Editing A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court (episode)

{{disambig2|the cartoon episode|the mobile game event|A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court (Legends)}}
{{episode
|image=G1toon starscream king of the castle.jpg
|caption="It's only a model." "Shhh."
|series=G1toon
|ep=40
|prev2=Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2
|next2=The Golden Lagoon (episode)
|series2=SRLFtoon
|ep2=30
|series3=''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|Transformers: Generation 2]]''
|ep3=11
|prev3=The Master Builders (episode)
|next3=The Golden Lagoon (episode)
|title="A Deceptacon Raider in King Arthur's Court"<br>"A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court"
|airdate=[[October 24]], 1985
|written by=[[Douglas Booth]]
|production code=#700-39
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|animation studio=[[Unknown Generation 1 animation studios|Unknown]]
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''The Transformers go to the sixth century but avoid Camelot, as it is a silly place.'''

==Synopsis==
[[File:Ramjetinpast.gif|left|thumb|You yellow bastard! Come back here, and get what's coming to you! I'll bite yer legs off!]]

[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] and [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] are battling it out with [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]], [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]], [[Ravage (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ravage]], and [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]]. When the [[Decepticon]]s retreat out of exhaustion, Rumble detects energy in a nearby cave, only for the Decepticons to get caught in a cave-in when they enter to investigate. While searching for the energy source, they accidentally activate ancient runes that transport them to [[United Kingdom|Britain]] in the year 543 A.D. There, they are greeted by Sir [[Wigend of Blackthorn]] and his knights, who believe the [[Transformer]]s are knights of an enemy realm.

[[File:Raiderrumblejoust.jpg|thumb|Listen... in order to maintain airspeed velocity, Ramjet needs to spin his turbines 43 times every second, right?]]

The Decepticons agree to help Wigend's knights win their conflict with rival Sir [[Aetheling the Red]], but Starscream obviously wants to rule and have a land of his own. Nearby, Aetheling's daughter [[Nimue]] is spying on their conversation and runs to warn her father, but is detected by Ravage and pursued until the newly arrived [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Spike]], Warpath and Hoist rescue her.

Aetheling decides to organize a jousting tournament in hopes of settling his feud with Wigend peacefully. After Spike fails in the tournament, Wigend sends Ramjet and Rumble to compete on his behalf (Rumble riding Ramjet in [[alternate mode|vehicle mode]]), but they are defeated by Warpath and Sir Aetheling. An enraged Starscream is sick of chivalry, kidnaps Nimue and threatens her life unless Sir Aetheling agrees to give up his realm. The Autobots give chase but cannot keep up due to lack of energy and collapse out of exhaustion. The chase is also observed by an [[Solomon|owl]], who flies off to inform his master, the wizard [[Beorht]], of this new development.

[[File:Raiderstarscreamcooks.jpg|left|thumb|What manner of man are you, that can summon up fire without flint or tinder?]]

Starscream holds Nimue prisoner in Wigend's castle, which he has commandeered, and forces its residents to construct and power a primitive electrical generator to keep the Decepticons energized. Having gathered sulfur, charcoal and rock salt to make gunpowder, Starscream then sends Rumble to get the last ingredient...{{w|potassium nitrate}} from lots of bird droppings. 

[[File:Raiderrollinthehay.jpg|thumb|Yes! Yes! You must give us ALL a good spanking!]]

Spike attempts to rescue Nimue from Wigend's keep, only to find Sir Wigend has switched sides and the two of them are now a happy couple. Despite feeling rejected, Spike still agrees to help fight the war against the Decepticons. Meanwhile, the Autobots and Sir Aetheling's knights charge towards the castle to battle it out with the Decepticons. The Autobots help the knights cross the moat and scale the walls, but they can't put up much of a fight due to their dangerously low energy levels. Starscream's gunpowder projectiles make short work of the invading forces.

[[File:Raiderdragonvsautobots.jpg|left|thumb|When suddenly... the ANIMATOR suffered a fatal heart attack!  And the cartoon peril was no more.]]

