Tactician
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| "Tactician" (Chiemono) "Tactician: Wise Person" | ||||||
| Production code | TF: A-25 | |||||
| Production company | TV Tokyo, NAS | |||||
| Airdate | January 28, 2003 (UK, English premiere) January 30, 2003 (USA) 27 June 2003 (Japanese) | |||||
| Writer | Shōji Tonoike | |||||
| English adaptation | Terry Klassen | |||||
| Director | Satoru Kusuda, Masayuki Motsumoto | |||||
| Animation studio | Actas Inc. | |||||
| Continuity | Unicron Trilogy | |||||
A new figure emerges, throwing the balance of power among the Decepticons out of whack.
Synopsis
A space shuttle is cruising through space when it encounters a bizarre flying object. Unable to hail the thing, the crew brace as it scans their shuttle. The object then flies off, revealing itself to be a look-alike for the said shuttle.
Fred then tells the other kids about the incident, but no one except Alexis appears to take him seriously.
On the Moon, an invisible figure approaches the Decepticon base. He strolls into the facility, opening a door. Inside the room are several Mini-Cons, who the being notes as being locked away. One of them, Inferno, bravely walks forward and is chosen as the personal Mini-Con of this invisible figure. The rest, trembling earlier, are left in the room when the form leaves them, and the door is closed.
Laserbeak flies over a battle between the Autobots and Decepticons. The kids ask where Sideways is and are relieved to see that he's on the battlefield. Expressly, the kids are relieved that Sideways cannot hack into their system again, and Red Alert informs them that he put a new firewall into place so that another incident can't happen again.
Laserbeak then spots a Mini-Con crystal embedded in the side of the canyon where the battle is taking place, and so Scavenger volunteers to retrieve it. Megatron orders Cyclonus to intercept, but Smokescreen shoots Cyclonus down. The fight soon degenerates into a brawl, with Megatron forming the Star Saber and Optimus Prime using the Skyboom Shield as a counter. Overhead, the same invisible figure notes how poorly the Decepticons are fighting and questions why Megatron is only using the Saber at half strength. Scavenger and Laserbeak note that someone else is on the battlefield, but as they've already retrieved the crystal and Megatron has ordered a retreat, they seem to pay it no further heed.
Back on the moon, Megatron is about to take the Decepticons to task for their recent failure when Cyclonus and Demolishor start in on each other. Their fight is interrupted by a mysterious voice scrutinizing all of them for their loss. Demolishor sees Inferno in the back of the room and charges towards him, but the invisible figure trips him up. The form continues to criticize the Decepticons and then apologizes to Megatron for his late arrival. The entity then reveals himself to be Thrust, who Megatron refers to as his “dear, dear friend” and welcomes him to Earth.
Later on, a furious Demolishor punches a wall out of anger over his being humiliated. Demolishor expresses his rage towards Thrust, only to have Cyclonus and Starscream point out that Thrust is a master of mimicry who has never suffered defeat in combat. Demolishor comments about seeing how good Thrust is by making him go up against the Autobots. Sideways then looks around the room but says that it was nothing when Starscream asks what Sideways is doing. The scene ends with a shot of a cloaked Thrust walking out of the room.
Back on Earth, Rad, Alexis, and Carlos cheer over the new arrival—the Mini-Con Dune Runner. Dune Runner is greeted by the Street Action Mini-Con Team, with High Wire volunteering to show him around. Blurr, Smokescreen, and Hot Shot celebrate their new victory but soon get into a spat with Red Alert and Smokescreen, who advocate caution. They are interrupted by Optimus, who is told that nothing is going on.
On the Moon, Starscream is practicing while Demolishor and Cyclonus watch. They banter a little bit about how Thrust is their new secret weapon, then note that Sideways has gone missing again; it's speculated that he may be taking a nap. Instead, Sideways drives off in motorcycle mode while Thrust watches.
Thrust is then seen in Megatron's throne room, discussing matters with Megatron. Thrust notes that Starscream is suited for second-in-command status but is otherwise not impressed with Megatron's soldiers. Thrust offers to go into battle with Megatron's soldiers to observe them, but with the stipulation, he can possess the Star Saber. Megatron initially refuses, but a beam of light shining into the throne room allows Thrust a chance to talk Megatron into it through metaphor.
The Decepticons, save for Sideways, are then assembled in the throne room. Megatron informs them that Thrust will lead the next mission, with Starscream as his second. Demolishor protests that Megatron told him that he was the second in command, and Cyclonus adds that they don't know the plan. Demolishor and Cyclonus protest further when told to follow simple orders, but Megatron will have none of it.
