Editing Equal Measures

{{episode
|series=BWtoon
|ep=4
|image=Equal Measures Cheetor darksyde.jpg
|caption=Later they discovered Cheetor was sitting on the self-destruct button.
|title="Equal Measures"
|production company=[[Mainframe Entertainment]]
|airdate=[[September 23]], 1996
|written by=[[Greg Johnson]]
|directed by=[[T.W. Peacocke]]
|animation studio=[[Mainframe Entertainment]]
|continuity=[[Beast Wars continuity]]
|packaged with=[[Cheetor (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Cheetor]], [[Megatron (BW)/toys#Beast Wars Telemocha Series|Megatron]]
}}

'''Dinobot manipulates both Maximals and Predacons around a teleporter that Cheetor has unintentionally developed between both bases.'''

==Synopsis==
[[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]] watches a bolt of lightning shatter a mountain, revealing a cache of [[energon]]. Because of the hazardous conditions, he radios to his team to abort their current operation. The storm garbles the transmission, though, preventing the other [[Maximal]]s from receiving it. 

[[File:Dinobotbulliescheetor.jpg|left|upright=1.1|thumb|Something we've seen all too often.]]
The mission involves energon monitoring devices designed by [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]], who has just gotten done building the last of them. Impatient to get going, [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] carelessly plays with one of [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]]'s projects, a ''time bomb'', and accidentally drops it out the floor hatch... where it's caught by a returning Optimus, who reiterates his order for the mission to be scrubbed. Everyone's clearly upset over the development, not believing the storm to be that severe yet, but Primal is adamant; it'll have to wait until later. Dejected, everyone returns to quarters to wait out the storm.

In Cheetor's quarters, Dinobot meets with the cat-bot and endorses the mission being continued regardless of the danger from the weather and the energon. He points out that Primal clearly treats Cheetor like a child, even though with his speed, the cat-bot could easily outrun the storm and plant the devices before it hits. This appeal to vanity works, and Cheetor sneaks out to complete the mission.

[[File:Equal Measures Cheetor monitoring device.jpg|right|upright=1.1|thumb|This wireless Broadband box is rubbish!]]
In the field, Cheetor plants survey apparatuses in quick succession, but a bolt of lightning causes the cat accidentally to plant one of the posts dangerously close to an energon vein. He tries to remove the device and correct his mistake, but in the middle of his struggle, a second lightning bolt hits, and he finds himself suddenly teleported — onto a control panel in the [[Darksyde (BW)|Predacon base]]!

[[Terrorsaur (BW)|Terrorsaur]] "welcomes" Cheetor and attacks the Maximal, but Cheetor grabs a hover-platform and tries to escape. After being knocked off the platform, Cheetor lunges at Terrorsaur and pushes the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]] onto the control panel he'd just arrived on, causing Terrorsaur to vanish. [[Scorponok (BW)|Scorponok]] and [[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]] arrive and chase Cheetor around the Predacon base, but lose him in the ventilation shafts.

[[File:Cheetorsurprised.jpg|left|upright=1.1|thumb|Shouldn't have had the vindaloo last night.]]
Meanwhile, Terrorsaur finds himself in the ''[[Axalon (BW)|Axalon]]'' command center, where he's given a warm reception by Dinobot. However, the former Predacon is more concerned over how Terrorsaur arrived at the Maximal base, eventually working out that a freak combination of the survey devices, the storm, and the energon created a transporter link between the two bases. Using this to his advantage, Terrorsaur seems to convince Dinobot into forming an alliance, suggesting they scrap the Maximals, then take over the Predacons and rule together... until Dinobot drops the charade and unceremoniously flushes the Pred out of the ''Axalon'' through a waste disposal unit.

Back at the Predacon base, Cheetor continues to flee while avoiding fire from Waspinator. He sneaks away from the two long enough to hack the Predacons' data files, and determines that both bases sit on a common underground Energon vein, so an explosion at one base would cause a chain reaction that would obliterate both ships. Cheetor is discovered as soon as he downloads this data to a disk. 

At the Maximal base, Optimus confronts Dinobot on Cheetor's whereabouts. Dinobot tells him about the link and how the cat-bot has "surely" been destroyed by now, but convinces him that they could use the link to annihilate the Predacon base with the bomb, a plan Primal only agrees to as long as the bomb's timer is set with enough time to allow the Preds to evacuate. Just as the bomb is sent, though, Cheetor tosses the disk with the energon vein data onto the console, transporting both items simultaneously. 

[[File:Crispyterrorsaur.jpg|right|upright=1.1|thumb|Would you like me original, or extra crispy?]]
The Predacons finally corner Cheetor, but the bomb has magnetically locked itself onto the Pred console, forcing Megatron to let him go so he can release it. With a few seconds left, Cheetor throws it up to Terrorsaur, who flies it out of the base (and is blown up with it), while Cheetor escapes through the link.  The Predacons' errant shots destroy the console instead.  Furthermore, his return trip to the ''Axalon'' shatters all of the survey posts he's planted, ensuring the link is severed for good.

