepare to proceed on foot, it's learned that Bumblebee brought a few entertainment devices... stored in a place that makes him a little ashamed. After finding a suitable camping site, Prowl sits quietly to commune with Nature while Bumblebee searches for an outlet to power his flatscreen TV. As campers, Sari and Bumblebee are miserable failures. They can't pitch a tent or get a fire going, and Sari is forced to admit that she's never been camping before, so Prowl does both within seconds. When Bumblebee commandeers Prowl's holographic imager to watch a movie, the ninja bot smashes Bumblebee's portable media player, much to the yellow bot's horror. Prowl 1, Bumblebee 0.

During the night, the trio is awoken by a crunching noise. Bumblebee cries monster. Prowl says it's a bear, which are [[wikipedia:Stephen Colbert (character)|hardly monsters]]. Lo and behold, a monstrous creature covered in purple tentacles and pink eyes ''does'' stomp out into the open and attack them. Bumblebee 1, Prowl 1. The creature absorbs Prowl's shurikens and holds its own against Bumblebee's stingers. What's more, Sari's [[AllSpark Key]] glows, indicating that the creature is Cybertronian in origin. Unable to fight it off, the trio retreat.

[[Image:Sari expression.jpg|right|150px|thumb|It just gets worse, Sari.]]

Losing the creature, Prowl tries to figure out what the creature was, despite Bumblebee's snide comments. They both determine the creature is made up of [[space barnacle]]s, scourge of space-going vessels everywhere. Normally, barnacles drain power and act like computer viruses, but these barnacles appear to have been mutated by [[AllSpark#Animated|something]] and made more powerful. They decide to go back and destroy the barnacles, rather than risk the creature reaching Detroit and infecting other machines. Glowing in the direction of the Cybertronian energy, the AllSpark Key leads them to the mine shaft. When they're not looking, the creature drops a snowbank on them from above, sealing 'Bee and Sari inside.

Bumblebee's attempt to put his [[Medieval Maze Monsters|video game skills to use]] fails to extract himself and Sari from the cave, but Prowl uses a hologram to fool the creature into smashing the entrance open, allowing Bumblebee to use his stingers to fry the barnacles. However, Prowl's prolonged contact with the creature has infected him and taken over, turning him into a barnacle zombie. 'Bee and Sari make a run for it, but they know they can't go back to the city because the barnacles may spread. They backtrack, hoping to lure Prowl to the mine and seal him inside, but end up sealing themselves inside too.

[[Image:Barnicle bots.jpg|left|150px|thumb|Ve vant to suck your [[energon]].]]

Now trapped, 'Bee and Sari seal themselves in a furnace room, and Sari hatches a plan to heat up water from a fire hose to scorch the barnacles off Prowl. However, Prowl's touch has infected Bumblebee as well. Sari tries to use the AllSpark Key on the furnace machinery, but it doesn't work (for once). She manages to light the furnace by scratching a spark (not [[Spark|that kind of spark]]) from the Key instead. The furnace heats the water, and Sari sprays her two friends, boiling off the barnacles. The two Autobots are restored, and the three return to the plant to recount their harrowing tale to Prime.

[[Image:Sumdac megatron's body.jpg|right|150px|thumb|FINALLY! I can resurrect the most ruthless warlord in the galaxy and damn my planet to untold suffering and horror! GO ME!!]]

Back in the woods, [[Isaac Sumdac|Professor Sumdac]] arrives in a truck and finds the Cybertronian machinery that was formerly coated by the barnacles, machinery that bears the Decepticon insignia. Sumdac comments that he's finally found what he's been looking for for several years, and that Megatron will be pleased with his discovery. What, oh what, could it be?
{{-}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (2)
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (4)
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (5)

|c2=
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron's body]] (6)

|c3=
*[[Sparkplug (Animated human)|Sparkplug]] (1)
*[[Sari Sumdac]] (3)
*[[Isaac Sumdac]] (7)
}}

==Quotes==
[[Image:TFA Nature Calls Bumblebee shame.JPG|right|200px|thumb|"Please show where you hid the equipment on this action figure."]]

'''Bumblebee''': At least I can get this junk out of me. I was feeling kinda bloated. 
''[Electronic devices suddenly fall out of him, Prowl gives him a look]'' 
'''Bumblebee''': What? You said to pack the bare essentials! 
'''Prowl''': Since when are surround-sound speakers, a strobe light, and a hand-held media player "bare essentials?" 
'''Bumblebee''': You should've seen what I left back at the plant. 
'''Prowl''': Where did you even find room for all of this junk? 
''[Bumblebee taps his fingers uncomfortably]'' 
'''Bumblebee''': [[Anatomic euphemism#Exhaust port|I'd... rather not say.]] 
:—Bumblebee and Prowl's conversation takes a decidedly uncomfortable turn.

"First we must determine this creature's intentions." 
''[Creature knocks Prowl aside without provocation]'' 
"I'm gonna go with 'hostile'." 
:—'''Prowl''' and '''Bumblebee''' meet the monster.

'''Bumblebee''': Hey! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?! 
''[Creature swipes at Bumblebee and Sari]'' 
'''Bumblebee''': Okay. Maybe we're a little unclear on the concept of "your own size". 
'''Sari''': Maybe you should stop talking logic to a ''creature that has no head!'' 
:—Bumblebee and Sari debate whether or not to open negotiations with the monster.

"What did I tell you about camping? ''Monsters''. TV is ''always'' right." 
"So, wait. Monsters ''are'' real? Tutor Bot is such a liar!" 
:—'''Bumblebee''''s faith in [[television]] is reinforced, while '''Sari Sumdac''''s faith in [[Tutor Bot]] is shattered.

"Attention, barnacle monster! Come out with your hands over your...well, you don't have a head. But you get the idea." 
:—'''Bumblebee''' instructs the creature to surrender.

"Look where nature got you: Barnacles! Luckily we can depend on good old Mother Technology. Right, Prowl?"
:--'''Bumblebee''' may have spoken too soon.

"Your tire tracks!" 
"So I messed up the pretty white woods! You sound just like Prowl!" 
"No! We can follow them back to the mine and lure Prowl into it then seal him inside!" 
:—'''Sari''' and '''Bumblebee''' discuss the finer points of screwing with the scenery.

'''Sari''': And then, they were back to normal, like nothing ever happened. Meanwhile, I'm stuck riding home with no dry clothes and an Autobot whose car mode doesn't have a ''heater''! 
''[Sari sneezes]'' 
'''Optimus''': You showed a lot of courage and ingenuity, Sari. And hopefully, you'll stop...backfiring soon. 
'''Sari''': Hel-''lo'', it's called "sneezing". 
''[Sari sneezes, then blows her nose]'' 
'''Bumblebee''': I don't even wanna know what ''that's'' called. 
:—The Autobots discover the concept of the common cold.

'''Prowl''': Surely you don't blame all of nature for a few space barnacles? 
'''Bumblebee''': You don't see my game player turning everyone into zombies, do you?! 
'''Prowl''': [[Transformers_Comic_issue_4.4|Actually...]]
:— Prowl and Bumblebee have different points of view on nature and video games.

"Megatron will be so surprised!" 
:—'''Isaac Sumdac''', cheerfully dooming us all.

==Notes==
===Continuity errors===
*When Bumblebee and Sari are playing a video game, Sari says "jump! jump!", and when Prowl shuts the game off, Bumblebee notes that he was on level 230... how this is possible when they play a racing game, nobody knows...
* If space barnacles are killed by heat, how did any survive atmospheric entry?
* Megatron's body clearly has the Decepticon emblem on it, and Isaac Sumdac... doesn't appear to notice, even though he should have noticed the differences between Autobot and Decepticons. Then again, he never noticed Megatron's eyes being red while all the Autobots have blue ones.

===Transformers references===
[[Image:Aniconstructionvehicles.jpg|right|150px|thumb|They're so [[neon]].]]
* The construction drones are [[Constructicon (G1)|green and purple.]] [[Constructicon (Animated)|Foreshadowing much]]?
* [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron's]] body ends up in the [[Megatron (Movie)|deep freeze.]]
[[Image:Anisparkplugwitwicky.jpg|right|150px|thumb|This kind of stuff never happened in [[Ruby crystal mines of Burma|Burma]]...]]
* The construction worker looks very [[Sparkplug Witwicky|familiar.]] (He's only credited as "Worker" and is voiced by [[Bumper Robinson]].)

===Real-world references===
* Bumblebee and Sari play their racing game on a console shaped very much like an X-Box with a purple and gray palette swap.
* There are actually [[wikipedia:barnacle|barnacles ''not'' from space]]. Neat, huh?

===Trivia===
*If those space barnacles came from the Autobots ship and latched onto Megatron's body before it hit reentry, what were they doing for the past fifty years?
* The construction worker [[Sari, No One's Home|somehow survived]] being attacked by the space barnacle.
* What use could Bumblebee (and possibly Sari) have for a ''strobe light''?
* [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]], [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]], and Megatron ('s head), while mentioned, make no appearances in this episode.
* [[Tutor Bot]] is mentioned, and is in the voice credits for the episode, but does not actually appear.
*...[[Tom Kenny|space]] [[Bill Fagerbakke|barnacles?]]
* Why didn't Sari get scalded by hot water when she soaked Prowl and 'Bee? Maybe it's because [[TransWarped|she's part robot]]?

===Foreign localization===
'''French'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Nature maudite'''" ("Damned Nature")
:*''Original airdate:'' ???

