Possession

« Beast Wars: Transformers ep 21 »
"Look, I'm a ghost, okay? Quit being such a jerk."
"Possession"
Production company	Mainframe Entertainment
Airdate	February 3, 1997
Written by	Ian Weir
Directed by	Owen Hurley
Animation studio	Mainframe Entertainment
Continuity	Beast Wars continuity
Packaged with	Waspinator, Optimus Primal vs. Megatron, Motorarm

Waspinator finds himself possessed by none other than the original Decepticon traitor, Starscream!

Synopsis

Haunter used Hypnosis!

A violent storm rages, causing significant damage and knocking out power to both the Maximal and Predacon bases. While the Maximals stash their extra ammo deeper in their ship's hold to prevent undue accidents, Waspinator attempts to get one of the Predacon base's computer consoles online...only to be greeted by a ghostly, shrill voice from it. A power surge hits the bug-bot soon afterwards, and when the other Predacons begin to wonder what has happened to him, in he comes, announcing his return "at long last" in the same eerie voice.

The voice belongs to Starscream, Air Commander of the Decepticon forces and second-in-command to the original Megatron, whose spark had been tumbling through time and space for an unknown number of years before settling within Waspinator. As he puts it, he was destroyed defending Galvatron from the Chaos Bringer Unicron, but his spark endured. As a show of his good faith, he pledges his loyalty to the Predacon Megatron, revealing vital information about the state of the Maximal base due to the storm, intelligence Megatron could use to plan a sneak attack. Intrigued by the idea, Megatron accepts Starscream into his ranks.

"B-3" "BINGO!!!"

The next day, as the Maximals are making repairs to their base, they are suddenly attacked by the Preds, and Starscream's intel proves very useful in catching them off-guard. In the ensuing firefight, Dinobot is injured and the Decepticon Air Commander flies rings round Optimus Primal, forcing the Maximals to abandon ship and regroup outside. Happy with their victory, Megatron puts Starscream in charge of holding the Axalon, with Scorponok and Blackarachnia under his command, while the rest of the Predacons return to their base, in case the Maximals decide to go for a sneak attack of their own. However, despite being pleased with Starscream's help, Megatron warns Scorponok in private to watch their new ally closely. Once they're alone, though, Blackarachnia shows off her knack for history by correctly pointing out to Starscream that he was murdered by Galvatron after he betrayed the Decepticon commander. She's willing to keep this a secret, though, if she's let in on his real plans: to destabilize Megatron's control and rule both factions.

Deep in the forest, as the Maximals recover, Optimus Primal voices his confusion and concern over Waspinator's new personality. He isn't entirely convinced Waspinator is possessed by the spark of Starscream, but as the Maximal Elders had long since sealed the Decepticon's records, they're not able to confirm or deny it, either. Fortunately, Dinobot's as much of a military history buff as Blackarachnia is, commenting on how Webster's Cybertronian Dictionary has pretty much replaced all definitions of "traitor" with Starscream's name.

I want YOU for Predacon Army

Realizing Starscream's tendencies, Optimus Primal leads the Maximals in returning to the Axalon and calling Starscream out to announce their surrender, citing the need to use the ship's CR chamber to repair Dinobot's (now exaggerated) wounds. Feeling generous, the Decepticon Air Commander allows Optimus and Dinobot to come on board, but as predictably as night follows day, betrays them and strips Optimus of his weapons and locks him up in the hold as soon as he steps on deck. With their leader now his prisoner, Starscream orders the other Maximals to attack the Predacon base, over the token objections of Scorponok, who is then blasted away by Starscream and Blackarachnia. They comply, and the trap is set.

I'm azzz mad azzz hell, and I'm not going to take thizzz anymore!