Afterwards, Rhinox and [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] congratulate Cheetor's prevention of the Maximal base from being destroyed by their own explosive, while Dinobot is in a bad mood as usual and leaves—though Cheetor apparently didn't tell anyone that Dinobot talked him into the whole thing. Primal still commands Cheetor to take more care to obey direct orders. Cheetor says he will—except when he doesn't—and scampers off, leaving Optimus steamed up with Rhinox and Rattrap to have a jolly laugh. But Optimus figures out Cheetor was funny, and gets in the jolly laugh with Rhinox and Rattrap.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|h1=[[Maximal]]s
|c1=
*[[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]] (1)
*[[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] (2)
*[[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] (3)
*[[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] (4)
*[[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] (5)

|h2=[[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]]s
|c2=
*[[Terrorsaur (BW)|Terrorsaur]] (6)
*[[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]] (7)
*[[Scorponok (BW)|Scorponok]] (8)
*[[Megatron (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (9)
}}

==Quotes==
"Defeating them does not mean we have to ''annihilate'' them. You seem to have trouble understanding that."
:—'''Optimus''' gently chides Dinobot for thinking like a Predacon.


"Shoulda known no Maximal'd be stupid enough to try anything on a day like this."
:—'''Terrorsaur''' underestimates the enemy again.


"YOOOOOW, BULLET TRAAAAAAAIN..."<br />
''[An explosion sends Cheetor crashing into the wall!]''<br />
"Comin' through."<br />
:—'''Cheetor''' narrowly escapes being turned into a charbroiled cheetah!


"Cheetor! Maximi— did that already."
:—'''Cheetor''' forgets that he already transformed.


"He's gone into the vents! You better report this to Megatron."<br />
"Me?! ''You're'' second-in-command!"<br />
"So make it an order!"
:—'''Scorponok''' and '''Waspinator''' establish the chain of command.


"Where'd he go?!  Where'd ''I'' go?"
:—'''Terrorsaur''' realises he isn't in [[Kansas]] any more.


"Think of the cosmic magnificence. Together we'll overthrow these low-grade metal knock-offs you've joined, and then rule the Predacons with two iron fists!  NOTHING CAN STOP US!"
:—'''Terrorsaur''' has such naive optimism.


"Hey! What are you doing? We're partners!"<br />
"In case you had not realized, Needlenose... I am ''not'' a team player."
:—'''Terrorsaur''', about to get launched over the horizon by '''Dinobot'''


"OK, OK, I'll never do that again! Until the next time."
:—'''Cheetor''' has learned nothing from this adventure.

==Notes==
* Dinobot is kind of a jerk this early on.
* And Cheetor needs obedience beat into him.
* And Rattrap just needs the snot beat ''out'' of him.

===Animation and technical errors===
* The collapsing mountain at the beginning of the episode seems to be sucked into the Energon cache after being hit with lightning.
* When Optimus is tossing the time bomb in one hand, it really doesn't move convincingly.
* The shot of Cheetor descending out of the base, as the "camera" spins around him, is rendered very oddly. Parts of the ''Axalon'' that look like they should be behind the cliff face appear in front of it, and as Cheetor dashes away, he overlaps a metal bar that's much closer to view.
* As Cheetor jumps across the rocks, his feet don't always touch the terrain.
* Cheetor doesn't really grab the Energon post's handle, his fist simply clips through it.
* When the lightning-bolt strikes him, you can tell by his shadow that Cheetor is actually floating a few inches above the ground.
* When Terrorsaur floats closer to the monitor screen on his platform, the tip of his right wing passes between the platform and his foot.
* As he reaches for his gun while dangling from the Predacons' flying platform, Cheetor's left elbow briefly turns inside-out.
* When Cheetor transforms to [[beast mode]] to jump into the vent, his various robot and beast parts all seem to appear and disappear randomly, out of sync with his usual transformation.
* Scorponok's eyes are weirdly distorted as he arrives to the vent. Also in this shot, Waspinator's left wings don't seem to "flap up", only down.
* After Cheetor escapes from the vents, he falls to the ground and his right forehead chevron kind of "twangs" forward. In the next scene he's in, it's back to normal against his head.
* Before Terrorsaur begins pruning his wing, the right side of his pterosaur chest appears to be sunken into his body.
* Scorponok's right claw is clipping though his thigh as he and Waspinator watch the missile chase Cheetor.
* When Optimus asks Dinobot if he's sure about the bomb's timer, his right arm seems to jump position between frames.