'''German'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Der Ruf der Natur'''" ("The Call of Nature")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[July 10|10 July]] [[2008]]

'''Polish'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Zew natury'''" ("The Call of Nature")
:*''Original airdate:''

'''Japanese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Shi wo Yobu Uchū Kaibutsu!'''" (死を呼ぶ宇宙怪物!, "The Space Monster That Invokes Death!")
::* For whatever reasons, this episode never aired in Japan, but is included in the ''Transformers Animated'' Vol. 4 DVD as episode 14.

==Home video releases==
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2008 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Season One ([[Transformers Animated (cartoon)/home video|Paramount]]) — English and Spanish audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Three: Megatron Rising (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Three: Megatron Rising (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Germany.png|20px|Germany]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Drei: Megatrons Auferstehung (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2010 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Vol. 4 (Paramount) — Japanese audio only.

[[Category:Animated episodes]]

Nature Calls

2014-02-20T17:55:30Z

R.G.:

Slipstream (Animated)

2012-08-26T20:06:30Z

R.G.: /* Animated cartoon */

{{factions|decepticon}}
{{disambig3|Slipstream}}
[[Image:AnimatedSlipstreamModel.jpg|thumb|250px|You say "bitch" like it's a ''bad'' thing!]]

:''Slipstream is a [[Decepticon]] from the [[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Transformers Animated]] [[continuity family]]''.

'''Slipstream''', the '''Female Starscream''', is the [[Starscream clone (Animated)|Starscream clone]] that raises the most questions. She possesses considerable strategic thinking, a biting sense of humor, and a short temper. Like all of the clones, she represents an aspect of the [[Starscream (Animated)|original Starscream's]] personality... though which aspect that is, he's better off not asking (or so she says).

Practically everything she ever says to the original Starscream is an insult of some form. Really makes you wonder about Starscream, doesn't it?

{{quote|''Any'' leader has to be an improvement over you!|Slipstream offers an opinion on her template|"[[A Bridge Too Close, Part II]]"}}

==Fiction==
===''Animated'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Tara Strong]] (English), [[Atsuko Tanaka]] (Japanese), [[Silvia Mißbach]] (German), [[Daniele Demma]] (Italian), [[Samira Fernandes]] (Portuguese), [[Jessica Toledo]] (Latin American Spanish)

[[Image:TFA ABTC1 Screamer Clones Argue.jpg|thumb|left|thumb|Humph. Men.]]

When his clones were brought online, Starscream was confronted with various personality issues. The female clone revealed that each one represented an aspect of his personality: [[Thundercracker (Animated)|egomania]], [[Skywarp (Animated)|cowardice]], [[Sunstorm (Animated)|bootlicking]], and [[Ramjet (Animated)|deception]]. When Starscream asked where she came from, Slipstream informed him that he was better off not knowing. Once they were ready to depart, Thundercracker pushed Starscream aside, and the original realized that he really ''was'' a pain in the gearshaft. Slipstream bitingly noted that he'd finally "arrived at the party", then childishly claimed that she wasn't starting anything. {{storylink|A Bridge Too Close, Part I}}

Slipstream proved to be a capable fighter, managing to get a pair of stasis cuffs on the massive [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]]. After the original Starscream was decapitated by [[Isaac Sumdac]] piloting a [[Headmaster (Animated)|Headmaster]] unit, Slipstream promptly declared that she was better off being led by [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]]. When [[Omega Supreme (Animated)|Omega Supreme]] joined the battle, she and the other Decepticons were blasted away. {{storylink|A Bridge Too Close, Part II}}

Slipstream apparently decided to lay low on Earth after the space bridge battle, managing to evade capture unlike her fellow clones (and several non-clone Decepticons). However, when she spotted a [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|red figure flying through the sky]], she mistook it for Starscream and chased after it in a rage. She shot at him, causing him to fall in a river. Seeing it wasn't Starscream, she promptly fled the scene. {{storylink|Endgame, Part I}}

===''The Cool'' comic===
[[Image:SlipstreamTheCoolMegatron01.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I do ''not'' think you're dreamy! That's an entirely different [[Thunderblast (Decepticon)|purple female Decepticon]]."]]

As the Autobots and Decepticons fought over the [[space bridge#Animated cartoon|Space Bridge]], [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] chose that moment as the most opportune time to unleash his [[Starscream clone (Animated)|Clone Army]] on both factions. Slipstream was among them and seemed to fare best, as the other clones were being easily swatted by the joint efforts of [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]]. Slipstream managed to get a clear shot at Megatron and, after screaming an insult at him, sent a powerful energy blast headed his way. Megatron saw the attack coming, however, and quickly used Optimus as a living shield. {{storylink|The Cool Episode 7}}

Defeated, Slipstream was forced to follow Megatron's orders and attack the oncoming [[Omega Supreme (Animated)|Omega Supreme]]. She and the other clones were greatly outmatched and taken out by a single blast from Omega's arm cannon.{{storylink|The Cool Episode 8}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
[[Image:BC05InfiltrationCoverSeekette.jpg|thumb|250px|]]

* Where Slipstream got her colors from was debated within the fandom, with the most frequent guess being ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (toyline)|Generation 2]]'' [[Ramjet (G1)#Generation 2 2|Ramjet]]. However, when contacted about it, [[Derrick J. Wyatt]] revealed that her color scheme was actually "loosely inspired" by the [[Godmaster]] [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]]. Unexpected! Still, half of Overlord ''was'' technically [[Mega|female]].

* As her colors weren't closely based on any of the pre-existing [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]s, fans didn't have much of a clue what to call her, and created a lot of different nicknames. No official name had been created for her, either (she was just referred to as "Female Starscream" in the show's credits), a situation that writers [[Jim Sorenson]] and [[Bill Forster]] sought to rectify for her entry in ''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac]]''. Forster and Sorenson proposed "Slipstream" to [[Derrick J. Wyatt]] and [[Marty Isenberg]], who both liked it, and the name was subsequently included in the first draft of the ''Almanac''.<ref>[http://boltax.blogspot.com/2009/05/dont-cross-slipstream.html Disciples of Boltax: Don't cross the Slipstream.]</ref> Hasbro raised no objection to the idea, and publicly announced the name for the first time during the Hasbro panel at [[BotCon 2009]].

* While the Transformers [[fandom]] has long mused upon the possibility of female "Seekers" (and produced countless [[Wikipedia:Mary Sue|self-insertion characters]] that are variants on the theme), Slipstream is the first ''canonical'' female character to share a body template with Starscream. This is either great or horrible, depending on your perspective. ([[Hasbro]] concept art of what appeared to be a female Seeker design did appear on the [[BotCon 2005]]-exclusive cover of [[Infiltration issue 0|Infiltration #0]], but the idea doesn't seem to have been developed further than that at the time.)

* The whole gag about Slipstream is that '''''we are not supposed to know''''' what aspect of Starscream's personality she represents. This, however, has not stopped fans from repeatedly asking Derrick J. Wyatt about it over Twitter and Formspring, despite his early attempt at light-heartedly brushing the question off by saying "I try not to think about that one!"<ref>[http://community.livejournal.com/tf_animated/271043.html Derrick J. Wyatt Q&A... answers!]</ref> At this point, Wyatt has, in fact, gotten so tired of this question that he now automatically agrees with whatever theory is put forward to him, no matter how absurd.<ref>[http://www.formspring.me/DerrickJWyatt/q/770787093 Does Slipstream represent the sorrow Starscream feels when reflecting on the plight of the Native Americans as both their land and buffalo were violently taken from them during westward expansion?]</ref>

* In the Italian dubbing of ''Transformers Animated'', the voice of Slipstream was provided by Daniele Demma, the same male voice actor that does Starscream and the other clones. This resulted in a more exaggerated representation of the character.

* In the Latin American Spanish dub of the third season, she is ''probably'' still a female. However, due to her voice being ''extremely'' grave, it's still unclear if she is either male or female.

* The ''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (franchise)|War for Cybertron]]'' version of [[Slipstream (Prime)|Slipstream]] is designed in homage of this one.

* Slipstream was originally intended to appear in "[[Endgame, Part II]]", in which she would revive Starscream after the Autobots left Earth, but the scene was cut for time.<ref>''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II]]''</ref>

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Slipstream''' (スリップストリーム ''Surippusutorīmu'')

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Female Transformers]]
[[Category:Fiction-only Transformers]]
[[Category:Starscream clones]]

A Bridge Too Close, Part I

2012-08-25T03:20:53Z

R.G.: /* Synopsis */

{{episode|
|series=Anitoon
|series2=AniJapan
|ep=28
|ep2=25
|prev2=Black Friday (episode)
|next2=A Bridge Too Close, Part II
|image=TFA ABTC1 Space Bridge operational.JPG
|caption=Closer... closer...
|title="A Bridge Too Close, Part I"
|airdate=[[June 28]], 2008
|written by=[[Marsha Griffin]]
|directed by=[[Ben Jones]] [[Christopher Berkeley]] [[Shunji Ōga|Shunji Oga]]
|animation studio=[[The Answer Studio]]
|continuity=[[Animated cartoon continuity]]}}

'''The Decepticons kidnap Bulkhead to aid in Megatron's ultimate plan to take over Cybertron.'''

==Synopsis==
[[Image:Megatron branding.jpg|thumb|left|"Can't you just paint the insignia on our chest?" "Now, where's the fun in that?"]]