Unbeknown to the Air Commander, he's been duped by the oldest trick in the book; by allowing himself to be betrayed, Optimus Primal has put himself and Dinobot in the perfect position to retake their base, which they do in a dazzling display that forces Starscream and Blackarachnia to retreat back to Predacon territory. Upon hearing of the Maximal attack that is ordered by Starscream, Megatron angrily swears to finish both Starscream and Blackarachnia off to himself. Optimus pursues and manages to best the Decepticon in an aerial dogfight, leaving him grovelling at the Maximal's feet...until Blackarachnia shows up, prompting Starscream to plead for her aid, believing they can still complete their coup. No dice; this new generation is much less gullible than their ancestors, and Blackarachnia has skillfully pulled off a double-cross on the double-crosser, igniting a small energon cache underneath Starscream to "exorcise" the Decepticon's spark from Waspinator's body.

At the end of the day, Megatron gets done fixing the back-to-normal Waspinator as Blackarachnia explains her betrayal; if she hadn't done it, she maintains, she wouldn't have been able to sniff out Starscream's true motives. Megatron reluctantly accepts this excuse, but warns her that it still doesn't invoke confidence in her loyalties. Back at the Axalon, the Maximals are finishing up repairs of their own...everyone but Cheetor, who's slacking off with a bout of stargazing, quipping "Twinkle, twinkle, little Starscream," as the camera pans up to beyond the planet's orbit, showing Starscream's spark screaming mech fluid-drenched vengeance on all within the Beast Wars as he drifts away into the void.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Maximals	Predacons	Others
Cheetor (2) Rhinox (3) Optimus Primal (4) Rattrap (8) Dinobot (13) Airazor (14) Tigatron (15)	Waspinator (5) Megatron (6) Terrorsaur (7) Scorponok (9) Tarantulas (10) Blackarachnia (11)	Starscream (1) Unicron (12)

Quotes

"What is this? Program does not respond! Waspinator does not understand!"
"I'll bet Waspinator seldom does! But try not to let it depress you, bug-face."

—Waspinator, about to be possessed by Starscream

"Starscream, perhaps the centuries of weightlessness have taken a toll on your neurological circuitry."

—Megatron seems to forget that free-floating sparks don't have circuitry.

"Lie still! And GROAN, for cryin' out loud! You're supposed to be half-dead!"
"If you don't shut up, vermin, you will be my role model!"

—Rattrap and Dinobot. 'Nuff said.

"You're nothin' but a schemin' snake in the grass!"
"Ehh, flattery will get you flattened, vermin."

—Rattrap and Starscream

"Ugh! Starscream and Blackarachnia! I'll have both their treacherous hides! Yeeessss...I'll-I'll melt them down and use them for aluminum siding! Oh, yes, indeed!"

—Megatron finally learning of Starscream's traitorous nature. Odd...

"Oh, Waspinator has a headache in his whole body."

—Poor Waspinator needs some medication.

"I'll be back! Even if it takes a thousand years, I'LL BE REVENGED ON YOU ALL!"

—Starscream, as he drifts through space

Notes

Animation and technical errors

• When Megatron "checks up" on Waspinator, his dino head inexplicably switches from his right hand to his left hand.
• Unicron's "ring" is not connected to his body.
• When Starscream points to the unguarded side of the Axalon, he seems to have a finger pointing on both sides of his hand, as though the animators were unsure of which hand he was using to point at the screen. (From the looks of the previous scenes, it should be his left hand.)
• As Starscream weaves around Cheetor's gunfire during the battle in the Axalon, he is missing the yellow details on the outside of his mouth.
• When the Maximals come to "surrender", as Optimus talks to Starscream, his head is hideously deformed, with the sides stretched down to the base of his neck, and his head sitting far too high. Additionally his mouth doesn't move while he's speaking. Argh...
• When Starscream/Waspinator is standing on top of the Axalon and instructing the Maximals to attack the Predacon base, his right foot clips straight through one of the autocannons. A few moments later when he blasts Scorponok, he's standing nowhere near the cannon.

