Editing Critical

{{episode
|series=Cybertron
|ep=27
|series2=Galaxy Force
|ep2=28
|title="Critical"
|japanese=転生!バンガードチーム
|romaji=Tensei! Vanguard Team
|translation=Reincarnation! Vanguard Team
|image=Cyb_ep27_birth_of_def_team.jpg
|caption=Arise, Cybertron Defense Team
|production code=
|production company=[[TV Aichi]], [[We've]], [[Tōkyū Agency]]
|writer=[[Kenji Sugihara]]
|director=[[Matsuo Asami]]
|animation studio=[[GONZO]]
|airdate=[[July 16]], [[2005]] (Japanese)<br>[[March 11]], [[2006]] (English)
|continuity=[[Unicron Trilogy cartoon timeline|Unicron Trilogy cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''Just as things look their darkest, Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot get a new lease on life!'''

==Synopsis==

[[File:Cyb ep27 megs vs planet leaders.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.2|"It's... a wheel on a stick. I see."]]

Horrified at the sight of [[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]], [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] and [[Scattorshot (Cybertron)|Scattorshot]] being cut down by [[Megatron (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Megatron]]'s new [[Cyber Key]] power, [[Optimus Prime (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] charges at his old enemy, but finds his way barred by [[Scourge (Cybertron)|Scourge]]. Prime and [[Overhaul (Cybertron)|Leobreaker]] quickly merge into Savage Claw Mode and dispose of Scourge, but Megatron then uses his new machine gun to collapse a cliff in Prime's path, buying more time to finish off the three wounded Autobots. [[Override (Cybertron)|Override]] and [[Evac (Cybertron)|Evac]] come to their rescue, occupying Megatron long enough for [[Vector Prime]] to carry the three injured warriors away to safety through a [[dimension gate]]. [[Coby Hansen|Coby]], [[Bud Hansen|Bud]], [[Lori Jiménez|Lori]], [[Lucy Suzuki]] and [[Mike Franklin|Colonel Franklin]] meet Vector Prime as he emerges, and Coby immediately tries to repair the Autobots himself, until Franklin stops him and suggests taking them to an air force base for expert mechanical care.

[[File:Cyb ep27 parts delivery.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|You don't take care of your toys, this happens.]]

On the volcanic island serving as [[Starscream (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Starscream]]'s headquarters, the 'bot himself is in the process of absorbing the power of [[Primus]] through the [[Omega Lock]]. As all the [[Ancient Decepticon]]s watch and cheer, [[Thunderblast (Decepticon)|Thunderblast]] grows bored and goes outside to look for some fun. She spots a navy ship and taunts it wickedly, ducking in and out of the [[Camouflage Shield]] surrounding the island to make it appear that she is appearing and disappearing, until it turns tail.

Back at the battle, Evac and Override continue to get Megatron a run for his money, so he attempts to cut and run through a dimension gate. Optimus Prime refuses to let him escape, and douses the flaming portal with his water cannons, causing it to fade out. As the fight between the two continues, Vector Prime returns, and reports that things do not look good for Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot. Optimus Prime, however, does not believe that three of his best soldiers would give up so easily!

[[File:Cyb ep27 downer red.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.2|"I'll beeee bckkk---"]]

Transported to an air force base by a larger cargo plane, Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot undergo extensive "surgery" at the hands of the base mechanics, under the direction of Coby. As they work, however, Red Alert regains consciousness, and tells them that it is pointless: as a doctor, he knows they are too badly damaged to repair. Scattorshot is equally pessimistic, bringing Bud to tears, but when Hot Shot wakes up, he is much more optimistic than his two comrades, even when he realizes that he has been blinded and his engine won't run. Spurred on by Hot Shot's never-say-die attitude, Coby dives back into his work, even as Red Alert insists that it is pointless. Lori refuses to take any more of the medi-bot's guff, accusing him of giving up in the face of a challenge. As Scattorshot and Hot Shot proudly announce their desire to survive and fight another day, Red Alert realises that he too has much left to fight for.

[[File:Cyb ep27 burning justice.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|[[Burning justice|Buuuuurning Juuusticccce!]]]]

Their hearts burning as one, all three Autobots begin to glow red as the sound of the [[Omega Frequency]] rips through the air, and energy snakes from their bodies to a satellite dish on a nearby building. The dish fires a bolt of energy through the [[space bridge]] in the sky above, straight to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] itself. The planet in turn shoots a beam back to Earth, right at the Omega Lock, which surges with power, much to the shock of Starscream. Finally, the Lock launches one final beam into the sky, which loops the planet and strikes the damaged forms of Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot, filling them with life and energy once more. Restored and empowered by the energy of Primus himself, the trio scan three new [[alternate mode]]s from nearby military vehicles as the overjoyed kids watch.

[[File:Cyb ep27 cyb def team.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.2|Cybertron Second Amendment Team.]]