Now serving under [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]], the [[Constructicon (Animated)|Constructicons]] have completed construction of the villain’s [[space bridge]]. They are rewarded for their efforts by being officially inducted into the [[Decepticon]] army in a small ceremony led by Megatron, with [[Lugnut (Animated)|Lugnut]] and [[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] serving as witnesses (and, for some reason, holding candles). After the Constructicons have recited the oath of allegiance, Megatron [[branding|brands]] them, quite literally, with a [[Redeco|color-change]] for their armor and eyes thrown into the bargain. At Megatron’s instruction, [[Isaac Sumdac|Professor Sumdac]] fires up the bridge, but when it fails to activate due to the professor’s simple lack of understanding of the technology, Megatron realizes that he will require additional help...

[[Image:TFA ABTC1 Screamer Clones Argue.jpg|thumb|"There's something in your [[optic]]." "No, there isn't!"]]

On [[Earth]]'s [[Moon (moon)|moon]], [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] gloats over five new [[Starscream clone (Animated)|clones]] of himself, to which he is in the process of putting the finishing touches. The final clone is completed and, like its fellows, brought online with a tiny chip of the [[AllSpark]] that gives Starscream life. Immediately, however, Starscream has to wrestle with the various wacky personalities the clones have wound up with, each one an exaggerated aspect of his own: [[Skywarp (Animated)|a coward]], [[Sunstorm (Animated)|a sycophant]], [[Thundercracker (Animated)|an egomaniac]], [[Ramjet (Animated)|a pathological liar]] . . . and [[Slipstream (Animated)|a short-tempered female who insists that Starscream not ask what aspect of his personality gave birth to her]].

Megatron contacts [[Shockwave (Animated)|Shockwave]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] in order to have him [[DataNet|track down]] the top space bridge engineer on the planet. Shockwave is surprised to report that the engineer in question is on Earth—it’s [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]]! Megatron decides to capture Bulkhead personally and instructs Lugnut and Blitzwing to pick up an item from [[Sumdac Tower]] to aid in “convincing” the Autobot to help them. When Lugnut points out that Sumdac cannot be trusted in the base alone with the Constructicons, Megatron decides to take the professor with him. As all this scheming goes on, however, someone else is listening in—the mysterious “Blue Racer” that [[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] recently encountered.

[[Image:TFA ABTC1 painting time.JPG|thumb|left|Optimus Prime has deemed this image in need of a caption!]]

At the [[Autobot Earth Base|Autobot base]], Bulkhead is working on his latest painting, an abstract rendition of [[Sari Sumdac|Sari]]. Unfortunately, backseat artistry from the other Autobots winds up ruining the painting, and Bulkhead goes for a walk with Sari to vent a little. Bumblebee follows to apologize, but just as he catches up to them, Megatron appears in the sky overhead and opens fire. Using Sumdac as a human shield to stop the Autobots from firing back, Megatron continues to rain destruction down on the Autobots as Bumblebee and Sari argue over whether or not Sumdac has been working with Megatron.

[[Image:TFA ABTC1 Megatron Sumdac Hostage.jpg|thumb|right|...dads?]]
Suddenly, the Blue Racer speeds onto the scene, and Bumblebee, believing the enigmatic speedster to be working with Megatron, chases him off through the city and manages to run him off the road. When he attempts to report his success to Bulkhead, though, there’s no response—because Megatron has captured Bulkhead and is airlifting him away. Bumblebee’s failure is compounded by the next turn of events: The Blue Racer reveals himself to be [[Blurr (Animated)|Blurr]], a fast-talking member of the [[Cybertron Elite Guard]] who has been covertly monitoring Megatron’s activities.

Back at the Decepticon headquarters, Bulkhead refuses to help Megatron, so the villain unveils the fruit of Blitzwing and Lugnut’s labor: a [[Headmaster (Animated)|Headmaster]] unit! Faced with the threat of once again having his body taken over and being used to destroy his fellow Autobots, and failing to elicit any help from [[Scrapper (Animated)|Scrapper]] or [[Mixmaster (Animated)|Mixmaster]], Bulkhead relents and agrees to work on the space bridge.

At the Autobots’ base, Blurr relates his mission to [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] and company and brings them up to speed, quite literally. While Prime leads the rest of the team to the Decepticon base, the location of which is provided by Blurr, [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] and Sari head for Teletran-1 to try to get it online one last time. Just like [[Lost and Found (episode)|last time]], their efforts lead to nothing, forcing Ratchet to attempt one last drastic approach: using the AllSpark fragments the Autobots have gathered to jump-start the ship’s systems.

[[Image:TFA ABTC1 Bulkhead Sumdac.JPG|thumb|left|Merry Christmas!]]

Prime’s team is led by Blurr into the Decepticons’ coal mine base, where they are immediately attacked by Lugnut and Blitzwing. The fight is a brief one, as Blurr uses his super-speed to bind the odd couple with [[stasis cuffs]]. Meanwhile, as the space bridge nears completion, Bulkhead insists on modifying many aspects of Sumdac’s design, and winds up in an argument with the human, which Sumdac interprets as Bulkhead trying to sabotage the bridge deliberately. When the bridge is activated, however, it functions perfectly—Bulkhead knew full well that Sumdac’s design was wrong, and he corrected it!

[[Image:TFA ABTC1 Screamer Clones Emerge.jpg|thumb|right|Why, I'm beside myself! And myself! And...]]
As the bridge flares into life, Prime’s team bursts into the main chamber, but they are instantly immobilized by cement booties, courtesy of Mixmaster. With the Autobots out of the picture, it seems there is nothing to stop Megatron now...until the roof of the cavern explodes, and Starscream and his clone army make their grand entrance!

[[A Bridge Too Close, Part II|To be continued…]]
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (14)
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (15)
*[[Blurr (Animated)|Blurr]] (16)
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (17)
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (18)
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (19)

|c2=
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] (1)
*[[Lugnut (Animated)|Lugnut]] (2)
*[[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] (3)
*[[Scrapper (Animated)|Scrapper]] (4)
*[[Mixmaster (Animated)|Mixmaster]] (5)
*[[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] (7)
*[[Thundercracker (Animated)|Thundercracker]] (8)
*[[Sunstorm (Animated)|Sunstorm]] (9)
*[[Ramjet (Animated)|Ramjet]] (10)
*[[Skywarp (Animated)|Skywarp]] (11)
*[[Slipstream (Animated)|Slipstream]] (12)
*[[Shockwave (Animated)|Shockwave]] (13)

|c3=
*[[Isaac Sumdac]] (6)
*[[Sari Sumdac]] (15)
}}

==Quotes==
"Ah, never before have I seen such an impressive group of lethal fighting machines! And pretty good-looking, if I do say so myself."
:—The ever-humble '''Starscream''' comments on his clone army.

"So, which part of me did you come from?" 
"Don't ask." 
''[sigh]'' "This is going to be a long orbital cycle."
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Slipstream, the female clone'''

"I just didn't think my head was so big." 
"That's your leg."
:—'''Sari''' and '''Bulkhead'''. Oh, the irony!

'''Sari''': No, don't shoot! You'll hit my dad! 
'''Bulkhead''': She's right! 
'''Bumblebee''': So what are we supposed to do? Fight him with snappy comebacks?
:—'''Bumblebee''' conveniently forgets his normal attack strategy.

"All right, Zippy, start talking!" 
"First of all, the name's not "Zippy"! As a matter of fact, I don't believe I've ever met another bot named Zippy, so one can only assume that you came up with "Zippy" in reference to my speed, which may be technically accurate, but lacks a certain creativity!" 
"Eh...eh-eh..." 
:—It took '''Bumblebee''' a long time to get '''Blurr''' to start talking. From this point on, he doesn't shut up.

'''Bumblebee''': Woah, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Back up! 
'''Prowl''': Did he just say Bulkhead? 
'''Optimus Prime''': ''Our Bulkhead?'' 
'''Ratchet''': ''An expert?'' On anything?!
:—The Autobots aren't terribly impressed with Bulkhead.

"I must be a bigger pain in the gearshaft than I thought." 
"Well, well, well, look who just got to the party!" 
"Don't ''start'' with me, woman!" 
:—'''Starscream''' [[Total War!#Quotes|openly admits]] one of his primary faults, much to '''Slipstream's''' annoyance.

"Okay, I give. I'm officially no longer the fastest thing on wheels."
:—'''Bumblebee''' is humbled after seeing Blurr's speedy takedown of Blitzwing and Lugnut.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical errors===
*When Mixmaster encases Optimus and Prowl in concrete, his colors shift back to his neutral, pre-Decepticon color scheme.
*When Megatron attacks the Autobots, his cockpit changes from black to grey for a brief moment, then back.
*Blurr's mouth disappears for a frame after he introduces himself to Bumblebee and is pointing at him for the second time.
*Right before Starscream and his clones take off, the Thundercracker-esque one looks like he's.......um.......

===Continuity errors===
*Not so much an error as a quirk: During the engagement in the mines, Icy Blitzwing is scowling noticeably, while Hothead Blitzwing is...''smiling???''
*When Bulkhead is brought into Decepticon HQ, Prof. Sumdac says his name as if he is surprised to see the Autobot, despite the fact that Sumdac was ''there'' when Bulkhead was kidnapped by Megatron.
*It's odd that while Bumblebee wasn't fast enough to catch up with Blurr with his turbo boosters in "[[Velocity]]", he can catch up to him and hit him while he hasn't got them on in this episode. Maybe he was doing the speed limit?