Continuity errors

• Looking at the intro sequence with Starscream's spark, he clearly touches down somewhere in the southwest United States, apparently Arizona. The terrain and creatures in Beast Wars suggest that it takes place in Africa and the presence of the standing stones, though not necessarily Stonehenge, suggest Britain. The shots from space in "Chain of Command" also show continents that don't match North America. On the other hand, it makes sense, since "The Agenda (Part III)" puts the Axalon and the Ark within commuting distance. It's not too wild to assume that the spark kept commuting for an unknown distance even after touching down either. The fact that Starscream admits later to have seen the damage inflicted to the Maximal base "before acquiring this body" also alludes to this scenario, that he commuted after touching down.
• While free-floating sparks are usually depicted as spheres, Starscream's spark has the twiddly bits which are usually only present to attach a spark to a protoform. Then again, it has been stated that Starscream's spark is not normal, so this may have been a conscious alteration?
• Megatron knew a great deal about Cybertronian history, yet apparently did not know the real nature of Starscream and his demise. However, Megatron might have been playing dumb to lure Starscream into being bolder with his actions. On the other hand, both the Predacon and Maximal Elders had a large portion of his records sealed due to his history. Then again, Megatron DID tell Scorponok to watch Starscream...
  • On that same note, both Blackarachnia and Dinobot knew about Starscream, even though Primal stated that his records were sealed. It's possible that the records were sealed only to the Maximals (as Primal notes it was the Maximal Elders who sealed them), but given what we'll learn of the state of Maximal/Predacon relations on Cybertron and the Maximal Elders' dirty little secrets, that explanation is rather hard to believe.
• Despite being born from a Maximal Protoform, Blackarachnia refers to the Decepticons as "our" (the Predacons') ancestors. On the other hand, this is neither the first nor the last time she will identify herself as a Predacon, shunning her Maximal origin.
• Starscream apparently imprisons Optimus in shackles that he can break out of in about five seconds flat. However, in the episode commentary on Madman Entertainment's Beast Wars Season 1 DVDs, story editor Bob Forward states that Primal originally had a very complex way of breaking free involving tools and the dexterity of his beast mode appendages, but the animators changed this to just him "busting out", possibly due to time and monetary constraints.
• Blackarachnia states that Starscream met his demise at the hands of Galvatron presumably meaning right after the Battle of Autobot City in 2005. However, in the Season 3 episode "Ghost in the Machine", Starscream tricks Unicron into giving him a new body. He is last seen tumbling into space after suffering another non-lethal blast from Galvatron's cannon one last time.
• The later episodes "Optimal Situation" and "Master Blaster" will show that a Maximal or Predacon body containing two sparks (their own and one from an Autobot or Decepticon) undergoes dramatic changes, taking on a new, larger appearance and gaining incredible might. Waspinator, however, undergoes only minor physical changes and gains no obvious power apart from somewhat enhanced speed.
  • Megatron does infer that the "power" of the second spark has an effect on this, but this also seems strange, as Starscream's spark, due to its immortality, would be presumably better than the average. On the other hand, Starscream's spark will later be described as "mutant" in "Bad Spark", so perhaps this prevents the dramatic changes seen in other characters. (From an out-of-universe perspective, the producers likely forgot this instance when the other mergings occurred. Waspinator does have the ability to recover from being constantly being almost destroyed, so your fanon might want to chalk that up to Starscream's influence.)

Transformers references

• Obviously, Starscream himself firmly ties Beast Wars to established Generation 1 history, though you could argue that Waspinator thinking he was Shrapnel already did this.
• Starscream's spark—or "ghost", as it was then called—possesses several Decepticons (including Cyclonus, Scourge, Astrotrain, and Trypticon) in the Generation 1 episodes "Starscream's Ghost" and "Ghost in the Machine". His actions don't stop there.
• One of the Predacon insignias on the side of Waspinator's cranium changes into a Decepticon insignia while Starscream's spark is inhabiting his superstructure.
• And of course, Starscream's fate was from The Transformers: The Movie.
• Starscream's head is white and his face is blue, making him resemble his appearance in Marvel Comics instead of his cartoon character model.

Real-world references

• Optimus Primal says "Hasta la vista, Starscream", paraphrasing a famous line from the film Terminator 2: Judgment Day. As he flies away immediately after saying this, Optimus Primal is seen wearing a pair of sunglasses, aping (ahem) Arnold Schwarzenegger's trademark look from the movie.
• Rhinox's line "It's tramplin' time" could be an homage to "It's clobberin' time!", the catchphrase of the Thing of the Fantastic Four.

