Dark Designs

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Heeeeeere's Johnny!
"Dark Designs"
Production company	Mainframe Entertainment
Airdate	November 4, 1996
Written by	Ian Weir
Directed by	Owen Hurley
Animation studio	Mainframe Entertainment
Continuity	Beast Wars continuity

Megatron captures and reprograms Rhinox into a Predacon. It doesn't turn out very well.

Japanese title: ライノックス大暴れ! (Rhinox Ōabare!, "Rhinox Rampages!")

Synopsis

In some usual rocky terrain, the Maximals are disappointed to learn that their day's expedition has been a waste of time, as the Energon they were searching for is inaccessible. Rattrap whines, saying the situation couldn't get worse, prompting an attack from the Predacons. The Maximals are at a clear disadvantage, but Rhinox triggers a rockslide that crushes all the Predacons.

What a catch.

Optimus commends Rhinox's intelligent tactics, and the Maximals begin their return to base. Megatron also determines that Rhinox is a major threat to his operation and orders Tarantulas to capture the large Maximal. When Rhinox is a distance behind the other Maximals on the road home, the spider captures Rhinox and knocks the rhino out with some cyber venom.

Shocking footage reveals Hasbro's use of test animals for its redeco machinery.

A while later, the Maximals noticed their large comrade has disappeared. Rattrap activates his communicator, and are able to listen through Rhinox's communicator, overhearing the events in the Predacon base where Megatron uses "The Transmuter" to turn Rhinox into an evil Predacon. While the Maximals are concerned, Primal plans to wait a while before the Maximals make an effort to rescue their friend, yessssssss...

In the Predacon base, Megatron, and his new underling, Evil Rhinox, get down to plotting on how they can use Rhinox's knowledge to destroy the Maximals—but some technical problems with Megatron's computer halt the planning session. Rhinox is sent to check up on Scorponok's repair of the system (which was secretly vandalised by Rhinox). With no witnesses, Rhinox drops several tons of hardware onto Scorponok. When Scorponok's flattened body is found later by Megatron and Waspinator, they have no clue who committed the crime.

Mmm, I feel like turkey tonight.

Waspinator deposits Scorponok into a CR Chamber for repair, but flying away, Waspinator is hit with a heavy piece of weight pushed by Rhinox. The impact drives Waspinator into a state of dementia. This time, Rhinox's attempt at homicide is witnessed by Terrorsaur, who meets with Rhinox in private. There, Rhinox declines Terrorsaur's offer of partnership and insists that Terrorsaur stay silent. Later, Megatron discovers that Tarantulas and Blackarachnia have been poisoned. Still oblivious, a furious Megatron shouts out his confusion.

Outside of the Predacon base, Cheetor figures out Primal's plan: leave Rhinox as he is, so he'll run roughshod over the Predacons. But knowing that Megatron will eventually wise up, the Maximals get ready to mount a rescue. At the same time, Scorponok has been repaired, and he tells Megatron what happened to him. Megatron concludes that his little experiment has gone wrong, and decides to end it—and Rhinox as well.

So purple is a primary color to Predacons, right?

Megatron confronts Rhinox, and assigns Scorponok and Terrorsaur to disarm the new recruit. By mentioning Terrorsaur's plotting, Rhinox is able to get the two Predacon goons to fight each other instead of himself, leaving them as easy pickings. With those two taken care of, he opens fire on Megatron, causing the Predacon to fall off his hover platform.

Rhinox taunts Megatron with a speech about who's the boss now, but Rhinox has stepped into the range of the Transmuter. Megatron reactivates the machine, converting Rhinox back to his regular good self. The Maximals blast their way into the base. Primal battles with Megatron, slicing off one of the Predacon leader's arms. A stray shot from the still demented Waspinator hits the Transmuter, and the Maximals grab Rhinox and evacuate while the Predacons take cover to avoid being harmed by the exploding machine.

Afterward, the Maximals relax. Rhinox admits that the Predacons have some serious personality problems, and the Maximals have a big laugh. Except for Dinobot.