===Transformers references===
[[Image:ABridgeTooClosePart1-MegatronHandExtendtion.jpg|thumb|right|His special hand! There's none other like it!]]
*Shockwave's report on Bulkhead appears to be in the form of [[Tech Spec]]s.
*After branding, the Constructicons' colour schemes match those of their Generation 1 counterparts.
*Megatron shoots off his middle and index finger which isn't [[Scrounge (G1)|something]] [[Elita One#Classics|new]].
*Ironically, what Starscream says about his clones is similar to what [[Starscream (G1)|his Generation 1 counterpart]] remarked on [[Starscream clone (G1)|his clone]].

===Foreign dubbing===
'''French'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Le portail d'à côté 1/2'''" ("The Portal Next Door 1/2")
:*''Original airdate:'' ???

'''German'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Die Weltraumbrücke, Teil 1'''" ("The Spacebridge, Part 1")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[July 30|30 July]] [[2008]]

'''Japanese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Sorezore no Omowaku'''" (それぞれの思惑, "Respective Expectations")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[September 18|18 September]] [[2010]]
::* New [[stock footage]] for Bulkhead's transformation, him doing the introduction, and the return of the additional sound effects last seen in "[[The Elite Guard|Elite Guard]]" during the [[title sequence|opening sequence]].
::* The [[Otoboto family]] attempt to win a Wingblade Optimus on answering what year did Transformers begin airing in Japan (the hint: "25 years ago"). The correct answer is "[[1985]]", but instead of writing "9", [[Tatsuya Otoboto|Tatsuya]] wrote the hiragana for "sha" しゃ.

'''Polish'''
:*''Title:'' "'''O Jeden Most Za Blisko, Część 1'''" ("A Bridge Too Close, Part 1")
:*''Original airdate:'' ???

===Real-world references===
*In ''[[Wikipedia:The Bridge on the River Kwai|The Bridge on the River Kwai]]'', [[Obi-Wan Kenobi|Alec Guinness]] is a prisoner of war who is forced to build a bridge. Even though the bridge will help his enemies, he builds the bridge to the best of his ability just to demonstrate how capable he is. In "A Bridge Too Close"...replace "Alec Guinness" with "Bulkhead".
*The title is a reference to the movie ''[[Wikipedia:A Bridge Too Far (film)|A Bridge Too Far]]''.
*Among the parts needed for a space bridge are "hollow cathode tubes", parts which until recently made up computer monitor displays.

===Trivia===
*So in all the months that Isaac Sumdac has been missing, it never occurred to anyone that the Decepticons kidnapped him? Perhaps everyone thought he was dead.
*All of the heavy exposition is given to the guy who talks really, really fast. Handy.
*Megatron initiates new Decepticons by [[branding]] the symbol onto them with cattle brands. How bovine.
*This is not the first time Bulky has transformed his [[Total Meltdown|kibble into a chair]].
*Starscream opens a hatch on his head to pick parts from his AllSpark fragment to bring the clones to life, suggesting that in all of the episodes when you do see it, he has his hatch open, exposing the AllSpark fragment.
*So no one told Optimus that one of his crewmembers was an expert on the devices they were tasked with repairing? It never occurred to anyone that the commander of a space bridge repair crew might need to know who is the expect on space bridges amongst said crew? Similarly, after Primus knows how long repairing space bridges, no one ever noticed Bulkhead actually seemed very familiar with the functioning of such devices?
* If the Elite Guard knows Bulkhead is such a genius and the greatest expert in his field, then why did they give him such an unimportant job as maintenance guy on a repair crew? Isn't that kind of a waste of his genius?

==Home video releases==
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Season Two ([[Transformers Animated (cartoon)/home video|Paramount]]) — English and Spanish audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Six: Black Friday (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Six: Black Friday (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Germany.png|20px|Germany]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Sechs: Schwarzer Freitag (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2011 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Vol. 7 (Paramount) — Japanese audio only.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridge Too Close, Part I}}
[[Category:Animated episodes]]

Velocity (episode)

2012-08-14T02:16:24Z

R.G.: /* Quotes */

{{episode|
|series=Anitoon
|series2=AniJapan
|image=TFA Velocity Bumblebee Blurr meet.JPG
|caption="One shall stand, one shall eat dust."
|ep=21
|ep2=20
|prev2=Garbage In, Garbage Out
|next2=A Fistful of Energon
|title="Velocity"
|airdate=[[May 10]], [[2008]]
|written by=[[Len Uhley]]
|directed by= [[Irineo Maramba]] [[Christopher Berkeley]] [[Kenji Itoso]]
|animation studio= [[Mook]]
|continuity=[[Animated cartoon continuity]]}}

'''Investigating a mysterious race car, Bumblebee gets involved with an illegal underground street racing circuit, which also captures the attention of the Decepticons.'''

==Synopsis==
[[Image:TFA Velocity Prowl Blade.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Yeah, sure, '''this''' oughta help her stay calm.]]

On the highways of Detroit, the [[Autobot]]s are driving under the moonlight, searching for an [[AllSpark]] fragment. As Bumblebee complains about the boring nature of their task, several cars speed past them. Bulkhead recognizes them as racers for ''[[Street Demon]]'', a show he and Sari watch. Calling them amateurs, Bumblebee decides to show off and speeds ahead. As he boasts, a blue racer comes in and rams two drivers off the road. Bumblebee wants to go after him, while Prime says that the drivers need help. Still, Bumblebee pursues, discovering that the car is quite fast. As the Autobots render assistance, Captain Fanzone arrives and arrests the two drivers. Bulkhead is shocked to learn that the Street Demons are on an illegal racing circuit, while Bumblebee rolls up, transforms, and falls down, breathing heavily...somehow.

Back at the [[Autobot Earth Base|plant]], Bumblebee thinks that he can beat the blue racer with his [[turbo booster]]s. Prime and Ratchet refuse, and Bumblebee shouts that nothing on Earth is faster than him. This train of thought leads Bumblebee to the conclusion that the blue racer is a Decepticon. Prowl points out that the racer was uninterested in the Autobots, and Prime orders Bumblebee not to use the boosters. Meanwhile, Bulkhead comes down on Sari over ''Street Demon'', but Sari says that they're not helping the illegal show in any way, since she's pirating the signal. As Bulkhead laments about how the Autobots need to set a good example, Bumblebee walks in and smooths things over, saying that he'll straighten out Sari. Once Bulkhead is out of [[Sensors|audio sensor]] range, Bumblebee has Sari show him the races. He asks her to track down where the broadcast came from, and with the help of the [[AllSpark Key]], he finds out where they are.

[[Image:TFA Velocity Master Disaster remote.JPG|right|200px|thumb|The universal remote of doom.]]

At an irrigation channel, Bumblebee, having taken his turbo boosters, joins in a training race, finally getting the hang of his boosters. Seeing what is going on, Master Disaster, the host of ''Street Demon'', uses some sort of remote control to send out the blue racer to attack Bumblebee. Finally getting tired of being attacked, Bumblebee transforms into robot mode, causing Master Disaster to call off the attack. Instead, Disaster invites the Autobot to participate in the next race. Bumblebee agrees, on the condition that blue racer is present. As Bumblebee [[roll out|rolls out]], Disaster notes that with an Autobot racing, their ratings will triple...and get even higher if said Autobot were to suffer an "accident".

At the plant, Bulkhead brings Sari a cup of hot chocolate, but Bumblebee calls on her cell phone, revealing his misadventure and allowing Bulkhead to learn what is going on. Before he can further <strike>dig his own grave</strike> elaborate, Bumblebee stops short when he sees a plane—Blitzwing. Following the Decepticon, Bumblebee overhears Blitzwing communicate with Megatron about an AllSpark fragment he was tracking. Convinced it involves the blue racer, Bumblebee heads back to the plant. He tells Sari what is going on, only for Bulkhead to come down on Bumblebee for what he's doing. Bumblebee tells him about Blitzwing, the AllSpark fragment, and his suspicions about the blue racer being a Decepticon, insisting that he can only discover the truth if he races. Bulkhead agrees to allow it on the condition that he is brought along as well, but Bumblebee fibs. However, when Sari catches him going out, she forces him to take her...as Bulkhead listens in.

In an interrogation room, Fanzone questions one of the drivers. Using the threat of imprisonment, Fanzone learns that the next race will be at Dix and Vernor, and he intends to get there before the races begins...at which point he walks right into a door.

[[Image:TFA Velocity air chicken.JPG|left|200px|thumb|IT IS BETTER TO FIGHT AND DIE—than live with the knowledge that I ran. We can run?! Let's do that!]]

At the race site, Master Disaster is making the final preparations, when the AllSpark Key glows in the direction of Disaster's truck. Sneaking aboard, she finds the remote, then flees while Disaster announces the two-minute mark. As he reaches for the remote, he discovers what Sari did, forcing Bumblebee and Sari to escape. Thinking the race has started, the other drivers follow. As Bulkhead prepares to roll out and follow them, Blitzwing freezes the Autobot, then flies after the other two. Sari opens the remote and finds the AllSpark fragment, while Bumblebee detects Blitzwing. Seeing the flier, he dives through an arch, which Blitzwing freezes, cutting off the rest of the racers. Failing in his attempts to destroy Bumblebee from above, Blitzwing goes to tank mode, but is buried under rubble when he destroys a bridge support.

[[Image:TFA Velocity Bumblebee Blitzwing Scale.jpg|right|200px|thumb|...kinda one-sided, ain't it?]]