===Continuity errors===
* A major plot point is that due to an energon vein running beneath both ships, the destruction of either Predacon or Maximal bases would destroy the other. This is never mentioned again and frequently contradicted due to the repeated explosions at both. While most of the planet's energon was stabilized by the start of Season 2 (and thus wouldn't be an issue), the plot of Season 1 episode "[[Victory (episode)|Victory]]" revolves around... a massive explosion at the Predacon base. Arguably, either side could have harvested some of the energon by then to sever the connection between the bases, but this is never established!
* Despite making a big deal about how they should be killing Predacons when they get the chance, Dinobot doesn't avail himself of the opportunity when he's alone with Terrorsaur, instead harmlessly firing him out of the ship.
* When trying to outrun the explosion chasing him down the vents, for some reason Cheetor decides to transform to his [[robot mode]], even though it's been strongly implied that he's faster in beast mode.

===Continuity notes===
* The weather on prehistoric Earth appears to be ''extremely'' destructive. Two bolts of lightning cause a mountain to implode. This might have something to do with the abundant energon, although there's nothing in the show to back this up.
* This is the first episode where we get to hear Terrorsaur speak (Besides "Terrorsaur, terrorize!" that is).

===Transformers references===
* When Cheetor appears before him, Terrorsaur greets him thus: "Welcome to the dark side!" The episode script reveals that this was simply Terrorsaur being dramatic. However, because [[fandom|Transformers fans]] can be ''incredibly'' literal, some fans speculatively latched on to the idea that Terrorsaur was welcoming Cheetor to the "''Dark Side''", supposedly giving the Predacon ship/base a proper name.  
*This bit of [[fanon]] was made official by the video game ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars Transmetals (N64)|Beast Wars Transmetals]]''.  Years later, the ship's name was further codified by the [[BotCon 2006]] story "[[Dawn of Future's Past]]", which dodged [[trademark]] issues by giving it the intentional misspelling "[[Darksyde (BW)|Darksyde]]".
* This is what happens when fans are allowed to run things. Seriously.
* Curiously, at no point has anybody interpreted Dinobot's line as suggesting the Maximal ship is meant to be called "Enemy Arms".

===Trivia===
* This episode marks the finalization of most of the Maximals' voices; Cheetor loses most of his whine, Rhinox gains a more expressive range, and Dinobot sounds a fair bit deeper.
* Plenty of alternate transformation schemes in this episode. Most of Cheetor's transformations involve his cheetah mode, splitting in two through the middle (even the tail), and his cheetah head flipping down to be the chest of a fully-formed robot that's curled up within this beast "shell", already wearing most of his beast kibble. Dinobot also shows off a pair of transformations radically different from – and even more cheaty than – his normal one.
* Waspinator speaks in first-person in this episode.


===Foreign localization===
'''French'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Dos à Dos'''" ("Back to Back")


:*''Title:'' "'''Dos à Dos'''" (Canada, "Back to Back")


'''Italian'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Pari opportunità per i Biocombat'''" ("Equal Opportunities for the Biocombats")


'''Japanese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Jigen Bakudan Tensō Sakusen!'''" (時限爆弾転送作戦!, "Operation: Time Bomb Transfer!")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[October 22|22 October]] [[1997]]
::*Terrorsaur's line, "Welcome to the dark side!" was rendered, "Yōkoso, kaku!" or "Welcome, stranger!" (with plenty of ''caw caw caw'' noises added to the end, as is Terrorsaur's vocal tic in Japan).  Thus, any silly ambiguity as to the proper noun status of his line is eliminated (not that it would matter, as the Predacon's ship received an official name in Japan long before it got one in the West: "Terror Crasher").


'''Portuguese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Medidas Iguais'''" ("Equal Measures")


'''Spanish'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Medidas Equitativas'''" (America, "Equal Measures")


'''Mandarin'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Yī Mài Xiàng Lián '''" (一脉相连, "In One Vein")

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1997 — ''Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers'' — Cheetus' Crisis ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.<br>
[[File:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2001 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Beginning: Vol. 1 ([[Universal]])<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Volume 2 ([[Rhino Entertainment|Rhinomation]])
;{{w|LaserDisc}}
[[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Maximal Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — English and Japanese audio.
;DVD
[[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2000 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — DVD Box (Pioneer LDC) — English and Japanese audio.<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Volume 1 ([[Rhino Entertainment|Rhinomation]])<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2003 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Complete First Season (Rhinomation)<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2011 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Season 1 ([[Shout! Factory]])<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2011 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Complete Series (Shout! Factory)<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2014 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Chain of Command (Shout! Factory)<br>
[[File:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 2005 — ''Beast Wars'' — Classic Episodes — Where the Beasties Began! ([[Alliance Atlantis]]) — English and French audio.<br>
[[File:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 2005 — ''Beast Wars'' — The Complete First Season (Alliance Atlantis) — English and French audio.<br>
[[File:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2006 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Season 1 ([[Madman Entertainment]])<br>
[[File:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers: Beast Wars'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment)

[[Category:Beast Wars episodes]]
[[Category:Beast Wars 10th Anniversary]]
[[Category:Beast Wars Telemocha Series]]
[[Category:Pack-in material]]