Beorht the wizard appears and summons lightning that repowers Warpath and Hoist back up to fighting strength, though not enough to use their weapons. They take back the battle with Starscream and are victorious, destroying Starscream's power dynamo. Beorht concludes the robots are [[time travel]]ers and that the cave they arrived in was the [[Dragon Mound]], a time travel structure of his own design. He leads the Autobots and captive Decepticons back to the cave, only to find it guarded by the eponymous [[dragon]]. Starscream refuses to go any closer, but Beorht pulls out a pouch of "[[Dragon's Bane]]", his own name for gunpowder, noting that a little bit of it works every time. He throws the concoction at the dragon and it explodes, frightening away the beast. 

Spike and the Transformers re-enter the Dragon Mound and return to the present. When they arrive back in their own time, they are greeted by multiple cannon blasts by [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]]. Starscream tackles his leader in a burst of enthusiasm at being back safely. Megatron, on the other hand, isn't nearly as happy to see Starscream, who has just ruined his shot...
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] (5)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (6)

|c2=
*[[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (1)
*[[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] (2)
*[[Ravage (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ravage]] (3)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (4)
*[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (16)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Thundercracker]] (17)
*[[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] (18)
*[[Skywarp (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Skywarp]] (19)
*[[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] (20)

|c3=
*[[Nimue]] (7)
*[[Wigend of Blackthorn]] (8)
*[[Wulf]] (9)
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Spike Witwicky]] (11)
*[[Deore]] (12)
*[[Aetheling the Red]] (13)
*[[Beorht]] (14)

|c4=
*[[Solomon]] (10)
*A [[dragon]] (15)
}}

==Quotes==
"Oohh! I just changed heads last week!"
:—A ground-bound '''Ramjet''' learns that even a tough jet is no match for [[Warpath (G1)|a tank]].


"Out of the way, Rumble! It could be dangerous. As your leader, I must take the risk. Anyway, I'm lower on energy than you!"
:—'''Starscream''' acting true to form.


"Huh! Inferior construction, even for an Autobot. One good whack, it breaks right in two!"
:—'''Ramjet''' examining the "wreckage" of Sir Wulf and his horse.
[[File:Beorht01.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Look! It's the old man from Scene 24!]]


"What's more important is that we have 1,451 years to go before we have to worry about the Autobots and that bungler Megatron!"
:—Even trapped in the past, '''Starscream''' looks on the bright side, unaware his math is failing.


"Whatcha waiting for, Red Knight? Don't you wanna rumble with Rumble?"
:—"Sir" '''Rumble''' prepares to joust.


[[File:Raiderrumblepoo.jpg|upright=0.85|thumb|"Who's that there?"<br>"I dunno. Must be a king."<br>"Why?"]]

"Make some idiot twenty feet tall, and he thinks he rules the Earth."
:— '''Beorht''' isn't too impressed by Starscream.


"Starscream! Lower the drawbridge! ''Ugh!'' I got your stupid potassium nitrate!"
:—'''Rumble''', carrying a pot of bird droppings while also covered in same.


"What's the matter? Aren't you glad to see us?"<br>
"RRRRAGGGH!!"
:—'''Starscream''' asks a rather loaded question of '''Megatron'''.

==Notes==
===Production information===
* First draft script: 8 March 1985
* Script revised by [[Ron Friedman]]: 13 March 1985

===Continuity notes===
[[File:G1 DecepRaiderinKingArthurs WarpathramsRamjet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|''In war we're tough and able<br>Quite in-de-fa-ti-gable<br>Although at times, we're given rhymes<br>That are quite un-sing-able!'']]