Meanwhile, Bumblebee sees Fanzone's car and tries to reach him. Fanzone is forced to jump into Bumblebee as Blitzwing destroys his car. As Blitzwing continues his strafing, Sari uses the remote to control Blitzwing, but it falls from her hands and out of the car. As they near another bridge, the blue racer crashes through the bridge's retaining wall and plays a game of Midair Chicken with Blitzwing. At first, Blitzwing is prepared to [[Furmanism|fight and die]], but he turns away, crashing first into a building and then into Master Disaster's truck. Bumblebee deposits the two humans on the road, then goes to finish off Blitzwing, despite being vastly outsized and outgunned. Fortunately, the fight has brought them back to where the remote was. However, Blitzwing destroys a bridge above Bumblebee, also freeing Bulkhead. As Blitzwing prepares to deliver the killing blow, Sari uses the remote to control Blitzwing (as well as Bumblebee, who crashes into Bulkhead). Finally, Sari sends Blitzwing into high altitude. As Master Disaster tries to sneak away, Fanzone places him under arrest.

Back at the plant, Prime decides to store the remote in a safe place, while Bumblebee decides to set a better example for Sari—starting by ending her pirated satellite connection. As Sari jokingly warns Bumblebee not to set too good of an example (lest she not recognize him), Bumblebee notices the blue racer speed past the plant. Bumblebee shouts out a "thank you", but is left wondering who the blue racer really is.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (1)
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (2)
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (3)
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (4)
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (5)
*[[Blurr (Animated)|Blue Racer]] (6)
|c2=
*[[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] (12)
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] (voice only) (13)
|c3=
*[[Ming-Li]] (7)
*[[Roxy Sparkles]] (8)
*[[Carmine Fanzone|Captain Fanzone]] (9)
*[[Sari Sumdac]] (10)
*[[Master Disaster (Animated)|Master Disaster]] (11)
*[[Shana Story]] (14)
*[[Solon Kitakaze (Animated)|Solon Kitakaze]] (15)
|c4=
}}

==Quotes==
'''Fanzone''': I've been after them for weeks. They're part of an underground racing circuit. 
'''Bulkhead''': You mean they race in tunnels? 
'''Fanzone''': Underground as in illegal. As in they race in the streets and don't care who gets hurt. 
'''Bulkhead''': That's not what Sari told me. 
'''Optimus''': What purpose does this street race serve? 
'''Fanzone''': Eh, what else? They get a couple a' million pay-per-view customers for their pirate broadcasts, then it's "cha-ching cha-ching", big bucks.
:—Captain Fanzone introduces the Autobots to the seedy world of underground racing.

'''Bumblebee''': Lighten up, Bulkhead. We're supposed to be the ''fun'' bots, remember? 
'''Bulkhead''': Yeah, but we still gotta set a good example. She looks up to us. 
'''Bumblebee''': Hello, she looks up to everybody. 
'''Sari''': HEY!
:—Bumblebee should be more sensitive about [[Scale|size issues]].

'''Bumblebee''': Uh oh. Goodbye traction . . . hello scrapheap!
: - Bumblebee about to be run down..

"Hey...you know that's comin' out of my paycheck."
:—'''Captain Fanzone''' manages to see the down side of being saved before Blitzwing destroyed his car.

''[referring to Bumblebee's vehicle mode]'' 
"How come your interior's so much cleaner than mine?" 
"Hmm, maybe 'cause it's not on fire?"
:—'''Captain Fanzone''' gets zinged by '''Sari'''.

'''Blitzwing (Hothead):''' Why can't I control myself?! 
'''Blitzwing (Random):''' Not zat I ever could! AHAHAHA! 
:—Blitzwing while under the remote's influence.

"Oh, dizzy. Not liking the dizzy."
:—'''Random Blitzwing'''

"Well, that's the trouble with bending the rules—''cough''—they usually snap right back in your face."
:—Lessons in life from '''Captain Fanzone'''

'''Hothead Blitzwing''': Never give up! 
'''Icy Blitzwing''': Never surrender! 
'''Random Blitzwing''': NEVER MIND!! 
''[Blitzwing swerves off into a nearby building]''
:—Blitzwing and the mysterious racer play a game of Chicken.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical errors===
* Sari doesn't actually take off her seatbelt when she leaves Bumblebee's driver's seat to investigate Master Disaster's trailer. The whole shoulder-strap just moves with her, then we hear the sound of Bumblebee's door opening then closing.
* In the long overhead shot towards the beginning of the Bumblebee/Blitzwing chase (shortly after a wall of ice blocks the human racers off), Bumblebee does not get smaller as he moves further into the distance.
* When Bumblebee is stuck in some oil, he is unable to speed forward, even with his boosters. Yet, seconds later, he speeds backwards without a problem.

===Continuity errors===
* Hothead [[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] demonstrates the ability to function in jet mode, instead of automatically switching to tank mode as he did in "[[Megatron Rising - Part 2]]". His ice missiles are replaced with conventional explosive ones. Or maybe it was just Crazy who was in control at that moment?
* Bumblebee is using rocket boosters similar to the ones in "[[Nanosec (episode)|Nanosec]]," despite the fact they were destroyed and lost. It could be that Isaac Sumdac built him new ones, but given his absence and the fact that the replacements are never touched upon before hand, it is unlikely.
* In "[[Megatron Rising - Part 1]]", Blitzwing freezes Ratchet, but Ratchet, a few minutes later, manages to break free, while in this episode, when Blitzwing freezezs Bulkhead, he cannot move.
* In "Nanosec", Bumblebee's boosters gave enough propulsion to match Nanosec in speed, so fast that he became a blur. In this episode, he is only on par with Blitzwing and cannot match the blue car even with the boosters. What gives?

===Real-world references===
* Wondering where Bumblebee came from, Master Disaster invokes the name of [[Detroit]] auto mogul Henry Ford (and also calls Bumblebee a "clown car").
* This episode borrows several plot and thematic elements from the popular street racing film ''[[wikipedia:The_Fast_and_the_Furious|The Fast and the Furious]]''.
* Blitzwing's "Never give up! Never surrender! NEVER MIND!" quote refers to the catchphrase from the [[DreamWorks]] film, ''[[wikipedia:Galaxy_Quest|Galaxy Quest]]''.
* Blitzwing haphazardly fires off multiple missiles in all directions in a style reminiscent of the Valkyrie Fighters from ''[[wikipedia:Macross|Super Dimension Fortress Macross]]''.
* In this episode, Blitzwing's cannons make the familiar "high tension cable twang" normally associated with laser cannons in the ''[[wikipedia:Star_Wars|Star Wars]]'' films.
* The first car that passes Bumblebee at the beginning of the episode resembles the 1999 Nissan Skyline From 2003's ''2 Fast 2 Furious''.
* Some of the scenes in this episode may be construed as parodies of ''[[wikipedia:Speed_Racer|Speed Racer]]''.

===Trivia===
* Fanzone's car explodes. Again. At least we know where he gets the replacements.
* It seems that the Autobots have gained a better culinary understanding than they had in "[[The Return of the Headmaster]]" to the point where they know how heated cocoa powder in milk and hot water can be considered edible.
* This is the first episode in which [[Blitzwing (Animated)|a Decepticon]] is defeated by a [[Human|puny organic]].
* It's slightly odd that Optimus Prime and Fanzone chew out Sari and Bumblebee for hacking into pay-per-view broadcasts of illegal street races. It's not like the promoters deserve to profit from these broadcasts.

===Foreign dubbing===
'''French'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Velo-Cité'''" ("Velo-City")
:*''Original airdate:'' ???

'''German'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Schneller als der Wind'''" ("Faster than the Wind")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[July 21|21 July]] [[2008]]

'''Japanese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Shichōritsu Race!'''" (視聴率レース!, "Ratings Race!")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[August 14|14 August]] [[2010]]

'''Polish'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Prędkość'''" ("Velocity")
:*''Original airdate:'' ???

==Home video releases==
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Season Two ([[Transformers Animated (cartoon)/home video|Paramount]]) — English and Spanish audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Five: Fistful of Energon (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Five: Fistful of Energon (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Germany.png|20px|Germany]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Fünf: Der Doppelte Starscream (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2010 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Vol. 5 (Paramount) — Japanese audio only.

[[Category:Animated episodes]]

Velocity (episode)

2012-08-14T02:15:30Z

R.G.: /* Quotes */

{{episode|
|series=Anitoon
|series2=AniJapan
|image=TFA Velocity Bumblebee Blurr meet.JPG
|caption="One shall stand, one shall eat dust."
|ep=21
|ep2=20
|prev2=Garbage In, Garbage Out
|next2=A Fistful of Energon
|title="Velocity"
|airdate=[[May 10]], [[2008]]
|written by=[[Len Uhley]]
|directed by= [[Irineo Maramba]] [[Christopher Berkeley]] [[Kenji Itoso]]
|animation studio= [[Mook]]
|continuity=[[Animated cartoon continuity]]}}

'''Investigating a mysterious race car, Bumblebee gets involved with an illegal underground street racing circuit, which also captures the attention of the Decepticons.'''

==Synopsis==
[[Image:TFA Velocity Prowl Blade.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Yeah, sure, '''this''' oughta help her stay calm.]]