At the Autobot base, a Mini-Con alarm goes off. Red Alert is told to stay back while the rest of the Autobots warp to the site.
At the alarm site, Cyclonus flies up to the others and notes that he destroyed the transmitter. Thrust orders Starscream to stand by with the Mini-Cons, and tells Megatron to hold onto the Star Saber for the time being.
The Autobots arrive at a gully; Optimus gives them marching orders, and they all enter. Starscream radios back to Thrust that the Autobots are falling for the trap, and Thrust orders him not to attack just yet. Thrust then takes off with the Air Defense Team, telling Megatron to wait there.
As the Autobots enter the gully, they are attacked from the air, driving them further into the ravine, where Demolishor and Sideways ambush them. Smokescreen takes cover behind the Skyboom Shield, while the others duck behind some rocks. Thrust, Starscream, and the Mini-Cons attack from above, with Thrust giving the order to focus on Smokescreen. Cyclonus joins in with Sideways and Demolishor, resulting in Optimus ordering the others to break through. Just as Optimus blows past the three Decepticons, however, he is stopped by Megatron. Scavenger sees that Optimus needs help and rushes to take over the Skyboom Shield from Smokescreen. But then all of the Decepticons aside from Megatron start to concentrate their fire, pinning Scavenger, Smokescreen, and the Shield in place.
Megatron pulls out the Star Saber and tries to use it against Optimus. Optimus transforms into truck mode (minus his trailer) and races backward into a clearing. Megatron follows Optimus and mocks him for his choice since he's now even further away from the others. Optimus tries to fight Megatron, but Megatron overpowers Optimus and prepares to deliver the killing blow.
The kids, watching it on the monitor, start to panic. However, Red Alert sees a bright flash of light and tells them to keep calm.
That flash of light promptly shoots down the Air Military Mini-Con Team before revealing itself to be an armed space shuttle. It starts to dogfight with Starscream, and then both transform into robot mode; the shuttle identifies himself as Jetfire, second in command of the Autobots. Jetfire then promptly shoots Starscream down before strafing the gully, allowing the other Autobots to move forward, blast Sideways, Demolishor, and Cyclonus before jumping Megatron. Seeing that he is now outnumbered, Megatron orders everyone to retreat. Thrust protests the order but also falls back after getting shot by Jetfire.
Jetfire and the other Autobots share a moment as they finally meet back up. A voice-over by Rad talks about how, despite this being a quiet moment, the war was about to heat up, and Jetfire would play an important role.
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons | Humans | Mini-Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
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Quotes
"And if he does, we'll pound 'im!"
"Pound 'im good!"
- —Billy and Fred on what they'll do to Sideways if he tries to hack them again.
"Oh, great, time to get shot at again. Why couldn't I have just been a normal 'bot working in a factory?"
- —Starscream
"I'm quite sure your plans are impeccable, Thrust, but my main concern is that my men aren't capable of following them."
- —Megatron has no faith in his troops.
"You better watch out, you better not cry, 'cause you're gonna get blasted!"
- —Cyclonus massacres the classics.
Notes
Differences with Legends of the Microns
- In Armada, the shuttle pilot announces his disengaging the autopilot. In Legends of the Microns, he tells his crew to begin evasive maneuvers quickly. The Japanese dub goes silent until the pilot says they're under attack as something's gotten hold of the shuttle. While the shuttle gets scanned, the crew only screams for a second.
- Billy sounds indifferent about the two shuttles almost hitting each other in Armada, but in Legends of the Microns, he asks Fred if it was just a near miss. Then, in Armada, Billy teases Fred for possibly hearing the story wrong; in Legends of the Microns, Billy asks Fred what the second object could have been.
- In the opening narration, Alexis says the others thought Fred was probably confused, but a greater mystery laid ahead in Armada. In Legends of the Microns, she wonders what the mysterious object could be as they had no idea at the time.
American group (top), Japanese group (bottom). - The Mini-Cons held in the random closet that Thrust accesses changes between the English and Japanese dubs; specifically, Knock Out replaces Sonar, and Dualor replaces Mirror, while the generic versions of Oval and Backtrack become brighter. The Downshift generic's colors are changed to match that of his Exdimensions toy, which would later be repurposed as "Spin".
- Thrust says the Mini-Cons were locked away for years in Armada but doesn't mention any timespan in Legends of the Microns. The Japanese dub adds an echo effect to Thrust's voice while he's cloaked.