* Ramjet apparently changes his head on a regular basis.  Hah!
* Fans have made much of the fact that Warpath defeats Ramjet in a collision, but really, Ramjet's specialty is hitting ''other planes''.  Even a tough jet doesn't compare to a ''tank''. It's impressive he withstood one hit when you get down to it.
* Warpath makes a strange observation, noting that he's so low on energy that he "can't even stay transformed".  Apparently, remaining in vehicle mode consumes energy.
* Warpath speaks with a moving mouthplate in this episode, rather than the cheek blinkers he sometimes has.
* Even if he can't fire lasers, Warpath can still fire shells (and does so, trying to hit Ramjet in the castle).
* Given it was established that Starscream was a scientist before the war, it makes sense he's the one who takes the lead in creating the electric generator and the gunpowder.

===Real-world references===
[[File:Exteriordragonmound.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|SO, brave knights, if you do DOUBT your courage or your strength, come no further, for ''[[Death|DEATH]]'' awaits you all... with nasty, big, pointy teeth!]]

* The title of this episode is an homage to the novel ''{{w|A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court}}'' written by [[Mark Twain]] and published in 1889.
* The Dragon Mound is surrounded by a {{w|Stonehenge}}-like structure.
* The instrument panel on the time-travel device is written in {{w|Runic alphabet}}. [[:File:Runes1.jpg|[1]]] [[:File:Runes2.jpg|[2]]] [[File:Runes1.jpg|1px]][[File:Runes2.jpg|1px]]
* Surprisingly, there is a slight bit of Arthurian legend present in the episode. Nimue (better known as the Lady of the Lake) is an Arthurian character who fell in love with Merlin. Unsurprisingly, that Nimue is nothing like this episode's Nimue.
* ''[[Star Wars (franchise)|Star Wars]]'' sound effects:
** [[Luke Skywalker]]'s [[lightsaber]] deflecting the seeker ball bolts can be faintly heard as Beorht recharges Warpath and Hoist.
** The sound of a lightsaber igniting is used as Beorht drops his electrically charged staff.
* Despite the title, [[King Arthur]] doesn't make an appearance in this tale, thus making him Sir-Not-Appearing-In-This-Film.

===Animation or technical errors===
*This episode omits Warpath's glowing blue faceplate-slits, which light up when he talks throughout the rest of the season. In fact, when he consoles Spike after Nimue is captured, his mouthplate moves up and down, which it doesn't do in any other episode.
*Warpath's chest cannon's length changes frequently during the episode.
* The first shot of Warpath has him rolling along in tank mode, drawn at about a 1/4-angle viewpoint, but the ground beneath him is scrolling parallel to the camera.
* A bizarre flash of energy envelopes Ramjet as he returns to [[robot mode]] after colliding with Warpath.
* When Starscream raises his right arm to point, the Decepticon emblem on his wing is no longer there.
* Again showing a wanton disregard for the background matte, Warpath slides sideways as he drives down the hill.
[[File:DecepticonRaider Nimue.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|Oh, wicked, bad, evil, ''naughty'' Zoot!]]

*Nimue has cleavage that appears and disappears from shot to shot and sometimes frame to frame.  And no, you are not a pervert if you watched the episode six times to chronicle this error.
* The script seems to have called for a trumpet fanfare to summon Spike to the jousting field (thus Hoist's "That's your call!" line.)  The sound editors complied by timing a fanfare in the background music to coincide with the moment, but the resulting effect is that Warpath seems to be listening to the background music.
* A glint of light from Sir Aetheling's sword gets a ''very'' loud sound effect.  Since sunlight is so loud, y'know.
* When Ramjet rams into Warpath in the jousting duel, his canopy is smashed and nose cone crushed in, yet less than a minute later, he's back to normal when the remaining Decepticons attempt to flee with Starscream.
* As Starscream walks up to kidnap Nimue, the background scrolls behind him much faster than the speed of his walk.
* Starscream is missing his wing emblems as he drives off with Nimue.
* Warpath's tank mode is rather consistently portrayed as bigger and taller than Hoist's truck mode.  While that would be accurate in the real world, Hoist is taller than Warpath in robot mode.
* Starscream's mouth doesn't move during most of his "No, Rumble, not I..." line.
* After he throws the gunpowder and puts his hands on his hips, one of Starscream's arm guns isn't quite attached to his arm.
* The tires on Hoist's feet are white instead of black as he stands up after the lightning recharge.
* Hoist tackles Starscream even though one frame later he's seen in vehicle mode.
* A bit of clumsy sound editing towards the end of this episode results in a small but noticeable error. As Hoist says, "That is, if there's a way—" his voice is very abruptly cut off.  Then Beohrt announces: "Hoist said 'time'!" when Hoist has actually said nothing of the sort. The line as recorded was "That is, if there's a way back to our own time!" and it was followed by a short scene of Starscream feebly requesting a little energy and being threatened by Warpath, before Beorht makes his proclamation. The removal of the Warpath/Starscream scene appears to have inadvertently clipped the relevant few words off the end of Hoist's line.

===Continuity errors===
[[File:Spike gets kissed.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|"Look, let me go back in there and face the peril."<br>"No, it's too perilous."<br>"...Oh, let me have just a little bit of peril?"]]
* The historical accuracy of some aspects of this episode is somewhat lacking.  (No! Really?)
** While the recipe for gunpowder expressed in this episode is roughly correct, gunpowder would not make its way to medieval Europe for another eight hundred years or so, and then only from the Far East.  Of course, the whole ''point'' of its appearance is that it's a rare, mysterious, wizardly type of thing, so hey.
** Plate armour of the kind worn by the various knights in this episode was not introduced into medieval Europe until around the year 1400—almost a thousand years from the stated ''anno domini'' 543.  Even so, one should be fair to the writers and cartoonists, given that major motion pictures like ''Excalibur'' also made this sort of error (or used it for dramatic effect because audiences would easily recognise a stereotypical "knight" as opposed to a historically accurate version).  We can let slide the armor that Hoist creates for Spike.
**Also, everyone seems to be speaking {{w|Early Modern English}} instead of {{w|Old English}}. Way to go!
* Starscream's math is off by a decade: 543 + 1451 = 1994, rather than the correct date of the Transformers' awakening, 1984.
* If anyone can figure out how Starscream was able to create wire from gold and jewels by simply squeezing them with his hand, let us know. Please. It keeps us up at night.
* Warpath's cannon changes from shooting lasers to shells again
* As usual, many humans are pretty much invincible. Wulf survives getting headbutted off his horse by Ramjet with barely a scratch. Even with his armor on, half of Wulf's bones should have been shattered to bits by a blow like that.

===Trivia===
[[File:Deceptacon.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|"Nu!"<br>"No no no no, it's not that, it's 'ni'."<br>"Nu!"<br>"No no, 'ni'. You're not doing it properly."]]

* The original broadcast version of this episode featured the misspelled title, "A Decept'''a'''con Raider..." The error was corrected for the ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (cartoon)|Generation 2]]'' version of the episode. Likewise, when [[Rhino Entertainment|Kid Rhino]] recreated the title cards for their DVD release of the series, it was also amended. This flub seemed minor then, [[Scorpinok (episode)|but]] [[A Tale of Two Heros|years]] [[Imprisoned Inferno|later...]] 
* Spike actually gets a kiss from a girl. What will [[Carly]] think?
* This episode is one of four pre-movie episodes in which [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] does not appear.
[[File:DecepticonRaider-NotHank.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Fear not, Ranger! Or is that "Fear not-Ranger"?]]
* Among the audience members watching the joust is a dark-skinned man whose outfit greatly resembles the one worn by Hank the Ranger in the {{w|Dungeons and Dragons (TV series)|''Dungeons and Dragons'' animated series}}—not entirely surprising, as that program was produced by [[Marvel Productions]], who partnered with [[Sunbow Productions|Sunbow]] on ''Transformers'', and both shows were animated by [[Toei Animation|Toei]]. Next to "Hank" are a man with a shield and a woman in a cloak, but they do not otherwise strongly resemble Eric the Cavalier or Sheila the Thief, characters who were associated with magical versions of those items in the ''Dungeons and Dragons'' cartoon.