On the highways of Detroit, the [[Autobot]]s are driving under the moonlight, searching for an [[AllSpark]] fragment. As Bumblebee complains about the boring nature of their task, several cars speed past them. Bulkhead recognizes them as racers for ''[[Street Demon]]'', a show he and Sari watch. Calling them amateurs, Bumblebee decides to show off and speeds ahead. As he boasts, a blue racer comes in and rams two drivers off the road. Bumblebee wants to go after him, while Prime says that the drivers need help. Still, Bumblebee pursues, discovering that the car is quite fast. As the Autobots render assistance, Captain Fanzone arrives and arrests the two drivers. Bulkhead is shocked to learn that the Street Demons are on an illegal racing circuit, while Bumblebee rolls up, transforms, and falls down, breathing heavily...somehow.

Back at the [[Autobot Earth Base|plant]], Bumblebee thinks that he can beat the blue racer with his [[turbo booster]]s. Prime and Ratchet refuse, and Bumblebee shouts that nothing on Earth is faster than him. This train of thought leads Bumblebee to the conclusion that the blue racer is a Decepticon. Prowl points out that the racer was uninterested in the Autobots, and Prime orders Bumblebee not to use the boosters. Meanwhile, Bulkhead comes down on Sari over ''Street Demon'', but Sari says that they're not helping the illegal show in any way, since she's pirating the signal. As Bulkhead laments about how the Autobots need to set a good example, Bumblebee walks in and smooths things over, saying that he'll straighten out Sari. Once Bulkhead is out of [[Sensors|audio sensor]] range, Bumblebee has Sari show him the races. He asks her to track down where the broadcast came from, and with the help of the [[AllSpark Key]], he finds out where they are.

[[Image:TFA Velocity Master Disaster remote.JPG|right|200px|thumb|The universal remote of doom.]]

At an irrigation channel, Bumblebee, having taken his turbo boosters, joins in a training race, finally getting the hang of his boosters. Seeing what is going on, Master Disaster, the host of ''Street Demon'', uses some sort of remote control to send out the blue racer to attack Bumblebee. Finally getting tired of being attacked, Bumblebee transforms into robot mode, causing Master Disaster to call off the attack. Instead, Disaster invites the Autobot to participate in the next race. Bumblebee agrees, on the condition that blue racer is present. As Bumblebee [[roll out|rolls out]], Disaster notes that with an Autobot racing, their ratings will triple...and get even higher if said Autobot were to suffer an "accident".

At the plant, Bulkhead brings Sari a cup of hot chocolate, but Bumblebee calls on her cell phone, revealing his misadventure and allowing Bulkhead to learn what is going on. Before he can further <strike>dig his own grave</strike> elaborate, Bumblebee stops short when he sees a plane—Blitzwing. Following the Decepticon, Bumblebee overhears Blitzwing communicate with Megatron about an AllSpark fragment he was tracking. Convinced it involves the blue racer, Bumblebee heads back to the plant. He tells Sari what is going on, only for Bulkhead to come down on Bumblebee for what he's doing. Bumblebee tells him about Blitzwing, the AllSpark fragment, and his suspicions about the blue racer being a Decepticon, insisting that he can only discover the truth if he races. Bulkhead agrees to allow it on the condition that he is brought along as well, but Bumblebee fibs. However, when Sari catches him going out, she forces him to take her...as Bulkhead listens in.

In an interrogation room, Fanzone questions one of the drivers. Using the threat of imprisonment, Fanzone learns that the next race will be at Dix and Vernor, and he intends to get there before the races begins...at which point he walks right into a door.

[[Image:TFA Velocity air chicken.JPG|left|200px|thumb|IT IS BETTER TO FIGHT AND DIE—than live with the knowledge that I ran. We can run?! Let's do that!]]

At the race site, Master Disaster is making the final preparations, when the AllSpark Key glows in the direction of Disaster's truck. Sneaking aboard, she finds the remote, then flees while Disaster announces the two-minute mark. As he reaches for the remote, he discovers what Sari did, forcing Bumblebee and Sari to escape. Thinking the race has started, the other drivers follow. As Bulkhead prepares to roll out and follow them, Blitzwing freezes the Autobot, then flies after the other two. Sari opens the remote and finds the AllSpark fragment, while Bumblebee detects Blitzwing. Seeing the flier, he dives through an arch, which Blitzwing freezes, cutting off the rest of the racers. Failing in his attempts to destroy Bumblebee from above, Blitzwing goes to tank mode, but is buried under rubble when he destroys a bridge support.

[[Image:TFA Velocity Bumblebee Blitzwing Scale.jpg|right|200px|thumb|...kinda one-sided, ain't it?]]

Meanwhile, Bumblebee sees Fanzone's car and tries to reach him. Fanzone is forced to jump into Bumblebee as Blitzwing destroys his car. As Blitzwing continues his strafing, Sari uses the remote to control Blitzwing, but it falls from her hands and out of the car. As they near another bridge, the blue racer crashes through the bridge's retaining wall and plays a game of Midair Chicken with Blitzwing. At first, Blitzwing is prepared to [[Furmanism|fight and die]], but he turns away, crashing first into a building and then into Master Disaster's truck. Bumblebee deposits the two humans on the road, then goes to finish off Blitzwing, despite being vastly outsized and outgunned. Fortunately, the fight has brought them back to where the remote was. However, Blitzwing destroys a bridge above Bumblebee, also freeing Bulkhead. As Blitzwing prepares to deliver the killing blow, Sari uses the remote to control Blitzwing (as well as Bumblebee, who crashes into Bulkhead). Finally, Sari sends Blitzwing into high altitude. As Master Disaster tries to sneak away, Fanzone places him under arrest.

Back at the plant, Prime decides to store the remote in a safe place, while Bumblebee decides to set a better example for Sari—starting by ending her pirated satellite connection. As Sari jokingly warns Bumblebee not to set too good of an example (lest she not recognize him), Bumblebee notices the blue racer speed past the plant. Bumblebee shouts out a "thank you", but is left wondering who the blue racer really is.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (1)
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (2)
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (3)
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (4)
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (5)
*[[Blurr (Animated)|Blue Racer]] (6)
|c2=
*[[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] (12)
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] (voice only) (13)
|c3=
*[[Ming-Li]] (7)
*[[Roxy Sparkles]] (8)
*[[Carmine Fanzone|Captain Fanzone]] (9)
*[[Sari Sumdac]] (10)
*[[Master Disaster (Animated)|Master Disaster]] (11)
*[[Shana Story]] (14)
*[[Solon Kitakaze (Animated)|Solon Kitakaze]] (15)
|c4=
}}

==Quotes==
'''Fanzone''': I've been after them for weeks. They're part of an underground racing circuit. 
'''Bulkhead''': You mean they race in tunnels? 
'''Fanzone''': Underground as in illegal. As in they race in the streets and don't care who gets hurt. 
'''Bulkhead''': That's not what Sari told me. 
'''Optimus''': What purpose does this street race serve? 
'''Fanzone''': Eh, what else? They get a couple a' million pay-per-view customers for their pirate broadcasts, then it's "cha-ching cha-ching", big bucks.
:—Captain Fanzone introduces the Autobots to the seedy world of underground racing.

'''Bumblebee''': Lighten up, Bulkhead. We're supposed to be the ''fun'' bots, remember? 
'''Bulkhead''': Yeah, but we still gotta set a good example. She looks up to us. 
'''Bumblebee''': Hello, she looks up to everybody. 
'''Sari''': HEY!
:—Bumblebee should be more sensitive about [[Scale|size issues]].

'''Bumblebee''': Uh oh. Goodbye traction . . . hello scrapheap!
: - Bumblebee about to be rundown.

"Hey...you know that's comin' out of my paycheck."
:—'''Captain Fanzone''' manages to see the down side of being saved before Blitzwing destroyed his car.

''[referring to Bumblebee's vehicle mode]'' 
"How come your interior's so much cleaner than mine?" 
"Hmm, maybe 'cause it's not on fire?"
:—'''Captain Fanzone''' gets zinged by '''Sari'''.

'''Blitzwing (Hothead):''' Why can't I control myself?! 
'''Blitzwing (Random):''' Not zat I ever could! AHAHAHA! 
:—Blitzwing while under the remote's influence.

"Oh, dizzy. Not liking the dizzy."
:—'''Random Blitzwing'''

"Well, that's the trouble with bending the rules—''cough''—they usually snap right back in your face."
:—Lessons in life from '''Captain Fanzone'''

'''Hothead Blitzwing''': Never give up! 
'''Icy Blitzwing''': Never surrender! 
'''Random Blitzwing''': NEVER MIND!! 
''[Blitzwing swerves off into a nearby building]''
:—Blitzwing and the mysterious racer play a game of Chicken.

==Notes==
===Animation or technical errors===
* Sari doesn't actually take off her seatbelt when she leaves Bumblebee's driver's seat to investigate Master Disaster's trailer. The whole shoulder-strap just moves with her, then we hear the sound of Bumblebee's door opening then closing.
* In the long overhead shot towards the beginning of the Bumblebee/Blitzwing chase (shortly after a wall of ice blocks the human racers off), Bumblebee does not get smaller as he moves further into the distance.
* When Bumblebee is stuck in some oil, he is unable to speed forward, even with his boosters. Yet, seconds later, he speeds backwards without a problem.

