Editing Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears

[[Image:marsexplode2.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]

{{episodenav|headmasters|15|prev=Explosion on Mars!! Maximus is in Danger|next=Return of the Immortal Emperor}}

When [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] out of power and the destruction of [[Mars]] looming ever nearer, [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] reveals his true face at last.

*'''English/Malay dub name:''' ''Mars Explodes! The Scorpion Appears!''


==Detailed synopsis==

As [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] desperately tries to contact the [[Headmaster]]s on [[Mars]], [[Highbrow]] and [[Chromedome]] undergo repairs for their injuries and the Decepticons continue with their plan to blow up the planet. [[Spike Witwicky|Spike]] deduces that the energy used against [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress]] that drained him of his power was [[plasma energy]], released in the destruction of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], and realizes that the Decepticons' goal in destroying Mars must be to generate more. Alerted to this fact, the Autobot Headmasters redouble their efforts to locate the Decepticons' bombing co-ordinates, and are joined by the [[Trainbot]]s in battling the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]] and Decepticon Headmasters.

Meanwhile, [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] has been informed that the bombs have been planted in two of the three key sites on Mars, and relocates to planet [[Zarak (planet)|Zarak]], where work on his secret project there is in the final stages. He orders the Decepticon Headmasters to pull out of the conflict on Mars and join him on Zarak, prompting the Autobots to investigate. Fortress contacts [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] on Earth, who dispatches [[Blaster|Twincast]] to spy on the Decepticon base on Earth to learn what the villains are up to. Twincast watches as [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundblaster]] calls on [[Sixshot]] to join the Decepticons on [[Chaar]], and follows the ninja through the [[space bridge]] to the Decepticons' base there so that he can observe the meeting that is being held. [[Weirdwolf]], [[Mindwipe]] and [[Skullcruncher]] meet their leader on Zarak, as Scorponok steps out of the shadows at last - then, as assembled Decepticon forces watch through a viewscreen, the surface of Zarak cracks and the entire world is torn asunder. From the core of the planet emerges Scorponok's secret project, his own colossal [[Transtector]]! Transforming his new craft from city mode to the form of a gigantic robot scorpion, Scorponok sets course for Chaar to collect the Decepticons, just as Twincast is spotted by Soundblaster, and a brief battle between the communicators and their cassettes ensues before Twincast escapes.

Back on Mars a little while later, Fortress recieves Twincast's report and readies for his impending battle wth Scorponok. He does not have long to wait, as Scorponok appears in the skies overhead while the Headmasters and Trainbots are battling the Terrorcons at the final bombing site. Battleship Maximus, however, is still drained of all energy and unable to transform, and after Scorponok smashes his way through the Headmasters and Trainbots, he transforms into his own massive robot mode and begins to pound on the helpless craft. Then, the report comes that all the bombs have been put in place, and Scorponok orders Soundblaster to detonate them. The key bomb clusters in the polar regions explode, and a chain reaction occurs, sending a string of explosions tearing through Mars. The Decepticons pull out as the planet erupts in flame all around them, but Fortress has one last ace up his sleeve - Battleship Maximus is able to absorb some of the energy released in the explosion, and, back to full power, [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] emerges from the conflagration and cleaves Scorponok's shoulder with the [[Master Sword]], forcing the villains to retreat. Although the Decepticons may have been forced back for now, Mars has been lost, and the Autobots toughest battles are still ahead of them.

==Stats==

'''Original airdate:''' 16th October 1987

===Featured Characters===
(''Numbers indicate order of appearance.)''
{|border=5 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=5 align=center style="border:#800000"
! style="background:#FFEEEE" | [[Autobots]]
! style="background:#EEEEFE" | [[Decepticons]]
! style="background:antiquewhite" | [[Human|Humans]]
|-
| style="background:#FFEEEE" valign="top" | 
*[[Suiken]] (1)
*[[Shouki]] (2)
*[[Wheelie]] (3)
*[[Yukikaze]] (4)
*[[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] (5)
*[[Getsuei]] (6)
*[[Seizan]] (7)
*[[Kaen]] (8)
*[[Brainstorm]] (11)
*[[Highbrow]] (12)
*[[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] (13)
*[[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress/Fortress Maximus]] (14)
*[[Chromedome]] (15)
*[[Raiden]] (22)
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra MAgnus]] (23)
*[[Blaster|Twincast]] (24)
*[[Steeljaw]] (25)
*[[Rewind]] (26)
*[[Ramhorn]] (39)

| style="background:#EEEEFE" valign="top" | 
*[[Rippersnapper]] (16)
*[[Hun-Gurrr]] (17)
*[[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] (18)
*[[Weirdwolf]] (19)
*[[Skullcruncher]] (20)
*[[Mindwipe]] (21)
*[[Dirge]] (27)
*[[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] (28)
*[[Soundwave (G1)|Soundblaster]] (29)
*[[Sixshot]] (30)
*[[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]] (31)
*[[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] (32)
*[[Tantrum]] (33)
*[[Headstrong]] (34)
*[[Blitzwing]] (35)
*[[Octane]] (36)
*[[Rampage (G1)|Rampage]] (37)
*[[Cutthroat]] (38)
*[[Ravage]] (40)
*[[Rumble]]/[[Frenzy]]? (41)
*[[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] (42)
*[[Abominus]] (43)

| style="background:antiquewhite" valign="top" |
*[[Spike Witwicky]] (9)
*[[Daniel Witwicky]] (10)
|}

==Other notes==

===Animation and/or technical glitches===

*When Soundblaster ejects cassettes to fight Twincast, one of them is the Rumble/Frenzy robot model, colored... ''yellow and black''?
*Rippersnapper and Cutthroat are shown to be among the Decepticons watching from Cybetron when Scorponok unveils his Transtector... while Raiden is fighting ''Abominus'' on Mars. Mmn.
*When Scorponok lands on Chaar, Tantrum is colored blue and grey. In the same shot, Soundblaster is colored in the traditional blue of Soundwave.

===Transformers references===

This episode represents the culmination of various plot threads that have been running throughout ''The Headmasters'' thus far.

*Having remained hidden in shadow since his debut in ''[[The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery]]'', Scorponok finally steps in to the light in this episode.
*The construction of Scorponok's Transtector was foreshadowed back in ''[[Rebellion on Planet Beest]]'', and brought to the fore alongside the Decepticons' activities on planet Zarak in ''[[The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok]]''.
*The power of plasma energy was introduced in ''[[The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts]]'', its origin tied back to the events of the ''[[Cybertron is in Grave Danger, Part 1|Cybertron is in Grave Danger]]'' two-parter.

It's not unfair to say that with the wrapping-up of these story points, the series becomes largely directionless - with [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]'s return in the next episode, it launches into a very random planet-hopping story arc that serves no real purpose but to vary the scenery, until Galvatron is removed from the series again, and focus shifts back to Scorponok and his plans.

===Miscellaneous trivia===

*The "MegaZarak" spoken of in the title is, of course, the Japanese name for Scorponok's Transtector, the giant robot that we in the West also know as Scorponok.

[[Category:Headmasters episodes]]<div id="wikia-credits"><br /><br /><small>From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</small></div>