Simultaneously, Megatron is able to break through Evac and Override's defense and strike down Optimus Prime with a blast of energy. As Megatron and Scourge bear down on the Autobots, however, a warp gate appears overhead courtesy of [[Jolt (Cybertron)|Jolt]], through which the all-new, all-different Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot appear. Shocking their teammates with their new forms and new Cyber Key powers, the new-born "[[Cybertron Defense Team]]" keep the Decepticons at bay while Optimus receives a communique from Jolt: the Air Force base has been able to track the location of the energy surge that revived the three Autobots, pinpointing the location of Starscream and the Omega Lock! Vector Prime opens a dimension gate to Starscream's island base, and Optimus, Evac and Override leap through as Red Alert covers their escape.

On Starscream's island, nonchalant Ancient Decepticon hipster [[Lugnutz]] is driving around feeling bored when he observes the opening of a dimension gate overheard. As Optimus, Evac and Override emerge and descend towards the island, Thunderblast arrives at Lugnutz's side, sure that the Autobots' arrival will herald a lot more fun...

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] (1)
*[[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] (2)
*[[Scattorshot (Cybertron)|Scattorshot]] (3)
*[[Crosswise (Cybertron)|Crosswise]] (4)
*[[Override (Cybertron)|Override]] (5)
*[[Evac (Cybertron)|Evac]] (7)
*[[Landmine (Energon)|Landmine]] (9)
*[[Optimus Prime (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] (10)
*[[Overhaul (Cybertron)|Leobreaker]] (12)
*[[Vector Prime]] (14)
*[[Reverb (Cybertron)|Reverb]] (17)
*[[Jolt (Cybertron)|Jolt]] (18)
*[[Six-Speed (Cybertron)|Six-Speed]] (20)
*[[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] (25)
*[[Snarl (Cybertron)|Snarl]] (27)

|c2=
*[[Thundercracker (Armada)|Thundercracker]] (6)
*[[Mudflap (Cybertron)|Mudflap]] (8)
*[[Scourge (Cybertron)|Scourge]] (11)
*[[Megatron (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (13)
*[[Starscream (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (22)
*[[Thunderblast (Decepticon)|Thunderblast]] (24)
*[[Crumplezone (Cybertron)|Crumplezone]] (26)
*[[Ransack (Cybertron)|Ransack]] (28)
*[[Lugnutz]] (29)
*Hundreds of [[Ancient Decepticon]]s

|c3=
*[[Bud Hansen]] (14)
*[[Coby Hansen]] (15)
*[[Lori Jiménez|Lori]] (16)
*[[Mike Franklin]] (19)
*[[Lucy Suzuki]] (21)

|c4=
*[[Sideways (Armada)|Sideways]] (23)

}}

==Quotes==

'''Starscream:''' It's incredible! I've never felt so much power! And I'm only getting a ''portion'' of the power of Primus! Once I have all four Cyber Planet Keys, I'll be unstoppable! Soon, I will rule the ENTIRE UNIVERSE! With this power, and my army, NO-ONE WILL BE ABLE TO STOP ME!<br>
'''Sideways:''' Uhhh...<br>
'''Thunderblast:''' Hmph.<br>
''[Thunderblast turns to leave.]''<br>
'''Sideways:''' Where are ''you'' going?<br>
'''Thunderblast:''' It's getting stuffy in here 'cause of all the hot air... and I'm not talking about the volcano!


'''Hot Shot:''' Well, I've been better but I'll make it.<br>
'''Lori:''' All right, Hot Shot! That's what we like to hear!<br>
'''Coby:''' That's Hot Shot for ya! He never gives up, no matter what!<br>
'''Hot Shot:''' Got ''that'' right. But I do have a question: where are we, anyway? And why is it so ''dark'' in here? <br>
'''Coby:''' ... I-it's your eyes, Hot Shot. <br>
'''Lori:''' They suffered some damage.<br>
'''Hot Shot:''' Oh, that's no big deal. I'll just fire up my engine and run a repair program to fix the problem. *revs, fails* That's funny, I can't seem to get it going. 
:—You cried. Admit it.


'''Lori:''' You can't just give up!<br>
'''Red Alert:''' I'm not. I'm just giving an objective analysis of the facts.<br>
'''Lori:''' You're not being objective, you're being negative!


"We owe some payback, Megatron. No, I take that back: we owe you a ''lot'' of payback!"
:—''You're'' going home in a '''Red Alert'''!


"Aw, man, this place is totally dullsville."
:—'''Lugnutz''' has been watching too much Unicron Trilogy.