===Continuity errors===
* Hothead [[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] demonstrates the ability to function in jet mode, instead of automatically switching to tank mode as he did in "[[Megatron Rising - Part 2]]". His ice missiles are replaced with conventional explosive ones. Or maybe it was just Crazy who was in control at that moment?
* Bumblebee is using rocket boosters similar to the ones in "[[Nanosec (episode)|Nanosec]]," despite the fact they were destroyed and lost. It could be that Isaac Sumdac built him new ones, but given his absence and the fact that the replacements are never touched upon before hand, it is unlikely.
* In "[[Megatron Rising - Part 1]]", Blitzwing freezes Ratchet, but Ratchet, a few minutes later, manages to break free, while in this episode, when Blitzwing freezezs Bulkhead, he cannot move.
* In "Nanosec", Bumblebee's boosters gave enough propulsion to match Nanosec in speed, so fast that he became a blur. In this episode, he is only on par with Blitzwing and cannot match the blue car even with the boosters. What gives?

===Real-world references===
* Wondering where Bumblebee came from, Master Disaster invokes the name of [[Detroit]] auto mogul Henry Ford (and also calls Bumblebee a "clown car").
* This episode borrows several plot and thematic elements from the popular street racing film ''[[wikipedia:The_Fast_and_the_Furious|The Fast and the Furious]]''.
* Blitzwing's "Never give up! Never surrender! NEVER MIND!" quote refers to the catchphrase from the [[DreamWorks]] film, ''[[wikipedia:Galaxy_Quest|Galaxy Quest]]''.
* Blitzwing haphazardly fires off multiple missiles in all directions in a style reminiscent of the Valkyrie Fighters from ''[[wikipedia:Macross|Super Dimension Fortress Macross]]''.
* In this episode, Blitzwing's cannons make the familiar "high tension cable twang" normally associated with laser cannons in the ''[[wikipedia:Star_Wars|Star Wars]]'' films.
* The first car that passes Bumblebee at the beginning of the episode resembles the 1999 Nissan Skyline From 2003's ''2 Fast 2 Furious''.
* Some of the scenes in this episode may be construed as parodies of ''[[wikipedia:Speed_Racer|Speed Racer]]''.

===Trivia===
* Fanzone's car explodes. Again. At least we know where he gets the replacements.
* It seems that the Autobots have gained a better culinary understanding than they had in "[[The Return of the Headmaster]]" to the point where they know how heated cocoa powder in milk and hot water can be considered edible.
* This is the first episode in which [[Blitzwing (Animated)|a Decepticon]] is defeated by a [[Human|puny organic]].
* It's slightly odd that Optimus Prime and Fanzone chew out Sari and Bumblebee for hacking into pay-per-view broadcasts of illegal street races. It's not like the promoters deserve to profit from these broadcasts.

===Foreign dubbing===
'''French'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Velo-Cité'''" ("Velo-City")
:*''Original airdate:'' ???

'''German'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Schneller als der Wind'''" ("Faster than the Wind")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[July 21|21 July]] [[2008]]

'''Japanese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Shichōritsu Race!'''" (視聴率レース!, "Ratings Race!")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[August 14|14 August]] [[2010]]

'''Polish'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Prędkość'''" ("Velocity")
:*''Original airdate:'' ???

==Home video releases==
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Season Two ([[Transformers Animated (cartoon)/home video|Paramount]]) — English and Spanish audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Five: Fistful of Energon (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Five: Fistful of Energon (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Germany.png|20px|Germany]] 2009 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Volume Fünf: Der Doppelte Starscream (Paramount) — English and German audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2010 — ''Transformers Animated'' — Vol. 5 (Paramount) — Japanese audio only.

[[Category:Animated episodes]]

Talk:Trukk not munky

2011-11-02T05:27:27Z

R.G.: /* A variant for Megatron */

Should there be any mention of the 'Munky Not Trukk' variation?
: I don't think so. I've not really seen it used other than very seldomly as an ironic inversion of the original phrase. --[[User:ItsWalky|ItsWalky]] 00:32, 23 September 2006 (UTC)

Does it really make sense to have [[Geewun]] redirect here, considering there's no actual mention of "Geewun" on the page? --[[User:Andrusi|Andrusi]] 03:02, 24 October 2006 (UTC)
: I agree. It's gone. Also, I don't think there should be a real GeeWun page until the term has existed for more than a year. Y'know, make sure it has more long-lasting relevance. --[[User:ItsWalky|ItsWalky]] 03:57, 24 October 2006 (UTC)

== Primal not Prime ==

Should we make any mention of the fact that Optimus Primal ISN'T the same character as Optimus Prime either? --[[User:Loudstone|Loudstone]] 16:24, 20 April 2009 (EDT)
:....nah. (That adds 75.5% of the humor...) [[User:Zatnik|Zatnik]] 13:53, 30 October 2011 (EDT)

== Not a Mack Truck? ==
While I'm aware that Optimus Prime is not a Mack truck, I'm unsure as to it's re;evance in the footnot here. This vexes me. [[User:G1MarvelBlaster|G1MarvelBlaster]] 01:37, 14 November 2009 (EST)
:Uh... read the quote at the top of the page? -- [[User:Semysane|Semysane]] 01:45, 14 November 2009 (EST)

== actually an ape, not a monkey. ==
Uh, may I kindly ask what the difference is between ape and monkey? It both stands for the same word. When entering into an online dictionary, both say the same. --{{unsigned|92.39.20.50}} 10:49, 3 May 2010 (EDT)
:Apes are the big ones without a tail. Monkeys are the small ones with a tail. [[User:Geewunling|Geewunling]] 10:56, 3 May 2010 (EDT)
:[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--szrOHtR6U]
Actually, it's not that simple, and by some definitions an ape is a monkey.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ape

Definition of APE

1
a : '''monkey'''; especially : one of the larger tailless or short-tailed Old World forms
b : any of two families (Pongidae and Hylobatidae) of large tailless semierect primates (as the chimpanzee, gorilla, orangutan, or gibbon) —called also anthropoid, anthropoid ape

--[[Special:Contributions/76.226.222.80|76.226.222.80]] 16:25, 17 May 2011 (EDT)

:''"If it doesn't have a tail, it's not a monkey
:''Even if it has a monkey kind of shape.
:''If it doesn't have a tail, it's not not a monkey;
:''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--szrOHtR6U If it doesn't have a tail, it's not a monkey - it's an ape!"]
::- [[User:Queso|¡Usa El Queso!]] [[User talk:Queso|Complain here]] 02:20, 26 October 2011 (EDT)

== A variant for Megatron ==

GUN NOT DINO! -[[User:R.G.|R.G.]] 01:27, 2 November 2011 (EDT)

Talk:Trukk not munky

2011-11-02T05:27:03Z

R.G.:

Should there be any mention of the 'Munky Not Trukk' variation?
: I don't think so. I've not really seen it used other than very seldomly as an ironic inversion of the original phrase. --[[User:ItsWalky|ItsWalky]] 00:32, 23 September 2006 (UTC)

Does it really make sense to have [[Geewun]] redirect here, considering there's no actual mention of "Geewun" on the page? --[[User:Andrusi|Andrusi]] 03:02, 24 October 2006 (UTC)
: I agree. It's gone. Also, I don't think there should be a real GeeWun page until the term has existed for more than a year. Y'know, make sure it has more long-lasting relevance. --[[User:ItsWalky|ItsWalky]] 03:57, 24 October 2006 (UTC)

== Primal not Prime ==

Should we make any mention of the fact that Optimus Primal ISN'T the same character as Optimus Prime either? --[[User:Loudstone|Loudstone]] 16:24, 20 April 2009 (EDT)
:....nah. (That adds 75.5% of the humor...) [[User:Zatnik|Zatnik]] 13:53, 30 October 2011 (EDT)

== Not a Mack Truck? ==
While I'm aware that Optimus Prime is not a Mack truck, I'm unsure as to it's re;evance in the footnot here. This vexes me. [[User:G1MarvelBlaster|G1MarvelBlaster]] 01:37, 14 November 2009 (EST)
:Uh... read the quote at the top of the page? -- [[User:Semysane|Semysane]] 01:45, 14 November 2009 (EST)

== actually an ape, not a monkey. ==
Uh, may I kindly ask what the difference is between ape and monkey? It both stands for the same word. When entering into an online dictionary, both say the same. --{{unsigned|92.39.20.50}} 10:49, 3 May 2010 (EDT)
:Apes are the big ones without a tail. Monkeys are the small ones with a tail. [[User:Geewunling|Geewunling]] 10:56, 3 May 2010 (EDT)
:[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--szrOHtR6U]
Actually, it's not that simple, and by some definitions an ape is a monkey.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ape

Definition of APE

1
a : '''monkey'''; especially : one of the larger tailless or short-tailed Old World forms
b : any of two families (Pongidae and Hylobatidae) of large tailless semierect primates (as the chimpanzee, gorilla, orangutan, or gibbon) —called also anthropoid, anthropoid ape

--[[Special:Contributions/76.226.222.80|76.226.222.80]] 16:25, 17 May 2011 (EDT)

:''"If it doesn't have a tail, it's not a monkey
:''Even if it has a monkey kind of shape.
:''If it doesn't have a tail, it's not not a monkey;
:''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--szrOHtR6U If it doesn't have a tail, it's not a monkey - it's an ape!"]
::- [[User:Queso|¡Usa El Queso!]] [[User talk:Queso|Complain here]] 02:20, 26 October 2011 (EDT)

== A variant for Megatron ==

GUN NOT DINO![[User:R.G.|R.G.]] 01:27, 2 November 2011 (EDT)

Theme song

2011-06-09T15:23:49Z

R.G.: /* Animated */

Wherever Transformers goes, it takes with it its '''theme song'''. Its lyrics were established in Generation 1, and most Western Transformers shows (''Beast Wars'', ''Beast Machines'' and ''Prime'' being the notable exceptions) follow the lyrics, or at the very least an acoustic pattern matching them. No two series have ''ever'' used the lyrics in the same order.