Featured Characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Maximals	Predacons
Optimus Primal (1) Dinobot (2) Rhinox (3) Cheetor (4) Rattrap (5)	Megatron (6) Scorponok (7) Waspinator (8) Terrorsaur (9) Tarantulas (10) Blackarachnia (11)

Quotes

"There's more than one way to skin a cat...so to speak."

—Rhinox, realising that Cheetor is standing right there.

"Better dead than Pred."
"Some of us have survived the experience, furball."

—Cheetor and Dinobot discuss the benefits of being a Predacon.

"Oh, I'm being real careful. See, I'm on this side, and it's all gonna fall that way."

—Rhinox, shortly before dropping a pile of crates on Scorponok.

"Idiot! What have you done?!"
"Idiot does not respond! Idiot is comatose!"

—Megatron and Waspinator inspect Rhinox's handiwork.

Waspinator: Destroy all Autobot-bot-bot-bots!
Megatron: Waspinator, what are you buzzing about?!
Waspinator: Waspinator? Negative-negative-negative! I am Shrapnel, Decepticon hero-o-o-o-o!
Blackarachnia: Shrapnel?! That was a Decepticon from the Great Wars three centuries ago. He's wacko.
Waspinator: Wacko? NO!! Wonko! Wonko the Sane!!
[Waspinator salutes the audience, then begins punching himself]

—The result of Waspinator's Rhinox-inflicted super insanity.

"He's a smirker! Mangle!"

—Scorponok re: Terrorsaur

"Yo, everybody! Out of the pool!"

—Rattrap alerts everyone to the fact they should run in his own special way.

"I am very very unhappy indeed, oh yessss."

—Megatron clues us in on his emotional state.

"Like you're three gigabytes of attitude on a two-gig hard drive. No wonder they've got personality problems!"

—Rhinox on being a Predacon

Notes

Technical/animation glitches

• In one shot, when the Maximals are having a conversation near the Predacon base, Dinobot looks like as if he's standing in the lava flow. This may be because of the camera angle. If so, it means that Dinobot's been animated to stand in mid-air a few inches above the ground, thus the strange effect.

Continuity errors

• Near the end of the episode, Evil Rhinox shoots Megatron's kneecaps, making it very hard for him to stand up. Yet Megatron has little trouble standing or moving around in the big fight with the Maximals that happens soon afterward.

Transformers references

• When Waspinator is driven temporarily insane, he babbles that his name is Shrapnel, an Insecticon from the Generation 1 continuity family. Stuck like this for the rest of the episode, he proceeds to stutter and repeat words in a semi-accurate reference to the distinctive speech pattern that Shrapnel had in the G1 cartoon, which saw him repeat the last word of his sentences. Waspinator also delivers the classic TF slogan "More than meets the eye."
• The concept of Rhinox being reprogrammed by Megatron only to attempt to overthrow him later is revisited in the sequel series, Beast Machines.
• Both Optimus and Rhinox say "Yeeessssss..." in a very similar manner to Megatron. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Real-world references

• Cheetor's line: "Better dead than Pred." could be a paraphrase of the old 1950's slogan "Better dead than Red." which referenced Communism.
• Immediately following saying that he is Shrapnel, Waspinator claims that he is "Wonko! Wonko the Sane!" and salutes the audience before punching himself in the head. In addition to being a fictional character created by the sci-fi comedy author Ben Yee, whose online username was Wonko the Sane at the time.
• The scene where Optimus Primal proudly brandishes his swords before an unimpressed Megatron lazily shoots him down is reminiscent of the famous duel between Raiders of the Lost Ark. Dinobot pushing Scorponok into his rotor blade weapon echoes the demise of the German engineer later in the movie.
• While Waspinator is insane (well, more insane than usual), he briefly appears to be touching Blackarachnia's right chestplate.

Trivia

Grapety purple edition not sold in stores. Or anywhere else, for that matter.

• Oddly enough, there are no purple and silver redecos of Rhinox.
• Rhinox gains evil, red eyes in beast mode upon being transformed into a Predacon. His robot form already has those, however, so to underscore his evilness in that form, he was instead given dark marks under his eyes similar to "dark circles" under a human's eyes.