Talk:Battle of Autobot City

Springer to transform Autobot City (presumably into the robot mode of the giant Autobot Metroplex)

I don't think there's any evidence of that parenthetical supposition. Is there? JW 01:21, 10 October 2007 (UTC)

No, but some backwards reasoning suggests it: according to one of the alterations made after I created this page, the Decepticons' first strike probably took out Metroplex's transformation cog, preventing the Autobots from converting the city to robot mode. Personally I don't buy that explanation either, but given they did a TV episode on the subject later (referenced in the article on the cog) I was just retconning the article to reflect it.

Although I see the point you're probably making: to transform Autobot City into Metroplex might well have resulted in some injuries and deaths given a solid number of Autobots were inside the city when it would have gone to robot mode. (User 210.185.64.133 ... I am going to create an account, I swear...)

Hmm, if Metroplex isn't mentioned in the actual movie, and the fact that his transformation cog was damaged is only mentioned in a followup episode, this should be mentioned in the article. E.g., "transform Autobot City (according to the later episode #foo, into the robot mode of the giant Autobot Metroplex)" or somesuch. JW 13:57, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

Outnumbered?

I remmeber there being an awful lot of characters on both sides, but I haven't seen any definitive numbers. Do we have a complete list, so we can verify that the Autobots were outnumbered? Or is it stated in the dialogue? JW 13:57, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

Springer claims they're outnumbered as Starscream strafe's Ultra Magnus' team. Decepticons had their 1984 crew, the coneheads, the Constructicons, the Insecticons, the Triple Changes and Reflector. Not counting the tape guys since they hadn't appeared yet when Springer made that announcement. --FFN 02:57, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

It's in the dialogue.

Perceptor: Ultra Magnus -- an analysis of Decepticon capabilities indicates a distinct tactical deficiency.

Ultra Magnus: In other words, Perceptor...?

Springer: We're outnumbered!

(Cue explosion from a Seeker than roars past, shooting.

(Me again. Still have to make myself an account...)

Metroplex

Yes, you're correct Steve. Floro Dery has even gone so far as to say in interviews that he was not aware of Metroplex when making the movie designs for Autobot City. He of course tries to turn it around and say that his Autobot City designs inspired Metroplex (Which they likely did) but that he had to go with his secondary design as opposed to his primary design which was much better, capable of curing cancer, and could make angels weep openly.--Rosicrucian 00:53, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

This raises the question of whether the writers of FFoD were doing a retcon -- were trying to explicitly say that Springer's team were transforming Metroplex in the movie -- and they just didn't make it obvious enough. You also have to ask if it really counts as a retcon, since FFoD was the very next bit of animation to come out, and the same guy, Flint Dille, was story consultant on TFTM and the writer of FFoD. We're hanging on the very flimsy edge of "retcon" when one guy contributes to one story and then clarifies things in the next. So: If we think that Dille's authorial intent in FFoD was to say they were transforming Metroplex, we should mention that, with appropriate "apparnetly"s and "arguably"s. JW 01:50, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

It is definitely not my intent to say that Dille intended that. In the finished fiction, Autobot City and Metroplex are not the same thing. Metroplex is, at most, a sentient, mobile "piece" of the city. Before catching up on wiki today, I had never in my life heard anyone claim that Springer and Arcee were trying to transform Metroplex manually despite his damaged cog, and I see no reason to make that speculation. Taking everything at face value, they initiated a clearly-automated sequence for converting the city into a battle fortress. Metroplex is later claimed to have been damaged, clumsily "explaining" why he didn't do anything despite apparently having existed (and not explaining why nobody mentioned him). --Steve-o 04:49, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

I defer to your judgment. JW 13:23, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

plus Metroplex if in the movie should have said something like "oh crap i have been shot?" or something i think Autobot City was to damaged to repair and the Autobots used the parts to create Metroplex after the movie, the damaged cog was the one for the city that would have been given to Metroplex but was damaged. (MChase)

Prime kill shot image

If that image that Zobovor removed, and then was reverted back in, actually was swiped from his site, then it probably shouldn't be here unless he okays it, being as it is not just a plain screenshot but an image put together from two shots. --KilMichaelMcC 21:08, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

I don't think putting together two screenshots of a copyrighted work owned by Hasbro into one image really qualifies the image as "his". —Interrobang 23:46, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

No, but if it was taken from his website and he put them together, he should at least get some credit in the upload. He doesn't. -- SFH 23:49, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

It's still pretty rude to take it from his site without acknowledging where it was taken from, at the very least. --ItsWalky 00:09, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

Fair enough. —Interrobang 00:16, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

I Spy Smokescreen

While rewatching this battle again, I think I may have spotted Smokescreen's body lying where Wheeljack's body turns up a second later. Watch here from 0:16-0:18, look in the far lefthand side at where Arcee is dragging Windcharger's body and behind her you'll see a dead bot that looks like Smokescreen, then at 0:28 it's replaced by Wheeljack's corpse. I could be wrong, but it does look kinda like him to me. --Sabrblade 22:14, 16 March 2010 (EDT)

That's Wheeljack colored like Smokescreen. -- Repowers 22:22, 16 March 2010 (EDT)

While it is Wheeljack's model, I'm not entirely convinced it's in Smokescreen's colors. Here's an enlarged picture.

Viola. The purple legs makes me think it's just a made-up scheme... --Monzo 22:25, 16 March 2010 (EDT)

Oooo, you're right. Closest match is probably Sideswipe. Hey, Pat Lee was right! -- Repowers 22:43, 16 March 2010 (EDT)

Interesting. I just figured that it might've been Smokescreen due to the red torso and the fact that Smokescreen was supposed to be the corpse there instead of Wheeljack. But, animation error is as animation error does, I guess. --Sabrblade 11:07, 17 March 2010 (EDT)

Known participants

Any reason for removing it? I kind of like having it. Is there a downside?--ItsWalky 20:34, 5 February 2011 (EST)

I can foresee the inclusion of Lugnut being contentious, but if we have a note about why he's included on the list, I think it'd be all right. I'd like the list more if it was formatted using {{featuredcharacters{{#if:||{{{2}}}|}}}} though. --abates 03:15, 10 February 2011 (EST)

(Moved to page)

Like so! --abates 03:26, 10 February 2011 (EST)

My bad. Out of reflex. --Lonegamer78 03:42, 10 February 2011 (EST)

I'm okay with a list participants, but I prefer some extra focus on the dudes not originally part of the fight. Can they get an asterisk behind their name with a note below the list that either refers to the trivia section or gets the line from the trivia section? Geewunling 03:47, 10 February 2011 (EST)

I was thinking possibly a <ref> with the notes underneath. Shockwave may need one too, as he's an animation error, ISTR! --abates 03:54, 10 February 2011 (EST)

Works for me! Geewunling 04:05, 10 February 2011 (EST)

Do the Decpticons that are reformated count as dead?

Megatron, Thundercracker, Skywarp, Insecticons, etc. are technically dead then turned into Galvatron, Scourge, & Cyclonus respectively.--Robogamer64 (talk) 18:12, 9 March 2015 (EDT)

they all remember who they use to be, in fact only Autobots died in this battle ALL Decepticons lived (they might have died later IF Starscream had not launched them into space for Unicron to find)Chasemarc1701 (talk) 21:49, 25 August 2015 (EDT)

Beachcomber

"Both a retroactive inclusion and a casualty. While Beachcomber's dead body is shown in the IDW adaptation of the movie, he is alive and well in "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5", making this somewhat of an odd retrocative inclusion." Except that that guy in the IDW Adaptation looks nothing like Beachcomber. Someone even mentioned this in Beachcomber's Talk Page (AutoTrooper2801 (talk) 15:36, 26 May 2023 (EDT))

Official Name

I'm not sure if there are more instances of this, but the product description for Retro Shrapnel at least name-drops the battle as a proper noun: "Alongside his fellow Insecticons, [Shrapnel] relished the sounds of combat in the Battle of Autobot City." I think in what might be a case of circular reporting, the battle's actually been given a canon title. Might be time to remove the "nameless" tag. Phaze (talk) 16:54, 7 December 2025 (EST)

Huh. Has there really been no official name before this decade? S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent 47 (talk) 17:22, 7 December 2025 (EST)

Did not know that was an "unofficial" name lol. Studio Series has been using it as a backdrop name since SS86 started in 2021. —BluJayWarrior (talk) 18:10, 7 December 2025 (EST)

[1] I have found a usage of "Battle of Autobot City" in the BotCon 2016 bio card for Flash Sentry. S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent 47 (talk) 05:45, 15 December 2025 (EST)