{{quote|''The Transformers! More than meets the eye!'' ''Autobots wage their battle to destroy the evil forces of the Decepticons!'' ''The Transformers! Robots in disguise!'' ''The Transformers! More than meets the eye!'' ''The Transformers!''|The [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1]] theme song.}}

==Generation 1==
The original, classic ''[[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1]]'' theme tune by [[Anne Bryant]] and [[Ford Kinder]], with its simple, iconic repetition of the brand's rhyming slogans, "More than meets the eye," and "robots in disguise," has formed the basis of most Western Transformers theme tunes. Accompanying the [[title sequence]] and being used as both the opening theme of the animated series and in the multitude of toy [[commercial]]s over the years, it's pretty much burned into the mind of every twenty-something in the english-speaking western world, and maybe their parents as well. You say to someone, "Transformers?" and it's not unlikely that you'll have them jingle back ''"Ro-bots in dis-guise!"''

Seasons 1, 2 and 3 of the series feature their own distinct renditions of the theme tune, with season 3's version being especially distinguished by the unusual "Ah-aah!" chant which is a chorus tune that runs throughout it. For ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'', composer [[Vince DiCola]] created several new versions of the tune (featuring instrumental pieces included in other parts of the movie's score), sung by [[Ed Fruge]], [[Gary Falcone]] and [[Stan Bush]], although ultimately, the finished movie used [[The Transformers (Theme)|a power metal arrangement]] by [[Lion]] with additional verses in between the familiar chorus.

Various iterations of the theme were incorporated into many pieces of the show's stock background music, which was composed by [[Robert J. Walsh]].

==Beast Era==
As the first new Transformers cartoons since Generation 1, ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' and ''[[Beast Machines (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'' featured new theme tunes that owed nothing to the original; in years to come, this would make them the distinct exceptions amongst their animated brethren. ''Beast Wars'' features an instrumental theme tune with occasional roaring shouts of "Beast Wars!" (unless you live in Canada, in which case they were shouting "Beasties!"). The theme was composed by [[Robert Buckley]], who composed and performed all of the show's background music as well. The motifs of the ''Beast Wars'' theme show up in many scenes during the show itself.

During the episode [[The Agenda (Part 2)]], Decepticon-turned-Predacon [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] turns on the Maximals, declares "Decepticons Forever!" and transforms to his G1 cassette-mode, slotting into a control panel. For this brief moment of uber-fan-wank, Mainframe wanted to briefly insert the original G1 theme, but were unable to acquire the rights. Instead Ravage's transformation was set to the original G1 transformation sound, and lo, there was much rejoicing.

''Beast Machines'' stands out even further, having licensed the pre-existing song, [[Leftfield]]'s "[[Phat Planet]]," to serve as its theme, though with several additional SFX such as animal snarls and gunfire for the background. However, Buckley continued to supply background music for the show itself, though it had more of a hip-hop/techno feel than its predecessor. Another song related to Beast Machines, "[[Evolution Revolution]]," was produced by FoxKids for use in preview materials but was not heard in the series itself.

==Robots In Disguise==
The fandom just about wet itself when ''[[Robots in Disguise (cartoon)|Robots in Disguise]]'' became the first cartoon since Generation 1 to employ a variation of the classic theme tune, although there were a few surprises along the way. First, an mp3 of what appeared to be the new theme tune was released online, but when the series actually debuted, everyone was a bit surprised to discover that its theme was an entirely ''different'' variation of the G1 theme, most notable for adding the new line, "Change before your eyes," in place of "more than meets the eye." The mp3 turned out to be the new commercial jingle by [[Marc S. Pearlman]], which featured in commercials for all subsequent lines. The actual opening theme used in the show was arranged by [[Saban Entertainment|Saban]] mainstay [[Paul Gordon]]; an extended version of the theme song can be heard on his website, [http://www.stayawakemusic.com/composer.htm Stay Awake Music].

==The Unicron Trilogy==
''[[Armada (cartoon)|Armada]]'' followed this trend, featuring a trance version of the classic theme, sans lyrics (with a narrator lecturing the audience on the premise of the show instead). A second arrangement, however, was included as an "insert song" during episodes, and featured the traditional "more than meets the eye" and "robots in disguise" lines. The [[Transformers (Melbourne House)|''Armada'' video game]], meanwhile, included a stirring orchestral version of the theme composed by [[Ric Formosa]], which... well, totally kicked ass, frankly. It also included a metal version by [[Dropbox]], an odd techno version by [[Regurgitator]], and a funk version by [[The Brown Hornet]], the latter of which was used over the end credits.

The ''[[Energon (cartoon)|Energon]]'' cartoon's theme was quite frankly ''horrible'', featuring another new version of the classic theme, this time with lyrics, the transformation sound mixed in where it didn't really fit, and a quite frankly cringeworthy keyboard solo during the middle eight. Needless to say, it did not stand out in any great manner.

This was the cue for ''[[Cybertron (cartoon)|Cybertron]]'' to really shake things up, offering a unique version of the tune by British DJ [[Paul Oakenfold]], with energetic shouts of the brand and faction names. Unfortunately, it also includes a completely unenthusiastic narration by [[Garry Chalk|Optimus Prime]], explaining how the Autobots have to find the [[Cyber Planet Key]]s and namedropping several members of the Autobot team from the start of the series ''in every single episode''. Perhaps most significantly, it featured the return of the long-lost line, "Autobots wage their battle to destroy the evil forces of the Decepticons"—albeit simply spoken by Oakenfold during the middle-eight, rather than sung. The word "The" was inserted into the beginning of the line.

While the themes weres certainly unique and bearable at the start of the shows, they unfortunately became grating (particularly Energon's) after they were included in sans-lyrics form over every stock footage sequence in the show...that is to say, ''lots of times.''

==Live-action films==

As part of the [[Sector Seven (game)|viral marketing]] for the [[Transformers (2007)|live-action movie]], an mp3 of Linkin Park soundalikes "[[DECEPTIBOT]]" performing a song that included the classic theme as a chorus was released online. The song also featured a roll call of the Autobots in the movie while excluding [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] as...well, we all know what happened to Jazz. This song didn't feature in the movie or on the soundtrack, though. Instead, [[MuteMath]] performed a <strike>whiny and emo</strike> laid back version of the tune for the soundtrack, although it didn't appear in the film itself. Ironically, the Deceptibot theme does appear in the IMAX extended cut of the film, though none of the lyrics are heard. Before those, Black Lab had done a cover of the original Lion theme. Fans had hoped this would be the main theme, but it wasn't, sadly. It is, however, on Technologie, their latest album, Amazon.com, Lime Wire, and iTunes.

In 2009, the ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]'' [[Revenge of the Fallen: The Album|soundtrack]] featured a cover of Lion's version of the ''Transformers'' theme song by the American band [[Cheap Trick]].

==Animated==

''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Transformers Animated]]'' continued this tradition with yet another new variation of the theme by [[Andy Sturmer]] and [[Sebastian Evans II]], including an entirely new rhyming couplet, "More than they appear/Justice rolls again!" However, because the opening credits had to be shortened from one minute down to thirty seconds, this new verse had to be omitted from the final broadcast version of the opening. The full, uncut theme song is available on the DVD that comes in the Optimus Prime vs. Megatron - The Battle Begins 2-pack, and was available for download in mp3 format on Hasbro's website.

==Prime==
''[[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)| Prime]]'' on the other hand, eschewed the theme for a composition by [[Brian Tyler]] (which sounds remarkably similar to the main theme from the 2009 ''Star Trek'' film, which Orci and Kurtzman also produced). The "[[Darkness Rising]]" mini-series didn't even have an opening theme, only showing the title and development credits following the cold open.

==Theme songs in other countries==
There are many [[Japanese themes]], with different openings and closings for each series. Many different performers have contributed songs over the years. One of the songs is totally about how [[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]] [[Cybertron Banzai|wet the bed as a kid]]. Seriously. The opening for ''[[Robots in Disguise (cartoon)|Car Robots]]'' ("[[Honō no Overdrive: Car Robot Cybertron|Honō no Overdrive ~Car Robot Cybertron~]]" performed by [[Kōji Wada]]) has the lyrics "Go Boy! Convoy!" It's kind of dubious. Interestingly enough, ''[[Armada (cartoon)| Micron Legend]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s "[[Transformer: Dream Again]]" features the phrase "More than Meets the Eye" uttered just before the refrain, while ''[[Cybertron (cartoon)|Galaxy Force]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s "[[Call You... Kimi to Boku no Mirai|CALL YOU... Kimi to Boku no Mirai]]" has the phrase "Robots in Disguise" during the bridge in the full version.

The French one is pretty ...French. However, for the French dubs of the [[Unicron Trilogy]], the English theme songs were used. The cartoons were apparently dubbed from the English dub version rather than the original Japanese.

The French-Canadian one uses the same music as the original Season 1 theme song, but with the lyrics translated to French.

In Germany, the ''Animated'' theme song is the same, but translated into German. This makes ''Animated'' the first Transformers series to air there with a German theme instead of the original.

{{stub}}

[[Category:Songs]]