- Armada removes Smokescreen's line before he shoots down Cyclonus.
- In Legends of the Microns, Megatron grumbles about Cyclonus being easily defeated again. Optimus orders the Autobots to change their formation, but Megatron says it won't make any difference. After bringing out the Star Saber, Megatron says he's charging in alone, but he orders his men to follow him in Armada.
- In Armada, Starscream complains about having to get reshot. In Legends of the Microns, he says Megatron's act is rash, but it can't be helped.
- As he watches the battle, Thrust says Megatron should stop using the Star Saber at half its strength in Armada but says, "the universe's strongest sword will be in tears" if the Decepticons only fight with brute force in Legends of the Microns. The scene goes silent until Smokescreen speaks. Then, in Armada, Thrust asks why the Decepticons are weak. The Japanese dub makes it more explicit that Thrust is taking notes that he will implement with his plan at the end of the episode, such as noticing the Decepticons only use brute force and Smokescreen is integral in the Autobots' formation.
- Before he warps away, Megatron says, "I'll remember this!" instead of generically swearing that he will return.
- After hearing Thrust the first time, Demolishor questioning Sideways is extended, and Sideways answers in Armada to fill in the Japanese dub's silence. Instead of calling the Decepticons a pitiful lot, Thrust insults Demolishor for not recognizing his own comrade's voices before sympathizing with Megatron's foul mood. After revealing himself, Armada has Thrust say he arrived just in time while he assures Megatron doesn't need to worry now that he's there in Legends of the Microns.
- In Armada, Demolishor is steamed about Thrust humiliating him. Starscream says Thrust is reportedly undefeated, and Cyclonus claims Thrust is a "master of mimicry," able to copy his opponent's power via energy absorption; however, this mimic ability is never seen in the series. In Legends of the Microns, Demolishor is frustrated by Thrust's arrival. Starscream says Thrust is the type to do anything to win. Then Cyclonus claims to have heard rumors about the "cold-blooded tactician, Thrust" and his perfect record of flawless plans. Starscream tells Demolishor that Thrust came not to fight but to teach the Decepticons how to beat the Autobots in Armada. Then Demolishor says he unimpressed, and after noticing Thrust, Sideways tells Starscream nothing is wrong. In Legends of the Microns, he says Thrust is not someone who fights, yet they have to accept his battle commands, causing Demolishor's hatred for Thrust to grow. Then Sideways tells Starscream that he saw something suspicious.
- After Dune Runner and High Wire are introduced, Alexis says the latter should meet the other Mini-Cons, and Carlos says the Autobots should easily win the war at this rate.
- In Armada, Red Alert says he prefers to "air on the side of caution," and Scavenger tells Hot Shot to quit messing around and listen to Red. In Legends of the Microns, Red says overconfidence can lead to mistakes, and Scavenger tells Hot Shot to listen since Red Alert is only worried about him.
- While watching Starscream swing his sword around, Armada has Cyclonus brag that the Decepticons can't lose now that they have Thrust as their secret weapon. Legends of the Microns changes the topic to Cyclonus quipping about the former thinking he can beat an enemy he can't see. Then Cyclonus tells Starscream that Sideways is taking a stroll; in Armada, he merely guesses that Sideways is napping.
- Thrust tells Megatron that Starscream should be the Operational Commander. Though Megatron worries that might be a problem, Thrust assures him the operations will succeed as long as Starscream follows his instructions. Though he doesn't doubt Thrust's plans, Megatron says they're sometimes a handful and wants a full victory. Thrust says he will be fighting as well, and Megatron asks if he's willing to do that. Then Thrust says he needs the Star Saber, but Megatron is apprehensive. As the sun's rays shine upon the ground between them, Thrust claims it's a good omen that they have a clear path, convincing Megatron to leave everything to him. The shot of Thrust at the end of the scene is silent. Armada has Thrust and Megatron mention the others more throughout the conversation.
- In Armada, Demolishor says Megatron considered him second-in-command instead of Starscream. In Legends of the Microns, he says he doesn't know what his role is in Thrust's plan. Instead of telling Demolishor to stop his petulance, Megatron orders to begin the attack immediately. Then he says he is looking forward to it after looking at Earth, seeing it as another positive sign. Thrust backs this up by saying all of the data points to a Decepticon victory.
- After the first shots are fired in the gulley, Optimus tells the Autobots to take cover in Armada but to keep moving in Legends of the Microns. When Cyclonus reappears, he explains the transmitter sent out a false signal to lure the Autobots into a trap; a detail Armada completely ignores.
- Optimus decides to try and break through the Decepticons after Scavenger's line of the Autobots' current formation leaving them unable to counterattack. Later, Scavenger says Prime is under threat from the Star Saber. In Armada, he doesn't mention the sword.
- When the ball of light appears, Alexis thinks of what it could be, Carlos says they're done for since it might be another enemy, and Red is silent.
- Demolishor asks what is happening in Armada, but in Legends of the Microns, Scavenger says the Autobots can now break through, and Demolishor says the Decepticons aren't letting that happen.
- Realizing he's been beat, Megatron gives Optimus the generic "It's not over yet" line in Armada, while he says, "So much for a good omen..." in Legends of the Microns. After the Decepticons retreat, Jetfire comments that Thrust totally ignored him, and the overshot shot of him looking at the other Autobots is silent. He mocks them for being put on the ropes by the 'Cons and says Smokescreen is just as out of shape but later reveals he's just joking.
- In the ending narration for Legends of the Microns, Alexis says Jetfire turned out to be the strange object seen near Mars and notes how the Decepticons' battleplan was different from those in the past. In Armada, Rad gives the narration instead; it's focused on Jetfire and doesn't connect to Thrust in any way. He says Jetfire's arrival strengthened the Autobot team, and though the team got to share some laughs, Jetfire would play an essential role in future battles as things heat up.
Animation and technical errors
- After the first commercial bumper, the screen goes black as four seconds of animation are missing. Legends of the Microns inserts a shot of the Decepticon base.
- Smokescreen's Longarm Cannon doesn't complete its animation during the opening battle; his cannon flips out but disappears back into its crane configuration before the beam comes from where the barrel should be.
- When Starscream is firing on Optimus Prime, his lower legs are erroneously colored entirely white.
- When the Decepticons retreat, Starscream's sword is purple instead of red.
- After Demolishor punches the wall and when Starscream tells him that Thrust didn't come to fight, the top half of Cyclonus's chest is miscolored.
- When Optimus tells Smokescreen to take point, Smokescreen's antenna/horn is missing; it is missing again for two cuts when Scavenger moves to shield Smokescreen with the Skyboom Shield, and also when Scavenger tells Megatron to go home.
- Dune Runner is colored entirely in green. His model also barely looks anything like his toy.
- The Autobot and Decepticon symbols are either drawn off-model or large dots in some shots.
- In Megatron's throne room after the second commercial bumper, the sides of Starscream's face are colored to match.
- When cutting back to the Autobot base as the alarm is heard, the screen goes dark like earlier. Legends of the Microns puts in a shot panning down to inside the base before cutting to Alexis, Rad, and Carlos running.
- In one shot, it looks like Sideways, Cyclonus, and Demolishor are superimposed into a different part of the chasm as Optimus and Megatron are in the center, and the latter two look Mini-Con sized.
- When Optimus flees from Megatron, the clearing's overhead shot makes it look like Optimus is a box truck instead of a standard semi.
- During the battle in the clearing, Optimus is shown as only being as tall as Megatron's waist; just a few seconds earlier, he stood as high as Megatron's chest. However, Optimus is leaning at an angle when in the clearing, so his size difference may not be an error.
- When Jetfire appears near the end, Cyclonus's helicopter mode has four windows in one shot.
- When he transforms after Jetfire, part of Starscream's head is colored like his face for a second.
Continuity notes
- During the canyon's fight sequence, Starscream comments that he doesn't want to get reshot at; this seemingly throwaway line will set the stage for what happens in the upcoming episodes.
- The kids and Autobots mention Sideways's break-in a few times as it occurred in the previous episode, "Chase."
- Dunerunner appears for the first and last time in the cartoon. He would later appear during The Unicron Battles in issue #12 of the Linkage comic.
- In 2015, Ask Vector Prime repurposed the Exdimensions as entirely new characters, nicely in hand with Spin's deco appearing in this episode.
- In Legends of the Microns, Knock Out is present among the Decepticon Mini-Cons in place of Sonar. It would be easy to write this off as simple model reuse, since he defected in "Vow" and joined the Autobots; however, he is later seen in Decepticon possession in "Runaway" with all the other Mini-Cons that defected. Given that Spiral had been stolen offscreen by the Decepticons, the Decepticons possibly stole these Mini-Cons back offscreen too.
- Gadgets and powers:
- Thrust has invisibility/stealth capabilities.
- Optimus Prime Powerlinx with the Skyboom Shield for the first time.
- According to Cyclonus, Thrust is a "master at mimicry", able to "duplicate the fighting power of his opponent, simply by absorbing their energy".
- Smokescreen Powerlinx with the Skyboom Shield for the first time.
- The Air Military Mini-Con Team and Air Defense Mini-Con Teams fire lasers in their vehicle modes.
- Thrust fires lasers from his wing missiles.
- Scavenger Powerlinx with the Skyboom Shield for the first time.
- Jetfire fires lasers from his wing missiles.
- Jetfire carries his shield for the first time.
- Jetfire uses his Plasma Blaster for the first time.
Continuity errors
- Sonar is shown in the same room as the Air Military Mini-Cons and Inferno; this is a continuity error, as they're all revealed to be on Earth with Megatron, though it could be just an example of model reuse.
- Megatron welcomes Thrust to Earth even though they are on Earth's moon. Legends of the Microns has Megatron say that Thrust has finally arrived.
- Where did Billy and Fred disappear to in the middle of the episode?
- Optimus orders Smokescreen to take point in the ravine, with Hot Shot and Blurr staying together while Optimus and Scavenger take the lead. But when they enter the gully, it's Hot Shot who has point; Smokescreen is in the rear, and the rest are in the middle. In the Japanese dub, Prime tells Smokescreen the Autobots will depend on his support as they enter formation, with Hot Shot paired with Blurr, and Optimus with Scavenger.
- Cyclonus suddenly appears in helicopter mode alongside Sideways and Demolishor at the ambush point; no explanation is given. The shot where he first appears also shows something resembling a transmitter located beneath him; this transmitter was absent in the shot of Sideways and Demolishor springing the ambush and isn't shown when Optimus tries to break through.
- Strangely, Cyclonus earlier told Thrust that he destroyed the transmitter. Legends of the Microns fixes this error by changing Cyclonus's line to him saying he installed the transmitter.
- After asking Megatron for the Star Saber, it's like Thrust suddenly changes his mind as he says Megatron can keep it for now, but he will need the sword to deal the final blow to Optimus, and Megatron is okay with that. In the Japanese dub, Thrust doesn't shift gears; he assures Megatron will have the Star Saber back to kill Prime himself, and Megatron tells Thrust he better remember that.
- When trying to pass the Skyboom Shield to Optimus, Scavenger refers to it as "my shield." This grammar error is fixed in Legends of the Microns.
- After Smokescreen shoots Megatron in the back, the shot of Optimus is reused from "Overmatch," but as a close-up, it has an overcast sky behind him even though it was clear a moment ago. The shot is used again seconds later, but it suddenly changes to a medium close-up of Prime. In the Japanese dub, the background is corrected, and it's a medium close-up shot both times to keep continuity.
- Hot Shot asks if it's Jetfire despite Optimus saying his name a few seconds ago. This mistake doesn't happen in Legends of the Microns.
Real-world references
- In the gulley, Cyclonus briefly does his own riff on the song, "Santa Claus is Coming to Town."
Trivia
- The furigana ちえもの could be read as 知恵者, although technically it would be pronounced as chiesha. The kanji 軍師 would be pronounced as gunshi.
- "Tactician" first aired in the United States on January 30, 2003.
- Garry Chalk sounds very bored in this episode.
- The clip of Starscream with his miscolored white legs is shown on the preview used in the "Battle For The Mini-Cons" DVD.
Foreign localization
Hungarian
- Title: "A taktikus" ("The Tactician")
Polish
- Title: "Strateg" ("Strategist")
French
- Title: "Tacticien" ("Tactitian")
Korean
- Title: "투명로봇 스나이퍼" ("Invisible Robot Sniper")
Portuguese
- Title: "Tático" ("Tactician")
Home video releases
- DVD
2003 — Transformers: Legends of the Microns — Volume 7 (Columbia Music Entertainment) — Japanese audio only.
2003 — Transformers: Armada — Vol:09 (Warner Music Video)
2004 — Transformers: Armada — Battle for the Mini-Cons (Rhino Entertainment)
2004 — Transformers: Armada — Season One: Part One (Rhino Entertainment)
2007 — Transformers: Armada — The Collector's Edition (Universal)
2008 — Transformers: Armada — Volume One (New KSM) — English and German audio.
2014 — Transformers: Armada — The Complete Series (Shout! Factory)