===Foreign localization===
'''Brazilian'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Um Cavaleiro Decepticon na Corte do Rei Arthur'''" ("A Decepticon Knight in King Arthur's Court")
:*''Original airdate:''


'''French'''
:*''Title (Canadian French broadcast):'' "'''La cour du roi Décepticon'''" ("The court of the Decepticon king")
:*''Title (European French broadcast):'' "'''La cour du roi Deceptican'''" ("The court of the Decepticon king")
:*''Title (European French DVD release):'' "'''Un commando Decepticon à la cour du Roi Arthur'''" ("A Decepticon Commando in King Arthur's Court")
:*''Original airdate:'' ?


'''German'''
:*''Title (Generation 2 dub):'' "'''Sprung in die Vergangenheit'''" ("Jump into the Past")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[July 9]], [[1994]]


'''Italian''' 
:*''Title (dub 2):'' "'''Un Decepticon alla corte di re Artù'''" ("A Decepticon in King Arthur's Court")
:*''Original airdate:'' ?
:* This episode was never broadcast in Italy in the '80s and, as such, it only got dubbed in Italian with the 2008 full G1 redubbing.


'''Japanese'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Time Traveller'''" (タイムトラベラー, "Time Travellers")
:*''Original airdate:'' [[February 7]], [[1986]]


'''Mandarin'''
:*''Title:'' "'''Bàtiānhǔ Rùqīn Yàsè Wángcháo'''" (霸天虎入侵亚瑟王朝, "Decepticons Invade King Arthur's Dynasty")
:*''Original airdate:''

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;{{w|LaserDisc}}
[[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1994 — ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' — Convoy Set ([[TakaraTomy|Takara]]) — Japanese audio only.<br>
[[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''The Transformers'' — Autobot Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only.
;DVD
[[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2001 — ''The Transformers'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only.<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[The Original Transformers|Rhino Entertainment]])<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''The Original Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1: Vol. 4 (Rhino Entertainment)<br>
[[File:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers'' — Season 2 Part 1 ([[Metrodome]])<br>
[[File:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Collection 2: Series 2.1 ([[Madman Entertainment]])<br>
[[File:Flag of France.png|20px|France]] 2004 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 9 ([[Déclic Images]]) — European French audio only.<br>
[[File:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2006 — ''Transformers'' — The Complete Generation One Collection (Metrodome)<br>
[[File:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2007 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment)<br>
[[File:Flag of Italy.png|20px|Italy]] 2008 — ''Transformers'' — Volume 04: Stagione Due Parte Seconda ([[Medianetwork Communication]]) — English and Italian audio.<br>
[[File:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2009 — ''Transformers'' — Season Two: Part One (Metrodome)<br>
[[File:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Complete Collection: Decepticon Edition (Madman Entertainment)<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 25th Anniversary Edition ([[Shout! Factory]])<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2009 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Series: 25th Anniversary "Matrix of Leadership" Collection (Shout! Factory)<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2011 — ''The Transformers'' — The Complete Original Series (Shout! Factory)<br>
[[File:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2014 — ''The Transformers'' — Season Two, Volume One: 30th Anniversary Edition (Shout! Factory)<br>
[[File:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2014 — ''Transformers'' — The Classic Animated Series (Metrodome)

==External links==
*[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/cartoon-dossier/season-2/synopses/700-39.html Episode Dossier at The Cybertron Chronicle]
*[https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ssSwRIGXT24_8xAN3hePqgdFpgsSKkG3 Digital restoration of first draft script, originally submitted 8th March 1985]
*[https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GFwum58xVCsE7FmWgQnnvzL0XCGAheBW Full episode script, as revised by Ron Friedman 13th March 1985]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court}}
[[Category:The Transformers episodes]]
[[Category:Generation 2 episodes]]