Trivia

• Doug Parker performs both Starscream (standing in for the late Chris Latta), and the very Starscreamy Terrorsaur. In fact, Parker's Starscream is basically Terrosaur with a metallic distortion a la G1 Soundwave. Perhaps Starscream should have possessed Terrorsaur instead — of course, nobody would notice the difference.
• According to fan consultant Ben Yee and story editor Bob Forward on the Madman DVD commentary track, the original idea for this episode was to have the spark of an Autobot possess one of the characters. This idea was abandoned early on because a model of Starscream had already been made for "The Web". Besides, Starscream had the experience.
• Also according to Forward, the angles used for Waspinator (when he is possessed by Starscream) are much more "heroic" than normal (views from slightly below him, extreme closeups, etc.), to reflect Starscream's personality.
• Apart from the Decepticon insignia on his head, Waspinator's only physical change when possessed is the addition of a yellow stripe along the upper edges of his "mandibles", similar to their inner edges.
• Additionally, Yee provided all of the original Starscream's Tech Spec biographies to writer Ian Weir as a reference for Starscream's character and personality. Yee was pleased that Weir incorporated Starscream's original "Air Commander" function as the character's rank and title.
• This is the second time Optimus airlifts an injured Dinobot out of a battlefield, only for Terrorsaur to get in the way. This time, however, Terrorsaur doesn't get a chance to fire before Optimus punches him out of the way.
• After Blackarachnia convinces Starscream to take her on as his protege, as they're walking away Starscream's hand is at her shoulder but then starts moving down towards her um... butt. Perv.

Foreign localization

French

• Title: "Possession"

• Title: "Possession" (Canada)

Italian

• Title: "Il traditore" ("The Traitor")

Japanese

• Title: "Fujimi no Sutāsukurīmu" (不死身のスタースクリーム, "The Immortal Starscream")
• Original airdate: 18 February 1998

• After Waspinator tells Megatron that he's okay, Megatron yells that he wasn't asking Waspinator if he was alright, he was asking Navi-ko.
• Kazuki Yao plays Starscream in this episode and, of course, makes an attempt to impersonate Hirotaka Suzuoki. Starscream's Japanese characterization was rather different from his American one; being younger, vainer and more charismatic. To match all the manic close-ups and weird angles, as well as Waspinator/Starscream's flamboyant body language, Yao winds up playing a far more intense Starscream than Suzuoki ever did. If anything, it sounds like Yao impersonating Suzuoki impersonating Latta.
• After Airazor delivers his vague news report to Tigatron, as he flies away, Tigatron shouts after him, "Thank you de gozaru!"
• When Optimus leaves Starscream to his doom, he bids a blander, "Farewell, Starscream", losing the Terminator 2 reference.

Portuguese

• Title: "Possessão" ("Possession")

Spanish

• Title: "Posesión" ("Possession")

Home video releases

All releases listed are in English audio unless otherwise noted.

VHS

1998 — Beast Wars — Warning from Space (Alliance Video)
1998 — Robots-Bêtes — Alert Dans L'Espace (Alliance Video) — French audio only.
1998 — Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers — Starscream's Invulnerability (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only.
1998 — Beast Wars / Robots-Bêtes Three pack (Alliance Video) — Available in English or French audio.
2001 — Beast Wars: Transformers — The Beginning: Vol. 4 (Universal)

Laserdisc

1998 — Beast Wars: Transformers — Predacon Edition (Pioneer LDC) — English and Japanese audio.

DVD

2000 — Beast Wars: Transformers — DVD Box (Pioneer LDC) — English and Japanese audio.
2003 — Beast Wars: Transformers — The Complete First Season (Rhinomation)
2005 — Beast Wars — Classic Episodes: Volume 3 — The Battle Rages On! (Alliance Atlantis) — English and French audio.
2005 — Beast Wars — The Complete First Season (Alliance Atlantis) — English and French audio.
2006 — Beast Wars: Transformers — Season 1 (Madman Entertainment)
2009 — The Transformers: Beast Wars — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment)