The Tracker
| ||||||
 "You like Krabby Patties, don't you Squidward?" | ||||||
| "The Tracker" | ||||||
| Production code | 241 | |||||
| Season | 2 | |||||
| No. in season | 41 | |||||
| Production company | Allspark Animation | |||||
| Airdate | June 8, 2020 (UK) May 1, 2021 (US) | |||||
| Writer | Fionn Boland | |||||
| Director | Ray Quigley | |||||
| Animation studio | Boulder Media Studio | |||||
 Watch this episode on YouTube
| ||||||
Upon discovering that Griffin Rock journalist, Huxley Prescott, has gone missing deep in the jungle, Whirl enlists the help of an expert tracker to help her find him.
Synopsis
[edit]Huxley Prescott reports from the Omegla region of the Amazon rain forest where he's tracking down a discovery thanks to recent reports. Whirl and Chase review his broadcast, as Mr Prescott has gone missing and Chase is assigning Whirl the task of tracking him down. Meanwhile Hoist is lifting weights while being spotted by Grimlock. When Grimlock explains the concept of spotting to Whirl, she asks if he can help her track Prescott, but though he's busy with Hoist, he knows someone who can help her.
Whirl arrives in the Amazon but doesn't see the friend in question until Slash jumps out at her. She shows the Dinobot the video of Prescott and Slash immediately heads off, using her olfactory sensors as a guide. Whirl follows, but quickly loses Slash, only for Slash to sneak up and startle her. With Whirl stuck on a branch, Slash explains she works alone and dismisses the idea of needing a spotter. Whirl continues to follow Slash, even resorting to helicopter mode to keep up. Slash finds the end of the trail, and jumps off a rock into quicksand, rapidly sinking before Whirl catches up. The rock crumbles as Whirl searches, sending her into the quicksand as well.
The pair end up in an underground ruin where they locate Huxley's wrecked camera. Slash finds there's oil in grooves on the floor, so she ignites it, lighting up the room and revealing Huxley being clutched by an immense statue. Slash moves towards him but triggers floor plates, causing sections of floor to raise up and force her into the clutches of another statue. Obvserving the art on the walls, Whirl works out that the trap works by a series of weights and balances. By jumping on the raised sections of floor, she resets the trap, releasing Slash and Prescott. The trap going off has destabilized the ruined temple, so once there's a big enough hole in the ceiling, Whirl uses her copter mode to airlift the pair out. Huxley recovers consciousness, and Whirl and Slash suggest next time he bring a friend to be safe.
Featured characters
[edit](Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
Quotes
[edit]"Nine... and a half... still nine... That one lacked style."
- —Grimlock helps Hoist lift weights.
"You must be Slash."
"Rhymes with 'bash', but with a sickeningly stealthy style."
- —Whirl meets Slash.
Notes
[edit]Continuity notes
[edit]- Huxley has appeared before in the show, notably unnamed as the reporter in "Trick or Treat" and "Monster Savings", but this is his first named appearance since Transformers: Rescue Bots.
Transformers references
[edit]- With this episode, the Dinobot Slash makes her first cartoon appearance! First introduced in the Age of Extinction toyline as a tracker, her gender was formally established as female by her later Power of the Primes toy. In this continuity, she retains both characteristics, and also gains a bit of a Southern twang.
Trivia
[edit]- As is standard, the text on Whirl's HUD as she scans for Slash reads "MISSION" and "DETECTING ACTIVITY".