==Notes==
===Differences with ''Galaxy Force''===

*''Galaxy Force'' features a "previously on" segment that sums up the final minutes of "[[Revelation (episode)|Revelation]]".
*''Cybertron'' has Thunderblast talking smack about Starscream as she exits the volcanic chamber by stating she's tired of all the "hot air" in there (ooo, burn!), while in ''Galaxy Force'' she more soberly claims to be going outside to do reconnaissance since everyone else is inside watching the glowing-Starscream show at the moment.
*In ''Galaxy Force'', Thunderblast sings as she taunts the navy ship, causing one of the sailors to think that she is [[Lorelei]], a [[Siren (creature)|siren]] from German myth. Thunderblast giggles that she has been called that name before, indicating that her mischief in ancient times was responsible for originating the myth of Lorelei in the first place. In ''Cybertron'', this is replaced with the navy personnel marvelling at the technology on display, and Thunderblast commenting how much fun she is having.
*Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot's situation is, generally speaking, treated as being a lot more hopeless in ''Galaxy Force'', with talk of how they will only regain 50% of their functionality at best. Although both shows do make it clear that the trio are in dire straits, ''Cybertron'' gently touches up the kids' dialogue so they switch from being downcast to enthusiastic to try anything that will help. Most notably, as Coby surges back to work, ''Cybertron'' replaces the wistful, teary background music that has been playing throughout the scene with some "determined" music to bring the mood up.
*As ever, ''Cybertron'' adds the [[Omega Frequency]] as the Omega Lock powers up the Cybertron Defense Team.
*As usual, ''Cybertron'' adds dialogue to stock footage. This especially works in its favour with the Cybertron Defence Team's debut: where ''Galaxy Force'' had them announce "[name] TRANSFORM!", ''Cybertron'' has them making promises of retribution over the guy that almost killed them.

===Animation or technical errors===
[[File:Cyb ep27 giant vector.jpg|thumb|It does not help that you can see most of Vector Prime's body...]]
*While [[scale]] problems are hardly remarkable in Transformers fiction by this point, ''Cybertron'' frequently shows a penchant for oversized [[robot mode]]s, with your average human frequently shown to be barely the size of your average robot mode car-bot's wheel. It's best seen in this episode, with the humans helping to repair the future [[Cybertron Defense Team]] shown as practically insect-sized compared to the Autobots. In the inverse is also on fine display, too, as Vector Prime is able to carry the suddenly-tiny Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot, all lying in a line, on his nosecone in [[alternate mode|vehicle mode]].
*When Optimus is about to hit Scourge when he is in the sky, Leobreaker clips with Optimus's backpack strap.

===Continuity notes===
*Bud recalls when he and Scattorshot travelled into space, in the appropriately-named episode, "[[Space (episode)|Space]]".

===Transformers references===
*When Scourge activates his Cyber-Key, you can hear the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|classic]] [[Transformation]] Sound. This is also a [[To sell toys|reference]] to Scourge's [[Toy]], which makes the same sound when you plug in his [[Cyber Key]], and is referenced in other episodes.

===Real-world references===
*As he unveils his new cannon, Red Alert invites the Decepticons to "Say hello to my little friend!", a famous quote from the movie ''[[Wikipedia:Scarface (1983 film)|Scarface]]''.

===Trivia===
*''Galaxy Force'' introduces its fourth [[title sequence|opening sequence]] with this episode, accompanied by the debut of its second opening song, "[[Ignition!]]". The opening remains almost entirely composed of clips from the show itself (taken almost exclusively from the preceding four episodes, plus a tantalizing glimpse of the birth of the Cybertron Defense Team from this episode itself) and features no new original animation, save for the reuse of the new scenes created for the show's [[Ice|third opening]].
*Also introduced is ''Galaxy Force'''s second ending sequence, along with the new ending song "[[Growing Up!!]]". The sequence depicts various Transformers grouped together within their factions, some groupings representing the relationship between each other (such as Megatron and Starscream). Several characters are blacked out, due to them not having appeared yet.
*This was the first new ''Cybertron'' episode of 2006, after a five-month gap between the airing of the preceding episode in October 2005. It also marked the return of new ''Cybertron'' episodes to [[Cartoon Network]], where the remainder of the series would consistently premiere.
*This episode is a sparing instance of ''Cybertron'' failing to logically justify the [[burning justice]] of ''Galaxy Force''. Sure, the power that reformats the team comes from Primus and the Omega Lock, but what's the deal with them glowing red, bleeding energy into a satellite dish and beaming it into space? Burning Justice at its finest, folks.
*As Optimus calls out the names of his fallen men at the start of this episode, he says [[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]]'s name again when the camera switches to [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]]. Guess no-one cares about Red Alert.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;DVD
[[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2005 — ''Transformers: Galaxy Force'' — Vol. 07 ([[Victor Entertainment]]) — Japanese audio only.<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2008 — ''Transformers: Cybertron'' — The Ultimate Collection ([[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]])<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2014 — ''Transformers: Cybertron'' — The Complete Series ([[Shout! Factory]])

[[Category:Cybertron episodes]]